Escape from NY March 3-10 or 31-April 7?

[iloveislands24]

My husband and I are planning our second cruise. First was on NCL Gem and we loved it! Planning a second cruise this March. Looking at the Escape going to Florida and the Bahamas, but trying to decide between two dates - March 3-10 or 31-April 7. Excited to try out a larger ship and see how we like it!

 

Does anyone have opinions/suggestions between the two dates? My only concerns are the impact of spring break travelers in early March, and possible cooler temperatures affecting the ability to enjoy outdoor spaces, especially since we leave from NY. But early March is a little more convenient for us, and the prices are a little lower as well.

 

Thanks in advance!

[SNJCruisers]

I would choose the later date just because of the possibility of better weather since the cruise is four weeks later.  Still have the slight chance of snow the first week of March.  I'd personally wait two weeks and go on the first cruise to Bermuda in April.

[dcipjr]

I’d go to Bermuda as well. If you’re going to wait until the beginning of April anyway, might as well get a better itinerary (in my opinion).

[NYcruzzer]

2 hours ago, dcipjr said:

I’d go to Bermuda as well. If you’re going to wait until the beginning of April anyway, might as well get a better itinerary (in my opinion).

 While I  prefer the Bermuda itinerary over Fla/Bahamas, Temps in Bermuda in April are still a little cool for my taste. Especially if you are a beach person and want to swim..

[omarchs]

Looking at the same timeframe. The 2nd and 3rd weeks of March are peak for spring break. Some, but not many have the 1st week. April always concerns me due to school vacations, but I would expect that 1st week might be safer with Easter being later this year.

 

I wouldn’t expect the weather to be that much warmer with the early April date to make that much difference in using the outdoor spaces. Usually you can get outside comfortably  by the afternoon on the 2nd day.

[iloveislands24]

Thanks all for the replies! We considered Bermuda, but I really want to enjoy the beach and swimming, so the Bahamas are probably going to be warmer and better for that.  Although I would like to go to Bermuda some day, I think the Bahamas cruise is better for our needs this year.

 

23 hours ago, omarchs said:

Looking at the same timeframe. The 2nd and 3rd weeks of March are peak for spring break. Some, but not many have the 1st week. April always concerns me due to school vacations, but I would expect that 1st week might be safer with Easter being later this year.

 

I wouldn’t expect the weather to be that much warmer with the early April date to make that much difference in using the outdoor spaces. Usually you can get outside comfortably  by the afternoon on the 2nd day.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the specific dates.  That's a good point, perhaps the first week of March won't be as popular for spring breaks - especially not for school age kids, so maybe a few less families than in April.  Not that we have any problem with kids/families, it just appears that the biggest complaints for the bigger ships like Escape is over crowding and longer waits for everything, so I hope choosing a less busy time of year may help with that.

 

At this point I think we are going with March 3-10, it is a little bit cheaper, and as you mentioned April very well not be much warmer than March.  Last year we did a cruise from NY in early April and it was snowing the night before the cruise in April!

[suometar]

13 minutes ago, iloveislands24 said:

Thanks all for the replies! We considered Bermuda, but I really want to enjoy the beach and swimming, so the Bahamas are probably going to be warmer and better for that.  Although I would like to go to Bermuda some day, I think the Bahamas cruise is better for our needs this year.

 

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the specific dates.  That's a good point, perhaps the first week of March won't be as popular for spring breaks - especially not for school age kids, so maybe a few less families than in April.  Not that we have any problem with kids/families, it just appears that the biggest complaints for the bigger ships like Escape is over crowding and longer waits for everything, so I hope choosing a less busy time of year may help with that.

 

At this point I think we are going with March 3-10, it is a little bit cheaper, and as you mentioned April very well not be much warmer than March.  Last year we did a cruise from NY in early April and it was snowing the night before the cruise in April!

 

I am just curious why you want to cruise out of New York, since you live in Ohio and a flight is required. We cruise out of New York every year during spring break (DH is a college teacher), but for us it's only a matter of a car service to the port. If you enjoy swimming and the beach I would think that a Caribbean cruise would be better. I personally find the water in the Bahamas a bit cool in March.  Also, another thing to consider is that tendering at Great Stirrup Cay is often a crap shoot, depending on the weather. You might want to look into the Western Caribbean cruises for your dates.  Both the Getaway and the Breakaway do that itinerary, one leaving from New Orleans, the other from Miami.

[iloveislands24]

9 minutes ago, suometar said:

 

I am just curious why you want to cruise out of New York, since you live in Ohio and a flight is required. We cruise out of New York every year during spring break (DH is a college teacher), but for us it's only a matter of a car service to the port. If you enjoy swimming and the beach I would think that a Caribbean cruise would be better. I personally find the water in the Bahamas a bit cool in March.  Also, another thing to consider is that tendering at Great Stirrup Cay is often a crap shoot, depending on the weather. You might want to look into the Western Caribbean cruises for your dates.  Both the Getaway and the Breakaway do that itinerary, one leaving from New Orleans, the other from Miami.

 

That is a great question - I really wish we could do a Caribbean cruise.  The honest answer is that we are trying to get pregnant (have been for 2+ years), and there is still a Zika risk in all Caribbean countries except the Bahamas.  Last year we did a 7 day cruise with this same itinerary out of NY for the exact same reason, and absolutely loved it.  So our only options for a warm weather cruise at this point are the Bahamas or Bermuda.  We really hope to go sooner than later because the longer we wait, the more likely I am to be pregnant, which would be absolutely wonderful - however I would be concerned about morning sickness on a cruise (and wouldn't be able to enjoy any alcoholic beverages from the UBP, which we loved last year).  Obviously if we book for March 3-10 and get pregnant in the next two months that is WAY more important than either of those things and we would be overjoyed - but that is our reason for wanting to go sooner than later.  Which is a negative for considering Bermuda, because we'd have to wait until April and the weather/water would probably be less warm than the Bahamas in April.

 

Sorry to write a novel in response, and sorry if TMI - but that is the main reason for choosing the cruise we are.  Plus we can get free flights to NYC from Ohio, which is a nice perk as well!  We hope in the future to do cruises out of Florida that go to the Caribbean, once Zika is no longer a concern for us.

[suometar]

43 minutes ago, iloveislands24 said:

 

That is a great question - I really wish we could do a Caribbean cruise.  The honest answer is that we are trying to get pregnant (have been for 2+ years), and there is still a Zika risk in all Caribbean countries except the Bahamas.  Last year we did a 7 day cruise with this same itinerary out of NY for the exact same reason, and absolutely loved it.  So our only options for a warm weather cruise at this point are the Bahamas or Bermuda.  We really hope to go sooner than later because the longer we wait, the more likely I am to be pregnant, which would be absolutely wonderful - however I would be concerned about morning sickness on a cruise (and wouldn't be able to enjoy any alcoholic beverages from the UBP, which we loved last year).  Obviously if we book for March 3-10 and get pregnant in the next two months that is WAY more important than either of those things and we would be overjoyed - but that is our reason for wanting to go sooner than later.  Which is a negative for considering Bermuda, because we'd have to wait until April and the weather/water would probably be less warm than the Bahamas in April.

 

Sorry to write a novel in response, and sorry if TMI - but that is the main reason for choosing the cruise we are.  Plus we can get free flights to NYC from Ohio, which is a nice perk as well!  We hope in the future to do cruises out of Florida that go to the Caribbean, once Zika is no longer a concern for us.

 

Forgive me -- I didn't realize that your reason was so personal, or I wouldn't have asked. I wish you all the luck in getting pregnant. And you can always cruise to the Caribbean when the little one is old enough! And we have made spring break our anniversary cruise (got married during spring break 36 years ago), mostly the FL/BAH run because, hey, we live in NYC, but have varied it a bit by doing the Western Caribbean, last year out of Tampa. Anyway, happy cruising and hope you the stork will visit you soon!

Edited January 13, 2019 by suometar
typo

[iloveislands24]

11 hours ago, suometar said:

 

Forgive me -- I didn't realize that your reason was so personal, or I wouldn't have asked. I wish you all the luck in getting pregnant. And you can always cruise to the Caribbean when the little one is old enough! And we have made spring break our anniversary cruise (got married during spring break 36 years ago), mostly the FL/BAH run because, hey, we live in NYC, but have varied it a bit by doing the Western Caribbean, last year out of Tampa. Anyway, happy cruising and hope you the stork will visit you soon!

 

No problem, I don't mind giving more context. Thanks so much!  Yes, I'm sure we'll make a Caribbean cruise work out someday. 🙂 Glad you've enjoyed those cruises for so many years, happy early anniversary.

[iloveislands24]

We have booked our cruise for March 3-10, getting a balcony room for the first time! We are so excited for this cruise, absolutely cannot wait. 🙂