April Cruising??? pros and cons.

[brandymleahy]

My DH and I are planning a cruise in mid april. I was wanting to know if you guys could give me some pros and cons to this idea. And also input into what you guys think the ideal time for cruising is.

[PaulMedik]

brandymleahy,

 

Don't know of any 'cons,' but for pros; the weather's nice. :) April is when our kids are on Spring Break so if that's a con for you, then you may wish to reconsider. (Not just our kids, but other too ;) ) Camp Carnival keeps the younger one occupied and deck five action keeps the others attention away from trouble. :)

[jetertorre]

My DH and I are planning a cruise in mid april. I was wanting to know if you guys could give me some pros and cons to this idea. And also input into what you guys think the ideal time for cruising is.

You run the risk of not being home for tax day?

[KenMo]

Big Con: Spring Break!!!

 

That's a big enough con that I don't cruise in April. I like the first week or two of May and also September.

[cruiselubbers]

I honestly believe the 2 best times to cruise are in the middle of Nov & at the end of April.

 

Reasons:

#1 the weather will almost certainly be perfect

#2 chance of hurricane is most likely gone by middle of Nov

#3 end of April not many spring breakers

#4 either choice the kids are still mainly in school

#5 end of April hopefully you've gotten taxes BACK!

#6 end of April there really are no major holidays to prepare for

#7 Nov can be used as a Christmas cruise without all the extra expense

 

Good luck!

 

Remember to no matter when you cruise just remember you won't be at home to worry about this or that getting done so really ANYTIME is a great time for a cruise to ANYWHERE!

 

:p

[brandymleahy]

you're all right about spring breakers being in april. But April is the most feesable for me right now so I think I will go with the end of april idea. Its after spring break and before end of school. Thank you all for your input.

[tigerdadky]

Being a school bus driver, I have taken both of my cruises in April and I cant think of a con. On both cruises the kids acted better than the adults. Chairhogging might be a con but otherwise being on a cruise with kids wasnt a problem, even though us and the couple we cruise with didnt bring kids ( both familes kids are grown).

[Wennfred]

My DH and I are planning a cruise in mid april. I was wanting to know if you guys could give me some pros and cons to this idea. And also input into what you guys think the ideal time for cruising is.

 

We always travel March, April, May, these seem to be the funnest months, the weather is great and the crowd is awesome.

 

 

 

Fred

[cherylatwork]

The end of April is school vacation week for kids in NH. We always cruise this week and the ships have had plenty of kids on them. Where are you planning to cruise from?

 

Cheryl

[Aplmac]

Big Con: Spring Break!!!

 

That's a big enough con that I don't cruise in April.

When is Spring Break (approx.) ??

 

I'm booked to catch Destiny on Apr.23rd.(out of Barbados)

for a week.

I'll be going thru P.Rico and picking up a new (half-)cruise,

then getting off at Barbados again, on Wed, Apr.30th.

 

Any chance of either leg being Spring Break?

I hear those cruises can be chaotic!

Please tell me I'm too late to catch a Spring Break crowd!

[gumballz]

I have to agree....April has beautiful weather! We haven't had an issue with jellyfish in April, which is a nice plus! As for spring breakers......not everyone has the same week(s) off, so it's not a guaranteed thing that there will be a shipfull of rowdy teens during the time you want to go. You'll probably have some, but teens are on almost every cruise. Whether theres some wild ones on your cruise or not...who's to say? That's a parental problem that can be on any cruise at any time of year. :rolleyes:

 

tigerdadky makes a valid point with this comment: 'the kids acted better than the adults'. There were some adults on our Triumph cruise in January that should be ashamed of some of the things they did. :cool:

 

January is another very nice time to sail. The weather is gorgeous!

 

Have fun, whenever you decide to go!!

[Darcy8]

Spring Break in our region is generally in March. Where do they have April spring breaks? Just curious, darcy 8

[KenMo]

When is Spring Break (approx.) ??

 

I'm booked to catch Destiny on Apr.23rd.(out of Barbados)

for a week.

I'll be going thru P.Rico and picking up a new (half-)cruise,

then getting off at Barbados again, on Wed, Apr.30th.

 

Any chance of either leg being Spring Break?

I hear those cruises can be chaotic!

Please tell me I'm too late to catch a Spring Break crowd!

 

Spring breaks vary around the country. It's been so long since I've had kids in school, but it seems like somehow they revolve around Easter?

 

The thing about Destiny is alot of the girls celebrate their quinces on her. I don't know if it's an annual thing or just when they turn 15 they have a party. I've read it can be a real pain with all those teenage girls running around...lol!

[bfkkbc]

Spring Break in our region is generally in March. Where do they have April spring breaks? Just curious, darcy 8

 

 

Ohio......:)

[brandymleahy]

I have just recently looked it up and the spring break in our area is march 17-21, The first day of spring is march 21 and our spring break always falls on the week of the first day of spring. I am really not sure where there are april spring breaks. BTW I am from OK, gonna cruise out of NOLA.

[cruiser1220]

My DH and I are planning a cruise in mid april. I was wanting to know if you guys could give me some pros and cons to this idea. And also input into what you guys think the ideal time for cruising is.

 

Depends on whether or not you want peace or you want to see people.

 

I LOVE cruising in April because it's spring break and you meet so many different people and the weather is nice (hardly ever rains in the Caribbean in April). Camp Carnival is at their best during holidays, such as Easter, so the kids will be entertained. However, the older group, the 9-11 and 12-14 year olds are out doing scavenger hunts and it does make a lot of noise which you hear in the cabins if they have a large group running around.

 

If you want to have a quiet trip, I suggest early March or early May.

 

A definite CON: If you are traveling on Good Friday, chances are MOST places in the Caribbean will be closed (much of the Southern and Western have been the past 2 times I cruised on Good Friday). With all the spring breakers, cruising in April usually means no cabin upgrades and no dinner changes.

[jpmaximus]

I cruised on April 28th of 2006 on the Inspiration and the weather was perfect. The cruise was not overly crowded and the spring breakers had gone. I got an amazing price for booking that week. I would not hesitate to book in April.

[Mysticks1]

When is Spring Break (approx.) ??

 

 

Take a look at this website. It hasn't been updated for 2008 but it shows the college spring breaks broken down by weeks and lists the colleges and their enrollment numbers. It looks like you should be okay. My DD's school gets out for Spring break the week starting April 12th. We are cruising April 13th.

http://www.tripsmarter.com/panamacity/springbreak/sbcalendar.htm

[tigerdadky]

Spring break in Kentucky schools are usually week before or week after Easter. We've taken both of our cruises spring break with and no kids and they were in the first week of April.

[logbook]

We have cruised twice in April, but not Easter week, and have never had a problem. We also got upgraded last cruise! Next cruise is scheduled for the week of March 30 and I hope we avoid a lot of "Spring Break" then too. I think everyone now has breaks at different times. In parts of New York, the stardard weeks are now a week in February and the 3rd week of April - has nothing to due with Easter at all. We purposely stay away from those 2 weeks because airfare is outrageous at that time.

 

Otherwise, April has been beautiful. We have always had great weather and met so many nice people! It's our favorite time to go! Have a great time.

[HookedOnCruisin'2]

Our very first cruise was at the end of April of that year. I think the 24th. We left out of Tampa and it was perfect. No problems with kids (teens or college).

 

Our second cruise something like the 3rd week of Jan. of that year out of Mobile. It was cold and rainy until we got well south. No problems with kids (even though we had ours with us) as there weren't that many.

 

My third cruise was the first week of Dec 06. No issue with kids there either and it was perfect (out of Miami). Couldn't have asked for better weather either.

 

We are leaving again in 21 days out of Miami. Most kids will be back in school by then (including ours and they aren't going with us this time).

 

Spring break around here (except college) typically is either the week before or the week after Easter. College spring breaks are all over the board, I guess depending on whether the school is on quarters or semesters and when they start. My oldest DD is a teacher, middle DD is at Ohio State, youngest DD is in high school and I'm going to a local college. All of our breaks were at different times last spring.

 

I think you'll be "safe" going at the end of April. Just remember to pack a summer outfit in your carryon if you live in a northern state where its colder at that time of the year.

[cruiser1220]

We have cruised twice in April, but not Easter week, and have never had a problem. We also got upgraded last cruise! Next cruise is scheduled for the week of March 30 and I hope we avoid a lot of "Spring Break" then too. I think everyone now has breaks at different times. In parts of New York, the stardard weeks are now a week in February and the 3rd week of April - has nothing to due with Easter at all. We purposely stay away from those 2 weeks because airfare is outrageous at that time.

 

Otherwise, April has been beautiful. We have always had great weather and met so many nice people! It's our favorite time to go! Have a great time.

 

Hate to be the one to break it to you but in Miami, FL that week will be our spring break. This year we went on the Valor and the ship was PACKED to capacity for spring break. Good luck with the spring break crowd.

[Daycare Provider]

Last week of April is Awesome...

We justed cruised this past April 29th on Royal Caribbeans AOS and had a ball...We are cruising again this coming April 20th on the Conquest.

Pro....

1. No Kids....Spring Break is over and school hasn't let out for the summer.

2.Very low humidity on the islands/ no rain..plenty of sunshine

3.Cheaper than cruising in the high season of the holiday's or the summer months.

4.Ships aren't as crowded/Doesn't take as long to get a drink

[logbook]

Hate to be the one to break it to you but in Miami, FL that week will be our spring break. This year we went on the Valor and the ship was PACKED to capacity for spring break. Good luck with the spring break crowd.

 

 

I guess when the airfare becomes available, we will find out whether or not we can keep that week to cruise. As long as the airfare is reasonable, we'll take our chances. Thanks for the the info, though! We were on the Valor in April! I just loved it!!

[Aplmac]

I cruised on April 28th of 2006 on the Inspiration, and the weather was perfect.

The cruise was not overly crowded and the spring breakers had gone.

I got an amazing price for booking that week.

I would not hesitate to book in April.

Many thanks all of you for your comments re. Spring Break timing (if such exists!)

 

Like you, JPMax, I got the best possible price for that week(cruise of Apr. 20th.- 27th)

so that's why I booked.

 

Yes, the weather in the Caribbean is usually perfect in April.

Dry Season for us in these islands is Feb. to end of May,

(often to the end of June, but no guarantee on that last bit)

with April being pretty much a sunny guarantee!