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Seriously Could Use Some Ideas for a "Special" Cruise in December 2019


Rosethorn40
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I realize that most of the cruise lines haven't released their itineraries for late 2019, but I am looking for suggestions for a cruise/trip in December 2019 to celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary.

 

We like to celebrate milestone birthday's and anniversaries by doing something a little different from previous experiences. Some past trips have included:

 

1st Anniversary B&B Weekend at Cape May, NJ

5th Anniversary Western Caribbean cruise: First time on HAL (Loved it) first time to W. Caribbean, first time to stay in a cabin category that had the word "Suite" attached.

10th Anniversary Christmas Markets River Cruise: First European river cruise, 2nd time Europe

 

DH's 50th B-Day 14-day Caribbean

DH's 60th B-Day 7-day Caribbean, but stayed in a Havana Cabana Suite on the Carnival Vista

 

We do have some limitations; DH will be close to 64 and just isn't as young as he use to be, no zip lines, climbing mountains, or hand-gliding over volcanos.

Neither one of us is retired so 2-weeks is probably the max number of days we can be gone.

 

I've been kicking around Tahiti or South America, but if 2018 is anything to go by, the pickings will be slim for December 2019. So any suggestions for a destination or cruise line?

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Probably not Alaska in December ;p !

 

Nor the Mediterranean either!!

 

We did South America for our special birthdays and it was absolutely amazing. The ports were so different, the wildlife fantastic and the scenery out of this world. Princess used to do cruises at that time of year

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For a really special cruise in December, I would do Panama Canal and Costa Rica on a small ship like Windstar or Uncruise. Most of the cruises are 7 or 8 days so you could add some time on land in Costa Rica and still be under 2 weeks. (You mentioned age and "no zip-lining" etc. - are stairs okay? The ships that Windstar and Uncruise have on this itinerary for Dec 2018 don't have elevators, but they only have 4 passenger decks. A Windstar ship with an elevator did some sailings of the itinerary in 2017 so maybe it will be back in 2019).

Edited by new_cruiser
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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...

How about cruising Japan? We love Japan although we haven't cruised there. Hubby just turned 60 and we are fairly healthy - no zip-lining needed ;). Princess Cruises has their 2019 spring itinerary up and going for a look: https://www.princess.com/find/searchResults.do?trade=K&date=0319,0419,0519,0619,0719,0819,0919,1019

 

Okay, maybe not December but does it have to be in that month? Or do you especially want the perks that come with having your actual special date fall during the cruise itself?

How about a NatGeo cruise to Antarctica? that's on my dreamlist. http://www.nationalgeographicexpeditions.com/expeditions/antarctica-cruise/detail

Edited by canadjineh
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In 2004, we visited Tahiti aboard the "Paul Gauguin" (small ship which holds just a few hundred passengers) to celebrate the year that one of us turned 50 and the other 60. First cruise and loved it. It was a one week cruise that stopped at several islands and then we added on a second week on one of the islands that the cruise did not visit. We splurged on an over-water bungalow but there are other choices if that is not in the budget or does not appeal to you. We were traveling from the Northeast, so wanted to stay for two weeks to make the most of the long flights. Too far for just one week.

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  • 1 month later...

Thanks for the really great suggestions! Of the major cruise lines, only Celebrity really seemed to know what they were doing in the second half of 2019. The front runner was a South American cruise on The Eclipse.....but yesterday I stumbled across a 9-day cruise out of Sydney on the Solstice that goes to the South Pacific; islands in New Caledonia and Vanuatu, an area of the world that I don't know much about (But I Googled, and it looks like paradise). Pricing is very attractive (Lower than South America), so we are going to try Aqua Class.

 

Of course its early yet, so its all subject to change.:D

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  • 2 months later...

Great choice.

In 2017 for a special cruise we did a re-positioning from Sydney to Singapore with lots of stops up the east coast Australia. We loved it so much we are going back in March 2019 and doing the islands you mention also out of Sydney.

We are doing 12 day-trip on Explorer. We are traveling from the UK so it’s a long journey which I think you will have as well but it will be worth it. However, you mention only 2 weeks available. That should be fine but its a long way to go for only 2 weeks and it will take you a couple of days or so at each end to get over the jet lag. but certainly do-able.

I am also still working but stretching our trip to three weeks (I have gave my boss 12 months warning !) and staying over a few days in Hong Kong on the way back to break up the trip.

Good luck with your final choice.

PS: I have never been to any of the islands you mention so that will be a first for us.

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I would consider 2019 to be a celebratory year and not worry about December being the actual date. By focusing on December you are limiting your options. Why not determine where you want to go and then figure out when to go. After all, you will be married the entire year, so why not celebrate when and where you want. Also consider a more upscale line than you would ordinarily cruise. A smaller, more intimate ship perhaps?

 

Regarding DH being 64 and not be as young as he used to be, here's some wisdom. No one is as young as he used to be.

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I realize that most of the cruise lines haven't released their itineraries for late 2019, but I am looking for suggestions for a cruise/trip in December 2019 to celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary.

 

We like to celebrate milestone birthday's and anniversaries by doing something a little different from previous experiences. Some past trips have included:

 

1st Anniversary B&B Weekend at Cape May, NJ

5th Anniversary Western Caribbean cruise: First time on HAL (Loved it) first time to W. Caribbean, first time to stay in a cabin category that had the word "Suite" attached.

10th Anniversary Christmas Markets River Cruise: First European river cruise, 2nd time Europe

 

DH's 50th B-Day 14-day Caribbean

DH's 60th B-Day 7-day Caribbean, but stayed in a Havana Cabana Suite on the Carnival Vista

 

We do have some limitations; DH will be close to 64 and just isn't as young as he use to be, no zip lines, climbing mountains, or hand-gliding over volcanos.

Neither one of us is retired so 2-weeks is probably the max number of days we can be gone.

 

I've been kicking around Tahiti or South America, but if 2018 is anything to go by, the pickings will be slim for December 2019. So any suggestions for a destination or cruise line?

 

Consider Los Angeles / San Francisco / Vancouver - Hawaii. 15 days, lots of them

sea days (if that is a plus or minus). LA and SF differ only by the number of hours

you spend in Encinada to get the "foreign port" required by the Passenger Service

Act. Carnival, HAL, Princess, Celebrity, NCL, RCI, ..., ... all make the run. HAL or

Princess might be good matches.

 

If you'd rather not do sea days, NCL's Pride of America is American-flagged so has

been doing 7-night, all-in-Hawaiian-waters cruises with 5 ports of call forever.

 

 

PS: If you'd been hang-gliding over Kīlauea today, your feet would be ...toasty. :o

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