Which ports in Caribbean?

[HBE4]

10 hours ago, lovemylab said:

 

Another option would be to stay onboard during one of the port days  🙂

 

Pro: Have the pool deck to yourself.

Con: At least half of the ship is shut down.

[HBE4]

20 hours ago, kazzam said:

 Hi, I'm really wanting to cruise in the Caribbean next year but I have no idea which ports to visit (South C, West C, East C, Mexico???).  I would ideally like to include Perfect Day in the itinerary also if I can.  My ideal ports would include amazing beaches/scenery, plus participate in some adventure activities.  
If anyone is experienced with these ports and can help that would be fantastic!

TIA
Karen

 

While every island has it's own personality, you'll find most will offer some pretty nice beaches, snorkeling, kayaking, jet skiing,  and maybe a jeep tour to the less-civilized sections on the island.  Some of the best beaches are on the least scenic islands (Aruba, Grand Cayman) while some with the most dramatic scenery (St Lucia, Dominica), the beaches tend to be be lacking. Barbados has some of the softest sand I've ever stepped foot on.  St Thomas as well. I've found the beaches on St Kitts and Jamaica (Falmouth) to be disappointing as well, though next time in Jamaica, I might try river tubing or Dunn Rivers Falls.

 

And while Perfect Day gets all of the attention, don't rule out Royal's other private beach Labadee. Beautiful beach ( Columbus Cove ), gorgeous views of the mountains and a thrilling zip line.

 

Old San Juan is nice - old city, castles, etc - but on some itineraries, it's a 1/2 day stop with an all aboard by 2.  Much better to start a cruise from there and fly in a couple of days early.

 

Cruise Critic has a sections on Port-of-calls that goes into detail on each to give your an idea of each islands personality.  Just make sure you get away from the typical tourist traps at the end each pier.

 

[HBE4]

18 hours ago, davekathy said:

Nope. This thread alone is a great example of that. There are a few very knowledgeable posters/cruisers on CC and I respect their opinions and enjoy reading what they have to say about their cruises but would never book or not book a cruise based on that.  I've learned a lot about cruising from a few here on CC. For me it has nothing to do with what is the best cruise line, ship, stateroom category, itinerary and blah, blah, blah. There's a lot more to cruising than that and that is of greater value, to me (us). We started cruising long before CC. . 

 

Ok. The only asked b/c you mentioned on another thread about researching thoroughly before taking a trip and was wondering why you wouldn't take into account others positive/negative experiences/

 

I also would never do or not do something (specialty dining / ship / excursion / etc) solely based on someone else's review.  But if I'm being iffy and on the fence - which occurs often for me - about somethings, many positive reviews may raise it up a few slots on my priority list. Conversely, many negative reviews won't stop me from experiencing something but it might become low on my list and be done later in life.

 

[davekathy]

1 minute ago, HBE4 said:

 

Ok. The only asked b/c you mentioned on another thread about researching thoroughly before taking a trip and was wondering why you wouldn't take into account others positive/negative experiences/

 

I also would never do or not do something (specialty dining / ship / excursion / etc) solely based on someone else's review.  But if I'm being iffy and on the fence - which occurs often for me - about somethings, many positive reviews may raise it up a few slots on my priority list. Conversely, many negative reviews won't stop me from experiencing something but it might become low on my list and be done later in life.

 

Correct. Personal computers and Google have made the world of traveling a lot easier, at least for us. I can't even tell you the last time we stepped foot in a library to research where any of our vacations are going to take us. I'm sure I'm in the minority, but... Too many different opinions on CC concerning others experiences on the same topic. Whether it's the different cruise line forums or the Ports Of Call forum. Can't argue with one person ceiling is another person floor.

 

As an example. On our 2010 cruise one of our ports was St. Vincent. So I thought I would asked here on CC (Ports Of Call). I got 3 reply's. Two advised me to stay on the ship and the other mentioned the small port shopping area at the pier was great and that was it. Come on, there's got to be more. So I googled St. Vincent, found out about Wallilabou Bay, Port Royal, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Curse of the Black Pearl. When we docked at St. Vincent we hooked up with a taxi driver, told him where we wanted to go and we wanted to do many Kodak moments stops and what time we needed to be back. We had a blast.  

 

As I mentioned before, there are a few well seasoned knowledgeable cruisers/ posters here on CC that I've leaned a lot about cruising from that don't include opinions and experiences on class of ships, cruise lines, itineraries...

[johnjen]

For me, St. Maarten was the best port in the Caribbean because of the low flying planes arriving into Maho Beach. Beers and drinks are cheap, great live bands at night too. We had such an amazing time there. Snorkeling as well. Great beaches!