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Your opinion on two itineraries

gumballz

By gumballz,
in Royal Caribbean International

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gumballz

gumballz

Posted
Posted

My DD (17 yrs old) and I are planning a cruise for Dec of 2006. We've decided that we want to go on the Enchantment of the Seas.......but we're not 100% sure on which itinerary to choose from. We've never been to any of these places......so either one would be new to us. I'm interested in hearing your opinion on which might be better for us.

 

It would be a first cruise for my DD and the 2nd cruise for myself. The prices of both of these are the same.

 

Here's our choices:

 

Sat: Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Sun: At Sea

Mon: Ocho Rios, Jamaica

Tue: George Town, Grand Cayman

Wed: At Sea

Thu: Fort Lauderdale, Florida

 

~or~

 

Mon: Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Tue:Key West, Florida

Wed: Cozumel, Mexico

Thu:Belize City, Belize

Fri:At Sea

Sat:Fort Lauderdale, Florida

 

We're both interested in visiting beautiful places and enjoying beaches. The more tropical the better. We're also considering the safety of the ports we visit.

 

Soooo..........which one do you suggest? Is it a toss up? Does one port (or more) stand out as a favorite? Is December a bad time for any (or all) of those ports, etc? All advice, suggestions, opinions appreciated. :)

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cherub44

cherub44

Posted
Posted

The things I noticed about the itinteraries that would make a difference to me are the number of days at sea (vs. port days) and the days you will be on the cruise.

 

If you are wanting to spend a lot of time at beaches then maybe the one going to 3 ports would be a better bet. If you are concerned with safety in the ports maybe the one with 2 days at sea would be better (however I wouldn't be too concerned with that). Which one can you get a better deal on airfare for? Cozumel and Belize are both very good for snorkeling if that's your thing.

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Tommy's Mommy

Tommy's Mommy

Posted
Posted
I am going on the Enchantment next year and doing the Key West, Coz and Belize itinerary. I like that the ship leave FLL on a Monday. Gives time for a longer weekend in FLL prior to the cruise. Both are great though and you cannot lose with either one.

 

 

If this is your first time cruising the first thing is to decide iif you want more days at sea. That way you can explore and enjoy shipboard life. We did the Key West, Cozumel, Belize on the Enchantment 2 years ago befpre the stretch. A teenager might enjoy Key West. It's kind of a funky place and shopping. Cozumel is a LOT of shopping but also a nice selection of beaches. Belize was our favorite. We took an excurstion to Goffs Cay. It was our best day. It's a private island with a nice beach. The snorkeling was nice especially for beginners. They offered a bar-b-que. It was a nice relaxing family day. The last day at sea is very relaxing and only makes you want to go again because you didn't do everything on the ship that was offered. The first cruise is a learning experience-what the ship offers, when, what you want to do, deck plans, etc. It's exciting. Have a good time. December is a great time i

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FJTinSC

FJTinSC

Posted
Posted

Having done both, I would reccomend the Belize and Cozumel one. Don't get me wrong, but I just felt it was a lot more fun that the Jamaica/Grand Cayman route.

 

I was not impressed at all with Jamaica, either time we went, as a matter of fact, on our last one there we didnt even get off the ship....LOL

 

Of course, both are wonderful, and you would enjoy both. And as far as safety, the ports are perfectly safe, you would have nothing to worry about on either one!

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brn2crz

brn2crz

Posted
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They both have pros and cons,so its kind of a personal choice.

Me personally on a 5 nighter would probably go with the 2 stops instead of 3..thats a lot on a 5 nighter.

I like Key West,but theres not a lot of "beach" activity there.

I really have enjoyed Grand Cayman in the past...But it is a very "busy" port.

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gumballz

gumballz

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Thanks everyone.......something else to consider is the itinerary that includes Belize/Cozumel/Key West is a cc group cruise. The 'perks' involved aren't anything absolutely wonderful (not enough to make my decision for me) but I do like the idea of going on a group cruise.

 

One drawback to that cruise, however, is that it returns on December 23rd. I'm not sure how airfare will be. Does anyone have any experience they'd be willing to share as far as airfare that time of year goes? I know airfare is a chance we take with any cruise.......but I'm just curious as to what kind of 'luck' people have had in the past.

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49holding

49holding

Posted
Posted

One thing about a cruise that ends Dec 23rd is that if you celebrate Xmas you really hafta have your act together before the cruise....have everything ready for xmas before your cruise...As far as a CC group cruise, we went on one this summer on the serenade to alaska. It wasn't much of a group thing at all, we never saw the group leader except for 2 brief encounters..she was with her own friends from home. I have been on the enchantment twice with a 3rd trip on her in march....Have only done the 4 nite cruise with 2 ports, one sea day and would relish having another sea day to enjoy the ship and do everything. Good luck deciding

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Sun and Fun

Sun and Fun

Posted
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Since you asked about safety of the ports, I would avoid Jamaica. I am only going with what I have heard other say that have been there (close friends), but they didn't feel safe at all. One couple stayed at Sandals and they were told by the resort NOT to leave the grounds. Since the resort was all-inclusive, they didn't have any financial stake in telling them this.

 

We love Grand Cayman (going on the Legend this Jan. to Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Costa Maya, and Belize). We stayed there two weeks once and have been there on a couple of cruises. Seven Mile Beach is a fantastic, clean, beautiful, completely public beach. Cozumel was fun (been there too). We are going cave-tubing in Belize this January. All in all, I guess you can interpret which itinerary I'd choose! :)

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gumballz

gumballz

Posted
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lol......yes, I'm guessing you'd choose Belize/Cozumel/Key West. ;)

 

I was thinking the same thing about Jamaica because I've been reading a lot about it on the boards. If it ends up just being just my DD and myself, my husband would be more worried if we were in a port that doesn't have a reputation as being a safe one.

 

Thanks for all the comments.....you've all definitely helped me make my choice. :)

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Host Kewlguy

Host Kewlguy

Posted
Posted
My DD (17 yrs old) and I are planning a cruise for Dec of 2006. We've decided that we want to go on the Enchantment of the Seas.......but we're not 100% sure on which itinerary to choose from. We've never been to any of these places......so either one would be new to us. I'm interested in hearing your opinion on which might be better for us.

 

It would be a first cruise for my DD and the 2nd cruise for myself. The prices of both of these are the same.

 

Here's our choices:

 

Sat: Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Sun: At Sea

Mon: Ocho Rios, Jamaica

Tue: George Town, Grand Cayman

Wed: At Sea

Thu: Fort Lauderdale, Florida

 

~or~

 

Mon: Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Tue:Key West, Florida

Wed: Cozumel, Mexico

Thu:Belize City, Belize

Fri:At Sea

Sat:Fort Lauderdale, Florida

 

We're both interested in visiting beautiful places and enjoying beaches. The more tropical the better. We're also considering the safety of the ports we visit.

 

Soooo..........which one do you suggest? Is it a toss up? Does one port (or more) stand out as a favorite? Is December a bad time for any (or all) of those ports, etc? All advice, suggestions, opinions appreciated. :)

 

I'd book them both.

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JerseyGirl23

JerseyGirl23

Posted
Posted

Personally, I would take the Cozumel/Belize cruise as opposed to the Jamaica/Grand Cayman. I did not feel that Jamaica was safe, even in a group. That being said, you would probably do a ship tour to Dunns River Falls, other than that, I don't suggest you get off the ship. As for Grand Cayman, one BIG factor is that you are tendered. Depending on the weather, you may have to miss that port because of winds or high seas. Narrow all of this down, and you may end up with practically no ports of call.

 

Key West is fun and funky. It's a great place to walk around and shop, everything is within walking distance. Cozumel and Belize sound nice too for shopping, swimming, snorkeling, and every other wonderful thing to do on vacation.

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Zeichman

Zeichman

Posted
Posted

We did the Belize etc agenda last year and the Jamica etc. agenda the year before both on the Enchantment. While we fully enjoyed our initial trip I would say the Belize etc. trip was better. It only has one sea day and the paces we stopped offered less commercial options.

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