Which ship and S. Carib. itinerary?

[cruisewiththekids]

I'm trying to decide between these two ships and Southern Caribbean itineraries. Both sail from San Juan. Which would you choose and why?

 

Jewel of the Seas:

 

Tortola

St. Kitts

St. Maarten

Martinique

Barbados

Sea day

 

Adventure of the Seas:

 

St. Thomas

St. Kitts

Sea day

Aruba

Curacao

Sea day

[Clarea]

For itinerary, I'd choose Jewel because Tortola and Martinique are unusual stops for Royal.

[crisndeefromde]

I haven't done the Jewel schedule yet but getting ready for our third back to back cruise on the Adventure. Love that ship and the ports. Can't wait to try the Jewel to do some of the other ports as well. For now...love the Adventure.

[seashinesunshine]

I'm trying to decide between these two ships and Southern Caribbean itineraries. Both sail from San Juan. Which would you choose and why?

 

Jewel of the Seas:

 

Tortola

St. Kitts

St. Maarten

Martinique

Barbados

Sea day

 

Adventure of the Seas:

 

St. Thomas

St. Kitts

Sea day

Aruba

Curacao

Sea day

 

I would make your choise based on the ports you want to go to. Have you been to any of them before, did you like them or want to go to them again? We were on the Adventure and it was a great cruise. I just saw that the Jewel has one more port than the AOS. Guess I would pick that one, I don't like Sea Days. But then, I believe you can bring more thru customs if you stop at a US port, even if you don't buy it there, so if that's a factor, maybe the AOS. You will have fun either way!

[bouhunter]

We've done Brilliance once and Adventure three times on southern cruises (Jewel this March). For the extra port I'd choose Jewel. If you want a bigger ship with royal promenade and more public area, and like sea days, Adventure. Both would be an awesome cruise! You can't go wrong with either. San Juan is great too, stay a couple days before and/or after the cruise if you can:) Maybe spend some time here researching the boards for each port to see which ones you might like better.

Edited January 19, 2014 by bouhunter

[cruisewiththekids]

I haven't been to any of the ports except St. Thomas. I'm leaning towards the Jewel because it only has one sea day, but I'll have to research the ports a bit more. We really like snorkeling, so I need to find out which ports are best for that.

[debshomespun]

For the ports I'd choose Adventure...Aruba and Curacao are fantastic.

 

I prefer Jewel over Adventure....for the size of ship and all the glass. We did the Serenade Southern 2 yrs ago over Adventure since we got 5 stops over 4 on Adventure. We stayed 2 nights per cruise in San Juan. These cruises are very port intensive and sometimes with this type of cruise, you need a vacation when you get done to rest from all the fun and action you had on the cruise!

 

Either cruise will be a great one!

Edited January 19, 2014 by debshomespun

[seb]

The DW and I have done both the AOS and Jewel out of San Juan. I am a diver and have dived at all of these ports. Caribbean diving/snorkeling is great and you'll be happy whichever route you take. If there was a stop in St. Lucia, I wouldn't miss that stop. probably the best diving I've encountered in the Caribbean has been at St. Lucia.

 

A couple thoughts on the 2 ships. If you're bringing the kids, I think they will enjoy the AOS rather than the Jewel. It's bigger and has more things for the kids to do. If no kids, Jewel, IMHO, is a quieter more relaxed atmosphere and you might enjoy that as well.

 

Our preference is the Voyager class and larger ships. While we enjoy the "smaller" ships, we love the Royal Promanade of the larger ships. Will be on IOS in 2 moths and can hardly wait.

 

Enjoy your cruise

 

Seb

[milhouse0506]

I'm debating between the same 2 cruises for March 2015. I've never been on either of these 2 classes, but I have been in Freedom and I loved it.but I'd love to try the Jewel as everyone seems to rave about it but leaning towards Adventure simply because it will have recently gone through a update and Jewel will be over 4 years since it's last dry dock.

 

I also like the combination of sea days and ports. I'm really hoping the price will drop as others in thy month seems to be dropping and going on special rates the past week.

Edited January 19, 2014 by milhouse0506

[cruizeblues]

Agree with Seb, been on both ships and loved them both! I think the kids would like Adventure more...more to do for them. I really enjoyed Jewel, beautiful ship and very friendly/visable crew. there were signs of wear on Jewel, nothing major. Also, loved the outdoor seating behind the Windjammer, awesome place for lunch or snacks! I would love to sail on Adventure again, we loved Aruba because you get extra time in port to relax and Curaçao had some of the best snorkeling in the Caribbean. Bottom line, research the ports and choose the itinerary that has the best islands for you because both ships are great!:)

[BettyPC]

Adventure might have more for the kids. We are going on Jewel in just over 1 month!!!!

[lakelorain]

We chose the Jewel this past October for the ports and the ship. We have found the Jewel feels less crowded than the larger ships. Also we like the food in the Windjammer better on the Jewel. Service is always excellent and it's a beautiful ship. If you have children either ship will do a great job keeping them busy but older children might prefer the larger ship.