a taste of the tropics on a celebrity cruise

The "middle city" of Florida's Gold Coast, Fort Lauderdale sits between Miami to the south and Palm Beach to the north. The city blends nicely with its metropolitan neighbours, and elements of Miami's chic vibe and the affluent nature of Palm Beach are recognizable. But Fort Lauderdale is a destination itself. Operating one of the busiest cruise ports in North America -- more than three million people pass through each year -- helps define Fort Lauderdale as a robust tourism spot. Fort Lauderdale started out as a swampy outpost with a fort, built to protect against the Seminole Indians. The swamps were transformed in the late 1800s into a series of canals by scooping out parallel waterways and creating long peninsulas between them. This created more than 300 miles of navigable waterways (twice that of Venice) -- hence the city's nickname "Venice of America." The abundance of waterways that wind up and down the coast make Fort Lauderdale a boating hot spot, with 42,000 registered yachts. The community gained fame and a measure of disrepute when it was featured in the 1960s movie "Where the Boys Are," causing legions of college-aged boys (and, not coincidentally, girls) to descend for raucous spring breaks. For decades, Fort Lauderdale was synonymous with spring break -- and the giddy wildness that accompanies this rite of passage -- until an effort by city leaders in the 1980s went into effect, in earnest, to tone it down. These days, the fastest-growing market for Fort Lauderdale is the trendy high spenders who at one time might have gone south -- or north. Area hotels include Ritz-Carlton, Trump International Hotel and Tower and W Fort Lauderdale. Since shedding its "rowdy, college spring break" reputation, the city has grown into a more genteel community that's family- and boater-oriented. Beyond the canals, and the Intracoastal Waterway that runs through the city, major development projects have been redefining Fort Lauderdale. Downtown -- especially around the hub of Las Olas Boulevard, with its cafes, galleries and boutiques - gives off a Miami Beach vibe. Greater Fort Lauderdale's 23-mile beachfront has also received a major overhaul, with lush landscaping and vivacious lighting complementing the expansive stretches of sand. In fact, since 1999, the beaches of Greater Fort Lauderdale have earned "Blue Wave Beach" certification from the Clean Beaches Council, a designation awarded to the nation's cleanest and safest beaches. Beyond surf, sand and Fort Lauderdale's role as cruise embarkation central, there are enough activities to entice travellers to spend a few days there before or after a voyage.

Antiguans like to boast that they have 365 beaches -- one for each day of the year. And while no one counts to ensure the accuracy of this catchy marketing claim, the squiggly shaped island indeed is full of beachy gems, each with its own unique appeal. Part of the West Indies, Antigua was first occupied by the peaceful Arawak Indians around 200 B.C. They stayed until the arrival of the Caribs, an Amazonian tribe, whose name was derived from the Spanish word "caribal," meaning "cannibal." Then, the island was known as Wadadli until 1493 when Columbus, who never made landfall, sailed by and named the island in honor of Maria de la Antigua, a saint he worshipped in Seville. The English arrived in 1632, establishing sugar plantations and bringing African slaves; slavery was fully abolished in 1838. Great Britain held the island until 1981, when Antigua (pronounced "An-tee-gah") achieved independence. The island was an important colonial base of the Royal Navy, with English Harbour serving as its headquarters. The remains of the navy's presence represent some of the most fascinating attractions -- a walk around historic Nelson's Dockyard and the grounds of Shirley Heights reveals remnants of a working Georgian-era harbor, old forts and officer's quarters, as well as a multitude of crumbling sugar mills from the days when sugar plantations ruled the island. In more recent years, English Harbour has become the capital of international yachting and sailing, and those activities are responsible for a surge in population during the winter months. The season opens in December with the Antigua Yacht Show and ends in May with Antigua Sailing Week, one of the largest annual regattas in the Caribbean. Since gaining independence, Antigua has all but abandoned its agricultural heritage in favor of a tourist economy. The island can hold its own in the duty-free shopping category, but the real highlights lie well beyond the capital and port town of St. John's. And if all those beaches aren't enough, Antigua's sister island, Barbuda, is accessible by ferry for day-trippers. The ferry drops you in the middle of 14 miles of unspoiled pink shell beaches -- including one that used to be a favorite of Princess Diana; it's now named in her honor. Antigua owns an average high temperature of a pleasant 81 degrees, but it's a slightly less hospitable climate in the summer when the trade winds die down. Antiguans celebrate these slower summer months with the annual Carnival at the end of July and beginning of August. The island is susceptible to hurricanes and tropical storms, with a direct hurricane hitting about every seven years on average. The highest risk is in early September -- so there's little need to worry during peak cruising season. Bring your umbrella, though, because more than half of the days in November through February experience rainfall.

Your first look at St. Lucia's lush coast from the deck of a cruise ship is likely to include the island's most dramatic geologic feature: the Pitons, two striking volcanic peaks that rise a half-mile off St. Lucia's southwestern coast. The island's beauty has earned it the nickname "Helen of the West Indies." Though St. Lucia has plenty of visitors (including those from cruise ships and a steady influx of honeymooners), parts of the island have largely remained unspoiled due to the locals' commitment to protecting the rainforests and other natural resources. A decent percentage of the island -- some 19,000 acres -- is protected as part of the St. Lucia National Rain Forest. What development there is on St. Lucia is mostly in the area around Castries, the island's colourful, energetic capital city. It's not picturesque but it's still worth a look, especially if you're in search of duty-free goods or local handicrafts. But to appreciate St. Lucia's natural beauty, rent a car or take a cab out of town. The prettiest part of the island is in the south, and most visitors head there to see the former French colonial capital Soufriere, the lush Diamond Botanical Gardens and the world's only "drive-in" volcano. More options include hiking through the rainforest, snorkelling the sunken wreck off of Anse Cochon and horseback riding along the coast. Settled first by the Arawaks and then the Caribs, St. Lucia became a hotly-contested territory with the arrival of Europeans in the 17th century. The island passed back and forth 14 times between the British and the French until 1814, when the Brits finally took possession for good. Traces of both cultures still remain in the language; many St. Lucians speak both English and a French Creole patois, and it's visible in distinctive place names such as Soufriere, Gros Islet, Rodney Bay and Pigeon Island.

In 1493, Christopher Columbus was allegedly so smitten with this volcanic island that he named it after St. Christopher, the patron saint of travellers. Since its discovery, St. Christopher (later shortened by British sailors to St. Kitts) has been fought over by the British and French who, tragically, made it a centre of the West Indian slave trade. Pirates, including the notorious William Kidd who was marooned on Nevis after his crew mutinied, enjoyed lucrative careers in Basseterre Harbour. St. Kitts and sister isle Nevis were part of the British Empire until 1967, earning semi-independent status when they were named associated states of Great Britain. In 1983, the 68-square-mile St. Kitts and Nevis became an independent, two-island nation with a parliamentary government headed by a prime minister. While British holdovers such as cricket and driving on the left side of the road remain, the Kittitians are extremely proud of their history and how far they've come on their own. The island's lush geography lends itself to eco-tourism, starting with the dense tropical rainforests that surround dormant volcano Mount Liamuiga. Colourful birds and butterflies, as well as the green vervet monkey, reside here. Sugar cane, the staple of the economy since the 17th century, was St. Kitts' main export until production stopped just a few years ago. However, wild sugar cane fields remain, particularly in the west, and offer a scenic ambience that is more reminiscent of Hawaii than the Caribbean these days. While tourists have discovered St. Kitts (evidenced by the row of lively beach bars on South Frigate Bay, known as "The Strip"), the island is still relatively unspoiled and crowd-free, with a relaxed, authentic atmosphere.

If you cruise regularly to the Caribbean, chances are you'll end up in St. Thomas. Its popularity as one of the world's most heavily trafficked cruise ports is well-earned. The island offers something for just about everyone and has the infrastructure that can accommodate a huge daily population influx. In addition to a duty-free shopping scene that's virtually unparalleled, other on-the-beaten-track sites include the world-famous beach at Magens Bay. In September 2017, the Virgin Islands -- along with many other islands in the Caribbean -- were rocked by Hurricanes Irma and Maria. While St. Thomas worked to quickly recovered its most popular tourist destinations, some have sadly closed their doors indefinitely -- including the SkyRide to Paradise Point. Beloved restaurants like Cuzzin's shut down. However, new restaurants and attractions have popped up in their place, solidifying the island's commitment to welcome visitors. Nearly every ship sailing an Eastern Caribbean itinerary includes St. Thomas as a port of call, as do many Southern Caribbean voyages. You'll even see St. Thomas on the Panama Canal and South American itineraries (when a Florida port such as Fort Lauderdale or Miami serves as a port of embarkation or debarkation). It's not uncommon, particularly during the Caribbean's winter high season, to see six ships or more docked or anchored in a day -- and that can mean an extra 20,000 people mixing into a population hovering in the mid-50,000s. Believe it or not, it's easy to find some respite from the inevitable crowds by exploring St. Thomas' quieter, more undiscovered side -- a lovely historic district trips to Water Island (the "fourth" and youngest, U.S. Virgin Island), beaches all over the island and fabulous restaurants in Frenchtown. It's also an easy jaunt via a 20-minute ferry to tranquil St. John from the town of Red Hook. Even this town has local character (this is where ex-pat residents of St. Thomas spend their time) that's a far cry from Charlotte Amalie's shopping mall vibe. Just taking transportation to the eastern end of the island will give you emotional distance from the hectic pier. Even if it's your first time on St. Thomas, don't be afraid to explore. Although locals drive on the left side of the road, the island has an American familiarity that makes it a perfect introduction to the Caribbean style of life. Attractions, beaches, shopping, golf, water sports -- the island offers a wide variety of activities, with new ones added every year. Even if it's your tenth trip, you're bound to find something fun to do, even if that just means discovering a new beach.

The "middle city" of Florida's Gold Coast, Fort Lauderdale sits between Miami to the south and Palm Beach to the north. The city blends nicely with its metropolitan neighbours, and elements of Miami's chic vibe and the affluent nature of Palm Beach are recognizable. But Fort Lauderdale is a destination itself. Operating one of the busiest cruise ports in North America -- more than three million people pass through each year -- helps define Fort Lauderdale as a robust tourism spot. Fort Lauderdale started out as a swampy outpost with a fort, built to protect against the Seminole Indians. The swamps were transformed in the late 1800s into a series of canals by scooping out parallel waterways and creating long peninsulas between them. This created more than 300 miles of navigable waterways (twice that of Venice) -- hence the city's nickname "Venice of America." The abundance of waterways that wind up and down the coast make Fort Lauderdale a boating hot spot, with 42,000 registered yachts. The community gained fame and a measure of disrepute when it was featured in the 1960s movie "Where the Boys Are," causing legions of college-aged boys (and, not coincidentally, girls) to descend for raucous spring breaks. For decades, Fort Lauderdale was synonymous with spring break -- and the giddy wildness that accompanies this rite of passage -- until an effort by city leaders in the 1980s went into effect, in earnest, to tone it down. These days, the fastest-growing market for Fort Lauderdale is the trendy high spenders who at one time might have gone south -- or north. Area hotels include Ritz-Carlton, Trump International Hotel and Tower and W Fort Lauderdale. Since shedding its "rowdy, college spring break" reputation, the city has grown into a more genteel community that's family- and boater-oriented. Beyond the canals, and the Intracoastal Waterway that runs through the city, major development projects have been redefining Fort Lauderdale. Downtown -- especially around the hub of Las Olas Boulevard, with its cafes, galleries and boutiques - gives off a Miami Beach vibe. Greater Fort Lauderdale's 23-mile beachfront has also received a major overhaul, with lush landscaping and vivacious lighting complementing the expansive stretches of sand. In fact, since 1999, the beaches of Greater Fort Lauderdale have earned "Blue Wave Beach" certification from the Clean Beaches Council, a designation awarded to the nation's cleanest and safest beaches. Beyond surf, sand and Fort Lauderdale's role as cruise embarkation central, there are enough activities to entice travellers to spend a few days there before or after a voyage.