HELP, I'm LOST!

[lostmarbles]

Hi all!

 

 

I'm totally new to cruising, but after much consideration about the best way for us to get married, my fiancé (also a newbie) and I decided a cruise would be wonderful and solve so many “issues” about where to wed, who to invite, and such. I've spent hours researching packages, itineraries, ships, etc. and even made several charts to compare. There is so much information out there though and I would really appreciate anyone's advice before we lock into our plans. We've finally almost settled on Carnival Glory 8/20/05 East. Carib. sailing out of Pt. Canaveral and plan to be married while in port at St. Thomas. We'll have at least 15 and as many as 30 or more family and friends joining us, including my 11 year old daughter and 2 preschool age children. We want something for everyone, good value since they are paying to join us, and a fun, romantic ceremony. We plan to book the package with the ceremony and 1 hr. reception.

 

Is Glory a good ship for this? We are also strongly considering the Victory. It goes to San Juan instead of Nassau, but otherwise similar itinerary, price, etc. Has anyone been on both? How do they compare?

 

We considered any East. Car. Sailings as we’ve been told that is the best itinerary for newcomers and good for families. We also considered the Valor (Glory’s sister?); Legend; Celebration; and other lines, including Norwegian, Royal Car., and Celebrity.

 

Has anyone been to or had a Carnival wedding? They seem to offer the best value for weddings.

 

We are pretty flexible in where we go so long as it is next summer (mid June to mid August) and getting married is pretty straightforward, but still nice. We have given up on ships sailing form Norfolk or Baltimore, though those are the closet ports. We do not want to do the Grandeur Bermuda sailings and that is all I've found so far from either port, besides the luxury Radisson cruises. If you know of others, please clue me in.

 

ANY advice is GREATLY appreciated!!!

 

THANKS! :)

[iluvdoxies]

The Glory is a beautiful ship and the ports on the eastern Caribbean are great!

I dont know if you know this, but the Glory has a beautiful wedding chapel. If you book a weeding package through Carniva, they handle the flowers, cake, decorations and everything. ALso wedding parties are the first to board.

But that is just a thought, as I read you are planning to wed in St Thomas.

Have a wonderful cruise no matter what you decide.

Also if you do decide to get married on the ship. people can come for the wedding ceremony and reception and get off before the ship sails.

[lostmarbles]

Thanks so much for the information. I had no idea they have a chapel. I did not see it in the list of which Carnival ships do, but am glad to find out it does.

 

I really wanted some parts traditional like in a chapel, but other aspects more fun and far less planning for me. I'm what they politely call an "Encore Bride" and want to keep it simple.

 

Do you think the Glory is good for families?

 

Thanks, again. :rolleyes:

[dickinson]

Congratulations on your upcoming wedding! In answer to your question, all Carnival ships are great for families, especially when they sail during the summer. Lots of families book cruises and summertime is loaded with kids because they are out of school. The Glory is one of the newer ships so I am sure you would like it.

 

As far as the ports, I have been to San Juan and Nassau. Depends on what you like to do. If the ship is in San Juan for the day then the kids would like either the rainforest or going to the fort. If it arrives mid afternoon you could still go to the fort (the preschoolers may or may not like it but the views there are gorgious!) but not the rainforest. Most people seem to agree that San Juan at night is a wasted port. Most people seem to go to Senor Frogs. I have never been but it apparently is a restaurant/bar so not really suitable for preschoolers (most people seem to talk about all the drinking and such going on there). Our last cruise had San Juan at night so we and many others just stayed on the ship. Nassau is nice for going to the beach. You can either go to Paradise island where Atlantis is (you can just take a cab as the beaches there have public access) or go to Blue Lagoon. I have been to the beach at Paradise island. Very nice beach.

 

Hope this helps.:rolleyes:

[jerseygirl3]

I, too, was an "encore bride." We got married two years ago on the Carnival Imagination, and 52 family/friends sailed with us. We had an absolute blast and it was the BEST way to get married. Carnival took care of everything (right down to the marriage license). We booked the 1 1/2 hour open bar/hot and cold appetizer package. It was perfect. We found booking a shorter cruise (we did the 5 nighter to the Western Caribbean) was more affordable for most families, and the week was extended because everyone flew down a day early. I blocked off hotel rooms at the Best Western Marina Park Hotel (now the Holiday Inn Marina Park) and it was great. We had a "rehearsal" dinner for all our guests at Bubba Gumps (Bayside Market is right across the street from that particular hotel, so it was convenient for folks to just walk across the street) the night before the cruise. We had a bus pick up all our guests at the Ft. Lauderdale Airport (almost 40 of us were on the same flight going down), and we arranged shuttles to take our guests over to the ship the morning of the cruise. We got married before the ship left port in Miami, because I wanted that part to be over and be able to relax and enjoy the rest of the cruise.

 

I would highly recommend getting married on the ship and having your reception right onboard. Most of the newer Carnival ships have wedding chapels. Your wedding can be as traditional or nontraditional as you make it.

 

I wish we could do it all over again, it was that good. We're already talking about doing a vow renewal for our 10-year anniversary.

[lostmarbles]

Thanks dikinson-the port info is great. It's so hard to tell from reading what the lines and such advertise. They make them all sound like paradise, but a fellow traveler can give me unbiased info- I appreciate it!

 

 

I feel so much better after hearing how great your wedding was jerseygirl! We were trying for a 5night, but this 7 night one is Sat. to Sat. so everyone will miss the same amount of work either way. It starts at 599.00 for inside, so its not much more than a 5 nighter if you consider going early and paying for a hotel, etc. I'm looking into buses/shuttles now- do you know any I should check? Also looking into FT. Laud. departures.

 

 

Thanks again and Take Care!

[jerseygirl3]

I used Port Promotions for the bus from Ft. Lauderdale airport to the hotel in Miami. They charged about $250 for a 45 passenger bus. I arranged the shuttles over to the port through the hotel. I can't remember how much that cost, but it wasn't much. A couple of bucks per person.

[lostmarbles]

Thanks again, jerseygirl! Everyone is so helpful here!