Eastern vs. Southern Caribbean, how do they compare?

[karen327]

We took our first cruise last winter, to the western caribbean on the NCL Pearl. This next winter we would like to take our second cruise, this time to the eastern or southern caribbean. We enjoy history, nature, scenery and culture as well as a nice quiet beach and snorkeling. We are not big shoppers. I would love to see a mountain, as the area we were at in the west caribbean was fairly flat. Any suggestions?

[cruiser429]

I think you'll find more variety in the Southern Caribbean. Many more ports and that makes for lots of excursions. For us, Eastern Caribbean is nice--mostly shopping--(the most wonderful beach in Tortola), but much more is offered as you go south.

[eandj]

Southern would be my next pick, after reading what you like.

 

But I'd have to see the two itineraries first. Very south will get you to St. Lucia...gorgeous. Also Curacao ..wonderful to just stroll the colorful streets. Aruba..beautiful beaches...flat and touristy. Doninica...a nature lovers paradise. Barbados...as British as they come. And start your cruise in San Juan for some excellent views of the historical forts and the old town area.

[cb at sea]

Aruba has no "mountains"--it's a true "desert" island! I LOVE the Eastern route---the water is gorgeously colored and warm, the flora is so green....(I don't give a whit about the island's culture or architecture) or even shopping....I LOVE the beaches! Most of the Eastern Islands have some mountainous terrain.

[alcpa1]

If you like history, many of the Caribbean islands have fascinating stories to tell. Nelson's Dockyard in Antigua is a national park and close to English Harbour. You could spend hours there. St. Lucia, St. Kitts, Nevis, Dominica and Martinique have the hills you seek. St. Thomas has the hills but is very populated so you really miss a lot, and, it's vegetation is not as lush. Historic Aruba and Curacao are flat with great beaches. St. Maarten has gorgeous beaches too. One of my favorite parks is El Junque in Puerto Rico. It is a tropical rainforest and you will travel through the low mountains to get there.

We have cruised both eastern and southern many times and I never tire of the beauty of the Atlantic coast of Barbados. It's not a beach destination but the historic plantations and churches that hug the coast are unforgettable.

Try one itinerary this year and do the other as soon as you can. You may repeat some ports but you will still miss enough to keep returning.

[Kathie44]

I've done them all and the S. Carib twice. I think it is my favorite of them. The Galaxy Jan. 19th cruise was 11 nights roundtrip from San Juan. Ports were Aruba, Curacao, Grenada, Barbados, St. Lucia, Dominica, St. Kitts and Tortola. We did at least 4 tours which included rain forests and the El Junque in PR after the cruise. We also saw mountains, waterfalls, botanical gardens, volcanic sites with fumeroles and steaming areas, monkeys (St. Kitts), banana plantations, a fishing village, beautiful beaches and desert (Aruba). Curacao has some cactus, but not quite so much actual desert. Almost every tour featured free rum punch. One of the beach hotels let us add our own rum to the prepared punch mix. They probably lost money on our bus load and the next one, lol.

Our first cruise there was 7 nights--Aruba, Curacao, St. Maarten and St. Thomas. We also saw St. Thomas on our Eastern Carib. cruise as first-timers.

So many cruises, so little time, lol. :D

 

1/02 Explorer E. Carib. 1/03 Explorer W. Carib. 8/03 Summit Alaska cruise/tour

2/04 Adventure S. Carib. 2/05 Galaxy Panama Canal 6/06 Jewel O.S. Brit. Isles/Nor. Fjords

1/07 Mercury Mex. Riv. 1/08 Mercury Aust/NZ Sydney-Aukland

1/09 Galaxy S. Carib. 6/09 Summit Classical Med. Barcelona-Venice

[FUN33]

We have cruised the Caribbean for over 20 years. They sell a T-Shirt in every port you visit with the following printed on it.

 

"Same S### Different Island"

 

The shirt pretty much says it all.

 

The real destination in the Caribbean is the ship you choose to sail on. All of the islands offer much of the same; beautiful beaches, lots of shopping, almost identical tours and lots of sun, blue sky's and relaxing places to grab a drink or some local food.

 

First decide which cruise line is best for your lifestyle, then the ship you prefer. After that decision, just go wherever the ship takes you. We would be just as happy if the ship went 10 miles out to sea and went in circles for a week.

[LindaKE]

The Southern Carib. will be our next cruise after the Canada/NE one this year, so I can't comment about one over the other. We've done the eastern twice. Both St. Thomas and Tortola have mountains and are interesting to tour. But the other posters are correct in saying that shopping is big on the eastern routes.

[geoherb]

I did not enjoy our southern Caribbean cruise that we went on from San Juan. There were too many ports--all back to back to back--and not enough time to enjoy the ship.

 

I loved it last month when we sailed from Fort Lauderdale and went to Aruba and Curacao. There are not many week-long cruises that make it all the way down to those two islands. I've also loved the longer cruises we've sailed on from Fort Lauderdale that have included some islands that are usually only included in southern Caribbean cruises--Antigua, St. Lucia, and St. Kitts.

[cruiseapril]

Have done both- prefer the Southern because we enjoy the beaches and snorkeling in Aruba and Curacao. Dominica is undeveloped with a huge Rain Forest- a tour is a must there. Barbados offers many different excursions- interesting island.

[obnurse]

Consider a 10 day leaving from Ft. Lauderdale or Miami. That way you can spend the extra time and money sailing down to the southern ports rather than spending the extra to fly into and sail from San Juan. You'll have time to get down to the southern islands that are wonderful. We've done 3 Princess 10 day cruises and they're our personal favorite. If it feels a little "port intensive" as mentioned in prior posts, consider staying on the ship one of those days for a little r&r.