7 Day Western Caribbean Cruise Highlights
December 6 - Depart New Orleans at 5:30 PM. Evening Square Dance with Mike & Buddy. Your home for the next week is NCL Norwegian Spirit, featuring "free style" cruising.
December 7 - At Sea with on-board ship activities and Square Dance sessions with Mike & Buddy.
December 8 - Costa Maya, a small tourist region in the state of Quintana Roo, Mexico, located between Cancun and Belize. Costa Maya's port has a new and modern tourist shopping mall. The center has a central plaza with saltwater pools and "swim-up" style bars. There are several jewelry stores and many small shops selling ubiquitous souvenir items. Two miles away is the fishing village of Mahahual, known for it's soft sand beaches, grass thatched palapas and a coral reef, a short distance off-shore. The village has several bars, restaurants, and shops and is busy with cruise passengers.
Costa Maya is the closest port of access to many of the lesser known Mayan ruins in the Yucatan. These sites are substantially less excavated than the better known pyramids near Cancun.
December 9 - Santo Tomas de Castilla, also known as Matias de Galvez is a port city in Izabal Department, Guatemala. Originally settled by Belgians in the 19th century, Santo Tomas de Castilla started receiving cruise ships in 2004. The cruise ship terminal is a tremendous boost for the Guatemalan tourism industry with passengers visiting mostly for it's Mayan culture. Nearby attractions include Rio Dulce and the town of Livingston with dozens of water falls and exotic scenery
December 10 - Belize City, the nation's
principal port and it's financial hub. Belize has been
attracting steadily increasing numbers of U.S. visitors as it has become better
known as a reasonably priced destination offering some of the best diving in the
Caribbean.
Diving is Belize's main claim to fame due to an almost unbroken line of reefs
and cays extending for 150 miles along its coast that make up the longest reef
system in the western hemisphere (and the second longest in the world).
Belize has the highest concentration of Mayan sites of all the countries in
Central America. Among the best of Belize's Mayan sites is Altun Ha, a
heavily excavated site that is a convenient day trip out of the city. Once a
major trading and ceremonial center, it consists of several impressive temples
and tombs highlighted by the Temple of the Masonry Altars.
December 11 - Cozumel, according to Mayan legend, Cozumel was the home of Ixchel, the goddess of love and fertility. Legend has it that when religious temples were dedicated to her, she sent her favorite bird -- the swallow -- as a sign of her gratitude. For this reason, the people coined the island "Cuzamil" -- Mayan for "Land of the Swallows." There are several important Mayan sites on the island (such as San Gervasio and El Cedral). The vast majority of the population lives in the town of San Miguel, which is on the western shore featuring the best beaches for swimming, snorkeling or lounging under the sun where the winds are light and waters usually calm.
December 12 - At Sea with on-board ship activities and Square Dance sessions with Mike & Buddy.
December 13 - New Orleans, where we disembark for flights home filled with wonderful memories and many new found friends.
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