Was considering a 12/20/12 or thereabouts cruise...

[piscesgal223]

But now I'm thinking that I might put it off for a few days. I'd rather have Christmas with my family, and my niece's birthday is December 20th.

[CaveDiving]

And your point or question is ......

 

Scott & Karen

[piscesgal223]

That was a bit rude but.. *shrugs*

 

 

Just wondering if it's the right decision, if anyone has cruised at Christmastime and what they thought.

[Krazy Kruizers]

There was a time when we cruised at Christmas -- not anymore.

More families are now cruising at Christmas -- thus more children on the ship -- very crowded.

The prices for the holiday cruises are also higher -- we also have seen the prices for airlines and hotels go up during the holidays.

[arewethereyet]

But now I'm thinking that I might put it off for a few days. I'd rather have Christmas with my family, and my niece's birthday is December 20th.

Well, you just said you'd rather have Christmas with your family. It sounds to me like you answered your question.

[catl331]

If you can go between Thanksgiving and Christmas, you can get some superb deals and upgrades!;)

[piscesgal223]

If you can go between Thanksgiving and Christmas, you can get some superb deals and upgrades!;)

 

 

I might consider going around Thanksgiving;our plans never seem to come together 'till the last minute, so I would be OK with missing Thanksgiving.

 

 

The Eastern Caribbean cruise(Grand Turk,San Juan,St. Thomas, Half Moon Cay) that is closest to Christmas stops in San Juan on Christmas Day.I think it's a fair bet a lot of places close down on Christmas,but San Juan, being in Puerto Rico(a Catholic country!) probably more so.

[GatorV]

We are going on an 11 day just before Christmas, and return on the 23rd. I live in Florida, going out of FLL so it is an easy thing for us. ALSO, the ship will be decorated for the Holidays which is always neat to see, and in particular if you have done the same ship more than twice!

The up side to this is it forces you to get your Holiday shopping done early, someone else has the Christmas dinner, and you get to skip a year of decorating and more importantly putting it all away. But you are home for the family event :D

[iancal]

Last year we went on an 11 day cruise just before Christmas and stayed in San Juan for Chrismas. What we saved by taking the cruise early more than paid for our pre and post cruise in San Juan.

[piscesgal223]

It'd be fun to see a 'dam ship with its hal(l)s decked.

 

I get my shopping done early,so I'd have it done *well* in advance of the cruise(I don't do malls at Christmastime so my shopping is usually done by the second week of November.)

[Ray in NH]

We had talked about doing a cruise over the Christmas Holidays fo a number of years and had put it off for a number of the reasons stated above.

Last year we did the Prinsendam's Amazon expedition, which ended in FLL on 23 December. So, we thought this might be the time to try the Christmas Cruise. We opted for a short (5 night) cruise out of FLL, and really enjoyed it. We did not encounter the "expected negatives", except for the higher prices.

We also really enjoyed our cruise on the Prinsendam. So, next year (2012) we are combining the two experiences, and creating a new one (for us) -- A Christmas Cruise aboard the Prinsendam. Would have done it this year but previously scheduled cruises made it too problematic. :(

Ray in NH

[SwissMyst]

That was a bit rude but.. *shrugs*

 

 

Just wondering if it's the right decision, if anyone has cruised at Christmastime and what they thought.

 

Actually, their response was not "rude". Your question had no point and people read it hoping they could offers something but like myself could not understand what you were asking.

 

Were you looking for a four day cruise so you will be back by Christmas was my first thought.

 

Only your later clarification provides sufficient information for better responses. Yes, we enjoyed our Christmas cruise on the Oosterdam to the Mexican Riviera. The decor was festive and there was a true holiday feeling onboard. The drawbacks were far more larger groups of people moving about the ship as extended family groups taking up elevators and dining tables in the Lido. There were several hundred young people on board but the HAL team kept them active and busy and their presence did not detract from the normal quieter feeling of HAL ships during non-holiday sailings.

[lka1012]

While I might not want to deal with the Holiday crowds, an "End of the World" cruise to the Western Carib is too good to pass up. Maybe to Tulum.

[piscesgal223]

While I might not want to deal with the Holiday crowds, an "End of the World" cruise to the Western Carib is too good to pass up. Maybe to Tulum.

 

A little backstory on my planning this cruise: Originally I HAD planned it(albeit jokingly) as my "End Of The World" cruise.I figured if the world *does* end on December 21st 2012, I wanted to be doing something fun!

[Hobbsey]

I might consider going around Thanksgiving;our plans never seem to come together 'till the last minute, so I would be OK with missing Thanksgiving.

 

 

The Eastern Caribbean cruise(Grand Turk,San Juan,St. Thomas, Half Moon Cay) that is closest to Christmas stops in San Juan on Christmas Day.I think it's a fair bet a lot of places close down on Christmas,but San Juan, being in Puerto Rico(a Catholic country!) probably more so.

 

We choose an Eastern on Westy, 12/4. Very good pricing still available. The Holiday sailings are very popular and you'll pay accordingly. That should between Thanksgiving and Christmas is a value, as often are the early dates in January.

[piscesgal223]

The first cruise availble around the time I want to go is mid-December..God I *wish* I could go again this year! So it'll wind up being a New Year's-ish(lol) cruise.Which I'm OK with!

[ore-ee-gun]

We went in mid-December, returning on the 22nd. The ship was lovely, though incompletely decorated (most of the trees remained unlit, and they continued to add decorations as the week went on). We got a great deal on the fare, but the hassle of flying home three days before Christmas was enough to convince me never to do that again.

[piscesgal223]

I was talking to someone, I can't remember what line it was, but that they REALLY decorated the ship for Christmas. I'm sure HAL does..and Christmas a HAL ship? Now *that* would be something(their food is so good anyways, but Christmas dinner? oh man!)

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

The last few years we have cruised Caribbeans late November to early December and the ships have been decorated very nicely so it put us in the spirit of the season before going home to celebrate Christmas with family.

[piscesgal223]

That makes me think of something..does anyone know if HAL sells anything Christmas-related on their ships(like ornaments)? It'd be a great way to decorate a tree, *and* have a memento of the trip!

[glutenhab]

We are booked on a 58 day around New Zealand, the South Pacific Islands, Australia & Southeast Asia from Nov 25/11-Jan 22/12.

The longest cruise we have been on before has been 14 days & never during Christmas.

We struggled with being away for Christmas but took the plunge!

We are not giving up Christmas with family forever. We have had many many with them & hopefully will have many more. It's just one.

 

Remember.....Variety is the spice of life.

Time for some spice. I can't wait!

[piscesgal223]

I might consider it in a few years.It would be a lot of fun. It's just the missing Christmas with my family part that might be tricky. But on the other hand I'd be on a cruise. Gotta love that!