Which Southern Carribean Port To Avoid !

[piinc]

Hi all!

 

We've just booked a southern carribean cruise through royal caribbean jewel of the sea in mid october, starting from:

 

San Juan, PR ->St. Croix, USVI -> Philipsburg St. Maarten -> St. John's Antigua -> Castries, St. Lucia -> Bridgetown, Barbados

 

Problem: This is a very active itinerary with only 1 day at sea. If you were to choose one island port to stay onboard and relax, which would you suggest and why?

 

Thank you for your input. :)

[Langley Cruisers]

Honestly - and you did ask for opinions - the Southern route is phenomenal and I would do everything I could to get off the ship and do something in each port. You can come back to the ship early if you are feeling tired. Have you cruised before, been to these ports? Will you be going back soon? If no to both, as I said, I would get off the ship and take an excursion, go to the beach, something. :)

 

Sorry I can't directly answer your question. I wouldn't stay onboard. :D:p

[stowite]

Personally, I too think this is a great itinerary and I did a similar one on my first cruise. Since St Maarten is also on some Eastern Caribbean itineraries, I would save it for another cruise and use that as your ship day if you really feel you want another onboard day.

[2004corvette]

a great itinerary you have chosen......IMO i would stay onboard in SanJuan which i feel is much like Nassau.....not very clean ~ expensive ~ lots of walking for most excursions.

the other ports ~ bucketlist worthy islands with sightseeing galore and pristine sandy beaches that are prime destinations of travelers from all over the world.

[Langley Cruisers]

a great itinerary you have chosen......IMO i would stay onboard in SanJuan which i feel is much like Nassau.....not very clean ~ expensive ~ lots of walking for most excursions.

 

They embark in San Juan, though.

[Draka1]

Hi all!

 

We've just booked a southern carribean cruise through royal caribbean jewel of the sea in mid october, starting from:

 

San Juan, PR ->St. Croix, USVI -> Philipsburg St. Maarten -> St. John's Antigua -> Castries, St. Lucia -> Bridgetown, Barbados

 

Problem: This is a very active itinerary with only 1 day at sea. If you were to choose one island port to stay onboard and relax, which would you suggest and why?

 

Thank you for your input. :)

 

I've done this itinerary and if you will be in St Croix on Sunday, know that many places will be closed. This may be the day where you might want to stay close to the ship or a beach.

[MattInFLL]

Well, I have been to St Maarten, and there are a lot of good options for excursions there.

 

I once spent almost 3 weeks (along with multiple 2-3 day trips) in St Croix for work, and frankly I could not wait to get off that island each time. I never saw its charm, and I kept trying. That would be my choice for a ship day.

 

I also agree that St. Maarten is a staple on many other cruise itineraries, so you could have other opportunities to see it.

[Mary521]

We've done this route twice. You're best port to stay inboard is St Lucia. We went to an all inclusive once and did a tour of the island the 2nd time. I felt both times this place was just ehhhh. Better than home? Of course!!! But if I was staying on one island this wouldn't be it. For me at least :)

 

Barbados and Antigua are some of the best beaches around and my favorites in the caribbean. St croix is nice because you can just walk from the ship to the beach and even just go for a few hrs if you want. St. Martin has lovely beaches but I guess would choose this as my #2 if I HAD to stay on board just because it's including on so many caribbean routes.

 

Ps do a catamaran tour in Barbados. We did silver moon and Casablanca Both awesome!

[mollyeilis]

Honestly - and you did ask for opinions - the Southern route is phenomenal and I would do everything I could to get off the ship and do something in each port.

 

You've just noted why I wanted to go on this itinerary soooo badly (phenomenal), and exactly why DH did not (I would want to get off the ship every port day).

 

Sigh.

[JamesEM]

Love the southern itinerary, but I would suggest taking a ships tour in St Lucia.

[Clarea]

We would probably skip St. Lucia.

[FLACRUISER99]

I say relax when you get home.

[mspink98]

St. Maarten, only because it is a standard on many Eastern routes as others have mentioned. I love it, but it's easy enough to get back to in the future.

 

And FWIW, I adore San Juan and would recommend spending a day or two pre or post cruise there.

[MommaBear55]

We would probably skip St. Lucia.

 

If you truly wanted to stay on board one day I would also choose St Lucia. However, if you still want to get off and do something very low key, this one is for you. We enjoyed an afternoon boat ride right off the docks in St Lucia. Beautiful scenery, nice rum drinks. We did stop at a resort area for an hour or so with limited snorkeling but those so inclined just reclined under the palm trees.

[Canadian Cruiser98]

Haven't been to St Lucia, but of the others St Croix was the least "Wow" for us. It is a nice island, but there isn't tons to do there besides go to the beach and go shopping at the tourist area. Still a great place for relaxing, though. Fantastic itinerary.

Edited September 18, 2014 by Canadian Cruiser98

[Philly Steve]

I agree with those who urge you to "do it all." :) I will say one of my favorite places in the southern Caribbean is St. Lucia because of the spices, the wonderful people and mountains/volcano amid the flying fish.

 

There is a lot to look forward to on that cruise! :cool:

[DonnaK]

I would visit all the ports, but if you must then stay on the ship in St. Maarten because you'll have other opportunities on other cruises to visit there - it's on almost every Eastern Caribbean itinerary!

 

 

On St. Lucia, I highly recommend Cosol tours. It's #1 on Trip Advisor, reasonably priced, food and beverages are included, you see all the sights by land and sea, and visit the beach that's between the Pitons. It was a great tour on a beautiful island!

Edited September 18, 2014 by DonnaK

[alfaeric]

+1 to "none"

 

Just to get off and wander around is worth it.

 

We almost never do exursions, and just do stuff on our own anyway, so having a really light day isn't a big deal.

 

Walking around and just looking is very underrated.

[Folk Singer]

Hi all!

 

We've just booked a southern carribean cruise through royal caribbean jewel of the sea in mid october, starting from:

 

San Juan, PR ->St. Croix, USVI -> Philipsburg St. Maarten -> St. John's Antigua -> Castries, St. Lucia -> Bridgetown, Barbados

 

Problem: This is a very active itinerary with only 1 day at sea. If you were to choose one island port to stay onboard and relax, which would you suggest and why?

 

Thank you for your input. :)

 

The only port we were not happy with was in St. Lucia, but if you haven't been there it is worth the visit ( we didn't feel very safe in St. Lucia) but we were there the day after the Celebrity Ship passengers were robbed. Have fun and enjoy your cruise.

[Ocean Boy]

I would have a hard time skipping any of the ports if it was my first time there. However, I have no desire to return to St. Croix any time soon or any time at all for that matter.

[rjrpar]

We've done this route twice. You're best port to stay inboard is St Lucia. We went to an all inclusive once and did a tour of the island the 2nd time. I felt both times this place was just ehhhh. Better than home? Of course!!! But if I was staying on one island this wouldn't be it. For me at least :)

 

Barbados and Antigua are some of the best beaches around and my favorites in the caribbean. St croix is nice because you can just walk from the ship to the beach and even just go for a few hrs if you want. St. Martin has lovely beaches but I guess would choose this as my #2 if I HAD to stay on board just because it's including on so many caribbean routes.

 

Ps do a catamaran tour in Barbados. We did silver moon and Casablanca Both awesome!

 

Been to all these ports more than once. Totally agree with Mary521.

[Mrs.Dukes]

If I was going to pick one of those ports to stay on the ship, it would be St. Croix. We went to a nice beach there but of all those islands, it was our least favorite.

[boscobeans]

I would have a hard time skipping any of the ports if it was my first time there. However, I have no desire to return to St. Croix any time soon or any time at all for that matter.

 

Good advice. After all you can't skip the opportunity to eventually have a complete refrigerator magnet collection. LOL

 

St Croix would also be my choice if I wanted to spend a quiet day of relaxation on a fairly empty ship.

 

bosco

[Karma5]

St Martin would be my choice, its on many agendas……..but it depends on what you like.

[chill6x6]

Hi all!

 

We've just booked a southern carribean cruise through royal caribbean jewel of the sea in mid october, starting from:

 

San Juan, PR ->St. Croix, USVI -> Philipsburg St. Maarten -> St. John's Antigua -> Castries, St. Lucia -> Bridgetown, Barbados

 

Problem: This is a very active itinerary with only 1 day at sea. If you were to choose one island port to stay onboard and relax, which would you suggest and why?

 

Thank you for your input. :)

 

All I can say is DEFINITELY don't miss out on St Lucia! Probably one of the best days I've had at ANY port!

 

 

 

I'd vote to stay on board in St Maarten and you can pick it up on another Eastern Caribbean cruise later...