Caribbean Princess - The Sea Days and Beaufort Force Scale

I’ve been meaning to do a post in regards to what our sea days looked like on a cruise ship.  During this cruise adventure, we felt a lot of motion on the ship and experienced a range of motion not felt before.  We were able to see a glass or mirror-like flat surface on the water to the extreme where we could see large waves/swells.

Princess provides us with a “log of the cruise” for each leg of our cruising adventure.  Each day the Captain reports distance traveled, speed, sky, temperature, and wind.  I was more interested in the wind and decided to do some research on what’s called the Beaufort Wind Force Scale.  The scale is based on a scale of 0 to 12 and relates wind to observed conditions at sea or on land.  In our case, we are interested in sea conditions.

Here’s a summary of our sea days and what the log captured based on the Beaufort scale.  Now remember we were on a 14-day cruise (B2B) and came back into FLL on Day 9 of our adventure.  Here what the log captured:

FIRST WEEK

Day 2 Sea Day:  North Easterly Beaufort Force 5
They describe this as a “fresh” breeze with winds at 17-21 knots or 19-24 mph.  Wave heights 6-9 ft.  Moderate waves of some length and many white caps.  Small amounts of spray.

Day 3 Sea Day:  North Easterly Beaufort Force 5
Another “fresh” breeze day.

Day 7 Sea Day:  North Easterly Beaufort Force 6
This is described as a “strong” breeze with winds at 22-27 knots or 25-31 mph.  Wave heights of 9-13 ft.  Long waves begin to form.  White foam crests are very frequent.  Some airborne spray is present.

Day 8 Sea Day:  Northerly Beaufort Force 5
Another “fresh” breeze day.

SECOND WEEK

Day 10 Sea Day:  West North Westerly Beaufort Force 9
Do you see the number 9?  That is considered to be “strong/severe gale” with winds at 41-47 knots or 47-54 mph.  Wave heights of 23-32 ft.  High waves whose crests sometimes roll over.  Dense foam is blown along wind direction.  Large amounts of airborne spray may begin to reduce visibility.




Day 14 Sea Day:  South Easterly Beaufort Force 2
Considered to be “light” breeze with winds 4-6 knots or 4-7 mph.  Wave heights 1-2 ft.  Small wavelets.  Crests have a glassy appearance and do not break.

I know on this day the Beaufort scale was much lower as the sea was like a mirror and sometimes I saw ripples that had an “appearance of scales” in the water.

Caribbean Princess - Indoor Venues (part 6)

You’ve heard me talk about Skywalker’s Lounge.  It’s the “shopping bag handle” on the back of the Caribbean Princess and the highest venue on the back of the ship:

Here’s a view while I was on the upper deck looking to the left and you can see the hot tub under the walkway:  

A view to the right with the splash/dunk pool directly under the walkway and the outdoor kiddie pool to the right of it: 

Unfortunately, I do not have any Skywalker Lounge pictures. That was one of the few places we did not have time to visit.  Also the Platinum & Elite Lounge happy hour which used to be in Skywalker’s (our last CB cruise) was held in Club Fusion.   

Here are a few shots around the Piazza, the central indoor gathering place.  Great place for people watching.

Here’s the fruit and vegetable carving show:  

 

Other forms of entertainment were held here in the Piazza throughout the day.  The following pictures were taken during “in-transit” and you can see folks with their luggage: 

 

 

 

The Calypso Cove gift shop:  

Facets by Effy jewelry store:

The Essence shop has makeup and perfumes:  

Look across at Crooner’s Lounge and Bar:  

 The International Cafe coffee bar is a hopping place during the morning hours:  

Here’s more fruit carvings at the Platinum & Elite Lounge happy hour:  

 

 

Caribbean Princess - Additional Activities (part 5)

There are other activities besides lounging on the upper outside decks.  There’s a half court available for those who like to shoot hoops:

Also table tennis is available:

How about some putting on the green:

Princess has a set of clubs and balls available for you to use:

Plenty of hot tubs are available for your use.  This one is located under Skywalker’s Lounge:

Kid’s Area:
For the kiddies, there’s a separate area for them their own outdoor pool:

I believe this area is called Pelicans for the tiny tots to play and enjoy their own pint size indoor pool:

Plenty of activities to keep the kids entertained:

The Lotus Spa Gym:
We tried to get to the gym, when we thought about it.  When we did think about it, it was during a sea day when the ship was rocking and rolling.  That made for an interesting run on the treadmill which ended up being a fast walk and keeping one’s balance.  Plenty of equipment available:

The pictures were taken during turnaround day.  So not many folks were working out.

Caribbean Princess - The Sanctuary (part 4)

In the previous post I left off showing the outside area of the Sanctuary:

Here’s a view of the pool area which is open to all cruisers.  The padded loungers are for fellow cruisers who reserve and pay for this service:  

You can see there are regular blue loungers outside of the Sanctuary that are available to all cruisers:

The manager here allowed me to explore and take pictures.  It is so peaceful and quiet here.  There are plenty of loungers and seating areas.  I understand you can reserve your own seat or area for half a day or full day or for the full duration of the cruise.

While here, you can sign up for a massage:

The Lotus Spa was marketing their Aromatherapy and I have to say I might try this next year:

Plenty of loungers to select from:

You can select one with a view:

They look really inviting and comfy:

Outdoor padded loungers for those who prefer to work on their tan:

I think my pictures say a lot about this quiet venue.

I’ve heard that the Sanctuary attendants are available to provide refreshments, headphones (listen to music), and afternoon tea is served there as well.  I thanked the manager for allowing me to have my own tour of this private area.  

Caribbean Princess - On the Upper Decks (part 3)

On our turnaround or "in-transit" day, I was able to take an hour from my busy cruising schedule to capture a few pictures of various outdoor venues on the CB or Caribbean Princess. Before I begin, I wanted to mention an important piece of information. Beach towels. There, I said it. I was surprised not to find beach towels in our cabin on the CB this year. I distinctly remember on the Regal, and on the Ruby, and on the CB (three years ago) and various cruises before that towels were left in our cabin in the closet and on the top shelf. Have things changed in the last year? Apparently so.

It's my duty to post this picture for all to see:



Once I figured out what was going on, I made a point of confiscating beach towels on our travels around the ship on Lido deck 15. I also figured out they were storing these cartful of towels in the round shack near one of the pools. I assume the cabin stewards are quite happy not to worry about distributing beach towels in each cabin. Nor having to go find some when they run out. I am happy as long as my cabin steward is happy. This makes for one happy ship.

I also notice that the beach towels are being used in the evenings at MUTS (Movies Under the Stars). Used as in "blankets" to keep warm during the chilly evenings on deck. That makes sense. I also notice two deck hands stationed at a table near a wool blanket cart near MUTS. They have a clipboard and when someone needs a warm wool blanket, they provide one and your name in put on this list. I remember seeing this and it might have been on the CB three years ago. A sign in and out system for warm wool blankets. That's okay two beach towels work just as well for me. Enough of that and onto the outdoor venues.

Let me say I have a picture by the pool (or two) where there were no "chair hogs" to be found:



Upper Deck Dining Venues:

On Lido deck 15 (forward) you will find the pizza place called Prego's:
 

Next to Prego's is the Black Beard's Bar and friendly bartenders ready to serve:
 

Next to the Black Beard's Bar is the Trident Grill where you can find hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken sandwiches and the best french fries on the high seas:
 

If you keep walking past one of the pools, you will find Scoops and soft serve ice cream during the day and popcorn at night:
 

If you keep walking past the second pool and into a set of double doors, you will find the Horizon Court Buffet with plenty of places to sit:
   

The buffet area:



More food:
   

The drink station, which looks much more organized and clean:
 

The Pools:

Since we are in the aft area of the ship where Horizon Court and Cafe Caribe is located, you can walk out the sliding doors and end up at the terrace pool. The pool water level is much higher in the picture. On the days where the swells were rough, water was sloshing out of this pool:
   

If you head back through the buffet area and out the double doors you will find the MUTS pool:
     

Here's MUTS (Movie Under the Stars) screen where we can watch movies, concerts, and football (when broadcasted):



Continue walking past Scoops and you'll end up at the other pool:
 

There are two other pools on the CB and they are located on the higher decks. On Lido deck 15 aft, walk up the stairs until you are underneath Skywalker's Lounge you will see what I call a splash or dunk pool:
   

On Lido deck 15 forward, walk up the stairs and you end up at The Sanctuary:
   

Here's a view of the Sanctuary.  It looks really quiet and peaceful here:



Another view of the Sanctuary pool: