First time cruiser looking for advice on Easter cruise options in USA

[Amion68]

Hello - I am a first time cruiser looking to take my family on a Easter cruise.  We are 2 adults aged 52 and 2 kids aged 8 and 14 and have never cruised before (apart from Plymouth to Santander on Brittany Ferries :-))

 

I have looked at Royal Caribbean options as well as the MSC line for the Caribbean, and Princess Cruises Royal Princess for a 7 day California cruise.

 

The options are:

Royal Caribean 8 night western caribean on Adventurer of the Seas - £ 2,400 (inside balcony) with no extras

MSC 7 night southern caribean on Meraviglia - £1800 (ocean balcony) with no extra gratuities to pay (liking the look of this one)

Princess Cruises 7 night California cruise on Royal Princess - £2900 (ocean balcony) + 1 night in LA and 3 nights in Vegas (no cruise extras)

 

My conclusions on each option are:

Royal Caribbean - possibly the best onboard options for the children but the itinerary isn't massively exciting us

MSC - Meraviglia looks amazing and prefering the itinerary. Most competitively priced package but  mixed online reviews are a concern

Princess cruises - more traditional looking cruise package but loving the itinerary and 3 night Vegas add on.  Concerned about the lack of facilities for the kids however

 

Really looking for some advice and feedback on what is considered to be the best options and what we need to consider for our decision making.

Any tips, or general feedback based on your own experiences greatly appreciated

[1025cruise]

IMHO, with kids those ages, skip Vegas. They will be bored. Plus, air time to California is another 5-6 hours.

I can't speak for MSC. They are relatively new to the US audience and have mixed reviews. But, since you aren't from the US, might be a good fit for you.

I've been on Adventure. An inside balcony is going to overlook the promenade. Not sure I'd want that personally. But, I prefer looking at the ocean. There is the rock wall and the flowrider, so the kids will probably be happy. 

Without looking at itineraries, personally I'd prefer Southern over Western. 

[Amion68]

19 minutes ago, 1025cruise said:

IMHO, with kids those ages, skip Vegas. They will be bored. Plus, air time to California is another 5-6 hours.

I can't speak for MSC. They are relatively new to the US audience and have mixed reviews. But, since you aren't from the US, might be a good fit for you.

I've been on Adventure. An inside balcony is going to overlook the promenade. Not sure I'd want that personally. But, I prefer looking at the ocean. There is the rock wall and the flowrider, so the kids will probably be happy. 

Without looking at itineraries, personally I'd prefer Southern over Western. 

Thankyou for responding and for your advice.  I must confess I was sceptical about Vegas for the kids, and given that I have been there myself once before perhaps I should instead tick it off as done (and I did enjoy it :-)).  However the flight times to the west coast from UK are only approx 1 hour on top of flights to the East coast, and surprisingly cheaper to LAX compared to Miami.  

 

Re the itineraries, for the Caribean cruises.....

The Southern itinerary on MSC is 7 nights: Miami, Costa Maya, Belize City, Islka de Roatan, Ocean Cay Bahamas, Miami

The Southern on Adventurer is 8 nights: Fort L, Aruba, Curacao, Kralendijk with more sea days either side

The Western is on Harmony out of Port Canaveral (which I failed to point out in my post) and takes in CocoCay Bahams, Puerto Costa Maya, Roatan, Cozumel

Edited January 6, 2020 by Amion68
additional info

[1025cruise]

MSC's Southern itinerary sounds like a Western.

I'd go with Adventure, solely for itinerary.

[Robinsoncruiseso]

MSC would be good for your family. Also check to see if MSC Seaside has sailings. That ship is wonderful for kids. Water park, zip line, bowling, etc.

[cb at sea]

I LOVE Vegas, but  not so much with young kids....unless you have NO plans to gamble ever. There is little for kids there, beyond pools.

 

[mom says]

1 hour ago, cb at sea said:

I LOVE Vegas, but  not so much with young kids....unless you have NO plans to gamble ever. There is little for kids there, beyond pools.

 

WRONG as usual CB.  https://www.visitlasvegas.com/experience/post/things-to-do-in-las-vegas-with-kids/?src=goog_prospec_dd_cg_none_plan_td_at_pd_ca&gclid=EAIaIQobChMInIfP7pLy5gIVC9vACh3y4wtsEAAYASAAEgKFRvD_BwE

[Itchy&Scratchy]

On 1/6/2020 at 9:38 AM, Amion68 said:

Royal Caribbean - possibly the best onboard options for the children but the itinerary isn't massively exciting us

seriously, it's Southern Caribbean - ABC islands, and it doesn't excite you?????

 

The Southern itinerary on MSC is 7 nights: Miami, Costa Maya, Belize City, Islka de Roatan, Ocean Cay Bahamas, Miami

- that's a Western itinerary, not Southern Caribbean.

[Toofarfromthesea]

On 1/6/2020 at 8:07 AM, Amion68 said:

Thankyou for responding and for your advice.  I must confess I was sceptical about Vegas for the kids, and given that I have been there myself once before perhaps I should instead tick it off as done (and I did enjoy it :-)).  However the flight times to the west coast from UK are only approx 1 hour on top of flights to the East coast, and surprisingly cheaper to LAX compared to Miami.  

 

Re the itineraries, for the Caribean cruises.....

The Southern itinerary on MSC is 7 nights: Miami, Costa Maya, Belize City, Islka de Roatan, Ocean Cay Bahamas, Miami

The Southern on Adventurer is 8 nights: Fort L, Aruba, Curacao, Kralendijk with more sea days either side

The Western is on Harmony out of Port Canaveral (which I failed to point out in my post) and takes in CocoCay Bahams, Puerto Costa Maya, Roatan, Cozumel

 

Don't worry about Vegas, it has regeared itself to be very family friendly - at least some of the hotels.

[Toofarfromthesea]

On 1/7/2020 at 1:18 PM, Itchy&Scratchy said:

seriously, it's Southern Caribbean - ABC islands, and it doesn't excite you?????

 

 

- that's a Western itinerary, not Southern Caribbean.

By all means criticize and correct the newby Brit for not knowing what we experienced folks in the States call different parts of the Carib, while offering them nothing constructive or of value.

Edited January 8, 2020 by Toofarfromthesea

[Itchy&Scratchy]

23 minutes ago, Toofarfromthesea said:

By all means criticize and correct the newby Brit for not knowing what we experienced folks in the States call different parts of the Carib, while offering them nothing constructive or of value.

ABC islands is my dream itinerary. How's that for constructive value?

 

P.S. I found out the difference between Southern, Western and Eastern itineraries here on CC. How else would I learn and teach others?

P.P.S. I do hail from Europe originally.

Edited January 8, 2020 by Itchy&Scratchy

[hallasm]

Excellent plan,

My suggestion is Eastern Caribbean - Royal Caribbean from Fort Lauderdale or Miami - you can combine it with some days In Orlando.
Alternative is eastern Caribbean from Cape Liberty combined with few days in New York.

Do not know how familiar you’re with US travel - don’t forget your ESTA.

[Amion68]

18 hours ago, hallasm said:

Excellent plan,

My suggestion is Eastern Caribbean - Royal Caribbean from Fort Lauderdale or Miami - you can combine it with some days In Orlando.
Alternative is eastern Caribbean from Cape Liberty combined with few days in New York.

Do not know how familiar you’re with US travel - don’t forget your ESTA.

Thanks for your advise.

 

We are booked on a western Caribbean cruise on MSC Meraviglia. I do preffer the Eastern itinerary but the cruise options were nearly double the cost of the MSC package.

 

We did our ESTA for our 2019 trip to Florida.  I need to check how long the cover is for.

[hallasm]

2 minutes ago, Amion68 said:

We did our ESTA for our 2019 trip to Florida.  I need to check how long the cover is for

Two years from date of registration.
Enjoy your cruise.

Edited January 10, 2020 by hallasm

[Amion68]

1 minute ago, hallasm said:

Two years from date of registration.

Thats good to know, thankyou