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Western Carribean vs. Eastern Carribean

smgardner

By smgardner,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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smgardner

smgardner

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Hi All- I am booked on the Valor for 1/6/08 and we are hitting the Western Carribean. We have wanted to cruise the Carribean and after reading reviews I was a bit torn on which lef of the Carribean to visit.

I want to pose a question to vetean cruisers that have cone both cruises. Which did you like better and why? I am not opposed to changing...

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Quilting_Cruiser

Quilting_Cruiser

Posted
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Hi All- I am booked on the Valor for 1/6/08 and we are hitting the Western Carribean. We have wanted to cruise the Carribean and after reading reviews I was a bit torn on which lef of the Carribean to visit.

I want to pose a question to vetean cruisers that have cone both cruises. Which did you like better and why? I am not opposed to changing...

 

We haven't cruised eastern, but we have cruised southern and western. Our southern did call in a port that is on most eastern itineraries and I understand southern is similar to (has the same feel) eastern. We loved them both, but our family gives the edge to western. I think of it as the eastern is more the beach and shopping itinerary and the western is more the activity and shopping (you're got to have shopping!) itinerary. Now, before I get flamed, I'm NOT saying there's no activity on the eastern and no beaches on the western!

 

One of the things we really liked about the western itinerary was that it was so beautiful--the whole pristine beach and tropical-colored buildings is not as appealing to us as the look of Jamaica (we called in Ocho Rios) and Cozumel. Ocho Rios was really beautiful and though that's the one I was most concerned about because of posts I've read on Cruise Critic, it ended up being our favorite port!

 

Personally, I'd be very happy with either route. :)

 

Jayne

 

One month till sailing!!! :D

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Jan_In_Maine

Jan_In_Maine

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We've done both Western and Eastern and I really like the western best. Eastern is beautiful, but seemed to be mostly shopping, but would do eastern again in a heartbeat! This next cruise will be western. Enjoy your cruise and have fun ... Jan

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PrettyLA

PrettyLA

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I agree that the Western does seem to be more activity oriented than the Eastern. We will be going to the Eastern Caribbean for the first time next month, and a lot of the excursions are shopping and beach related.

 

I'm sure we'll enjoy parts of the Eastern more than the Western and I'm sure that we will enjoy parts of the Western more than we will the Eastern. Either way we'll have a great time.

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patrickmoran "Live from...." Rare

patrickmoran

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I like both and try to alternate them. The EC usually has more days at sea which I like. WC is "busier" though we are tending to stay on the ship and enjoy the spa specials and quiet. There is no such thing as a bad cruise! Enjoy

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yst347

yst347

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I agree with what has been said already. We have sailed eastern twice, southern once and western five times. The Eastern islands are really beautiful, but offer mostly shopping and beaches, which is fine in my book. The Western itineraries are not as beautiful though alot of natural beauty is still to be seen. The western just offers a much wider variety of activities, cave-tubing, zip-lining, stingray and nurse shark swims, Mayan ruins, a lot of stuff.

 

I like both itineraries but as you can see, i like two westerns for one eastern. :D

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firefly333

firefly333

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I liked the Eastern better. Eastern usually goes for a tad more money on several cruiselines, so others must think so too.

 

I have done the Western a lot more than the Eastern. The Eastern the ports are not like Mexican ports, they are upscale islands and I liked the excursions better.

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PrettyLA

PrettyLA

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I liked the Eastern better. Eastern usually goes for a tad more money on several cruiselines, so others must think so too.

 

I have done the Western a lot more than the Eastern. The Eastern the ports are not like Mexican ports, they are upscale islands and I liked the excursions better.

 

I have seen Western routes go for more money than Eastern ones, but you're right I guess it depends on the cruise line. I guess I'm just thinking about

Royal Caribbean's pricing.

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BlueJacketsFan1

BlueJacketsFan1

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We have only been to each one once. We will be doing the eastern for the second time in October. We loved them both and would have to say they each have a little something different. In the western, we had the greatest time on our excursion and in town on Cozumel, and Grand Caymon was also a great time. We also loved the shear beauty of St. Thomas and St. Maartin of the east. We would have a hard time saying one is better than the other. It doesn't matter if you sail the east or the west you can have the time of your life in either. It simply the experience of visiting different places and the ship that makes it a truly enjoyable experience for us.

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Corsair41

Corsair41

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My DW and I like both, but my personal choice would be Eastern. I think that the Eastern ports of call are a bit more casual and relaxed. JMHO, though. I particularly liked St. Thomas. However, on this December's cruise (Western) we're visiting a couple of places we didn't on our first trip there, so I may end up changing my mind.

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pba20493

pba20493

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Have done both the East and West. I prefer the East. Is seems to me that the western is more of a party type of ports. Now Im not against that but it isnt for me. St Thomas, St Maarten are just plain BEAUTIFUL! To be quite honest, I could do without going back to Cozumel. To me its kind of like Freeport or Nassau. Kind of dirty ( to be expected not complaining ) to me.

 

We are going on a Southern, almost the same as the Eastern, St Maarten, St Kitts, and St Lucia.

 

 

Enjoy whatever cruise you go on. Like someone said before, There is NO bad cruise.

 

Tim

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flitter306

flitter306

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I've sailed the Valor's western itinerary once and will be doing east & west B2B in a few weeks. As pp have said, eastern is more beaches and shopping - a bit more laid back. Western is exotic and some of the excursions are more physical. Both are beautiful - it just depends on what you're looking for.

 

If I had to, I'd choose the western itinerary over the eastern because I like the more exotic ports and physically demanding excursions. But luckily I get to do both for our honeymoon :)

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Name game

Name game

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I actually like both, the Eastern and the Western. Now after 18 cruises, I just try to pick an itinerary that has at least one island that I haven't seen before. If I do Eastern, then my next cruise I try to make Western or Southern.

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smgardner

smgardner

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Thanks All...this board rocks. We did our honeymoon cruise on the Pride and had so many tips going in from you all. This cruise will be after all of the holiday "stuff" is over.

Now, I need to get back to the board and find out how "How formal is formal night?"

 

LOL--just kidding.

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NoPiratesPlease

NoPiratesPlease

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Eastern and Southern, definitely! Western is OK (except for Jamaica--total waste of time), and there's more to tour (like Mayan ruins).

 

That's not to say there aren't nice things to see and do in the West--we found we liked Cozumel FAR more the first time than we expected. And liked it even better the second time when we DID expect it!

 

That's not to say that everything's perfect in the East. If we never see Grenada again it will be too soon. I sometimes think we did the Cubans a favor tossing them OUT of Grenada. Venders will be all over you like fleas, just as bad as Jamaica and just as agressive. Plus the beaches are about the worst in the Carib.

 

People are mixed on whether they like St. Lucia but we have had some bad experiences there.

 

But everywhere else is lots of fun! Aruba, Bonaire Curacao, Barbados, Martinique, St. Barts, Tortola, St. Thomas, St. Marten, Ile-de-Saint, Nevis, Domenica (unknown and unexpected delight!), Puerto Rico, St. Johns, Antigua, and...I forgot the rest!

 

We've done the West a few times, and it's an OK diversion but we prefer the Eastern and Southern Carib -- no contest!

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