Last week, Todd & I had the chance to go on a (kid-free!) vacation while my in-laws watched Lucy & Cece. Cece's birthday party was on Saturday so my in-laws took the girls home with them that evening and Todd & I left for Miami, followed by our 4 day cruise to the Bahamas, on Sunday. We had just the best week reconnecting as a couple (first time I've felt like "myself" in years), relaxing, and recharging. We arrived home late Friday night and drove up the following day to pick up the girls and go to Todd's family reunion.
Day 1 in Miami (Sunday, July 22, 2018)
- Arrived in Miami mid-afternoon and checked into our hotel for the night, Hampton Inn Miami Brickell Downtown
- Walked around the hotel & went shopping at Brickell City Centre
- Happy hour at the hotel bar
- Dinner at Batch Gastropub
- Dessert at Fireman Derek's Bake Shop
On our way to Miami!
Todd made himself a bloody mary
Once we arrived at our hotel and dropped off our luggage, we went exploring and decided to stop at the local grocery store to pick up a couple bottles of wine to take on the ship with us (we were allowed to bring 2 bottles/room)
After some shopping, we came back to enjoy our complimentary happy hour drinks by the hotel pool
Todd got a beer and I had a glass of wine
The restaurant we went to for dinner, Batch Gastropub, was literally steps away from the front door of our hotel
Todd had a local beer and a really delicious cheeseburger...
and I had a really delicious veggie burger!
First kid-free dinner of vacation!
We took an uber to Fireman Derek's Bake Shop to pick up some dessert to take back to hotel; it was definitely a popular spot because it was packed inside
So many cake and pie choices
Layers of goodness
Seriously, so many choices!
I went with a slice of birthday cake...
and Todd got an oreo cheesecake slice dipped in chocolate
Day 2 in Miami & on Mariner of the Seas (Monday, July 23, 2018)
- Workout & breakfast at hotel
- Got on the cruise ship, Mariner of the Seas, in the late morning
- Explored the ship
- Laid out by the pool
- Sail away at 4:30 PM
- Dinner in the main dining room
- Comedy show
Decent hotel gym
Reading the paper and eating breakfast
View of 2 other rooftop pools from our hotel room
Right after we got on the cruise ship
The Royal Promenade (where several of the bars and shops are)
I was excited to check out the Bamboo Room (a tiki bar) that week
Todd was interested in the Barnacle & Barrel Pub...
and Playmakers Sports Bar
View of Miami from the pool deck
Main pool area
The ship was just renovated last month so it seemed brand new (besides the rooms) and they added several new bars, restaurants, and fun features like the Sky Pad (bungee trampoline)...
and water slides!
We spent awhile just wandering around checking everything out
We took a lot of selfies on the trip!
Another one with the city in the background
Pool Bar
We were on the ship early so there weren't a lot of other people on yet and we wore our swimsuits on the ship so we could go lay out right away since our rooms weren't ready yet (and our luggage wasn't delivered to our room yet either)
Finally feeling like we're on vacation
Todd was sweating within a few minutes and immediately hopped in the pool
He grabbed lunch at the hot dog stand
After a couple hours, we decided to go see our room and were so excited to have balcony! We've been on two other cruises together and have always gone with the less expensive rooms without windows or a balcony
View from other side of the room
A storm rolled through right as we were leaving port...
but we stayed dry on our balcony
So excited to be sailing away to the Bahamas
Our table overlooked the rest of the dining room
After dinner and getting some drinks before the comedy show at 10:00 PM
Another view of the Royal Promenade
They played movies on the big screen by the pool deck in the evenings
Ready for the comedy show
Day 3 in Coco Cay, Bahamas (Tuesday, July 24, 2018)
- Workout in fitness center
- Breakfast via room service on our balcony
- Laid out at the beach
- BBQ lunch on the island
- Shopping at the Straw Market
- Got back on the ship and laid out at the pool
- Drinks on the balcony
- Dinner in the main dining room (formal night)
- Show (musical) at the theater
View of the Bahamas from the treadmill in the fitness center
We had to take a tender from the ship to the island and it started raining on the ride over; luckily, it blew over after pouring for about 15 minutes and the sun was shining the rest of the day
Hanging out at the beach
Since we were already wet from the rain, Todd jumped in the ocean
Walking around the island
You could rent those cabanas in the background
View of the beach we hung out at most of the time (you can just barely see our cruise ship in the background)
Zoomed in
Sunny, blue skies
About to cool off in the water
More views
Since Coco Cay is Royal Caribbean's private island, they provide lunch so you don't have to get back on the ship for lunch
There were lots of lizards roaming around
On our way back to get a tender, we walked around the Straw Market and bought the girls straw purses with the faces of Elsa and Cinderella stitched in them
Mariner of the Seas
Sangria on our balcony while getting ready for formal night
Professional picture for formal night
At dinner
We changed for the show that evening
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