01 May 2025

The Caribbean

We offer a wide choice of cheap flights to the Caribbean together with Caribbean hotels, tours and self-drive itineraries.

Other Caribbean Reviews

Captain Jack of the Caribbean

For Torchwood star John Barrowman it was the ultimate voyage of discovery – his first ever cruise. And with cocktails on the balcony, great shows to see and fabulous food, he found he just never wanted to leave the ship.

The Caribbean - Spectacular Rock Cottage at the Blue Waters Hotel

The Caribbean - Cocktails are served on deck

1 Spectacular Rock Cottage at the Blue Waters Hotel 2 Ship view 3 Cocktails are served on deck

I HAVE DISCOVERED something unexpected about myself: I’m a ship person. I never thought I would be but that’s the thing about travelling, it teaches you interesting things about yourself.

My first cruise took me all over the Caribbean and, though tropical islands and beaches and bars beckoned, I loved being on the ship so much that I went ashore only once. That was at St Thomas, one of the US Virgin Islands.

I was cruising aboard the Caribbean Princess with my partner Scott and my parents John and Marion. We decided we really ought to go ashore, so we took the excursion to Magens Bay on St Thomas, a beach rated by National Geographic magazine as one of the top ten in the world.

But I have to say, we weren’t over-impressed and there were so many people there. The experience convinced us that we just didn’t need any excursions.

The realisation that we really were ship people came as something of a surprise because Scott and I, probably like everyone else going on their first cruise, thought that we would be sailing with a bunch of older people.

Today’s cruises are all about choice

We worried about regimentation at meal times and having to follow pre-planned programmes: all in all, not quite the kind of scene with which the time-travelling Captain Jack Harkness of Torchwood fame would want to be associated.

I should have known differently, as I grew up watching The Love Boat, a TV series from the Seventies about romantic adventures aboard a liner.

A couple of times on board I actually found myself singing The Love Boat theme tune: ‘Love, exciting and new; come aboard, we’re expecting you; love, life’s sweetest reward; let it flow, it floats back to you…’

As soon as we got on board, we saw that the reality of cruising was --quite different to the myth: Today’s cruises are all about choice. For example, when it came to eating we were able to choose the big dining room for ‘traditional’ dining with meals at set times and with the same table companions – or ‘anytime’ dining where we could eat where and when we wanted. Another option was the 24-hour buffet.

We went for the traditional option in the evenings, sitting at the same table every night and being served by the same waiter, who got to know what we liked.

We were extremely well looked after

For other meals, we tried every speciality restaurant on the ship, including the sterling steakhouse and the excellent Italian, Sabatini’s, where we dined with the captain.

The food was as good as any I’ve had in Italy. The freedom of choice does not just cover meal times – it includes everything you do on board. You can join in with fellow passengers or remain exclusive and independent; it’s entirely up to you.

We went to the Lotus spa every day and had a different treatment each time, from teeth whitening to pedicures. I read that some cruise lines even offer Botox these days – but that wasn’t for me.

I tried Botox years ago and quickly decided I wouldn’t be suffering that again! And there was so much going on every evening – with a host of shows and all sorts of entertainment.

My mother particularly enjoyed the talks provided on each port of call: she especially valued the advice about the shopping on offer at each place we were to visit. She loved the wonderful jewellery seminars with experts briefing you on which stones to buy. One of the things we most enjoyed was the ship’s show Princess Idol – their version of the US talent show American Idol.

Lots of Britons on board tried to persuade me to join the show but I resisted temptation, and that’s not easy for a performer. All of the shows were excellent, worthy of the West End, and the itch to perform began to nag me.

I rang the captain and said I’d like to do some entertaining, perhaps on a future cruise. On the Caribbean Princess there is a huge theatre.

They put on a Broadway Revue show with wonderful dancers and I loved it. Another of our little treats, something we all did every day, was to have cocktails in our cabin. The ship really did cater for all tastes, and every pocket.

There was an onboard art gallery where some pieces were selling for more than £30,000. I asked the guy who owned the gallery if people bought such pieces – and he said that by the end of the cruise, even the most expensive would be gone. And they were selling Monets as well as original sketches and numbered prints by the likes of Picasso and Dali.

Another surprise for me was discovering how cosseted we were as cruise travellers: It’s like being Bertie Wooster with your very own Jeeves. Imagine the indulgence of being served afternoon cocktails on our own private balcony.

We were extremely well looked after. We had our own valet and concierge to deal with our stateroom and everybody had someone to cater to their every need.

The whole trip was such a delight that we’ve been talking about repeating the experience. My parents, who are retired, really loved it.

The ship really did cater for all tastes

They like to mix because it keeps them young. My dad wants to go back and ‘do’ the Panama Canal. I’ve tried to convince them to do a world cruise – I think that would be brilliant for them. I particularly appreciated the chance to relax completely and even turned off my Black-Berry and mobile.

Perhaps one of the reasons we didn’t feel the need to go ashore during our cruise was that we enjoyed a week in Antigua as part of our break.

I think the perfect accompaniment to a Caribbean cruise is a week before or after on one of the islands, and my favourite would have to be Antigua simply for its awesome beaches, and sheer friendliness.

We stayed at Rock Cottage at the Blue Waters hotel, where the view is stunning – miles of blue sea and endless clear skies. You can’t get much better than that.

0330·100·2220i 0330 calls are included within inclusive minutes package on mobiles, otherwise standard rates apply. X 0330 calls are included within inclusive minutes package on mobiles, otherwise standard rates apply. X