Cruising in January 09
 

Has anyone cruised the Caribbean in January? We're considering a Celebrity or Holland Amer cruise to the Bahamas, St Maarten, etc.

Really want a quiet vacation - no 20 somethings going nuts all night.
Any advice?

Thanks.

We've been on 3 cruises, but not in January. Pick a higher end cruise ship that young adults can not afford to book on in order to avoid them. The Bahamas may be a little to cool to enjoy any beach or water activities in January.

Personally, we did not like the cruise experience. We felt like herded cattle and our on board ship credit account was outragous considering they nickle and dime you to death.

Remember Nassau is not that far from Miami so the weather is the same - it can be cold there in January. But in St. Maartin the weather is warm & great.
All of our cruises have been quiet -you can always find quiet places on the ship, haven't really seen/heard bunches of any ages going nuts ever. Maybe one or two who had too much to drink but you can laugh at them.
If you go on a short cruise, 3-5 days, you will find younger people as they can't afford 7 days. Cruises longer than 7 days have more older people as they can take the tine off to cruise.
I'd sugest 7 days on Celebrity, Princess or Royal Carribean. Holland Amarica has more older people than most other lines.

My suggestions are the "Windsurf" (Windstar cruises) or the "Royal Clipper"(Star Clipper cruises). And I agree that the northern part of the Caribbean can still be cool in Jan.

Try the Southern routes instead.
The sailing on both of those ships is great. They only hold 250-300 passengers, so no long lines, but still alot of luxury.

After 4 sailings on these lines, we've never seen kids or rowdy parties on any of them. It's a much classier crowd. And you don't have to "dress" for dinner--country club casual is the rule.

If you don't mind a smaller vessel they both have 2 ships each that hold only 150 passengers.

www.windstarcruises.com
www.starclippers.com

Check it out, these have been some of our best vacations.

We sailed on the Windstar in late January in the Southern Caribbean and it was fantastic. There are alot of cruises that begin and end in Barbados. Smaller ships are better for a more peaceful vibe. The weather was great at that time.

check out cruises that leave from san juan, puerto rico. you start in a warm spot and the rates are lower to the more southern islands.

We did a Jan. Southern Caribbean cruise on Celebrity a few years ago originating out of San Juan.

I SWORE I would never go on another cruise in my life, but am now planning... a Jan. Southern Caribbean cruise on Celebrity originating out of San Juan. :((

Sigh. Mother In Law, Mother in Law!!! Tra la la. :[

It really wasn't THAT bad. It was quiet and there weren't any 20-somethings on board. In fact, I was in my early 40's at the time, and I was one of the youngest people on board.

Do agree to keep to the Southern islands that time of year though.

Check out the Celebrity Galaxy for January 9. A 10 day cruise with lots of great ports for an unbeatable price. I paid $1616 total for cruise only for 2 for an outside cabin.