By Erica Kritt, Social Media Coordinator, The Cruise Web, Inc.
Many people are wary about spending their favorite holiday away from home. Traveling during Christmas, New Years or Thanksgiving can mean missing out on your favorite traditions, but that doesn’t have to be the case. This Thanksgiving my family decided to break from tradition. Instead of traveling to someone’s house and sitting down for a home cooked meal, we decided to forgo the hassles of driving and cooking. We took a cruise to the Bahamas.
Sure, this year’s celebration was different from the Thanksgivings of years past, but honestly, this was better. Here’s why:
We celebrated for seven days, not just one. Including me, there were 13 members of my family on this cruise. My family lives all over the country – Florida, New York, Colorado and California – which makes it hard to get together. On this cruise, not only did we travel together, we spent quality time together. The sea days gave us time to catch up with each other and get in that much-needed face time.
It was easy. We chose to cruise from Baltimore because my grandmother wouldn’t have to deal with the hassles of airport security. With so many ports around the country, it makes it a lot easier for families to just load up the car and board the ship. There was no worry about missing a flight or losing a connection, just simply park the car and you’re there.
We had lots to do. Ok, I know seven days straight with your relatives can have you pulling out your hair, right? I understand. But on the cruise there were so many activities that our family split up. For instance, when we were in Nassau, my cousin and his wife explored the Atlantis Resort and Casino while my aunt and cousin went shopping for diamonds. My mother and I ventured to the straw market and my uncle and brother headed off to the beach. We all got to explore the island on our own terms and met up for dinner to share our adventures with each other. Even on the ship we could split up, only to regroup for dinner.
And my favorite new Thanksgiving tradition? That’s right, no coats! Living in Baltimore, I’m used to a cold, and sometimes snowy Thanksgiving. So being in a tropical locale where I could lounge by the pool in my bathing suit was wonderful.
Each meal was Thanksgiving-worthy. Now of course we were served fabulous meals every night, so when it came to Thanksgiving, the turkey with all the fixings was great, but so was the pasta at lunch and the eggs Benedict for breakfast. The meals were all special. On top of that, no one in my family had to lift a finger to cook it or clean it up.
And we didn’t miss a beat with our at-home traditions: the three major Thanksgiving day football games were broadcast on the TVs, my family’s favorite activity, trivia, focused on the pilgrims that day, and the pumpkin pie was outstanding.
So you see, sometimes a holiday at sea is a great way to start a new tradition with your family, without giving up some of your favorite past times. Plus it’s a vacation the whole family can enjoy and remember for years to come.
Have you ever cruised for the holidays?
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Celebrating the Holidays at Sea