Half Moon Cay was by far our favorite stop in the Bahamas!
The natural beauty was stunning.
Half Moon Cay is a private island that is visited by several cruise ships throughout the year.
The island offers several different excursion adventures, as well as beautiful white beaches and crystal clear water. Simply stunning.
The one thing I knew I wanted to do on our honeymoon was horseback riding on the beach.
I love horses, used to take horseback riding lessons when I was little, and to ride them on the beach was a dream. We woke up super early to get ready for our excursion that morning. Our ship stopped just short of the shoreline, where we took another smaller boat to the island. Once we were on shore, we noticed all of the wonderful attractions the island had to offer.
Before we could explore, we had to meet up with our excursion group to be taken to the stables where the horses were kept. A five minute truck ride led us to pastures of horses, directly across from the pristine beaches. There, we were given a quick lesson on safety and rules while riding. Once everybody received their helmet (and some of us shoes who didn't think to bring closed-toe ones...me), they matched each one of us individually to a horse that best fit our physical description.
Cody and I each mounted our sweet horses, Matte & Irene, where we took a few practice laps before hitting the trail. The first half of the trip was trail riding throughout the island - downhill, uphill and eventually on the beach.
Riding along the beach was incredible, as it was put into full perspective as to where we actually were. Behind me, my new husband, looking so cute on his horse, encouraging me and my horse throughout the ride. To the left, crystal blue water washing up on shore with our cruise ship sitting so perfectly in the distance. And to the right, was one of our awesome tour guides who so kindly offered to take our picture as we were riding along.
Once we rode down the beach and back around to the stables, we dismounted our horses and took a short break. At this point, my butt was already so sore, but I didn't want to let it stop me from the part I was looking forward to next - riding through the ocean!
After the horses were switched out, we took turns in smaller groups taking a stroll through the ocean. Well, it was suppose to be a stroll... Lucky for us, our horses took off running through the ocean instead. My horse apparently had a competitive streak deep down inside, because that sucker took off, pushing other horses out of the way to get us to the front! Luckily, Cody and I held on tight throughout the ride and managed to survive back to shore. It was so much fun - once I realized I wasn't going to die.
After horseback riding, we took our truck back to the main part of the island, where we were finally able to explore a little before hitting the beach. A mini straw market, playgrounds, on sight chapel, an island BBQ, and personal cabanas (only $2,000...) were just some of the attractions we saw before we ended up at of course, the bar. $31 dollars later, we left with our souvenir swirly cups filled with frozen yumminess, and we headed toward the beach.
After a long trek down the beach, we finally reached a spot that was not so crowded, where we could spread out our towels and enjoy some time together in the sun. We laid out on our towels for awhile, before we jumped in the ocean that turned out to be a lot chillier than we expected. The view made the chilliness so worth it.
After spending some hours on the beach, we noticed some dark clouds rolling in and decided to head back to the boat. After dropping our things off at our room and freshening up, our bellies were grumbling extra loudly, so we hit up the lunch buffet on the ship. The rest of the day was spent relaxing by the pool, and maybe, just maybe, a few more frozen drinks to make us feel even more Bahamian.
We ended the night with dinner together by the window, so we could watch the sunset while we ate. Enjoyed some time walking around the ship, peeking in on some shows and what not, and eventually came back to our room to a funny little towel animal, that I eventually named Maci to make me feel more at home. :)
It's hard to believe a week ago today, my husband and I were horseback riding on the beach and catching some rays in the Bahamas! Time flies when you're having fun, right?
Yesterday, I started my honeymoon recap "mini series" and incase you missed it, you can catch up on it here. We started off our honeymoon by heading down to Daytona, so we were closer to Port Canaveral, where our cruise ship was docked.
Last Sunday we left our hotel pretty early since we still had an hour or so drive to Port Canaveral. We had plenty of time to get through security, and were able to pick up our room keys to board the ship for lunch and drinks.
For lunch, Guy Fieri hamburgers that were the best I've had in my entire life.
Not joking. Cody, who isn't a hamburger fan at all, was equally obsessed with those babies.
I'm pretty sure the 5 lbs. I've gained is due pretty heavily to those greasy suckers, and I'm sure the 500 million sugary drinks I sucked down didn't help.
Sooooooo worth it y'all.
Our ship finally set sail around 5 that evening, where Cody and I spent the rest of the night exploring the ship and watching the Heat/Spurs game in the ESPN bar on the ship.
The next day was a day at sea, as the cruise ship headed south to Half Moon Cay.
We woke up pretty early for breakfast and a really rough day at sea.
The wind was ridiculous, making it a little chilly outside. Plus, the water was super rough, so the boat was shaky at times.
We both felt super lazy and sleepy, so we napped for awhile and kinda wasted the day away.
Luckily, the weather was a little better by late that afternoon, so we got ready for dinner and enjoyed some alone time walking around the ship and learning where everything was. We eventually stopped at the Seaside Theatre to watch Grown Ups 2 on the big screen by the pool. Not as good as the first one, I must say.
Bird photobomb.
We didn't get too crazy getting too involved with anything on this ship, we were pretty lazy most of the time (that's what vacation is all about right!?). But for our three stops the next upcoming days, we had many excursions on shore.
Horseback riding on the beach?
That's for tomorrow! :)
