Our Incredible Allure of the Seas Cruise Part 4- Labadee

 Aaaah, Labadee. What a beautiful place! 

 












I woke up early and could see the island in the distance.

I wandered a bit before Wes woke up. I visited Royal Caribbean Online, which was (fortunately) on Deck 7. I was able to get there in less than a minute. There were 6 terminals and 2 printers in the room.







It was pretty quiet in the Royal Promenade.




 Went to the pool deck to watch the ship pull into Labadee. It was HOT already . Below you'll see the Sports Pool and the Regular Pool. The Sports Pool has netting alongside it, so when they play volleyball, etc, the ball doesn't go over the railing into Central Park Below. Can you imagine?!















 I went to Guest Services because Wes had an excursion booked, and we never received the ticket in our stateroom. He used the TV program to book his excursion, and our Seapass account was charged ($48) that day. I think he booked it the first night on the ship. No problem at all, the front desk assistant was able to reprint his ticket within seconds.

We ate our breakfast in bed (it was so hot on that balcony) and quickly got dressed. We were excited to visit the island for the first time!

Exiting the ship was so easy! There's a (brilliant) Gangway button in the elevator so you never have to guess which deck you're supposed to use to get off the ship. Down the escalator and through security, and you're on your way.









 We had a cabana booked, but I had no idea where were supposed to go. Wes decided to walk with me until I was settled, before he headed to meet up with his excursion.








I went into the Information Center (beautiful artwork and sculpture inside, BTW), and the staff member there told me to go back a couple yards and board the shuttle (golf cart-type shuttle) to Barefoot Beach. A quick 'see you later' to Wes, and I was on my way.

It was quick ride to the Barefoot Beach entrance, however I wouldn't want to walk it. I was grateful for the shuttle.

When we got to the entrance, attendants were waiting with the list of guests who were to have access to Barefoot. If you're staying in a Suite, you can use Barefoot Beach without having a cabana. If you're fortunate enough to get a cabana, you instantly have access to Barefoot, even if you're not staying in a suite. So if you have a Nellie's Beach cabana, you can also visit Barefoot. We were so lucky we had one right on Barefoot. The area is smaller and less crowded. Love!

The attendants checked my name and stateroom number. They gave me a wristband to signal to everyone that I was a guest on Barefoot. I let them know that my husband was on an excursion, and would be here in about an hour or so.









 We had a Standard Cabnana, #S9. It was in a great location. Fernando, the Concierge, understood that I didn't want to have to walk too far to get to the water (and wanted a great view), and that I needed to be able to keep cool. I really couldn't tolerate heat that well for a long stretch of time. If we had an over the water cabana, I think I would have gotten a bit too hot. And the hillside cabana stairs were uneven, so I would have been nervous about tripping or falling. Ours was just right for the day.

The other standard cabanas are behind the cement walkway, so they always had some traffic blocking their view. Ours was in front of the walkway, in a corner next to the Hillside Cabanas, so it was like we had our own little private spot. Additionally, our cabana sat under trees, so we had a cool place to enjoy the beautiful scenery throughout the day.











 Our cabana attendant, Rolex, was very helpful throughout the day. He checked on me about every 90 minutes or so. Once or twice we would return to the cabana and see him sweeping the sand out of the cabana. The cabana came with 3 large bottles of Evian water in ice, 6 towels, and 2 floating beach mats. There was a ceiling fan to keep you cool. And yes- there's an electrical outlet in the cabana, so if you want to bring your e-reader and charger, feel free!















 I went up the steps next to the cabana to the first hillside cabana. I wanted to see the view from up there. Very nice!



My problem was getting back down...my balance was a little off so I had to take my time. The steps were uneven.








 While I waited for Wes to get back, I walked directly across the road to see the zipline. It was pretty early in the morning, about 9 AM, but I was lucky to be able to see a couple people ride the zipline.














 The restrooms were on the way back...very clean by the way.

I relaxed a while with my Kindle. In the meantime, people started to arrive on the beach. Some were suite guests without a cabana. Attendants set up chairs and umbrellas for them, as well as brought them as many floating mats as they needed. Rolex checked on me one more time.







Wes arrived, and he was instantly impressed with the cabana. It's funny, the attendants at the front gate took one look at him and said, "You must be Chrystal's husband, welcome to Barefoot Beach!" Hilarious.

Rolex came by to introduce himself and give Wes a wristband. We relaxed a bit before lunch was served at 11:00.









 Ok, so I know everyone asks what's served at lunch on Barefoot Beach....and most of the time, there are some vague answers. I was determined to take pictures of everything offered. I think I got just about everything. I tried to snap a picture real quick before I filled my plate at each section, lol. So here you go, moving down the line:

Salads and toppings for your burgers. Watermelon, Pineapple, Potato Salad, Greek Salad, and Coleslaw were included.




Hamburgers in sauteed onions with warm buns, Hotdogs and warm buns.

Rice and Beans, Grilled Chicken Drumsticks, Grilled Chicken Breast, Corn on the Cob. The chicken was heavily seasoned with some Creole/Haitian seasoning, which I LOVE. I have a friend who is Haitian and the flavors were instantly familiar to me. Delicious.

Steak and Shrimp, Scallop, and Salmon Skewers.

Various Condiments.

Fruit Punch, Iced Tea, and Ice Water.



 The burgers were sooo goood. The seafood skewers were great too.







I guess everyone knew what time lunch was. This is when the beach started to get pretty busy:

 After lunch, Wes took a nap. I was determined to get some sun, but since I couldn't tolerate the heat, I decided to take a floating mat and float in the water for a while. Entering the water, it's a little rocky and there are some broken shells. Not bad enough to need water shoes, though.

I ended up floating out there for about 3 hours, and it was heavenly. It was pretty quiet most of the time, and Wes came out with me for a little bit. I was perfectly content to float around and gaze and the beautiful mountains in front of us, thinking about absolutely nothing. So relaxing.





 Some photos of our surroundings:









 After napping for a little while, we decided to head back to the ship around 3:30. The beach was already clearing out.







I do appreciate the thought that went into the embarkation process. They split the ship into two gangways, depending upon if your stateroom was located in the forward section of the ship, or aft. You'll have a letter (A-F I think) on your Seapass to let you know which gangway to use. Made for a very quick process. We never encountered a long line to get back onto the ship.





 Bye-Bye, Labadee! We love you!






 To hold us over until dinner, we got room service. I tried the fried fish on the menu since I never had it before. It was really good! I wish they had tarter sauce instead of the dill remoulade, but it was still very tasty. I also ordered the cookies of the day, and they turned out to be some yummy coconut cookies. Sorry, I ate them so fast I forgot to take a photo!



 We went to the early showing of Chicago that evening. The show was so much fun! Please be sure to go see it. I also tried one of their nonalcoholic beverages, the Bora Bora Brew. It consisted of pineapple juice, grenadine, and ginger ale. SO SWEET! I had to nurse it throughout the show and take it with me to the MDR.










 Dinner was very good. I had the caprese salad, garlic tiger shrimp, and the bread pudding. Wes had the minestrone soup, grilled salmon, and his vanilla ice cream. He loved the soup, he said it was one of the best things he ate all week.














 




 And that was it for our day in Labadee!  Thank you for reading so far. Up next- Falmouth!