Ship selection advice needed

[CP89]

We went on our first cruise earlier this year & had such a great time that we convinced my brother & his girlfriend to go with us in January 2015. Due to timing issues with work, we have a limited window -- basically the first two weeks of January. (3rd-14th, including flying in a day early.)

 

That has limited our options pretty severely, so I was hoping someone could give me their opinion. The website does list a few cruises that fit our timeline/budget, including on the Paradise, Freedom & Victory -- but the cruise on the Victory is the exact same one we went on this summer. We loved it, but would prefer to visit new ports. The ship itself was very fun and we loved Miami.

 

Has anyone been on the other two, and would you go on them again? I know the Freedom will be revamped, but we'll probably book long before that happens and I'm not sure what to expect. I want the two of them to love cruising as much as we did! We are all in our early/mid 20s but not crazy party people...so we'll be happy just as long as it's warm & we have something to do! Would LOVE to go on the Breeze the following week but it just doesn't fit our timeline!

 

Thanks for all the info on the boards! I've been lurking for a few weeks... :)

[christmas]

We went on our first cruise earlier this year & had such a great time that we convinced my brother & his girlfriend to go with us in January 2015. Due to timing issues with work, we have a limited window -- basically the first two weeks of January. (3rd-14th, including flying in a day early.)

 

That has limited our options pretty severely, so I was hoping someone could give me their opinion. The website does list a few cruises that fit our timeline/budget, including on the Paradise, Freedom & Victory -- but the cruise on the Victory is the exact same one we went on this summer. We loved it, but would prefer to visit new ports. The ship itself was very fun and we loved Miami.

 

Has anyone been on the other two, and would you go on them again? I know the Freedom will be revamped, but we'll probably book long before that happens and I'm not sure what to expect. I want the two of them to love cruising as much as we did! We are all in our early/mid 20s but not crazy party people...so we'll be happy just as long as it's warm & we have something to do! Would LOVE to go on the Breeze the following week but it just doesn't fit our timeline!

 

Thanks for all the info on the boards! I've been lurking for a few weeks... :)

 

 

I have not been on any of those ships. But for better ports choose Freedom. The Freedom will be revamped in April so it will be before you go.

[k2excursion]

Currently, I think Freedom is the best of those ships, based on my experiences on sister ships of all 3. However, I always cringe at the thought of their drydocks and putting on the 2.0 downgrades. The nighttime shows are the thing that takes the biggest hit there. The Playlist Productions shows are not very good. If the nighttime shows in the big theater don't matter to you, then this will not matter, and I would say to go with Freedom. If they are important, please note that Freedom could be getting these worse shows this year. The debates have raged as to the details of their drydock, so I don't know if they are getting them or not. Only Triumph has escaped drydock without them in the last 15 months. That is the worst thing about the Breeze: poor nighttime shows, the ship can feel kind of boring at night. Victory & Paradise will not be getting a drydock before you sail, according to what I've found, so that's a good thing.

 

As far as your port options, I like Victory's itinerary of Grand Turk & Half Moon Cay. Those are 2 very popular ports, but I haven't been to either. Freedom's & Paradise's is also good, as I always enjoy Grand Cayman and Cozumel. So I'm not sure which one would be better, but either would be good.

Edited January 8, 2014 by k2excursion

[CRocks]

You don't say which ship you sailed last, but it's fun to experience all clas ships. I'd choose Freedom hands down. Paradise is an older Fantasy class ship, and while I enjoy their open air deck space, I prefer the amenities on the newer, larger ships. Especially if you're considering a balcony cabin, very limited balconies on Fantasy class. Most important selection on a cruise..........who you're with, that makes the cruise!

[CP89]

We were on the Victory for ours...Thank you both! I appreciate the advice. We were leaning towards the Freedom but I couldn't find much information on it. Definitely think we'll go with that one now!