Stay in port cruises?

[waccetta]

Looking to find info on cruises that sail to one destination and stay for 3-4 days and then sails back. Preferably Caribbean. What are these cruises called? I can’t seem to find any info on this.

[LHT28]

Ferries ?

 

Not many will stay overnight in the ports

some will stay in port longer than others  but usually  they are there for a few hours  at best

 

[1025cruise]

Bermuda is the only port I know that this happens with anywhere near the Caribbean.

 

[njhorseman]

15 minutes ago, waccetta said:

Looking to find info on cruises that sail to one destination and stay for 3-4 days and then sails back. Preferably Caribbean. What are these cruises called? I can’t seem to find any info on this.

Cruises to Bermuda commonly stay in port there for two to four days and then return to their home port. The season is relatively short, with most cruises between April and October.  Bermuda isn't actually in the Caribbean, but is warm during the summer cruise season.

[George C]

Agree I have been on Bermuda cruises that were there for several days do not recall hearing about any Caribbean, I have seen some Europe cruises with overnight.

[navybankerteacher]

39 minutes ago, waccetta said:

Looking to find info on cruises that sail to one destination and stay for 3-4 days and then sails back. Preferably Caribbean. What are these cruises called? I can’t seem to find any info on this.

That would be very rare - most people who would want to stay somewhere for  3-4 days, would fly and stay at an AI rather than (in typical cases) fly to a port and then take such a cruise.

 

Bermuda is a rare exception - there are several itineraries staying three nights —- in that tourist trap called Dockyard.

Edited June 7, 2020 by navybankerteacher

[George C]

47 minutes ago, navybankerteacher said:

That would be very rare - most people who would want to stay somewhere for  3-4 days, would fly and stay at an AI rather than (in typical cases) fly to a port and then take such a cruise.

 

Bermuda is a rare exception - there are several itineraries staying three nights —- in that tourist trap called Dockyard.

We have always done smaller HAL ships that docked in Hamilton.

[njhorseman]

33 minutes ago, George C said:

We have always done smaller HAL ships that docked in Hamilton.

Holland America discontinued its smaller ship cruises to Hamilton on the Veendam a couple of years ago.

 

 Oceania and Regent Seven Seas have been making fairly regular calls on Bermuda during the season for the past few years, docking in Hamilton or St.George.

 

 

[navybankerteacher]

16 minutes ago, njhorseman said:

Holland America discontinued its smaller ship cruises to Hamilton on the Veendam a couple of years ago.

 

 Oceania and Regent Seven Seas have been making fairly regular calls on Bermuda during the season for the past few years, docking in Hamilton or St.George.

 

 

Those ports are so much better than Dockyard  - St. George is a lovely small town - near our favorite beach at Fort St. Catherine; and in Hamilton you moor right on Front  Street - in the middle of town - with easy access to everywhere on the island.  The large ships, which can only call at Dockyard, offer a second rate experience.

[George C]

24 minutes ago, njhorseman said:

Holland America discontinued its smaller ship cruises to Hamilton on the Veendam a couple of years ago.

 

 Oceania and Regent Seven Seas have been making fairly regular calls on Bermuda during the season for the past few years, docking in Hamilton or St.George.

 

 

We did Veendam about 6 years ago , love leaving from nyc. Did many cruises from nyc back in the 70’s many stopped in St George for one day then Hamilton for a couple of course ships were much smaller then. 

[SelectSys]

Bahamas cruises are probably closest to what you want.  3-4 days, one stop in a port and maybe a cruise line private island which is pretty much like a sea day. 

[Lois R]

The Caribbean has short cruises but none stay overnight for multiple days.  Many cruises do Nassau, Freeport, Seaday,

(for example) or Nassau, Private Island, Sea Day....(another example). But I have never known any to stay multiple

nights in one place.........only Bermuda as stated above.  But they are usually 7 nighters......but they are docked 

for 3/4 days.

[waccetta]

Thank you everyone!

[Charles4515]

I have done a couple of cruises that had one overnight in Aruba. Last December on Celebrity Reflection was recent but that was on a long 11 day cruise with many destinations.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

[ontheweb]

We did the 3 ports in Bermuda many years ago on the NCL Crown, no longer part of the NCL fleet. I agree that the Dockyard is the worst of the 3 ports.

[marco]

RCI "Empress of the Seas" sails from NJ and docks at both Hamilton and St George's.  Apparently that ship is small enough to dock there rather than spending the entire time at King's Wharf.

[njhorseman]

1 hour ago, marco said:

RCI "Empress of the Seas" sails from NJ and docks at both Hamilton and St George's.  Apparently that ship is small enough to dock there rather than spending the entire time at King's Wharf.

We were booked on this cruise for an August sailing but cancelled. This was the first year that this ship was going to do Bermuda cruises from NJ, but obviously the ship has never actually done the cruise due to the pandemic. It's unlikely the few remaining 2020 cruises will sail although to date Royal Caribbean has only formally cancelled through July. Whether the scheduled 2021 cruises will take place is anyone's guess.

[George C]

Bermuda ferry is excellent and a fun way to get from kings wharf to Hamilton to St George 

Edited June 8, 2020 by George C

[njhorseman]

51 minutes ago, George C said:

Bermuda ferry is excellent and a fun way to get from kings wharf to Hamilton to St George 

Yes it is. And I'd like to point out that the Dockyard today is much improved experience over what it was years ago, while at the same time Hamilton and St. George aren't what they used to be.

 

Not only is there ferry service to St. George and Hamilton as there always has been, there's no longer the need to take a bus to Horseshoe Bay. Privately owned minibus shuttles make the trip  for a reasonable $7 one way fare, and they take you right down the hill to the beach entrance. When you take the bus you're dropped off and picked up on South Shore Road at the top of a steep hill and have to walk down...or worse, uphill when you leave. There used to be a van that would take you up or down the hill for $1 or $2, but no longer since the direct minibus service was launched a couple of years.

 

There are also a couple of decent restaurants and bars, the National Museum of Bermuda and a rather fancy version of a miniature golf course there, as well as shops. Shopping in Hamilton and St. George isn't what it used to be as the big (by Bermudian standards) department stores that were in Hamilton closed several years ago, and lots of the small stores in St. George closed when the number of cruise ships calling there declined dramatically, so the Dockyard will satisfy the shopping needs of many.

 

What used to be my wife's (the family's beach goer) favorite beach in Bermuda, St.Catherine's, which is near St. George, is no longer very attractive. The  facilities and concessions were closed and removed years ago and the beach is adjacent to a big hotel construction site that probably will take years to complete if it ever is completed given the damage that the pandemic has caused to Bermuda's tourism business. So no longer an advantage to dock in St. George because it's near St. Catherine's beach. Tobacco Bay is still nearby, and while a good spot for snorkeling was never as good a beach as St. Catherine's.

[donaldsc]

I would call what you want a hotel.  You can stay as long as you want in a hotel.

 

DON

[George C]

Our normal Caribbean vacation is definitely a cruise, but we also really like high end resorts like sandals which has excellent dining and top shelf drinks totally all inclusive 

[cb at sea]

Bermuda isn't in the "Caribbean"...it's an Atlantic Island, off the coast of NC/SC....

[sail7seas]

On 6/7/2020 at 5:30 PM, navybankerteacher said:

That would be very rare - most people who would want to stay somewhere for  3-4 days, would fly and stay at an AI rather than (in typical cases) fly to a port and then take such a cruise.

 

Bermuda is a rare exception - there are several itineraries staying three nights —- in that tourist trap called Dockyard.

Bermuda is Closed to cruise ships.     My Friends '  Bemuda   NCL cruise was recently cancelled.

 

 

[navybankerteacher]

59 minutes ago, sail7seas said:

Bermuda is Closed to cruise ships.     My Friends '  Bemuda   NCL cruise was recently cancelled.

 

 

Pretty much ALL previously scheduled cruises through the end of July have been cancelled — and many through the end of the year.  The only things I see scheduled for the summer months at this point are short ones from Florida and Texas ports in early August  —- and from the way COVID infections in Florida are rebounding, it seems likely that there may be second thoughts.