Caribbean Cruise Itinerary

[Tauntony]

Hi, 

 

We are looking to book a Caribbean cruise in Jan or Feb 2025.

We have only ever done one med cruise with Celebrity and loved everything about the ship so am tempted to stick with them, let me know if I should also consider other cruise line you think are similar.

 

My main question is on itinerary . Are there ports that are unmissable or ports not worth visiting in your opinion?

Appreciate that most itineraries will probably include both!
 

Any advice welcome

 

Thanks in advance

[CNSfromHI]

My wife and I cruised the Caribbean via Celebrity and particularly enjoyed St. Johns, Antigua. That included a catamaran excursion that made a few stops among various beach locales, as well as a delicious lobster lunch onboard. Stunning waters and island scenery aboard the catamaran.

 

At one of the beach stops, we enjoyed the view in the photo below 🥰

 

Hope this helps!

 

cjr

[Galaxy2004]

@Tauntony Give us some ideas of what you like and don't like so we know what to recommend. 

[OceanCruise]

What kinds of things interest you ---sightseeing, beaches, snorkeling, rainforests, bars? We have been to most of the Caribbean ports (multiple times) and find many of them to be similar. We are at the point where we often just stay on the ship. If you are not into beaches/water sports and bars we find there are limited options for "interesting" sights. Of course there is natural beauty/nature, some caves and various plantations but nothing that would compare to European port options. The best stop in my opinion is St Thomas/ St John's. Key West and Grand Cayman are nice too. Aruba fell below our expectations as most of that island is actually desert. We have enjoyed Segways in St Lucia and San Juan, Catamaran rides in Barbados, seeing Flamingos and salt flats in Bonaire, swimming with dolphins in St. Kitts and seeing ruins in Cozumel. Most of the ports will have the same tourist shops (Del Sol, Diamond International, etc.). Many of the Caribbean islands have poor areas so do not expect luxury and total cleanliness. Some food establishes can be a bit seedy. Also, transportation is often not up to US safety standards (i.e. open air buses with no seat belts on windy roads). Some islands like Haiti and Jamaica have safety concerns. Also, be aware some ports/beaches have locals that really pester you to buy something (i.e. hair braiding, trinkets, drugs, tours, photos).

[Tauntony]

4 minutes ago, Galaxy2004 said:

@Tauntony Give us some ideas of what you like and don't like so we know what to recommend. 

Thanks Galaxy, good question.

My DW likes beach sunbathing shopping and snorkelling 

Me - like to wander, see local culture, food, beer/wine and how locals live and be part of it, if that’s not a contradiction 

Neither of us are into museums.

[janetz]

I saw some good options on the Reflection in January 

A 6 or 8 night

The 8 is the ABC island itinerary which we did in January 

Bonaire, Aruba and Curaçao

Great snorkeling in Bonaire and Cozumel

The 6 night is the Western, with Cozumel 

Feb is usually winter vacation for schools so keep that in mind

Some of us cruise for a particular ship and some the itinerary 

We love the Reflection. ❤️

 

Edited July 9 by janetz

[Galaxy2004]

Ah, you're like me and your DW is like my DH. We've done 15 Caribbean cruises so spend more time on the ship now, but IMO, Barbados (beautiful beaches, good food, and really easy to get around), St. Thomas but take the ferry from there to St. John for beautiful, clean, and much quieter beaches (compared to Magen's Bay on St. Thomas), St. Lucia is beautiful with the Pitons, though it's a drive to get there or a catamaran trip to see them. Not a fan of Aruba - too sandy and flat - but they have beautiful beaches and very easy to get around. Try to look for small, local food stalls/restaurants for food and also ask them what they recommend you go see. We've found some nice of the beaten track beaches and nature walks that way. 

 

[Galaxy2004]

Also, Celebrity has been offering more food tours/excursions the last couple of years. We've done a couple with them and both were ok. A bit too structured and rushed for me and some sales pitches in between. But food tours seem to be more plentiful on the islands the last couple of years and are a good way to learn about local food and history.

[39august]

Been to almost all the Caribbean islands to which the main cruise lines go. Without a doubt, we find St. Lucia to be the most beautiful of several beautiful islands. An island tour there is a best bet. St. Thomas is also a beauty, but traffic there is awful  I agree that a catamaran tour of Antigua can be great. If you like snorkeling Bonaire is a water paradise, the best diving in the Caribbean. Dominica is so lush and reminds me of Maui. On Curacao there are all the brightly colored buildings and a canal. I would stay away from Belize...nothing interesting at the port, and a long tender ride to get there.  I also feel Cozumel, once a favorite of mine, has been ruined by excessive cruise traffic. 

[noshoobie]

For the love of God - skip Nassau and Freeport if at all possible, lol. I agree with @Galaxy2004 about St Thomas. If you stop there take a ferry over to St John and head to their beaches (we love Trunk Bay). It is a beach not to be missed!

[suech1970]

We’re doing Celebrity Beyond, 10 nights, Southern Caribbean Feb 2025. If you’re travelling from UK, a 7 nighter is a bit short, unless you’re looking for a back to back. But you could always add on a couple of days in Miami or fort Lauderdale.

 

It’s probably got the perfect itinerary for us, St. Marteen, St Lucia, Grenada, Barbados, Antigua. Plenty of beaches, shopping, snorkelling, sightseeing to be had in all. It’ll be our 1st time on an Edge class ship, previous have been smaller older ships, but loved em all. 

 

We also love the ABC islands, which are slightly harder to find on itineraries but Marella cruises do them. Advantage with Marella is that they fly straight into Barbados, so there are less sea days, plus it’s an all inclusive.  We’ve done a few with them and really like them but Celebrity is a step up in class, for sure.
You could also look at Norweigan, they have some very good itineraries, we are big fans of them too. They usually sail out of Miami, but wouldn’t recommend going out of the Dom Rep.

The great thing about the Caribbean islands is the easiness of just getting off the ship and picking up an island tour or beach transfer with local drivers. We're not into ship excursions, unless time on shore is very limited, expensive and herded about like sheep. 
 

Highly recommend Harbour Lights on Barbados. That’s our usual hangout but this time took their Chair & Snorkel this year for $35 pp. We had 2 snorkel sites and were the only 2 people on the boat, so had the max time in the water. It was like our own personal charter😆

 

 

 

[Iamcruzin]

5 hours ago, Tauntony said:

Hi, 

 

We are looking to book a Caribbean cruise in Jan or Feb 2025.

We have only ever done one med cruise with Celebrity and loved everything about the ship so am tempted to stick with them, let me know if I should also consider other cruise line you think are similar.

 

My main question is on itinerary . Are there ports that are unmissable or ports not worth visiting in your opinion?

Appreciate that most itineraries will probably include both!
 

Any advice welcome

 

Thanks in advance

Southern Caribbean is my favorite. Antigua, Barbados, Aruba, Tortola, St Lucia are some of the islands. Eastern Caribbean has nice ports of calls as well. Don’t like the western Caribbean. Won’t get off the ship in Jamaica again and have no desire to go  to Dominican Republic. I didn’t care for Cozumel and Grand Cayman was very expensive. Nassau and Freeport in the Bahamas is just an annoying beach day with a lot of solicitors. You should also consider a 7 day cruise to Bermuda from Cape Liberty New Jersey. It’s a beautiful safe island that is easy to get around on and you can see it all in the 3 days. That is my favorite island of all.

 

 

 

 

 

[phoenix_dream]

IMHO the absolute best cruise itineraries are those that include the ABC islands.  We're doing that on Reflection in January as a part of a B2B, for the umpteenth time.  Love them.

[Tapi]

The main 3 Caribbean itineraries are Western, Eastern, and Southern. In my humble opinion, the Southern itinerary provides the best, most genuine, and diverse Caribbean experience. The islands in the Lesser Antilles tend to be more authentic and less run over with hordes of cruise passengers. In comparison, some of the ports of call in the Western/Eastern Caribbean (like Cozumel, Nassau, etc) are overdeveloped, receive tens of thousands of cruise passengers daily, and have lost their authenticity.

 

You can fly to San Juan and do a 7 night itinerary from there that will take you deep into the Southern Caribbean. You will sail aboard one of Celebrity's older/smaller ships, but it's a good trade off for the better itinerary. 

 

San Juan is worth flying into a few days prior to your cruise. Fantastic destination with a little bit of everything (beaches, nature, history, culture, and wonderful cuisine, shopping and night life). You can also take a 10-11 night cruise from Florida to the Southern Caribbean if you don't mind spending a few extra days at sea getting to/from the islands and would prefer one of Celebrity's larger/newer ships. 

[NutsAboutGolf]

I agree with @Tapi.  You would only have one sea day and since you're not really doing tours, you can sleep in late if you wish, come and go as you please so it won't be too exhausting.  If you want the ABC island, I would recommend doing one that does the Panama Canal.  For the most part, every Caribbean island and the Bahamas (which is not part of the Caribbean) has nice beaches but they may or may not be easy to get to or be free

[Spif Barwunkel]

Coming from Europe to cruise the Caribbean means at least 9 or 10 nights minimum to make it worthwhile. Unless you just have to see Mexico or the Dominican Republic, I would not visit those areas at this time. Avoid the Bahamas as well since the crowd swell from many large ships can be overwhelming. A 10-night Southern Caribbean with Tortola rather than St. Maarten or St. Thomas would be my choice. A 9-night ABC islands with Grand Cayman is also enjoyable, although Grand Cayman can also be overwhelming when 5 or 6 ships are in port.

Edited July 10 by Spif Barwunkel

[hcat]

love Tortola,  .Antigua beaches, . and St Kitts with excursion to NEVIS!

Edited July 10 by hcat

[NutsAboutGolf]

@Tauntony, I would recommend you don't eliminate itineraries with the Bahamas (which is not considered the Caribbean) as it could work for you.  This is if you can overlook the culture, but there are beautiful beaches many on Nassau, it great to wander, there's lots of shopping, you can tour Atlantis for free and can try local food like conch.  Yet the shopping area by the port is very hustle and bustle, you aren't going to befriend any locals, and nearly all will try to sell you something which isn't uncommon by cruise ports

 

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, for me, the beaches in Nassau and Bimini (haven't been to Freeport) are simply stunning because the sand is white and the water is turquoise, some Caribbean islands have neither.  I could be biased as I live at a CA beach that has dark tan coarse sand and dark blue murky water

 

This is Cabbage Beach in Nassau

 

[KKB]

23 hours ago, Tauntony said:

Hi, 

 

We are looking to book a Caribbean cruise in Jan or Feb 2025.

We have only ever done one med cruise with Celebrity and loved everything about the ship so am tempted to stick with them, let me know if I should also consider other cruise line you think are similar.

 

My main question is on itinerary . Are there ports that are unmissable or ports not worth visiting in your opinion?

Appreciate that most itineraries will probably include both!
 

Any advice welcome

 

Thanks in advance

Southern Caribbean cruises have the nicest stops, imo. 

THAT BEING SAID, E vs W Caribbean...have done both many times. 
Used to prefer E Caribbean ports but now we have our "go tos" & prefer W Caribbean.

All this is with a grain of salt & mostly you will get warm weather & lots of beaches wherever you go!

[Tina99]

Only going to add that if Belize is on your itinerary, I highly recommend Butts Up Cave Tubing.  It was an absolute blast of a good time.  I used the vendor, and the experience was flawless and a wonderfully fun adventure.

[Willwils]

We're booked on the Celebrity Eclipse to Southern Caribbean ABC islands in October. While looking at excursions we noticed the "Sea and Sea Island" excursion from Celebrity in Curacao. It includes the SeaWorld Explorer semi-submarine, views of St. Anna bay, Dutch Colonial homes, and the a liquor place with tasting. Does anyone know about this excursion? Would it be suitable for a couple in their 70's? Also, less intense,  looked at their "Panoramic Island Sightseeing" including viewing the old fortress(pictures on web don't look like much), water lagoon, table mountain, villa area, and sample liquor place. If not one of these, perhaps following other posts,  we could just get off the ship and tour on our own. Any other suggestions for Curacao, PLUS  Aruba, and Bonaire? BTW, we're not beach people.   

[mahdnc]

On 7/9/2024 at 12:01 PM, Tauntony said:

Hi, 

 

We are looking to book a Caribbean cruise in Jan or Feb 2025.

We have only ever done one med cruise with Celebrity and loved everything about the ship so am tempted to stick with them, let me know if I should also consider other cruise line you think are similar.

 

My main question is on itinerary . Are there ports that are unmissable or ports not worth visiting in your opinion?

Appreciate that most itineraries will probably include both!
 

Any advice welcome

 

Thanks in advance

 

Since you are coming all the way from the UK, I would simply recommend that you book one of the extended sailings--9 nights or more:  Southern Caribbean, Aruba/Bonaire/Curacao, or Eastern Caribbean.  The itinerary will give you several sea days which is very nice and gives you time to enjoy the ship. Those itineraries are largely being done on Eclipse and Beyond.

 

The only problem is that a lot of the extended itineraries for Jan/Feb are selling out.  So your choices may be governed by cabin availability more than anything else.

 

Edited July 13 by mahdnc

[LadyBerard]

There are a number of inside cabins and a sunset sky suite left on the above cruise......Eclipse sailing 1/20/25.

[Tudy]

My opinion, The Panama Canal is the big "not-to-be-missed" site. I love watching the locks work.

[mahdnc]

28 minutes ago, LadyBerard said:

There are a number of inside cabins and a sunset sky suite left on the above cruise......Eclipse sailing 1/20/25.

Yes, your choices are pretty limited!

Edited July 13 by mahdnc