Itinerary help

[latebuyer]

As you can imagine, i am struggling with which cruise to take. I’m wondering whether portland and boston are must haves. The fact that portland has good restaurants peaked my interest and i thought maybe there is a food tour. The other cruise goes to quebec city and the saguenay. I could choose to stay a night in boston but hotels are painfully expensive. So i guess its really about how portland is as a port and if its worth staying in a 400.00cdn hotel for boston.

[CCJack]

It might be helpful if you post the itinerary for the 2 cruises you are considering..  I would view Quebec City as a don't miss stop for a cruise in this part of the continent.  It is beautiful and a great cruise stop  as the ships dock in the old town and you can walk throughout the old town easily.    Saguenay allows you to sail in and sail out one of the best fjords in North America.

 

I view Boston as a destination in itself - maybe for a non-cruise vacation to Boston, but it depends on your interests and future travel plans.

 

 

 

Edited May 19 by CCJack

[latebuyer]

Thanks. One is in the fall and starts in quebec city and ends in boston, has one port day in quebec city, then saguenay, sydney, st. Johns, charlotte town, halifax. Its sept 27 this year. The hostel rate (private room)of 400cdn in boston is a real sore point. 

 

The other is roundtrip new york.it goes to sydney, charlottetown, st. Johns, halifax, portland and boston. Its in june next year.

 

They are both princess, sept 27 island princess, second one emerald princess

Edited May 19 by latebuyer

[Alberta Quilter]

I recommend going to Saguenay!  It’s lovely there and very friendly people.  It’s actually my favourite port in Canada/NE.   Boston is expensive, and the fall can be even more expensive, from what I understand.  But I would bite the bullet and pay the price for one night minimum just to go to Saguenay again.

 

Oh, and it’s Saint John, not St. John's.  St. John's is in Newfoundland, Saint John is in New Brunswick.

[latebuyer]

Thanks. Sounds like saguenay and quebec city are must sees! I may take the cruise a week later on oct 7 then the itinerary is the same but then portland is added. I am a bit concerned the fall foliage won’t be as good as last week of sept/first week of october but i guess its hard to predict.

[princeton123211]

17 hours ago, latebuyer said:

Its sept 27 this year. The hostel rate (private room)of 400cdn in boston is a real sore point. 

There are ways to mitigate costs. If you stay in Cambridge you can shave off about $100. The AC Hotel by Marriott in Cambridge is $293 US on Sept 27th. 

 

You can save even more pushing out to a place like Qunicy. There is a Marriott in Quincy that you can book for $150-180 a night US regularly and is only about a $20 Uber ride into the downtown core of the city. 

[latebuyer]

Thanks. I found out from a trip advisor response that there are 3 conventions in town so cost is inflated. I’ll check it out though.

[son3cruisers]

 

11 minutes ago, princeton123211 said:

The AC Hotel by Marriott in Cambridge is $293 US on Sept 27th

$293 US is $400 Can. 😩 Same as a hostle price apparently. 

 

I just booked the Hilton in Backbay for $285 US for July. Steep, but the best I could find in that area which has been highly recommended for one night stay.

[princeton123211]

1 minute ago, son3cruisers said:

I just booked the Hilton in Backbay for $285 US for July. Steep, but the best I could find in that area which has been highly recommended for one night stay.

That's a downright bargain for Boston. 

[latebuyer]

Whoa its 750 cdn the night i’m going! Bring on the tips though i may find something!

[son3cruisers]

15 minutes ago, princeton123211 said:

That's a downright bargain for Boston. 

Really!!! Ok, well that’s good to know! I can stop looking!  That includes breakfast too. 

[son3cruisers]

7 minutes ago, latebuyer said:

Whoa its 750 cdn the night i’m going! Bring on the tips though i may find something!

I’m thinking maybe because I’m 50ish days away? Hopefully  closer to your sailing the prices will drop! 

Edited May 20 by son3cruisers

[princeton123211]

21 minutes ago, son3cruisers said:

I’m thinking maybe because I’m 50ish days away? Hopefully  closer to your sailing the prices will drop! 

You can get last minute deals in Boston through an app called Hotel Tonight but you have to literally wait until the day of to book. I've gotten the Fairmont Copley Plaza for $159 US a night that way a few weeks ago when it was selling for $550 US the day before. You roll the dice but the reward can be great.