I need to do some research and look at timings - it will probably be a one time thing so need to try to plan accordingly.
Just back from a ten-night cruise of the Eastern Caribbean, and added three countries to my list - St. Lucia, Barbados, and Antigua & Barbuda. Impressions: (1) We also went to St. Maarten/St. Martin, and got to stand directly under the flight paths of three planes landing over Maho Beach (none were jumbo jets, however). (2) Barbados was a disappointment; I had been led to expect a stronger British presence (along the lines of Bermuda, for example), but that was certainly not the case. It didn't feel any different in that way from any of the other formerly British islands in the Caribbean. (3) Antigua, St. Lucia, and Grenada were all great, in different ways. Also not sorry to have replaced the snowstorm up here with highs of 81-82 degrees every day down there! Anyway, here is my updated list. Antigua & Barbuda (just Antigua) Aruba Austria Bahamas Barbados Belgium Belize Bermuda Canada Cayman Islands China Croatia Curacao Czech Republic Denmark Estonia Finland France Germany Greece Grenada Holy See (Vatican City) Ireland Italy Japan Republic of (South) Korea Malta Martinique Mexico Monaco Montenegro Netherlands Norway Portugal Russia Singapore Sint Maarten Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden St. Lucia St. Martin Turkey United Kingdom (including England, Wales, and Scotland, but not Northern Ireland) United States (including constituent territories of Puerto Rico and Saint Thomas) Venezuela
Jeff. Never been on a cruise. I like the idea of eating and drinking but don't like the idea of scheduled dinners and long lines and crowds. Knowing this, would you recommend any cruise to me or no?
I love it! My wife and I are getting there. Plus, we want to see different parts of the states. .......which we just did by visiting San Francisco.
We don't ever do scheduled dinners, other than the ones we schedule ourselves for when we want (we cruise with Celebrity, and their Celebrity Select Dining involves making your own reservation each night whenever you want, and at which restaurant you want, whether it's a main dining room or specialty restaurant, which you have to pay extra for). Here are my impressions from nine Celebrity cruises. I'm always surprised at how uncrowded the ships seem. The buffet is very crowded for about an hour at breakfast and an hour at lunch, but otherwise we've found that it's not difficult to find a table. There are still crowds, but it's a buffet with something like 15-20 stations, so there aren't lines even when it's crowded. The pool deck gets crowded in the morning on sea days, but it opens up in the afternoon. I'm not a sun worshipper, so I always want a chair in the shade, and usually have no problem finding one in the afternoon (on a port day it's easy to get a chair any time). The casino is crowded at night, but I spent a total of about 1/2 hour there on my last (10 night) cruise, so I don't care about that. The big shows are crowded in the sense that a show at a Broadway theater is, but there's always seating, and the seats are very comfortable with plenty of leg room (unlike a Broadway theater!). Otherwise, it's very easy to find quiet places to sit, read, listen to music, etc., including on your own balcony. The ship is hopping at night in the main areas, but quite tranquil in other areas, so it's completely up to you what experience you prefer. I like visiting places I've never been before and going ashore on port days - you don't get a deep experience , of course, but you get a taste of a place, and only unpack and pack once, unlike on a tour. My wife loves taking advantage of the spa; it ain't cheap, but she swears by their massages, and they always have deals towards the end of the cruise (there are also always deals on various tours and activities beforehand online at various times during the year). If you want to try cruising out, there are a few options. Celebrity and Royal Caribbean cruise out of Bayonne, NCL and Carnival cruise out of Manhattan, and MSC, Cunard, and Princess cruise out of Brooklyn, going to places like Bermuda, Canada and New England, and Bahamas, Florida, and Caribbean. Taking one of those would allow you to avoid the cost and hassle of flying somewhere, and they're relatively short (4 - 7 nights). The other sensible alternative, I think, is to fly to Ft. Lauderdale/Miami, and then just choose ports in the Caribbean/Gulf of Mexico that interest you. If you discover that you like it, there are then many possibilities, including the Med (which I love, because again, I'm not a beach guy, but I'm definitely a famous history guy, and the Med has loads and loads of that). If you decide to seriously think about it, go to the Cruise Critic website and start reading - they have great reviews of all of the cruise lines, ships, and ports of call.
Wow. Great information Jeff. Appreciate it. Will look at cruise critic for sure. Appreciate the insights.
Glad to help. Of course, one crucial point - you have to not be prone to seasickness! We're not, but we also always choose a mid/mid cabin - midship (neither too fore nor too aft - that's front and back, respectively, for you landlubbers), and not too low nor too high (1 - 3 decks below the pool deck has worked for us), since that is where you feel the ship moving the least.
