Cruises. Your opinions?

[MrMimizu]

I'm booked for a cruise on one of the Princess cruiseships this April and wanted to get feedback from ppl on their cruise experiences..
going to go to Eastern Caribbean, st thomas, st maarten, Princess Cruise lines' private island Princess Cays.
I don't plan on shopping so wondering what other things ppl have done. I'm planning on snorkelling(gotta practice in the bathtub first though) and swimming but so far nothing else yet.
not sure what else there is to be done.

 

[turbodog]

Went on cruise a while back. Royal Caribbean (sp?). Ship was the Nordic Empress. It was about twice the size of any other size at the docks. I can't even remember where we went to, so we must have had a good time!

 

[IlluminatingBikr]

I went on a Princess cruise to Mexico for about a week with my family. It was really fun.

 

[MrBenchmark]

St Maarten is really awesome. Do make sure you go to the beach there - it's truly a beautiful place. It looks like all those pictures you see of the tropics, but that you really don't believe are actually real. St Maarten is a great island - the dutch run the casino's and the shops, and the French run the restaurants and the beaches.

I'm sure you will enjoy it - it sounds like an awesome cruise.

 

[gregw]

Went for a 7 day Southern Caribbean cruise on Royal Caribbean in 1998. Great fun, very romantic and worth every penny. Hope you have a nice outside cabin .. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Things to do:

1. EAT /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
2. Swim/Sun tanning
3. Shop
4. Relax
5. Tour

Great thing about the cruise is that you'll be at a different island everyday, so there's always something new to see and do. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[Lurker]

There is lots to do aboard the ship and you will have no trouble figuring that part out. The ship staff will also point you to fun activities ashore. The best things off the boat will be going to the beach, snorkelling, and other water sports. Snorkelling is impossible unless you get a mask that fits properly with a good water-tight seal. I prefer to take my own rather than using the ships supply. The ports where you will dock are typically tourist traps. There is very high end shopping and also lots of cheap trinkets with high pressure sales. The shopping is great if you are a millionaire looking for jewelry and you don't mind getting ripped off. If you get away from the port area you might find some local charm to reward your exploring. Look for local joints to eat and drink. You can walk, rent a car/scooter or get a tour in a taxi or van.

St. Thomas is kind of dumpy, at least from what little I have seen. But it is just a short and cheap ferry ride from St. John which is refreshingly authentic and worth spending a day there touring the island.

St. Martin is mostly pretty good away from the port area. Even the port area is not bad. The other side of the island (the north side) is French and offers a different cultural experience. Worth a look. The money and language is different, though. There is a famous nude beach there, although finding an actual nude person takes some searching and chances are it won't be a supermodel.

The private island will likely be a nice spot for hanging out at the beach, watersports and maybe some hiking.

Mostly just relax. The great thing about a cruise is that everything is handed to you and you never have to think. They are always serving food and there is always another activity starting.

If you are interested in making friends aboard, do a lot of circulating the first day. That is when people are most excited and friendly and looking for connections. The second dinner seating is also supposed to be better for networking since you can linger after the meal to chat and then go directly to evening activities.

Have fun and don't get a sun burn the first day.

 

[James S]

I've only been on one cruise. I'm not much of a vacation person, generally I find them to be more stress than just staying home /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif My idea of a vacation is being home with my shop and projects without other things I have to do, like work /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

But since the rest of the family doesn't share my desire to putter around and mod flashlights and tune up the table saw or experiment with new home automation products that will invariably leave us in the dark unexpectedly during dinner I do sometimes get dragged kicking and screaming to places with beaches and sun and all those sorts of things.

the cruise was actually a gift from the in-laws. they wanted a trip with both their daughters and their husbands before everyone had children and couldn't do things like that for a while. (My wife was pregnant with our first child at the time)

I did have fun, but it was a little difficult some days. it was VERY rough at sea, much more so than usual everyone was saying, and while I'm not prone to motion sickness (though I avoid the rides that spin you in a tight circle at amusement parks) I was really suffering after the first day at sea. The second morning I joined a VERY long line of people waiting down at the docs office for shots for motion sickness. It helped a lot. And it also helped to see that I was by no means the worst off. At least I wasn't holding a trash can and wretching in the hallway like some folks! yuck.

And no, they won't give you a tour of the engine room or the bridge. They are very security conscious when it comes to that sort of thing.

By far the most exciting thing for me on the cruise was a trip to go snorkeling. If you have an opportunity to do that take it! And watch out for the booze, you can drink as much as you want and they just keep charging it to your room and for some of the foo foo drinks that can add up in a BIG hurry! Even though food is included, booze generally is not. So watch out! Drink big fancy things that you like, stay away from the cheap beer as it's not cheap and you won't enjoy it as much as something with an umbrella in it. And anyway, it's more fun to watch your date/girlfriend/wife eat the fruit /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[tech]

Our honeymoon cruise didn't go so well.
The fine print of a cruise is that they can take you anywhere for any reason, and you have no say in it.
We were on Norwegian, which is supposed to be one of the best.
Engine trouble on day one left us in dock and 8 hours behind schedule.... which meant we got to our other ports in the afternoon instead of the morning. There weren't any taxis or buses to take us for a while because we were supposed to have left at that time, not be arriving.
Side trips are nice, but most you have to pay extra for.
I found myself wanting more time in ports. For example.
Wife and I went snorkeling in Key West. We had just enough time to get off the boat, snorkel, and run back to the ship... no time to shop or even check out the lighthouse!
Our last stop we finally rented a moped to get away from the tourist trap area... had a great time. Found a small restaurant wit great cheap native food.
It was a real bummer getting to places in the afternoon instead of the morning.
For our troubles, NCL pointed out the fine print and offered us a discount on our next cruise with them.

Uhhh... no.....!

Your mileage will vary.

TK

 

[Flying Turtle]

Don't think you'll have any problem filling your time. Sounds like there will be a new port-of-call about every day. Definitely try snorkeling. But take it easy, too. It is supposed to be a vacation. You don't have to eat five meals a day or attend every event. Just strolling the decks and catching the sunsets can be plenty.

Geoff

 

[Darkcobra]

Last cruise I went on, I pretty much just slept in the room or found a nice quiet area on deck. Good thing about cruises is that while "at sea", I feel that I am in no hurry to get to anywhere or drive anywhere... Just sleep and eat. Being in port is another issue as that's when all the action comes around = FUN! I'm booked on a cruise next month going to the Mexican Riviera. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[MrMimizu]

Thanks for all the input. Was wondering what to expect as I've never been on a cruise before.
It's the first time for most of the ppl I'm going with. Usually when I take a vacation I'd just fly somewhere and spend time there. Hopefully, this will be a good experience.

 

[gregw]

Check out this link for more info on Eastern Caribbean Cruises. Click here for reviews of the ship that you're going to be on.

I'm pretty you'll have a very enjoyable time as long as you're not looking for an adventure packed vacation. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[greenlight]

Don't get me started.

 

[Lurker]

One thing to remember is that there is plenty to do both on and off the ship. You don't ever have to go ashore to have fun. The last cruise I took, I got tired of going ashore by the last day and I just hung out on the ship with friends I met aboard. It was still about half-full of people and just about everything is free on board (food and entertainment).

I don't know if you are single or not, but I was always single when I went on cruises. In that case, the funnest thing is meeting other singles and getting to know them. The activities are secondary.

I know you are already booked on your cruise, but just as general cruise advice, there are other types of cruises besides big ship cruises. The best cruise I ever took was a Windjammer barefoot cruise on a wooden sailing ship. It carried about 120 passengers instead of the thousand or two or maybe even more on a big ship. It was a lot more casual and intimate and the ports of call were smaller and more authentic.