Cruise stop suggestions

[SkiTower]

I know this isn't Nautiques, but it is boats . Taking my first cruise and for those of you that do a lot of travel, what are the do's and don't's at these stops:

Basseterre, St Kitt
Charlotte Amalie, St Thomas
Oranjestad, Aruba
Willemstad, Curacao
San Juan, Puerto Rico

thinking of just renting a jeep and drive. Don't really want to do anything like snorkeling but just prefer to explore and take pictures. Oh, and will have wife and 2 preteens with me.

[HS]

Depending on how long you have in St. Thomas, which i pass throu on the way to BVI, I would find a way to get over to St. John and check out the bays there for snorkeling, etc. if you have an entire day of time, ferry over to Jost van Dyke, BVI for the day (customs office in Great Harbor).

Post your question over at TravelTalkOnLine.com, in either the cruising forum or there are forums for the USVI and BVI, I have received a ton of info there for charter boat sailing in BVI.

Oops, just saw the part about not into snorkeling.

[axeman]

San Juan, Puerto Rico - ah "la isla del encanto" (the island of enchantment). I grew up in PR (born and raised 16 years). If you are staying there overnight checkout the bioluminescent bay. If you are there just during the day then check out the forts in Old San Juan (all cruise ships dock there). Pretty cool historic stuff. My wife and I actually got married in one of them (very cool). While in Old San Juan, check out Cafe Berlin for a nice taste of the local fare. Marmalade is also a good restaurant from what I hear but I've never been there. If you have time to rent a car, make the trip to the El Yunque rainforest. Beaches are OK in San Juan but to see some nice beaches you would have to drive out of San Juan. Some good surf on the west/northwest part of the island as well. Little known secret is the island of Vieques which is southeast of Puerto Rico and a short 20 min flight from San Juan. The only W Retreat & Spa in the Western Hemisphere can be found there... Hope this helps!

[SkiTower]

thanks guys. It sounds like we'll have an 8-5 day at each stop. I live near the coast so beaches aren't that Attractive but a rainforest definitely is. My goal is to get some great pictures but also to find something that will get the kid's attention.

[SkiTower]

oops, I've been corrected (was looking at the wrong list). Here are the actual stops:

Puerto Rico
St Thomas
St. Croix
Antigua
Martinique
St. Lucia

[DealsGapCobra]

I'm taking a cruise in two weeks....same stops!

[SkiTower]

great! let me know what to see and what to avoid. We're trying to read up on it but don't seem to be getting anywhere

[LakeRats]

St Thomas stop, go to the mountain top. Panoramic views of the island and tasty banana daiquiris. I would recommend St. John but that would be a quick trip to get there and back in an 8-5 day.

[SkiTower]

research is a little confusing: is St.John an island or a city on Antigua, or both? St.John, Antigua is one of our stops, I believe #3.

[HS]

I think he's talking about St. John in the US Virgin Islands, it is a short ferry ride away from St. Thomas. It is nearly all national park, as I recall.

[gride]

i just hope you aren't on a carnival ship. seriously. be safe.

[jbach]

When you first board, you will think it's unbelievable how big this ship is. About the time you finally get off, you will be thinking how small this **** boat it. No matter how big, it's still a boat, and you're stuck on it. Sorry, not a fan of cruises. Awful food, crazy priced alcohol and they do everything possible to keep you and your $ on it.

[SkiTower]

yeah, that's what I'm afraid of. It's Royal Caribbean. No, not going anywhere close to Carnival. That one reminds me if a Bayliner. At least I think I've talked the wife out of eating in the main dining room and having to lug dress-up clothes. Ridiculous.

[jonsquatch]

I have been on Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Celebrity, Holland America, MSC, and Princess cruises. My family actually generally enjoyed Carnival, and while they do seem to have the lion's share of domestic breakdowns and sometimes it seems like a drunken redneck frat party, for me the worst one was Princess where there wasn't ever much going on and it seemed like maybe all of the crotchety old folks in Miami (I saw more 70-90 passengers than I ever have) got on board that day. Holland America also tends to be an older crowd but there was much more going on and the older patrons actually knew where the ship was going and got off occasionally and they seemed to be trying to sell stuff less than most.

For me the sweet spot was Royal or Celebrity, while the average age on any cruise line (except MSC in Europe the average age seemed to be late 30's to early 40's) seems to be mid 50's these ships had a slightly higher class than Carnival (Only ship my wife has had to perform CPR on a guy who passed out drunk trying to get back on the ship and his friends drowned him trying to get him to sober up) but still had lots of activities. All the ships do stupid art auctions, spa specials, inch of gold sales, watch sales, block the main aisle of the ship when everyone is trying to get from the show at the front to the show at the back sales, and casinos to try and separate you from your money.

In general the best food on the ships are in the extra fee restaurants, the food is almost as good as you would expect in a high end restaurant on land and its probably a bit cheaper. Its not bad if you have something special to celebrate but if you're with someone who can't forget that you could have just went to the dining room for free its not a good idea, and you have to dress up for that one.

The buffets and Pizza and sandwiches and whatever else is on your ship tend to vary in quality from ship to ship, you have to feel them out to get an idea how good they are. I have been on sister ships with the same menus and found huge differences in what's good on each. I don't drink much so the prices don't kill me. Since we have been so many times there are generally opportunities for free drinks but really they aren't that good on the ship and if you research the rules or just don't care you can often bring aboard some things you need.

Otherwise the Dining room typically has pretty good food but they do "ask" that you dress accordingly. What is required has gone down a lot lately. They will likely have a couple of formal nights but even then you could get buy with a polo shirt and khakis on most ships. The rest of the days jeans and a nice t-shirt and shoes work. I generally bring a couple of polo shirts for every day and a button down for formal nights and a pair of khakis and a pair of dark slacks and a pair of black casual shoes I like to walk in and call it good. If you get into the activities and the idea of an hour and half meal sounds like a waste of time don't go, but I would check it out the first night (they don't often care what you wear at all as a lot of people don't have their luggage yet if its an early hour) and check out the menu outside the dining room daily. If they have something you want to eat (lobster) and you have something you could wear then go for it.

[SkiTower]

thanks for the details! might have to check it out the first night, but that could backfire if the wifey gets a taste of it