Best Ports to Explore vs. Stay Onboard & Enjoy Ship

[Gatordad815]

Hi all! We were on the Spring break Oasis sailing that got cancelled (3/31/19) but were lucky enough to get a room for 4 on the Allure sailing the same date. The new itinerary stops at Nassau, Cozumel, Roatan and Costa Maya. Our kids (3&5 yo) love the beach, as do we, though we also love being on ship during a port day & enjoying the awesome ship with fewer crowds. It’s also MUCH easier & more relaxing for our family to eat lunch onboard as our daughter has celiac disease and we cannot confidently feed her anything safe in a foreign port except for snacks we bring with us off the ship. 

 

My my thoughts are to stay on the ship in Nassau (we did Junkanoo Beach a few months ago and it wasn’t good), go to Paradise Beach in Cozumel, stay on the ship (or just in port area) in Roatan, and enjoy the port area and nearby beaches in Costa Maya. 

 

My questions for you seasoned cruisers:

 

1) If we want to chill on ship at 2 ports & hit beaches at the other 2, am I right to plan beach days for Cozumel and Costa Maya? Or should I be planning on Roatan instead of Costa Maya? (Recent reviews of Roatan aren’t all that great while Costa Maya reviews are generally good across the board).

 

2) If we do decide to go to a beach in Roatan, what would you recommend that is convenient to the ship, safe & kid-friendly?

 

Any thoughts/ideas about the best way to balance nice beach time with convenient ship time for a family that needs to eat all meals onboard are appreciated!  Thanks for any input! 

[MicCanberra]

I think your plan has merit.

[Karysa]

Many people stay on the ship in Nassau so don’t expect the ship to be less crowded than a beach.

 

Of your ports I would think Cozumel is the one that the most people will get off of the ship so if you are looking for the quietest day to say on the ship I would say that it would be that one. 

[navybankerteacher]

1 hour ago, Karysa said:

Many people stay on the ship in Nassau so don’t expect the ship to be less crowded than a beach.

 

Of your ports I would think Cozumel is the one that the most people will get off of the ship so if you are looking for the quietest day to say on the ship I would say that it would be that one. 

 

Of course the reason Cozumel will be the quietest day on the ship is precisely because there IS good stuff on shore.  And, even though a lot stay aboard in Nassau — very many do go ashore, so the ship is notably less crowded than on sea days.  Additionally, I think you will find better beaches at Costa Maya than Roatan (which is not that great) making it the second port at which to stay aboard.

[MicCanberra]

Good advice,