Who Will Enjoy This Cruise
The Caribbean is a perfect destination for a family cruise, or reunion, for couples traveling together, for groups large and small, for a romantic destination wedding or honeymoon. It is truly a cruise for anyone and everyone. And all of the major cruise lines have developed offers and areas of their Caribbean cruise ships to enhance the type of cruise that is perfect for you. The cruise ships that go there and the ambiance each offers is diverse and you will definitely benefit from dealing with an agency that knows the differences between them.
Length Of Cruise Options Are Numerous
Just as you have many choices in ships and ports, the length of Caribbean cruise vacation you select will vary from 3 nights to 14 nights. The 3-4-5 night cruises will include only one or two stops as a rule and they are offered on the older ships. This does not mean that they are not super good fun and fabulous value because they are, and they are an outstanding way to try a cruise vacation for the first time to see if you will like it, and we know that you will. The longer sailings of 10+ nights are normally offered infrequently and on the smaller ships as a more leisurely, boutique way to see the islands. The vast majority of departures are for 7 night trips which gives you wonderful island experiences as well some great relaxing days at sea to enjoy your vessel.
Which Caribbean Cruise Itinerary Is Right For You?
Bright turquoise, crystal clear waters, powdered sugar white beaches; these are elements you will experience on every Caribbean cruise vacation. When considering this destination for our next vacation, you actually have four different trips that will take you to your tropical cruise vacation.
There is a group of ports that are considered part of any Eastern Caribbean cruise. This trip usually departs from Florida and visits three ports in a seven night cruise. The ports included in your trip will normally include three of the following, Nassau, St. Maartan St. Thomas, San Juan, the private island belonging to your selected cruise line, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti.
The Western Caribbean cruises depart not only from Florida, but New Orleans, Louisiana and Galveston, Texas, as well. There are far more departures to the Western Caribbean than the Eastern Caribbean, due to the weather factors. That we will explain in the next paragraphs. Among the stops, which number three or four to most seven night Western Caribbean cruise vacations are Key West, Turks and Caicos (a new stop for most cruise lines), Montego Bay or Ocho Rios, Jamaica, Grand Cayman, Roatan, Belize, Playa del Carmen and Cozumel in Mexico. This is an itinerary that regardless of the combination of ports will deliver a diverse cultural experience.
Southern Caribbean cruises usually depart from San Juan for a seven night cruise vacation, but in recent years some of the cruise lines have added longer, 10 and 11 night cruises that will depart from Florida. The longer duration allows these ships to reach the Caribbean islands that lie further to the south. Within this region there are usually two routes that are taken. Each is more port intensive than either the Western or Eastern itineraries. They usually make four or five stops in a seven night trip. Every stop is a tropical paradise and all of the islands, having been possessions of numerous European countries, have an interesting history to share with you. Ports used on this cruise itinerary include St. Thomas/St. Johns, St. Maartan, Antigua, Grenada, Barbados, Aruba, Curacao, Martinque, Dominique, Bonaire, St. Kitts, St. Barts, and coming soon stops will include St. Croix and Trinidad.
The last option for a Caribbean cruise vacation is fairly new. A number of the major cruise lines have a ship dedicated to service these warm waters, particularly for the Eastern US passenger by offering 9 to 12 night departures from New York City. The ports are focused on the East Coast US with a touch of some of the Eastern Caribbean ports.
When To Go To The Caribbean
The Caribbean is a year round cruise destination. The water is always deliciously warm, crystal clear to a hundred feet and the beaches and shopping beckon. There are more ships and departures to choose from in the winter and spring as during the summer months a portion of all cruise fleets are sent thru the Panama Canal, to the West Coast to spend the summer in the Alaskan waters. Some of the ships that winter in the Caribbean are also deployed to Europe to spend the summer. Even though this destination has a lot of attention paid to it year round it should be noted that the Caribbean is weather vulnerable during the hurricane season, June 1 – October 31 of each year. With schools being out and most people taking their vacations in summer, the weather concerns do not affect the many summer departures to choose from for your Caribbean cruise vacation.
This is also a popular destination for holiday celebrations, like Spring Break, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s. If you are considering a holiday cruise it is VERY important to contact us early as these departures ALWAYS sell out.
Choose From Large Or Small Ships
This is a destination that is serviced in vast majority by large cruise ships from the major cruise lines, Carnival Cruises, Cunard, Celebrity Cruises, Crystal Cruises ( in a limited number of sailings), Princess Cruises, Holland America, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, Norwegian Cruise Line. But you will also be able to enjoy a small ship Caribbean cruise vacation on Azamara Cruises, Oceania Cruises, Yachts of Seabourn, Windstar Cruises, and Regent Seven Seas Cruise Line.
The large ship cruise lines offer far more departures than the smaller ones, which tend to visit this region only in the winter when their ships are not needed to service their clients in Europe and the Asia.
Nonetheless, with all the possibilities you have for ship, and itinerary, a Caribbean cruise vacation is a fabulous choice not just for one trip, but time and time again without repeating the exact same experience.
Our cruise vacation rates are updated daily, but even then changes do occur. And some of our specials we cannot advertise on the internet, so ALWAYS call us to get the BEST RATE for your destination and date of travel you have in mind.