Cruises from LA - any differences compared to Florida cruises?

[8420PR]

Are there any differences between Celebrity cruises from LA, compared to from Florida?

 

We are from Europe and have only cruised X from Florida so far - the prices for Celebrity Solstice out of LA are currently too good to ignore - are there any differences?   Different crowd?  How do the mexico ports compare?

[LGW59]

42 minutes ago, 8420PR said:

Are there any differences between Celebrity cruises from LA, compared to from Florida?

 

We are from Europe and have only cruised X from Florida so far - the prices for Celebrity Solstice out of LA are currently too good to ignore - are there any differences?   Different crowd?  How do the mexico ports compare?

You will find more west coasters than east coasters.  I did a Mexican Riviera from San Diego when I lived there 5 years ago.  What are you asking re "how do the Mexico ports compare"?

[TFLG]

It's colder!  It will warm up the farther south you go but the first and last days can be chilly.  Not as many big resorts on the west coast mexico stops.  Cabo is nice, Puerto Vallarta has some nice areas. But Mazatlan is a bit of a dump.  If you are looking for warm turquoise waters you won't find it on the west coast of Mexico.  The water "might" hit the low 80's depending on the time of year.  The crowd is a bit different in that there are less Europeans.  We live in SoCal so we do the west coast cruises a lot (once or twice a year). I think April or Nov are the best times to go. Less Humidity and the temps are usually not too bad.

 

Edited August 6, 2022 by TFLG

[RTR 21-0]

We've been on 13 Western, Eastern and Southern Caribbean cruises and were past ready to change it up and experience different ports, so we took our first Mexican Riviera cruise in May on Carnival Panorama.  We personally loved all of the ports - Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan and Cabo - Mazatlan being our favorite and all we did was explore the city by foot.  PV we did a food tour in I guess what would be called downtown or old PV and had a great time.  Cabo we did what i think is our favorite excursion to date, a 4x4 Polaris desert adventure.  However, it didn't leave us enough time to stroll around the port (which looked lovely) as we were leaving early that day.   Now, onto the water.  This was not our favorite part of the cruise.  The sixth night (after leaving Cabo) I wasn't feeling so great, felt a little off kilter and queasy even though I hadn't come close to making my drink package limit lol.  The next day I felt worse.  Never puked but all I wanted to do was stay in bed and when I finally got up to walk, get some fresh, move around a bit, I began feeling a bit better.  Hubs was the same way.  Couldn't put our finger on it.  Talked to someone on the ship that evening and they said lots of people who have never had seasickness feel it on the Pacific especially after leaving Cabo.  Apparently, the ships high tail it to get back to LA on time and the Pacific can be a little rough which makes the sailing no so smooth.  Would we do it again, absolute, but would pick a different area on the ship for our cabin.  We had an aft balcony on deck 8 which wasn't ideal for feeling the waves.  Next time we would opt for middle of the ship, lower deck.  

 

[Denny01]

The main difference is when you cruise from LA you are in the Pacific….when you cruise out of FL You are in the Atlantic and Caribbean…..hehe

 

the west coast Mexican ports have a very different feel than I saw w the standard ones out of FL. I enjoyed them more and had more diversity. 
 

also strongly suggest you a days to your trip to explore LA area. 
 

den

[Myrtle Ave. Mayhem]

Others might beg to differ but I find cruises out of Florida much friendlier than California. I always meet my NYC/LI peeps. Also, after the beauty of the Caribbean & Bermuda, the Mexican Riviera is a letdown. Usually the first & last day are cold weather.

Edited August 6, 2022 by Myrtle Ave. Mayhem

[phoenix_dream]

2 minutes ago, Myrtle Ave. Mayhem said:

Others might beg to differ but I find cruises out of Florida much friendlier than California. 

I won't argue the point as I'm not sure what you mean?  The people in California?  The crew onboard those sailings?  The people in the ports?

[phoenix_dream]

To respond to the OP - I think there are some differences but that's what makes it fun.  There aren't as many people from Europe on these cruises, maybe because it's further to fly?  There are many more people from California, and usually fewer Canadians than you often find on Florida sailings.  Age-wise I think it's about the same as other cruises of similar length, perhaps a little bit younger crowd as California does not have as many retirees as Florida does. The ports are very different as well.  After awhile to me just about every port in the Caribbean feels about the same (I know that's an exaggeration and I have my favorites and least favorites, but in many ways if you've seen one you've seen them all).  I think in the Caribbean (with some exceptions) it's mostly about the beach, snorkeling, etc..  In Mexico I think there is more culture to enjoy.  There are areas of Mexico that truthfully are more dangerous than you will find in the Caribbean.  Not trying to scare you off (love these cruises and have one scheduled in December) just be a little bit more aware of where you are going and don't wander away from the tourist areas.

 

If you can explain more what you mean maybe we can provide better input.

[Myrtle Ave. Mayhem]

3 minutes ago, phoenix_dream said:

I won't argue the point as I'm not sure what you mean?  The people in California?  The crew onboard those sailings?  The people in the ports?

The fellow passengers. I find east coast people more willing to talk to & meet strangers. LA cruises can take on the "too cool for school" vibe. As I said, others might beg to differ. 

[hcat]

We are from NY..east coast but have done a few from Ca..also Seattle...

Long flights but we did enjoy ourselves..Different vibe than Florida..

 

Why not try a Pacific Coastal Cruise?

We enjoyed it more than the Mexican Riviera itins..mostly b/c some of those ports  have become  less safe and seedy.

 

The Pacific Coastal on X had a great itin.,,so much to do in each port, great variety  and we enjoyed wine all along the way!

[phoenix_dream]

1 minute ago, Myrtle Ave. Mayhem said:

The fellow passengers. I find east coast people more willing to talk to & meet strangers. LA cruises can take on the "too cool for school" vibe. As I said, others might beg to differ. 

Interesting observation.  I do think the personalities in general are a bit different in different areas of the country, although I've never encountered any issues on my many Pacific Coast or Mexican Riviera cruises.  Let's leave it at that 🙂

[phoenix_dream]

1 minute ago, hcat said:

We are from NY..east coast but have done a few from Ca..also Seattle...

Long flights but we did enjoy ourselves..Different vibe than Florida..

 

Why not try a Pacific Coastal Cruise?

We enjoyed it more than the Mexican Riviera itins..mostly b/c some of those ports  have become  less safe and seedy.

 

The Pacific Coastal on X had a great itin.,,so much to do in each port, great variety  and we enjoyed wine all along the way!

Pacific Coastal is my preference of the two, but I really like the Mexican Riviera ones as well.  Do need to be more careful about where you go when in the Mexico ports.

[Mark_K]

There’s a cold current that runs south along the Pacific coast at least as far as Cabo. Unlike a Caribbean cruise, at the time of year X sails there you can expect the first sea day and the last sea day to be pretty mediocre weather wise.

 

Other than that, Cabo and points south should have good weather, and I’ve always enjoyed the ports. And except possibly for November there should be good whale watching possibilities, which you don’t get much of in the Caribbean.

[NMTraveller]

48 minutes ago, hcat said:

We are from NY..east coast but have done a few from Ca..also Seattle...

Long flights but we did enjoy ourselves..Different vibe than Florida..

 

Why not try a Pacific Coastal Cruise?

We enjoyed it more than the Mexican Riviera itins..mostly b/c some of those ports  have become  less safe and seedy.

 

The Pacific Coastal on X had a great itin.,,so much to do in each port, great variety  and we enjoyed wine all along the way!

This.

 

The Pacific Coastal IMHO is better than the Mexican Riviera.  

 

The people on the Mexican Riviera are rather poor and many will be begging for money.  On our cruise they told us not to wear fancy jewelry.  It is a different atmosphere from the Florida Carribean islands.  You will also note that several cruise ships pulled out of there 10 or more years back for the obvious reasons.

 

Edited August 6, 2022 by NMTraveller

[cinderellen]

We loved our Mexican riviera cruise and actually booked another for this December. Unfortunately, they switched ships on us so we canceled. Go try something new! 

[Northern Aurora]

2 hours ago, RTR 21-0 said:

..... The sixth night (after leaving Cabo) I wasn't feeling so great, felt a little off kilter and queasy even though I hadn't come close to making my drink package limit lol.  The next day I felt worse.  Never puked but all I wanted to do was stay in bed and when I finally got up to walk, get some fresh, move around a bit, I began feeling a bit better.  Hubs was the same way.  Couldn't put our finger on it.  Talked to someone on the ship that evening and they said lots of people who have never had seasickness feel it on the Pacific especially after leaving Cabo.  .....

 

 

I smiled when I read this.  We have cross Cape Horn three times, been to Antartica, experienced the remnants of a nor'easter in the North Atlantic and dealt with two typhoons on a cruise around Japan.  but the roughest seas we have ever experienced was in the Pacific the night after leaving San Diego and heading north.  It was so rough I woke up in the middle of the night with my right shoulder agains the night stand and my legs hanging out of the bed.

 

In any event, I also prefer the Pacific Coastal cruises from Vancouver, BC down to a southern port.  But the Pacific Coastal cruises pair well with a Mexican Riviera cruise for a lovely B2B.  

[CU64]

1 hour ago, Myrtle Ave. Mayhem said:

Others might beg to differ but I find cruises out of Florida much friendlier than California. I always meet my NYC/LI peeps. Also, after the beauty of the Caribbean & Bermuda, the Mexican Riviera is a letdown. Usually the first & last day are cold weather.

Agreed…but still think the cruise is worth it. I try to go on different ships to make it more interesting. Discovery, Majestic/Princess, Solstice/Celebrity  ..there is also RC and Carnival out of LA….Holland out of San Diego, some Norwegian 

[patty1955]

2 hours ago, Myrtle Ave. Mayhem said:

The fellow passengers. I find east coast people more willing to talk to & meet strangers. LA cruises can take on the "too cool for school" vibe. As I said, others might beg to differ. 

Native Californian here. I found that Interesting. When we sailed out of New Jersey, I found some of the passengers rude and pushy.

[D. B.]

8420PR. You do not say if you are traveling with children?

 If you want an adult experience don't book during spring break.

    The Pacific Costal (LA to Seattle or Vancouver) are often relocation one way cruises and I like them for that. Prices for these are usually good as the Ship has to go full or empty.

   Not as Warm as Mex. Riv.  but scenic and stops at some interesting ports.

[LGW59]

36 minutes ago, patty1955 said:

Native Californian here. I found that Interesting. When we sailed out of New Jersey, I found some of the passengers rude and pushy.

I found some of the passengers rude and pushy.  Who knows where they were from though, just like in life, no matter where we live or are from, they are out there, thankfully in smaller numbers than us nice people, but they are there for sure.

[TrulyBlonde]

7 minutes ago, LGW59 said:

I found some of the passengers rude and pushy.  Who knows where they were from though, just like in life, no matter where we live or are from, they are out there, thankfully in smaller numbers than us nice people, but they are there for sure.

Yes, but I think you are Irish? Warm, welcoming and fun 🙂

[LGW59]

14 minutes ago, TrulyBlonde said:

Yes, but I think you are Irish? Warm, welcoming and fun 🙂

He gently raises his Guinness to toast the classy well dressed lady at the end of the bar! 🍻

[JuliaMS]

Like others said I would need to know more of what you are looking for in your cruise as far as ports are concerned. They are not party boats if that is what you are worried about. There is another cruise line out of LA doing short cruises that are a whole different crowd than Celebrity or Royal out of LA. We have done 3 on royal since restart because they make a nice getaway last minute at a good price since we can drive to the port, the cruisers have always been pleasant and friendly. That said personally I enjoy caribbean ports more than Mexican Riveria and our Mexico cruises are more about the getaway and the cruise than the ports. But, if you are looking to visit California I would deffinatly add on a Celebrity or Royal cruise.

[phoenix_dream]

23 hours ago, Northern Aurora said:

 

I smiled when I read this.  We have cross Cape Horn three times, been to Antartica, experienced the remnants of a nor'easter in the North Atlantic and dealt with two typhoons on a cruise around Japan.  but the roughest seas we have ever experienced was in the Pacific the night after leaving San Diego and heading north.  It was so rough I woke up in the middle of the night with my right shoulder agains the night stand and my legs hanging out of the bed.

 

In any event, I also prefer the Pacific Coastal cruises from Vancouver, BC down to a southern port.  But the Pacific Coastal cruises pair well with a Mexican Riviera cruise for a lovely B2B.  

I had to smile also. In 70 or so cruises our worst seas were 30' in the Gulf of Mexico and one night heading to Cartagena the seas at night were so rough I couldn't dare getting out of bed. Have had some rocking on the Pacific coastal but never that bad.

[Treasure Hunter]

Take the round trip Hawaii from LA or San Francisco. Fifteen days, one stop Mexico. We did it on Emerald Princess but I think Celebrity does it too. Cold for a few days going out but the vibe on the ship was fabulous as were the. Hawaiian ports. Entertainment terrific. A nice change from our usual Caribbean, Bahamas cruises.