Caribbean Cruise Help!?

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TINKERTOY ..... the 1 & only

I have been on about 20 cruises on several different cruise lines and can give you some advice/help based on my experiences.

First, there are several great cruise lines to choose from but they are not all the same in terms of what you get and what type passengers you will be with. I have been on Princess, Celebrity, Holland America, Norwegian, and Royal Caribbean ships and can vouch that they are good cruise lines with great food. In my opinion the most elegant ships are Princess, Celebrity and Royal Caribbean. However, there are some differences in the cruise lines.

- Princess, Celebrity and Holland America have great ships are more classy and reserved. They are just a little more upscale and luxurious than the other cruise lines. Passengers tend to be middle aged and up and have cruised multiple times. Holland America has mostly senior citizens cruising on its ships.

-Norwegian cruise line is good, they cater to families and have mostly passengers in the range of age 35-40 and up. Its the line that you want to go on if you want to be informal for pretty much your whole cruise. They have formal nights like other cruise lines but they do not stress dressing up.

Carnival is the budget cruise line that generally has the lowest prices. They cater to young people, first time cruiser and families. The best of their ships are their newer ships so do pay attention to when the ship was launched is you find a good and really cheap cruise.

Royal Caribbean is also a cruise line that caters to young cruiser and families. It has the advantage of having the most on-board activities. Things like ice skating, roller blading, mini-golf course, a full sized basketball/tennis court, the rock climbing wall, and on the new Freedom Class ships the surfing simulator, the Flowrider. The RC ships that you should look for cruises on are the RC's Freedom Class and Voyager Class ships.

Cruises to the Caribbean or Mexico are generally the best for fun and sun. If you want mostly scenic cruises then Alaska and Canada, or Europe, like the Mediterranean or Baltic would be good.

My suggestion would be a Caribbean cruise and more specifically to the Western Caribbean. Western Caribbean cruises leave from several ports from Texas to Florida and offer great beaches as well as the opportunity to visit Mayan ruins. I am not trying to tell you where to go but just to consider the following:

Western Caribbean cruises typically go to Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Jamaica and a private cruise line island. If you go to Cozumel there is the opportunity to buy a tour to see Mayan ruins. Its considered the best place to go for scuba and snorkeling. If you go to Jamaica the two main attractions are a river raft float trip (not rapids) and the Dunn's River Falls climb. If you go to Grand Cayman you will likely want to go to 7-Mile Beach ( a short taxi/mini-van ride ($4-$5 per person each way), or do a swim with the dolphins/stingrays tour.

Cruises to the Eastern Caribbean typically go to St Thomas, St Maarten, a private cruise line island and maybe another island like Tortola or Puerto Rico. If you want to do a lot of shopping then pick a cruise with St Thomas as one of the port stops. St Maarten is also mainly a beach and shopping stop.

The Southern Caribbean cruise itineraries typically start in Puerto Rico and go either to Aruba, Curacao, and St Thomas and St Maarten, OR they go to the southern Caribbean islands like Barbados, Grenada, Antigua, St Lucia and maybe St Thomas and/or St Maarten. For the most part these latter islands are very much alike but nice to see. The main difference between these two Southern Caribbean itineraries, aside from the different islands, is the Aruba cruise has two "at sea" days with no port stops, while the other has a port stop about each day.

There is one big difference between Mexico and the Caribbean and that is the beaches are much prettier in the Caribbean. And, the Caribbean gives you many more options for itineraries, and for departure ports.

Finally, the best ships of all of these cruise lines are the newer ones (and larger ones) launched since about the year 2000; the newer the better. Normally cruise line web sites will indicate when a ship was first launched. Royal Caribbean does the best job of this; travel agent can also tell you which ships are newer.

NiTSiRK_81

I went on the Carnival Imagination to the Bahamas - Grand Turk, Half Moon Cay and Nassau. It was my first cruise and I was very nervous about the whole thing before getting on the ship. However I had absolutely the best time ever and did not want to get off!

I found that Carnival had tons to offer for everyone of any age. I'd say the main age group on the ship was 18-40. Kids were kept really busy with the camp and hardly seen. It's known as the fun ship, but I wouldn't call it a "party" ship. There are clubs for party dance type, piano bars, casino, live bands, bingo and other games, karaoke... so much more all going on at the same time.

The staff on the the ship was amazing! You really felt like you got to know them since they were always around and involved in everything you do. I felt very safe and very well taken care of. The dining rooms were great. Fabulous food not too formal yet classy, and fun. The food in the buffet is awesome too. Everything you could ever want.

I did a kayaking/snorkel excursion at Grand Turk which was lots of fun. A very adventure like activity, low intensity though something everyone could do. Then I did the Dolphin swim at Nassau which was amazing, and I highly recommend that!

Check out the pics from my cruise to give you a good idea of what it was like.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/54619901@N00/sets/72157605765798815/

Also have some video from the ship...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRWZwXhjwFk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWMDEuwXl2w
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wa-BDSdt4k8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75v3aWHCCdE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4JoAxqKpOc

Feel free to message me with any ?'s you may have. :)

tkquestion

We've taken Princess Cruise. The ship was a year old, staff was excellent, and the food was above average.

Please remember, short Caribbean cruises are lower end of the spectrum when it comes to cruise. Most companies do not put their best shop to these services. Most of their better "stuff" goes to 7 days or more trips where customers pay significantly more money (and thus expect more).

One thing I have to warn you... on all cruise, as soon as you board the ship, there will be waiters with drinks waiting to get your attention. DO NOT accept these drinks! They are not free, and they can be as much as 10 dollars a drink. You'll just sign for it, and at the end, they will surprise you (not really) with a HUGE bill.

rhonda c

I've been on one of the Norwegian cruise ships and it was great. Top of the line in my opinion. Definitely go to St Maarten, St Thomas was great for shopping.

emmett's girl :)

Omg go with Princess!! It's a very nice cruise line with fun activites and accomdations on-ship, and great shore excursions. plus the staff are seriously the most friendly and helpful people you will ever meet. they are from all over the world, so it's an interesting cultural mix. they really are dedicated to making sure you have a great time--our "housekeeper" (the nice man who cleaned our room) was super friendly, giving me and my younger sister extra chocolates on our pillows at night (we love sweets :) ) and creating a monkey out of towels and hanging it on our wall, which was really cool and creative. he also complimented my mom when she got all dressed up for the formal dinners, saying she looked like she was really young and could be our sister, which my mom loved, of course :)
and here are some cool things they have:
a giant movie screen having above the ship where you can watch movies "under the stars"
lots of pools and hottubs
a quiet, meditation-like spa where adults can spend the day relaxing
fun, orginized activites like family game competitions (each day they have new games, such as scattergories, where you compete for prizes)
a library
shopping center
amazing food in their resturants and dining rooms
24/7 buffet, which is nice
(everything like the buffet, dining rooms, pizza shops, you don't have to pay for~i think it might be included in the price you pay before hand for your cruise, which is really nice. for the few things you do have to pay for, you just charge to your room by using your roomkeycard, which is really nice also)

a cruise i went on that your parents might enjoy visited the u.s. virgin islands and other islands in the carribean, such as aruba. it was very calm and laid back, and the scenery was gorgeous. i forget the name of the ship though (it might be the crown princess or grand princess, but i'm not totally sure.) anyway, it's a very nice, enjoyable cruise line!

oh, and here are some tours and islands i partically liked:
princess cays~its actully owned by the cruise line, and is very pretty. it has a nice, beachy "bahama-y" vibe with lots of ufn activites
snorkling with stingrays~fun! you got to feed them, and i even got a massage from one :)
snorkling on this "pirate" boat in aruba~not the title of the tour, obviouisly, but it was something like that, and very fun also! you visited a ship wreck, got served a delicious tropical meal, and swung from a rope swing.

and, make time just to sit on the beaches and relax! have fun on your cruise!!!

MomSezNo

I would suggest Celebrity, unless your group is a "party-hearty" type. If you want "classy", then Celebrity is the one to go with. Or Holland, although their passengers tend to skew older. This may be less the case on a seven-day cruise.

Celebrity and Holland only cruise the Caribbean in the late Fall/Winter. If you want something during the summer, I'd suggest Princess.

Go to CruiseCritic.com, click on "Cruise Styles" at the top of the page and you'll find a description of the various types of cruises and the passengers on the various lines/ships. If you click on "Reviews", you'll find a professional review of each ship, as well as "Member Reviews", which are especially helpful, as they are more current. If you click on "Boards", you'll find a wealth of info on every aspect of cruising.

Good luck finding just the right cruise - what a great gift!!

CaptainCarrotCactus

I wouldn't recommend Carnival. I've only ever been on a Carnival Cruise and it was fun but more for the younger crowd. Also i wouldn't suggest a freestyle cruise. My parents have been on one and they didn't like it. they said it felt like going to an AA meeting every night at dinner. you were always sitting with different people and you never got passed small talk. if you go on a regular cruise (i don't know the name of the style of cruise that you have a set dinner time) then you meet some people and you're with them the whole week or however long and you get to know people. when my parents went on their first cruise about 19 years ago, they met a couple that they ate dinner with and they still keep in touch with them.

good luck with planning :) hope this helped

Michael

Princess Cruise Line is all about choice.

Princess Cruise Line allows you to reserve shore excursions up to 120 days in advance with the Cruise Personalizer so you're able to secure the most popular adventures before they are full. You can also view your entire cruise online at a glance for the ultimate in convenience.

Enjoy your time :)

-Michael

david

From what you are requesting I would suggest Royal Caribbean or Princess Cruise Lines. They are about the nicest ones out there. There are "classy" cruise lines but you will pay dearly. If price is not a concern then I would suggest something like the QE2 or something in the Cunard Cruise Line. They are more elegant and old school. Ive been on Cunard's ships and they are VERY nice. I am certain your parents would like them! Good Luck!!

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