Cruise Specialists hosts Steve and Wendy Bodenheimer are taking us along on another amazing journey. We hope this series shows you what you can expect on a Holland America Grand Voyage. These highlights are from a previous Grand Voyage and events/activities may vary by sailing.

They kicked things off at our farewell gala, then spent some days on board getting to know everyone before enjoying their Panama Canal Transit. Then it was a little more time enjoying the sea.

At noon today, we were 900 miles from the Galapagos Islands, the nearest point of land. Earlier in the morning, we crossed the Equator into the Southern Hemisphere and had 12,000 feet of water under the ship.

Other than some dolphin sightings this morning, there is absolutely nothing we can see in any direction. It reminds you how small we are on this very big planet!

This is our fourth continuous day at sea and we still have 2,000 miles to reach our next port. Many Guests love these leisurely days and choose to just curl up with their favorite books or relax out on deck. And others are busy every minute.

The list of activities is long and varied. Here’s just a sample of today’s activities:

• Start with a morning stretch class at 7:00AM or yoga, or water aerobics at the pool, or spinning, or shuffleboard challenge, or just use the many machines and facilities at the gym.
• Sunday Mass celebrated or an inter-denominational service or a morning chat with the Rabbi about the Jewish Experience.
• Want something creative – Try watercolor painting class, movie making in the Digital Workshop, the sit and knit needlework group, or the arts and crafts class.
• As part of our exploration guide series, learn to play the Ukulele or to dance the Maori Haka with our onboard Hawaiian group.
• Attend one of the three lectures presented today – one on our upcoming ports and two by guest speakers with widely varying topics of history, astronomy, geology, etc.
• Card players can join the Texas Hold’em tournament or settle in for a few hours of bridge instruction and play.
• Or maybe you are a fan of Team Trivia, played at least twice a day.
• Bingo anyone, played every afternoon!
• Massage, haircut, manicure, facial, sauna and more – all available at the spa.

In the food and drink department – there is a wonderful Sunday Brunch from 11:00AM until 1:00PM and afternoon tea at 3:00PM, in addition to regular breakfast, lunch, and dinner. How about a single malt Scotch tasting or cocktail sampling at the Sports Bar?

Dip in one of the two pools, relax in the hot tubs, walk around the Promenade Deck, play ping pong or pickle ball, watch a movie on your in room DVD player or on the big screen in the theater.

And these are just the daytime activities.

ARE YOU TIRED YET?!

It really is an incredible array of things to do.

Keep in mind that this is a Grand Voyage and some of these events and activities are not available on “regular” cruises – but most of them are the regular Holland America program. We think it’s pretty great.

We have one extra scheduled activity every sea day which is Chat Time for our Cruise Specialists Guests. We have an area reserved for us where we serve coffee, tea, and cookies from 10:30AM until noon. Our Guests stop by to ask questions, meet other guests in our group, or just pass some time.
For us, it is an opportunity to get to know people in a relaxed setting. We’ve had small but enthusiastic turnout for these sessions thus far. With everything else going on, it’s hard to make time for everything you might want to do.

The days have passed quickly and tomorrow we will reach Nuka Hiva in the Marquesas Islands. We’ll catch up with you again from somewhere in French Polynesia.

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