Carnival recently invited us on a Western Caribbean cruise to celebrate our one year anniversary. Words cannot describe how excited we are to share our cruising adventure! Whether you’re single, married, or have a family, cruising is an experience you’ll never forget. Our goal is to get all of you wanderlusters to give cruising a try… we’re sure you’ll be hooked!
From the moment we said “I do,” life has been a trip… literally! In the past year we’ve done everything from skydiving in Malibu, to wine tasting in Mexico, to ziplining in Panama! (Those who say life slows down when you get married… they’re all wrong!) All of the trips and adventures aside, it is still hard for us to believe that we’re coming up on our ONE YEAR anniversary. (And yes… we’re still calling ourselves newlyweds. It’s a feeling, not a deadline!)
Our one year anniversary had been looming in our heads for the past couple of months… we kept going back and forth on how we wanted to celebrate. We knew that whatever we did needed to be EPIC. It needed to be unique. It needed to be adventurous, but still upscale. We wanted to be pampered, but not bored. We went back and forth for weeks about what we should do. And that’s when we heard from Carnival…
A CRUISE. AN ANNIVERSARY CRUISE!
At first, I (Alli) was more excited than Bobby, who was a little hesitant. He wasn’t very familiar with cruising, and had heard mixed reviews (we’ll share more about that later). However, when Bobby did some research and saw that our ship had waterslides, 24 hour pizza, and mini golf… he was sold. We chose a six-night Western Caribbean cruise that left from Miami, and before we could say “Vacation!” we were stocking up on sunscreen and packing our bags!
It is impossible for us to share with you ALL of the highlights from our Carnival cruise in just one blog post – every single day was packed full of adventures! Over the next couple of weeks we will be highlighting some of our favorite experiences from the trip and some of the reasons why we chose to cruise. Today, we’re showing you why we think anniversaries (and any sort of celebration, really) are best spent on the open seas!
First things first, let’s talk about the Atrium. Known as the “Welcoming Area” on Carnival ships, the Breeze Atrium is more than just welcoming – it’s an experience!
Floating lanterns, live music, shops, bars… it feels as though you’ve entered a different world! When we first walked into the atrium, we stopped for a moment to take it all in. “THIS is our home for the next six days?! Is this real life?!” We knew we were in for an anniversary trip to remember.
In the evenings we celebrated “our way,” with wine and cheese on our stateroom balcony.
We would watch the tropical coastlines drift away in the distance, share our favorite memories of the year so far, and gush over the fact that we were on our own private balcony. On a gorgeous cruise ship. In the Caribbean. Six nights at sea, and the view never got old…
During one of our days at sea, we planned a spa day. Because every anniversary trip should include massages, right? As soon as we stepped into Cloud 9 Spa, we felt like royalty. There was soothing music playing in the background, gorgeous tile, lavish artwork, and delicious cups of hot herbal tea. The friendly Cloud 9 staff walked us through several of the different relaxation rooms, and explained what each one does, and the health benefits that go with it. We decided our time in the spa counted as our “workout” for the day!
Bobby loved the “Hydrotherapy Pool”… which is basically a giant sea-water hot tub! He would have stayed there all afternoon!
Fortunately, we had an appointment for a couples massage that we needed to get to… and both of us will agree that it was the best massage we’ve EVER had. Afterwards we lounged (and napped) in one of the gorgeous relaxation rooms. Can you spot Bobby?
You can’t celebrate an anniversary without food. One evening we decided to get dressed up and celebrate our anniversary in style. First stop: the elegant Blush Dining Room!
Our table overlooked the whole bottom floor of the restaurant, giving us the perfect view to scope out what was being served. 😉 Our server, Wiji, brought us course after course of delicious specialty menu items, and, because we were celebrating, we ordered several of each! Our favorite? The Chocolate Melting Cake! If you’ve cruised Carnival before, you know what we’re talking about!
Following our celebratory feast, we had drinks and sang along at the Piano Bar, laughed ‘till we cried at the comedy show, and then treated ourselves to a midnight snack. (Hey – we’re celebrating, remember?)
We couldn’t get enough of the pizza from the 24-hour pizzeria on board. And if you ask us, pizza at midnight is the perfect way to start year two of marriage!
As you can see, the celebration possibilities aboard the Carnival Breeze are endless. You can tailor your celebrations based on what you enjoy – and that’s what makes cruising so fun! You can celebrate by relaxing in the spa, seeing a musical production in the Ovation Theater, or by joining a massive dance party on the Lido Deck! Thanks for tagging along… more of our Carnival adventures to come!
This post was created for Away We Go with Carnival, the destination for getting in the getaway state of mind.
