Wonder what life is like on a cruise? Adam and I spent a week onboard the MS Eurodam on Holland America Line on their Eastern Caribbean Cruise. Our 7-night cruise set sail from Fort Lauderdale, Florida heading out into the Caribbean. On our cruise, we visited Grand Turk, Sint Maarten, Puerto Rico, and Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas.
There is no better way to see several Caribbean islands than taking a cruise. Just unpack your bags once, and wake up in a different destination every morning.
I could get used to life on the MS Eurodam! Here is what a typical day aboard the MS Eurodam looks like.
7am Wakeup
Waking up to the sun shining in through the blinds as we are cruising through the Caribbean is something I didn’t need to set an alarm for. After a good nights rest, it was time to get up and throw a towel in the beach bags for another great day in the Caribbean.
730 am Room Service Breakfast
Room service is included with the cruise. We placed order card on our door handle before we went to bed, and woke up with breakfast in bed. There is was also breakfast in many of the restaurants around the ship, but we went with room service delivered every day, as this saved us time in the morning.
8 am Ship Arrives Into Port
Most days our cruise ship arrived in port between 8-9a.m. We were advised over the speakers when we could head to shore and when to be back on board.
9 am Optional Excursion
Once on shore, we headed off to our optional excursions. We picked one of the many excursions for every port on our Eastern Caribbean cruise. Our excursions were typically 1-2 hours, leaving us enough time to explore on our own before returning to the ship. One of our favorite excursions was our helicopter flight over Grand Turk.
11am-230 pm Explore the Island On Our Own
After an optional excursion, we spent the remainder of our time exploring on our own. Typically this was relaxing on the beach. On Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas, we walked the entire 2.5 mile stretch of white sand beach.
In Puerto Rico, we enjoyed wandering down the cobblestone streets in Old San Juan. No better way to discover a city than getting lost!
230pm Late Lunch
We typically ate a big breakfast and waited to have lunch until we got back on the boat. Our lunch go-to spot was Dive In. This drive-in style burger window is located on the top deck next to the pool, hence the name ‘Dive In’.
We ate at Dive In at least 5 times during our stay on the M.S. Eurodam. The burgers and french fries are something you’d expect to find at your favorite burger joint. Dive In serves gourmet burgers complete with caramelized onions, bacon, and secret sauce. Don’t forget to add cheese sauce to your fries.
*Lunch is available on the cruise ship, which you can come and go from when docked*
3 pm Ship Departs
After a day of exploring and everyone is back on board the ship departs and set sail to tomorrow’s destination.
330pm Workout
The MS Eurodam features a state of the art gym. There is more than enough treadmills, elliptical, bikes, and weights for everyone. There are also classes available, just make to sign up in the fitness center. The spinning and yoga classes were very popular.
530pm Sunset
Don’t miss the nightly sunset show. Head up to the top deck and grab a happy hour drink and watch the sunset. Check your daily paper to see the drink specials and happy hour times for each bar onboard the MS Eurodam.
8 pm Dinner
There were 7 restaurants onboard the MS Eurodam, and 24-hour room service available. Every night in the Rembrandt dining hall the menu features daily specials, as well as a few house favorites. Our favorite meal on our cruise was at Pinnacle grill. Our steaks were out of this world and cooked to perfection.
Make sure to pack a variety of clothing as several of the restaurants have a dress code. Check out this ultimate cruise packing list from my friend Flashpacker Family.
*A few of the restaurants do require an additional fee and reservations*
10 pm After Dinner Cocktails
After a delicious meal, we typically headed to the piano bar for some great music and drink before retiring to our staterooms for the night. The ship also has a casino, nightclub, BB King’s blues club, several bars, and a MainStage show lounge.
11 pm Goodnight
After another busy day, it’s time to call it a night, as tomorrow we’ll be arriving at new island!
After a week on the MS Eurodam, it’s safe to say I could have easily called it home for several more weeks. There are several Caribbean cruise routes, but after reading these Aruba facts we definitely want to travel to Aruba soon. We are hoping to set sail on an Alaskan cruise, and Holland America has one we have our hearts set on.
Have you been on a cruise? What was your day to day life like?
*We were guests of Holland American Line but as always opinions are our own*
Rashaad
Monday 4th of January 2016
I went on a cruise years ago but since it was almost 13 years ago, I have no memory of what a typical day was like. But I enjoyed my cruise.
John
Thursday 31st of December 2015
Sounds like a fun day to me! We've never cruised with Holland America before but after reading this and drooling over those steaks, you've got us thinking about HAL for a future voyage. Oh, the cruise life!