Monday, July 1, 2013

Need help planning a honeymoon cruise?

Need help planning a honeymoon cruise?
Ok. Date is non-negotiable, it needs to be September 18 or 19 of 2010. MAYBE the 25 or 26. But nothing else. And really, I'd like Eastern/Southern carribean. I'm not very interested in Western. I had originally planned Carnival Victory out of San Juan 9/19. I like the itinerary. But I read some really awful reviews about the Victory, and Carnival all together, and cancelled. I've looked at Royal Carribean(Seranade of the Seas), Princess(Emerald Princess), Norwegian (which has a brand new ship, Epic, sailing around the time I want.), and Celebrity (Celebrity Solstice) But IDK what to do. The airlines are telling me to change, I have to pay $150, which means I need to find a ship that sails out of San Juan the same day (which is only Royal Carribean.) So is Royal any good? Did I make a mistake cancelling Carnival? Or is it worth it to just spend the extra money, change the airline tickets, and pick something totally different? If so, which cruise line is the best? This is for our honeymoon, so we're looking for a ship that has a lot to do on board, but also has a private/romantic feel. I'd really like to be able to have dinner just me and him rather than share a table. We're probably only getting a Balcony room, no suite, so the balcony needs to be private. And I heard Royal's balconies you can see the people above and below you while their on theirs. Really, any experiences, good or bad, with any of these ships would be GREATLY appreciated! I feel like I'm losing my mind here. PS- neither of us has EVER been on a cruise at all, so we have no idea what to expect really, or what we're doing.
Cruise Travel - 5 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
Congrats on your upcoming marriage!! Now for the cruise part.Cruises are not very private. You can sometimes find an area where you will be alone but almost everyone on board has the same access. On all ships the balconies are the same. They can be viewed from side to side as well as up and down. There is some privacy as there are dividers between but you can hear the conversations. If you are on the top balconies no one should be able to look down on you. Even if they can they have to really try. The time you're going is peak hurricane season so be prepared for itinerary changes. I think you should contact a travel agent and get brochures regarding the ships you're interested in. The agent has probably cruised and can give you advice. I've been on 13 cruises-Royal Caribbean,Princess and Carnival. Princess and Celebrity are a little more upscale in my opinion.
2 :
I cruised on The Victory a year ago and had a great experience. I've always traveled on Princess but decided to give Carnival a try. I like Princess a little better but Carnival is good. I would suggest taking a cruise that ports in St Thomas. Then take the ferry over to St John. It's very beautiful.
3 :
Planning a first cruise can be intimidating, especially if it's an important trip, like a honeymoon. I think what you really need is an injection of confidence that you're doing the right thing. I think you are, so here goes. Generally, you're not going to have a bad experience on any of these lines. The service you receive on any of them will probably be far beyond anything you've ever received on land. You can find negative reviews about any cruise line. But until you've tried them for yourself, it's best to take those reviews with a very large grain of salt. Often they come from people who've cruised many times on one line, then try a different line and get peeved because things were a little different. As a first time cruiser, I'd be very surprised if you have major complaints. My guess is that mainstream cruise lines have about a 90% satisfaction rate, and a huge percentage of those people become very enthusiastic repeat customers. That goes for Carnival, NCL, Royal, Princess, etc, etc. As far as your choice of destination, you're on the right track with Southern/Eastern. Both are considered better destinations versus Western. Dinner for two generally isn't a problem. When you get onboard, ask to speak to the maitre d. Often they will set aside a time during the day for dining requests. Simply tell him you'd like a table for two, and the staff will almost always accomodate you. I can't help with your balcony privacy issue. The amount of privacy is going to vary more by ship than by cruise line. Lines have varying ships of varying designs and ages. As far as Carnival versus Royal Caribbean, again, both are good lines and you'll have a good time on either. Carnival is less expensive and the food is probably a bit better. Royal Caribbean has newer ships on average, and their ships have some features Carnival's don't, such as rock climbing walls and Flowriders. If you do go Carnival, I would recommend a ship built in 1999 or newer. Victory is a modern ship and I wouldn't hesitate to sail on it. By the way, Carnival is considered a bit more party oriented, RCCL a bit more family friendly. As a first time cruiser, you probably won't notice many of these differences. The lines are more similar than different. There is a bit more to do on RCCL ships versus Carnival, if that's a big consideration for you. Princess is a very nice line, more upscale than Carnival and maybe a bit more upscale than RCCL too. NCL is fine, but I'd probably put them at the bottom of my personal list, all else being equal. Of course, often things aren't equal. If NCL had a nicer, newer ship, or if they had better port stops, that might bump NCL into the lead for me. Again, these lines are more similar than different. If it were me, I'd would not change my airline tickets or incur major expenses for the difference between Carnival and RCCL. I'd stick with what I'd booked with the original airfare, regardless of which line it is. There's not going to be enough difference between the two to justify all the hassle and expense of replanning the whole trip, in my opinion. If you have additional questions at any point, feel free to message me if I can help. Congrats and good luck!
4 :
You can read good and bad about ALL cruise lines. I'm taking that same Carnival cruise out of San Juan in November. I will not cruise on anything except carnival any more. Carnival has a new ship that came out last year Dream. I bet if you was to look your find as many good things about Carnival as you did bad. Same with any cruise lines, or airlines. ECT. Good luck and have fun. Look at the website below for more information on all cruise lines.
5 :
If you are flying into San Juan, you most likely are doing the Southern Caribbean itinerary. What that means is the amount of things to do on the ship is fairly mute issue since you will be on a different island almost every day.





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