I have cruised the last week of July. It was HOT, HOT, HOT during the day. We were fine on the ship because we weren't exerting ourselves all that much, and air conditioning was always nearby; however, we did find that during our island stops we had less energy and were ready to return to the ship more quickly than we had on previous trips. I'd definitely choose that time frame again, but I'd plan all beach-stops for the islands -- no shopping tours, etc. Gotta stay near the water.
Our kids did find lots of new friends on that cruise, but it wasn't
nearly so kid-filled as the time we cruised over Thanksgiving.
Cruising over a holiday --
that I won't do again; it was exceedingly crowded.
The only other negative about July/August is that the price will be high. Once school starts, the prices drop. My personal favorite time to cruise is October/early November; the weather is ideal -- warm enough for a bathing suit, not so hot that you'll sweat; you'll need a jacket in the evenings, but shorts are fine all day long.
On the subject of price, do consider
your total price -- not just the cruise ticket. Include transportation, alcohol, excursions (private tour vendors provide a better price and a smaller group with more personalized attention), gratuities, photographs, and other incidentals. You have a great deal of control over these costs: If you skip the spa and the casino, you'll save a bundle. But do some research first to see what you'll realistically spend.
As for hurricanes . . . don't worry about them. If you can get to your port city (which might not always be possible in Florida), you will cruise. Remember, the ship is mobile; the captain is authorized to take you off your scheduled course if he judges that a place is dangerous. At the worst, you're prepared to visit Island A and instead you visit Island B. It is possible that a hurricane could damage an island just before you visit, and you could find damaged roads, shops, etc. Or a pier could be destroyed, and your ship might be unable to access the island. But you will never be in danger from a hurricane while you're on a ship.
Having said that, it's wise to have
travel insurance for a cruise. We don't buy the cruise line's "insure you against everything" policy; instead, we buy online JUST what we need -- for us, that's mainly emergency evacuation insurance. But if you're flying, you might feel better knowing that if a hurricane grounded your flight and you couldn't meet your ship, you'd get your money back.
Whether you drive or fly, we think the best cruise insurance of all is arriving a day ahead. The first time we cruise, we encountered a massive pile-up on I-95 that delayed us several hours. Literally everyone on the interstate got our of their cars and just walked around talking to each other. We kept saying to one another, "Aren't you glad we're only going to the hotel tonight? We'd have missed our ship."
The biggest factor for us in choosing a cruise line /ship is the port city. Driving is so much cheaper than flying.
Beyond that, be sure that you're comparing apples to apples. People do tend to think that Carnival's cheaper than the others, but when comparing ships of equal quality . . . we've found
Royal Caribbean and Princess prices that beat them by HUNDREDS
most weeks. Carnival does have cheaper prices on their old, beat-up ships, but we aren't interested in sailing them at any price. When you compare their nicest, newest ships -- the ones with all the amenities that you want -- their prices are either equal or higher to Royal Caribbean and Princess. Also pay attention to whether rock-bottom prices are refundable.
Before you make up your mind, read lots of reviews. Ignore the ones that're very general: "It was the best vacation ever!" Or, "the food was all so nasty; I thought it was a high school cafeteria." Instead, take seriously the ones that provide lots of details. The ones who describe the food, the staterooms, the service, the amenities in detail . . . the ones that give a balanced view of their cruise . . . those are the ones to trust. Juding from those, we personally have decided that we don't want to sail Carnival. We've read too many details that just sound
cheap.
As a general rule of thumb, you will find that the three and four night cruises attact the rowdy, heavy-drinking, barfing-in-the-hallway crowds. Same thing for spring break. Also, those shorter cruises tend to take place on the older, ready-to-be-retired ships.
