<p>We’re off on a Celebrity cruise over the holidays. We have done Royal Caribbean most often before and one Carnival. My older kids love Carnival as they have their right tag line…it’s a party ship. Royal Caribbean has been good and constant but our kids are older and we’re going for Celebrity. Somewhat, I wanted a trip over the holidays that had enough days at sea that they could sleep until noon and days at port to explore.
My word of advice, don’t always go on the ships excursions. If you go on cruisecritic dot com you can see different excursions by other companies then the cruise line that are fabulous. We’ve been to a lot of the ports and the ports almost all have the same stores (at least in the Caribbean) so we stopped shopping. We take private boats out for the day to snorkel and hang out with our kids instead of being with hundreds of others.
Explore the ship, enjoy and it’s great unpacking once and seeing different places.</p>
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<p>On Holland America’s private island of Coco Cay, they cook the food right in front of you. Granted, nothing fancy… chicken, burgers, and dogs. This is a beautiful setting in the Bahamas and overall it gets good reviews by its visitors on cruisecritic.com.</p>
<p>I am going on my first cruise in February with my sister. Can anyone give me an idea of how much money to take along? I have no idea who to tip or even how much. It’s with Carnival.</p>
<p>also, if we are going shopping in the town when the cruise stops, do we need to trade in our money or do they take american dollars?</p>
<p>I’ve been on three cruises, one with my kids on Celebrity about 10 years ago out of Miami that went to Key West, Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Cozumel and Progreso, Mexico. The port I most wanted to visit was Grand Cayman and we were there on a rainy and nasty day, the ship was able to dock although not actually in-port and we took a tender but it was rough sea. I went on a ten day cruise on Holland America that goes into the Panama Canal. That was interesting and we had great weather but this was Feb.2009 and you could feel the effects of the economic downtown as the ship was short-staffed. Back then on both those cruises there was only fixed dining option in addition to the buffet, which to me gets tedious. This June we went on Alaska cruise from Vancouver on Princess and I really enjoyed the non-traditional dining options, you could select any of four dining rooms and dine at your convenience. For breakfast on all cruises I always select the main dining room as opposed to the buffet although on all cruise ships for breakfast they do fill up tables with people and that is generally okay. Try to avoid the cruise excursions if you can as they are overpriced. We did do one on Panama Canal cruise when we had one day stop in Costa Rica as I was concerned about hiring someone from a website not getting us back to the ship for departure. It was fine but overpriced for what it was, a trip to a national park to see wildlife… sort of like a glorified Disney Jungle Cruise. On the first trip with kids, we picked up a local cab driver to go to beach in Cozumel. Whatever ship you select, get some Caribbean guidebooks for additional research or check Fodors.com… bear in mind that the port stops can be short and for the most part, they dock where it is all about shopping and most shops are owned by the cruise lines themselves. I am not a great cruiser but I did enjoy the Alaska cruise and would like to do a Bermuda cruise out of New York sometime.</p>
<p>Always go for the newer boats if you can. It makes a huge difference, no matter the cruise lines. You might have heard bad things about Carnival, but if you stick with the newer boats, it’s a totally different experience.</p>
<p>We love NCL. Their boats are big on entertainment, food is excellent. We like the eat when you want seating, and it’s a very casual line. Get to watch the Blue Man Group (those guys are ridiculous), Howling at the Moon dualing pianos, great comedians, Second City…all for free. Fairly upscale for a pretty good price. We’ve been on RCL, Princess, Carnival, and they didn’t compare. Then again, we haven’t been on their newer mega boats.</p>
<p>Fendergirl:</p>
<p>The tips will be billed to your room number and you will need to pay by credit card or cash when you leave the ship. All the islands take American $ so you do not have to worry about changing over the money at all.</p>
<p>OP: PM me if you need the name of a good national cruise travel agent. Prices through them are better because of the volume of business that they do. Try to do research ahead of time and narrow down maybe three choices and then you can call them for the best rates. </p>
<p>As I’ve said on other threads, my H & I have been on 6 cruises, 1 around Hawaii, 1 to Alaska, and 4 to different parts of the Caribbean with a few island overlaps. We decided on where to go based on the cruises itineraries for the weeks that we needed to take our vacation. We love cruising but need a break of them for now since they all have been within the last 7 or 8 years or so, almost one per year.</p>
<p>We loved each island for different reasons. We loved each experience except the ones that involved Mexico. Just our opinion. Good luck!</p>
<p>Thanks cookie (love your name) - also, my sister said she was told we should basically turn off our phones so that we’re not inclined to text our way into a 2k bill - does that sound about right?</p>
<p>Just for the record, CCL (Carnival Cruise Lines) owns ship names including Carnival, Princess, Holland America, NCL, Costa, and Seabourne. Royal Caribbean (RCCL) is not owned by Carnival. Counting RCCL, I’ve cruised on 4 of these and don’t find the food appreciably superior/inferior between Carnival, Princess, Holland America, and Royal Caribbean. I agree with others with teens that say their kids liked Carnival. My 22 and 19 year old love Carnival! To me, the main difference is who they market themselves to, cabin configurations, the onboard entertainment, and the overall look of the ships. When we cruised the Eastern Caribbean a few months back on Holland America we did not have any adult-themed comedy shows, which we greatly missed, but there were ballroom style bands-- so that was a plus over CCL. I find the cabins on RCCL a little smaller than on CCL corp. ships.</p>
<p>Fender girl>. Get your cell phone set up for international calls in case of an emergency during the duration of the cruise. Don’t plan on using it because it is very expensive. If someone needs to get in touch with you they can contact the cruise line and they will get a message to you. My H had to use the ships email and his cell phone during our cruises because we have our own business. The costs were exorbitant, but he had to get in touch each day. My kids phones were brought (just in case of some emergency), but put away.</p>
<p>sportsmom, we loved our Princess cruise to Alaska, too! While NCl is big on advertising their anytime dining, Princess also does that very well. We had a window table for 2 every night and we just loved that. I also love that Princess let’s you bring cabin wine on board no questions asked because I really love sitting on our balcony at sail away with some munchies and wine and I like having a glass in the cabin before heading to bed. Not many lines let you do that anymore or they charge a fee to bring wine on board. I get a bottle of wine with dinner and all the lines will cork it for you for the next night. Jeesh, I sound like a wino LOL. </p>
<p>I like Cozumel but I’ve been there 3 times so no more. Only once on a cruise ship. We did not like Jamaica. Grand Cayman was nice, but the beach wasn’t as nice as some of them in Northern Michigan so it didn’t “wow” us…it was just a lovely day. Our favorite beach was in Progresso…a lovely really un-touristy place and a great day at the beach. I think, looking back, that St. Marten was by favorite island in the Caribbean but that was in 1997 so who knows what it is like today. The first time I went to Cozumel in 1987 it was very, very different than the last time I went a few years ago…way more touristy now than in the 80s.</p>
<p>In terms of the cell phone usage, check with your carrier for Cellular at Sea. We had AT&T and were able to set it up for no additional cost due to our grandfathered plan. IIRC texting was $.50 per message. Signal strength varied, but we were able to text as needed to track each other down without running into too many $$. We have dumb phone so didn’t worry about internet etc. Also while you are in port, rates may be lower than at sea. In St. Thomas and Puerto Rico, you are in the United States so should be covered by your regular plan. Just be careful to check the carrier when your phone connects. If you’ve set up an international plan, Mexican ports have fairly low costs too. Once you know the ship and ports, talk to your carrier to see what they can set up.</p>
<p>Good advice here, and I also recommend cruisecritic dot com. </p>
<p>Packing: Number one rule: Pack half of what you think you’ll need. Taking a lot of mix-and-match separates means you can wear items several times. Take one pair of fabulous shoes for the dining room, and comfortable shoes for everything else; you’re going to be doing a lot of walking. Take a sweater/shawl/wrap for the notoriously chilly dining room. Fill a zip-lock bag with all of the over-the-counter meds you might need. The on-board shop doesn’t carry a full array, and the ones they do have are expensive.</p>
<p>Seasickness: There are 3 different approaches – medications, wrist bands, and ginger including ginger candy. There’s no way to tell in advance which will work best for you, so take all three along (they’re cheap). For best results, begin using before you get on board. They don’t interact, so you can use all 3 at once. </p>
<p>Ports: If you have a particular excursion in mind, book it the minute you get on-board. The popular ones go fast. You don’t HAVE to book excursions at every port, though. One of the best port days we ever spent was just wandering around the area on foot. Also, if you don’t like crowds, you can actually stay on the ship during a port day. You’ll have the place practically to yourself.</p>
<p>Shows: Do catch the some of the shows in the evening. They’re free and great fun.</p>
<p>Insurance: Check with your health insurance company about your international coverage. If they don’t provide complete coverage, including medical transport back home, then purchase trip insurance.</p>
<p>Fly in the day before. If your flight is late, they will not hold the ship for you. If your luggage is delayed, the extra day may give it time to catch up with you before you board. </p>
<p>For those wondering about spending money, it’s really up to you. All the basics are included in your fare, except for tips which you can put on your credit card. You could conceivably get away with paying nothing at all beyond that. The extras that can really add up are excursions, shopping (on-board or in port), spa/salon, lounge/bar, and casino. If you don’t set up some kind of budget in advance, it can get away from you.</p>
<p>In my opinion, excursions are a bloated cost that can be avoided if you are on a budget unless you are the type of person that really enjoys the “group” activity or is fearful in a “strange” place. I feel the same way about the spa, but then again that’s just me - I’m not really a spa person and H and I love to go off on our own when we are off the ship so we’ve never taken an excursion. </p>
<p>But absolutely, fly in the day before or a few days before if you can afford to do so. It is so much more relaxing not to be worried about flights and if you are living out of a location you’ve never visited before it’s an opportunity to see a new place in your own country.</p>
<p>What about wifi? Do any of these boats have that? I’m bringing my IPad anyway for some of my reading…just wondering.</p>
<p>We are going on a RC eastern carribean cruise out of Baltimore that leaves Jan 5. I don’t know where it goes…and I don’t really care. It will be
relaxing regardless of the island. We have NOT booked any excursions. They are quite pricey, and I’m not sure I see the need. I will, however, book some kind of spa thing…probably a massage.</p>
<p>Thumper - you’re going to be on the Enchantment - our last cruise. I really enjoyed that ship; it was just the right size for a relaxation without getting boring. </p>
<p>Ships do generally have WIFI but it can get expensive very quick and often has low bandwidth - see what they say at cruiscritic about your ship. Another option is to find an internet cafe while in port. Again the other cc can give advice on that. </p>
<p>We’ve only booked ship excursions if it was something we really wanted to do and reviews were positive. The only issue with St. Thomas, IIRC, is that traffic back to the docks gets very busy later in the day so allow plenty of time. We did a turtle snorkling trip in the morning, and took the jitney over to Magen’s Bay in the afternoon. Haven’t been to the other ports.</p>
<p>I think we paid around $50.00 for 1 hour of internet usage on our last cruise. I recall it being around a buck a minute. They offer various packages for internet access. I do remember that it took about 6 minutes to log on each time. I lodged a complaint with the internet manager about this and he credited us some minutes.</p>
<p>:-) I clear my calendar at work, tell people at work I am legitimately unavailable and unreachable, put my cellphone in the cabin safe and don’t bring a laptop. I take cruises every three or four years just because they are so ‘disconnecting’ from life. Clearly there are some people who know where we are and how to reach us if there were a family emergency but the rest of the world…goodbye for that week or so.</p>
<p>Regarding wi-fi, if you have a hotspot device or your phone is a hotspot you might have internet connectivity when you are docked depending on your location on the ship and the port.</p>
<p>I picked up a tip here to check Costco.com for booking our trip to Alaska this past June and they were great to deal with, answered several questions by phone and gave us each a shipboard credit of $75.00 and that was nice as it covered wine with dinner for pretty much the entire cruise. We did not book any excursions through the ship or use any spa services that could be charged to the room. For Alaska, you are in U.S. so no problem when in port to use regular cellphone. We had a week in Vancouver prior and so I enabled both phones via ATT&T for Canada coverage. Once you book the cruise, check with your carrier to see about plans. Internet access on ship is expensive and as others have indicated sometimes very slow connection. On Princess Alaska cruise, there was a set amount of tip charge per passenger that was added to our bill and so we did not feel need for extra tipping. On HAL, we had very poor service across the board so did not have to worry about tipping back in 2009. On Celebrity, back in 2002, we did tip by cash to cabin attendent, waiter for fixed seating and maitre’d. Whatever you decide to do, just read the information carefully and you will know what the policies are.</p>
<p>Fendergirl:</p>
<p>I would not use your cell phone to text at all. If you need to contact someone you are traveling with on the ship, you can call their room to leave a message, you can bring walkie talkies, which work out okay in a pinch, and you can actually write a note to someone and leave it in their room or their outside the room in their room’s “mailbox”.</p>
<p>OP: if this is your first cruise, taking one of the cruise sponsored excursions may be okay, but they really are quite expensive. We’ve taken several cruise sponsored excursions at the beginning, but soon found there really is no need. If you research each island a little bit ahead of time, you will have an idea of how you want to spend your day on the island. Whether it be water activities, sightseeing, shopping or beach. My family enjoys a little bit of each, so we plan ahead of time what we will do on each island…if it’s just sightseeing then there are a whole bunch of taxi cabs lined up at each port and they will take you to wherever you want to go, including sightseeing, shopping or beaches. They will drop you off and pick you up at a certain time. They are all aware of what time you need to be back to the ship. They sometimes even take you to places that the cruise sponsored excursions don’t go to…that’s when it becomes fun because you see parts of the island that only the locals know. The price sometimes is a flat rate for so many hours, or if it is by person it is always much more reasonable than the cruise excursions.</p>
<p>PS: Although I have a tendency to get car/air sickness on a rare occasion, I have never had sea sickness on a ship. It’s probably a good idea to be prepared, though, just in case. Don’t forget your passport! :)</p>
<p>Thanks for all the advice and the PMs! We chose a Norwegian Eastern Caribbean cruise that doesn’t stop at as many ports as I’d like, but the tradeoff is that we get to relax on the ship a bit more. We ended up using a local travel agent who had been very helpful.</p>
<p>In terms of keeping in touch, one of my concerns is elderly parents who are used to receiving regular phone calls/emails from us. I know the ship has an internet cafe and we can purchase minutes…any advice re phone calls, emails etc? I read a suggestion online that we could search for an internet cafe in port, but am not convinced that’s the best use of our time.</p>