LIIRISHMAN Posted August 30, 2007 #1 Share Posted August 30, 2007 I"ve been given the task by my mother (who's picking up the tab :rolleyes: ) to plan a family cruise for 13 people. We all live within a hours drive from N.Y. No one wants to fly and they want to cruise the Caribbean. What ship leaving from NYC would you recommend. My mother is 73 Adults are in their mid 40's. Children range in age from 18 yrs down to 3 yrs old. Most of the kids are teenagers. Thanks for any help you can give. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stoney10 Posted August 30, 2007 #2 Share Posted August 30, 2007 I would go with Carnival Cruise Lines out of New York, have done them and Royal Carib and seems to us that the Carnival ship is a bit more of fun than Royal. I am also from upstate New york and have cruised 3 times out of NYC. To be totally honest,, It takes a day or so for everyone to shake off the New York dust and relax before starting to enjoy themselves. There is just something about leaving from florida, where once you board the ship, its time for fun. As far as getting on and off board the ships, both did a fine job getting you on and off, but once you get off, its typical New York hustle and bustle. Hope it helps you a little bit, any questions dont be afraid to ask Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimswims Posted August 30, 2007 #3 Share Posted August 30, 2007 I"ve been given the task by my mother (who's picking up the tab :rolleyes: ) to plan a family cruise for 13 people. We all live within a hours drive from N.Y. No one wants to fly and they want to cruise the Caribbean. What ship leaving from NYC would you recommend. My mother is 73 Adults are in their mid 40's. Children range in age from 18 yrs down to 3 yrs old. Most of the kids are teenagers. Thanks for any help you can give. We have enjoyed our cruises out of NYC on the NCL Dawn and NCL Spirit. We have also enjoyed our cruises on other lines. We now bring our kids with us (age 12 and 9) and love the Freestyle dining options available on these ships. We have never had a problem getting a table at any of the 8-10 restaurants on these ships and have liked the fact that we can eat a different times based on our schedule and activites on the ship and in port. One caution on NCL cruising is traveling in large groups. If you have a large crowd and must all eat together, traditional dining may be best. However, there are certain times that reservations are accepted in the larger dining rooms, (I believe 5:30 to 7:00 and after 9:00 but I am not positive on that). There were large family groups on the Dawn last week and did have reservations in the dining rooms to all sit together. They seemed to be having a good time. We have not beeen on a cruise with a large group (Will will be doing this in 2009). We most likely be on NCL out of Boston or NYC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lexxity Posted August 30, 2007 #4 Share Posted August 30, 2007 And coming in from left field you have my suggestion of the Queen Mary 2. I just posted my review again on another thread, but I'll link it here too. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=456437 We love, love, love this ship and are very much looking forward to doing the Caribbean onboard her from NYC in Jan. '08. Plus Red Hook is so much nicer a dock than the Manhattan piers, there's ample parking too, so that's another bonus for those driving in! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted August 31, 2007 #5 Share Posted August 31, 2007 We've done Carnival's NYC-Eastern Caribbean itinerary (we were on Carnival Legend; the current ship is Carnival Miracle, which is a sister ship). We really liked having 2 1/2 sea days down and 2 1/2 back; it was very relaxing. The ports are San Juan, St. Thomas and Tortola. One thing to keep in mind with Carnival is that they keep a May-October schedule out of NYC; the ship repositions to Ft. Lauderdale in the winter, so if you're looking for a winter cruise Carnival won't be available. My oldest son is 16 and has a great time with Carnival's Club O2 (teens 15-17). The younger kids have Camp Carnival, and my younger sons have enjoyed their programs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shirleygr Posted September 12, 2007 #6 Share Posted September 12, 2007 We've done a few cruises from NY and one from NJ. The only one I would not recommend is HAL. The children's program wasn't great and dh and I didn't have the best time either. Others may disagree. NCL, Carnival, and RC all have terrific children's programs and plenty of other entertainment and activities to appeal to the adults. I would take NCL over Carnival (personal choice) and we're doing the 9 night on Explorer from Bayonne in February. I find both ports an easy drive from southern CT. HTH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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