Hi narquiett,You'll be about 4 months post-op by the time you go on your cruise, and should be able to eat pretty much anything. Keep in mind you'll still have to be careful to chew your food very carefully...actually this is a forever requirement. Your wrap is tight enough to keep reflux from exiting your stomach, and it creates a resistence as you swallow food as well.
You won't be fully healed, but you'll be well on your way, and should be able to enjoy your vacation. Everyone is different, but I can say that I took a vacation that involved lots of eating out at 4 months post-op and did just fine.
As far as diet goes, that varies widely between surgeons. Some require extensive liquid diets, while others, like mine, trust their patients to make sensible choices. I was on a liquid diet in the hospital, and went home on a soft diet. On Day 5 or 6 post op, I saw my surgeon and he set me free to eat "anything that could be chewed to a liquid". I can tell you that this worked like a charm for me. If anything didn't chew to a liquid/creamy consistency, I deposited it in a handy paper napkin. I liked the fact that my mouth got to do the job of a blender, which allowed me to enjoy a wide range of foods.
Keep in mind that during the first few weeks the top of your stomach will be swollen, and your brain will interpret that swelling as fullness. Therefore you'll only be able to eat a very small amount of food at a sitting. Most can handle a third to a half cup, and that's it.
Here are two good eating guides:
http://www.upmc.com/patients-visitors/education/nutrition/Pages/diet-after-nissen-fundoplication-surgery.aspx
http://www.nissenfundoplication.com/nissen-fundoplication-diet
They'll give you some great guidelines. The take small bites and chew, chew, chew recommendation is critical. Also...your wrap will become increasingly swollen during the first two weeks, peaking on or about 14 days. Once peak swelling occurs, the swelling will gradually decrease. Just be advised that your swallowing will get worse before it gets better again.
Listen to your body. If you've advanced to more challenging foods, you may have to back off from time to time as your wrap may complain. This is normal. Eventually, when you're fully healed, you'll be back to eating completely normally (however, you'll always have to eat more slowly and chew more carefully.)
If you can surrender to your recovery and follow its lead, your recovery will be much easier. Struggling against what "is", makes your recovery harder. You can't rush this. It takes a full 6 months for most of the healing and a full year for the rest. A lot of the post-6 month healing is just your GI tract getting adjusted to the changes. I found adjustments continued into the second year. Just be patient, and go with the flow.
We'll be here to answer your questions, and offer our support.
Best wishes,
Denise