Mexican Riviera or Eastern Caribbean for non US visitors

We will be in the US on a trip in late November, and would love to fit in a 7 night cruise. Due to the timing of our trip, and a wedding in the middle in Canada, we have very little choice of dates and cruises. We originally wanted to fly to Miami and do a Caribbean cruise, or even San Juan and a cruise from there, but the dates are difficult and prices are sky high due to being Thanksgiving week (which we don't celebrate being from Australia, but I know is a big week in the US).

As we fly in to LA, I am now considering a Mexican Riviera cruise which is far more convenient, but my question is - how does this compare to a Caribbean cruise? As we are coming from Australian summer, we aren't really looking for beach days and swimming, but interesting ports, cultural experience and fun activities. I know that Mexico and the Caribbean are not exotic to most seasoned US cruisers, but from the point of view of international visitors looking for a different cultural experience, would Mexico fit the bill, or is the Caribbean worth trying to fit into our trip? We are early 50's travelling with our kids 20 and 22 years old. Thanks for any advice

I think you've already gotten a lot of information about Caribbean cruising from your previous threads. My advice would be similar to what I said on those. Research the ports on the West coast cruises to see if they offer anything of interest to you. Some people like them a lot. Personally, I find very little of interest for us.

Personally would be apprehensive about visiting Mexico right now - seems like a lot of serious crime in areas that used to be very safe to tourists. I know crime happens everyday everywhere but keep reading about problems in places where it used to be fun to vacation.

Might not work for you but have you considered Bermuda. I know there are cruises that visit Bermuda and US often taking in Boston, which would be a very historic US city for you to visit. Just a suggestion.

Cruises to Bermuda in November don’t exist to the best of my knowledge.Way too cold.

I think you've already gotten a lot of information about Caribbean cruising from your previous threads. My advice would be similar to what I said on those. Research the ports on the West coast cruises to see if they offer anything of interest to you. Some people like them a lot. Personally, I find very little of interest for us.

I've gotten plenty of info about Caribbean cruising but this is a completely different question. I was asking about Mexico as opposed to the Caribbean and if it's a good destination to consider for someone who has not experienced that culture

Grandma Dazzles (cute name) I don't know much about the issues in Mexico, but thanks for the heads up. I'll look into that a bit more.

And that's true Celebrity - I haven't found anything to Bermuda for the time frame we want.

If anyone has any further advice on Mexico as opposed to Caribbean cruise and culture wise, for our situation in particular, I'd be very grateful.

Obviously weather conditions can vary, but our experience with the Mexican Riviera was that it was colder and the sea was rougher than the Caribbean.

I’ve been on an Eastern Caribbean cruise to St Maarten, San Juan but have only been on land trips to Puerto Vallarta, Cabo. I wouldn’t be worried about safety in Mexico as long as you use common sense. I have travelled extensively throughout Mexico and have never had any trouble. Your in port during the daytime and the tourist areas so it will be fine. I feel the beaches are nicer on the eastern Caribbean but since you don’t care about beach days then Mexico would be a good option since your going to be in la already. You can’t beat the convenience of that. I would say if you really wanted to see nice beaches then go to the Caribbean but both Cabo and Puerto Vallarta are nice places for first time visitors with plenty to do like city tours, zip lining, off roading tours, great food, etc.

Everyone loves to hate Mexico, but I love the place. I really wish the government could get a handle on it's problems with the drug cartel, but even so, the tourist areas are safe and well-patrolled.

 

Unfortunately, late November means you'll miss whale season, but Cabo San Lucas has a ton of sea life and is beautiful. Puerto Vallarta's malecon is a great place to walk and enjoy lunch. You can take a taxi there and back with ease.

 

I've only been to Mazatlan once, so can't really comment on that.

 

In any case, Mexico is beautiful but Americans seem to give it a bad rap, unfortunately.

I agree with your comments. However, OP is coming from Australia and needs to research crime problems, or at least be aware. I have spent many great vacations taking in many areas of Mexico, including land based all inclusives as well as cruises.

However, when the State Department starts mentioning major tourist destinations as places to be more diligent and watchful, I get a little nervous. Recent reports have not been good as far as visiting Mexico. Heeding warnings does not constitute Americans giving Mexico a bad rap - it's common sense.

Caribbean definitely.

Thanks for all the comments, and it sounds like Mexico is still a great option, especially on a cruise as we love the cruising experience. I'm not too worried about safety as we would stick to tourist areas and experiences, and we have travelled a fair bit in Asia which has the same sort of poverty and tourist warnings, and we use common sense.

I have done some research on the ports and it definitely seems to me that Mexico is more of a cultural experience and the Caribbean is more about the sunshine and beaches. Also I see that some of the snall Caribbean islands we were originally looking at have 5-6 huge ships in Port each day, which I find a bit off-putting.

I also ran into a friend last night who has been to Mexico and loved it, although she did a land trip. She said it was so different and amazing culture, food and people.

So based on your comments I feel more inclined to look at the Mexican Riviera option. Price is better and one less flight, so it's much more affordable, but I didn't want a very inferior experience. It seems like MR is not inferior, just different.