Same 'ole itineraries....

[dougandmo]

Wish more cruises would go to HMC or that Carnival would develop their own private island.

 

Since they have control over all customer spending that day never understood why they havent done this.

 

How many suitable undeveloped islands are out there? I really have no clue, but I assume it would need to be able to have a full dock built that could accomodate the largest ships for it to make sense for Carnival. They aren't going to want an Island that requires tenders all the time. As it is people complain about missing HMC a lot on here.

[abisha]

We have been to Nassau 3 times, HMC 5 times, St Thomas 4 times, and Cozumel 5 times and going back again next year. I would love some new itineraries. Maybe Martinique, Barbados, Grenada, St. Croix, Progresso, Costa Rica, Cartenga, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Bermuda, and more ships to St. Marten and Costa Maya again.

 

Another thing I would love to see is a Coastal Eastern itinerary, just like the Western with NY, Boston, New Port, Baltimore, Charleston, Port Canaveral Etc.

 

When John Heald asked about longer itineraries I jumped at the chance to give my 2 cents worth. We would love some 9, 10, and 11 day cruises so we can see some of these places.

 

I wish Carnival would do a Boston Bermuda ..didn't they have that a few years ago? I only live 15 minutes from the port. They eliminated the Boston to Nova Scotia itinerary. Did Carnival have an issue with the port? Not sure why they no longer use this port?

[dougandmo]

I wish Carnival would do a Boston Bermuda ..didn't they have that a few years ago? I only live 15 minutes from the port. They eliminated the Boston to Nova Scotia itinerary. Did Carnival have an issue with the port? Not sure why they no longer use this port?

 

I assumed they dropped Boston because there was limited demand for the Canada route, and they can still service that from NYC. Either that or the environmental rules on fuel made it financially prohibitive like it did in Baltimore.

[Bostonjetset]

I wish Carnival would do a Boston Bermuda ..didn't they have that a few years ago? I only live 15 minutes from the port. They eliminated the Boston to Nova Scotia itinerary. Did Carnival have an issue with the port? Not sure why they no longer use this port?

 

I live in Mass. also and was quite sad when I learned CCL dropped Boston as a port; the convenience alone would make me cruise more often, at least for short getaways.

 

Bermuda is the nicest island I have been to on a cruise and would go back in a heartbeat! NCL pretty much holds the market on Bermuda though and they offer a great Bermuda product from both NYC and Boston.

 

I would love a 4-day [Thu - Mon] from Boston to Halifax as it would make a brilliant long weekend trip without having to fly. Saint John was nice enough but I feel as if Halifax would have more to offer, especially for repeat visitors. Even from NYC they only offer Halifax on the 5 day itinerary which takes the trip from a quick long weekend to almost a full vacation.

[Cuizer2]

The Miracle home port now is LA. So it won't be going there any time soon.

 

1) It was an example.

2) It was going there in February 2011

3) The same itinerary I took is now offered by the Carnival Breeze. Here is a link ...

 

http://www.carnival.com/core/cruisedetails.aspx?embkCode=MIA&itinCode=SCC&durDays=8&shipCode=BR&subRegionCode=CS&numGuests=2&showDbl=False&isOver55=N&isPastGuest=N&stateCode=&isMilitary=N&dayOfWeek=Sat&sailDate=02152014&sailingID=62218&sailingSearchParams=dat:,datFrom:022014,datTo:022014,dest:C,CE,CS,CW,dur:D2,embkCode:,pageNumber:5,pageSize:5,PastGuest:N,Senior:N,shipCode:,sort:FromPrice,StateCode:,numGuests:2,offersOnly:false,tgo:,Military:N,length:5,bypass:t,tierCode:,

[abisha]

I live in Mass. also and was quite sad when I learned CCL dropped Boston as a port; the convenience alone would make me cruise more often, at least for short getaways.

 

Bermuda is the nicest island I have been to on a cruise and would go back in a heartbeat! NCL pretty much holds the market on Bermuda though and they offer a great Bermuda product from both NYC and Boston.

 

I would love a 4-day [Thu - Mon] from Boston to Halifax as it would make a brilliant long weekend trip without having to fly. Saint John was nice enough but I feel as if Halifax would have more to offer, especially for repeat visitors. Even from NYC they only offer Halifax on the 5 day itinerary which takes the trip from a quick long weekend to almost a full vacation.

 

I almost did the Boston to Halifax itinerary but DH wanted to tropical instead. I have friends who went on the Glory twice to do that itinerary ..both the four day and the five day and raved about it.

 

I checked the price on NCL for the spring and found it expensive...not a huge savings compared to flying to Florida and cruising out of there. I would never cruise to Bermuda in the fall during hurricaine season...the waters up our way do not make for too much of a smooth sail even when not hurricaine season.

[richstowe]

Why doesn't Carnival shake things up a bit as far as ports are concerned? I love the Carnival product, but am so tired of the same 'ole itineraries.

 

I'm thinking of booking the Southern Caribbean cruise from PR for the THIRD time.

 

Has anyone tried RC out of PR? One of there ships that leave from PR stops in Aruba.

No one has mentioned Celebrity Summit as an alternative . The Summit also leaves from San Juan and alternates between two great 7 day itinerary's.

Just a great great cruise . Prices are similar to Carnival and RC and the overall quality is better.

Some combine the 2 itinerary's to make a super 14 day cruise.

 

CCL has most of the Caribbean covered. St. Croix would be a possibility but it was not safe to visit and some of the other countries have issues also.

 

I don't understand this comment. St. Croix is part of the US Virgin Islands and while crime exists everywhere, St Croix is safe and beautiful.

[ccruisequeen]

Don't complain until all you get on the west coast is MR, 7-day cabo or maybe HAWAII.

 

 

[Bostonjetset]

I almost did the Boston to Halifax itinerary but DH wanted to tropical instead. I have friends who went on the Glory twice to do that itinerary ..both the four day and the five day and raved about it.

 

I checked the price on NCL for the spring and found it expensive...not a huge savings compared to flying to Florida and cruising out of there. I would never cruise to Bermuda in the fall during hurricaine season...the waters up our way do not make for too much of a smooth sail even when not hurricaine season.

 

We found Bermuda to be wonderful in the fall and we rarely had rough seas [other than a few nights] but on a ship as large as the Breakaway it was not too noticeable anyway. That said, summer [June/July] seems to be the high season for Bermuda cruises and prices do reflect that however the Dawn out of Boston has considerably lower prices than NYC's Breakaway unless you catch a good deal.

 

For me, Bermuda was paradise and I would not hesitate to go back even if the prices are a little higher than Caribbean cruises out of FL. Once airfare is factored in the prices are almost always more to cruise from FL though in my experience; even if the prices were the same the sheer hassle of flying adds unneeded stress if the option exists to leave from Boston or NY. I also thought the client demographics were a bit different when cruising out of the northeast [boston and NY both] than out of the southern US. For me it was a plus but others may not feel the same way.

 

As far as the Canada cruises, you should do one if you have the chance. The experience is a little more relaxing, especially at the ports since no one is trying to push you to buy stuff. Saint John is a lot nicer than many people give it credit for but I would love the option of a 4 day to Halifax for when 5 days is just too long to get off work. Maybe in the future they can rotate the 4 day itineraries so that every other cruise goes to Saint John and then the opposing trip goes to Halifax.

[Branman]

You'll see new itineraries once Carnival opens up its new ports in Puerto Plata and Calica. Though, Calica will likely just be a way to do the same excursions that you would do in Cozumel which required a ferry to the mainland.

 

EDIT:

 

The cruise terminal at Puerto Plata is called "Amber Cove"

 

http://northamerica.atkinsglobal.com/projects/amber-cove-cruise-terminal.aspx

Edited November 10, 2013 by Branman
Add more content

[gnocchi_mommy]

Why doesn't Carnival shake things up a bit as far as ports are concerned? I love the Carnival product, but am so tired of the same 'ole itineraries.

 

I'm thinking of booking the Southern Caribbean cruise from PR for the THIRD time.

 

Has anyone tried RC out of PR? One of there ships that leave from PR stops in Aruba.

 

This is one reason we just booked RC, to shake it up! Our next itinerary leaves out of NYC/Bayonne and hits Bermuda, St Maarten, Labadee, and San Juan. 4 places we have not been yet! the other reason was for the drinks package ;-)

[deeolasingh]

Pretty much the same price as the Breeze.

 

Depends.. We sailed the freedom for 8 nights in April to Aruba and by the time we boarded our cruise fare was about 373 per person for quad ( I do interior cabins that way I vacation 2 times per year ) we had a total OBC of 572.00

 

 

~~~~~~~ DeeDee ~~~~~~~

Sent from my iPhone

[runner15km]

No one has mentioned Celebrity Summit as an alternative . The Summit also leaves from San Juan and alternates between two great 7 day itinerary's.

Just a great great cruise . Prices are similar to Carnival and RC and the overall quality is better.

Some combine the 2 itinerary's to make a super 14 day cruise.

 

I don't understand this comment. St. Croix is part of the US Virgin Islands and while crime exists everywhere, St Croix is safe and beautiful.

 

A few years ago most cruise lines pulled out of St. Croix because of increasing attacks on cruise tourists. Yes ships are returning to St. Croix but watch your back and where you go. We also need to be diligent also in Jamaica and Nassau.

[kingoftheicedragons]

I wish there was more variety on Carnival's Caribbean cruises as well. I don't see this happening anytime soon, though. It's unfortunate, because as we approach platinum on Carnival, there aren't a lot of cruises in the Caribbean left to take that would take us to new places. Yesterday, using the site cruise dot com, I looked for what cruise itineraries would take us to new places more than the same old places, and came up with ten unique itineraries, and only one of these itineraries was a Carnival one. Two were HAL (though the one I want to do with Cartagena is more than I see us paying), and I think two were Costa. The remaining five options were on lines not owned by Carnival.

[golfadj]

Depends.. We sailed the freedom for 8 nights in April to Aruba and by the time we boarded our cruise fare was about 373 per person for quad ( I do interior cabins that way I vacation 2 times per year ) we had a total OBC of 572.00

 

 

~~~~~~~ DeeDee ~~~~~~~

Sent from my iPhone

 

Wow that is an awesome price

[sonicbuffalo]

It's been a while since we have cruised to Aruba. Carnival could use a little more imagination (creativity, not the ship) in port scheduling.

 

We just got back from a NCL cruise to Cartegena, Columbia; Aruba, Curacao, St. Martin, and St. Thomas. It was a fantastic 11 day cruise. We had a blast! Check out my review!

[Lace]

Why doesn't Carnival shake things up a bit as far as ports are concerned? I love the Carnival product, but am so tired of the same 'ole itineraries.

 

I'm thinking of booking the Southern Caribbean cruise from PR for the THIRD time.

 

Has anyone tried RC out of PR? One of there ships that leave from PR stops in Aruba.

 

Sounds like you're ready to mix things up by venturing out to different lines. It keeps things fresh, even if you end up at the same ports.

 

One variable we always count on when cruising; a while new batch of people to make friends with.

[Tapi]

You'll see new itineraries once Carnival opens up its new ports in Puerto Plata and Calica. Though, Calica will likely just be a way to do the same excursions that you would do in Cozumel which required a ferry to the mainland.

 

We sailed to Calica on the Imagination a few years ago, and it is, without a doubt, the UGLIEST port we've ever seen. Hope that the improvements are vast.

 

It was a gravel pit with some temporary, run down stalls for vendors when we were there. The advantage of Calica though (and as mentioned above) was the ability to visit places that would normally take much longer from Cozumel. Tulum was one hour away and Xcaret was only a few minutes from the pier. Taxis were lined up waiting for passengers to take them to nearby Playa del Carmen, but there were only a very limited number of them. Literally, people had to stand in a queue and watch the handful of taxis make countless roundtrips to Playa del Carmen before it was their turn.

 

For passengers who like to walk around and not do any excursions, Calica was a nightmare. Besides the temporary stalls with vendors, there's NOTHING within walking distance. The entrance to the port opens to a deserted highway.

Edited November 10, 2013 by Tapi

[golfadj]

We sailed to Calica on the Imagination a few years ago, and it is, without a doubt, the UGLIEST port we've ever seen. Hope that the improvements are vast.

 

It was a gravel pit with some temporary, run down stalls for vendors when we were there. The advantage of Calica though (and as mentioned above) was the ability to visit places that would normally take much longer from Cozumel. Tulum was one hour away and Xcaret was only a few minutes from the pier. Taxis were lined up waiting for passengers to take them to nearby Playa del Carmen, but there were only a very limited number of them. Literally, people had to stand in a queue and watch the handful of taxis make countless roundtrips to Playa del Carmen before it was their turn.

 

For passengers who like to walk around and not do any excursions, Calica was a nightmare. Besides the temporary stalls with vendors, there's NOTHING within walking distance. The entrance to the port opens to a deserted highway.

 

Calica sounds like the equal to Freeport.

[chill6x6]

We sailed to Calica on the Imagination a few years ago, and it is, without a doubt, the UGLIEST port we've ever seen. Hope that the improvements are vast.

 

It was a gravel pit with some temporary, run down stalls for vendors when we were there. The advantage of Calica though (and as mentioned above) was the ability to visit places that would normally take much longer from Cozumel. Tulum was one hour away and Xcaret was only a few minutes from the pier. Taxis were lined up waiting for passengers to take them to nearby Playa del Carmen, but there were only a very limited number of them. Literally, people had to stand in a queue and watch the handful of taxis make countless roundtrips to Playa del Carmen before it was their turn.

 

For passengers who like to walk around and not do any excursions, Calica was a nightmare. Besides the temporary stalls with vendors, there's NOTHING within walking distance. The entrance to the port opens to a deserted highway.

 

Oh Calica wasn't THAT bad! :p

 

Calica was the FIRST cruise port I ever visited! When I awoke to the ship shuddering during docking maneuvers aboard the Holiday I went topside to see some of the prettiest, deepest blue water I'd ever seen! No, there really ISN'T anything to do AT the port but Xcaret is literally just right down the road! No Calica isn't as picturesque as some other Caribbean ports, but it was a good spot for this certified cruiser addict to cut their cruising teeth.

[Branman]

We sailed to Calica on the Imagination a few years ago, and it is, without a doubt, the UGLIEST port we've ever seen. Hope that the improvements are vast.

 

It was a gravel pit with some temporary, run down stalls for vendors when we were there. The advantage of Calica though (and as mentioned above) was the ability to visit places that would normally take much longer from Cozumel. Tulum was one hour away and Xcaret was only a few minutes from the pier. Taxis were lined up waiting for passengers to take them to nearby Playa del Carmen, but there were only a very limited number of them. Literally, people had to stand in a queue and watch the handful of taxis make countless roundtrips to Playa del Carmen before it was their turn.

 

For passengers who like to walk around and not do any excursions, Calica was a nightmare. Besides the temporary stalls with vendors, there's NOTHING within walking distance. The entrance to the port opens to a deserted highway.

 

The press releases said that they are building a new terminal.The industrial area is probably being converted into the generic cruise terminal shops.

[Lyncoya]

Sounds like you're ready to mix things up by venturing out to different lines. It keeps things fresh, even if you end up at the same ports.

 

One variable we always count on when cruising; a while new batch of people to make friends with.

 

 

You're right! It's time to try a different line, so I think we'll be doing the Freedom of the Seas. 2 new ports and a brand new ship! I'm excited. :D

[AdrenalineRush]

You're right! It's time to try a different line, so I think we'll be doing the Freedom of the Seas. 2 new ports and a brand new ship! I'm excited. :D

 

FOS is a great choice! Did you mean new to you? ? Because FOS is almost ten years old. She was the first Freedom class ship for Royal.

[jimbo5544]

We just got back from a NCL cruise to Cartegena, Columbia; Aruba, Curacao, St. Martin, and St. Thomas. It was a fantastic 11 day cruise. We had a blast! Check out my review!

 

I will, can you post the link again, I only have my iPad today.

[golfadj]

I will, can you post the link again, I only have my iPad today.

 

Wish they would do longer cruises so they can gete to places they cant go now.

 

However not going to happen so we will go to cruise lines that do this.