The Back to Back - Jewel of the Seas 2025 June 27-July 4, 2025 Ft. Lauderdale, FL (Coco Cay, Nassau, Coco Cay)
Cruise #26 and 27... Let's GOOO!
After 25 cruises, we needed to shake things up so Chris and I decided to take a Back to Back cruise out of Ft. Lauderdale, FL. We sail from Galveston mostly as we live less than 80 miles from the terminal but the Galveston market has gotten SO HIGH in price. The cruise industry has realized that people who live in Texas and surrounding states will pay BIG BUCKS to not have to fly to Florida and the cruise fare prices have skyrocketed in the last 3-5 years. Combine that with the exact same routes every single cruise due to distance and location of Galveston, we needed a change. We discovered in 2024 on our Independence of the Seas cruise out of Miami that is is actually CHEAPER to fly to Florida to get on a ship; even when you include airfare. This summer proved to be the same scenario.
This Back to Back cruise (3 day and 4 day combined) fare, taxes and port fees was over $700 less than the same 7 days out of Galveston. Even the 5 day cruise out of Galveston was still $400 more than taking a back to back cruise out of Florida. Even when you include airfare, we still saved money by flying to Florida. Now keep in mind we still stayed in Ft. Lauderdale for 2 nights prior to the cruise and this racked up costs but overall, we still saved money not cruising out of Galveston. TIP- Be ready to pay well over $1K per person for ANY ship out of Galveston in the summer. Even 4 and 5 day cruises are running $1K per person in the summer.
We have cruised 13 previous times with Carnival, 9 times with Royal Caribbean, 2 times with Norwegian and 1 time with Princess.
This blog will contain entries of our day-to-day life aboard the Jewel of the Seasas well as a shore excursion details, port tips and tricks and so much more. We will also highlight our Pre-Cruise trip to Ft. Lauderdale, FL as well.
Throughout the blog posts, we will also share the lots of tips, tricks and insiders knowledge about cruising out of Ft. Lauderdale, information about cruising to Royal Caribbean's private island, Coco Cay as well as great information about Jewel of the Seas.
The Jewel of the Seas was good to us... And we loved Coco Cay!
Bahamas Bound Jewel of the Seas Back to Back Cruise #2 Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Adults Only Beach Club in the Bahamas- YES PLEASE!
After 25 26 cruises, we needed to shake things up so Chris and I decided to take a Back to Back cruise out of Ft. Lauderdale, FL. This Back to Back consisted of a 3 day "weekend" cruise followed by a 4 day Monday- Friday cruise out of Ft. Lauderdale, FL. We have never been to Ft. Lauderdale so we flew in 2 days early to explore on our own.
This 4 day cruise was the complete opposite as the previous 3 day weekend cruise loaded with adults overindulging. This 4 day cruise was LOADED with kids and families and there was not near as much "boozing" on this cruise. Due to the July 4th holiday falling on the last day of the cruise, I think families saw an opportunity to take vacation days and take their kids along. We enjoyed this quick cruise to Nassau and Royal Caribbean's private island, Coco Cay so much!
Jewel of the Seas was good to us! Until next time Royal Caribbean!
We really enjoyed this quick cruise to Nassau and Coco Cay. We LOVE Coco Cay so it was nice to be able to "go right back" just a few days later! This Back to Back cruise was AWESOME and I'm so glad we added it to our Cruising Adventure list!
Up Next... Harmony of the Seas with the kids (Winter Break 2026)
The New and Improved Nassau July 2, 2025 Nassau, Bahamas
Hello Nassau... It's been TOO long!
Morning We woke up around 8AM and got ready for a morning spent on board with less people since most people will be going ashore in Nassau. We ate breakfast in the Main Dining Room and the service was quick and the food was great.
After breakfast we made our way to an empty Solarium to enjoy the tiny hot tub by ourselves. We were able to enjoy this 13 person hot tub without any the passengers for about 30 minutes. TIP- This is the ONLY hot tub in the Solarium and it is SO small. It is smaller than a hot tub you could purchase on land to put in your backyard- although I will say I saw 13 people OR MORE in said hot tub the day before. Overall, this Solarium left MUCH to be desired but it is covered and has a pool (which is more than I can say for some Oasis class Solariums).
Hello from the Jewel of the Seas Solarium (not my favorite- but not terrible).
A morning spent on a quite ship is a morning WELL SPENT!
We enjoyed the hot tub and Solarium pool back and forth for nearly 2 hours before it started to get busy and we opted to get out and try to go and explore Nassau. We changed clothes and got off the ship to what seemed like a completely different pier and port. We took a free shuttle from the ship to the port shopping area where we found countless shops, restaurants, bars and so much more. You could spend an entire day off the ship in this port area but we chose to walk out into the nearby straw market area in hopes of finding a massage or spa nearby. We walked several blocks and asked locals but we did not find a convenient Spa where we could get massages so we walked back to the ship. TIP- Nassau has REALLY improved since our last visit in 2017 and I cannot wait to take the kids back in 2026 on our Symphony of the Seas cruise.
The New and Improved Nassau cruise port was SO IMPRESSIVE!
Headed back to the Jewel of the Seas... Our home for 2 more days!
Well done Bahamas... WELL DONE! Nassau is AMAZING and just perfect for a cruise port day!
Afternoon We grabbed lunch in the Windjammer after getting back on the ship and this was the least crowded we saw the Windjammer during all 7 days onboard the Jewel of the Seas. The food was hot and fresh and I was impressed with the food and service.
As we finished lunch we saw the MSC Meraviglia pull into Nassau and we were amazed at this ship. We have never sailed on MSC but we are highly intrigued by this cruise line and with the MSC Seascape coming to Galveston this November, we wanted to scope it out. I can say with certainty, we will be looking into booking an MSC cruise in the very near future. Especially with the new Carnival Rewards program happening and MSC matching loyalty status. Now is the perfect time to explore all cruise options! Although, I will admit I truly am LOYAL TO ROYAL. I don't care the size of ship or all she offers, the service is superb every time with Royal Caribbean!
The MSC Meraviglia... This 171K GROSS TON ship was SO impressive. That is larger than the Anthem of the Seas we got off 3 week earlier! Wow... I am seriously impressed!
Atlantis as seen from our ship!
The MSC Meraviglia was impressive and seemed family friendly with water slides and a ropes course.
The Disney Dream, MSC Meraviglia and the RCCL Freedom of the Seas docked in Nassau on July 2, 2025.
We laid out on Deck 5 for most of the afternoon before watching sail away from the aft of Deck 5. We were the 3rd ship to leave Nassau behind the Carnival Pride headed to Half Moon Cay and the Royal Caribbean Freedom of the Seas sailing back to Miami. This was an AMAZING sail away seeing all that had changed in Nassau since 2017.
This island used to be just land... Now this will be the home to Royal Caribbean's PRIVATE island (Royal Beach Club Paradise Island). Looking back to 2015... This used to be JUST LAND. Royal Beach Club opens in December 2025.
The Freedom of the Seas backing out heading home to Miami!
Goodbye Freedom of the Seas!
Carnival Pride sailing towards Half Moon Cay (Carnival Cruise Line Private Island)
Another view of the Freedom of the Seas. (She is the only one left we have yet to sail in the Freedom class... I feel an itch to check her off my Royal list)
We really enjoyed this sail away and it wasn't too hot!
Goodbye Nassau... See you in a year!
This lonely (and abandoned) light house is the sign you're almost in Nassau!
This was an AWESOME sail away!
Evening We took showers and got ready for an evening aboard the Jewel of the Seas and then headed to the Casino. We were able to find 2 seats at the $10 blackjack table where we stayed for nearly 3 hours. We went up and down and back and forth but ended even for the trip between the two of us! We opted to go to the Ventriloquist show before dinner and we really enjoyed this show.
This guy was REALLY good and funny!
Dinner in the Main Dining Room was our LEAST favorite menu of all that Royal offers but we gave it a shot as it has been 3-4 cruises since dining in the MDR on the Taste of the Caribbean menu. However, we were reminded that you ALWAYS go to specialty dining on this menu night! The food was good and the service was exceptional but it's just not our favorite.
The Taste of the Caribbean MDR menu
Tiger Shrimp- 4.0 These were a "little chewy" but good flavor. French Onion Soup- 5.0 Best thing I had in the MDR for this sailing!
Asian Tacos (given by waiter)- 2.5 I really don't like the dough for these tacos.
Garlic Shrimp- 3.0 These were just "ok" and again, a little over cooked!
Pesto Pasta- 1.0 It was awful... bland and just yuck!
Pineapple Cake- 3.0 This was flavorful and light.
Carrot Cake-3.5 Chris enjoyed this.
After dinner we walked around the upper decks before going to the Pit Stop to get drinks before the Love and Marriage Show in the Coral Theater. We love this show and Jamie, the CD, did a great job with each of the couples and we enjoyed this show. We called it a night shortly after this show around 11:30PM.
Day 6 was a success... We loved exploring Nassau!
It was a great day explore the New and Improved Nassau and we cannot wait to get back in 2026.
Up Next... Hideaway Beach Adults Only Club in Coco Cay!
Officer on Deck July 1, 2025 Sea Day (Atlantic Ocean)
Sea Days are my FAVORITE!
Morning We decided to sleep in a little bit as we were both pretty tired so we did not wake up until nearly 9AM which is very unusual for both of us. We got ready and then had breakfast in the Windjammer. The Windjammer was crowded but not terrible and it did not take long for us to find a table, plus we were able to get freshly squeezed orange juice which is one of my favorite things about Royal Caribbean.
It's already Tuesday... This cruise needs to slow down!
We were able to meet Jamie, the Cruise Director, as well as the Hotel Director, Staff Engineer and the Captain. We love being able to meet each of these higher up crew members and try to get a little more info about life on board a cruise ship.
We never miss a picture with the CD! Jamie was hilarious and we enjoyed him as a Cruise Director!
It's nice to get a picture with the Captain!
After the Officers event we made our way to the Schooner Bar for our Morning Trivia. We played 3 different trivia but did not win any of them. We were able to meet a teacher from Florida and we talked for a while about teaching in various states as well as cruising with Royal Caribbean.
Mozzarella Sticks-4.0 These were good and worth a double order.
Shrimp Caesar Salad- 3.5 I had never put shrimp on this before and it was... interesting!
Butternut squash Risotto- 2.0 For a veggie as powerful and flavorful as butternut squash... This was so bland and to be honest, the risotto was way undercooked. I couldn't even finish it!
After lunch we went to the outside of Deck 5 and walked around the ship several times before making our way to the helicopter pad at the very front of the ship. Since we were going so slow and the weather was near perfect, the helicopter pad was open and we were able to enjoy the part of the ship alone as so many people do not know it even exists. TIP- Royal Caribbean Vision, Radiance, Voyager and Freedom class ships offer access to the helicopter pad weather permitting. It is a great place for sail away or a sunny day at sea.
26 cruises and we still LOVE the wake view!
The seas were SO CALM and just gorgeous!
I'm the king of the world!
Hello from the Heli pad!
We opted to spend some time laying out outside on Deck 5 and we were awoken to an announcement by the cruise director that the pool and the pool deck were closed due to lightening. We decided to try the Vortex Lounge as the "quite hours" were from 2-4 but it was anything but quiet. I am sure the weather had something to do with the noise but we noticed on both cruises seemed to have grown adults blasting videos on their phones. We're talking 50-60 year old's watching reels on their phone at full volume. We found this to be SO RUDE. We opted to go to Schooner Bar and try to get away from it all.
When we got to Schooner Bar we realized that when the pool and pool deck is closed and that is pretty much all this ship offers for kids and teenagers, said kids and teenagers are EVERYWHERE! This was the most crowded and busiest we saw the Schooner Bar and the Safari Lounge but Raj and Simon were fantastic and did a great job keeping everyone happy.
Evening We showered and got ready for our 2nd formal evening aboard the Jewel of the Seas and then went back to the Schooner Bar for Friends Trivia. I did not win this trivia (one question away) but was awarded a koozie for naming all 6 actors. We stayed for Name that Tune 70s and this was SO MUCH fun as a sing along but we did not win.
Chris was not feeling well so he went back to lay down and I went to the Shops of the Centrum to get our traditional ship souvenirs and then enjoyed live music in the Centrum until Chris met me right before dinner. TIP- "The Hits" band on the Jewel was fantastic and we really enjoyed listening to them perform!
Formal Dinner in the Main Dining Room was good but again, the food overall missed the mark in our experience with Royal Caribbean. The service was amazing and we were in and out of the MDR within 90 minutes and for a formal night, that is great.
The Taste of France Menu (usually the 1st formal night menu on 7 day cruises and only formal night on shorter cruises)
Escargot-2.5
These were missing the toast which was a bummer.
Beef Tenderloin-3.5 This was cooked well but was delivered just warm, not hot!
Crème Brulee- 4.0 This was cooked very well and we both enjoyed it!
After dinner we went to Vintages to enjoy more live music from the Centrum. TIP- I am not a huge fan of the Vintages on Jewel of the Seas. I prefer the "wine only" Vintages found on Oasis class ships as it is isolated and really focuses on wines. The Jewel Vintages was very well decorated and the bartenders were great but it was just another bar at the end of the day.
We made our way to the late night adults only comedy with the comedian from the previous cruise and he did a great job of making the show adult but didn't just curse the whole time. We enjoyed the show and had hoped to end the night at the Pit Stop but it was closed. In fact, most bars on the Jewel of the Seas closed at midnight. Only the Casino bar stayed open until 1AM. If late night drinking is your thing... the Jewel may not be for you. We called it a night shortly after midnight!
It's hard to believe we've been married 19 years... But here we are!
Any day at sea... Is a PERFECT day!
It was a very CHILL Sea Day and that is PERFECT to us!
Up Next... Our return to Nassau after 8 years to check out the NEW and IMPROVED port!
