I just finished a six-night cruise on Vela and I had an amazing time. The trip was one of the peak experiences of my life. Some of the credit for that belongs to the Vela; she’s a sweet ship. Mostly, however, it is due to the crew’s hard work and dedication to the passenger’s happiness.

I traveled solo as a share of a Deluxe Cabin, which means that you sign up to share the cabin with a stranger, if one should book. I was fortunate, probably, that no one booked the other half of the cabin.

We embarked at Marigot Bay on St. Lucia, and, in addition to St. Lucia, visited the islands of Isles des Saintes and Marie-Gallant (both off the coast of Guadeloupe), Dominica, and with a brief stop in Martinique. There were long stops at Isles des Saintes, where we visited a very pretty, very French, village and a Napoleonic fort; at Marie-Gallant for swimming, snorkeling, paddle-boarding, and lunch; and at two separate stops in Dominica, where we were offered a choice of several activities such as tours of the island, beach time or river tubing. The captain was careful to time our arrivals and departures so that we had as much time as possible during daylight hours at each stop. Brandon, our operations manager, started each day listing the schedule and the available activities. He worked hard to accommodate any out of the ordinary requests, and was helpful arranging post-cruise taxis and restaurant reservations. Read more