We drove to the Gerald R Ford Airport and parked in the economy lot. The shuttle bus picked us up promptly and took us to the terminal. Since we are AAdvantage members I had added bags to our trip on the app during check-in the night before. I scanned my boarding pass at the American Airlines kiosk to automatically print my bag tags. The agent at the bag drop counter was calling us before I had exited the screen at the kiosk. We gave our bags to the agent and proceeded to the TSA checkpoint. There was hardly any line, and we were at Prospect Hill Brewing in less than ten minutes.
I had a KBS to continue an old tradition. We proceeded to the concourse and had bagel sandwiches and coffee at Freddy’s.
Our flight to Chicago was incident free and our connection to Fort Lauderdale was uneventful. Unfortunately, Tammy’s new hard sided suitcase had not arrived. We spoke with the lost baggage clerk. He made arrangements to have Tammy’s bag sent to the hotel when it arrived. We took a shuttle bus to the Hertz parking lot. We selected a Nissan from the Gold section and headed to Pompano Beach.
On Wednesday evening we arrived at La Costa Beach Club, got settled in, and had dinner at Seaside Grill and Tiki Bar.
We started the day Thursday with the sunrise on the beach. Tammy was less than enthused to be wearing jeans because her suitcase had not arrived. We went to The Hen and the Hog for breakfast. My shrimp and grits were delicious. A true southern treat. Tammy’s bag was delivered while we were having breakfast. It was a beautiful start to the day. However, the Portuguese men-of war made us rethink our ideas of spending time in the water.
We got tickets for the Water Taxi and spent the day on and off the Intercoastal Waterway. At some point during the day, I identified the smell in our hotel room as tequila. We made an afternoon side trip. I got a fifth and some margarita mix at ABC Fine Wine & Spirits for wrapping up the day. We hopped back on the Water Taxi and made a sunset trip to The Foundry for dinner. It was a comfortable venue with excellent service. In my opinion they have one of the best bar burgers in the nation. After dinner we got a nice view of the Intercoastal after sunset.
On Friday we started the day at The Breakfast Club. The restaurant is located in an older strip mall. A young lady had most of our waiter’s attention, but the food was alright. After breakfast we headed north to Wakodahatchee Wetlands. We spent nearly two and a half hours at the wetlands. We excitedly tried to photograph a couple of storks from the parking lot. When we got into the park we realized there were thousands of them. We saw herons, Ibises, teals, storks, warblers, lizards, a snake, and an alligator.
Our journey back to Pompano Beach took us by way of Coconut Creek. We stopped at Promenade at Coconut Creek. According to Tripadvisor, “Promenade at Coconut Creek is North Broward County’s premier open air shopping and dining experience, featuring over 36 stores and boutiques, 14 restaurants and Silverspot Cinema, a state-of-the-art 11 screen luxury theatre!” We stopped at Bar Louie. We went in. The place looked open. There were no customers at 2:00 in the afternoon. We didn’t see any sign of any employees either. So, we went across the street to World of Beer, where we had an attentive and friendly waitress. We shared a pretzel and had a beverage while we watched the high-end vehicles cruising the mall.
After a brief stop at the resort, we were on our way again. Our evening plans included a Bret Michaels and Tesla concert at the Pompano Beach Amphitheater.
Galuppi’s restaurant is less than a mile from the concert venue. We decided to stop there on our way to the show. Their web site made it look like they are overly formal for our Friday night dining. We were pleased to see that they are a casual outdoor restaurant and bar at the golf course. There was a gentleman there to entertain us on acoustical guitar. Our waitress was less than friendly and attentive. Her manager took the time to check on us and engage us in friendly conversation. I think she was the only unhappy person we saw.
Tesla and Bret Michaels did not disappoint.
On Saturday morning we packed up and left our resort. We headed to Fort Lauderdale to spend the night there before our cruise on Sunday. We made it as far as Lauderdale-By-The-Sea and stopped at First Watch for breakfast. It was a nice location in Sea Ranch Center, an upscale shopping center on A1A. They had a healthy trend to their menu. I even enjoyed a breakfast beverage with orange, lemon, turmeric, organic ginger, agave nectar and beet juice. This was a non-alcoholic beverage. They did have options with alcohol available.
Next door was a CVS store. We took advantage of that, to purchase after tanning products, sun screen, and bug spray. South of Lauderdale-By-The-Sea traffic was heavy and a bridge across the Intercoastal Waterway was closed causing serious backups. The spring break crowd was starting to become obvious on the Fort Lauderdale beaches. Fortunately, we were in no hurry.
We were scheduled to return our rental car at the Fort Lauderdale airport on Sunday. We went around the airport to scout out our route to do that. After that we made a stop at Secret Woods Nature Center. They were having a cleanup event. That may have reduced the amount of wildlife present. The stroll through the mangroves was interesting. All we saw were hundreds of tiny Fiddler Crabs.
We got done at the nature center and made it to Rodeway Inn & Suites Fort Lauderdale Airport & Cruise Port. It was about an hour before 3:00 check in and we were becoming interested in some food. Conveniently, Marina 84 Sports Bar & Grill is connected to Rodeway Inn. By the time we finished with food and drinks it was time to check in. We got checked in and spent the rest of the afternoon at the pool.
The time in Pompano Beach had gone so quickly. It was suddenly Sunday morning and time to begin our cruise with Royal Caribbean on the Allure of the Seas. Originally, I had booked a cruise to Nassau, Bahamas, Labadee, Haiti and Falmouth, Jamaica. Haiti and Jamaica were both ports we had never been to. Royal Caribbean was on our to-do list, since we had only cruised with Carnival and Norwegian.
Royal Caribbean had paused visits to Labadee in 2024 due to violence and lawlessness in the country. They briefly resumed visiting the port between late 2024 and April 2025. I booked the cruise in June of 2025 and watched the situation in Haiti, wondering how it would affect our cruise. We were quite pleased in September when Royal Caribbean announced they were replacing Labadee with a visit to San Juan, Puerto Rico and swapping the scheduled port of call in Falmouth, Jamaica, for Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic. San Juan and Puerto Plata would also be new ports for us.
We enjoyed the complimentary breakfast at the hotel. There was no wait for the waffle makers and the coffee was hot. I had originally booked the Rodeway Inn to take advantage of their cruise port shuttle. We later decided to rent a car. We made the short drive from the hotel to the airport. Returning the rental car was uneventful. We pulled into the return line. A gentleman scanned the car and we took the pedestrian bridge from the car rental center directly to the terminal.
There were many online opinions that it is easy to get to Port Everglades, the Fort Lauderdale cruise port. We had never cruised from Port Everglades so we purchased an airport shuttle from Royal Caribbean. We went to the RC kiosk at the terminal. The agent there told us that the shuttle would leave at 11:30. I had been prepared for a shuttle at 10:30, so we had a long wait. The terminal was full of people. The only place to sit was on a metal bar stool at Corona Beach Bar. We had a couple of drinks and a nice conversation with Maggie. She was waiting for her companions for a Celebrity cruise.
At the appointed time the RC representative collected us and herded us to the bus. Traffic was terrible. It took almost a half hour to get less than 4 miles to the cruise terminal. Other than the long wait at the airport, I was glad we had the shuttle. Our bus dropped us at the sidewalk right outside terminal 18. I was concerned that our check in time wasn’t until 2:00. We got in the express line and were checked in and on the ship in about 20 minutes. No one even asked what our check in time was. We had our first onboard drinks at the Pesky Parrot on deck 5 and explored the ship a bit. Early in the afternoon we went to our cabin and found our SeaPass cards on our cabin door. Our SeaPass card showed that our dining assignment was table 49 in The Grande dining room on the 4th deck. We settled in at the Solarium on deck 15 to watch as the ship left Fort Lauderdale. After departure we went back to our cabin. There was no sign of our luggage. We met our Stateroom Attendant, Roland and let him know that we had no luggage yet. He told us there was nothing to worry about. Soon after, there was a knock on the door and Roland was there with our bags. We thanked him and let him know we enjoy towel animals.
It was 7:30 before we knew it and we found our table in the Main Dining Room. We met our waiters. Raj and Cladys. I had two appetizers. I wanted to try the Escargots and the Crab Cake. I had the Aromatic Chicken Saag for a main course and a Royal Cheesecake for dessert. Tammy enjoyed the New York Strip steak. Since it was our first cruise with Royal Caribbean we did not book any specialty dining. There was plenty on the menu in the Main Dining Room to explore. We had dinner in the MDR every night and we did enjoy our dining experience. By the end of the cruise Tammy discovered the Chops Grille Filet Mignon under premium dinner selections. On a future cruise we would definitely select Chops for one night of premium dining.
After dinner we had the Aqua80 Too show booked. It was a very entertaining show with dancing, synchronized swimming and incredible high diving. Later in the week fellow cruisers were very disappointed. The show had to be modified and performed without the diving.
We concluded our night with a brief stop at the Midnight Balloon Drop. We watched from the 6th deck. It looked like Times Square on New Years Eve on the Promenade below. Before the balloons dropped, they announced that there were 6,284 of us on the cruise. This was our first cruise with a capacity of over 3,000 passengers. Amazingly the Allure of the Seas felt less crowded than some of the smaller ships
We started out day in Nassau with breakfast in the Main Dining Room. Raj (our waiter the night before) recognized us and said hi. Our goal for the day was to see the Queen’s Staircase. My navigational skills were a bit lacking. We weren’t too disappointed when we arrived at the top of the stairs rather than the bottom.
We met Island Boy. He greeted us with his Bahamas Flag and shared a bunch of history with us.
When we finished at Queen’s Staircase we wandered before we returned to the ship. We took in Parliament Square with the Supreme Court of the Bahamas. We strolled some of the streets that we visited nine years ago. We were amazed at how the storefronts and products have been upgraded in the last decade.
We walked through the Straw Market. Tammy still finds the place uncomfortable. Steve Grundy provided this picture on flickr. His description is, “The Straw Market has been cleaned up quite a bit since the last time I saw it. It is still a mass jumble of all things tourist – beads, straw hats, t-shirts and such. But, the hawkers do not accost you quite so much and the place is better kept now.”
We walked to the Blue Marlin. We saw a few tropical fish in the water before we returned to the ship.
As we sailed out of Nassau Harbour. The weathered guardian, still standing strong at Paradise Island’s edge. The Paradise Island Lighthouse was built in 1817, making it the oldest lighthouse in the Bahamas and the oldest surviving lighthouse in the West Indies.
One of the first things that we noticed in San Juan was the forts. Our first quest was to see Castillo San Felipe del Morro. It was ordered to be constructed in 1530 by the Spanish king. There were five large cruise ships in port on the day we were there. About 15,000 other people were on the same quest. San Juan was uncomfortably overcrowded while we were there. Along the way we found La Casa Estrecha: The Narrow House in Old San Juan. This narrow house is often portrayed as the narrowest house in Puerto Rico. It is said to be only five feet wide. We saw several sculptures along our way. We walked past Barrachina the birthplace of the world-famous piña colada, crafted there in 1963 by Don Ramón Portas Mingot. Getting thru the line to enter that establishment would have been an all-day adventure.
We strolled off to find another fort. We headed east to find Castillo de San Cristóbal. Along the way we purchased souvenir shot glasses and refrigerator magnets. Tammy got talked into entering a salon for a sample of some magic elixir to make her appear youthful. It was two hours before she got to the bathroom to wash the stuff off her face.
We followed the walls of Castillo de San Cristóbal. There were not as many people over that way. In 1793, the Spanish completed that fort, essentially wrapping the city of San Juan in stone walls and towers. The structure sprawls for acres and remains the largest fortification ever built by Spain in the New World.
At the end of the walls we found El Capitolio (Capitol Building), also known as El Palacio De Las Leyes (The Laws Palace). It is home to Puerto Rico’s House of Representatives and Puerto Rico’s Senate.
At that point we were on target to hit 15,000 steps for the day and we headed back to the ship.
Our plan in Puerto Plata was to hike to the fort and then find Umbrella Street and Pink Street. We had to exit the Taino Bay cruise port first.
Taino Bay Cruise Port features unique attractions, a Lazy River, pools, lounge areas, and more. We could easily spend a whole day enjoying the newly-built tourist attraction, but we wanted to explore the city.
As we exited the cruise port Roberto introduced himself to us and asked us what our plans were. He offered to accompany us on our tour. He said that he would assist us in seeing the city. Of course, he would appreciate a tip afterward if we felt it was worth a tip. Roberto was awesome. He showed us the best routes to do what we wanted to do. He took us in the back doors of local establishments and got us preferential treatment. He even introduced us to a member of the city council as we passed him in his driveway. Most of the establishments we visited wanted us to have a shot of their Mamajuana.
Mamajuana is a type of spiced rum from the Dominican Republic. The liqueur typically comes in a big glass bottle filled with large pieces of bark, roots, and floating plant matter steeping in a mixture of rum, wine, fruit juice, and honey. One of the establishments we visited shared that their Mamajuana was 20 years old. The locals trying to sell me Mamajuana claimed that it would treat joint pain, headaches, toothache, improve circulation, act as a blood cleanser, serve as a tonic for my liver and kidneys, fight infection, cure colds and flu, settle the stomach, regulate digestion, ease gastrointestinal discomfort, boost my libido, and enhance my vitality.
At one of our stops I got a cigar rolling lesson, at another we learned about amber and larimar jewelry. Tammy got a ring with both stones there. At another stop we learned about cacao and chocolate.
We said goodbye to Roberto at the gate to the Taino Bay Resort. We passed through the port area, the duty free shop, and down the pier to the ship.
Some random shots from the ship. We had a wonderful time. We enjoyed the Aqua80 Too water show, The Blades ice skating show and Mama Mia the Broadway musical. We thoroughly enjoyed Raj and Cladys our waitstaff every night in the Main Dining Room. Our Stateroom Attendant, Roland kept our room stocked with necessities, kept it comfortable for us, and hooked us up with a couple nice towel animals. In between other events we enjoyed Trivia, Name That Tune, the Love and Marriage Show and Price is Right. I think we had at least one drink in every bar. There were a lot of restaurants we did not sample. Sorrento’s Pizza was an afternoon hit. Donuts’ mediocre gas station style donuts were the only disappointment. We also made stops at the Windjammer buffet and El Loco Fresh for Mexican fare. We never made it for hot dogs at the Dog House. Nassau, Bahamas gets more interesting with every visit. We keep finding new wonders there. San Juan, Puerto Rico was very interesting. It was a good sample of a new port. I would like to make another visit to see the city when the cruise ships leave. Five huge ships full of tourists is just too many people to be able to experience the best of San Juan. In Puerta Plata it was a stroke of luck to meet up with Roberto. We saw a lot in a short time. I would definitely enjoy another day there.
The plan was a 1:30 flight back to Grand Rapids with a layover at Regan Washington National. We put the provided tags on our luggage the night before disembarkation. We set our bags outside our door before dinner, and they were picked up before we returned to the room. On Saturday morning we returned to the Main Dining Room for a last meal on the ship. After breakfast we grabbed our carry-on bags and proceeded to the theater for our time slot to disembark.
We got to the cruise terminal without issue and proceeded to Area 45 to pick up our bags. My bags were there, but once again there was no sign of Tammy’s bag. After about an hour the crowd thinned, and Tammy toured the terminal and found her bag in Area 70. It had a damaged Area 70 tag sticking to the other handle.
They barely slowed our walking pace as we proceeded through customs. They did not even need our passports. They used facial recognition!
Once again, we had purchased our airport shuttle from Royal Caribbean. Fortunately, the bus was still outside the terminal. They loaded our luggage and took us to the Fort Lauderdale airport. At the airport they dumped us and our luggage at Terminal 1.
Our flight on American Airlines was scheduled to depart from Terminal 3. We asked an airport employee how to get there, and he said the best option was probably a ten-minute walk. We proceeded to Terminal 3 and got in what we thought was the line to check our bags. About 20 minutes later we realized we were in the TSA line. We made our way around the line and checked our bags. Once our bags were checked we got back in the line for Security Screening. This was during the partial government shutdown. We knew this was not going to be a routine process when we saw a TSA agent taking selfies at the end of the line. It was about an hour to get through security.
We were in the terminal, with plenty of time before our flight, when we were notified that our connecting flight to Grand Rapids was canceled. The notice from American Airlines said, “Passengers will be rebooked and notified soon.” I figured it would work itself out and was unconcerned. Just before boarding time I got an E-mail stating, “One of your flights was canceled and we were unable to rebook your trip from DCA to GRR. Please call 800-433-7300 for help. We’re sorry for the change to your travel plans.”
I called 800-433-7300 and was told by the automated system that they were experiencing high call volumes. They hung up on me. I went up to the American Airlines kiosk and spoke to the agent. She informed me that she could see no way to get us to Grand Rapids before the weekend was over. She offered to fly us to Chicago. We settled on a flight to Chicago the next morning. I reserved a room at Hilton Garden Inn Reagan National Airport and a rental car for the following day in Chicago.
Our flight to Washington D C was uneventful. We picked up our luggage. The shuttle bus to the Hilton Garden Inn coincidentally pulled up as we exited the terminal. We had a sandwich and beverage at the hotel restaurant. We made an early night of it and retired to the room to watch TV and relax before bedtime.
On Sunday morning we got up, got ready for the day, and had a nice complimentary breakfast. After we requested their services, the hotel shuttle had us at the airport in a matter of minutes. We had lots of time to make it through Security. We got our luggage checked in and breezed through security. We had three hours to kill before our flight. Then we were notified that our flight was delayed till 12:30. Then we were notified that our flight was delayed till 1:30. Then we were notified that our flight was delayed till 3:30. Then we were notified that our flight was delayed till 5:30. Then I bought, “History of Puerto Rico: A Captivating Guide to the Taínos, Spanish Conquest, American Invasion, and Modern Times” from Amazon. Tammy had her book in her carry on. A little after 5:00 we actually boarded our plane to Chicago. At 7:30 we landed at John Glenn International Airport in Columbus Ohio.
About 15 minutes before we landed in Columbus, I reserved a rental car from Avis on Expedia. I wanted to miss the rush if everyone else on our plane rented cars. It took about two hours to get our luggage unloaded. By the time our luggage was available I had canceled our rental car in Chicago and I had been to the ticketing counter. I had a hotel voucher, meal vouchers that needed to be used on the other side of the Security Checkpoint and transportation vouchers. I hope the vouchers worked for the traveler I gave them to. We got a Tahoe Denali from Avis and were home by 2:45am on Monday morning. After a brief sleep I returned the Tahoe to the Grand Rapids airport and picked up my truck. Later that day, I saw my E-mail that our flight to Chicago was delayed till 9:15 on Monday morning. I did get issued a refund of $43.55 each for that flight