Might go on a cruise... what should I know?

MoxyMissi · October 2010

DH and I are throwing around the idea of going on a cruise somewhere in the Caribbean early next year. I have never been, he's been on one once with his family when he was in HS. What are somethings we should look for in a cruise? Are there any areas that are better than others? Sketchy places? Not-worth-it tourist traps? Best cruise lines? TIA!

slumberjenn · October 2010

We love Princess and Royal Caribbean - those are the only two we cruise on. We've been to a lot of places in the Caribbean and the only place I didn't really care for was Aruba. We always get balconies when we go, but a lot of people don't mind rooms with a window because it will save you money. We don't spend a lot of time in our room, but we sleep with the balcony door open and eat a light breakfast out there every morning. Princess also does balcony dinners which are amazing. I suggest trying to stay away from school vacation weeks because the ship can be full of kids. Definitely check out airfare prices from different embark ports. We always go a day early because your cruise WILL leave without you if you get delayed. You can book airfare through the cruiseline, but it is usually a lot more expensive then what you can find on your own.

I'm sure there is a lot more I can tell you (I just got back from my 7th and DH's 16th cruise) but I'm drawing a blank.

Message me on facebook if you have any questions.

Labbie · October 2010

We've been on 2 cruises- Princess and Holland America. We really enjoyed both- for us it came down to itinerary and the islands we wanted to visit. This time of year is when we booked both of our March cruises- some good deals. My advice would be to fly to port the day before and spend the extra $ to get a hotel. We almost missed our 2nd cruise due to unforeseen mechanical delays. As it was we made it on the ship but had to trust that our luggage would make it before we left port (it was on the flight behind us). DH admitted he should have listened to me!

tjmartin07 · October 2010

Here is a link to my most recent comment on the cruises I have taken;

http://community.thenest.com/cs/ks/forums/thread/43502179.aspx

Def. let me know if you have any other questions.

mrsoc · October 2010

I agree with Labbie....get there a day early...we almost missed our one cruise too. Also, if you have to pick a dining time, pick the later one. There is always food available if you are hungry, but then you do not have to rush to get to dinner. You then have time to see the night entertainment after as well.

MoxyMissi · October 2010

Thanks ladies! I knew I could depend on my Nestie girls for some good info. :-)

mrobin73 · October 2010

I agree that you don't want to travel on school break weeks if you can avoid it- they're MUCH more expensive and crowded with TONS of kids. I've been on 7 cruises- 4 to Bermuda and 3 to Carribbean/Mexico. I prefer Bermuda b/c there are NO tourist traps, no getting assaulted by vendors as you leave the ship, great transportation on the island, great beaches, everyone speaks the Queen's English, no exchange rate ($1US = $1 Bda), and you are at the same island for 3-4 days so you really get to explore an don't have to worry about rushing to return to the ship each night- you can enjoy a night on the town with the locals if you want. Plus- they leave from local ports so you don't need to worry about flights/airfare.

I've taken Royal Carribbean, Princess, Holland America, Carnival and Norwegian. I've liked them all for different reasons. Carnival (the fun ships) were great when I was in college and into drinking and partying the night away (no WAY I'd do them again though at my age.) Holland America was a more intimate ship and we got to know the staff and other cruisers pretty well, RC and Princess both had really good food and entertainment, and my fave is Norwegian b/c you don't need to have a set dining time (Freestyle cruising- just show up when you want, and they'll find you a table.) I didn't like cutting my beach time/ ramblings short so I could make my dinner seating at 6 or 8, like you do on the other cruise lines (although you don't share a table with the same people every night- some people LIKE that.) NCL also has really good entertainment and good food- not as elaborate as some others, but definitely WAY better than Carnival.

As far as ports go- I loved St. Thomas and St. Maarten- really laid back with less of the "buy this" "get your hair braided" "come take my cab" harassment you get leaving the ship than in Jamaica, Nassau, PR, DR etc. In Mexico I liked the history of Cozumel- so that was nice too.

Dar080808 · October 2010

Seems like you've gotten a TON of information!

I've gone on 4 cruises with Carnival and Royal Caribbean. I enjoyed both lines but Carnival you certainly have a younger crowd. Robin is right, don't go during school breaks if you can (I can't unfortunately ) because they are A LOT more expensive! The 2 lines didn't seem much different from each other. There are lots of things to do and lots of places to see on a cruise ship OR you could just relax and be pampered at the spa or by your waiter at the pool. I agree with the balcony but I've had inside rooms too and it's just fine. The balcony is just a nice little bonus. The only stop I didn't really care for was Nassau. I thought the port was dirty and I can't stand when everyone comes up to you and asks you for money. Mexico is very much like that too but those ports seemed a little cleaner at least.

I have lots more I could talk about - you can message me any questions on FB if you want.

badtzmaru22 · October 2010

cruisecritic.com has awesome message boards and tons of information.

I've only been on one cruise - 7 day western Caribbean for our HM and we loved it. It was on Carnival, and we didn't find it to be a huge drunken party. I've heard the shorter cruises are like that, but the longer ones, especially if they aren't during spring break aren't a problem. I was worried about that though! We were on the Carnival Miracle which is a newer (well, at the time!) ship, and not one of the absolute huge ones. We went in June, and barely saw any children as well.

Our favorite stop was Belize, where we did cave tubing with cave-tubing.com (with the hyphen). The guys that run it used to work for the cruise lines, but started their own company to offer a better tour for cheaper, and they'd get to make more money themselves. I really feel like we had the most authentic experience at any of the ports because of these guys. It was AWESOME!!

MoxyMissi · October 2010

So, what is typically included in the price? When they say "meals", do they mean ALL meals, or just breakfast and dinner? I know drinks are probably extra, what about snacks/sandwiches?

My friend is researching some of the tours, and there's one that goes to the Bahamas from Miami on Royal Caribbean. Any thoughts on the Bahamas? What might be some good things to do while we're in port? Can I go horseback riding on the beach? On the cruise that DH went on before, he complained that all the cruise directors told them to do at each port was to go shopping... which he hated.

badtzmaru22 · October 2010

My advice is don't listen to the cruise directors! LOL! I researched everything online, mostly on cruisecritic before going, and booked activities in two of the ports (Belize and Grand Cayman) both activites I booked with companies recommended by cruise critic people, not through the cruiseline's tour excusions.

Two of the ports, we just wanted to lay on the beach, so I got recs for where to go for that on cruisecritic as well. They told me everything for where to get a taxi, what beach to go to, and how much it should cost so we wouldn't get ripped off. Our beach days were in Cozumel and Costa Maya, Mexico, and we laid on the beach, snorkeled, rode a jetski, got massages and shopped a little. It was really relaxing.

As far as on the ship, I think they are all about the same, but all meals on ours were included, unless you want to eat in the special restaurant (which we did, and it was totally worth it!) Water and juice and coffee are free as well. You can buy a soda card, but we didn't feel like it was worth it. Alcohol onboard is expensive as well, and you can't bring your own on. There are tons of things to read online about sneaking it on, but it really wasn't that big of a deal for us to just buy drinks. The cruisecritic people can also tell you which onboard ship things to go to, and what times, and which of them have free booze/deals on it. Even room service was included, so we ordered breakfast a lot and ate on our balcony. We also had the later dinner service, so we'd order in snacks after being in port all day. We seriously ate a ton. They'd let you order two entrees at dinner as well, or order the pasta dish as an appetizer.... we ate a ton! We usually ordered a bottle of wine with dinner, and if we didn't finish it, they'd re-cork it, and have it waiting for us the next night.

Might go on a cruise... what should I know?

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