Gumbo, Reggae, and Ruins: Solo in Nola and at Sea About This Page:

[elbodans]

Greetings everyone! I'm getting ready to leave on my next adventure, and I thought I'd start a thread for my soon-to-be trip report. Before I depart, here are the details...

This was, once again, a semi-last-minute trip; I booked it last Monday and I'm leaving next Wednesday. My main desire was to visit New Orleans, as it is a place I've never been--because I can usually only travel in July and August, and who wants to go to New Orleans in July or August? As this school year is my 'year off to travel', I wanted to take advantage of the cooler winter months. And so, I started looking into Nola in January.

And then I discovered that Nola is a cruise port. I honestly never even considered that before, but once I did...well...there was no reason to not take advantage of that little geographical bonus.

Thus, I will be flying from Philly to New Orleans next Wednesday, staying and touring the city until Saturday, and then boarding the Voyager of the Seas to sail to Jamaica, Grand Cayman, and Cozumel. I'll then return to Nola for one more day and night, only to fly back home at the ungodly hour of 6 a.m. As with my last cruise trip, I will be doing these things solo. Though you're never really solo on a cruise--and after only a bit of poking around various forums--including this one--I've discovered that you're never really alone in Nola, either. But more on that later.

So--anyone interested in reading this trip report? If so, up next will be The Plans.

[Colexis Mom]

Can't wait to hear all about it!

[mojjo]

Can't wait. NOLA is one of my fav cities. You'll have a blast.

[elbodans]

Thanks for following along!

Ok...The Plan...

Those of you that 'know' me know that I like to plan. A lot. I sometimes go overboard in planning. Knowing this, you may be surprised at how non-obsessively planned this trip is. Sure, I have some plans. But there's no hour by hour schedule. Which is very unlike me! In fact, I'm only about a quarter of the way through my New Orleans guide book, and don't see myself finishing it before the flight down. This is VERY unlike me!

Anyway...the plan...

Wednesday--arrival day. I'll be in Nola by noon. I have a pub crawl/french quarter tour booked for 4:00 that afternoon. I figure the best way to start off my sightseeing is with drinks in my hand! I have no plans for the evening other than perhaps 'return to bars I liked earlier in the tour' and 'find food'.

Thursday--full day in Nola. Considering a photography tour for part of the day. EDIT: Photography tour is a go! Super excited!!!

Friday--full day in Nola. No real plans. Would like to take streetcar to Garden District, walk around. More food. More bars. More food.

Saturday--check out of hotel, board ship!

Sunday and Monday--days at sea. Relax. Hydrate after three days in Nola. Run on treadmill after three days in Nola!

Tuesday--Jamaica! I have no idea what I'm doing in port this day. I'd like to go horseback riding on the beach, which is an excursion option. But I'm very hesitant about doing a ship's excursion, and that seems like the only option at this port. Falmouth is Royal Caribbean's dedicated port, so you're kind of stuck doing ship tours. Any thoughts on this would be appreciated!

Wednesday--Grand Cayman. Have a tour booked with an independent company. Going snorkeling, swimming with stingrays, and then to some pretty beach I've heard good things about. It's a very un-me-like excursion, but really, when am I ever going to be able to swim with stingrays again?

Thursday--Cozumel. This is the port I'm most excited about. Even though I know it will be a LONG day with lots of time on transportation, I've booked a ship excursion (because that's the only safe way to do it without missing the ship back) to Tulum. I'm so so so excited about this! I've always wanted to see ruins--and now I get to! Yay!!! There's also a stop at a beach for lunch post-ruins. It's an 8.5 hour excursion!

Friday--At sea. Recovery day from looooong Tulum excursion the day before!

Saturday--I'm also kind of excited about this day. I'll be back in Nola fairly early--around 8 in the morning--and i'm not flying out until 6 in the morning the next day. I have plans to meet up with a woman I met on a travel forum, and then with several others from that same forum. There's the first parade of Carnival season that night, so we're all going to that. I had no idea I'd be able to see a parade during my time in Nola, and I'm super super excited about it. There will be photos. Oh so many photos!

Sunday--After likely not sleeping all night, I'll be catching a cab to the airport at 4 in the morning. After a flight to DC, a two hour layover, and a puddle jumper flight to Philly on a 16 passenger prop plane, I'll be home by early afternoon and asleep by slightly later that same afternoon!

So...that's the plan. What do you all think? I'm very, very, very excited about this trip. Like even more excited than I was when I booked it all of ten days ago.

[Colexis Mom]

Great plans!

[LeddyFamily]

Born and raised in nola! Lemme know if I can help with dining suggestions. Jacques-Imo's is a must! Have fun! Looks like a great trip!!

[disney_duke]

Ooooh, this sounds like fun! It appears to be a good, loose set of plans.

[KMB733]

Great Start and Great Plans!!!

[chezp]

Your plans sound amazing - I can't wait to hear all about it!

[mcneal]

Sounds like a stellar trip! Lookin forward to reading all about it! We really enjoyed the streetcar ride to the Garden Dist.

[Tconst]

Sounds like a great trip! Can't wait to read your TR, as I've enjoyed your others. My fam. & I did the RC stingray ex. on Grand Cayman a few years ago and loved it. It's amazing to be in the water with the stingrays just swimming all around you! My DS, 6 at the time, got in & got right back out. This was shortly after Steve Irwin died & he wasn't having any part of the rays! DD 13 loved it, but stayed on her dad's back most of the time. We do have pictures of her kissing a ray, though. DH loved it. Enjoy!

[WishIwasinDisney]

I can't wait to read your report. I am going on an excursion to Tulum on my Fantasy cruise in April, so I am super excited to read about your experiences.

[elbodans]

Originally Posted by mcneal

Sounds like a stellar trip! Lookin forward to reading all about it! We really enjoyed the streetcar ride to the Garden Dist.

i'm definitely planning on a streetcar/garden district tour. with my camera, of course.

Originally Posted by Tconst

Sounds like a great trip! Can't wait to read your TR, as I've enjoyed your others. My fam. & I did the RC stingray ex. on Grand Cayman a few years ago and loved it. It's amazing to be in the water with the stingrays just swimming all around you! My DS, 6 at the time, got in & got right back out. This was shortly after Steve Irwin died & he wasn't having any part of the rays! DD 13 loved it, but stayed on her dad's back most of the time. We do have pictures of her kissing a ray, though. DH loved it. Enjoy!

i'm not sure that i'll be kissing any stingrays, but i'll definitely be hanging out with them a bit. i wonder if i'll freak out. i was a bit scared of fish...yes, fish...when snorkeling in bermuda. strange but true!

Originally Posted by WishIwasinDisney

I can't wait to read your report. I am going on an excursion to Tulum on my Fantasy cruise in April, so I am super excited to read about your experiences.

awesome! i'll be reporting back with lots of photos. hopefully i'll have good things to tell you--and more than a few tips.

[mushu22]

your trip reports.Can't wait to see all the .the hurricane, but do not drink more than one.

[ilovedisney247]

OK you are arriving on Wednesday next week right? I will be at work on Wednesday and you are more than welcome to come visit, but I have Thursday off!