Eastern VS. Western Caribbean

[ebkallen]

I'm looking at cruises for Easter/Spring Break 2009. I found the Eastern Itinerary from Miami on the Dawn 4-11-08 Samana,St. Thomas,Tortola & GSC, the Western Itinerary from Miami on the Jewel 4-12-08 Roatan, Belize, Cozumel & GSC. Based on fares Western is a little more $.

Please share pro's & con's for each itinerary, ship.

We are very laid back, like to snorkle (at our leisure off a beach, we are not into long line off of catamaran for 1 hour in the water) eat, drink, swim, sunbathe, shop.

We've done the Bahamas/Florida Itinerary, looking to do something different.

[AnnieB925]

I'd chose the Eastern Itinerary any day over the Western. We did an "Exotic Western Caribbean" cruise once, yuck! Belize is a third world country.....very poverty stricken and just plain ugly. If you like to scuba dive or snorkel I guess it's some of the best, due to the Great Barrier Reef.

Mexico in general.......I could pass.

 

Now the Eastern or the Southern..........ahhhh.........gorgeous beaches, nice excursions, good enough snorkeling and generally nicer ports of call.

 

I can't speak to the ships you've mentioned b/c we usually cruise on Carnival.

[VoyageVirgin]

I'm looking at cruises for Easter/Spring Break 2009. I found the Eastern Itinerary from Miami on the Dawn 4-11-08 Samana,St. Thomas,Tortola & GSC, the Western Itinerary from Miami on the Jewel 4-12-08 Roatan, Belize, Cozumel & GSC. Based on fares Western is a little more $.

Please share pro's & con's for each itinerary, ship.

We are very laid back, like to snorkle (at our leisure off a beach, we are not into long line off of catamaran for 1 hour in the water) eat, drink, swim, sunbathe, shop.

We've done the Bahamas/Florida Itinerary, looking to do something different.

 

Well first I'd like to say that I am in total disagreement with the second poster - Belize is a beautiful place - lush, friendly, with an amazing reef. That said, I think it's only for dive in - but there is a beautiful island that you can go to for snorkeling. It was "unBelizeable" Loved every minute of the zipline and cave tubing. Beautiful country.

 

Eastern:

All four ports have fantastic beaches for snorkeling - other than Samana you can take a cab and get to where you want. St. Thomas was very nice - Coco Beach - but there are others as well. I found the shopping there to be very overrated. Possibly it's better for Americans but the prices with the dollar exchange (in those days) was basically bringing the cost up to what I would pay in Canada. Samana I believe you have to take an excursion from the ship to access the beach (this is from reading the boards here not personally)

 

Western:

Only been to Belize and Cozumel - as stated above Belize has some great snorkeling areas, Cozumel - we did the Atlantis Submarine and of course shopped, as well as Senor Frogs - but I'm sure there must be some snorkeling available -

 

Check out the Port of Call link off the mian Boards page - tons of info on all of the above islands/ports.

 

Haven't been on either the Dawn or the Jewel as yet :D

[Addictedtwo]

Personally we think Samana is a dump of a port.

I'm sure NCL only goes there because it's probably a free port for them until Samana gets built up.

St Thomas is great!

And I hear Belize and Roatan are as well. We will be doing the later this coming Feb I have a spa pkg booked in Roatan for a surprise 40 th birthday for my partner, lunch champagne, cake. Should be fun

[Toyz711]

belize: beautiful, yes, it's a 3rd world country and somewhere i recommend taking a real tour..either through the ship or local..but not a place i recommend wandering around. there is so much to do at this port...cave tubing gets great reviews, we did a mayan ruins that was an excellent adventure...beaches are harder to get to them other ports.

roatan: if people think belize is 3rd world, roatan is just as poor. beaches are on the opposite side of the island from the docks. the island is known for it's snorkeling and beaches, but have plans in place before you go...otherwise you are fighting the crowds to get reliable transportation to the other side of the island.

cozumel: known for it's beautiful beaches, the best snorkeling is off-shore. many of the beach clubs have snorkeling trips for extra $

you can learn about each of the ports here:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=5

[katyjeka]

We've done both and love something about each. I would take the Dawn anywhere, as we found the ship perfect!!! This December will be our first time on the Jewel. We spent a wonderful day in Roatan at a gorgeous beach.(We love the palm trees that grow sideways versus straight up, if that makes sense)The water was warm, clear and had beautiful soft white sand. We also loved the people. Cozumel has been a long time favorite, love the people. On the Eastern side we've been to Tortola. Wow!! We loved the beach. It was beyond beautiful. Although St. Thomas remains a favorite of many, this would be our least favorite. We found the beaches, both times, to be crowded and just okay. I really think you'll find things you'll love about both. Have a great time, Janice

[Ms belp]

I would recommend the Eastern Caribbean. It's beautiful, and they offer so many excursions. You can stay on the island port of call, or take a ferry to another location if you so choose. :)

[ute_fan]

It really depends on what you enjoy doing. We're not snorkelers or sunbathers, so we MUCH prefer the Western Caribbean. The islands in the Eastern Caribbean were beautiful, but we didn't find much that interested us since we weren't looking to just hang out at the beach. You might find it perfect for what you want though.

 

We've been to the Western Caribbean twice, as compared to once for the Eastern -- and I'd definitely go back to the Western Caribbean before repeating our Eastern itinery. We thoroughly enjoyed both Belize and Roatan, along with Cozumel. Our main interest, however, is the Mayan ruins, and it doesn't sound like that's what you're going after. Both Belize and Roatan have also great barriers reefs for snorkeling or scuba diving, from what I've read.

 

We've sailed on the Jewel to the Eastern Caribbean and will be sailing on the Dawn for a Canada/New England itinerary this fall. I don't think you can go wrong with either ship.

[chrisbd1]

I prefer the Eastern Caribbean for one reason and one reason only-5 liters of duty free booze and 5 cartons of duty free smokes in St Thomas :D . If the ship isn't stopping in St Thomas, I ain't going :) . Though the ferry does go there, from Tortola ;) .

[jollycruise]

Personally we think Samana is a dump of a port.

I'm sure NCL only goes there because it's probably a free port for them until Samana gets built up.

St Thomas is great!

And I hear Belize and Roatan are as well. We will be doing the later this coming Feb I have a spa pkg booked in Roatan for a surprise 40 th birthday for my partner, lunch champagne, cake. Should be fun

 

Totally disagree with you on Samana. Yes I do suggest taking an excursion at this port. We LOVED Samana. We did the ATV tour and it was wonderful. We saw some beautiful scenery and met some wonderful people. I would go back in a heartbeat. Again....this port is best enjoyed through an excursion. Go explore and see for yourself that Samana holds some beautiful scenery and people.

[Ms belp]

I liked Samana as well. I did the Cayo Laventado beach excursion and Chris went horseback riding. We both had a great time. The "dump" is my office, 5 days a week/8 hours a day.

[AuntieBarb]

I'm looking at cruises for Easter/Spring Break 2009. I found the Eastern Itinerary from Miami on the Dawn 4-11-08 Samana,St. Thomas,Tortola & GSC, the Western Itinerary from Miami on the Jewel 4-12-08 Roatan, Belize, Cozumel & GSC. Based on fares Western is a little more $.

Please share pro's & con's for each itinerary, ship.

We are very laid back, like to snorkle (at our leisure off a beach, we are not into long line off of catamaran for 1 hour in the water) eat, drink, swim, sunbathe, shop.

We've done the Bahamas/Florida Itinerary, looking to do something different.

 

Do I have to pick? Personally we enjoy both and encourage you to try both!

 

We've never been to Samana though, but reviews I've read have been mixed.

 

St. Thomas and Tortola are great ports, but you can also hop on a ferry and go over to Virgin Gorda for "The Baths" or St. John's. Another words, you have loads of options, provided you are in port long enough.

 

Trunk Bay at St. John's:

 

"The Baths" at Virgin Gorda:

 

Great Stirrup Cay is a nice beach and barbecue day.

 

Cozumel and Belize are both great for snorkeling and both have decent beaches.

 

We loved Roatan and Tabyana Beach is wonderful and has nice amenities! Just look at the water!

 

 

[Ms belp]

Also, I did a vacation in the Dominican Republic 20+ years ago. They are the friendliest people I ever met. I try to make the best of each port of call.

[Ms belp]

AuntieBarb, your pictures are incredible. The picture of Trunk Bay is better than any we were able to capture. Well, Chris did take a wonderful picture of the water breaking on the rocks at the far end of the beach.

[chrisbd1]

AuntieBarb, your pictures are incredible. The picture of Trunk Bay is better than any we were able to capture. Well, Chris did take a wonderful picture of the water breaking on the rocks at the far end of the beach.

 

The waves breaking on Trunk Bay Beach

[AuntieBarb]

Thanks, Ms belp

 

Chris, very nice shot!!!!!

 

 

The waves breaking on Trunk Bay Beach

[AuntieBarb]

The "dump" is my office, 5 days a week/8 hours a day.

 

Perfectly stated!

[chrisbd1]

Thanks, Ms belp

 

Chris, very nice shot!!!!!

Thank you. Thank goodness for digital cameras. :) It took an obscene number of tries to get that shot :D . I actually got two "good" ones

[Dolphins]

Generally speaking, we prefer the Eastern Caribbean because they have less tender ports. Much prefer being able to walk ashore.

[ebkallen]

I prefer the Eastern Caribbean for one reason and one reason only-5 liters of duty free booze and 5 cartons of duty free smokes in St Thomas :D . If the ship isn't stopping in St Thomas, I ain't going :) . Though the ferry does go there, from Tortola ;) .

 

Where did you purchase the booze in St. Thomas? We purchased 13 bottles on our Gem cruise in April, right on the ship pretty good prices compared to what we pay here. Customs never asked if we bought any.

[terrymtex01]

I have to say we would choose Eastern over Western if we had an even choice.. only because we have been to Western a few times and Eastern only once. They are both equally beautiful IMHO, but different at the same time. WE LOVED the Cayo Laventado beach excursion in Samana.. Love Trunk Bay at St. John.. We are taking a Western Caribbean in October out of Miami on the Pearl but we are going to two places we have never been before.

 

No matter which you decide.. you will have a great time I am sure.

 

OH.. if you go to Eastern, you can't miss a trip to the Baths.. which I think is Virgin Gorda.. INCREDIBLE beach.

[Bocadude85]

Roatan is absolutely beautiful!! One of my favorite ports of call. Cave tubbing in Belize is a blast also.

[kontraxed]

Everyone has an opinion and here's mine!

 

We have done both the Eastern and Western Caribbean and have a strong preference for the Eastern trip. We made the mistake of wanting to wander through the port town at Belize and became so uncomfortable (afraid) that we quickly headed back to the ship. I understand the cave tubing was fun but stick to the shore excursions. Cozumel was nice for shopping but overall, we had an impression of poor towns with poor food - all scrambling hard for the tourist dollar with some pretty hokey (but expensive) shore excursions. We decided we wouldn't go back for a Western Caribbean cruise.

 

While some people might say the same about the Eastern Caribbean, our experience there was much more pleasant. Things seemed cleaner and safer. We enjoyed St. Maartens, St. Thomas and even Tortola so much that we are doing a similar cruise to see the things we missed the first time around.

 

Either way, I am sure you will have a good cruise!