west vs. east vs. south caribbean

[Jeanbon]

I am planning a 7 day family reunion cruise late March 08. The whole family enjoys snorkeling / diving. What general location offers the best opportunities, water temp. etc. We are not hardcore divers but brothers / wives all certified and Mom and Dad snokel and snuba. Water activites in general are of a high priority to us. Probably going on RCCL, Princess or Carnival.This is my first cruise. Thanks for the feedback.

[georoc01]

I am planning a 7 day family reunion cruise late March 08. The whole family enjoys snorkeling / diving. What general location offers the best opportunities, water temp. etc. We are not hardcore divers but brothers / wives all certified and Mom and Dad snokel and snuba. Water activites in general are of a high priority to us. Probably going on RCCL, Princess or Carnival.This is my first cruise. Thanks for the feedback.

 

 

I did a Western cruise out of Galveston on Princess this year that went to Roatan, Belize and Cozumel. All great dive locations...I believe Princess pulled out, but RCCL and Carnival still do run out of that port.

[cmdchiefthom]

If you can get an itinerary that includes Dominica, St. Lucia, St. Kitts, grab it. Somewhat less visited than the typical western Caribbean, these islands rival diving the way it used to be thirty or forty years ago. Good water clarity, beautiful corals, turtles, the occasional large manta, having dived all over the world, these islands offer some of the best diving in the Caribbean.;)

[serene56]

March is one of those expensive times of the year to cruise.

Lots of kids-lots of families.

 

Southern Caribbean will be VERY port intensive.

 

Eastern is more shopping.

Western offers more beaches-- depending on where you go.

 

St Thomas /Aruba has an awesome Snuba.

[Jeanbon]

Unfortunately it's the only time of year we can all get together. Regarding southern itinerary, would you recommend a two sea day option over a one sea day option? Being a first time cruiser I don't want to be overwhelmed. But on the other hand my parents are cruise vets and might like the variety. Thanks for all the helpful feedback.

[serene56]

Unfortunately it's the only time of year we can all get together. Regarding southern itinerary, would you recommend a two sea day option over a one sea day option? Being a first time cruiser I don't want to be overwhelmed. But on the other hand my parents are cruise vets and might like the variety. Thanks for all the helpful feedback.

 

 

Little sea time makes a exciting cruise but its also tiring. Very little downtime to sit and just relax.

 

another thing to look at while looking at cruises is airfare- airfare at this time will be great. a southern route out of San Juan might be costly.

[texswamper]

Concerning the southern route out of San Juan. I am considering the Crown Princess in March 08. Princess airfare from New Orleans was $579, however on Nextag comparison, I found round trip air from for $480. I have always used the cruise air, but I'm not going to do that in the future if I can find it cheaper myself. The key here is to fly in the day before the cruise leaves to make sure there's not a problem with delayed flights. That's a good idea for any port.

 

I have been to all of the parts of the caribbean several times and our favorite is definitely the southern. We also enjoy intineraries with one sea day since we are big snorkeling fans. I enjoy one day doing nothing at sea, but we prefer to wake up in a different port everyday. Just really personal preference. I'm sure you will enjoy any of the cruises and just being able to spend time with your family making memories!:)

[c_dudeman]

if all else is equal, I would take the ship that has fewer days at sea.

 

You can always stay on board the ship if you want to - and if you are in port, there are likely to be far fewer people in the pool, in line for food, in the dining room, etc.

or, you can go in to town in the morning for an hour, or two, then go back to the ship...