Vacationing Chef

Some time ago I read a post on Cruise Critic about Healthy Cruises.  The post was asking if Healthy Cruises were “fact or fiction”.  Can you take a Healthy Cruise?

Well, I say yes.  I’ll go even further and say that cruise lines make it easier to adhere to a healthy lifestyle than to not.  It’s true, you could spend hours at the buffet and hours laying like a beached whale by the pool but with so many healthful things to do then why not spend your time on things that make you feel great inside and out.  The first thing to do is skip the buffet all together.  While you’re at it, skip the free cookies, ice cream and pizza too.  Take the stairs, it’s faster than the elevator.

You paid good money for this cruise so let the wonderful and well trained waitstaff in the full service dining room serve you your breakfast, lunch, and dinner on china plates with proper glassware and silverware.  You are there to be pampered after all.  The diningroom menu is filled with light dishes and healthy choices and the evening meal menus will have gourmet “spa” choices.  Speaking of spa, every ship has one.  Schedule a massage, body wrap, facial or some other healthy treatment that will make you feel good and pampered and blissfully happy.

On board there is a gym, I know, you didn’t come on a cruise to use the gym.  You could stay home and go to the gym.  An early morning workout is a great way to gain energy for the day and shake off the night before but I admit that I don’t use the gym on the ship that often.  But you can schedule a great yoga, water aerobics, or spinning class or even a private Pilates class with one of the trainers.  Go outside and walk or jog the track at dawn (my favorite activity).  But for a great workout, go climb the rock wall, ride the surfing machine, play mini golf or real golf with the golf simulator, or go ice skating (yes, you heard me right).  Dance classes are offered so kick up your boots while learning to line dance or kick up your heals while learning ball room dancing.  I love to reward myself each day for my good behavior with some me time in the sauna.  And don’t forget to let your inner child out because a few times up to the water slide is great exercise and you’ll get plenty of sun as well. Swim, play and have fun. 

Don’t forget to treat yourself to a nice dinner at one of the specialty restaurants on the ship for a meal to splurge on.  I promise you’ll be much happier splurging on a perfectly prepared and presented dinner for 2 than at a loud crowded buffet standing in line to get your luke warm piece of chicken.  Cocktails are plentiful on cruises and the bar is always open so choose well and stick with light beer and wine spritzers instead of calorie laden fruity frozen drinks.  Don’t forget to drink lots of water.

Remember, that you don’t have to deny yourself anything on a cruise to have a healthy cruise.  Remember that you’re there to have fun and be pampered and most of all you’re there for you.

Published on: March 26, 2010

From Travel Pulse Newsletter 3/25/10

Carnival Cruise Lines has partnered with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital to launch a fund-raising initiative with a goal of raising $3 million over the next three years. St. Jude is a premier center for the research and treatment of pediatric cancer and other catastrophic diseases. The program, called “Care to Play: Carnival for St. Jude Kids,” kicks off the week of March 28 aboard all 22 Carnival ships. The shipboard fund-raising is the second phase of the Carnival-St. Jude partnership that began late last year with the line’s initial $50,000 donation. Funds were raised through Carnival’s “Virtual Book of Dreams” contest that asked kids to share their dreams for an opportunity to become the cruise industry’s first waterslide godchild.
Onboard, Care to Play activities include the “Groove for St. Jude,” which allows guests to make a $10 donation and “groove to the music” in one of the ship’s dance clubs with sounds provided by a DJ. Guests receive a Care to Play T-shirt and wristband and 100 percent of their donation goes to St. Jude.
Another component is Carnival’s Teddy Bear Workshop, in which children from the Camp Carnival program can build their own cuddly St. Jude keepsake bear. Kids can also customize their bear with doctor’s apparel, including scrubs, surgical mask and lab coat. One hundred percent of profits, after all related expenses, benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Additionally, copies of the “The Dream Plucker of Perrysport,” a children’s book based on stories and illustrations submitted by Camp Carnival participants, will be sold shipboard for $5.95. One hundred percent of the purchase price of this item will be donated to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Several hundred copies of the book have also been donated to the hospital.
Carnival also is auctioning off the baseball bat signed by All-Star third baseman Alex Rodriguez of the World Champion New York Yankees; the bat was used in the Carnival Dream’s naming ceremony in New York. Those interested in bidding on this commemorative item can visit www.carnival.com/stjude,  a website that highlights the Carnival-St. Jude partnership. One hundred percent of the auction proceeds will benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The site also includes a two-minute video on Carnival-St. Jude initiatives, a listing of the line’s yearly progress toward its fund-raising goal, and a link to St. Jude’s website where visitors can donate directly to the organization. For more information, visit www.bookccl.com  or www.stjude.org.