Departing from Miami vs San Juan

[mikeyd]

Hello - not a first timer but planning a cruise for March 2011 and it's been awhile.

 

We have done and redone the eastern / western carib. routes and want to try something new. I am really intrigued about trying a southern route, and there are some great routes if we depart from of San Juan (SJ).

 

Perhaps there are destinations we have not visited that are worthwhile. We have been to:

 

Belize

Roatan

Cozumel

Keys

US VI

And some of the company owned islands

 

We are in Michigan, and finding a direct flight to SJ is tough.

 

We have always flown out early the day of the cruise when departing from Miami or FL. This seems nearly impossible for SJ so a hotel night will have to be added.

 

So, I am looking at pro's and con's of leaving from San Juan to get to new locations.

 

Thanks!

[kadey]

Hi! We just got back from our 12th cruise. Mostly we have left from Florida,twice from Italy and once from San Juan. We always fly in the day before so we need a hotel from where we leave from. When we left from San Juan last year we found the flights to be cheaper then flying to Florida. The San Juan hotel was a little more expensive ,but we could have booked cheaper. We picked a more resort type of hotel to make our 36 hours in San Juan a big part of our vacation.

 

I only see a positive side to leaving from San Juan! We were able to visit islands that were too far out to get to from Florida on a seven day cruise. Also, we were able to visit more island in the week than from Florida.We would do it again in a second!-Kade

[cb at sea]

There are some S. Caribbean cruises that do leave from Fl....many are longer than 7 days, however.

[FLACRUISER99]

There are some S. Caribbean cruises that do leave from Fl....many are longer than 7 days, however.

I'm doing the Grand Princess that has a great Itinerary (see my sig) its 14 days however.

[KarenandBruceG]

If you are still considering a 7 day cruise, then flying to San Juan makes cruises that reach further south in the same time frame possible.

[okbowler]

We live in GA. and have booked one cruise out of San Juan that we had to cancel for health reasons. We booked a round trip from Atlanta to Ft. Lauderdale on one airline and a round trip on another from Ft. Lauderdale to San Juan. I think the RT from FTL was on Spirit Airlines. We are much closer and the connection times would work. Would also suggest that if you fly into SJ, remember it is a port of call for many cruises and has much to offer so allow your self at least an extra day to see this island. Bill

[moopig]

Also from Michigan here! We have gotten direct flights from Detroit to San Juan on Delta. I LOVE going out of San Juan. The city is so beautiful and I have found it easy to navigate. We always fly in the day before when going out of San Juan mostly because San Juan is so nice! And you can't beat the ports that you can hit when going out of San Juan!

[mizLORInj]

I would go to San Juan and the new locations. Old San Juan has the Sheraton hotel and once there you can just walk around the town and even walk to the ship (depending on what line you're sailing). (Of course I'm speaking as someone who has a major airport 30 minutes away that has non-stop flights to FL and SJU. )

[mikeyd]

Thanks for the replies.

 

I priced out several dates in late Feb / March and it's an additional $300 per person to fly to SJ vs. Florida. I can fly Spirit to FLL for $200 vs. $500 for SJ.

 

Plus a night in a hotel for another $100 and it would be an extra $700 for us to depart from SJ vs. Florida.

 

I agree with another post where I may look at a 8-9 day cruise to reach locations further south.

 

Thanks!

[eyzwdeshut]

We have been to all the ports you mentioned seeing, but have never cruised from SJ. As a matter of fact, we are doing one in December that goes to Cozumel, Keys & Belize... We have also only been on one cruise longer than 7 days.

 

Having just spent 9 days in SJ over the summer, I'm avoiding that place like the plague - beautiful island, just not my speed!