Help me choose which cruise to do

[mill4023]

I'm planning a 7 night Caribbean cruise this fall.

There will be 8 or 9 of us.

Me and my wife (38 and 41), my mom (60's), our 5 kids (5, 9, 13, 15, 18), and possibly our 18 yr old son's girlfriend.

 

My mom has been on quite a few different cruises. My wife and I have only done one Caribbean cruise. The Ruby Princess to Princess Cays, St Thomas, St Maarten, and Grand Turk. We didn't take the the kids on that one.

 

I've decided on Carnival and picked a couple of dates that work best for us, but I'm still comparing a few different options and could use some help from experienced cruisers.

 

Whichever cruise we choose, we would either do 3 balconies, or 2 balconies and and 1 inside.

 

We will be driving from NC, so Tampa or Port Canaveral would be closer, but we are fine with driving to Miami/Ft Lauderdale or New Orleans.

 

Any thoughts on differences between these options in terms of ship and itinerary for our family?

Which one you would recommend?

 

I've listed them in order from least expensive to most expensive. Price is a factor, but all of these should be in our budget.

 

Legend

Tampa

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Grand Cayman

 

Glory

Miami

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Grand Cayman

 

Conquest

New Orleans

Roatan, Belize, Cozumel

 

Dream

Port Canaveral

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Costa Maya

 

Liberty

Miami

Half Moon Cay, St Thomas, San Juan, Grand Turk

 

Conquest

New Orleans

Nassau, St Thomas, San Juan, Grand Turk

 

Breeze (8 night)

Miami

St Thomas, Antigua, Tortola, Nassau

[wrigley80]

I have only been on one of the ships you listed (Carnival Legend) but if it was up to me and the price wasn't too much different......I would go on the Carnival Liberty that goes to Half Moon Cay. Half Moon Cay is absolutely gorgeous....you just can't even describe how beautiful the water is

[bguppies]

Legend is a great cruise and a great ship. (the Spirit class is our favorite in the fleet)

 

Tampa is an easy port to get in and out of. (POrt Canaveral is the best we have been through so far)

 

The drive to Tampa or Port Canaveral would definitely be best. (we drive from SC for all of our cruises)

 

The Dream is almost identical to the Legend cruise, except Grand Cayman is replaced by Costa Maya.

Haven't been to Costa Maya yet, but I'd take Grand Cayman, as Sting Ray City is the best excursion we have done in all our Caribbean cruises.

 

With all the kids you have with you, I'd imagine most of them would find the interaction with truly wild creatures (not penned up sting rays like everywhere else has) to be incredible. (I still do after 3 times there)

 

Maybe if you could post what your various family members enjoy doing, we could help guide your choices better.

 

cave tubing, mayan ruins, swim with dolphins, quiet beach days, active beach days, snorkeling, scuba, historic tours, shopping, etc...

 

Also, when you say Fall, what month are you talking about?

Because September is the heart of hurricane season and quite a few itineraries get changed at the last minute, if you are definitely set on the ports over the ship.

Early October also still gets some changes also.

Something else to factor in.

 

Bill

[mill4023]

I have only been on one of the ships you listed (Carnival Legend) but if it was up to me and the price wasn't too much different......I would go on the Carnival Liberty that goes to Half Moon Cay. Half Moon Cay is absolutely gorgeous....you just can't even describe how beautiful the water is

 

Half Moon Cay is definitely appealing. We really enjoyed our stop at Princess Cays and with all the kids, having a nice convenient beach day like that sounds great.

[RazorbackBelle08]

I had a great time on the Conquest but I think Grand Cayman, specifically, is not to be missed, and SO beautiful if you rent a Jeep and go to Rum Point (where Stingray City is). So if it was me I'd make sure my cruise included Grand Cayman as a stop :)

 

Good luck deciding!

[evandbob]

I'm planning a 7 night Caribbean cruise this fall.

There will be 8 or 9 of us.

Me and my wife (38 and 41), my mom (60's), our 5 kids (5, 9, 13, 15, 18), and possibly our 18 yr old son's girlfriend.

 

My mom has been on quite a few different cruises. My wife and I have only done one Caribbean cruise. The Ruby Princess to Princess Cays, St Thomas, St Maarten, and Grand Turk. We didn't take the the kids on that one.

 

I've decided on Carnival and picked a couple of dates that work best for us, but I'm still comparing a few different options and could use some help from experienced cruisers.

 

Whichever cruise we choose, we would either do 3 balconies, or 2 balconies and and 1 inside.

 

We will be driving from NC, so Tampa or Port Canaveral would be closer, but we are fine with driving to Miami/Ft Lauderdale or New Orleans.

 

Any thoughts on differences between these options in terms of ship and itinerary for our family?

Which one you would recommend?

 

I've listed them in order from least expensive to most expensive. Price is a factor, but all of these should be in our budget.

 

Legend

Tampa

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Grand Cayman

 

Glory

Miami

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Grand Cayman

 

Conquest

New Orleans

Roatan, Belize, Cozumel

 

Dream

Port Canaveral

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Costa Maya

 

Liberty

Miami

Half Moon Cay, St Thomas, San Juan, Grand Turk

 

Conquest

New Orleans

Nassau, St Thomas, San Juan, Grand Turk

 

Breeze (8 night)

Miami

St Thomas, Antigua, Tortola, Nassau

 

If price isn't your main factor, I would choose the Breeze, simply because it is the newest ship and doesn't have an aging factor to it. Safety first!

[mill4023]

Legend is a great cruise and a great ship. (the Spirit class is our favorite in the fleet)

 

Tampa is an easy port to get in and out of. (POrt Canaveral is the best we have been through so far)

 

The drive to Tampa or Port Canaveral would definitely be best. (we drive from SC for all of our cruises)

 

The Dream is almost identical to the Legend cruise, except Grand Cayman is replaced by Costa Maya.

Haven't been to Costa Maya yet, but I'd take Grand Cayman, as Sting Ray City is the best excursion we have done in all our Caribbean cruises.

 

With all the kids you have with you, I'd imagine most of them would find the interaction with truly wild creatures (not penned up sting rays like everywhere else has) to be incredible. (I still do after 3 times there)

 

Maybe if you could post what your various family members enjoy doing, we could help guide your choices better.

 

cave tubing, mayan ruins, swim with dolphins, quiet beach days, active beach days, snorkeling, scuba, historic tours, shopping, etc...

 

Also, when you say Fall, what month are you talking about?

Because September is the heart of hurricane season and quite a few itineraries get changed at the last minute, if you are definitely set on the ports over the ship.

Early October also still gets some changes also.

Something else to factor in.

 

Bill

 

The Dream appealed to me because of it being a larger newer ship, but Grand Cayman sounds better than Costa Maya.

 

I'm not really sure what everyone will want to do. We will definitely want one or two days to enjoy beaches. My wife and I really enjoyed snorkeling, but with the young kids, I'm not sure a snorkeling excursion would work out. So a port with decent snorkeling from the beach would be nice. We would also be interested in seeing ruins if we do a stop at one of the ports where that's possible. But we're really flexible.

 

There are a couple options for dates. Most likely either October 12, November 9, or Nov 23 (thanksgiving week).

[gelo7]

I would do the Breeze.

[darth frosty]

IMO breeze or liberty

 

In truth you can throw a dart and decide you cant go wrong with any of them!

[jtm22372]

breeze gets my vote

[mill4023]

If price isn't your main factor, I would choose the Breeze, simply because it is the newest ship and doesn't have an aging factor to it. Safety first!

 

It isn't the only factor, but it is a factor and the Breeze is a pretty substantial jump in price from the 2nd most expensive option. Doing an 8 night Saturday to Sunday cruise also makes things tougher in terms of getting there and getting home without the kids missing too much school.

[mill4023]

Updated the list with the dates and approx price (for 2 balconies and 1 inside with 3 people in each)

 

Legend

Nov 10

Tampa

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Grand Cayman

$5100

 

Glory

Nov 10

Miami

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Grand Cayman

$5200

 

Conquest

Oct 13

New Orleans

Roatan, Belize, Cozumel

$5600

 

Dream

Nov 9

Port Canaveral

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Costa Maya

$5700

 

Liberty

Nov 9

Miami

Half Moon Cay, St Thomas, San Juan, Grand Turk

$6000

 

Conquest

Nov 24

New Orleans

Nassau, St Thomas, San Juan, Grand Turk

$6500

 

Breeze (8 night)

Oct 12

Miami

St Thomas, Antigua, Tortola, Nassau

$7100

[javamom]

I would save $2000 and go with Legend (saying that since I've not been on Breeze yet - 67 days and counting!)

 

I have been on that Legend Itinerary and love Roatan and Grand Cayman. $2000 is a big savings IMO and I loved the Legend!

 

As another poster said, you can't go wrong - all wonderful choices.

[Bobblefrog]

If you are stressed out about money, vacation is no fun. Go cheaper - the kids won't know the difference and you'll have more to splurge on stuff and be the king of all things cool.

 

Driving with kids, oh heck yes, take the closer ports and the easier ports - LOL! Just my opinion.

 

Did you check out the coves on the Dream (Breeze will have them too)? They apparently aren't for everyone but they give you a great discount. For me I think I'd like them more than the regular ones - close to the water (some say too close - they tend to be wet and get a lot of spray) and shaded. I am not a sun worshipper. And the Dream has the cool spa - first day onboard you could snag a couples spa pass for $250. Now that's where I'd live.

 

However, Legend may win for us, though (we are planning our next year's cruise with a lot of the same choices - love the kitschy theme and there's a Tahitan Inn in Tampa that well help us get in the mood - good price, big rooms. Tike style pool. I think it's a smaller ship, too - not sure I'd like the mega ships.

 

OH wait - did you research and see if you could get one of those "bowling alley" balcony rooms on the Legend? I think those are on her. There's two that are possible with two people and they have enough room for the whole family. Do a search here and then look at deck plan genius dot com to see pictures. When you do a mock booking you might find them under "premium" balconies.

[stargate fan]

The Dream appealed to me because of it being a larger newer ship, but Grand Cayman sounds better than Costa Maya.

 

I'm not really sure what everyone will want to do. We will definitely want one or two days to enjoy beaches. My wife and I really enjoyed snorkeling, but with the young kids, I'm not sure a snorkeling excursion would work out. So a port with decent snorkeling from the beach would be nice. We would also be interested in seeing ruins if we do a stop at one of the ports where that's possible. But we're really flexible.

 

There are a couple options for dates. Most likely either October 12, November 9, or Nov 23 (thanksgiving week).

 

We sailed Dream with this itinerary in April. She is a beautiful ship and since it is larger, there will probably be more activities for the youngsters. While Spirit class ships (Legend) are my favorite, they are smaller ships and I don't know that there will be enough to occupy the kids.

 

We are sailing the same itinerary on Liberty in April, except we are going to Grand Cayman instead of Costa Maya.

 

Ruins would be good for either Cozumel or Belize. We did a cave tubing tour with VIV Tours on Belize. That was very cool!! The caves were fascinating and the tour guides were great. This time, we are taking a Carnival tour to Xantunich. (I really prefer booking private tours but this is a long day and we don't want to risk missing the boat.)

 

On Roatan, we did zip lining with a company that was walking distance from the port. It was our first time and we are hooked! We then spent a couple of hours at Mahogany Bay. This time we are taking a taxi to the West End for a day at the beach.

 

Please don't discount Costa Maya. We were amazed at the beauty of the beach we visited. The water was crystal clear down to the sand and bath tub warm. Check out Tropicante on TripAdvisor.

 

Since we have been to G.C. a few times, we are just going to take a taxi to Seven Mile Beach.

 

Good luck with your decisions.

 

[mill4023]

After reading everyone's comments and doing some more thinking on this, I'm narrowing the choices a little.

 

The Conquest Western is out because it's a similar itinerary as the Legend and Glory, but skips Grand Cayman and costs more.

 

The Conquest Eastern is out because it's a similar itinerary to the Liberty, but costs more and goes to Nassau instead of Half Moon Cay. Half Moon Cay sounds much nicer than Nassau.

 

I think the Breeze is out of the running because of the extra cost and the fact that it's a Saturday to Sunday cruise, which means we are rushed on both ends, since I don't want the kids to miss school on the Friday before or the Monday after.

 

I'm thinking about ruling out the Dream because it's more money than Legend and Glory and Grand Cayman seems to be a better option than Costa Maya. But I like the idea of a newer, bigger ship. I'm not sure how valid that is, but I'm having a hard time getting away from the bigger is better mindset. :)

 

That's the same reason I still have the Glory listed. Same itinerary as the Legend, bigger ship, but an extra 2 hours of driving to get to the port.

 

So right now, these are what I'm still thinking about.

 

Legend, Nov 10, Tampa

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Grand Cayman

$5100

 

Glory, Nov 10, Miami

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Grand Cayman

$5200

 

Dream, Nov 9, Port Canaveral

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Costa Maya

$5700

 

Liberty, Nov 9, Miami

Half Moon Cay, St Thomas, San Juan, Grand Turk

$6000

 

Any thoughts on Costa Maya vs Grand Cayman?

 

Can anyone tell me more specifics about the differences between these ships?

How do the pools and water slides compare?

What about entertainment and onboard activites?

[mikel24m]

I'm planning a 7 night Caribbean cruise this fall.

There will be 8 or 9 of us.

Me and my wife (38 and 41), my mom (60's), our 5 kids (5, 9, 13, 15, 18), and possibly our 18 yr old son's girlfriend.

 

My mom has been on quite a few different cruises. My wife and I have only done one Caribbean cruise. The Ruby Princess to Princess Cays, St Thomas, St Maarten, and Grand Turk. We didn't take the the kids on that one.

 

I've decided on Carnival and picked a couple of dates that work best for us, but I'm still comparing a few different options and could use some help from experienced cruisers.

 

Whichever cruise we choose, we would either do 3 balconies, or 2 balconies and and 1 inside.

 

We will be driving from NC, so Tampa or Port Canaveral would be closer, but we are fine with driving to Miami/Ft Lauderdale or New Orleans.

 

Any thoughts on differences between these options in terms of ship and itinerary for our family?

Which one you would recommend?

 

I've listed them in order from least expensive to most expensive. Price is a factor, but all of these should be in our budget.

 

Legend

Tampa

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Grand Cayman

 

Glory

Miami

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Grand Cayman

 

Conquest

New Orleans

Roatan, Belize, Cozumel

 

Dream

Port Canaveral

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Costa Maya

 

Liberty

Miami

Half Moon Cay, St Thomas, San Juan, Grand Turk

 

Conquest

New Orleans

Nassau, St Thomas, San Juan, Grand Turk

 

Breeze (8 night)

Miami

St Thomas, Antigua, Tortola, Nassau

 

Our Favorite ports are for sure Exotic western so my vote is the Glory.Youtube west bay beach Roatan ,our favorite place in the world.If you decide this one I can give you tips we have done it like 5 or 6 times

[kybluecruiser]

I'm planning a 7 night Caribbean cruise this fall.

There will be 8 or 9 of us.

Me and my wife (38 and 41), my mom (60's), our 5 kids (5, 9, 13, 15, 18), and possibly our 18 yr old son's girlfriend.

 

My mom has been on quite a few different cruises. My wife and I have only done one Caribbean cruise. The Ruby Princess to Princess Cays, St Thomas, St Maarten, and Grand Turk. We didn't take the the kids on that one.

 

I've decided on Carnival and picked a couple of dates that work best for us, but I'm still comparing a few different options and could use some help from experienced cruisers.

 

Whichever cruise we choose, we would either do 3 balconies, or 2 balconies and and 1 inside.

 

We will be driving from NC, so Tampa or Port Canaveral would be closer, but we are fine with driving to Miami/Ft Lauderdale or New Orleans.

 

Any thoughts on differences between these options in terms of ship and itinerary for our family?

Which one you would recommend?

 

I've listed them in order from least expensive to most expensive. Price is a factor, but all of these should be in our budget.

 

Legend

Tampa

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Grand Cayman

 

Glory

Miami

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Grand Cayman

 

Conquest

New Orleans

Roatan, Belize, Cozumel

 

Dream

Port Canaveral

Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Costa Maya

 

Liberty

Miami

Half Moon Cay, St Thomas, San Juan, Grand Turk

 

Conquest

New Orleans

Nassau, St Thomas, San Juan, Grand Turk

 

Breeze (8 night)

Miami

St Thomas, Antigua, Tortola, Nassau

 

I would do the liberty conquest glory or breeze since you have 5 kids and they have 2.0 upgrades

[mill4023]

Please don't discount Costa Maya. We were amazed at the beauty of the beach we visited. The water was crystal clear down to the sand and bath tub warm. Check out Tropicante on TripAdvisor.

I'm not discounting Costa Maya. It's just that I assumed Grand Cayman would have more of a Caribbean feel to it, so the Legend and Glory itineraries sounded more appealing than one where all 4 of the ports are in Mexico or Central America. But since this is all based only on second hand information since I've never been to any of the western ports.

[mill4023]

I would do the liberty conquest glory or breeze since you have 5 kids and they have 2.0 upgrades

 

I've read some about that, but most of what I read was about was new bars, restaurants, and comedy shows.

 

What kind of stuff do those ships have, that would appeal to kids and is missing on the Legend?

[mikel24m]

I've read some about that, but most of what I read was about was new bars, restaurants, and comedy shows.

 

What kind of stuff do those ships have, that would appeal to kids and is missing on the Legend?

 

They have guys burgers (which are awesome) and different food options mostly.And the comedy brunch.As far as kids we dont have any but they have camp Carnival that may be good while onboard

 

 

This is Roatan :)

[jcearth]

The Dream has a nice sized waterpark onboard with 3 different slides, but only has two other pools. My kids can't wait to do the slides. We are doing the Western itinerary in September, and I think it will give us 3 good chances for beach days - Cozumel, Roatan, and Costa Maya. I was on the Legend a few years ago, and it had a good number of pools (3) with less people on board. However, it only has one waterslide. I have been to both Grand Cayman and Costa Maya. Grand Cayman is a tender port if that makes any difference to you. Seven mile beach on Grand Cayman was nice, and they also have a turtle farm and you can go to Hell. While, in Costa Maya, we took a taxi to a nearby village called Mahahual, which had a very nice beach, and vendors there who could arrange anything you needed (chairs, umbrellas, drinks, food, excursions, etc.).

[mikel24m]

The Dream has a nice sized waterpark onboard with 3 different slides, but only has two other pools. My kids can't wait to do the slides. We are doing the Western itinerary in September, and I think it will give us 3 good chances for beach days - Cozumel, Roatan, and Costa Maya. I was on the Legend a few years ago, and it had a good number of pools (3) with less people on board. However, it only has one waterslide. I have been to both Grand Cayman and Costa Maya. Grand Cayman is a tender port if that makes any difference to you. Seven mile beach on Grand Cayman was nice, and they also have a turtle farm and you can go to Hell. While, in Costa Maya, we took a taxi to a nearby village called Mahahual, which had a very nice beach, and vendors there who could arrange anything you needed (chairs, umbrellas, drinks, food, excursions, etc.).

 

Grand Cayman also has stingray city too ,everyone will love this especially the kids

[mikel24m]

Also forgot to add ,I dont know if your picking cabins but if you decide the Liberty ,Conquest or Glory if I were you I would book 9289,9293 both Balconies and 9291 for the inside (or that general area either side of the ship).Our favorite spot on the ship.Very close to the pools,food ,bars, morning coffee lol

[rach1fun]

I would choose the eastern Ports, just our preference... I guess it depends on if the ship is more important or the Ports...if the ship is more important, go for the dream, if the Ports rule, then do three last one with St Thomas and San Juan...can't go wrong with any of them, though

 

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