Who has cruised in January? HELP!

[niks81]

I'm a newbie to the Cruise board

I have not gotten to browse over here and I've never posted!!

The reason I'm over here is because we have decided to cruise in 2004 and I'm trying to get some input. I really want to try going to WDW for New Years 2004 and then go on a cruise. Can anyone give me some direction on the weather for cruising in Janurary? Is it better in February?? We need all the

we can get!!

 

[niks81]

PS: We have never cruised on DCL. We are unsure whether we should do a 3, 4 or 7 night cruise....??

 

[pal2pluto]

Well, I'm partial to a 7 day myself! And most people that I hear from prefer the 7 day........but that is my opinion!

I think in Jan. or Feb., you can have quite a mix of weather. When we went this year on the Magic in January, the weather was absolutely beautiful! Swimming on CC was great! However, we heard that the cruise before us on CC it was only in the 50's!

We've done a 7 day, and a 3 day and 2 trips to WDW. For us, we probably won't go to WDW for a long, long, time. We prefer the cruise.........it's quite relaxing, and we all enjoyed it more than the fast paced rush of the parks.

Enjoy surfing this site....you'll find we are a friendly and well-informed bunch.

 

[prymsu]

Prices are better in January i think. I have cruised twice in January and have never had any problems with the weather. You must remember though that anything above zero in January to my family from Iowa is like a heat wave though...

I am with pal2pluto that a seven day cruise is the only way to go!

 

[Chattyaholic]

We took the 7-day cruise in January '01 and had beautiful weather. The day at Port Canaveral was a little on the cool side (but still nice to us Michiganders!) but the further south the ship went the warmer the weather got, in fact shopping at St. Maarten I was too hot!! We were able to sit by the pool on the ship several times, enjoyed the hot tubs, had a great beach day at Castaway Cay, and the best part was that we were able to leave our verandah door open each night to be lulled to sleep by the ocean sounds and warm, tropical breezes! We are planning another cruise this January and are hoping for weather just as good as last time, but weather is unpredictable, you just have to take your chances I guess. January is one of the cheaper times to go, and quite a nice break from winter weather.

 

[SC Minnie]

We cruised this past January on the 7day and the weather was beautiful. It was in the mid to upper 80's everyday.

If I had a choice between a 3, 4, or 7day it would be the 7 day hands down. The days at sea are nice and you feel like you get to enjoy the ship a little more. Even with the 7 day we didn't feel we had enough time.

 

[niks81]

Hey, thanks everybody for your help! My mom once cruised on Carnival in November and they didn't have one sunny day and she went on (and continues to) and on about it. She is giving me a lecture that January won't be good and I know that isn't entirely true.

I haven't checked prices or anything for the cruise. However, I am a vacation club member and I recently stumbled into a deal where someone had 396 reservation points for $5 each. I took them because 1)It's a good price and 2) I enjoy trying out the Concierge Collection and other resorts offered. (For those of you that don't know, reservation points are the status of points when someonce cancels a vacation....they are not allowed to be used through vacation club resorts, only DCL, Concierge, and other Disney vacations) Even though points are high for DVC members (in my opinion) $5 is really cheap and I think I can get a good deal.

Our plan was to spend the week of New Years Eve at Disney World and then hop on a cruise! Any other feedback/advice is more than welcome!!

 

[SC Minnie]

I would go for the 7 day- You go farther south so if FL was having a cold spell you should be out of that.

Also concerning your Mothers probelm with her Carnival cruise- I would rather be on DCL on a cloudy rainy day that at work anytime!

 

[mmouse37]

November is at the end of Hurricane season and could account for some of the overcast days, if there were tropical storms in the area (DCL would never even bring the ship near any hurricane).

January in the bahamas (3/4 day cruise) can be iffy. It could be cool or it could be quite warm.

January in the Caribbean, either East or West is ususally always very warm....upper 80's. I would definately do the 7 day over the 3/4 day....the 7 day is more relaxing and I think the weather will be warmer in the Caribbean vs. the Nassau.

MJ

 

[niks81]

Ok guys, you've pretty much all said 7 day!! We went on a 4 day Carnival cruise last April and did Key West and Cozumel so I definitely would rather do the Eastern Caribbean Cruise to get a taste for the rest of the Carribean. I need to see how many points this baby will cost!!

I really wanted to pair it up with a stay at WDW for New Years too....not sure about the resort for that...but this is the cruise board so enough on that topic!! PS, which boat is it that does the 7 nights....the Magic or Wonder? And for those of you that have been on both, is there one you prefer over the other?

 

[SC Minnie]

The Magic does the 7 day cruises. They are basically identical.

 

[prymsu]

I like the eastern better for shopping deals, and the western better for water sports.

 

[disny4ever]

last january we had a fabulous cruise weatherwise. each day was sunny and 80 - 85 degrees. I personally would not hesitate to book another cruise in January.
Have a great trip.