I am researching information on these two cruise ships to the Southern Carribean. <BR>These two ships leave from San Juan which is a little unconvenient for us since we live in Maryland. These were the only two Carnival ships that we could find that go to the Sourthern Carib. <BR>Any advise from previous travelers would be appreciated. Many thanks

We live in Fairfax, Va so we're not <BR>far from you. We plan to book the <BR>14 May 2000 cruise on the <BR>Inspiration-- there will be a full moon <BR>that week and a new southern <BR>caribbean itinerary. We have <BR>never been to the Southern <BR>Caribbean, but have been on <BR>Carnival previously. <BR>You didn't say when you plan to <BR>go on your cruise, but are you aware <BR>that starting November 1999, the <BR>Inspiration starts a new itinerary <BR>in the Southern Caribbean? If not, <BR>here it is: <BR>Sunday- depart San Juan 10PM <BR>Monday- St. Thomas 7AM-5PM <BR>Tuesday- St. Lucia Noon-7PM <BR>Wednesday- At Sea <BR>Thursday- Curacao 8AM-6PM <BR>Friday- Aruba 8AM-11PM <BR>Saturday- At Sea <BR>Sunday- arrive San Juan 7AM <BR>The Inspiration will alternate the <BR>itineraries each week, substituting <BR>Guadeloupe and Antigua for St. <BR>Lucia and Curacao. <BR>Flying to San Juan may be an <BR>inconvenience, but I look on it as <BR>another opportunity-- we plan to do <BR>a post-cruise overnight stay there <BR>and fly home on a Monday when <BR>the airport is much less crowded. <BR>There should be plenty of non-stop <BR>flights to San Juan-- won't have to <BR>go thru crazy Miami International! <BR>Have fun with your planning--- <BR>since we all are area residents, <BR>wouldn't it be nice to be on the same <BR>sailing and ship! <BR>Janice

Janice: Thanks for the info on the changes of "Inspirations" itiniary. <BR>Did you book your cruise on the web? <BR>How did you find this information? <BR>We are thinking of planning a Jan/Feb cruise. Many thanks for your reply. Hope you enjoy your cruise. Crystal

Crystal: all of the cruise lines have a web site. and thier sites will have all of the ships and itniarary. Royal Caribbean=rccl.com. Carnival=CCL.com Norweigian=ncl.com ect. also try cruiseopinion.com. actual peoples opinions on cruises by cruise lines. if you are looking for a great agent try Martin at Cruises Only 1-800-683-7447 ext 77553. he booked 16 cabins for my daughters wedding,(everything perfect) plus 5 other cruises we have taken. <BR>there are other cruises lines that do the s. caribbean as well.

Correction: Carnival web site is Carnival.com not ccl. sorry

Steve: <BR> Many thanks for the info and the help. <BR>Which cruise lines did you use? <BR>Of the 5 cruises you sailed, which was your favorite and why? <BR>

We just got back from a 8/25 cruise on the Inspiration from Virginia to Bermuda (a one time thing) and that is one lovely ship! It was my third cruise and we were in awe. I didn't expect much from a Carnival cruise and was delighted. Beautiful and elegant decor. The staff was uniformly wonderful and the food was excellent. It's a beautiful ship!!