Along 75 kilometres of pristine beachfront from Boca Raton in the south to Jupiter in the north, Palm Beach County consists of 38 distinct cities and towns, most built along a sandy, barrier island.

Our last evening with Tauck was a highlight. The company arranged for all 200 of us to board a private charter ferry for a visit to Ellis Island, the disembarkation point for so many immigrants to the United States.

Northern Ireland’s only UNESCO World Heritage Site is the Giant’s Causeway, a natural geologic formation of about 40,000 interlocking basalt columns formed 50 to 60 million years ago.

Mediocre food is often an irritation at all-inclusive properties but we found Secrets to take its food choices and preparation very seriously.

Although adults can and do have a fabulous time aboard a Carnival ship, the emphasis for us on this cruise was on the grandchildren. They were never bored.

As expected on a ship of this quality, all our meals were excellent. In Europa 2’s Japanese restaurant, Sakura, we enjoyed Sushi and giant tempura shrimp (who knew a German ship could produce such excellent sushi?).

Sandals LaSource Grenada is laid out in a series of “Villages” along a stretch of Pink Gin Beach. The water is warm, calm and crystal-clear and filled with tropical fish.

It took a lot of planning and co-ordination to find a week and location suitable for our three adult children, their spouses and our five grandchildren aged 5 to 15, but the all-inclusive resort we all agreed on was a gem.

Our visit was just six days but we had a taste of both major cities, plus, to the north, the most intensive whisky producing region in the world.