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thinking of canceling Wind Surf Dec. 8 from SXM due to high airfares, alternatives?


susiesan
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I got a great price and OBC on the Dec. 8 sailing of the Wind Surf from Saint Maarten. I have been on the smaller sailing ships before twice, and have not been to the Caribbean since 2011, on Oceania. Now I am thinking about canceling due to the very high cost of airfare to Saint Maarten from Kansas City, over $900 pp. It isn't even high season yet.

 

I looked at the Costa Rica/Panama Canal sailings in January 2019 as an alternative as I can fly into/out of San Juan, CR and Colon for $560 pp. That itinerary is on the Star Breeze and I prefer the sailing ships and wanted to try the larger one. Plus the cost of the cruise is way more than what I have now.

 

Any suggestions for a 7 day cruise in the upcoming Dec.-Jan time frame on a small ship priced similar to Windstar?

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Is $900 vs $560 really that much more expensive in the bigger scheme of things? The reality is that early Dec cruises are usually heavily discounted by WS closer to sailing date, so paying a little more for air now will save you money later when the cruise price comes down. Or just wait and see if the air cost reduces. Why cancel your vacation over a few hundred dollars?

 

 

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It sounds like the airfare plus cruise fare to Caribbean and the cruise fare and airfare to Costa Rica will be a wash. Do pick the trip you like the best. I adored the Canal trip and Costa Rica is wonderful as is the Caribbean. For the canal I think either the small sailing ship or the Breeez will be equally great. You want to go through the canal in a small ship it is very special. For the Caribbean I love the Surf I prefer to sail. I have been on all of them. If money is not a huge concern a few hundred dollars difference will not matter both cruises are fabulous. If less expensive is what you are comfortable doing pick the least both cruises are great as stated before. You can not loose. We are on the Surf for 14 days 1/5. This will be # 23 on WS cruises. If the choice is Europe the Med Sailing Ships, Greece Sailing ship, Tahiti sailing ship, Northern Europe either would be great. Our opinion only! Have a great voyage let us know what you choose and how you liked it. Happy Sailing

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Another issue with SXM cruises is the timing of the flights. The AA flight from MIA gets in at 4:00pm and I would arrive the night before. That leaves us with finding something all day to do on Saturday before boarding commences. Then after the cruise disembarks the AA flights home are at either 3:25pm via CLT or 5:30pm via MIA, giving us another whole day to kill on St. Maarten with not much to do, due to the devastation on the island. I definitely don't want to sit around the temporary airport for 8 hours.

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We took a cab to Mary's Boon Beach Hotel after the cruise disembarked in St. Maarten. We swam and had a wonderful lunch there. Outdoor shower was available. No charge at all. We could not use the pool, but all the other facilities were available to us including beach lounges and bar service. They called a cab when it was time to head to the airport. Perfect way to kill time waiting for a late flight.

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I am having my TA price out the 2 Star Pride sailings RT from San Juan, Dec. 1 and Dec. 15. Airfare on AA to there is $650 each. There are a lot more options of pre cruise hotels and things to do post cruise in Puerto Rico than there are in Saint Maarten.

It looks like the Dec. 1 sailing right after Thanksgiving is priced $500 lower than the Dec. 15 sailing maybe because it is still hurricane season and we would be taking a chance that the cruise would even happen.

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Hurricane season ends on November 30th.

 

Yes, and the cheapest Star Pride sailing from SJU is Dec. 1. Last year the hurricanes that wiped out St. Maarten and Puerto Rico were in September but both islands were out of business in December. It could happen again.

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It seems to me you would want to arrive the day before considering you have similar weather in MO as we do in Boston re snow storms. Last Jan.due to weather it took us 3 days to get to SXM we nearly missed our cruise. We always go down 2-3 days ahead due to weather. The Holland House is right on the beach across the harbor from the cruise ships. I think it is $25 pp umbrella, chair and a beer. Very nice. There are two places you can go from SMNY’s post and my post. You can board the WS ships at 1, and you have to be at the airport 2 hours before, you do not have that much time on either end. Hurricane season ends November 1. Having lived on the water my entire life I have never experienced a hurricane in November, blizzards in December, yes. Happy Sailing.

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It looks like the Dec. 1 sailing right after Thanksgiving is priced $500 lower than the Dec. 15 sailing maybe because it is still hurricane season and we would be taking a chance that the cruise would even happen.

As stated, this is after hurricane season. But, hurricanes rarely stop cruises; they just sail away from the storm.

You have many concerns. Perhaps this isn’t an ideal trip for you?

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Another issue with SXM cruises is the timing of the flights. The AA flight from MIA gets in at 4:00pm and I would arrive the night before. That leaves us with finding something all day to do on Saturday before boarding commences. Then after the cruise disembarks the AA flights home are at either 3:25pm via CLT or 5:30pm via MIA, giving us another whole day to kill on St. Maarten with not much to do, due to the devastation on the island. I definitely don't want to sit around the temporary airport for 8 hours.

 

 

 

Sorry, I don’t understand your concern here. Arriving at 4pm (or 5:30) the night before should be ideal. By the time you get to your hotel, relax, have dinner then you can go to bed. You can board the ship at 1pm the next day. By the time you get up, have breakfast and perhaps a walk around Phillipsburg you are ready to board the ship. With all these concerns, I highly doubt you will be satisfied with this trip. Perhaps there is a better vacation option for you so that you do not have to worry.

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I didn't realize I could board at 1:00 on Saturday so that is no problem, just hang around the hotel in the morning and have lunch, then go to the ship.

 

I am more concerned about what to do all day long after disembarking the ship at 8:00am or so and waiting for the late afternoon flight. Other than sit around at a beach there aren't too many alternatives for tours due to the condition of the island. If I switch to a San Juan cruise there is a lot more to do there than on St. Maarten.

 

As to this being ideal for us, I love Windstar, been twice before, and want to try one of their Caribbean itineraries. December is the best month for us to go as prices are lower and easier to get off work for us. Maybe the yachts are just as good as the sailing ships.

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I called the Pasanggrahan Royal Guesthouse prior to departing on our cruise. They told me we could bring our luggage there while we wandered up and down the streets doing some sightseeing and shopping. We returned to the hotel and had a delightful lunch on the beach. When it was time to head to the airport, they called us a cab and off we went. They were very kind there and the food was delicious!

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In case anyone cares, this is what I decided to do:

I canceled the Wind Surf SXM Dec. 8 cruise and changed to Star Pride SJU Dec. 1 cruise.

 

I have a free 1 night pre cruise stay at the Sheraton Casino&Conv Center with SPG points instead of a $100 one night hotel stay on St. Maarten.

 

I got RT tickets to SJU for $571 each vs $920 RT to SXM

 

I contacted someone for a private tour in Puerto Rico after the cruise with a drop off at the airport late afternoon to occupy the hours after disembarking the ship. There is a lot to do in the San Juan area.

 

Even though the Star Pride cruise cost is more than the Wind Surf cruise cost, overall I am saving $994 on this vacation by going one week earlier from San Juan. it all worked out and I am looking forward to my third Windstar cruise. I will start aa roll call now.

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A consolidator is advertising the San Juan Dec 1 at a FABULOUS price. I don't know what you paid but do some research in order to ascertain you paid the best price.

 

Got an S1 cabin for $1692 each inc tax plus $300 OBC for cabin. Is the consolidator price better than this?

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The consolidator price was the lowest cabin offered at the Windstar web page as $1599 with "up to" $500 on board credit. The consolidator had the price as minus the $500 and another $100 off = $999. There is a $100 price difference between the S and the S1 so I am guessing that would hold here too.

 

Edited to add:

How much were your taxes? That is not reflected in my places price.

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The consolidator price was the lowest cabin offered at the Windstar web page as $1599 with "up to" $500 on board credit. The consolidator had the price as minus the $500 and another $100 off = $999. There is a $100 price difference between the S and the S1 so I am guessing that would hold here too.

 

Edited to add:

How much were your taxes? That is not reflected in my places price.

 

I could have had that price for an S cabin but the only one available was 101 which has the anchor right by the window, my TA advised against it. So I went to the S1 for $86 pp more. As a past passenger I should get a 1 cat upgrade upon boarding if available, although it doesn't matter much on this small ship. The taxes show as $374 pp, fare $1318 on my invoice.

 

If the consolidator has the initials VTG I saw that price/offer.

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In case anyone cares, this is what I decided to do:

I canceled the Wind Surf SXM Dec. 8 cruise and changed to Star Pride SJU Dec. 1 cruise.

 

I have a free 1 night pre cruise stay at the Sheraton Casino&Conv Center with SPG points instead of a $100 one night hotel stay on St. Maarten.

 

I got RT tickets to SJU for $571 each vs $920 RT to SXM

 

I contacted someone for a private tour in Puerto Rico after the cruise with a drop off at the airport late afternoon to occupy the hours after disembarking the ship. There is a lot to do in the San Juan area.

 

Even though the Star Pride cruise cost is more than the Wind Surf cruise cost, overall I am saving $994 on this vacation by going one week earlier from San Juan. it all worked out and I am looking forward to my third Windstar cruise. I will start aa roll call now.

We did the SJU Star Pride cruise last year. On disembarkation day, they offer a morning tour of the forts and San Juan with a drop off at the airport. We booked it while onboard.

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We did the SJU Star Pride cruise last year. On disembarkation day, they offer a morning tour of the forts and San Juan with a drop off at the airport. We booked it while onboard.

 

I did see those tours on the Windstar web site. Since we are flying in the night before and will have all day Dec. 1 to see El Morro and Old San Juan we will have already done this. I am going to try and find a private driver to take us out away from the city, maybe to El Yunque or a small town.

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