We need an *official* cruising thread

[Kteacher]

Its nice to see so many that love to cruise.
I really do love Disney but cruising is a love of mine to.
It is just 2 totally diffrent vacations and we are going to Disney in June and we were talking tonight about how we wished we were going on a cruise

I've solved the cruising or WDw dilemma by doing long weekends at WDW. I've been enough times that I can see everything I want in 4 days. It is an inexpensive way to get both my WDW fix and my cruising fix in the same year

 

[luvindisneyworld]

We are building a house right now so thats why we just dont have the money to go this year. We own DVC so we can go really cheap to Disney if we want to. But when we cruise again DH is wanting to buy an Alexandrite which is his Birthstone and it is not going to be cheap. We bought one in 2995 when we went to Mexico we paid 900.00 for it and when we had it appraised it appraised out at 2500.00. We give it to my DSister when she had my DNephew since he was born right after DHs birthday, they had it set in a ring and it is so nice. So now DH says he just has to find another one and he wants one thats bigger than the last and they have went up in price so we will have to spend probably 2000.00-3000.00 on one.

So thats why I Cant go on a cruise this year if he was not on the hunt for that then we would for sure be able to go but we just dont have that kind of money to be spending on a stone right now. So I will have to live through everyone elses cruise this year .

 

[chisnpeke]

Has anyone seen the picture on the Cruise Critic homepage? It's supposed to be The Rising Tide Bar planned for the Genesis.

 

[Kteacher]

I'm still leary of the large # of pax on the Genesis class ships We've done a lot of the same itineraries, so we're looking for some new ports. We haven't been to P.R. in a couple years, and there is an itinerary on the Adventure that includes Grenada and Dominica. Any tips on these ports?

 

[MM27]

I'm still leary of the large # of pax on the Genesis class ships We've done a lot of the same itineraries, so we're looking for some new ports. We haven't been to P.R. in a couple years, and there is an itinerary on the Adventure that includes Grenada and Dominica. Any tips on these ports?

I'm afraid to book on the Freedom for the same reason. I've read some reviews where people have said it's impossible to get chairs on sea days and getting on and off the ship was not fun.

I've been to all the ports that Freedom goes to, so right now it's not on top of my list anyway.

 

[Kteacher]

MM27- I've sailed on both the Freedom and the Liberty, and the ships didn't feel as crowded as I expected, even on at sea days. The deck patrols have become very viligent about " chair hogs ". They come around and remove the towels, flip flops, books, etc. that people use to try and save deck chairs if the chairs are empty for 1/2 an hour or more.

 

[Briarmom]

I just booked a Med cruise last night!!

Starts in Rome, visiting Sicily, Athens, Turkey, and Crete.

It's Royal Caribbean. First time sailing with them.

 

[JennyMominRI]

I just booked a Med cruise last night!!

Starts in Rome, visiting Sicily, Athens, Turkey, and Crete.

It's Royal Caribbean. First time sailing with them.

Which ship are you taking? That's a great itinerary..I'd love to do that.


I found a webite where you send them the info on the cruise you want and they give you a bid...Royal Caribbean doesn't allows discounts so what they do is offer amenities..I got my tips prepaid by the TA...Some offer free travel insurance etc.

 

[MagicalMom]

Hate to rub it in guys but this time next week I'll be heading out on the Enchantment of the Seas.

 

[Kteacher]

Hate to rub it in guys but this time next week I'll be heading out on the Enchantment of the Seas.

Have a great time- the Enchantment is a beautiful ship!!! Hopefully you'll get to meet the wonderful Julian

 

[Keggy]

Has anyone sailed out of PC recently? I just read online that they increase parking to $150 for a 7 night sailing. If that is the case we can get a hotel room for the night before for cheaper. Which might just be a good excuse to do that!!!

Thanks,
Kelly

 

[MagicalMom]

Have a great time- the Enchantment is a beautiful ship!!! Hopefully you'll get to meet the wonderful Julian

I hope so, I've heard so much about him & seen enough pictures of him that I would know him immediatley.

 

[Keggy]

When I heard the Freedom was moving to Port Canaveral I told DH we should check out the price. Everyone says Royal Caribbean is less expensive than Disney, but I just don't see it. The prices seemed about the same to me.

DH and I cruised on Carnival (Sensation, I think) in 1995, I really didn't care for it. We've also been on two Disney cruises and LOVED them. We have another one booked for November, but after that I'd like to try Royal Caribbean.

I think when people say that they mean the Mariner which is out of Port Canveral. The prices on the Mariner are significantly less. We saved $1000 for 2 people switching from DCL to Mariner last December on the equivalent category. Also, we had priced the same itinerary for this year and Mariner was more than $1K less again. For us, 2 adults with no children, the Mariner is a better bang for the buck.

For us to drive to Miami to get on Freedom/Liberty - the cost differential just isn't there. The prices are very similiar to DCL, at least from my research.

Don't get me wrong I love DCL. We have sailed with them several times. I even was married on Castaway Cay. However, we loved our Mariner cruise and for the time being we will stick with them.

We will have to wait and see what the prices are when RCL moves the Mariner out to LA and replaces her. Maybe the prices won't compare then! Who knows!

 

[Keggy]

Its nice to see so many that love to cruise.
I really do love Disney but cruising is a love of mine to.
It is just 2 totally diffrent vacations and we are going to Disney in June and we were talking tonight about how we wished we were going on a cruise

We really went back and forth this year deciding what to do. We actually cancelled our week at the Poly for free dining and booked the Mariner.

Too little vacation time and too many choices!!!

 

[Keggy]

Thanks! I will definitely do that. I have never been on the ocean before so I'm not sure how I will react and want to be safe I'm not usually prone to motion sickness though, so hopefully will be okay.

Mary

Someone had given me some Ginger Chews. They are this chewy ginger candy. Not the thing I would reach for on the candy shelf, but boy do they work. We found them at World Market, but I am sure they are available elsewhere. I can't take any sea sickness meds because even the non-drowsy stuff puts me to sleep.

Sorry for all the posts this morning - just catching up!!!
Jenny - great idea for a thread!!

 

[MO Disney cruiser]

Its nice to see so many that love to cruise.
I really do love Disney but cruising is a love of mine to.
It is just 2 totally diffrent vacations and we are going to Disney in June and we were talking tonight about how we wished we were going on a cruise

OMG!!!! DH and I were doing the same thing this weekend. We're leaving June 4th for Disney/Universal and kept thinking it would be nice to have a cruise. Hoping to take a short one in October, but we just don't know yet. I think, after this year, we'll just get a Disney fix one day at a time in conjunction with a cruise.

 

[MO Disney cruiser]

I think when people say that they mean the Mariner which is out of Port Canveral. The prices on the Mariner are significantly less. We saved $1000 for 2 people switching from DCL to Mariner last December on the equivalent category. Also, we had priced the same itinerary for this year and Mariner was more than $1K less again. For us, 2 adults with no children, the Mariner is a better bang for the buck.

For us to drive to Miami to get on Freedom/Liberty - the cost differential just isn't there. The prices are very similiar to DCL, at least from my research.

Don't get me wrong I love DCL. We have sailed with them several times. I even was married on Castaway Cay. However, we loved our Mariner cruise and for the time being we will stick with them.

We will have to wait and see what the prices are when RCL moves the Mariner out to LA and replaces her. Maybe the prices won't compare then! Who knows!

In May of 09 the Freedom is replacing the Mariner and the prices are significantly higher. I checked for May 09 and it's about the same as sailing DCL.

 

[Keggy]

In May of 09 the Freedom is replacing the Mariner and the prices are significantly higher. I checked for May 09 and it's about the same as sailing DCL.

Yes, I am aware that the Freedom is replacing the Mariner.

I just checked Freedom for June '09 and DCL for June '09 - both on a Western sailing and for the equivalent stateroom Freedom is about $1100 less.

 

[Sunny37]

Has anyone sailed out of PC recently? I just read online that they increase parking to $150 for a 7 night sailing. If that is the case we can get a hotel room for the night before for cheaper. Which might just be a good excuse to do that!!!

Thanks,
Kelly

We sailed out of PC in March and I think parking was $15 per day, which is crazy IMO! For our 7 day this coming June, we are staying at the Radisson and leaving our car there. They have a free shuttle to and from the port.

ETA: this is what I found when I searched parking info on google: http://www.portcanaveral.org/cruising/parking.php

 

[Keggy]

We sailed out of PC in March and I think parking was $15 per day, which is crazy IMO! For our 7 day this coming June, we are staying at the Radisson and leaving our car there. They have a free shuttle to and from the port.

ETA: this is what I found when I searched parking info on google: http://www.portcanaveral.org/cruising/parking.php

Thank you for posting this! I appreciate it!. So, it is still $15 per day - that is at least better than what I had read!