Back in August of 2023, I finally scored a cabin on The Hallmark Channel Christmas Cruise. We didn't make it on the inaugural sailing but when they put on a second ship, we were high enough on the wait list to have our first choice - a mid-ship balcony cabin on Deck 11.
Then we began the long wait until sailing day November 17, 2024. We had pre-booked our seats for the premiere of a new Hallmark Christmas movie that would be shown on the cruise and as time went by, we were able to join the lottery for the wine tasting, cocktail tasting, and Festive Feud, a Family Feud-type game with the Hallmark talent and contestants from the audience. We were only successful in getting spots for the cocktail tasting.
Our flight to Miami left Seattle at 7:00am with a layover in Houston. It was a very short layover, and it was a long, long walk between gates, so we just managed to make it. I made a quick stop at Sunglass Hut as I remembered I left my sunglasses in the car at the airport.
We spent the night at the Mariott in Miami with a great upgrade to a suite. It paid off to sign up for the Mariott credit card as it came with an intro $250 gift card as well.
The next morning, it was up and off in an Uber to the port. We dropped our luggage and headed into the terminal. Love these photo op spots.
There wasn't too long of a wait to board and so we walked around the ship until they announced that the cabins were ready. The decor on the ship was amazing. They really went all out.
These were the elevators.
Our cabin was really nice. A large bed (I think it must have been at least a queen) and a couch. There was a desk across from the couch along with the TV and cabinets.
Our balcony was spacious - this is a shot while we were still in port, that's Miami in the distance.
Former safety professional that he is, Vic had us do a life vest check. His light was broken so they added another light (the green thing about C1) but Vic said he wasn't taking any chances and put on his Christmas lights necklace. If he went overboard, they would be sure to see him!
Door decorating is a big thing, especially on themed cruises like these. I bought this sign from Etsy and spotted several of them on cabin doors. I also bought small magnets and our Christmas stockings. It was fun to come back in the evening and see the goodies our stockings held.
More decor.
There was a lot of controversy on Sail 1, the inaugural sail, because some passengers were smuggling the pillows back to their cabins and then taking them home. I couldn't turn down this photo op, "Honey, grab that pillow and pretend you're going to steal it". Vic is such a sport.
Another great photo op spot.
Sunday night was the Sail-abration as we left Miami. This guy's shirt was great!
Our MC for the cruise was Jonathan Bennett, one of the Hallmark stars. He was hilarious.
Monday's main morning event was Bingo Blitz. We paid $90 for six Bingo cards - yikes, I know! We didn't win anything, but it was fun.
Monday afternoon was our movie premiere. It was Three Wiser Men and a Boy, the sequel to Three Wise Men and a Baby. It was very entertaining.
Monday's late-night activity was the Ugly Sweater Party & Contest. Our sweaters were really ugly because the print was more like moss green and berry, not the Christmas red and green that were featured in the Etsy details. The shop was very accommodating and sorry that the colors were not right and refunded our money.
We headed over to the ADA area because by this time, I needed to sit down. I had used my cane every day and it seemed like we walked miles. The only problem was that as the pool deck became more crowded, people stood right in front of us so we couldn't see anything. I give the cruise organizers 0/10 for not handling this situation better.
Tuesday was our port day in Nassau, Bahamas. We booked a Land and Sea excursion. The sea portion was very enjoyable; it was a nice ride out on the water and the guide was very entertaining. The land portion not so much. We boarded a little bus and headed up to the highest point of the island where there are a couple of historic sites. It was so crowded, so many buses and people. The whole area was grim, the bus driver called it "over the hill" which is the Bahamian term for 'hood or ghetto. The whole area around the main port area was very run down, so many buildings boarded up or in disrepair. COVID did serious damage to the economy, and it just didn't recover in many places.
Wednesday was our cocktail tasting but due to a change in the schedule because of impending rain, it now conflicted with Festive Feud and that was an event we really didn't want to miss. There was a Hallmark star as the captain of each team, and each of them were traveling with their mothers. The contestants from the audience were very animated and it was a great event.
We were really disappointed with the food on Norwegian. We ate at three of the restaurants that were included in our cruise price and at the buffet. All were meh. Really disappointed. When I posted my photos on Facebook, several of my friends commented that they found Norwegian's food disappointing. Here's Vic wearing his "This food is awful" face.
Included in our cruise was a photo op with the Hallmark stars. It was basically come in, stand on the X, snap the photo, and exit to the right. As you can see, I wasn't ready at all, but Vic is so photogenic. I'm surprised they got such a great shot because a few seconds before, he'd been chatting to Sarah Drew, the redhead to his left.
We took part in a few other activities, but the lines were just horrendous. The cruise organizers didn't think ahead on this one and used venues that were too small for the number of people who showed up. Twice, we stood in line only to be told "Sorry, this event is full".
So, some definite negatives but it's a favorite because of the great time that Vic and I had together. We haven't had a get-away-from-it-all type of trip in so long and we just had lazy days, even managed a couple of afternoon naps when we got tired of the long lines.
Thursday was departure day. We waited in another line for the airport transportation and then endured a nail-biting ride. Between the driver holding a microphone in one hand and avoiding the construction on the sides of the road, I was so thankful when we pulled up the airport. We were sitting at the gate for our flight home when a message on Facebook popped up to say a 2025 cruise was scheduled. I hope they use bigger rooms for events or have a sign-up in advance option.
