Can anybody help? There are too many options..

[jkinca5]

I am planning on taking a cruise with my family this Christmas. We are wanting to leave from any port from Florida or Texas. My parents are both 52 yrs old and are very active and are very social. I am 29yrs and my brother is 26yrs old. We have never been on a cruise before. I am overwhelmed by all the options..:confused: We are wanting to stick to around $800 per person for a 7 night cruise. We are very simple so inside cabins will be fine. We are wanting a cruise with good food. From what I have read I am thinking that RCCL and Princess might be our best options..I am nervous that Carnival will have too many kids and young families. Can anyone help?? :) This is my parents first time out of the country so I want it to be perfect :) Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!!

 

Some more questions....

 

1. Eastern Caribbean or Western Carribean?

 

2. Any suggestions on which ship to take would be great!

 

Thank you!! :)

[Aquahound]

You're going to get many different responses on this thread. So, I'll apologize now if we make you more confused. But here's my .02

 

First, I suggest the eastern route. There is more docking and less use of tenders to get you ashore. Plus, I think the ports are nicer.

 

Second, I am a die-hard Royal Caribbean fan and huge fan of their Voyager and Freedom class ships.

 

Try the Freedom or Liberty out of Miami.

 

If you want, click on my webshots link below and check out my Freedom pictures. You'd enjoy the surfing. ( At least, that's my guess);)

[Cruzman]

First, there are going to be loads of kids on a Christmas cruise regardless of cruise line. Second, if you haven't aleady booked, you may have a tough time finding what you want. Third, finding anything under $800 for a 7 day Christmas cruise is going to be very challenging. The only thing I have recently seen that might meet your criteria is the Grandeur of the Seas out of New Orleans, or the Ryndam out of Tampa. Of those two, the Ryndam will likely have the fewest children onboard. Good luck hunting, but I would suggest that you find something quickly!

[Aquahound]

I am planning on taking a cruise with my family this Christmas.

 

Sorry, I missed that Christmas part:eek: Your options really are limited for a holiday cruise. Omit the Liberty. It's not built yet.

[CaptData]

Splender of the Seas 23 Dec out of Galveston, TX. $649.00/person

[ozzie63]

I am planning on taking a cruise with my family this Christmas. We are wanting to leave from any port from Florida or Texas. My parents are both 52 yrs old and are very active and are very social. I am 29yrs and my brother is 26yrs old. We have never been on a cruise before. I am overwhelmed by all the options..:confused: We are wanting to stick to around $800 per person for a 7 night cruise. We are very simple so inside cabins will be fine. We are wanting a cruise with good food. From what I have read I am thinking that RCCL and Princess might be our best options..I am nervous that Carnival will have too many kids and young families. Can anyone help?? :) This is my parents first time out of the country so I want it to be perfect :) Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!!

 

Some more questions....

 

1. Eastern Caribbean or Western Carribean?

 

2. Any suggestions on which ship to take would be great!

 

Thank you!! :)

Jkinca5 Hello and welcome to cruising, I know that you will have a wonderful time with your parents, and you are to be commended on wanting to take them. They will throughly enjoy cruising and people that they meet on the ship. Just think 750+ crew members all with one thought in mind, to make your vacation one that you will enjoy and remember. As you can see from my post I am also partial to RCCL, if it ain't broke don't fix it. (Southern Saying) They have been tremendous to us I will recommend them to anyone. Click on this RCCL link and it will go to RCCL web site where you can choose the cruise. Hope this helps. And KEEP GETTING OUT THERE!!! Ozzie63 :D By the way I am 34 with 30 years experience.http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruise/search/vacationSearchResult.do;jsessionid=0000g15UOL9kBufFRrA-O3pbTjO:10kohi76p?promoType=&cruiseTourOnly=false&dest=CARIB&duration=07&date=20064&port=ANY&ship=ANY&selectedCurrencyCode=USD&price=3&x=99&y=7

[ladycaveat]

I am planning on taking a cruise with my family this Christmas. We are wanting to leave from any port from Florida or Texas. My parents are both 52 yrs old and are very active and are very social. I am 29yrs and my brother is 26yrs old. We have never been on a cruise before. I am overwhelmed by all the options..:confused: We are wanting to stick to around $800 per person for a 7 night cruise. We are very simple so inside cabins will be fine. We are wanting a cruise with good food. From what I have read I am thinking that RCCL and Princess might be our best options..I am nervous that Carnival will have too many kids and young families. Can anyone help?? :) This is my parents first time out of the country so I want it to be perfect :) Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!!

 

Some more questions....

 

1. Eastern Caribbean or Western Carribean?

 

2. Any suggestions on which ship to take would be great!

 

Thank you!! :)

 

First, I'd like to say how nice it is that you and your brother are planning to take a cruise with your parents this Christmas . . . can't think of a better place to spend the holidays with family than on a cruise ship (Mom doesn't have to cook and no has to clean up).

 

I'm fifty-nine and my twenty-nine-year-old son and I are going on a cruise together in January . . . our first since he was fifteen. To be perfectly honest . . . I wouldn't care where we cruised to . . . just being able to take a cruise together for my 60th birthday is so special.

 

Having said that . . . I love the Western Caribbean . . . my last three cruises have been to the Western Caribbean (out of Miami) and my last two have been on Carnival's Triumph and it was so much fun swimming with dolphins in Cozumel, snorkling with stingrays in Belize and Grand Cayman and visiting Ocho Rio, Jamacia (though I never did it . . . climbing the falls there, I've been told, is fantastic). I've never cruised over Christmas but from what I've read . . . it really doesn't matter which cruise line you are on . . . it will be full of families and kids. Most cruise lines have programs for the younger kids so that probably won't be a problem.

 

Though lately I've been cruising on Carnival (my son and I will be on Carnival's Pride to the Mexican Riviera for our cruise in January) . . . the main reason is because I've found Carnival to be a lot less expensive than the others. My favorite cruise was to Alaska on the Princess line and my favorite cruise line is Celebrity. However . . . all of the cruise lines have good food, good service and good entertainment. My suggestion to you would be to check out the Port of Call Board . . . decide on whether the Eastern or Western Caribbean has things you'd like to do and see. Then pick a date that ya all what to cruise . . . check out the ships out of Miami for that date, compare prices and go for it. As so many have said . . . there is no such thing as a bad cruise.

 

Good luck and have a wonderful holiday with ya all's parents . . . take lots of pictures . . . this is how memories are made . . . :p

[98Charlie]

Does the cruise have to be over Christmas or is it a Christmas present?

 

If you want to go before, Explorer of the Seas is going for $409 for an inside on December 10. Or, give the cruise as a Christmas gift and go in January or February. NCL Jewel and Caribbean Princess are both going for $499 in January for Eastern Caribbean cruises.

 

Whatever you choose, you will want to do it soon. Especially if it is over the actual holiday.

 

Charlie

[laxdef10]

I love RCL. Princess is nice but if given the choice I will always chose royal. Royal has a huge loyal fan base....for a good reason. If you are huge partiers I suggest carnival, otherwise I would go with RCL. It will be great!

 

Try freedom of the seas if you can, if not any of their voyager ships are great too.

[japester]

Welcome to Cruise Critic!

 

Multi-generational cruises are a lot of fun. I'm planning one for January and can't wait.

 

As for your questions, I live in Texas, so I've been cruising out of Galveston lately. I can't speak for the ships leaving out of Florida, since I lived there over 10 years ago.

 

The ships here only do the Western Caribbean, which I think is fine. The ports are varied, and I find some of the Easter Caribbean ports a bit worn-out. Roatan and Belize are particularly fun.

 

I'm partial to Princess, mainly due to food quality and variety, plus they provide a bit more of an elegant experience. Carnival is for the party crowd. The ships are garish, and the main recreational activity is drinking. RCI out of Galveston is somewhere in the middle. It's a very laid-back redneck crowd that prefers to sit around and eat hot dogs and drink beer while watching football on the TV (this was the big draw on the Rhapsody of the Seas last January). I think people love it because there is lots of smoking and drinking and ignorance of the dress code, without the rowdiness of the Carnival crowd. Nobody does it to excess. RCI does stand out, generally, for the quality of their entertainment. They treat their performers the best of any fleet out there, so they get the best talent.

 

In a nutshell, I think you are on the right track with RCI or Princess. Any of the Texas sailings tend to be friendly.

 

The only problem is kids/Christmas/prices. This is really late to be planning a Christmas cruise. If you are flexible, you can get some amazing deals if you cruise mid-December or January. Final payment was already due for those cruises, so the cruise lines will slash prices to fill the remaining spaces. Bargain time! ;)

 

Good luck, and have fun!

 

Jape

[richnorto]

I would recomend Princess for a multigenerational cruise. The Sun out of Fort Lauderdale has a 10 day Eastern Caribbean in the $800 range over Christmas - or did as of a week ago. Check the discount websites.:)