Reroute to Eastern?? What to do??

[MrsWine-O]

Well as many of you CC regulars may have noticed, Tropical Storm Paula is potentially threatening to rain on our parade for us western caribbean cruisers!!! Many hours of planning, researching, and booking with private companies will be lost... so whats next??

 

For a 7 day western caribbean cruise where would they reroute us to? Eastern? Our main reason to chose a western cruise was because the ports have so much variety of terrian and attractions. We live on a beach in Florida and aren't so thrilled to be rerouted to a port that only has a beach and shopping.... We definitely need some suggestions for Eastern Caribbean ports!!!

 

Any advice on the outcomes of being rerouted through Carnival????:confused:

[okgirl]

Since you don't know what is actually going to happen until you board the ship.........I hope that you go with the same open mindedness that the Cruise Critic Crazies went on the 9/26 sailing of the Conquest............because we were experienced cruisers and knew what to expect, the crew were so happy to have us supporting them........it was the best cruise in 20 that I've ever been on.........it can be for you too............

If you think that you are not going to make your ports.......it's unlikely that they will substitute.........a ship can't just pull up to a pier and say...."We're here"...........so if you are fortunate enough to be routed into a different port..........get off the ship.....go to a taxi and tell them where you want to go........there will be plenty of tour opporators there.........

Buy some internet minutes and come on here in the evening before and try to book some kind of excursion privately.........or do what we did and stay on the ship and get to know the crew and participate in all of the extra onboard activities and have a great time.........and last but not least........thank all of the crew that were ALSO suppose to get off the ship with you because they are having to work extra hours to serve you...........

[steffaroonie]

Well, it certainly depends on where you are re-routed to. I personally prefer the Eastern route over the Western any day.

 

While St. Thomas is known for its shopping, there is a great tour about Blackbeard and the early Danish settlers. When I did it, it was done by a Vermont school teacher, who while she knew her stuff, was truly a school teacher.:D

 

Antigua, is one of my favorite islands - we did a 4wheel drive excursion, that to this day, is one of the most favorite things I ever did. I actually got it on video tape, and we watch it and laugh to this day. They take you all over the island - and you also get to stop by a beach, but the guides are great. We laughed so hard our stomaches hurt afterward.

 

Tortola is another one of my favorite islands - our beach excursion was cancelled due to high waves, so we grabbed a cab, and he took us on a tour of the island. Absolutely fabulous - and it was on $20. He took us to the very top of the island - there is a bar there - and they serve the most wonderful drink - to this day I WANT THAT RECIPE!!!

 

St. Kitts - is another island this fun - full of so much history and culture. Did a private tour - another one of the best things I have ever done. This gentleman took us all over the island, to a batik factory - I still have the purse I got there - and get so many compliments. And it was really cool to see how it was made. He also took us up to the Fort - and that was amazing.

 

St. Maarten - is French and Dutch, we went snorkeling there - and went shopping, so I can't tell you all about the other stuff.

 

Me, I prefer to soak up a little bit of the local culture when I travel - so I try to do something educational - especially if I have the kids along. But sometimes we really do have to go snorkeling.

 

I'll keep an eye on this thread and if you figure out where you are going, I'll try to give you better ideas.

 

Kristin

[MrsWine-O]

Thank you ladies for the sound advice! I think I have read one too many panic strickend CC post that it made me panic as well!!! Like I said my expectations have gotten pretty high for our first cruise and I have a hard time just wingin' it! Now that doesn't mean I can't have a good time, I just like to have some idea of what options there are and find the one thats the most fun, adventurous, off the path choice!!! As for the Eastern... I guess I just judged a book by its cover, I really didn't know there were so many port options there!! I think its a great idea to buy the internet minutes on board in case we have to do some last minute planning too! Fortunately my DH is able to go with the flow a bit more than me! Well.... lets see what Paula does!! Thanks again!:D

[k2excursion]

Let's hope that the storm passes and clears the way for you before you take your cruise. The track I'm seeing of the storm is an odd one, looking like it'll curl towards the southwest coast of Cuba. We'll be going to Cozumel in a few weeks, so we're also crossing our fingers that it doesn't get destroyed before we get to it.

 

If you do get re-routed to the eastern, I'm not sure if they'd take you all the way to St. Thomas and St. Maarten or further south. It's a long ride to there from Tampa. But if you do, I love those 2 ports, with the mountainous terrain and different culture and gorgeous beaches. The western itinerary only has one port (Roatan) that really is able to rival those great eastern ports, in my humble opinion. I don't know much about Half Moon Cay and Grand Turk, which are not quite as far to get to from Tampa.

 

But, like others said, just roll with the punches with whatever happens, and decide ahead of time that no matter what, it's going to be an amazing cruise! Don't get too disappointed. I missed ports in 4 of my first 5 cruises, but still loved every one of them.

[FireMonkey]

We were rerouted at the last minute last year due to the Swine Flu outbreak so all Mexico ports were cancelled. They were able to take us to Key West and the Bahamas which was fantastic because I had never been to either before. It was a bit of a hassle to cancel the private excursion we had booked in Cozumel (never did get our money back even though it was guaranteed but that's a whole different thread) but we still ended up having a blast in the different ports. Just go with an open mind. Remember, the worst day on a cruise still beats the best day at work! Enjoy your trip!

[zqvol]

Well as many of you CC regulars may have noticed, Tropical Storm Paula is potentially threatening to rain on our parade for us western caribbean cruisers!!! Many hours of planning, researching, and booking with private companies will be lost... so whats next??

 

For a 7 day western caribbean cruise where would they reroute us to? Eastern? Our main reason to chose a western cruise was because the ports have so much variety of terrian and attractions. We live on a beach in Florida and aren't so thrilled to be rerouted to a port that only has a beach and shopping.... We definitely need some suggestions for Eastern Caribbean ports!!!

 

Any advice on the outcomes of being rerouted through Carnival????:confused:

 

 

Your biggest concern is not if they take you on a true Eastern cruise, there is much more to do there than on the western one, but it they take you to Key West and the Bahamas, which is more likely. If that happens all you can do is to go with the flow, though by next weekend there is no telling where the storm might be.

 

If you can get to San Juan, The USVI, and the BVI it will be a wonderful cruise.

[ArthurIhde]

why do you reroute to Eastern?

[RuthlessBoss]

why do you reroute to Eastern?

Dubai is east! That would be nice. :D

[poptart]

It was a bit of a hassle to cancel the private excursion we had booked in Cozumel (never did get our money back even though it was guaranteed but that's a whole different thread) !

 

We've made a deposit for Nachi Cocum...hope I get my funds back if we don't go.

 

Paula could move on before we set sail Saturday....but the beaches may be messed up

 

Ida rearranged last year's cruise, but I will say sailing after the storm the seas were smooth as glass. Awesome weather!

 

I may never get to Coata Maya again :rolleyes: oh well it will be an adventure and we'll have fun where ever we go. If it's a port we don't care for we'll have lots of fun on the ship and enjoy the spa.

[nothomeonacruise]

My family prefers the eastern side, too. We aren't beach people, either. However, we all love Half Moon Cay. Some of my family went horseback riding and we rented a cabana. (We're Floridian's, too)

 

St. Thomas is beautiful. The tour of the Blackbeard's Castle and the places you visit are all very nice. Puerto Rico has a historical area and San Juan is very interesting. (We take private taxi tours)

[Tapi]

Since you are sailing from Tampa, an "eastern" cruise will probably not include St.Thomas, San Juan, or St. Maarten.

 

With that said, don't torture yourself. As others have mentioned, some of the most wonderful cruises ever experienced are the ones where things don't go according to plan.

 

A reroute due to a hurricane is exactly how we discovered one of our favorite Caribbean ports, Costa Maya.

 

Go with an open mind, embrace the possible changes and get excited about taking a cruise for a much lower price because, after all, it's hurricane season! :)

[jstcruizin]

Well as many of you CC regulars may have noticed, Tropical Storm Paula is potentially threatening to rain on our parade for us western caribbean cruisers!!! Many hours of planning, researching, and booking with private companies will be lost... so whats next??

 

For a 7 day western caribbean cruise where would they reroute us to? Eastern? Our main reason to chose a western cruise was because the ports have so much variety of terrian and attractions. We live on a beach in Florida and aren't so thrilled to be rerouted to a port that only has a beach and shopping.... We definitely need some suggestions for Eastern Caribbean ports!!!

 

Any advice on the outcomes of being rerouted through Carnival????:confused:

 

We sail this Sat. to the western Carr. on the Dream. I wanted to do the Eastern but Dh couldnt get that week off so it wont break my heart if we switch that and Our Daughter has never been to the Eastern (we've all done the western a few times and Dh and I did the Eastern for our 30th and loved it) so that would be a bonus

[RWolver672]

It is also possible that you may just go to the same ports, but not in the order that you were suppose to. I've seen that done before. The Captain will just flip-flop the ports to avoid the storm. It happened not all that long ago but I can't remember which ship it was.

[MrsWine-O]

Thank you everyne for the vote of confidence that we will still have a good time! I am becoming a little less weary as the storm track shows the hurricane moving through past Cuba by Sunday and we sail out Sunday afternoon (from Tampa). Looks a little more hopeful today than it did last night that's for sure!!

 

I am really surprised to hear everyone say that Eastern is so much better than Western? I guess I have only heard of people doing the same ole' same ole' on the Eastern side, beaches, beaches and more beaches. We are looking forward to swimming with the stingrays in Caymans, Cave tubing in Belize, going on a jeep tour seeing ruins, an eco park, snorkeling a reef in Cozumel, and then ziplining in Roatan. Just seems like there was more adventurous excursions there. Suppose you never know until you experience it though right!?! And where is Costa Maya I keep reading about? Everyone seems to love it there!!

 

Fingers crossed that we will have sunny days at least!! Thanks again!:D

[nealstuber]

Many hours of planning, researching, and booking with private companies will be lost... so whats next??

 

:confused:

 

 

First and foremost, be thankful that you are on a cruise and not a land based vacation to one of the western ports you are scheduled to call upon. Its great that your floating resort has options that you would not enjoy if you had purchased non-refundable airline tickets.

[kyrisong1]

Ok I'm really not trying to be mean, but if you book a cruise in hurricane season you can presume you may be rerouted, or simply float for the whole time. A cruise company doesn't guarantee ports, simply that this room is yours for x amount of time.

My advice is if you freak out about possible rerouting make sure you have travel insurance that will give you your refund if you do have to take a bye.

Really it's all you can do!!! Nature has a way of saying "too bad but it's my show"

I really hope you get to stay with your original plan but try to realize the cruises are lower in price for a reason and the reason is hurricanes are more likely at this time!!

Cheers, Carole

[k2excursion]

And where is Costa Maya I keep reading about? Everyone seems to love it there!!

 

Fingers crossed that we will have sunny days at least!! Thanks again!:D

 

I've got some pics of Costa Maya in my Dream review in the link in my signature. It's a nice little town, good for a relaxing beach day. I didn't think it was anything spectacular, but I enjoyed it. They have alot of little shops surrounding a nice pool and small beach right at the port area. The town is a cheap cab ride away. And there are some more distant excursions that can be taken. They got hit by a hurricane at some point in recent years, and they're still recovering. It's close to the Mexico/Belize border.