This is my first time to cruise and we would like to go carribean. Can anyone tell me if there is any cheap cruise sites or which is the best cruise company to use? We have looked at Carnival but all of our friends have used Royal Carribean they seem a little more expensive but perhaps they are worth it to make the experience a good one!?

Aside from cheapness, what are you looking for in a cruise? Do you care where you go? What kind of experience are you looking for? I think it's important to book a ship and cruise line that fits with your personality and interests, so all of those are important. But if you are looking solely for a cheap cruise, then do that. Just realize that the price of the cruise isn't all-inclusive, and you will still have to pay for drinks and lot of other things on board. The cheaper the cruise line the more you typically have to pay for while on board the ship.

One of the least expensive cruise lines is Carnival. However, that means lots of kids and lots of singles. The rep as a "party boat" is quite accurate. We've been on 2 Carnival ships and wouldn't go on another one even if it was free. We found the food mediocore, service awful and the activites quite lame.

NCL is another low cost option. We like that they have free style dining and optional formal night(s). We don't care for dining with other passengers or getting all dressed up. We have been considering Alaska for several years, and NCL is the only cruise line in our price range that's offers the amentitites that we are looking for.

We have also been on Princess. It's was a very nice step up from Carinival. The food was wonderful and service was good. We had FF tickets to get to Ft. Lauderdale, which made the cruise less expensive. We found the alternate dining options for a surcharge not worth the money and our bar bill was outragous. We didn't care for the on board activites and the pools/hot tubs were crawling with kids as there was really nothing else for them to do.

We have avoided Royal Caribbean because they tend to cater to families/kids. If you are traveling with kids, then it's a very good option as most on board activites are geared for them.

I would sugguest getting a travel agent that specializes in cruises. They will help you decide on what ship/cruise line would best fit what you are looking for in a vacation. I like cruisesonly.com to compare prices. Also, cruisecritic.com has everything you ever wanted to know about cruising and is a great site for researching.

I definitely endorse the idea of using a knowledgable travel agent. You might save $50 per person by booking a cruise online by yourself, but the ability to know which cabin you're in and get some useful information is well worth the cost of a travel agent.

HI KVR A friend and I are going on a cruise with NCL in Feb to the western Carribean my first cruise and her 3rd but we are wondering about the free style dining in relation to dress? how casual is this ? I would be interested in any first hand info you have tks

NCL requires long pants in some of the surcharge restaurants and some are far nicer than others. It is a casual line all the way around.

We actually haven't been on NCL yet. If we can ever come up with the funds for a cruise to Alaska, then we are definatley booking NCL.

However, most resturants are going to require long pantsd and close toed shoes for men in the evening. I would say resort casual.

If you chose not to partispate in the formal night(s), then you won't get stuck at the buffet like other cruise ships.

The info looking forward to the cruise .