RevCindy

Most if not all of this has already been addressed on the forum.

 

Just click on Ports of Call, Caribbean and there will be links to information on different islands.

 

For instance, here is the link to Dominica

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=151

 

 

If you don't find the info you want, you can always click New Thread and ask your specific question for that specific island.

Thank you. Of course I have read all the ports of call posts. But it's too much information in too many different places to disseminate. I was hoping to get an informed answer from someone who had been to most, if not all, of these ports. I don't have a specific request for a specific island because I don't know which island is best for what, which is what I'm trying to find out.

Hello all,

We're going on our first cruise in Nov/Dec 2017. I'm trying to figure out what to do where.

Here's where we're going:

St. Thomas

Dominca

Barbados

St. Lucia

St. Maartan

Puerto Rico (only have a few hours between 3pm and 8pm)

Here's what we want to do:

Snorkel

Zip Line

Hike

ATV/Jeep/Rhino tour

Shop (men's watch and local specialties)

Not just lay on a beach

The trip is 3 adults. One is a scuba diver and he and myself have snorkeled in Belize so we're spoiled. But my son, 26-years-old, really wants to and we want him to have a good experience. He was looking at those underwater motorized bike thingys. In St. Maartan, we've done the America's Cup Racing experience, which we loved but don't want to repeat.

If we were to take a limo from the port to an excursion, which port would be the most reliable for that?

Also, can you really just walk of the ship and grab excursions? I don't want to overpay on the ship, but I AM a planner and am nervous about this part of our trip. (NCL Jade, staying in the Haven).

Thanks!

Yes and yes! I'm allergic to smoke and this is the #1 fear I have going on our first cruise in November.

I can't figure out what we'll have time to do besides walk around the Old Town. Could we do El Yunque in this time frame....3pm to 10pm? Other suggestions? I wanted to do Arecibo but it seems like a far drive. Is there something closer to the cruise port that isn't history/shopping related? Please and thank you!

I don't know if you've gone yet but the snorkeling in Aruba is meh. In Belize, it's some of the best in the world. JMHO.

Hello all,

My husband is a diver, my son and I are not. We're doing the southern Caribbean...San Juan, Dominica, St. Lucia, Barbados, St. Thomas and St. Maartin. I would love to find a dive operator that will also take snorkelers, so that we don't have to split up. Does anyone know if such a thing exists? Leaning towards doing this in Barbados because of the turtles.

Thank you in advance!

You may be missing the point of some of the posts. With some few exceptions, advertised cabin prices are the same across the board of TAs or the cruise line itself. It's the unadvertised credits/refunds/OBC that you need to find. And the best of those deals will come from your preferred line's top producers. We belong to the same organization you mention (plus other big outfits like certain "big box" stores) and, believe me: with some decent research there are far better deals to be had. Do your homework.

I have a friend who has recommended a wonderful travel agent and will be giving her a call, based on my new understandings. Your post was a little clearer to me about the pro's of a TA and I appreciate that you posted it.

Thank you again!

Wow, Cruise Critic is truly amazing! I've been reading and reading and have gotten so much helpful information.

We are AAA members and were talking to one of their TA's at a travel show. We were originally thinking a land trip to Hawaii but after the show, decided on a Caribbean cruise with NCL. I send her an email asking her if she could get us a better rate but understand from you all that probably not. I don't want to waste her time if we don't really need her because her services are included in our membership.

We now also don't need air because we're leaving from the state we'll be moving to soon.

My next stress is trip insurance. That's the next thing I'm reading these pages for. Next will be excursions.

Thanks everyone, for your help. I'll be seeing you around the boards!

Hi all,

I'm booking a southern Caribbean cruise for next November and would love to see cruise reports, specifically for the excursions. Not quite sure how best to search for them here. Can you help?

Hello all,

I apologize as I'm sure this has been answered a million times before. I just couldn't seem to find it in my search.

We are first time cruisers. We've found exactly what we want through the cruise line website, cabin and all. NCL to Hawaii. Do I book it directly through them or can someone/somewhere else get me what I want for a better price? (I know no one pays rack rate for a hotel room. Is a cruise similar?) Also, should I book my air through them or elsewhere? I would probably go directly to the airline as opposed to a travel agent, etc... as I find them too unweildy and difficult if a problem pops up that needs attention.

Thanks in advance for your help!

I have booked our car rental in Maui and Kauai with Discount Hawaii Car Rentals. You can cancel your booking at any time and don't need to pay until pick up. The car rental companies run shuttles to and from the ports.

 

I highly recommend renting a convertible in Maui and driving the Road to Hana on the first day there. Can't recommend enough getting the Road to Hana GyPSy Drive Tour app, it uses your phone/tablet GPS to know where you are on the road and recommends places to stop and gives you some great history. Once you download the app, it doesn't use any data. This was our favourite day on our last POA cruise.

I was wondering if there was time to do this drive. How many hours did you take? Can you return to the ship at any time?

Thank you for entertaining our questions!

Hello,

We are considering a river cruise in Europe for our 30th wedding anniversary but I have a couple of questions:

- There will be three of us, hubby, me and our 24-year-old son. Will the son feel out of place? Is this an older person type of cruising?

- We are all introverts. Will we be made to feel like we "have" to interact if we don't want to?

- We aren't adventurous eaters? Will that be a problem?

- How on earth do I choose a company to go with? I'm overwhelmed trying to compare/contrast.

Thank you for your help.