Sunshine Escape Trip 2017 | Miami & 3 Day Bahamas Cruise

As you read from my last post about my packing tips and tricks for this trip here, Chad and I go on a trip every January to escape the frigid unforgiving Michigan winter to somewhere warm with sunshine every day.

This year we decided to try something new, two days in Miami and..

3 Day Cruise to the Bahamas!!

I have never been on a cruise before so I was a little nervous to go on one. It terrified me to be stuck in the middle of the ocean on a ship that you can’t leave whenever you want – um hello have you ever seen Ghost Ship?! Secondly, I get sea sick when I am on a boat in the ocean..no one wants to feel like crap on vacation. Needless to say, Chad had to do some convincing…but, end game is the Bahamas, right?

Chad totally played it off with us getting an interior room with no port hole “never going to be in our room anyway” speech, and I was ok with that! It is a great deal and VERY affordable, especially with Norwegian Sky. What’s so great about Norwegians Cruise Lines Sky ship you ask? ALL ALCOHOLIC DRINKS ARE INCLUDED! You heard my right sista! With the interior room and all of the benefits of an included drink package it would have come out to around $300 per person-very do able with all different budgets.

Now that he sold me on going on a cruise we had to figure out where we were going to stay before we board the ship.

*Cruise Tip* it is highly suggested to arrive at your port city at least 1-2 days prior to your boarding day. That way, if your flight gets cancelled/delayed you are guaranteed to still make your ship before it ports out!

Day 1 – Miami

The Norwegian Sky was to port out on Monday, so, we decided to arrive in Miami Saturday evening to give us enough buffer time in case of bad flights. Fortunately, our flights were all on time and has safe travels- that is always a good travel day!

We arrived at our pre-port out hotel, Kimpton Epic Miami, just in time to freshen up before dinner at Area 31 which is one of two restaurants located in the hotel. We were treated like celebrities as soon as we walked into the hotel (which celebrities are known to frequent!). This beautiful 5 star resort is the perfect place for a relaxing get-away.

Area 31 is as beautiful as these pictures. The restaurant in the hotel is located right along a channel for various yachts and boats that come through. You see city and water no matter what table you have. It is ideal outdoor dining. The drinks and seasonal menu are absolutely fantastic as well!

Day 2 – Miami

The following day, Sunday, Chad and I went for a run on some close walking/running paved pathways right next to the channels and ocean the entire route! You can see the paths from your balcony and were filled with many other runners, joggers and walkers. After getting back to the hotel we swapped our workout gear for swimsuits and we were at the pool for the rest of the day!

For that evening we made sure to hit up the complimentary wine happy hour that is in the lobby everyday at 6pm! #neverpassupwine

After our free wine, nothing better than that, we went to the Wynwood District in Miami. If you haven’t heard of this district yet, you soon will. Its the biggest up and coming area in Miami. They call it the Art District due to its lively graffiti and art everywhere you turn. The streets were filled with murals, galleries and lively clubs and restaurants. The streets were packed and the club lines were long on a Sunday night!

Another reason we went to Wynwood was because of a brewery Chad wanted to check out. Surprise. Surprise. Called Concrete Beach.

 We, of course, got one of each they had on tap. Both of our favorite was Tangerica. It is an American style IPA with Tangerine. The atmosphere was like a cozy hangout spot with concrete everywhere. They had several murals and clever art all around the brewery to bring in the Wynwood art roots. I would say its definitely worth checking out for yourself!

After Concrete Beach, we bar hopped trying different foods and drinks
from all different places.

 Day 3 – Norwegian Sky Boarding

Monday morning came and we packed and headed to Miami’s port for our 10:30 am pre-chosen boarding time. The port is like a mini security at the airport. Be sure not to bring any liquid over the standard size and nothing on the cruises “do not bring” list which can be found on your cruise lines website under FAQ’s. Here is a list of what Norwegian tells you to keep at home.

*Cruise Tip* You have a choice of carrying on your luggage or having it loaded by Norwegian and sent to your room later. If you check your luggage with Norwegian, pack a days worth of clothes including your swimsuit and clothes for dinner in a totebag/backpack. They only guarantee your luggage in your room by 8pm.

After security to you go to another line to check in. Which, surprise, also looks like a security airport line. After you are checked in with the appropriate documents, you are then escorted to a waiting area where you are called on by your assigned group given to you at check in.

BUT

Chad totally surprised me with priority boarding and an Owner’s Suite! This means several things….

1.  You get to wait in a comfy room with treats and drinks until we are ready to board the ship.
2. you get priority embarkation (on the ship) and disembarkation (off the ship). We were the first people on the ship!
3. Complimentary breakfast and lunches in the specialty restaurant, Cagney’s. (no buffet for us!)
4. Your room is ready before anyone else’s on the ship
5. Meet and greet with the captain of the ship and all other heads of departments on the ship.
6. Priority dinner reservations.
7. Personal concierge and butler.
8. Private deck with table, chairs, lounge chairs and hot tub.
9. A huge room!

We celebrated the start of our trip with lounging by the pool, sipping our champagne in the private hot tub and ending the night with a romantic dinner at Cagney’s Steak House.

Here are more pictures of our suite:

For the first night we went to Cagney’s for dinner and roamed the ship to get ourselves acquainted since we had such a busy afternoon!

Day 4 – Great Stirrup Cay

When we woke on Tuesday we were at Great Stirrup Cay which is an  island that Norwegian Cruise Line owns. We had breakfast in the room and took the charter boat to the island. Charter boat you ask? The ship is too big to dock at the island so they have a charter boat every hour that will take you back and forth between the ship and the island. Its about a 25 minute boat ride. Be sure to have a good hold on all of your belongings! It can get pretty windy if you’re on the top deck.

The beach was nice, with white sand and accessible bars (bonus!). The only food option was the  buffet which was fully stocked at all times while we were on the island. The food was ok; it consisted of pizza, hotdogs, chicken with several sides and fresh fruit available. One pointer, keep the food in the gazebos. We had several people bring food to the beach which then attracted seagulls. Don’t be these people…

We didn’t explore too much because we parked our butts on some chairs and didn’t move. Our day on the island mainly consisted of reading and sun bathing. My kid of day 🙂 . There was a mixture of live music and top hits the DJ played while you relaxed.

After a few hours we got back on the boat and decided to lay by the pool on the boat. It was kind of dead when we got to the pool because everyone else was on the island so we got a seat right by the pool and stage. It started to fill up quickly though and we decided to go back to the room and get ready for the night.

As a Owners Suite passenger we were invited to a private meet and greet with the Captain and the other heads of department that I mentioned earlier. It was a cool experience to talk to the crew and get to know them better.

We had dinner at one of the restaurants included with the cruise and was tasty!

*Cruise Tip* If you want to dine along and not at a shared table with strangers be sure to make a reservation for the time you would like to eat! Norwegian Cruise Lines pride themselves having Freestyle Cruising, but that can only stretch so far to please every cruise go-er.

Day 5 – Nassau, Bahamas

Chad and I got off the boat around 9am that day. We were already at the port when we woke up that morning at 8am! Be sure to have your ID card for the ship along with you passport. When you step off the boat you walk along the pier and across the bridge towards the city. You will go through a “security” type building but no official bag check or anything was done. You also won’t need your passport to enter either. We made sure to grab this iconic pic right as well when we get off the boat! Be sure you do as well 🙂

There are several things that you can do on Nassau that are easy to do. Such as day pass at Atlantis, explore the city to sight see and learn the history and explore the local shops. We decided to go to Sandals Resort and get a day pass. After tax they come out to about $110 per person. Sandals has several perks that are a good idea to take into consideration before heading to, the more popular, Atlantis.

1. No Kids! Sandals are strictly couples. That means no screaming kids, no splashing everywhere and most importantly true relaxation. –side note- I love kids! Just not when I’m trying to have some quiet vacation time. #sorrynotsorry 

2. Sandals is a cheaper day pass than Atlantis. While Sandals runs around $110 per person including all the food and drinks you can stuff your face with, Atlantis runs around $200 per adult ticket all inclusive.

3. It has a PRIVATE ISLAND. You read that right, Sandals owns a private island just off the shore with a short boat ride. This island is complete with a restaurant, pool, ocean hammocks and much more. Its a definite

Once you get to the other side of the “security” building there are several small shops and people trying to get you into your taxi. Just smile and say “no thank you” and you should be left alone. We had a few minutes to kill before we wanted to get into a cab so we walked around the block. Right but the port is pretty safe so no need to be alarmed while walking around. Once we decided to get a cab it was very easy to hop in one. If you decide to go to Sandals as well, it is a good 25-30 minute drive so be sure to plan accordingly. We wanted to arrive the the resort right at 10am; which is when they allow day passers to arrive to get the most for our money. Our cab ride was $18 before tip so keep that in mind when you are looking for a cab- ask ahead of time how much they are going to charge you.

On our cab ride, our cabbie gave us a small history tour on the way to the resort which was great because I wish we would have had more time to dive into some of their history on the island. Once we arrived we came through a security gate-just let them know you are there for a day pass and have your passports ready for them to look over.

Our cab guy offered to pick us back up at a specific time. Take him or her up on it, believe it or not they will show up!

Once you get your day passes approved you will be given the information of the day by the front desk clerk. Note- he or she will keep your passports while you are in the resort so don’t forget to pick them up on your way out! 

*Sorry for the lack of pictures of Sandals Resort day. I left my phone in the cab! I was devastated. But, our cab guy kept my phone safe the WHOLE DAY and and I got it back when he came to pick us up. the few pics you see were me running around before we hopped back in the cab.*

We started the day by parking our butts at the pool, grabbing a drink and laying in the sun. There are two pools at the main resort-the fun one and the relaxing one. Chad and I were at the “fun” one for the majority of the day enjoying the music and interaction. We also went to the private island. I wish we would have gone over there sooner! There was so many great places to explore and hangout.

We got back to the port a little early so we, of course, had to stop at the brewery we spotted earlier that morning called Pirate Republic . The beer was actually pretty tasty! The bartender was really knowledgeable about the beer as well. I would defiantly recommend it if you have a few minutes to kill.

We also stopped at the small pop-up shops near the pier before heading on the boat!

Be sure to have a couple extra minutes to make it back to the ship. You may not have had to go through security to enter the island but it takes a minute to get back to the ship!

We ate dinner at the other included restaurant and I played Blackjack for the first time!

Day 6 – Disembarkation, Miami

On the last day we woke up and packed up the suite. We went to Cagney’s for breakfast and I wish we would have gone every morning! They have a really yummy menu, French press coffee and amazing service.

I wish I could give you guys some tips for getting off the ship but since we were in the Owners Suite we got priority disembarkation. Our concierge took us to the very front of the line. And let me tell ya, it was a LOOOOONG line. I do know that there isn’t a lot of time in the morning to get off of the ship by 10:30 am. But, one tip, be sure to still have your keycard! I left ours in our room because we thought we didn’t need them for anything else. We were wrong…they still need to swipe your card to ensure you are off the ship. Luckily, they were able to use our passports to manually check us off.

Once you are off the ship, you go back through security to get into the US. It wasn’t a bad wait or that long of a line. I hope that this helps you with your trip to the Bahamas, it was a great new experience that I got to share with my husband! Again, you can find all my packing tips for this trip on my previous post.

Got questions? Comment Below!

Happy Traveling 🙂

Cheers!