Caribbean cruise from Boston

[Florida_gal_50]

Thought this was an interesting article.  I haven't seen anything about it here but maybe I missed it 

 

 

https://thepointsguy.com/news/new-home-port-caribbean-cruises/

[KBC73]

When can I book? I live near Boston so this sounds ideal.

 

[Florida_gal_50]

I wonder if it's on their website yet. It doesn't work for me in any way but I think it's a novel idea.

[RuthC]

39 minutes ago, KBC73 said:

When can I book? I live near Boston so this sounds ideal.

 

I expect you can book now, as I saw it on the HAL website over the weekend. There's an interesting itinerary, and especially for those of us who live in New England, and those who don't mind going to the Caribbean, it's a decent cruise. 

[Vic The Parrot]

2 minutes ago, RuthC said:

I expect you can book now, as I saw it on the HAL website over the weekend. There's an interesting itinerary, and especially for those of us who live in New England, and those who don't mind going to the Caribbean, it's a decent cruise. 

Hmmm

 

Think I'll take a look at that.

Thanks Ruth!  

[CruiserBruce]

I get the uniqueness of these routes, but Boston is not the best port to sail from in terms of facilities and ease of use.

[Vic The Parrot]

Blimey!

 

 

Too long and too pricey.

Way out of my league for now. 😵😕

[Destiny0315]

It does offer a nice alternative for New Englanders in the Fall when everything from here is heading north to Canada. I do agree that the port lacks facilities especially in terms of long term parking for extended journeys.

[meaenh1]

we are thinking about it...and would probably take a bus from NH then Uber if we do this cruise. I worry more about hurricane season, but I guess they are pretty good at skirting them.

 

[Destiny0315]

There has not been a significant Tropical Storm or Hurricane to hit the East coast of the US past the middle of October since Superstorm Sandy in 2012 and Hurricane Wilma in 2005, though there have been a couple of other ones in late October into early November that have caused some minor travel disruptions. In turn though this is the only opportunity to take a roundtrip cruise from the Northeast to the Panama Canal and take at least a partial canal transit. No roundtrips are available out of New York, and Baltimore offers one roundtrip from there in January. I will probably be booking this cruise for myself while I am onboard a HAL cruise to Canada in May.

[sprockie]

This would be great.  I'm not keen on being in Florida whatsoever any longer and also not wild about cruising out of NYC either. Cruising out of Boston would be grand. 

[cate54]

I am already booked on it. I love that I don't have to fly to get to the Caribbean and that it is a nice length of time.

[cate54]

I am booked in an interior room for the first time. Can someone tell me if they have a sofa in them? 

I am in #7125 Zuiderdam.

TIA

Cathy

[oakridger]

Check halfacts.com and there are pictures of Zuiderdam cabin #7014 which is the same type of cabin and should have the same layout. This picture is #7014.  No sofa.

7014 – Zuiderdam | HAL Cruiser Information (halfacts.com)   Cabin #7129 has the same layout in a 2023 picture on cruisedeckplans.com.

 

Edited April 11, 2023 by oakridger

[cate54]

7 hours ago, oakridger said:

Check halfacts.com and there are pictures of Zuiderdam cabin #7014 which is the same type of cabin and should have the same layout. This picture is #7014.  No sofa.

7014 – Zuiderdam | HAL Cruiser Information (halfacts.com)   Cabin #7129 has the same layout in a 2023 picture on cruisedeckplans.com.

 

Thank you, this is what I was afraid of. I called HAL yesterday and the young man told me they all had sofas. I suspect he may be a newer employee...there was a rooster crowing in the background.🐓

[Destiny0315]

44 minutes ago, cate54 said:

I called HAL yesterday and the young man told me they all had sofas.

Looks like if your lucky you could get a second chair to go with the room's dining table for one. I just watched a video of a similar room on the big Z from 5 years ago that had one but even then it was a just a folding chair. Imagine riding the waves down the Atlantic coast while sitting on a folding chair.

[cate54]

21 minutes ago, Destiny0315 said:

Looks like if your lucky you could get a second chair to go with the room's dining table for one. I just watched a video of a similar room on the big Z from 5 years ago that had one but even then it was a just a folding chair. Imagine riding the waves down the Atlantic coast while sitting on a folding chair.

I have  a message in to my TA. No folding chairs for me. Lol

[doone]

This looks like a great itinerary....

[RICHARD@SEA]

The repo cruises are great , even better when you have a home in florida...saying that it does sail during hurricane season & sailing on the east coast can be rough even in the summer - its a crap shoot.

[fox02554]

On 4/6/2023 at 7:29 PM, CruiserBruce said:

I get the uniqueness of these routes, but Boston is not the best port to sail from in terms of facilities and ease of use.

it is if you live in eastern Mass. it's a quick " car" ride , no parking , no flight undwind over night and you wake up in bemuda ❤️ we have done a 7 night NCL to Bermuda, it's great to have a longer HAL option 😄

[fox02554]

On 4/10/2023 at 9:04 AM, cate54 said:

I am already booked on it. I love that I don't have to fly to get to the Caribbean and that it is a nice length of time.

the only H/C cabin left is a Neptune suite > $20,000 , a little steap for a 21 day cruise ........ but TA is trying to find a V or SS that I can put a sticky vacume grab bar on the shower door to help with mobility in the bath, that and a shower chair and I'll be good to go ❤️

 

[CruiserBruce]

1 hour ago, fox02554 said:

it is if you live in eastern Mass. it's a quick " car" ride , no parking , no flight undwind over night and you wake up in bemuda ❤️ we have done a 7 night NCL to Bermuda, it's great to have a longer HAL option 😄

We disembarked there in August. The process of turning around a ship there is a cluster...poor access, make shift facility. It needs to be remodeled for this purpose. It was almost an hour from scanning off the ship to driving away in a cab. And this was a ship that only had 1500 people on it, in which Immigration was handled on the ship. Nowhere near enough cabs and ground support.

 

And people and buses were arriving with the new pax in the middle of this, with no clear guidance on where to go.

[fox02554]

1 hour ago, CruiserBruce said:

We disembarked there in August. The process of turning around a ship there is a cluster..

sorry to hear this , when we did NCL a couple of years ago ( pre covid ) it was easy peasy , we parked in garage across the street , drop our luggage with porters , went upstairs , checked in and waited for them to call

our group , we are Handicap cap so priority access but it all went smoothly 

[cate54]

On 4/11/2023 at 10:12 AM, cate54 said:

I have  a message in to my TA. No folding chairs for me. Lol

I just heard from my TA. Only large interiors have a sofa. My first time in an interior so I was clueless. Changed rooms. All good now.😊