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Antiqua, an island to which we had never been, seemed flat and deserty. Entering an area more like a lagoon, the water appeared dirty and green. Smoke rose up from the island as a brush fire burn the distance. Despite the first impression Antigua left, we were excited for the adventure ahead and of course, the kids could hardly wait to hit the beach!
Taking in the view of the new island, Preston looks the place over while waiting for the rest of us to get ready. Brooklyn empties St. Thomas sand from her swim shoes over the side into the Antigua bay.

Intrigued by the crew activity outside our verandah, Preston called Greg to ask what it was all about. As we watched, the entire fleet of life boats descended and formed a circle to begin various drills. Imagining a real emergency and life boats filled with passengers brought reality to the thought of disasters like Titanic.


To see all of our port of call photos, click here.
As we crossed the gangway, we were straight across from the Seabourn cruise ship;. This small luxurious ship caters to an elite group customizing cruising to meet the needs of its passengers and bathing them is personalized service. Maybe someday we will switch from Carnival and travel its true elegance. This was the ship used to film the movie Speed II with Sandra Bullock.

The island streets were narrow and congested with parked cars, speeding taxis, and busy people everywhere. Venturing out to a beach recommended by one of the crew members, the ride was about 20 minutes. The scenery was brown and yellow vegetation, most dead from the lack of rain which was causing a severe drought on the island.

Faithfully reaching our destination, our taxi driver dropped us off just before entering a hotel resort area. We knew we were heading to Hawksville beach with three distinctive bays and were anxious to explore each one. We were very relieved to see the green water in the lagoon where the ship docked gave way to the famous blue waters of the Caribbean once we reached the beach.

The first area wasn't officially a public beach, but was a great stretch of sand with no other occupants than us. Most of the people dropped off by other taxis quickly ventured on to the resort area. Preston and Brooklyn were excited to see a real pirate ship sailing the seas. They didn't realize it was a tourist ship filled with Destiny passengers ready to get plastered and walk the plank.

It didn't take Preston very long to find a walking stick so he could explore the beach. Once again taking time out for sun screen, it is always the first order of business once we hit the beach.

Once we relaxed for a while on that beach, we decided to venture out to the next bay and see what the other beaches had in store.

The first bay was a big disappointment. Though beautiful water and a long sandy beach area, this was definitely the resort area busy with people and activity. Equipped with all the amenities of a resort, jet skis, volleyball, food, lots of people and noise, etc., it wasn't the seclusion for which we were looking.

It was a long walk through this first bay and no wonder most people didn't continue on to the next bay. However, the walk was definitely worth it!!! The next cove was spectacular and completely secluded. It seemed like a dream come true. The beach was perfect for the kids who spent several hours building sand castles and snorkeling.


Just ten feet from the beach sand, we relaxed on soft grass and enjoyed shade from our own palm tree. With no other guests around, we lounged in comfortable chairs until someone came along and wanted to charge us $10 for using the chairs. We declined, moved to lie on the grass and refused to pay for the shade.

Though no one else joined us on our secluded beach, quite a few people walked through, obviously going on to the third bay. Greg got bored and decided to explore the next cove. Susan thought he was gone a long time, but eventually Greg came back with a smile on his face. He convinced Susan she had to see the view from the next bay. Though Susan suggested they pack up and move on over if it is so wonderful, Greg said no and urged Susan to go look because it was so incredible.

With the kids involved in building sand castles, Susan ventured off to see the great sight. Descending down a hill and onto the beach, Susan couldn't imagine what view Greg was talking about. The view seemed just the same. Imagine her surprise when she realized she was in the middle of a completely nude beach! Returning to our secluded beach, Greg just laughed as he saw Susan's face blood red.

We spent about four hours on the beach then it was time to walk back to the taxi pick up area. This is always scary. When your taxi driver drops you off, you tell him when you want to get picked up and he assures you he will return at that time. Though we have never been let down, we crossed our fingers as we walked over the last hill and sure enough, there he was.

Enormous yet elegant, the Destiny's smoke stack can be seen from miles across the islands. Returning to it always provides for great picture opportunities of the magnificent ship.

Of course, spending four hours at the beach was not enough for the kids. It was immediately into the pool where they spent another two hours swimming. Unfortunately, swimming had to be cut short as it was formal night so we had to head back to the cabin for showers.

Brooklyn and Preston are always excited to dress up for dinner. Walking through the ship hand-in-hand, they are precious enough to draw comments from most people who pass them.

For all of our formal pictures, please click here to view the enlarged photos.

On the way to dinner, we passed by the navigation map which indicates where we have been so far on our trip. The green lights indicate where we have been and the red is where we are going. Of course, more red lights are good meaning that we had a long ways to go on our trip.

The waiter and bus boy are always terrific. They quickly learn exactly what you want and when you want it. Brooklyn is always impressed at how the bus boy remembered to bring her chocolate milk each night without even asking for it.

During the last day at breakfast before we got off the ship, we were sitting down having breakfast when over our shoulder came a pint of chocolate milk. We couldn't figure out who was bringing it until was saw our busboy, who was helping out in the buffet section, bring it to Brooklyn.

Though dinner in the formal dining room is fun, it is also long usually lasting an hour and a half. The kids are always patient, have good manners, and enjoy the fun, but they are also glad when it is over and they can go to Camp Carnival. To our surprise, many parents don't take their kids to formal night and leave them to eat with the staff at Camp Carnival.

Excited to meet up with their new ship friend, Emma, Brooklyn and Preston create Dreamcatchers. This gives Greg and Susan a few hours to have their romantic stroll to the back of the ship.
Our room steward, Jeneal from Sweden, was excellent. Preston and Brooklyn immediately fell in love with her and her accent. On the last day of the cruise, the kids wrote her letters of appreciation and drew pictures of them and Jeneal.

Every night, Jeanel made sure the kids had a towel animal. The elephant was a great addition to the one from the previous night. Of course, Jeanel always left a chocolate treat for all of us on our pillows to help the day come to a perfect end.

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