Rockysoap

Shopping, beverages for purchase and beach, Zipline. It was a nice walk around for a couple of hours. We chose to return to ship for lunch. We did purchase beverages while there, and didn' t find them anymore expensive than elsewhere. Nice shops, and a small enclosure with guided tour of local flora and fauna, free.

Thank you! This is exactly what I was looking for!

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Please Google Harvest Caye - it will answer many questions you have once you see it. The short answer to your questions is an absolute YES. Shopping, food, beaches are all there - and many other activities too such as snorkeling, zip lines, pool, etc. Again, do a bit of research (even on NCL's site) to see the pics and descriptions.

Thank you! I did some basic googling, but what I was having trouble figuring out was if these things were available if you just walked off the ship. Some reviews made reference to a ferry, and I just couldn't get a mental image of the layout. Especially since some reviews were complaining about lack of food. I was trying to determine if I had to sign up for something just to get a ferry ride to where there's actually stuff, or we could sign up for nothing, walk off the boat, and still have things to do. It sounds like it's the latter, which is wonderful news. :)

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I don't know why, but I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around how Harvest Caye works. From what I understand, it's a relatively new port, and the only excursions are the ones sponsored by the cruise line. So far, nothing has really stuck my fancy on the excursion list (at least not for the price points), but I can't stand the thought of going all the way to Belize and not even getting off the ship. I've only been on a cruise once, and it was MANY years ago, but I think I remember that at one port, we just got off and wandered around and did some shopping within walking distance without doing an actual excursion. Is that something we could do at Harvest Caye? Just wander around a bit? Is there any shopping? Restaurants? Open beaches? Or is there literally nothing there unless you do an excursion? The vibe I've picked up from reading is that it's the latter, but somehow I'm having a hard time believing that can be true...

Can anyone shed some light on this port?

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I would love to know the answer to this as well!

My husband and I are preparing for a trip on the Getaway, and we're trying to decide whether we want the promotional free drink package (since with gratuities it's far from free, we're really thinking it through). We both LOVE Inniskillin ice wine, which is advertised as being in the ice bar, which has a cover charge. Can you get ice wine at the other restaurants/bars on the ship as well? I know it would be an upcharge even with the drink package (most recent numbers I've seen is that it's $17.50 a glass, so an additional 2.50 out of pocket), but that's still way cheaper than paying for it by the glass anywhere else. We'll be really bummed if we buy this package and find out that we can't use it on the ice wine though. :(

Can anyone confirm the ice wine is available outside of the ice bar? Bonus points if you can give me an updated price on it, since what I saw is a couple years old! :D

Thank you for so many responses! This definitely helps me at least find a starting point, which is where I was floundering. I think part of my struggle is that we're flexible on most things you can "search" by (i.e., dates, cruise line, destination, etc.), and the things we care about tend to be more subtle.

 

--How important is good food to you?

 

--Do you gamble?

 

--Care about entertainment?

 

--Want the atmosphere formal or otherwise?

 

With a little more info, people can definitely help. The only mass market lines I haven't been on are Carnival (which you do NOT want to be on right now since they are failing regulations left and right) and Holland America.

In addition to what I listed before, I would say our wishlist probably goes in this order:

1. Comfortable room. I know it'll be small, so that's definitely relative. I'm not expecting a hotel room. We'll likely spend a lot of time hanging out on the balcony (we're definitely getting a balcony room) and just relaxing in the room, so it needs to be a room that is not miserable to stay in. My dream vacation is basically reading on a boat. :)
   
2. Good food where you're not being nickel-and-dimed for everything. We'd definitely prefer more of an all-inclusive setup. The food certainly doesn't have to be 5-star, but it should at least be enjoyable.
   
3. Relatively casual setup. We definitely don't want to have to dress up for dinner every night.
   
4. Decent entertainment (preferably not too vulgar - I know sometimes Carnival's entertainment is not exactly G-rated). I think we'd prefer shows as opposed to games or audience participation type events.
   
5. My husband would probably like for there to be some kind of gym or workout option.
   

We don't really have any interest in gambling. The list above is kind of my dream scenario - I know I might not get to check all of those boxes on the same cruise, and that's fine, but that's what we're looking for. :)

Again, I really appreciate all of the responses! I've felt like I'm stumbling around blind so far.

I apologize for posting such a general question, and especially if I am posting it in the wrong place. I'm sure this is something that has been addressed before, but I'm struggling to find a loose end of the knot to even start at!

I'm trying to plan a cruise for the first time, and there is so much information and so many options out there that I have planning paralysis. How do you even go about trying to get started? Here are our priorities:

• I know we (my husband and myself) want a balcony room
  
• We don't want a "partying" cruise
  
• We want a cruise line with a really strong record (regarding things like cruise ships functioning properly, illness outbreaks, etc.)
  
• Leaving from the US
  

I've read some reviews and hopped around to a few different websites, but there are so many different cruise lines, and then reviews seem like they vary so much from ship to ship even within the same cruise line. And then there is such a huge plethora of information from forums such as these. It seems like such a silly question, but... where do you start??? I'd appreciate any recommendations of sites or methods in trying to get this thing underway. :o

Thank you!