Where to Caribbean?
 

I'm planning a 7-day cruise at Caribbean, there will be two 70+, two 30+ and one 3+ for our first time Caribbean cruise.
Which part is better than the others? western, eastern or southern? Is there any "must see" or "must do" for the first timer? any ship recommandation?

Thanks!

What month are you planning to cruise in?

I was planng September. Later date is also possible if there is a good reason why.

Thanks!

September is the height of the hurricane season.

If you can, wait until next Spring. We went last to the W. Caribbean & were unable to stop in Key West due to a hurricane. We did the E. Caribbean this past April & with the exception of San Juan, the weather was spectacular.

Great bargains in Nov. and Dec.

Not holiday cruises.

We cruised in early Nov and only hit 2 small showers on our "at sea" days. We cruised Celebrity with a 22mo who did great. On Celebrity, they have more for ages 3+ than under 3. Every night for dinner, the maitre d' came to me and asked what my son wanted for the next night. I asked for something different every night and was never disappointed. Everyone on the ship was very tuned into the kids and made my son feel super special, which in turn made my husband and I feel good, which would lead us back to Celebrity again.
We haven't cruised since but have added another son who is a little more adventurous than his older brother but we're looking into a Disney cruise next Jan/Feb.

We almost always do a "hurricane" cruise. Great time of year, no kids on board, cruises are dirt cheap. You do take that storm chance, but generally if one hits, you aren't terribly affected. Do not cruise during Spring Break or summer unless you love groups of drunken college students and roaming high schoolers. Jan and Feb is my favorite cruise time to avoid kids and get away from the cold. Much cheaper than a Caribbean resort at that time, too. I prefer Western, because it seems calmer, but I go off the beaten path whenever we get off in port.

IMO the best ones are in January. If possible I also look for something which starts in San Juan. I see a lot more starting there than wasting time on "nothing" ports getting there.

Mightitrip - I've done 9 caribbean cruises, have done Eastern, Western and Southern Caribbean, being the Southern itinerary my favorite. Yes, September is hurricane season. But then again, hurricane season is from June to November, yet that doesn't stop people from cruising the Caribbean. Should there be a hurricane warning, the ship would simply change its route. I prefer the month of November, as I've taken two cruises during that month (never came across a hurricane), and must say that the weather is pretty good; it's not extremely hot (which is quite uncomfortable) and the rates are much, much cheaper. You might run into some rain, but not always.

I've used the following cruise lines: Costa, Royal Caribbean, Princess and Celebrity - my favorite being Princess and Celebrity. They all have good shows and food, but the last two are upscaled. In addition to when you want to go, it's important to decide where you want your departure from, and which islands you want to visit, as one ship might have 2 different itineraries for the Southern, Eastern or Western part.

I hope this information helps...

Thanks very much for all the help.
I decided to change the schedual to Nov. Just that I'll have to fly in to the port from west coast, that cost me another fortune...

I lean toward eastern sea for my very first time in caribbean, now i need more suggestion on the cruise line... Thanks.

I've cruised RCCL, Princess and Carnival and prefer the in that order. My Fav ships are RCCL's Navigator and Mariner. A smaller ship with great cruises is the Enchantment.

You're still taking a chance in November.

Have a good time.