We did the America's Cup Race excursion. You go on a sailboat that actually competed in the America's Cup many years ago & help sail it in a race. They tell you what to do, so no sailing experience is required. This was fun, but not as exciting as I imagined - because of the tacking, you can't really tell who's ahead most of the time. 
Then we walked through Phillipsburg for a while. Saw a nice free museum on the island history as well as the small Yoda Guy store. Also bought some guavaberry liqueur to take home. Would have loved to see the French side as well, but there just wasn't time. 


St. Maarten

We did the Captain Nautica snorkeling expedition. This was great. Took a power boat ride (warning - fun but very bumpy) to Buck Island. Stopped for snorkeling at two places. Shipwreck Cove had lots of fish who were very eager to eat the fruit peels given to us by the crew. They come right up and grab it from your hands. Bring some extra bread from the buffet. The more amazing stop is Turtle Cove. We saw several large turtles. They would feed on the grass at the bottom and then surface to breathe right in front of you. Cool. 
Back in town, we visited the historic synagogue with a sand floor. Chatted with the rabbi about the history of the congregation. Then wandered down the main street and did a little shopping. 


St. Thomas

We did the Reef Snorkel and Stingray Safari excursion. The first stop was snorkeling at a reef. Very disappointing - didn't see many fish - there were more for free at Princess Cays. Then we stopped at Gibb's Cay to see the stingrays. This was great! You are in shallow water off a beach. They pick one up and pass it around so people can hold and kiss it. We had our own snorkels and were able to swim around and see several other sting rays. One large one rubbed up against me like a cat! 
Gibb's Cay was great, but I can't recommend this company. They took everyone's snorkels away before arrival at the island. They should have let people keep them for the stingrays. Also, I suggest just doing Gibb's Cay without the reef snorkel part. 
After the excursion, we stayed at the beach for a while. It's very pretty and you can walk quite a ways & get away from people if you like. However, it's quite rocky in the swimming area so bring water shoes if you have them. There is also a humongous pool there that's worth looking at, even if you aren't pool people. I recommend the smoothie place. Didn't really look at the other shops. 


Grand Turk

Also, some things we might have been interested in were only offered one time during the day - for example, yoga was only offered at 8 am!Not so hot Activities - during the at-sea days (2 1/2), there just wasn't much to do that interested us during the day.

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The Ups and Downs of Life at Sea for First Time Cruisers

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