14 night cruise from FLL on the Oosterdam - two shorter cruises back to back?

I like to plan pretty far ahead. Been thinking of a 10+ night cruise from Florida in 2019. I am looking for 'per night' good prices. HAL's Oosterdam looks very good, priced below our other favorite lines; Celebrity and Princess. However, I note that the Oosterdam's itinerary includes Fort Lauderdale as an intermediate stop (0700-1700). That sounds like a passenger swap to me. So I wonder if this 14 night cruise is actually two 7 day cruises? The price is nice, and the itinerary is okay accepting that FLL is one of the "port visits", but we normally prefer the longer cruises because we find many less children and young adults. We are old farts, what can I say?;p

We have sailed on Oosterdam before and she is a fine ship. The other cruise I am researching is also out of FLL, the Celebrity Reflection or Silhouette (on which we sail January 2018), but those are 13 night cruises....also with attractive prices.

Anyone have any thoughts on this? We've visited all the ports on these cruises, and they both have four sea days (we like 'em), so it might just come down to price......but I would like to get that extra night! But, if the Oosterdam's itinerary includes a passenger/food/luggage swap with all that "excitement", I think that might be enough reason to not choose this itinerary.....

It most likely is two shorter cruises packaged as a Collector's Cruise. Try searching the same dates but for 7 day cruises. That will tell you for sure.

Yes, it's definitely 2 back to back cruises. I personally don't see what the big deal is about coming back to Ft. Lauderdale and letting some passengers off and letting others embark. You can just stay in your cabin, hang out in the Crow's Nest, or test your land legs by getting off the ship and doing some shopping or sightseeing in town.

Roz

Many of HAL's Carribean cruises are B2B's that are sold as either a shorter cruise or a longer cruise. The one you are looking at looks like 2 7days B2B.. They also do a 10 and 11 day B2B for a 21 day cruise.

13 days on Reflection also sounds nice. You can't go wrong either way.

Ken

It is two 7 days combined. When you consider this type of cruise, you do have to watch your pricing.

First, what is the fare for the 14 day vs the 2, 7 days?

Second, if you own CCL you will get $250 in OBC for 14 days vs $100 for each of the 7 day ones (total $200).

Third, if you have Future cruise Deposits, you MIGHT get a bit less in OBC for the 14 day (depends on your cabin category).

I do agree that the turnaround day in Fort Lauderdale is a negative with all the confusion. Not a huge deal though.

The cruise you are looking at is really a Collector's Cruise -- made up of 2 seven day cruises where you do go back to Ft Lauderdale.

You will have to go through immigration -- usually around 10 AM. You will get a letter explaining what to do. And you may or may not have to attend a 2nd lifeboat drill.

We've done a few of these before. Only downside is that shows, outdoor movies and menus are usually the exact same ones for the second leg as they were for the first leg. But on the upside, it gives you the chance to try menu items that were your second choices the first 7 days or that you'd like to have again. Also you can see shows or movies that you missed the first time around. We like the extra cruise days. Just be sure you get to stay in the same cabin for both legs.

The disadvantage is that you’ll have more kids on board with 2 seven day cruises.

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The disadvantage is that you’ll have more kids on board with 2 seven day cruises.

 

 

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I was going to say the same thing.

There's yet another caveat (in addition to the kids and the "in transit" annoyances):

And that's the possibility of a group on either or both of the 7-day cruises. Many of the 7-day Caribbean cruise have booked groups aboard. Ranging from the nearly invisible ones to the large ones severely impacting the use of the dining room or other venues.

Anyone contemplating a 7-day combo or "collector" Caribbean cruise would do well to cross-check the dates with CJCruzer's EXCELLENT work:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2532374

Just sayin'

Thanks for all the wonderful feedback, ya'll! You told me exactly what I needed to hear. Sounds like a Celebrity (or other) 12+ night plus cruise will be it should be do a longer cruise from FLL. There are too many negatives, minor though they might be, on the HAL cruise to justify (IMO) the nicer ship.

I was not aware of the benefit of "ownership" of CCL stock....I have no individual stock, but maybe I do in one of my mutual funds. That's a nice discount. We usually sale once a year from NOLA on their 7 days cruises, which right now is NCL and CCL. We actually prefer the former, but CCL's prices have been significantly less the last few years. Owning a few shares of CCL might be a smart thing to do......I will have to research the details.

Thanks for the help; it is really appreciated!

Thanks for all the wonderful feedback, ya'll! You told me exactly what I needed to hear. Sounds like a Celebrity (or other) 12+ night plus cruise will be it should be do a longer cruise from FLL. There are too many negatives, minor though they might be, on the HAL cruise to justify (IMO) the nicer ship.

 

I was not aware of the benefit of "ownership" of CCL stock....I have no individual stock, but maybe I do in one of my mutual funds. That's a nice discount. We usually sale once a year from NOLA on their 7 days cruises, which right now is NCL and CCL. We actually prefer the former, but CCL's prices have been significantly less the last few years. Owning a few shares of CCL might be a smart thing to do......I will have to research the details.

 

Thanks for the help; it is really appreciated!

I hear you about longer cruises. We started with 7 day, then went to 10,11 day. Then Did a panama canal at 17 then did a 30 day to Hawaii, Tahiti. We did one 18 day thru the panama canal (Christmas, never again) last year we did a 42 day to the med to and from ft Lauderdale. For next year I am looking at a Baltic and put a hold on a 14 day cruise and dh said. "You know it is only 14 days. It sounds awful short to me". So now I am researching a Baltic with more days. There are advantages and disadvantages. On longer cruises the passengers tend to be older and the night time activities tend to be quieter, which is good for us as we are not "party people"! Good luck and I hope you find a cruise you will be very happy with.

I hear you about longer cruises. We started with 7 day, then went to 10,11 day. Then Did a panama canal at 17 then did a 30 day to Hawaii, Tahiti. We did one 18 day thru the panama canal (Christmas, never again) last year we did a 42 day to the med to and from ft Lauderdale. For next year I am looking at a Baltic and put a hold on a 14 day cruise and dh said. "You know it is only 14 days. It sounds awful short to me". So now I am researching a Baltic with more days. There are advantages and disadvantages. On longer cruises the passengers tend to be older and the night time activities tend to be quieter, which is good for us as we are not "party people"! Good luck and I hope you find a cruise you will be very happy with.

Yes, we are attracted to the longer cruises for the same reason you were. However, our longest ones are still 15 days and under. We are retired, so have plenty of time to do longer, but never done one. Maybe sometime in the future........

Be prepared. You will be required to get off the ship during the second boarding time for a few hours. No staying cozy in your cabin all day. They offer shore excursions for B2B passengers, or you can take a cab downtown and walk around.

The Veendam has 14 day itineraries that do not go back to FLL until the end of the cruise. They are budget friendly.

Thanks. Although we prefer the HAL ships over most others, there are enough negatives to a BtoB that we won't be doing one.

Thanks. Although we prefer the HAL ships over most others, there are enough negatives to a BtoB that we won't be doing one.

I do not like the idea either. In my experience, the first night of any cruise is a bit hectic and some things do not run as smoothly as the other nights (i.e some elevators out of service due to luggage handling, MDR service slow, muster drills, etc.), and on the B to B you end up with 2 of these. Same goes for the day before disembarkation.

The only positive thing is that, depending on how the ship is scheduled, you might have fewer people embarking and disembarking with you.

Further, as already noted, the guest "make up" is quite different vs a normal 14 day cruise.

Good points, Dave. Given the right price, I would still do a b2b. ;)

Roz