7 Day Southern Caribbean out of Ft Lauderdale

[ShipShapeinFL]

I am looking at the 7 day Southern Caribbean out of Ft Lauderdale on the Crown Nov 2011. The itinerary is Princess Cays, Curacao, and Aruba. Has anybody done this itinerary before and if so how did you like it?

 

I was thinking about a 10 day Southern because I didn't want to go out of San Juan, but this itinerary looks interesting. I haven't been to either one of these islands yet, but am wondering if only 2 ports beside PC would be worth it.

[janina]

It really depends if you like sea days. At this point in the Carribean I look forward to just having sea days and relaxing. I always enjoy Princess Cays.

[ShipShapeinFL]

It really depends if you like sea days. At this point in the Carribean I look forward to just having sea days and relaxing. I always enjoy Princess Cays.

 

I actually do like sea days, and I usually only take 1 excursion when visiting 3 ports so I am thinking it might be ok. It's only a 1/2 day in Curacao and a full day in Aruba.

[BobT172]

We have been to those ports and have enjoyed them like we do all the Carribean ports. If you are looking for more ports and less sea days, look for something like we have booked on the Emerald for August 22 this year. One more port..one less sea day..

 

Port Arrival/ Departure

1 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida 5:00 PM

2 Princess Cays, Bahamas 9:00 AM/ 4:00 PM

3 At Sea

4 St. Maarten, Netherlands Antilles 10:00 AM/ 6:00 PM

5 St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands 7:00 AM /4:00 PM

6 Grand Turk, Turks & Caicos 1:00 PM/ 7:00 PM

7 At Sea

8 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida 7:00 AM

[ShipShapeinFL]

We have been to those ports and have enjoyed them like we do al l he Carribean ports. If you are looking for more ports and less sea days, look for something like we have booked on the Emerald for August 22 this year. One more port..one less sea day..

 

Port Arrival Departure

1 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida 5:00 PM

2 Princess Cays, Bahamas 9:00 AM 4:00 PM

3 At Sea

4 St. Maarten, Netherlands Antilles 10:00 AM 6:00 PM

5 St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands 7:00 AM 4:00 PM

6 Grand Turk, Turks & Caicos 1:00 PM 7:00 PM

7 At Sea

8 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida 7:00 AM

 

That is a great itinerary, we just did that itinerary on the Emerald in April and loved it! I am looking for another itinerary to islands we haven't been. I have even been looking at other cruise lines but keep going back to Princess.

[mtaylor04]

I like the sea days - that would be perfect for us :)

[BobT172]

There are good 10 day cruises out of Fort Lauderdale...we did this one last year on the Ruby...enjoyed it alot... to reach some of these islands because of the distance, you either have to go 10 days or go out of San Juan..

 

 

 

1 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida 5:00 PM

2 Princess Cays, Bahamas 9:00 AM 4:00 PM

3 At Sea

4 St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands 8:00 AM 5:00 PM

5 Dominica, Dominica 9:00 AM 6:00 PM

6 Grenada, Grenada 7:00 AM 2:00 PM

7 Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles 12:00 PM 7:00 PM

8 Aruba, Aruba 7:00 AM 5:00 PM

9 At Sea

10 At Sea

11 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

[ShipShapeinFL]

I am definately considering it unless I give in to the 10 day.

[ShipShapeinFL]

There are good 10 day cruises out of Fort Lauderdale...we did this one last year on the Ruby...enjoyed it alot... to reach some of these islands because of the distance, you either have to go 10 days or go out of San Juan..

 

 

 

1 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida 5:00 PM

2 Princess Cays, Bahamas 9:00 AM 4:00 PM

3 At Sea

4 St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands 8:00 AM 5:00 PM

5 Dominica, Dominica 9:00 AM 6:00 PM

6 Grenada, Grenada 7:00 AM 2:00 PM

7 Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles 12:00 PM 7:00 PM

8 Aruba, Aruba 7:00 AM 5:00 PM

9 At Sea

10 At Sea

11 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

 

That's the 10 day we are looking at on the Emerald next year if we don't do the 7 day. Did you like all the islands you visited?

[dutchess43]

Curaco & Aruba are 2 very nice islands. We enjoyed then we hired taxi drivers right outside of the ports for both had plenty of time to see the islands & shopping also.

[BobT172]

yes, we enjoy them all...we don't do organized tours anymore because we've been to many of them but do enjoy just getting off the ship and exploring/shopping on our own. As in all the islands, we never felt threatened in anyway (we will stay on the ship in Jamaica) but just stay aware and not to do anything stupid (kind of like being in many US cities)...

[Weluv2cruise2007]

There are good 10 day cruises out of Fort Lauderdale...we did this one last year on the Ruby...enjoyed it alot... to reach some of these islands because of the distance, you either have to go 10 days or go out of San Juan..

 

 

 

1 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida 5:00 PM

2 Princess Cays, Bahamas 9:00 AM 4:00 PM

3 At Sea

4 St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands 8:00 AM 5:00 PM

5 Dominica, Dominica 9:00 AM 6:00 PM

6 Grenada, Grenada 7:00 AM 2:00 PM

7 Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles 12:00 PM 7:00 PM

8 Aruba, Aruba 7:00 AM 5:00 PM

9 At Sea

10 At Sea

11 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

 

Did this one for New Year's...great itinerary. I realize now 7 days is definitely too short - 10 days is perfect!

 

Wasn't a lot of beach on this one though...St Thomas just shopped, Dominca and Grenada - did tours (no beach), Bonaire was too darn windy (rented a scooter and toured around - loved that!!) Aruba, went to the beach but again the wind nearly drove us crazy (unless you enjoy eating sand).

[Pam in CA]

I love the sea days but they're not for everyone. I've been to Curaçao four times now and could easily return. The snorkeling is excellent but there's so much more to do. I could be happy just walking through the city and exploring the shops.

 

As for Aruba, I've been there twice this year so far. The first time, I disembarked the ship late and did a 2-hour tour in a van right from the pier. I went to the same places as the ships tour, plus a stop at a small supermarket for soda, for $25. The second time I was there, we took a catamaran snorkeling tour. I'd heard from others on my first trip that the catamaran was over-crowded and the snorkeling sub-par and also crowded. That happened to us in April. We didn't push ahead to get on the catamaran and wound up having to stand for about half an hour until the boat got outside the harbor and people could go on the netting. We finally got to sit down but it was still crowded. The snorkeling was poor in my opinion. We got back to the ship two hours late, too late to do any shopping. Very poorly-run tour. It's the same one on Princess and HAL.

[Weluv2cruise2007]

We have been to those ports and have enjoyed them like we do all the Carribean ports. If you are looking for more ports and less sea days, look for something like we have booked on the Emerald for August 22 this year. One more port..one less sea day..

 

Port Arrival/ Departure

1 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida 5:00 PM

2 Princess Cays, Bahamas 9:00 AM/ 4:00 PM

3 At Sea

4 St. Maarten, Netherlands Antilles 10:00 AM/ 6:00 PM

5 St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands 7:00 AM /4:00 PM

6 Grand Turk, Turks & Caicos 1:00 PM/ 7:00 PM

7 At Sea

8 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida 7:00 AM

 

Now this was a great beach itinerary! Princess Cays, St Maarten and Grand Turk were all beach days for us! St Maarten has clothing optional on the french side if that's your thing! ;)

[Nana G]

We have done the Eastern and both Southern itineraries many times and always prefer the Eastern and the Southern that goes to St. Lucia, St. Kitts, Barbados, Antigua and Princess Cays. Leaving in April again on this one. These islands and beaches seem much more beautiful and tropical than Aruba. Just my opinion.

[jpg1747]

I'm doing this cruise in January 2012 for my birthday. I've been to both Aruba and Curacao before, but many years ago, so they will be like new islands to me. I'm looking forward to the sea days and PC for several very relaxing days.

[ShipShapeinFL]

We have done the Eastern and both Southern itineraries many times and always prefer the Eastern and the Southern that goes to St. Lucia, St. Kitts, Barbados, Antigua and Princess Cays. Leaving in April again on this one. These islands and beaches seem much more beautiful and tropical than Aruba. Just my opinion.

 

This is the one I would really like to take, but it only goes out in Oct and Dec and those dates may not work for us.

[Infi]

We did this itinerary (7 day Aruba/Curacao) in March on HAL. We enjoyed it a lot, although we missed the private island stop at Half Moon Cay due to high winds. It was quite a few sea days (4) for a 7 day cruise, and activities on those days were more limited on HAL. I'm sure the activities selection would be better on Princess, though. The islands, however, are wonderful and more than worth the trip. Aruba has some fantastic beaches and the rugged coastline and desert-like landscape are really different from the rest of the Caribbean. Curacao is very colorful and walking along the floating pontoon bridge and the buildings along the waterfront is a treat. It's a great itinerary, and it must have been a good seller for HAL, otherwise there would be no reason for Princess to take it up too.

 

We have also done the Princess 10 day Southerns (both routes) over the past two Christmases and enjoyed them very much. If you can swing the extra few days, I'd go for that over the 7 day. One of the 10 day Southern routes visits Bonaire and Aruba, which is a great alternative. Honestly, you can't go wrong with either - good luck with your choice.

[ShipShapeinFL]

We did this itinerary (7 day Aruba/Curacao) in March on HAL. We enjoyed it a lot, although we missed the private island stop at Half Moon Cay due to high winds. It was quite a few sea days (4) for a 7 day cruise, and activities on those days were more limited on HAL. I'm sure the activities selection would be better on Princess, though. The islands, however, are wonderful and more than worth the trip. Aruba has some fantastic beaches and the rugged coastline and desert-like landscape are really different from the rest of the Caribbean. Curacao is very colorful and walking along the floating pontoon bridge and the buildings along the waterfront is a treat. It's a great itinerary, and it must have been a good seller for HAL, otherwise there would be no reason for Princess to take it up too.

 

We have also done the Princess 10 day Southerns (both routes) over the past two Christmases and enjoyed them very much. If you can swing the extra few days, I'd go for that over the 7 day. One of the 10 day Southern routes visits Bonaire and Aruba, which is a great alternative. Honestly, you can't go wrong with either - good luck with your choice.

 

Thanks for your input. Hoping to book something soon. Right now we're leaning towards the 10 day. I like the 7 day mostly because I would prefer to visit Curacao rather than Bonaire.