Need some cruise advice?

Question

My plan is to go on a cruise between September and December of next year. The duration I am hoping for is anywhere between 5 and 7 days. The only issue is that I have never been on a cruise and really know little about them....

I don't want to fall into any heavy storm seasons... but I do want a little piece of paradise in what would be fall/winter at home.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated...

i.e. Where to go, what is available, best cruise lines, best prices(with what is included), etc...

Answer 1

When I was a first time Cruiser I used a Travel Agent and they told me everything I needed to know,so my advise is to use a Travel agent.They don't charge you anything and offer a lot of personal help.Also try checking out the cruise sites and get an idea of what you want and look for a deal and the time you are going is perfect because hurricane season is over in October.

Answer 2

YOU NEED TO KNOW WHERE YOU WANT TO GO, WHERE YOU WANT TO LEAVE FROM... GO ON-LINE TO THE DIFFERENT CRUISE LINE SITES AND COMPARE... MAKE SURE YOU GET A ROOM WITH A BALCONY,(IT'S WORTH THE EXTRA BUCKS). JUST ENJOY!!!

Answer 3

I just went on my first cruise last March.  If you'd like to see some details and my impressions visit my Squidoo lens: http://www.squidoo.com/Mexico_Cruise

Here's a website where you get more information and compare prices:

http://vgsims.traverustravel.com/whycrui...

Answer 4

hhmmm... i suggest you to get the Caribbean cruise if you want to have a little paradise when fall and winter comes in your hometown.

You can check out this site; http://cruisevacationsworld.com

where it offers a wide range of cruise destinations and cruise lines... you can also read the blogs that they have to get some ideas on people who have been on a cruise and so on.

Answer 5

I suggest going to Princess.com and there you will see many fall to winter cruises. You can go on a fall cruise from New York to Canada and see the fall colors, or for a warm cruise, there is always Mexico and the Caribbean. Many cruises are 7 days and since this is your first cruise, 7 days would be great. There web site is easy to use and it will give you all kinds of ideas. For something good and a little cheaper, then check out carnival cruise lines.

Answer 6

I have been on about 20 cruises on 4 different cruise lines and can give you some advice/help based on my experiences.  I also have 3 cruises booked right now for later this year and next.

There are a lot of factors that affect what cruise you should select. Cruises generally cost about $125.00 per day per person AND all cruises are priced based on double occupancy (2 people per cabin).

Since cruises can be 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 12, or 14 days or more the price will depend mostly on how many days your cruise is. Then the cruise lines give the best price for early bookings that are a year or more in advance. Cruise lines also list specials on their web sites so do look for those. The specials can many times save you a couple hundred per person over the price for the exact same cruise on a different date.

The hurricane season is June through the end of October in the Caribbean only so if you want a Caribbean cruise with no hurricane worries then go in November or December of next year.  That is also a great time to book now and get a great price.

All cruise cabins are sold based on double occupancy and the prices listed will be per person and based on at least two people going on the cruise. (If you have a 3rd and/or 4th person in your cabin their fare is generally about 50% of the first two persons.) The price you pay will depend also on the type cabin/accommodations that you choose.

There are 4 basic types of cabins on ships;

- inside (no window),................................... least expensive

- outside (a window or porthole),

- balcony/veranda, and

- suites and penthouses.......................... most expensive.

The "FROM" prices you see will always be for an inside cabin. There are also some subcategories within each category with cabins on a higher deck, and/or a better location on ship (like midship), and/or that are slightly larger costing more. So as you browse, pay attention to the square footage of the cabins. You may not want to pay more for the same sized cabin on a higher floor; or vice versa or prefer to pay less for the same cabin on a lower deck.

You can reserve a cruise by booking on line; by calling the cruise line, or through a travel agent.  You will pay at booking the minimum deposit which will be between $250 and $350 per person for a 7 day cruise, depending upon the cruise line. The minimum will be more for a longer cruise, for example $450 per person for a 14 day cruise. The balance will be due approximately 60 days before the cruise departure date. But you can make periodic payment on line or with the cruise line. I have reserved on line and made payments many times.  If you book within about 60 days of the cruise you will likely have to pay the full amount.

I have listed below the web sites for the medium priced cruise lines which operate from US ports. These are the cruise lines that most people use. There are some luxury lines that are much higher priced with prices starting around $4,000 for a 7 day cruise. The lines that I have listed below will have cruises starting in the range of $700 to $1,000 per person for a 7 day cruise, again depending upon the date and type cabin you select.

HOLLAND AMERICA

http://www.hollandamerica.com/

CELEBRITY:

http://www.celebritycruises.com/home .

ROYAL CARIBBEAN:

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/gohome.d.....

NORWEGIAN:

http://www.ncl.com/

PRINCESS:

http://www.princess.com/index.html

CARNIVAL:

http://www.carnivalcruiselines.com/

I have been on Princess, Celebrity, Norwegian, and Royal Caribbean ships and can vouch that they are good cruise lines. However, there are some differences.

- Princess, Celebrity and Holland America have great ships are more classy and reserved. They are just a little more upscale and luxurious than the other cruise lines.  Passengers tend to be middle aged and up and have cruised multiple times.  Holland America has mostly senior citizens cruising on its ships.

-Norwegian cruise line is good, they cater to families and have mostly passengers in the range of age 35-40 and up.   Its the line that you want to go on if you want to be informal for pretty much your whole cruise. They have formal nights like other cruise lines but they do not stress dressing up; the call it "dress up if you want to" night.

Carnival is the budget cruise line that generally has the lowest prices. They cater to young people, first time cruiser and families. The best of their ships are their newer ships so do pay attention to when the ship was launched is you find a really cheap cruise. A seven day cruise on a Carnival ship can be as low as $650. per person. :http://www.carnivalcruiselines.com/cms/f...

Royal Caribbean is also a cruise line that caters to young cruiser and families. It has the advantage of having the most on-board activities. Things like ice skating, roller blading, mini-golf course, a full sized basketball/tennis court, the rock climbing wall, and on the new Freedom Class ships the surfing simulator, the Flowrider. The RC ships that you should look for cruises on are the RC's Freedom Class and Voyager Class ships.  You can look at the features of these ships on these two web links:

Freedom Class:

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruis...

Voyager Class:

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruis...

For the most part all cruises are all inclusive. Let me explain.

Regardless of which cruise line you select the things that are included are pretty much the same. The price of your cruise includes your cabin, all meals (including breakfast, lunch dinner, snacks and free room service), free admissions to all shows and entertainment, and free use of all facilities on ship except spa services. The things that you will have to pay for are:

GRATUITIES: They will amount to about $10 per person in your cabin per day; about $70 each for a 7 day cruise. When you check in at the pier they will set up an on-board charge account for you to cover any and everything you may buy on ship. They will issue you a "cruise card" which will also serve as your room key and pass to get on and off the ship. At the end of the cruise they will add the gratuity to your tab and you can pay with a credit card or cash, your choice. So everything on ship except the casino is cashless; everything you buy goes on your account.

ALCOHOLIC DRINKS AND SOFT DRINKS: Coffee, tea, milk, juice, and lemonade and punch will be provided free but you must pay for soft drinks and alcoholic beverages and they will add a 15% gratuity to each drink and soft drink order.

PHOTOGRAPHS: Cruise lines will take plenty of photographs of you all over the ship, in the dining room, and as you exit the ship in ports. These will cost a lot, like $15 to $20 for most.

TOURS/EXCURSIONS: You are not required to book any tours and can get off and on in the ports as much as you want. But the cruise line will offer a lot of tours and these are expensive.

SOUVENIRS: Anything you buy on ship from a gift shop or duty free shop goes on your on board account. Things that you buy on shore you pay cash or credit card for.

CASINO: If you plan to gamble on ship you will need cash for that.

OTHER: most cruise lines have what they call "specialty" restaurants where there is a gratuity/service charge. All other food on board is free and its not really necessary to budget for food; you cannot eat all of the FREE FOOD that will be available.

SPA SERVICES: If you want/need to have your hair done, get a massage or wrap, or any services from the spa, you will have to pay for them. You can use the gym free but the spa stuff cost big bucks.

INTERNET SVCS: Ships now have internet cafe and some have WiFi but the there is a fee for internet access and it is very expensive (like about $50 to $60 an hour).

You cabin will likely have a minibar with soft drinks and munchies; you have to pay for them (but there is free room service 24/7).

Those are the basics.