Considering Western, any advice?

[dclgirl]

I have been on a 4 night to Nassau and recently in September an Eastern 7 night. I am considering a Western cruise (hopefully next year) and was just wondering which is better, the Eastern or Western? I love the extra sea day and St. Thomas was wonderful (though I didn't like having to get up that early for that day). What about the Western? Is Grand Cayman nice? What about Cozumel? Any advice about which is has nicer ports of call?

 

[PoohJen]

I also loved the Eastern, especially for the extra day at sea. When I did the Western, we went to Cozumel and Costa Maya and TWO days at Castaway Cay!!!! If they offer that double dip at CC again, I highly recommend it!

 

[dclgirl]

That's the other question I have. The "double dip", which I love CC, sounds great, but they don't go to Grand Cayman. Is that a nice stop or is it similar to Nassau and St. Martin (not my favorite Islands, nice, but been there done that)?

 

[wifeofgrumpy]

I have been on a 4 night to Nassau and recently in September an Eastern 7 night. I am considering a Western cruise (hopefully next year) and was just wondering which is better, the Eastern or Western? I love the extra sea day and St. Thomas was wonderful (though I didn't like having to get up that early for that day). What about the Western? Is Grand Cayman nice? What about Cozumel? Any advice about which is has nicer ports of call?

I like the Eastern (have done it twice), but if traveling with children I feel there are more things they like to do on the Western (have done it twice). My daughter loves Boatswain (turtle farm in Grand Cayman)

 

[dclgirl]

I forgot to mention, no kids, just adults in our party.

 

[CraftyMouse]

We absolutely love the Western!

Grand Cayman and Cozumel are great ports with lots to offer. I would HIGHLY recommend an excursion to Stingray City in Grand Cayman. It was the highlight of our first western and we liked it so much we're going back this time. Grand Cayman also has lots of beaches, a turtle farm, a rum cake factory (free samples!) and lots more.

Last time we were in Cozumel we did the Tulum Ruins tour, which we thought was amazing. It was a long (and hot) day though so it might not be your cup of tea but we thought it was well worth it. This time we are doing the Royal Dolphin Swim through www.dolphindiscovery.com and we can't wait! Cozumel also offers great beaches (do a web search for Paradise Beach...we were going to go there before we decided to do the dolphin swim), a jeep excursion that sounds like lots of fun (through DCL), shopping and more.

You didn't mention Key West but we really enjoyed the Old Town Trolley tour we took last time we were there. This time we plan to go to the Southernmost Point, eat some key lime pie and just explore the town.

I'd suggest trying the Western. I often get stuck doing/ordering things that I know I like because I know they are a safe bet so I understand your hesitance to try something new. Honestly, I don't think you can go wrong with either DCL itinerary.

 

[lg3]

Given the fact that you are all adults, I would say do the Western if you haven't already. We have done the western without kids (Celebrity) and loved it, and the Eastern (DCL) with one younger child. It was great but with a child we are changing to rebook the Eastern again. The ports are more adult friendly on the western IMHO. The ruins are WAY too hot for anyone that is not a seasoned traveler too. Enjoy1

 

[CraftyMouse]

The ruins are WAY too hot for anyone that is not a seasoned traveler too.

I disagree with this. My parents were 69 & 70 when we sailed and they went on the ruins tour too. They both really enjoyed it and said they were so glad they did it. We also had 8 & 11 year old kids with us and they had no problems either.

Yes, it is hot. Yes, it is a long day. But I would say it is doable by anybody without health issues that are affected by heat or sun (there isn't much shade at Tulum).

 

[YosDis]

We did the special cruise to Mexico with Disney. We loved the cruise and the ports, but Cozumel still had a lot of damage from the hurricane. (Summer 2006) I'm sure things have improved since there was a lot of work being done. Everyone who stuck with Disney excursions loved the beaches, but be wary of heading on your own. Chankanaab State Park (which we've been to 3x before) was very damaged and you had to ride the back of a truck to get to the beach. They wouldn't let you walk due to all the trees that were down. They rebuilt the Dolphin Swim there which is beautiful. I'm sure things have improved since then, but just a heads up. Grand Cayman is BEAUTIFUL!!! Been there several times and love it. You really can't go wrong with either cruise or ports.

 

[TravelingDi]

I have done both Eastern and Western twice each and if I have to pick my favorite it would be the Western. I love visiting Mexico.

 

[CraftyMouse]

We did the special cruise to Mexico with Disney. We loved the cruise and the ports, but Cozumel still had a lot of damage from the hurricane. (Summer 2006) I'm sure things have improved since there was a lot of work being done. Everyone who stuck with Disney excursions loved the beaches, but be wary of heading on your own. Chankanaab State Park (which we've been to 3x before) was very damaged and you had to ride the back of a truck to get to the beach. They wouldn't let you walk due to all the trees that were down. They rebuilt the Dolphin Swim there which is beautiful. I'm sure things have improved since then, but just a heads up. Grand Cayman is BEAUTIFUL!!! Been there several times and love it. You really can't go wrong with either cruise or ports.

Chankanaab is back to its former glory. Most, if not all, of the hurricane damage has been repaired. All is well in Cozumel again.

The heads up should now be given for Costa Maya. They are cleaning up after a recent hurricane did some major damage. Ships cannot even stop there right now. The word is that they will be able to go back next summer, however many believe that it will take them longer than that.

 

[dclgirl]

Grand Cayman also has lots of beaches, a turtle farm, a rum cake factory (free samples!) and lots more.

I looked on DCL website and didn't see an excursion for the rum cake factory tour. Where can I find out about that? Can I book one through Disney? Is there a rum factory tour?

Also, I loved the extra sea day on the Eastern. Do you miss it, is it worth losing a day for a port on the Western?

 

[CraftyMouse]

I looked on DCL website and didn't see an excursion for the rum cake factory tour. Where can I find out about that? Can I book one through Disney? Is there a rum factory tour?

Also, I loved the extra sea day on the Eastern. Do you miss it, is it worth losing a day for a port on the Western?

I am the one who posted about the rum cake factory. Here is the company's homepage...http://www.tortugarums.com/

And here is a company offering Grand Cayman tours that include the cake factory...http://www.caymannetnews.com/Archive/Archive Articles/June2001/Issue88/Tortuga.html

 

[lg3]

I disagree with this. My parents were 69 & 70 when we sailed and they went on the ruins tour too. They both really enjoyed it and said they were so glad they did it. We also had 8 & 11 year old kids with us and they had no problems either.
Yes, it is hot. Yes, it is a long day. But I would say it is doable by anybody without health issues that are affected by heat or sun (there isn't much shade at Tulum).

Crafty Mouse, perhaps you are right regarding Tulum. I realized that when we were on Celebrity we went to Chitzen Itza, not Tulum. I can only speak for Chitzen Itza, and personally wouldn't recommend that for those that can't take a lot of heat. This was 10 yrs ago and I was even in much better shape then, and I think it was the hottest day of my life. Of course we went in July too! Overall it was worth it to go - scenery was unbelievably beautiful.

 

[tinkerone]

i thought grand cayman was my one wasted day. if we sailed again with this as one of our stops i would not get off the boat. don't get all upset with me, i just did not find alot to my liking. i'm not a big orgainized excursion person. i like to walk around and just relax. i like beaches but to get to a beach you had to take a cab out to 5 mile beach at a cost of (i think it was) $7 p.p. each way. and boy, did they pack people into those cabs. i did go but i felt unsafe. no seatbelts and no place to move. shoulder to shoulder. they keep pushing people in, even when it was over full.
lots of high end stores just off the ship if you are into that but not much else. i would not go very far into the town because again, the farther in we walked the more unsafe i felt. yeah, for me, not my cup of tea. i know others who loved it but not my thing.

 

[CraftyMouse]

i thought grand cayman was my one wasted day. if we sailed again with this as one of our stops i would not get off the boat. don't get all upset with me, i just did not find alot to my liking. i'm not a big orgainized excursion person. i like to walk around and just relax. i like beaches but to get to a beach you had to take a cab out to 5 mile beach at a cost of (i think it was) $7 p.p. each way. and boy, did they pack people into those cabs. i did go but i felt unsafe. no seatbelts and no place to move. shoulder to shoulder. they keep pushing people in, even when it was over full.
lots of high end stores just off the ship if you are into that but not much else. i would not go very far into the town because again, the farther in we walked the more unsafe i felt. yeah, for me, not my cup of tea. i know others who loved it but not my thing.

If you are ever there again give Stingray City a shot. It was amazing!

 

[tinkerone]

If you are ever there again give Stingray City a shot. It was amazing!

thanks, i may try that. as lovely as the ship is, it is almost a waste to spend the day on it when there are things of interest to do. so, again, thanks.

 

[disneyfan551]

We just did the Western one month ago today! And, it was woooonderful!!!! We aren't usually the 'excursion' type either, but we did the Reef, Rays & Rum Point excursion through Nativeway, and it was the highlight of our cruise! We had a group of 8 (3-6yo's!), and there were only 2 other people on our boat (the boat ride itself was so gorgeous, and relaxing!!), and we swam with the rays for a while, then went elsewhere to snorkle, and then they called in our lunch order to a small beach (Rum Point), spent a little time there, & headed back. It was truly a fabulous day! We loved it so much that we are going back on the SAME excursion, with the SAME company on our spur-of-the-moment 12/1 DCL Western cruise!

 

[SideshowBob]

SSB loved the Western... (Eastern nice, but would give MHO edge to the Western after doing both)