Cb questions

[Princeton79]

My wife and I are really considering booking the CB for the April 13, 2013. I have cruised 3 previous times, all with Princess, and this will be her first cruise. I am so excited for her.

 

I have been to Princess Cays and am familiar with that port of call. I am curious if Aruba and Curacao are tender ports as well? Also saw it mentioned here that Aruba has been missed in the past due to weather, how common it that for April?

 

When do you think the ship for this sailing will sell out? I noticed there seem to still be cabins available for many of the March sailings still. Kind of hoping the price will go down just a little more.:rolleyes:

 

Thanks in advance!

 

It would be an honor if Pam in CA responded to my thread...hahahaha :D

[Pam in CA]

It would be an honor if Pam in CA responded to my thread...hahahaha :D

Both Aruba and Curaçao are docked ports. No tendering. It's an easy walk into the nearest town from a ship. In Curaçao, you walk across the Pontoon Bridge; in Aruba, the ship docks right in town. Just walk outside the port gate and there's plenty of shopping. If there are a number of ships in Aruba the same day, it could be a bit of a hike to the port gate, depending on where the ship docks.

 

Can't remember what's available in Curaçao, but once you walk out the terminal, there's a line of taxis and vans that will take you anywhere. For a tour, it's $45/hour set rate. We were four people and had a van take us all around, dropped us off at the beach, then picked us up a couple of hours later. $30/pp including tip. You can easily take the bus from town to the beaches. I think it's only $2.50.

[Princeton79]

Thanks a Bunch!:)

[Pam in CA]

Thanks a Bunch!:)

FYI, my brother-in-law was Princeton '60 and my niece (other side of the family) is Princeton '87. :)

[Princeton79]

Too funny!

 

Princeton is the name of my 23lb cat. 79 is well....the year i was born:rolleyes:

[Infi]

We did this cruise on the Caribbean over Christmas. I think you might be confusing Aruba and Curacao - this season, the Caribbean has been routinely late arriving to Curacao, but has never missed either port. Princess has now changed to itinerary to reflect a 2pm arrival in Curacao.

 

Have to correct Pam re: tours in Curacao. Not sure how long ago she was there, but the tours in December were $20-25pp for ~2 hours of sightseeing and beach. Obviously, the further you walk away from the dock, the cheaper the tours will be. The cheapest ones were by the local market next to the pontoon bridge.

 

As for when the cruise will sell out, that's anybody's guess. I, too, have noticed the prices for the CB sailings are very cheap compared to other itineraries - not sure why. There's a chance the price might go down more, but this close to sailing, I'm not so sure. Not sure where you live, but I'd also be thinking about how airfare costs might go up the longer you wait. Hope this helps, and good luck with your planning. The CB is a nice ship and you should have a great time.

[Pam in CA]

Have to correct Pam re: tours in Curacao. Not sure how long ago she was there, but the tours in December were $20-25pp for ~2 hours of sightseeing and beach.

You're right. I left out a very key piece of information when I said it was $45/hour. That's in Aruba. My bad. :(

[cruzn4life]

We booked this past Friday for the 3/23 sailing. On Thursday, there were still cabins of all types available. By Friday afternoon, inside and outside were sold-out. We decided to book our balconies before they were gone, too. Enjoy your trip - don't wait too long - saving a few dollars won't be worth it if they're sold-out and you miss it altogether!

[jp20]

My DH loves the front of the ship and I love the Lido deck so we booked L201. The BIG QUESTION is Does the balcony have a solid rail or the clear blue glass rail???? From pictures from a previous cruise I notice that most are the blue glass, but I can not tell where the suite ends and the balcony starts. Can anyone reply?? We are not going until Nov 2013 so we can change as I don't want a blocked view.