Any One Else care About Getting Off Ship

[Mama24]

For me, the ship is always the destination. DH is exactly the opposite. Luckily he's content to do some exploring on his own while in port. We do also get off the ship and walk around the port area unless it's a tendered port. Tenders are not very wheelchair friendly.

[Carinthalas]

We tend to use the ship as the destination as there are very few hotels that I can afford that have circa 8 choices of live music with 15+ Bars that arrange for entertainment and enrichment experiences.

 

I am the type of cruiser that will enter almost anything from Quizing, table Tennis, Boules, Bag Throw, Scavenger Hunts, etc and again this is not something you find in many hotels.

 

Another awesome part of cruising is sitting and watching the world go by. Sailing out of the Fjords will stay in my mind forever.

[Esprit]

The ship is our prime destination. The ports are a bonus, but we don't pre plan tours as things don't always go to plan so disappointments are avoided.

[Cathy p]

We have been to the same ports over and over again and we have always loved it. This time is my first time with oxygen that only last for 3-4 hours. I don't want to worry about having a place to plug in nor getting sand in the machine.:eek: Therefore we shall enjoy the ship totally for 5 days and may get off and walk around the port. We do not need to buy anything so it is the ship all the way for us.

[MicCanberra]

 

On a related topic, has anyone ever gone on a "nowhere" cruise, where ships simply sail without stopping in any ports? I wondered if they were some sort of urban myth, but my cousin (a travel agent) assures me they exist. You never see them advertised.

 

According to my cousin they're rather expensive because they use fuel literally for the entire cruise.

 

If anyone can enlighten us, what was it like? How long was it? I assume they have a much older crowd. Do they? Would you do it again?

 

Pray tell!

 

I haven't been on one but they occasionally have them out of Sydney and they are for three nights only. The usually have a theme like a 'Comedy' or a 'Food and wine' cruise. With the Comedy cruise they bring on entertainment for performances during the day, as well as the evening. A friend said it was fantastic.

When the Solstice came to Australia for the very first time it had a sampler cruise. It was a one night cruise where it sailed out of the harbour and returned in the morning.:D

Princess has also done this from time to time as a sampler.:D

[Smiles3usa]

I agree that it depends on the itinerary whether we explore the ports. In general, since we seldom cruise the carribean, we are off the ship at most of the ports in Europe and Asia. For those ports we are ALWAYS careful to plan our time to enjoy the highlights of the various cities. Of course, given the time limitations of the port visit, even those with overnight visits, we cannot see all of the offerings of the ports. We have, however, revisited many european cities for land vacations based solely on our glimpse of the cities through our cruise shore excursions.

 

I note that the one TA we took from the Cannary Islands to RIo, Brazil, had 5 or 6 ports of call over 15 days. We found the port excursions on that cruise most enjoyable. Since there were many sea days in between the port visits, pushing our pace on the daily port visits was more likely than exhausting ourselves daily with little time for recovery.

[Lsimon]

Who books tour on TA crossing? I don't think you have choice but to stay on the ship.

 

Most Celebrity transatlantic cruises are 12 to 15 night cruises and usually involve 3 to 5 port stops along with 7 to 9 sea days. So there are a number of port stops to plan and enjoy.

 

Also, some of the port stops tend to be a bit unusual compared to Celebrity's usual non-repositioning itineraries so they make for interesting touring. For example we've stopped at the Azores, Canary Islands and Morocco on TA cruises.

 

And talk about a choice between private excursions and ship's excursions: Call me paranoid but we've always stuck with ship's excursions on the last stop before the crossing on TA's - we certainly don't want to miss this ship before it crosses the bulk of the Atlantic!

Edited November 7, 2013 by Lsimon

[happybos]

On a related topic, has anyone ever gone on a "nowhere" cruise, where ships simply sail without stopping in any ports? I wondered if they were some sort of urban myth, but my cousin (a travel agent) assures me they exist. You never see them advertised.

 

According to my cousin they're rather expensive because they use fuel literally for the entire cruise.

 

If anyone can enlighten us, what was it like? How long was it? I assume they have a much older crowd. Do they? Would you do it again?

 

Pray tell!

 

As you might note from my signature below, the one and only cruise I have been on was a 3 day P&O comedy cruise out of Brisbane - a "cruise to nowhere". Had an absolute ball - enough to totally addict us. Going on our first "real" cruise next month with plans for more in 2014 and 2015. Your assumption of an older crowd is, I think, far off the mark because the overall cost is low (I know the "per day" is relatively expensive) but it is a fabulous opportunity for time-poor younger cruisers to party hard for 3 days. Maybe the attitude is different in other parts of the world, but Aussies certainly enjoy the opportunity to party!

 

Jennie

[spookwife]

On the roll calls, everyone is running around trying to book tours and make plans.

 

Are there others that feel that they don't want to stress planning an excursion, you enjoy staying on an empty ship and a 90 min+ bus or van ride

to a tourist spot sounds like torture?

 

Like to hear your comments.

 

 

PS_ is ther a way to edit thread title? Should say Not getting off ship

 

depends on the port. I am not a fan of tender ports for a few reasons, the 'private islands' hold less than zero interest to me and you couldn't pay me to get off anywhere in Mexico.

 

but yes I will get off in other places although you won't necessarily see me scheduling the entire time.. we like to wander around the pier, maybe hit a particular spot.. for us this past September it was a zoo in St John.

 

next April I will go against my 'no tender' rule and hit Monterey.. I used to live there and I miss it greatly so am itching to go back. I'll even hang out in San Francisco even though I have BTDT and most of the must see's like Alcatraz.

[surebeatssailing]

We just returned from an Eastern Med port intensive cruise that we loved & we did excursions in every port.

We have not been to the Carribean for 3 years even though this was our vacation destination for many years .Initially we chartered sailboats & sailed many places including the BVI , St Lucia, Grenadines. Once we began cruising in 2000 we let someone else do all of the work.

On our upcoming February cruise we will actually visit 2 ports that we have never seen & we will do excursions there. But otherwise we also view the cruise ship as our destination. It is so great to go somewhere warm in the winter. Even though Maryland does not have anywhere near the snow amounts that many of our fellow travelers have our older bones still get cold !

[Bently57]

My partner and I differ on this. He likes to stay on the ship, and though he loves the beauty of the Caribbean, he thinks one port is like the next. He will take one excursion during a cruise, but that is about it.

 

Me, I absolutely love seeing the different ports, even though I have been to some of them multiple times. I have also seen the 12 block radius around my house many many times, but I still love getting outside and taking a walk. Every day is different, both at home and in ports I have visited before! The weather, the people, how you are feeling (your mood or how you are physically)...I could go on and on.

 

This upcoming cruise we are stopping at St. Kitts, and neither of us have ever visited there. So that will be exciting for both of us. A cruise to nowhere does not really intrigue me that much. I love the excitement of a destination.

 

So have I ever stayed on the ship, without ever getting off? I don't think so. Once, in a stop at Belize, I went ashore and quickly came back. I had not planned any excursions, and if you have ever been to Belize City on a cruise stop, the experience (at least on our cruise) consisted of a bunch of shops surrounded by a fenced area. Outside the fenced area were hordes of vendors that outnumbered the passengers/visitors. It was a little intimidating.

 

I can see the point of staying on the ship with fewer passengers and 'having the ship to yourself.' Especially if you don't like crowds. Me, I enjoy the hustle and bustle (unless folks are being rude). For example, I like going to big parties where I might only know a few people. It is fascinating for me. I feel so 'alive.' My partner is the exact opposite.

 

That is the beauty of cruising. You can find your own niche, whatever that may be!

[ariawoman]

Of course a med cruise is booked for the ports, but I'm talking more like TAs etc.

 

.

 

So you are saying there are people that get off the ship during the TAs you've done? LOL

 

Sorry, I just couldn't let that one slip by.

 

For me, all of this depends on the itinerary. Mediterranean I always get off. If it's something closer to home or somewhere ive been, maybe i'd stay on board. Typically if we dont want to plan an excursion we'll just go into whatever the town is that we are docked and just roam around, then we can go back as soon as we want, or if we are having fun on land, stay out until all board.

[ariawoman]

I've never stayed on board, but in five Caribbean cruises we've only been to three ports more than once - Cozumel, Costa Maya and Belize. We've always found something different to do each time, either with cruiseline run shore excursions or tours we took with companies hanging around outside the ports.

 

I've always enjoyed catamaran/sailboat snorkelling excursions, especially when they end with an open bar on the way back to port. We usually do one of those per cruise.

 

That being said, there's no law saying you have to leave the ship.

 

On a related topic, has anyone ever gone on a "nowhere" cruise, where ships simply sail without stopping in any ports? I wondered if they were some sort of urban myth, but my cousin (a travel agent) assures me they exist. You never see them advertised.

 

According to my cousin they're rather expensive because they use fuel literally for the entire cruise.

 

If anyone can enlighten us, what was it like? How long was it? I assume they have a much older crowd. Do they? Would you do it again?

 

Pray tell!

 

There are indeed cruises to nowhere, usually they are really short, a day or two, and are great for people that dont know if they'd get seasick or like being on a cruise ship. I know a few go out of manhattan over the year but not sure how many. Oh and contrary to what you think, cruises to nowhere trend to the younger ages typically, as they are mostly geared towards more of a party atmosphere than a traditional cruise. People do them to try out cruising...or to have a floating hotel with entertainment, alcohol and gambling all without needing to drive. :-)

Edited November 7, 2013 by ariawoman

[Onessa]

On the roll calls, everyone is running around trying to book tours and make plans.

 

Are there others that feel that they don't want to stress planning an excursion, you enjoy staying on an empty ship and a 90 min+ bus or van ride

to a tourist spot sounds like torture?

 

Like to hear your comments.

 

 

PS_ is ther a way to edit thread title? Should say Not getting off ship

some coworkers and I were just talking about this yesterday. I view the cruiseship primarily as a floating hotel and cruise because I do not have to "waste" time getting from point a to point b. A coworker cruises for the ship and the ship's features. Thus all of his cruises are on mega ships in the carribean (price and ship are his factors). My cruises have been AK, Canadian Maritime, Panama Canal, Med, Baltic, HI (price and itinerary are my factors)

 

I rather prefer the smaller ships (easier on/off in ports, fewer fellow pax in port). I am generally one of the first ones off and get back 1/2 hour before last call. I don't stay up late because I want to be up early to catch sail in. I'm happiest if I've walked 10 miles across Stockholm, or Athens, or some other port or hiked around Juneau and have spent all 11.5 of the 12 hours we've been docked off the ship.

 

Thats me (and fortunately my DH and DD are right there with me on this!)

[Br00klyn102]

I found your post to be one of the most interesting because our approach has been exactly the opposite of yours.

 

When we were young and energetic, we took a lot of land trips to Europe for our vacations and loved traveling around on our own, spending more time at each location, experiencing different types of accommodations, and eating where the locals ate.

We spent our vacations over many years doing a combination of organized land tours and touring on our own.

 

We were not too crazy about cruises back then, because you only get a short time here and a short time there.

 

It took a lot more research and planning to travel on our own than simply planning to go on a cruise, but we enjoyed it all, even when things did not go exactly the way we had planned.

In fact, some of the unexpected experiences are the ones that turned out to be the most memorable.

 

Now that we are older, we prefer the ease of cruising, not having to plan where we will stay each night or where to go for meals or needing to figure out how we will get from here to there.

 

On land tours, you must get yourself out of bed and packed and on the bus or train, even if you are not in the mood or feeling rotten or simply want to sleep in that morning. We found that a lot easier when we were younger.

 

Maybe we are getting soft and/or lazy as we age, but we just don't have the energy that we had in our twenties and thirties.

 

Now we enjoy the pampering we get on cruise ships and appreciate it more than we ever did when we were younger.

We now love sea days where we get to do as much or as little as we like, or nothing at all.

 

In Europe, we still want to get off the ship at every port and go exploring, either on an excursion or on our own.

 

But realistically, some of the great European cities, like Rome and Paris, are located too far from the nearest cruise port to be considered reasonable for a day trip from a cruise ship, IMHO.

They really are much better visited on a land trip, or as an embarkation or disembarkation location where you can spend some meaningful time there before or after the cruise.

 

At Caribbean ports though, after so many beaches and rain forests and hours spent on catamarans, we are often content just to take the lazy approach and remain on the ship, or get off briefly and walk around the port area, or pick up a tour at the last minute, as the mood strikes us.

 

 

We often kid that in the years ahead we would like to join the ranks of older retired people who spend their time on cruise ships instead of in a retirement home.

 

 

Yes, we do see it quite differently. My husband and I can really only afford 1 good sized vacation once every two years. So when we are able to do it we like the finer things and love that we get that on the cruise, and of course love that we can see many places. To date, when we do go to Europe we tend to avoid excursions that the ship offers, and DIY it through the different ports, and try and get as much local flavor as possible so you get a real feel for it (as much as possible in a 12 hour period).

 

With flights being as expensive as they are I love that I can see a few different places with only ONE quest across the pond.

 

I was lucky enough to travel with work and go see some different places, one stop was in Rome, which I do not care for - at all. It was also one stop on a past cruise, and I feel like I would have known that had I not been there previously, that I would have no desire to go back after seeing the Colosseum and the Trevi fountain, I was done. On that same cruise, we stopped in Athens, and that is on the bucket list to go back to and spend some more time around (not necessarily in) that area.

 

I could be completely wrong in my methods, but we have absolutely LOVED our cruises in the past, and I'm beside myself waiting to go on the one that I have scheduled in May.

[Lsimon]

So you are saying there are people that get off the ship during the TAs you've done? LOL...

 

Of course they get off during Celebrity TA's. All of the Celebrity TA's we've done have several port stops before the crossing and one or two during the crossing such as stops at islands in the Azores or Canary Islands. I don't think Celebrity does any TA cruises that just go direct from embarkation port to the disembarkation port without any port of call stops along the way.

Edited November 7, 2013 by Lsimon

[OceanCruise]

There are a number of Caribbean ports where we mostly just stay on the ship now. We have visited most of the ports multiple times and have done the major sightseeing things. We don't need any T-shirts or knick-knacks and don't want to lug liquor home on the plane. If I want jewelry I will buy it at home. We like being able to sleep late and have a leisurely breakfast, maybe play some trivia or lounge by the pool. Sometimes we will get off the ship just to walk around a little or will take a taxi to the beach. If we go to a new port, we will usually book a tour on our own.

[bbappel]

 

 

PS_ is there a way to edit thread title? Should say Not getting off ship

 

Look for the moderator and send an e-mail requesting it. Give the current "Any One...." and the requested one and he/she may be able to change it. Though it seems to have gotten a lot of traffic even without the "Not"

 

And we cruise primarily for the ports, so we generally get out as early as we can, booking private and/or ship excursions. We are going to the Southern Caribbean in January for the first time, so when we go back the next year, that may change, and we may be much more low-key.

 

Beth

[A Sixth?]

It depends on the itinerary.

 

In Europe we're usually doing something at each port.

............

 

.... I think it is a mistake to ignore them just because they are sold by the ship. In some cases they are less expensive and offer a better option than private alternatives. A good example is for tours to major attractions in Europe. A lot of these are far from the port and private excursions are expensive. Also a lot of private excursions to major attractions in Europe include just a driver who is not licensed to accompany you into the attraction (such as the Vatican in Rome or Pompeii near Naples) while the ship's excursions always include a licensed guide to show you around and explain things while you are there.

 

Very true.

 

The more you cruise the more likely you are to repeat ports, and in our case, the Caribbean was familiar territory before we ever took our first cruise in 1991.

 

In the Caribbean we often just enjoy the ship, especially if the weather is ify

 

And ship tours, we rarely take them but took two this past June on the Equinox. (Five ports we did-it-ourselves) and especially as you said, the Rome/Coliseum/Vatican tour was a breeze with Celebrity. Fast tracked in, our guide was with us every step....

 

There are in fact times the ship has a very good offering tour-wise. :D

 

 

[ariawoman]

Of course they get off during Celebrity TA's. All of the Celebrity TA's we've done have several port stops before the crossing and one or two during the crossing such as stops at islands in the Azores or Canary Islands. I don't think Celebrity does any TA cruises that just go direct from embarkation port to the disembarkation port without any port of call stops along the way.

 

Yes I know, typically up front there are some but then the actual transatlantic part they tend to go for 5-6-7 days...i was referring to that stretch of it.

 

Just going for a little humor. :)

[We're The Groupnors]

I've never stayed on board, but in five Caribbean cruises we've only been to three ports more than once - Cozumel, Costa Maya and Belize. We've always found something different to do each time, either with cruiseline run shore excursions or tours we took with companies hanging around outside the ports.

 

I've always enjoyed catamaran/sailboat snorkelling excursions, especially when they end with an open bar on the way back to port. We usually do one of those per cruise.

 

That being said, there's no law saying you have to leave the ship.

 

On a related topic, has anyone ever gone on a "nowhere" cruise, where ships simply sail without stopping in any ports? I wondered if they were some sort of urban myth, but my cousin (a travel agent) assures me they exist. You never see them advertised.

 

According to my cousin they're rather expensive because they use fuel literally for the entire cruise.

 

If anyone can enlighten us, what was it like? How long was it? I assume they have a much older crowd. Do they? Would you do it again?

 

Pray tell!

 

A colleague of mine who is a big Blues enthusiast does a "Blues Cruise" every year. It's hosted on a HAL ship, and if I understand correctly is a cruise to nowhere. The point is to have different Blues bands playing in various venues around the ship for the vast majority of each day. No point to get off the ship, really, if you're there for the music.

[phoenix_dream]

We normally sail the Caribbean due to cost and lack of vacation days to do a longer cruise, so we often spend a good portion of the port days on the ship. We sleep in, enjoy a leisurely breakfast, and then for the nicer islands we may walk around a couple hours or perhaps go to a beach (although we are not big beach people and would just as soon spend time in the pools onboard). These types of cruises for us are so very, very relaxing. When we can finally graduate to locations new to us such as Europe, we will definitely book excursions to see countries we have never seen before. Each option is enjoyable in its own way.

[cb140]

We've always got off in the Caribbean so far (at least my husband and son do - I struggle with the heat and humidity). We've done western Mediterranean so many times that we are fairly bored of those ports and would very rarely get off. Eastern Mediterranean we haven't done so often, and we particularly like Croatia so we will probably get off there at least, when we go in the summer next year.

[celebrity]

Depends on the itinerary. On a port intensive Caribbean cruise we might stay onboard at one of the ports we've been to multiple times. On a Mediterranean cruise there is no way I'd stay onboard.

 

I don't find planning excursions to be stressful. If you book private tours you often deal with large bus loads of people. The only time I've ever had an excursion that was 90 minutes to reach the destination was in Europe (and that was a very scenic drive).

 

Our preference is to book a cruise that has a good mix of sea days combined with port days.

 

Same here. When I sailed to the Med, had to see it all. Loved planning my private excursions tailored to exactly what I wanted to see in my time frame.

Hopefully., I'll get to do it again.

[Lois R]

I also agree with the "depends on the itinerary" theme and my mood

too.

An example......my Dad passed away in August 2011.....I took a cruise

on Eclipse in Nov 2011 and never stepped off the ship....the itinerary

was the Eastern Caribbean...(I think)......I just wanted to feel the

water and think of my Dad and have some time to relax and being on

ship always makes me feel peaceful.....I didn't really do anything the

entire week.

Well, the following year ....May 2012 I took my first cruise to the Med.

Rome, Greece, Turkey......it was a tribute to my Dad and I know he

would have been happy I was able to go......of course I got off the

ship in every port. It was my first time visiting all these wonderful

places and I loved every one of them!:D.....these cities and countries are simply

AWESOME and everywhere I went? It was a WOW for me!

Edited November 8, 2013 by Lois R