TWO WEDDINGS

We were planning our own location wedding when we were invited to a good friends location wedding and I was given the honour of being a bridesmaid..what better way than to turn a cruise holiday into an epic wedding vacation.

I was planning my wedding in Vanuatu and sending my dress measurements to my friend for thier wedding in New Caledonia.

HENS NIGHT

We celebrated our hens night on the 2nd night of our cruise. Of course on this cruise they have strict RSA (responsible service of alcohol)laws. Now when I say strict, I mean, you can’t be too noisy because they will simply cut your service from the bar. So imagine a group of excited girls (who haven’t had a drink yet) preparing to celebate two weddings..🍹Yep, we were cut from the first bar we walked into, to be fair, we were walking into a relaxed blues bar..well actually, we were very enthusiastically entering via a conga line 😂

So a very early lesson was learnt and we very quickly tamed ourselves. Well at least until the nightclub opened later that evening. And I think we tried all the cocktails available on our drinks package through the night.

While the ladies were busy forming conga lines and being refused service (in the blues bar) the men were in the Casino where they didn’t seem to have much luck but they did learn how to play things like black jack & whatever elese they have on offer in a casino.

ALL YOU CAN EAT

When your package is ALL INCLUSIVE, you find yourself eating ALOT. There was so much variety and I found we were having 2 or more helpings in one sitting..I even found myself eating food that I wouldn’t usually eat, like baby Octopus and WOW what a treat..sorry to any Vegans or Vegetarians 😁

On a couple of nights we dined a la carte and my favourite part was that they seated the kids at thier own table and the big kids helped our little ones out. It was good to see them enjoy the dining experience just as much as we did in all the restaurants.

OUT AT SEA..OUT AT SEA..OUT AT SEA

FIRST STOP – Noumea

We stopped in Noumea first and joined a ChouChou train tour. This is a MUST when stopping in Noumea. There is a big market of heaps of different items amd lots of music. This stop was a short stop so we were back onboard before we knew it.

Don’t forget your passport. If you like collecting stamps in your passport you can have your passport stamped for $2.00 during your day on the islands. Stalls are located around the markets for passport stamping.

NEXT STOP – LIFOU – Wedding one!

What a BEAUTIFUL day in a BEAUTIFUL location to celebrate the wedding of a BEAUTIFUL couple. There isn’t much more to say. The whole day went smoothly! And they picked a stunning part of the world, we are so grateful to have been apart of the day.

LIFOU – Stunning. Picturesque. Beauty. When you arrive you are instantly welcomed. The markets are full of local cuisine to try and if anything I would recommend learning some basic french just for communication purposes. In the markets you can try the local Kava and for all the people with long hair, you can have you hair braided for a small fee. There is so much to see on Lifou and always remember your snorkel gear when on any of these islands. There is so much to explore and an abundance of sea life to discover. If you forget your snorkel gear, thats ok, you can hire them on the islands too.

WEDDING TWO – VANUATU

OUR WEDDING DAY…and just as we had hoped our day was PERFECT. Very relaxed and smooth. Our pastor was 2 hours late but this meant we had the time to look around and take in the beauty of the day while the kids went snorkelling.

Our son (the ringbearer) decided he wouldn’t get dressed so he spent the whole day in his undies. But this is how he spends his days at home so I wasn’t about to bust his bubble and create an unnecessary scene that could potentially upset the day.

I kept makeup to a minimum and left my hair naturally curly. Most of our close family and friends who could make it were there and we were so blessed to be spending such a wonderful day with them. I wish I could do it all over again and I wouldn’t change a thing.

OUT AT SEA

The remainder of our trip was spent by the waterpark..Yes, our ship was a small one but they have a waterpark & a waterslide.

The older kids have a kids club available to them jam packed with activites. They did alot of dance lessons & karaoke.

There are also things like a zipline & rockclimbing.

The littles also have a kids club with plenty of activities but we found our 3 year old was happy by our side enjoying the water play.

One thing I will be taking with us next time is: walkie talkies..we are actually hopeless without our mobile phones when it comes to communication 😂 and travelling in a group on a cruise was challenging to maintain good communication, however, the exercise from trying to find each other wasn’t a bad thing when there is all you can eat available.

THEME NIGHTS

We researched our theme nights and packed for the occasions but there is plenty on board for purchasing. Our theme nights were back to school, gatsby, white and you have formal nights as well.

SHOPPING

There is something for everyone!

WHAT A GREAT HOLIDAY WITH FAMILY & FRIENDS

We had a group of 35 of us! And so much fun was had during our week on board Pacific Dawn..And we are planning our next adventure altogether to Hawaii in 2019!! And we can’t wait! 🌴

REMEMBER:

Snorkel gear (or hire for a fee)

Langyard for your cruise ID/card for onboard use or purchase on board

Research your theme nights and travel prepared

Walkie talkies to stay in contact with family members

Swimwear, hats etc of course,

Cameras

& be prepared for a great time!

PS. I went prepared with ginger tablets in case of sea sickness and took them the whole time. This seemed to work for me.

♡Bleakley Family