Friday 20th December – Home to Barbados
My alarm woke me at five, and I got up immediately—no lie-in, as I would probably go back to sleep, and that could be a disaster. Shave, shower, and a bowl of cereal, and I was ready to go. As I had already got my suitcase in the boot, I only had to throw my hand luggage on the front passenger seat. But my, was it cold! I had to scrape the frost off the windscreen before I could go.
I pulled into the Executive parking at the North Terminal short-term car park just before seven and joined the queue of people parking. By the time I had got my case out of the boot and my hand luggage next to it, the guy had turned up to check the car in on his tablet. It took seconds for him to tap in my registration number and confirm my booking, return date and time, and give me a receipt for my spare car keys. Then it was off to Departures, a 2- or 3-minute walk at the most. The longest wait was for a lift to go up one level to the TUI check-in area. EasyJet seems to have all the check-in desks on the level the Executive parking was on.
There were people checking in for TUI flights to P&O Cruises on both sides of the check-in area: on one side, it was people flying to Tenerife, and on the other, it was Barbados. There was one of these horrible snaking queues, but there were so many check-in desks open that I was only in the queue for a few minutes. Check-in must have taken two minutes at the most. All I needed was my passport, which went through a reader and confirmed I was a passenger on that flight; a luggage label was printed and attached to my case, a receipt stuck on the back of my passport, and the boarding card printed—and I was done. The girl wished me a good flight and Merry Christmas, and I was off.
There was quite a long queue at Security, but it was moving quite quickly, unlike the queue at ‘Fast-track’ Security, which wasn’t moving at all! It was fairly easy getting through the automated boarding card reader, but the queues for the baggage X-ray and personal scanners were ridiculous and took ages. The rules for the Gatwick baggage X-ray have changed since I last flew in June. Then, you had to take iPads, phones, and Kindles, etc., out of the bags and put them in a separate tray. Now, it’s take everything out of your pockets, including paper hankies, and put it in the hand luggage along with belts and coats. You can now keep your shoes and wristwatch on.
While that lot is being X-rayed, you go in a body scanner and stand on two blue footprints, so your legs are apart with arms out at either side. It takes seconds, and you are reunited with your hand luggage. Now comes the bit I hate—the enforced snaking walk through the ‘duty-free’ shop. I was amazed to find the departure lounge was busy, but nowhere near as busy as it had been in June. A quick check on the departure board told me that news of my flight would appear at 09:01, so with over an hour before then, thoughts turned to food. With no queue and vacant tables at Spoons, I had a decent breakfast and a coffee—it was still too early for alcohol for me.
Back in the lounge proper, I sat where I could see a departure screen, and a lady with a little girl sitting nearby spotted the label on my hand luggage and started chatting, as they were on the same flight. Then another family with a little boy and girl joined in. So, we had an interesting chat. The children had never been on a cruise, and the boy, Alfie, wanted to know if Father Christmas came to the ship.
The flight gate was displayed at exactly 09:01, and we all set off together for the gate lounge, which was nowhere near big enough for a full 787-9. I managed to find a seat to wait out the ten minutes to boarding. The plane pushed back at exactly the stated time—10:10—and taxied out. We had to wait a few minutes to get to the runway, but we were quickly off. The pilot said we would land in Barbados at 15:00 local time, that’s 19:00 GMT, so I settled in for a long flight. Thank God for seat-back entertainment.

TUI, G-TUIL, Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner (47663114461),
Anna Zvereva – Licence CC BY-SA 2.0
The first round of drinks came round as soon as the plane got to its cruising height of 40,000 feet. I had a vodka (miniature) and Sprite Zero, there being no lemonade on board. The mother and middle-aged daughter sitting inside me on the row of three had two miniature vodkas each and a glass of orange juice each. Then, as an afterthought, they had a can of Sprite each. Two vodkas and the Sprites went into the daughter’s bag! I bet that wouldn’t have happened if they had to pay for the drinks.
For the first time I can remember, there was no choice of meal for lunch, unless you had pre-ordered something like a veggie, kids’ or kosher meal. But it wasn’t bad, chicken pie with mash, green beans and carrots, even if the pastry was the size of a postage stamp. Even the Australian dry white wine was decent! We had another round of drinks later, and my neighbours did the same thing again, and the daughter’s bag was getting a bit full now. The final meal, about 90 minutes before landing, was tea, three finger sandwiches and a little cake. Quite nice, but I missed the scone, clotted cream and strawberry jam that had been served on previous flights to the Caribbean.
The plane landed at exactly 3 o’clock local time and taxied into the stand. As usual, the coaches were waiting at the bottom of the plane steps, and the instant the coach was full, we were off into the heavy Friday afternoon traffic. The driver soon got fed up and dropped off the highway onto a series of back streets, taking us through shanty towns. When we arrived at the port check-in, there wasn’t anyone waiting, so I walked straight up to one of the 30-odd desks. The girl quickly scanned my passport, glanced at my boarding pass, stamped it ‘OK to Board’, and wished me a good cruise and a Merry Christmas. Yet another hand luggage X-ray and pass through a metal detector arch, and I’m up the gangway and on the ship.
The first stop is to check in at my muster station, where my boarding pass is scanned to prove I have been there. Then, it’s off to the cabin and a wander round to find someone to help me get the ship’s internet sorted. I was OK getting into the ship’s ‘MyHoliday’ app, which gives you access to all sorts of things like restaurant bookings, your onboard account, excursion bookings, and the internet. But you need a pin to get into the internet, so I needed a bit of assistance. As I had already paid for internet access back in the UK when they had a special offer of 20% off, I wanted it as soon as possible. A ship’s officer quickly sorted it out, and I had the internet on my phone and on my iPad.

© WorthingGooner 2025, Going Postal

© WorthingGooner 2025, Going Postal
Back in the cabin, still no suitcase, but my cabin steward appeared, so I took the opportunity to give him a small tip and tell him that if he looked after my cabin well, there would be another tip at the end of the cruise. He asked what time I usually go to breakfast, and I said about 8 o’clock, so he said he would try to do the cabin while I was at breakfast. That suits me.
As my body was still on UK time, I booked an early dinner at 6 pm even though my body told me it was 10 pm. I was shown to a sharing table for 8, where two people were already waiting. After a bit, it emerged they were going home the next day. Then we were joined by two more couples, one of whom was also going home and one who had got on board at Antigua the previous weekend, so they were in the middle of their holiday. All six said how good the holiday was, which is much nicer to hear than a load of petty moans. Anyway, before you ask, I decided I wanted a light meal as I felt I was eating so late. I started with one of the old reliables: tomato soup. Then I had a fillet of barramundi. I don’t think I have ever had it before, and it was delicious. It came with boiled potatoes, spinach with onions, and green beans. For dessert, it was mixed ice cream, vanilla and mint chocolate chip. Finally, a cup of coffee. I was so tired now that I didn’t go for a nightcap. Instead, I headed for my cabin where my case had arrived. I decided to unpack just what I needed for the night and leave the rest for the morning. I was asleep before nine o’clock local time, but that was 1 am UK time.
Saturday, 21st December – Barbados
I woke just after six as it began to get light. I reckon that was nine hours’ sleep, and I needed it. I did a little posting on GP, then forced myself to get up. The sun was just coming up and was a lovely red ball just above the horizon. In the photo, you can see the remnants of last night’s rain clouds, and in the far left of the horizon are the floodlight pylons of Kensington Oval, the Test match ground in Bridgetown.

© WorthingGooner 2025, Going Postal
I finished my unpacking, had a wash and was ready for breakfast at about ten to eight. As the main dining room is at the back of the ship on deck six and my cabin is toward the bow of the ship on deck 15, I decided to set off for a casual stroll. I asked for and was put on a sharing table, one of the better ones, right at the stern by the two-deck-high windows. I was first and quickly joined by a lady whom I had spoken to yesterday, as she was sitting directly behind me on the plane. Then, three other couples, all of whom were going home today, arrived and we got down to the serious business of ordering breakfast.
I ordered my usual Rice Krispies to start, followed by two fried eggs, a couple of slices of black pudding, and mushrooms. I was about to ask for a glass of water to take my pills with, but for some reason decided to have a glass of orange juice instead. But it was my asking for square toast that got my table companions talking. They all wanted to know what it was. I explained it was just toast with the crusts removed, and it was generally agreed that the crust on the regular toast was hard, and they had no idea that square toast was available. However, the secret is safe as they were all going home!
I popped back up to the cabin to clean my teeth, and the sun on the balcony was too good to miss. The cabin steward had been in and everything was spick and span, so I took my Kindle and sat on the balcony for a while reading and watching the people heading for the coaches to the airport. A lovely way to spend the morning.
At about 12, I headed for the snack outlet by the pool and grabbed a hot dog with a load of fried onions and chips for lunch. All washed down with a large bottle of Doom Bar. Most enjoyable, even if it was difficult getting a table. They all seemed to be occupied by people sitting around waiting for the flights back to the UK. After lunch, I headed for Brodies Bar where the footie was on the big screens. It was also on in the cabins, but it’s so much nicer watching with others and being able to order a beer or two, especially when your team wins, and wins well.
Back to the cabin for a read and then prepare for dinner. A shower and a shave. The water temperature and pressure in the shower are excellent, but they have got some sort of spray outlet fitted in the basin mixer tap, and it means the water piddles out. It’s nice and hot but takes ages to wash away soap. A new thing in the en-suite bathroom this Christmas is that when you switch the light out, it doesn’t go fully out. The mirror light is turned off, but the ceiling lights just dim. It seems that most people leave the bathroom lights on all night so they can find their way from the light leaking under the door. So, this must be an economy measure.
I joined a sharing table for dinner. Six people were already there: a Liverpudlian couple, the husband of whom was loud as only a Liverpudlian can be; a couple from Manchester; and a couple from Littlehampton. I chose mushroom soup, and it was excellent. Then it was roast beef, mashed potato, braised onion, and cabbage. The wife from Littlehampton also had the beef, and we agreed that it was not the most tender of beef, but the braised onion was the star of the show. For dessert, I chose strudel cake with a ramekin of custard. I was first to order and asked for vanilla ice cream as well. Most of the others asked for ice cream with their desserts. The only one who didn’t was the man from Manchester, but he did have cheese and biscuits!
I headed to the Crows Nest for a nightcap and realised that we were still in Barbados. The captain had said that we would sail at nine, and it was gone half past, and there was not a soul to be seen on the dockside. I have no idea what time we actually sailed, but we were still alongside when I turned in for the night about 11 pm.
Sunday, 22nd December – At Sea
I was woken by some noise or other about 3 am and realised it was someone flushing their loo in a nearby cabin. They operate by vacuum and tend to be rather noisy with a very distinct whooshy sound. As I lay there waiting to fall back asleep, I realised first that we were at sea, and second, there were toilets being flushed all over. I wondered if folk had drunk a lot or if something at dinner had upset people.
I woke up for a second time just after six, and it was just getting light. Well, that’s 10 am in the UK, and as it was Sunday and Larry day, I jumped on GP for a while. I must say that since they switched over to Starlink for the internet, it is much improved—faster and far fewer dropouts. When I post something, even photos, it is virtually instant.
On my way to breakfast, I bumped into my cabin steward and asked if he would leave me a face flannel as my one had decided to leak red dye. A sharing table for six for breakfast, where there were already two couples perusing the menu. I had only just sat down, and the waiter arrived to take my order: orange juice, Rice Krispies, square toast and two fried eggs, two rashers of bacon, two sausages, and two slices of black pudding. When all the orders had been placed, the man sitting next to me said, “You didn’t even look at the menu before ordering. I guess you have seen it before.”
Back to sit on the balcony in the sun. The cabin has been serviced while I was at breakfast, and I now have ten P&O flannels on a shelf in the bathroom! The ship is hardly moving, and I’m not surprised as it’s only about a hundred miles between the two countries, and an easy overnight journey. So instead of going directly, we have sailed due west and cut between St Vincent and Bequia, and are now heading north towards St Lucia at 3 knots. Honestly, I could walk faster.
For lunch today, I decided on a burger and chips. There was a big queue, as is often the case on a sea day when everyone is on board. They had a heap of cheeseburgers under the heat lamps, but being an awkward sod, I asked for a plain burger but with fried onions and watched as the server grabbed a cheeseburger and stuffed fried onions in it. When I rejected it, he wasn’t very happy, but I can’t eat cheese; it gives me migraines. Still, I eventually got a nice freshly made burger with lettuce, tomato, and fried onions, and it was excellent.
Next stop is Brodies to watch Tottenham v Liverpool. I would normally want everyone to beat Spurs, but today I want both teams to lose. What a pity Spurs got stuffed, but the Doom Bar was good.
Dinner tonight in the main dining room, and once again I was on a sharing table, this time for eight. It was tomato soup tonight for the starter, and I followed that with a fillet of lemon sole in a seafood mix in a tomato sauce with gnocchi, and it was really lovely. I finished up with a chocolate marquise, and I was delighted to have asked for an additional helping of ice cream as it was really strong chocolate. Sat opposite me was a mummy and daddy with a little girl called Casey. She was very chatty and reminded me of the LGND. She showed me photos of her puppy on her daddy’s phone, a rather nice-looking cockerpoo. She was also eating from the children’s menu and had crudités and pizza fingers followed by a cheeseburger. I must say it looked pretty good, and she seemed to enjoy it.
Monday 23rd December – St Lucia
As my excursion to the banana plantation has been cancelled I didn’t have to get up early to have breakfast in the buffet, so that was relief. Instead, I went to the MDR and had a waiter service breakfast. As usual I asked for a sharing table and sat with seven people all new to me. I started with Rice Krispies and followed that with two fried eggs, a sausage and mushrooms, accompanied by square toast, and washed down with orange juice and coffee. I always go for two eggs, they are so small, I think they have a flock of pigeons on board.
One of the normal topics of conversation to people who have been thrown together to eat is “where do you come from?” This morning I was sat opposite a couple from Hull, a city I have visited many times but not so much in recent years. It was where my father was born, and my grandparents lived their whole lives. The man asked whereabouts in Hull my father had been born, and he knew the street. The old house has been knocked down now and the area is totally different, but he remembered it as it was.

© WorthingGooner 2025, Going Postal
After breakfast, I had a wander ashore. We were moored at the main dock right by the tourist centre and duty-free shops. So, I had a stroll around before walking into town where I found a bar for a beer and to indulge in one of my favourite things, people watching. I was back on board for lunch, a hot main course and chips and a bottle of Doom Bar. I headed back to my cabin and sat down on the balcony to finish my Jack Reacher novel. I finished the book and was rather disappointed he hardly killed or beat up anyone. But then I fell asleep, fortunately I was in the shade!

© WorthingGooner 2025, Going Postal
I woke up rather sticky, so I had a lovely shower and changed to smarter clothes for dinner. As I got to the reception desk to be allocated a table the man behind me was told that he couldn’t come in as he was wearing shorts. The dress rules are published every day, but shorts are never allowed at dinner in the MDR in the evening. I was shown to a sharing table and a few minutes later the family who were on my table the night before last joined us. Casey was happy as she knew me and told me all about her day. She had been on a boat and swimming with turtles. Her daddy told me she loved it, and she is a better swimmer than mummy and daddy! I asked what she was going to eat tonight, and she said, “The same as before, it was good.” But today there was cookie dough ice cream on the menu, so she also had two scoops of that as well. I had tomato soup, beer battered haddock, chips and mushy peas. I had bread and butter pudding for dessert with custard and vanilla ice cream. Then it was off to the Crows Nest for a night cap.
Coming next – Part 2 – Christmas at Sea
© WorthingGooner 2025