Which cruise – Western, or Eastern with Antigua?

[kennancat]

DH and I are thinking about trying out the 7-day. We won’t be officially booking anything for a while until we see how our finances work out this year, but in the meanwhile, I’m allowed to plan, right? September would be the best time of year for us. Initially, I had only been interested in the Western itinerary, but they’ll be doing the modified Eastern itinerary during September and I’m intrigued. So which do you think would be better?

For reference, here’s the normal Eastern:
Sailing to St. Maarten, St. Thomas and Castaway Cay

• Sat: Travel to Port Canaveral to depart at 5 p.m.
• Sun - Mon: Enjoy relaxation and fun at sea
• Tue: Arrive in St. Maarten at 7 a.m., depart 7:30 p.m.
• Wed: Arrive in St. Thomas 7 a.m., depart 4:45 p.m. (This day you can choose to enjoy excursions to St. John as well.)
• Thu: The magic of a day at sea
• Fri: Arrive at Castaway Cay at 9 a.m., depart at 5 p.m.
• Sat: Arrive at Port Canaveral at 6 a.m., debark the ship at 8:30 a.m.

Here’s the special itinerary:
Sailing to Antigua, St. Thomas and Castaway Cay on 9/18/04 and 10/02/04

• Sat: Travel to Port Canaveral to depart at 5 p.m.
• Sun: Enjoy relaxation and fun at sea
• Mon: Enjoy relaxation and fun at sea
• Tue: Arrive in Antigua at 8 a.m., depart at 5:30 p.m.
• Wed: Arrive in St. Thomas at 7:00 a.m., depart at 4:15 p.m.
• Thu: Enjoy relaxation and fun at sea
• Fri: Arrive at Castaway Cay at 9 a.m., depart at 5 p.m.
• Sat: Arrive at Port Canaveral at 6 a.m., debark the ship at 7:35 a.m.

 

[alexandrew]

We are actually opting for 9/4/04 Eastern with San Juan....PR is a great port , with very few Eastern sailings as a destination....most Southern Carib cruises embark in San Juan, requiring extra flying time....so, this itinerary is most appealing...

But, if you want to choose between std eastern and Eastern with Antigua, I'd go for Antigua....we werent too thrilled with St Maarten....IMO kind of dirty and seemed "long in the tooth"....I heard Antigua is beautiful....

 

[jrabbit]

I have cruised both the Eastern and Western. I think I like the eastern better. Enjoy the activities on the ship a lot - and we enjoy snorkeling while in port (see that's where the problem comes in - east=more sea days, west=more ports). We are going on one of the Antigua sailings and really looking forward to it.

 

[jrabbit]

I have cruised both the Eastern and Western. I think I like the eastern better. Enjoy the activities on the ship a lot - and we enjoy snorkeling while in port (see that's where the problem comes in - east=more sea days, west=more ports). We are going on one of the Antigua sailings and really looking forward to it.

St. Maarten is not someplace to shy away from. Just be prepared that it is a poor country that has been ravaged by hurricanes in the past 10 years. The island is beautiful - tree covered hills, beautiful sandy beaches, nice people.

St. Thomas is ... well I really don't know. We took our excursion over to St. John and will be doing the same later this year.

 

[rae519]

Our friends rented a boat and went over to Antigua on their own - loved it! In fact, they "raved" about it!!! So if you can't make it on your own, there are ferries that will take you over.

Rae