5 Sisters/5 different states/which cruise??

[luczai]

This is like a math problem, so maybe some of you can help. I have 4 sisters. We live in Kansas, Georgia, New York, Texas, and California. For my middle sister's (New York) 50th birthday on January 10th we were thinking of surprising her with a cruise with all of us. Considering airfare costs, etc. Which departure city makes the most sense? The nearest(to at least one of us) are San Francisco, Galveston, New York, and New Orleans. Should we book a Royal Family Suite for all of us or two cabins? The four of us will be splitting the birthday girl's costs. Any advice would be appreciated.

[Guest]

You may want to look into which would be the least expensive to fly to which might be totally different from the one which is the nearest. I would not eliminate Florida because it is far away. There are more cruises leaving from there at your time of year and the prices might be cheaper than the other cities you mentioned.

 

Don

[luczai]

Thanks, Don. That makes good sense. I think I may be best off on using a travel agent to help with this one.

[Guest]

The issue of a Family suite vs. two rooms for five women would be a very easy call if the Family Suite only has one bathroom. Go for two rooms especially thinking about getting ready for dinner.

 

Don

[kitty9]

You won't find many cruises leaving San Francisco or NY in January, so your choices are NO, Galveston or Florida. We did the Family Suite on the Voyager of the Seas and it worked out very well with 5 women. Two bedrooms and two bathrooms really was a nice option. It did work out cheaper to get the Family Suite than two veranda rooms.

 

Darcie

[luczai]

Thanks, Darcie. That's what I was thinking.

 

Denise

[serene56]

When researching my cruises I always found that Florida was the cheapest with cruises even with adding air fare.

You didnt mention San Juan as a port that cruises to the Southern Caribbean, like Barbados and/or Aruba.

Thats a nice birthday present. Your sister is surely lucky. Have fun planning.

 

Going NOWHERE

 

 

Miracle, February 13, 2005

Legend, October 22,2004

Voyager August 31,2003

Victory September 22,2002

Regal Empress,June 2001

Sensation,August 2000

 

 

[happycruiser1]

Family suite is nice if you can afford it. On the other hand, do you know that Carnival has cabins for 5? Or you can book 2 connecting cabins. You can e-mail me tolycarter@aol.com, I'll be glad to give you more details. I live close to Galveston.

[serene56]

Only the older ships have cabins for 5. I think the Spirit and the Conquest only book up to 4 to a cabin as there are no roll-aways onboard these ships.

 

Going NOWHERE

 

 

Miracle, February 13, 2005

Legend, October 22,2004

Voyager August 31,2003

Victory September 22,2002

Regal Empress,June 2001

Sensation,August 2000

 

 

[luczai]

I think Don had a good point about the two bathrooms. One of my sisters could probably use her own!! We do want to keep costs down but within reason (there IS a diva factor here!). The question is, is it ever cheaper to get something like the Royal Family Suite instead of two staterooms? We would like balcony but might settle for oceanview.

 

Denise

[jerseygirl3]

I think you'll find flights to Florida in general offer better rates.

 

I'd go with two cabins. The mini-suites are really nice. I surprised my Mom and my sister last September with a cruise on the Grand Princess, and the mini-suite size was perfect. No way I'd have 5 women sharing one bathroom!

 

Have a great cruise. Spending time with just my Mom and sister (leaving all the husbands and kids home) was so memorable. We had the best time, and shared a lot of laughs.

 

caribbeanqueen3@comcast.net

[MaryPoppinz]

I also think Florida is your best bet....as long as you're talking about squeezing the birthday trip in well before Spring break. Galveston is also a good choice and will be an ever better choice after Grand Princess makes her home there this fall.

 

Try to get adjoining cabins, so that you can adjoin your balconies, too!

 

"I'm gonna book myself on that Princess Cruise."

-- Fox Mulder, X-Files 'Three Words'

[mconthehighseas]

Luczai - Where and how are you planning to surprise your sister? If you want to all show up in NY, and then take her on a cruise, you might want to look at what sails out of NY/NJ. Not a lot of choices, but there are some.

 

You could talk her into visiting the sister in Georgia, but schedule a cruise out of Port Canaveral. When you fly into Orlando, tell her the change in plans. You could do a similar thing for visiting the sister in CA - several ships go out of LA and San Diego. THis way, she will be packed for a trip, but she won't know what kind.

 

Or you could have a conference call with her the day before everyone leaves, and say "Hi Sis! Pack your bags! We're going on VACATION!"

 

Where would your sister like to visit? That might give you a clue as to how to pick an itinerary.

 

Whatever you decide, I think this is a fantastic idea.

 

Counting down to the Rhapsody OTS - 12/05/04