Which cruise to choose?

[MomOTwins]

We just got back from the most AMAZING 3-day Dream cruise, and with a little help from winning final bingo (!) purchased a placeholder to book another; but we definitely want a longer cruise this time! I've narrowed it down to three options, and just can't decide. What would you choose?

1. 6-night Halloween on the High Seas cruise to Cozumel, Costa Maya, and Castaway Cay, Oct. 2019. This has the advantage of being about $1700 cheaper than the other two (for our family of 5), even though it is only one less night. I like the idea of seeing Mayan ruins, but the downsides are that it is hurricane season, no school holidays, and I am not a huge fan of Halloween theme-ing (one of my kids scares easily--jack and sally freaks him out--and I don't love spooky stuff either).
2. 7-night Very Merrytime Eastern Caribbean cruise to Tortola, San Juan, and Castaway Cay, Dec. 2019. This is about $300 cheaper than Star Wars, I love the Christmas decor and activities, and as a bonus it happens to include my twins' birthday. The downside is that two ports seem a little less exciting than the ports on the other cruises, and I don't love the idea of two sea days in a row as I tend to get seasick when at sea.
3. 7-night Star Wars Western Caribbean cruise to Cozumel George Town, Falmouth, and Castaway Cay, Jan 2019. This is the most expensive of the three, but the upsides are my kids and DH LOVE star wars, it includes MLK day so one less vacation/school absence to deal with, and I like the idea of the ruins adventure in Cozumel and Dunn's river in Falmouth. It is also quite a bit sooner than the other two, which is good on the one hand because I am so addicted, but bad because it would be nice for my toddler to be a bit older so that I can be sure he will definitely be potty trained and thus kid club/swimming pool eligible by the next cruise.
4. Possible 2020 Star Wars Cruise I am also considering waiting to see if Star Wars cruises are offered in 2020 when the early 2020 dates come out, since that might help address both the toddler issue and hopefully the price a bit. Downside is that might not be offered in 2020, and if I wait the prices on the other two could go up.

Thoughts?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

We just got back from the most AMAZING 3-day Dream cruise, and with a little help from winning final bingo (!) purchased a placeholder to book another; but we definitely want a longer cruise this time! I've narrowed it down to three options, and just can't decide. What would you choose?

1. 6-night Halloween on the High Seas cruise to Cozumel, Costa Maya, and Castaway Cay, Oct. 2019. This has the advantage of being about $1700 cheaper than the other two (for our family of 5), even though it is only one less night. I like the idea of seeing Mayan ruins, but the downsides are that it is hurricane season, no school holidays, and I am not a huge fan of Halloween theme-ing (one of my kids scares easily--jack and sally freaks him out--and I don't love spooky stuff either).
2. 7-night Very Merrytime Eastern Caribbean cruise to Tortola, San Juan, and Castaway Cay, Dec. 2019. This is about $300 cheaper than Star Wars, I love the Christmas decor and activities, and as a bonus it happens to include my twins' birthday. The downside is that two ports seem a little less exciting than the ports on the other cruises, and I don't love the idea of two sea days in a row as I tend to get seasick when at sea.
3. 7-night Star Wars Western Caribbean cruise to Cozumel George Town, Falmouth, and Castaway Cay, Jan 2019. This is the most expensive of the three, but the upsides are my kids and DH LOVE star wars, it includes MLK day so one less vacation/school absence to deal with, and I like the idea of the ruins adventure in Cozumel and Dunn's river in Falmouth. It is also quite a bit sooner than the other two, which is good on the one hand because I am so addicted, but bad because it would be nice for my toddler to be a bit older so that I can be sure he will definitely be potty trained and thus kid club/swimming pool eligible by the next cruise.
4. Possible 2020 Star Wars Cruise I am also considering waiting to see if Star Wars cruises are offered in 2020 when the early 2020 dates come out, since that might help address both the toddler issue and hopefully the price a bit. Downside is that might not be offered in 2020, and if I wait the prices on the other two could go up.

Thoughts?

For me, if those are my only choices, #2. I like the Christmas cruises. Don't care for any of the other themed cruises (so that eliminates Star Wars ones). #1 is shorter so that's out.

You could go ahead a put a deposit down on one of the first 3 (probably #2 since it give you the most lead time), and when the new cruises are announced, if there's a better option for you, transfer the money to the new cruise.

 

[DisneyPiPhi]

I'm a sucker for Christmas (and had a great Very Merrytime cruise last year) so I'm another vote for option #2!

 

[Carrie in AZ]

How old are your kids? It is my understanding that to visit the ruins in Cozumel that it is an ALL DAY excursion and the boat ride to where you need to go is choppy and many people get sick along the way. Just throwing that out there in case you have never heard of that before. I am not sure your toddler would be old enough to book the excursion - also just throwing that out there.

If your family loves Star Wars then I would book a Star Wars cruise.

Good luck and have fun. You will LOVE sailing on a longer cruise.

 

[DaddysPrincess]

I voted the Merrytime Eastern Caribbean one. I've always wanted to do a Christmasy cruise.

 

[mickeymom22]

I voted for the Star Wars one. Just the way you wrote about it makes it sound like the one for your family!

Happy Cruising!

 

[Spotthecat]

I voted Merrytime. I have done both Star Wars and Merrytime and loved both. But the Merrytime one was truly special plus your twins will have a birthday on the ship! My 3 boys outvoted me and our next cruise will be another Star Wars one as they all loved it so much. So either of those two. They both topple the Halloween one in my book.

 

[lklgoodman]

I wouldn't worry about Disney not doing Star Wars cruises in 2020. They've recently remodeled part of the kid's club to include Star Wars and it seems those cruises are really popular, so I would guess they will continue to offer those cruises for many more years.(As long as they are making movies they will probably continue the cruises because it brings in even more money). We did a SW cruise in 2017 and will be going on another Jan. 2019. My dh likes SW, my dd and myself don't really care for it. Even though I don't care for SW, I could feel the joy/excitement from others when it was SW day on our 2017 cruise. People were so giddy and happy. If your family likes SW, I would wait for the 2020, the dates should be coming out around Oct, how soon do you have to decide? We didn't go to the ruins when we went to Cozumel, but if I remember correctly, it's like a 4 hour transport to/from them, there's no way I would have wanted to do that when my dd was a toddler.

 

[southerngirl528]

I voted the Merrytime Eastern Caribbean one. I've always wanted to do a Christmasy cruise.

Another vote here for the Merrytime Eastern Caribbean cruise!

 

[Shanti]

I recommend the Merrytime cruise in December 2019 because:

• A high hurricane season cruise is not a good idea unless you just can't afford anything else, or you have such a flexible schedule that you won't mind potential last-minute changes,
• It's a 7-night as opposed to a 6-night,
• It gives your toddler time to potty train,
• The ships are beautifully decorated for Christmas in December,
• The weather is great in December: it's dry season & not terribly hot or muggy, yet not as windy as it will start getting in January.

 

[southerngirl528]

I recommend the Merrytime cruise in December 2019 because:

• A high hurricane season cruise is not a good idea unless you just can't afford anything else, or you have such a flexible schedule that you won't mind potential last-minute changes,
• It's a 7-night as opposed to a 6-night,
• It gives your toddler time to potty train,
• The ships are beautifully decorated for Christmas in December,
• The weather is great in December: it's dry season & not terribly hot or muggy, yet not as windy as it will start getting in January.

Good points for the Merrytime Cruise!!!

 

[MomOTwins]

Wow! Seems like a pretty resounding vote of confidence for Merrytime. I did not realize it got windy in January, and we do like to enjoy the outdoor deck, so that is a definite plus. Glad you all confirmed my suspicions that the Merrytime theme is superior to Halloween.

 

[Ksquared]

I would vote for Merrytime. I have not been on one but it's high on the list for sure.

 

[lizzyb]

I would do #2 because of the christmas theme and itinerary.

 

[DietCokeMommy]

I would do #3, but keep in mind your kids may be too young for some of the things you mentioned, like Dunn's river and the ruins. But I think the western Caribbean overall would be more to your liking - less sea days and more ports with thing to keep you busy, even with young kids.

 

[cruiser21]

January. Why wait over a year if you can sail in 5 months.

 

[bobbiwoz]

Merry Time!

 

[RedSox68]

You should have a 5th choice -- hold out for a possible newer itinerary. Unfortunately, none of the ones you listed would appeal to me as we've done the ports, but then again a free cruise if a free cruise Congrats on winning final bingo, too!

 

[mike314]

Go with Christmas, and don't hold out for 2020 as the 2019 cruises will only get more expensive