Who said you can not enjoy two pleasures at the same time? If you have to go on a Caribbean cruise, another thing you can do is birding given that there are a lot of bird species living out there in the tropics.
Here are some of the places you may wish to visit on your cruise.
The Trinidad Asa Wright Nature Center. Is located ten miles north of the town of Arima on Blanchisseuse Road. It is a exceptional location for birdwatching, with over two hundred acres of rainwater forest. You can take a walk here on the many forest trials and you will be able to observe many different bird species. If you can make the time, i would try to spend at least 2 to three days here as it is an perfect place to enjoy your passion for birds.
Next is the Bubali Pond in Aruba that is on the north side of eagle beach and south of De Olde Molen that happens to be a known windmill restaurant. This is not a wildlife preserve but rather a pond that is kept wet all year round. You can expect to see brown pelicans here in large groups as well as the Black crowned Night Herons. It is better to see these near dusk and sunrise.
In Aruba's Spanish Lagoon, you can get to see brown pelicans, egrets, herons and frigates. Don't be amazed to see large green and yellow parakeets that are double the size of those you see in the pet store that are often seen at sunset.
The Barbuda Frigate Bird Sanctuary is considered to be a secluded because the only way to get here is by boat. With the aid of a guide, you can get to this place and see thousands of Fregata Magnificens or "man of war" birds that live here. The best time to visit is during the fall which happens to be the breeding season. Aside from them, you may also get to see 170 species of birds living together with them.
Your ship may make a port call to the island of Jamaica. If it does, you can visit the Rockland's Bird Sanctuary. Here, you will get to see 289 bird species of which 28 are endemic and 6 have just been introduced. There are also 10 bird species on the endangered list which includes the Black billed and Yellow billed parrots.
There is an entrance fee charged at this sanctuary and you can also pay extra for a guided tour, which is recommended that you do so. Here, you will get to see hummingbirds, Red billed Streamertails, Jamaican Mango, Black and Yellow faced Grassquits as well as their relative the Orangequits. All these species of birds you will be able to hand feed, if you wish to.
These places are just a few that you can visit while you are on a Caribbean cruise. There are many more locations available to you and all you want to do is search the internet to fined them.
The Caribbean cruise packages that are being provided do not come with birding tours, but once your cruise liner docks at port, you can sign up for one as they are readily available to you at many locations. So who said you can not enjoy two pleasures at the same time?