East vs West Caribbean

[babybartione]

which is better?

 

[artnerds]

This is a nearly unanswerable question, since it's based entirely on personal preferences. My recommendation is that you compare itineraries and the excursions available at the different ports and see which appeal to you more.

As for my own experience, I have done both 7-night Eastern and Western out of Port Canaveral. Here are my takes on the two:
- I enjoyed the port towns more on the Eastern (Philipsburg and San Juan) than on the Western (Grand Cayman, Costa Maya, and Cozumel)
- The excursions we did on both were great. Some things (beach, boating, snorkeling, etc) you can do on either one, but some things are very specific (hiking in the Chacchoben ruins on the Western versus hiking in the El Yunque Rainforest in Puerto Rico on the Eastern).
- Our Western had more ports of call (3 plus Castaway Cay versus 2 plus Castaway Cay on the Eastern). On the Western, I felt like I was getting more action for the money, while I equally enjoyed the extra at-sea day to relax on the Eastern.

All in all, if I were going to do one of them again, it would probably be the Eastern, but I'm very glad to have done both.

 

[BrytEydBelle]

I believe that Eastern routes tend to be more popular, but I personally prefer Western. I tend to just take cabs to beach resorts and I find the water to be warmer in the Western ports. It is really just preference, I would look at the individual ports and excursion options to see what looks the best.

 

[kstaack]

I personally like the Eastern route more than the Western. I like the islands themselves much more....and if you have At&T your cell phone will work just like in America on St. Thomas...so that is a huge bonus.

I also like have you have two sea days back to back at the beginning of the voyage. I could see how people might not like that though if you ever get the feeling of being trapped on the ship.

 

[Footnotegirl]

which is better?

Personal taste.
If you like sea days (more relaxing, more things to enjoy on the ships), lots of nature time and gorgeous beaches, choose the Eastern.
If you like to see a lot of things, and would be interested in historical/archeological sites, Western is better (Tulum!!!!).
We have done one Western and three Eastern, and on this trip we're going Western. We're hoping to shoot for the moon and do Europe or Hawaii on our 2017 cruise.

 

[Drusilla99]

This isn't going to be much help, but....I liked both. Generally, the only excursions we do are beach ones, so we don't go places to soak up the culture, just the sun. We did enjoy the extra sea days on the eastern, but also stayed on the ship most of the day in st Maarten, just got off to shop. If I did western again, there are definitely ports I'd skip & just stay on the ship.

 

[wilma-bride]

It is definitely personal preference. I have also done both and this might partly be down to the fact that we had main dining on the Western and late on the Eastern but, for me, the Western just felt far too rushed. The excursions we took (especially Chacchoben at Costa Maya) felt rushed, we didn't particularly enjoy the Mexican ports and we felt like we had less time on the ship to relax. I loved St Thomas and St Maarten and both of them were places we would want to visit again.

 

[MomForFrozenAddicts]

Funny, I was just talking to my colleagues about this. In my opinions, the islands from the eastern itinerary is sort of similar. The islands in the western itinerary are quite different--Mexico, Jamaica, and Grand Cayman from the structures to the culture. For myself, I usually go with the eastern--better shopping; excursion is not necessary, I can do things on my own; and on some other cruise lines, a stop at their private island.

 

[babybartione]

Thank you for all the replies.

 

[Dug720]

Funny, I was just talking to my colleagues about this. In my opinions, the islands from the eastern itinerary is sort of similar. The islands in the western itinerary are quite different--Mexico, Jamaica, and Grand Cayman from the structures to the culture. For myself, I usually go with the eastern--better shopping; excursion is not necessary, I can do things on my own; and on some other cruise lines, a stop at their private island.

Pretty sure all of DCL's Eastern and Western itineraries include a day at Castaway Cay.

 

[MomForFrozenAddicts]

Pretty sure all of DCL's Eastern and Western itineraries include a day at Castaway Cay.

It is why I love DCL--I fell in love with Castaway Cay. It is my favorite "island"!!! I really want to do a B2B or a 5 days so I can go there twice.

Carnival, HAL, Princess and others don't always have their private island as part of the itineraries.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

It is why I love DCL--I fell in love with Castaway Cay. It is my favorite "island"!!! I really want to do a B2B or a 5 days so I can go there twice.

Carnival, HAL, Princess and others don't always have their private island as part of the itineraries.

Not all DCL itineraries have Castaway Cay, either. The Panama Canal cruise hasn't had CC for a couple of years now. And not all the Galveston cruises did. Also the EBTA doesn't call there.

 

[MomForFrozenAddicts]

Not all DCL itineraries have Castaway Cay, either. The Panama Canal cruise hasn't had CC for a couple of years now. And not all the Galveston cruises did. Also the EBTA doesn't call there.

Sorry, I meant Caribbean/Bahama itineraries.

 

[phinz]

It is why I love DCL--I fell in love with Castaway Cay. It is my favorite "island"!!! I really want to do a B2B or a 5 days so I can go there twice.

Carnival, HAL, Princess and others don't always have their private island as part of the itineraries.

Do a Double Dip. We did that last year in November. 2 days at CC and nothing else. It was pretty cool.