Vacation to: Turks and Caicos, Half Moon Cay and Nassau.

Another wonderful trip....

The Carnival Destiny

If the favourite part of your vacation is lounging on the beach then you should definitely consider a cruise that stops in Turks and Caicos and Half Moon Cay. Cruises are a great way to visit numerous destinations on one trip while also having the luxury of fine dining, entertainment and so much more!

 My trip aboard the Carnival Destiny last November stopped in Half Moon Cay, Turks and Caicos and Nassau and we spent the entire 5 days of the cruise relaxing and indulging.

Miami

 We  spent the first three days prior to the cruise exploring all Miami has to offer, shopping, touring and enjoying the night life.

Shopping in Miami

One of my favourite malls in Miami is Dolphin Mall. They have a wonderful outdoor food court with live music and many good restaurants to choose from. The mall also has a lot of great stores. Some of the other malls I stopped at and are worth visiting are:

-Sawgrass Mills in Sunrise Florida

-Bayside Marketplace

-Miami International Mall

-West Land Mall

Attractions:

If you want to do some sightseeing in Miami and plan to visit a number attractions then it is a good idea to purchase the Miami Go Card. It allows you to pay one price and gives you access to all attractions. Purchasing this card saves you a lot of money.

Vizcaya Museum and Gardens

Picture I took at Vizcaya Museum

Vizcaya gardens

One of the most beautiful attractions that we visited when we were in Miami was the Vizcaya Museum. The museum was built in 1916 and has rooms upon rooms filled with beautiful art, furniture and luxuries. Walking around this beautiful museum and its ten acre garden transports you into another era. Vizcaya is a wonderful place to take stunning photos.

Duck Tours

Biscayne Bay Miami

 One of the tours we took was the Duck Tours which was a tour aboard an enormous bus resembling a duck. The tour took us through the streets of Miami’s beautiful art deco buildings, past the mansions of the rich and famous, through South Beach and then we drove right into the Biscayne Bay as our tour bus became a boat.  This tour was a lot of fun and I would definitely recommend it.

South Beach

I have been to South beach many times and aside from the beach itself it’s a good place to have lunch and dinner, go bar hopping and do some shopping.

Jungle Island

Liger: Half tiger half lion breed

I visited Jungle island as one of my last sightseeing destinations and it left much to be desired. The attraction was within a very small space and it didn't see like the animals had adequately spaced enclosures in my opinion. The shows were also horrible and poorly hosted. If it wasn’t for the Miami Go Card we purchased the price to get into this attraction was overpriced.

Cruise on the Carnival Destiny

The Carnival Destiny: on deck

After our three days in Miami we boarded the Carnival Destiny and began our fun filled cruise. I won’t go into all the details about the ship but I will give you a quick break down of what I thought.

The Carnival Destiny was rather old and in need of some repairs, although the colors were not that bad the staterooms were shabby and in need of renovation. The amenities were less than what I expected but they did have the basics such as: pools, hot tubs, water slide, night clubs, casino, bars and lounges, theatre, mini golf, basketball court, ping pong, formal dining and shows and productions. The food was average, to me the cusine lacked flavour but there were a lot of food options so it wasn’t difficult to find something likable. The entertainment was mediocre, the comedy shows were good but the musical productions were a bit repetitive with the other Carnival ships I have been on.

Turks and Caicos

The best thing about this cruise was the ports we stopped at. Turks and Caicos was beautiful and the beach was amazing. There wasn’t much to do on the island except lounge around and relax which was perfectly fine with me.

Half Moon Cay

Half Moon Cay was one of the most beautiful beaches I have ever seen. The water was crystal clear, the sand was powdery white and soft and it was a sunny beautiful day. There is nothing on to do on the island except shop in the small sting of souvenir stores and swim in the warm ocean. We did not want to leave this island, it was like being in paradise. Because there were no restaurants on this private island the cruise line had a barbeque with tons of food. They also had a live Dj playing music as we swam and lounged around.  This stop was the epitome of relaxation and beauty.

Nassau Bahamas

The last stop we made was to Nassau in the Bahamas. This was the second time I had been to Nassau, I had previously spent a week there and I did write about it in a previous blog. We didn`t have very much time at this stop just enough time to shop, enjoy some food and music and go swimming at the beach.

 I had a wonderful time on this trip and I am anxiously awaiting the next one...