Grand Turk, Amber Cove, Nassau & Celebration Key

[tarheelmjfan]

DH & I decided to book a somewhat last minute cruise leaving next month. I'm hoping some of you have been to these ports & can offer suggestions for excursions. We prefer culture, history & sightseeing & like to mingle with the locals. We have no interest in a beach day & don't want to spend a day on a private island. We'll choose to stay on the ship over that. I have limited mobility & need to avoid steps, but I'm fine with walking on flat land for an extended period of time. Any suggestions for any of these ports?

PS: I used to use Cruise Critic to plan shore excursions, but their port boards have very little to no activity now.

 

[ronandannette]

Lots of people deride Nassau but I had a really nice time there a few years ago. Not a beach person myself nor do I enjoy shopping/straw markets. Just by googling around I planned an independent day for myself and two teen boys (DH went golfing). We went to the Ardastar Zoo by taxi. It was really nice (not what you'd normally think of as a zoo) and had a super-unique marching flamingo show. We then taxied back to downtown and went to the Pirate Museum - an easy to find minor attraction but still interesting and a bit of a lark. From there we made it back to the pier on foot. Alone with kids I felt perfectly secure doing all of this - there are tons of other tourists around.

https://ardastra.com/

 

[tarheelmjfan]

Lots of people deride Nassau but I had a really nice time there a few years ago. Not a beach person myself nor do I enjoy shopping/straw markets. Just by googling around I planned an independent day for myself and two teen boys (DH went golfing). We went to the Ardastar Zoo by taxi. It was really nice (not what you'd normally think of as a zoo) and had a super-unique marching flamingo show. We then taxied back to downtown and went to the Pirate Museum - an easy to find minor attraction but still interesting and a bit of a lark. From there we made it back to the pier on foot. Alone with kids I felt perfectly secure doing all of this - there are tons of other tourists around.

https://ardastra.com/

Thanks. We made the mistake of walking around the straw market the one & only time we've been there. At the time, we said we'd never return. but here we go again. I'm determined to have a positive experience this time.