Our third port of call was Halifax, Nova Scotia. We did a 1/2 day excursion to Peggy's Cove. It was about an hour drive on the bus and our guide was great at giving us an overview of Halifax on the way.
We again had about an hour to walk around Peggy's Cove. We walked to the lighthouse and around the cove area a bit. Again, it was very crowded with other tour groups. There were some small shops to look in but we didn't get a chance to do that.

We still had the whole afternoon when we got back to the port. There was a visitor's desk and we asked for a map. The woman working there not only gave us a map but she showed us exactly where different things were and how far it was to walk to each.
We decided to walk along Harborwalk. We stopped in a restaurant called The Bicycle Thief and had a very tasty lunch. There were other shops and restaurants along the way as well. The weather was beautiful that day so it was the perfect way to spend the afternoon.

Our second port of call was Bar Harbor. This was a tender port which means we had to take a small boat to get to the port. It is a process so you have to add at least an hour to your time to allow you to get to the excursion area on time.
Today's excursion was the "Best of Acadia National Park" with lunch. While we were on a motor coach for the tour, there were several stops to get out and take pictures. We went to the top of Cadillac Mountain for some great views. We also experienced Thunder Hole where waves crash into a small cave like area and sound like thunder.
This excursion included lunch which was an authentic lobster bake. There was steak available for those that requested it. It was delicious. The lobster was great but my favorite were the mussels.
By the time we returned to the excursion area, we only had time to get on line for the tender back to the ship. We would have liked to look more around the main street area with shops and restaurants but we ran out of time. We ended up being on the last tender back to the ship.

Our first port of call was Portland, Maine. We did an excursion called "Best of Portland and Kennebunkport." We tend to do the "best of" excursions so we can get a taste of the area.
We boarded a motor coach and had a guide that explained about the history of Portland and sites to see in the city as we made our way out to Fort Williams Park to see our first lighthouse of the trip. We were allowed about an hour to walk around the lighthouse area. There were some paths that had the posted miles to complete. We didn't have time to do a full path but we walked in a bit and then turned around to head back to the bus.

We then had about a 45 minute ride to Kennebunkport. Again we had about an hour there. It is a very small town and there were many tour buses there so it was pretty crowded. We chose to use our time having a nice lunch at Allison's. I was able to get a lobster roll there which was great.
Then it was back on the bus to head back to the port.
We did have about 90 minutes before all aboard time but there wasn't much to do in the area around the port so we just called it a day for Portland.

I have recently returned from a 9 night cruise on Royal Caribbean's  Liberty of the Seas. We left from Bayonne, NJ and sailed to Portland, ME, Bar Harbor, ME, Halifax, Nova Scotia and Boston, MA.

Today's post is about the ship. We had 3600 passengers on our cruise through the ship can hold more.

We had a balcony room and found the room to have a lot of space.
​
The central area of the ship is called the Royal Promenade. It looks like a mall area and it does have shopping and food locations. It was also the central hub for many ship activities. We loved walking around that area or just sitting to people watch.

While our cruise was on the chilly side, I did take a walk around the upper deck to see all the pools and other activities.

There is a kids splash zone and family pool and an adult only section with its own pool. There is a rock climbing wall and mini golf as well as the Flowrider, which allows you to try your hand at surfing.

The fitness center had a full size boxing ring, space for classes and plenty of machines. There is also a jogging track on the top deck.
​
There is a casino which is open when the ship is in International Waters. I spent most evenings playing some slots after dinner and even played a slots tournament which was fun.

I went to 8 of the 9 evening shows on board. There were several nights of different variety acts, like a juggler and magician. There was also an aerial show and Saturday Night Fever, which was the only Broadway style show of the cruise (it was my favorite of all the shows).
​
The ship also has an ice skating rink on board (yes, you can rent skates and go ice skating) so they also do an ice show. You have an assigned time at some point during the cruise to see that show. I enjoyed that as well.

Several times the Royal Promenade becomes the center of an event. On the first night, there was the Move It, Move It parade. The whole center space is used while different characters from Shrek, Madgascar and Kung Fu Panda dance and get the whole crowd involved.

There was a 70s dance party there also one night.

There are some activities that do cost a small fee but are definitely worth it. I did a wine tasting on the last sea day that was very informative and had great wine.
​
My favorite activity was cupcake decorating. Even if you have no experience, the chef is great at demonstrating and walking you through the process. By the end, we had all made a cute cupcake puppy! We got to take it back to our room to enjoy later.