1st time cruiser for wedding.. need help!

[thisisnk23]

hello, i'm a newbie to this site and it has been great! I am going to be a first time cruiser and we are planning on going on a cruise that stops at st. thomas for our wedding.. I've been over to the wedding board and they have been great there.. but I was just wondering if anyone had any recommendations on cruise lines.. we are both in our mid 20's and I was thinking that since this is our wedding/honeymoon all in one that an adults only cruise would be a good idea.. anyone have any input on this?? There are just so many cruise lines and so many ships out there that it is overwhelming! Also, any recommendations on what type of cabin to get would also be very helpful! Thanks a lot!

[williamsk]

Hi,

Typically there are very few cruises without kids. That being said, for the most part they aren't as disruptive as you would think since cruise ships are huge and often have children's programs that take them out of the general fray.

 

In general, if you avoid Disney, NCL, and Carnival you will probably encounter less children. Incidently, it seems as if the less children there are, the older the average age... so research your cruise line to try to get a nice balance. It also depends on your style- formal vs informal, heavy drinker vs. nondrinker, and time of year (summer and spring break are child heavy times).

 

Katie

[yogi2929]

Have another plan if the ship isn't able to dock in St Thomas.

[Cruisin' Chick]

Out of nine cruises, we've only had problems with unruly children on only one cruise, and they were all from the same extended family with parents who could not that their kids were running around unsupervised. The rest of the kids were well-behaved and most likely, like my 8-yr-old, were busy with the kids' program (my girl says she never saw any of these kids in the kids' rooms).

 

All in all, I rather be on a cruise with 1000 well-behaved kids than with 50 adult jerks.

 

But if it is important for you, then you should consider:

1) cruiselines such as Regent, Crystal, Silverseas, Azmara, Cunard. They are higher priced and not know for having much of a kids' program.

2) going on a cruise that's longer than two weeks. Most likely very few kids of school age, unles they are homeschooled.

3) going during late September thru mid-November, mid-January through mid-February, late April through mid-May. Most likely fewer kids as most will be in school.

[trish1c]

There are very few adult only cruises. To minimize children stay away from Disney & school breaks. Longer cruises also have fewer kids.

Crusing to an island wedding sounds lovely but what's plan B? If you read your cruise documents the line can divert you for any reason & you are not guarenteed any port. There was a huge brew-ha-ha on the news several years ago when a ship bound for Bermuda out of NYC was diverted to Canada due to a hurricane. The couple had a hundred people waiting for them at their "wedding" which they totally missed.

I had a secretary a few years back who did a cruise wedding. She does not recommend it. All of your guests will be on board with you & will essentially be on your honeymoon with you. They didn't get a moment of alone time.

It can be lovely but you need to understand where possible problems can arise so you can avoid / minimize them.

[jmf123]

Congratulations! You may want to check out Royal Caribbean's Royal Romance department. One of my best friends got married a couple of years ago on St. Thomas ('Serenade of the Seas' sailing, beautiful ship!) on the beach at Magen's Bay. Go to royalcaribbean dot com/royalromance and click on 'celebrations', then the all important 'Wedding Guidelines'. Or call Royal Romance at (888) WED-RCCL. (933-7225), Mon. thru Fri. 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. EST. Photography and videography services are also available.

[6rugrats]

I see from your post on the Wedding forum you planning to get married in July. You will probably have many children onboard almost any cruiseline but the most expensive, as it's summer vacation.

 

Agree with having a backup plan in place. Hurricane season in the Caribbean runs from June 1 through Nov 30. If you cannot make your port because of bad weather, you will come home without a wedding.

[thisisnk23]

Thanks everyone for the replies so far! I am not opposed to having kids on the cruise, I just haven't cruised before and I wasn't sure what it would be like going on a cruise with children, but from what most say, it seems that this is not an issue! So, we are thinking of going on the Carnival Dream.. does this sound like a good ship or does anyone know of any better ones? It's just us two going on the cruise and it will be only us two at our wedding. I was considering buying the insurance in case something happens and we don't get to go to st. thomas.. we are looking at going around the first week of july.. i saw that this is still considered hurricane season, but from what i've looked at it seems that they don't really start to pick up until august? Am I making a mistake going at this time? I would be horrible to have something happen and not make the wedding.. the only other time we would be able to go would be from mid may to june.. thanks again for any advice, it is truly appreciated..