Do you remember your first cruise? If you’ve not cruised before, do you recall an early trip you took with your family? Vacations are all about making memories.
Windjammer Barefoot cruises operated out of Miami, Florida back in the 80s when we took our first cruise. We had no intention of going on a windjammer cruise when I went to a local travel show with a friend. I filled out entry forms at various booths and to my surprise, got a phone call that we had won a passage on the ship. All we had to do was get to Florida, and if desired pay for the stowaway night (which cost us $25).
Unlike other cruises on ocean-going ships, the dress code on the Yankee Trader was very casual. They didn’t call them barefoot cruises for nothing. Dressing up for the Captain’s dinner meant putting on your sandals. The night of the dinner began with a toga party. The rules were that you needed to make your toga from whatever materials you could find, and you must not have anything underneath the toga (and the female Purser checked to be sure). Some of the people knew about the party in advance and were prepared. We had not known but still participated. My husband used a nightshirt for his toga, and I used some sheets. The winner of the event had been on the cruise the week before and had collected vines and other embellishments.
Dinner was a pig roast complete with all the trimmings. The Captain did the honors, carving the pig while the crew finalized the preparation of the other items. To date we still remember this dinner party and the great time we all had. This is what a great cruise is made of - memories that last for a lifetime.
It is sad that the current generation will never sail on these beautiful sailing vessels. The fleet is gone and Captain Michael Burke, their founder, passed away several years ago, closing the book on this chapter forever.
The same friend had a role to play in our first ocean-going cruise as well. She and her husband were booked on a Caribbean cruise onboard Carnival Celebration and asked us to come with. At first, we said no, but after a stressful family vacation to Disney World, we decided we needed our own getaway. This year we will be sailing on the new Carnival Celebration for Dream Vacation’s National Conference.
Since our first cruise, we have sailed on 30 Caribbean cruises and helped hundreds of families plan their dream Caribbean adventures. It was by chance that we took this first cruise. We fell in love with cruising and the sea on this trip and the rest is history. If you’ve not cruised before, we hope that you’ll find a similar experience in your future. We are certain once you take that first cruise, you’ll fall in love like we did. Call us to plan your Dream Vacation at sea.