I'm not much of a cruiser. I'm a solo traveller so I don't generally leap out of my seat when a cruise is a travel option as I feel they are suited for couples or families. That said, as I'd just come off two weeks hiking in Yellowstone(solo) and I was looking for something different. I stumbled across Fathom and its ship, the Adonia. I felt this would be a perfect mix as you can get as involved or not involved in their activities as you see fit and would return to the ship to use as your comfy home for a week. They have several activities to sign up for ranging from assisting with concrete flooring to teaching English as a second language and several more. Believe me, choose to get involved. Its well worth your time and I found the reward far, far outweighs the effort.

This is only the 3rd ship I'd been on and upon speaking with others found I was very much in the "novice" category when it came to those about with cruising experience. Boarding the ship was a breeze and soon we were told(ahead of schedule) that our rooms were available. This was not an issue as most of the ship was open to explore. It's a beautiful, clean ship and the smaller size of it made exploring easy.

For the activities, you meet with your "Cohort" group - a group that generally meets at the same time each day prior to the activity in order to offer a description and review of the Dominican Republic itself and also an introduction to the events in detail. Throughout the days, there are also various opportunities to sign up for different classes ranging from elementary Spanish and self help classes as well as spin, mediation and yoga. All are done in group settings and are fun and engaging - there's no fear of "failing" at all. Read more