Cruise or All-Inclusive

[arthur06]

I need some help.

I have a week of vacation set up for November 2nd to November 11th 2012. I want to go on either a cruise or an All-Inclusive vacation. It will be me (33), Dw (30) and DS (5) and DS (4).

I am thinking of a non-Disney cruise. We did a DCL cruise last December, and we are looking at trying another cruise line. I see that Carnival is cheap, but heard its more of a "party" type ship. I want something that has a nice mix of family and kid type activities. DW and I are not drinkers at all, but on vacation we might have one drink per day.

Can you give me some feedback on RCCL, Norwegian or any other cruise lines you can recommend?

For the All-Inclusive, we are looking at Riviera Maya area. We just want a relaxing time, with not too much adventure. Any suggestions?

If those were your two option, what would you do?

I am trying to keep the total budget under $3,500 including flight. And dates of travel can be less then the time frame I have, just need to fit within those dates.

TIA

 

[powellrj]

I may be the only person out there that really doesn't like to cruise. I love all-inclusive and have been on several. That would be my pick!

 

[Darcy03231]

We cruise at least once a year and it one of my family's favorite vacations. Our cruise line of choice is Carnival. They really are a family friendly cruise line. We've also cruised on Royal Carribean, Norwegian, Princess, Holland America and Celebrity. The biggest partiers we saw were on Princess and Celebrity. Our second choice would be Royal Carribean. The decor on the Carnival ships is definitely more Las Vegasy, while Royal Carribean is more upscale. Food and service have been about the same on both ships. Carnivals cabins are a bit larger. My children (when they were young) preferred the kids clubs on Carnival over the others, with Royal Carribean coming in second.

We also enjoy all-inclusive resorts. We love the Iberostar chain. We stayed in several and have never been disappointed.

Given the ages of your children, I would go with the cruise. There's much more going on to help keep them entertained.

 

[mikehn]

Some of the cruise lines have kids themed cruises such as Norweigians Nickelodeon cruise, Royal caribbeans Dreamworks cruise. The new Carnival ships have the water slides. We're gonna try the Carnival magic in April.

 

[PrincessNoelle'sMom]

BEACHES. The best family all inclusive and a wonderful, relaxing vacation. Great for kids your ages - with Sesame Street characters! There are three locations in Jamaica and one in Turks and Caicos (most expensive). Flights in November are usually pretty reasonable and the resort is Ultra all-inclusive (everything is included) drinks, water sports, food, kids camps, gratuities), so no out of pocket fees. A cruise may look like a better price, but you have to remember the additional charges on board when pricing both options.

 

[jodiey]

I may be the only person out there that really doesn't like to cruise. I love all-inclusive and have been on several. That would be my pick!

You are not the only one. I would choose all-inclusive over cruising anyday! With the all-inclusive you really don't have to spend another dime. On the cruise you still have to pay for drinks, even if it's just soda or water, which can still really add up.

 

[pink_fins]

I too would do an all inclusive. In fact we are going to a resort next year.
Hotel Catalonia, Riviera Maya. been there before and love the place.
Not real fancy but lots to do and eat.

You can always take a tour to the cenotes, a Mayan Ruin or swim with the dolphins or so much more.

Have fun what ever you decide.

gail

 

[Disneycrazymom]

My family enjoys RCCL. We have cruised with them the last 6 times we have sailed. I just came back from the Allure in Nov. Great ship! I would look at the Freedom class and the Allure and Oasis. In Nov there will not be too many kids on board but the kids clubs are really really good! There are also lots of family activities. Look at Cruise Critic (a site like this one but for cruising).

I also have been to the Rivera Maya area. We stayed at the Barcelo Maya, it is very nice! Be aware that some women don't mind going topless at the beach and pool. Not a huge deal but you should know if you are taking kids. I loved the beach area the water is so pretty! But I didn't care for the open air dinning. And I personally would be ready for more after a couple days. You can take tours from the hotel to the ruins etc. It is a long drive from the airport to the hotels.

Any questions about either I will try to answer.

 

[kittycatalina65]

We went to Dreams Puerto Adventuras last year with a 5 year old. It is in a gated community, no one is allowed in without ID. My son loved the kids club, the hotel is located in an inlet so beach is nice and mellow, plus there is a natural pool where you can snorkel. Several restaurants to choose from with no reservations needed, plus room service/minibar all included.

They have nightly family friendly entertainment, such as movies on the beach, magic show, etc. plus activities during the day. It is a short walk to the marina where you can pay to swim with dolphins, and a short cab ride to either Xcaret or Playa del Carmen if you want to venture out, but really there is so much to do on site.

We were in a regular ocean front room with lots of room to spread out, but they have family suites available too.

 

[DarleneW]

I've never been to an all inclusive so I can't comment on that (honestly I thought they were all couples only but obviously I was wrong ) I have been on quite a few cruises and RCCL is my absolute favorite. I don't have small children anymore but I do see them on the ships and I know they have a kids club. We just went on the Oasis a month ago and we loved the ship and all of its shows. It has an ice skating rink (which the Freedom and Explorer have also and maybe some of their other ships) and the flowrider which looked like a lot of fun but I didn't try it. Yes you have to pay for soda on the ship or pay ahead of time and then you can get soda anytime you want and not have to pay extra for it. Water I believe is free as is iced tea and I think lemonade. I'm a diet soda drinker so I just paid something like $45 and then had soda anywhere and any time I wanted it by just showing my sea pass (room card). Not sure where you live or where you would be leaving from but we left from Ft. Lauderdale when we sailed the Oasis but the Explorers leaves from our home state of NJ!