greensnow

Subscribed. :)

Where do you live? Are you settled on leaving from Florida?

If you are not picky about it, do what I'm planning. We are flying into Puerto Rico then sailing from there. Better way to start closer to the good islands and see more.

I'm a noob myself, but just giving you a different perspective.

If we go the Carnival route, which may happen, our cruise leaves december 6th @ 10pm. (Gf is an account after all :D)

We are thinking of flying into Puerto Rico on the 3rd so we'll have 2 full days there.

I'm debating sailing on the Liberty in december. Thanks for getting me more excited about this ship!

Great info everyone. Thanks!

Sorry I forgot to mention my age. I am 50. My girlfriend will be 45 by the time december gets here.

So it seems the Carnival Cruise might be a better fit due to it being a younger atmosphere. But then again if it's a Vegas type atmosphere, maybe not. We are not gamblers. ;)

I do like the fact that Liberty received a $500 million update in 2011. And the cost of the cruise is a few hundred dollars less than the 3 other available cruises.

These facts alone will not be the total deciding factor, but something to consider.

@big al. Great thread on the balconies. I'll read the entire thread when I have more time.

I still cant help thinking about the fact that we will only be in the room after dark. We do plan on enjoying full days off the ship in each port. (People actually spend all day on the ship instead?)

@cb at sea. Good point on not needing an extra day at the end. Something to consider. Some of it may depend on available return flights home the day the ship returns.

We had planned on spending a few days in Puerto Rico, so I thought a full day before, and another after the cruise would be nice.

But then again maybe PR wont compare to the other beautiful islands that we had just been to. (?)

I hope to organize at least one partial itinerary at each port, whether it is a snorkling tour, atv ride, or just some sightseeing.

I do understand it's cheaper when not organizing these thru the cruise line.

Thanks again. Keep the tips coming!

Hello all. First timers here.

Great info here. In the early stages of planning a 7 day southern Caribbean cruise. I've learned some valuable tips from this site, so I figured I'd join and dive right in!

I'll throw out some details on what my gf and I have gathered on what we are thinking, and let you folks give some feedback. :)

I'm trying to organize it so we can fly out of Mpls sometime after Thanksgiving week, and fly back well before Xmas week to avoid the crowds and save money.

We have decided we'd like to fly into Puerto Rico and spend a day or 2 there, then get on the ship from there. Then another day in Puerto Rico at the end of the cruise to relax the day before we fly back home. So I'm figuring on about 11 or so total days.

I have found 4 different cruises that fit that timeframe, and that are sailing to the ports we are most interested in.

2 of them are Royal Caribbean cruises, both on Adventures of the Sea. Either december 5-12, or december 12-19.

Another is a Carnival Cruise on Carnival Liberty, december 6-12.

The last choice is a Celebrity Cruise on Summit, december 12-19.

We have never been to the Caribbean, so we're open to whichever islands a particular cruise stops at. We narrowed down our desired islands to include St Lucia, Barbados, St Kitts-Nevis, St. Johns, Grenada, St Thomas, St. Croix and St. Maarten.

So as long as whichever cruise goes to a majority of these, we're happy with that.

Any input on those 3 ships would be very appreciated.

I do have a question on choosing a room. Since we are cruising mostly at night (one full day at sea) is it really worth getting a balcony room?

I'm sure I'll have plenty of more questions, and your feedback will likely spur more questions.

Thanks!

Brilliant post, thank you for the info. Very helpful for my first cruise.

Ditto. It's all very appreciated.

I can relate! Sooooo much to absorb. This forum has been helpful indeed.