Cruise Advice Please

Fox1978

Hi,

Myself and my wife-to-be are planning our Honeymoon and going to take in a Royal Caribbean Cruise in April next year. There are two options we have. 1 is better dates-wise for us, but the other goes to more interesting destinations. The first is an Eastern Caribbean tour which goes to the Bahamas, St Thomas, St Maarten. The date for this one is better for us. The second one (Western Caribbean) goes to Haiti, Jamaica and Mexico. These sound more appealing destinations.

However my question is for anyone who's been on these cruises. Do you actually get a sense of the country you're visiting or do they all blend into one? It sounds great to go to Jamaica and Mexico but if all I'm seeing is the Port (your ship gets in at 8AM and you leave again at 5PM so not much time to see much of the country) then I should choose the ones with preferable dates. However if you feel it is worth while to go on the cruise that goes to the more interesting countries (I presume the Bahamas one is all one tropical island after another), then I should go for the Western Cruise.

Thanks very much for reading this far and for your advice! :-)

Cormac

The Davestator

Firstly - I haven't been to any of the destinations.

However, I have worked on cruise ships and been on cruise hols too. It depends on what you want to see / do.

If there are some historical / geographical things you want to see in particulr countries, then pick that cruise.

If you want to hit some beaches, do some markets, have lunch al fresco etc. just pick the better dates.

in terms of 'seeing' the country, you can get a good feel for the countries you visit, but you should think of it as a big sample so you can go back to your fav country in future for a proper hol. (thats what I've done)

Fox1978

Cheers, thanks for all that, much appreciated. I think we may be stuck with going with the better dates after all, we can't really get the other dates to work. Appreciate the response.

CALI

I came back from the Western Carribbean cruise last month. We had booked a trip in Jamaica that took us out of the resort the ship docks in to a plantation and Dunns River falls. We definitely saw a little of Jamaica however time is limited so you will have to make the most of your days to see things. Personally we picked western because the places were more interesting rather than just beach resorts on the eastern itinerary. Cayman Islands were fab and you can walk or get a tour of Georgetown. Mexico was just a lot of jewellery shops but we got a taxi out to a beach for a few hours which was fab. Are you going on the Liberty of the Seas? It was one of the best holidays of my life. We met other Irish onboard and had sat with nice people for dinner so always had someone to meet up with for a drink after dinner etc. You'll love it. The ship experience itself without the stops is amazing. Enjoy!

Fox1978

CALI wrote: »

I came back from the Western Carribbean cruise last month. We had booked a trip in Jamaica that took us out of the resort the ship docks in to a plantation and Dunns River falls. We definitely saw a little of Jamaica however time is limited so you will have to make the most of your days to see things. Personally we picked western because the places were more interesting rather than just beach resorts on the eastern itinerary. Cayman Islands were fab and you can walk or get a tour of Georgetown. Mexico was just a lot of jewellery shops but we got a taxi out to a beach for a few hours which was fab. Are you going on the Liberty of the Seas? It was one of the best holidays of my life. We met other Irish onboard and had sat with nice people for dinner so always had someone to meet up with for a drink after dinner etc. You'll love it. The ship experience itself without the stops is amazing. Enjoy!

Hey, that's great to hear from you Cali, especially since you've just been on the same cruise we're considering. We're actually planning to take the new boat, Oasis, but unfortunately it doesn't stop at the Cayman Islands. Apart from that one difference, it does both the Western and Eastern tours. As I mentioned though, looks like the dates may dictate the decision this time so may have to do the Eastern one. Bah humbug. Guess it gives us a chance to go again to the Western one another time!

Fox1978

Thanks, yeah should be amazing.

There's still seats left for March/April dates next year. I know the travel agent says it's booked up this Christmas alright.

m8

What extras do you have to pay for on these cruise holidays and is there dress code and so on?

Whats included?

I know it's a bit of a silly question but how much spending money would a couple need?

Where would I get that kind of info?

Would love to do something like this.

Thanks in advance.

Fox1978

Hey,

I went to www.royalcaribbean.co.uk and got all the info there. Also the travel agents know loads - like Trailfinders have their own Cruise travel agents and places such as American Holidays and Tour America also knew loads about them.

In terms of extras, the fee you pay is full board including all your meals. There are some exceptions such as there's a Eddie Rocketts-type place (called Johnny Rocketts) and a Ben & Jerrys where you have to pay. Plus I think if you do fine dining there's an additional supplement. The tips are included in the price too. You need to pay for alcohol too. The on-shore excursions mostly have a charge.

The cruise I'm doing is on the mega new boat Oasis of the Seas and the Eastern Caribbean for 7 nights with a good room (gone for a balcony room) is €1100. There are plenty of cheaper options but since it's a honeymoon we're doing this.

jhegarty

Fox1978 wrote: »

In terms of extras, the fee you pay is full board including all your meals. There are some exceptions such as there's a Eddie Rocketts-type place (called Johnny Rocketts) and a Ben & Jerrys where you have to pay. Plus I think if you do fine dining there's an additional supplement. The tips are included in the price too. You need to pay for alcohol too. The on-shore excursions mostly have a charge.

The Oasis is actually going to have loads of surcharge restaurants.

Rumors has it this is the complete list :

Free
Main Dining Room
Windjammer Café
Sorrento’s - Pizza,salads,grilled sands,desserts
Wipe Out Café
Café Promenade
Park Cafe
Room service


Specialty Restaurants
Johnny Rockets - $4.95
Seafood Shack - $7.95 lunch, $9.95 dinner
Ice Cream Parlor - price of each item
Mondo Coffee bar - price of each item
Vitality Café - price of each item
Solarium Bistro - free bfast & lunch buffets, $20 dinner
Vini d’Italia - $54.50
Chops Grill $25
Giovanni’s Table - $10 lunch, $15 dinner
Izumi - ala carte pricing
150 Central Park - $35

Enii

m8 wrote: »

What extras do you have to pay for on these cruise holidays and is there dress code and so on?

Whats included?

I know it's a bit of a silly question but how much spending money would a couple need?

Where would I get that kind of info?

Would love to do something like this.

Thanks in advance.

There is normally a night or two that is black tie. Ladies generally wear dressy cocktail dresses on these nights and men wear tuxedo or suit and tie.

PurplePrincess

Check out the forums on http://www.cruisecritic.com/

We did southern carribean in June and had a ball. St Thomas is lovely, we went on a private tour with a guy called papa bear and it was a great way to see the island and get a local perspective. Because it was just us we could tailor it for whatever we wanted to do. more shopping, less beach etc.

St.Maarten was definitely my favourite, its just fabulous.

It was our first time on a cruise and I would definitely go again. It just felt so luxurious, having lovely dinners every night and waking up every morning at a beautiful island that I thought i'd never be able to afford to go to.

Enjoy

jhegarty

PurplePrincess wrote: »

It was our first time on a cruise and I would definitely go again. It just felt so luxurious, having lovely dinners every night and waking up every morning at a beautiful island that I thought i'd never be able to afford to go to.

Your right there , it's the only way to holiday.

magic roundabou

this is something i am considering doing, but i would be travelling on my own, do you stand out like "billy no mates" doing this ???
also what is there to "do" on the boats ??
thanks