Outline Your Own Itenerary

[RevNeal]

Have you ever wanted to plan your own Itenerary for a Cruise? We've done it here in the past, but we've got some new people ... let's do it again! I'll start.

Proposed West-Coast Panama Canal Cruise
14-Days Round-Trip ot of San Diego

Day 0 - San Diego Embarkation
Day 1 - At Sea
Day 2 - Cabo San Lucas
Day 3 - At Sea
Day 4 - Acapulco
Day 5 - At Sea
Day 6 - Puntarenas, Costa Rica (alternatively: Nicaragua or Honduras)
Day 7 - Scenic Crusing Gulfo Duce
Day 8 - The Panama Canal -- Enter/Exit Pacific Side (exit after dark)
Day 9 - Panama City
Day 10 - At Sea
Day 11 - At Sea
Day 12 - Mazatlan, Mexico
Day 13 - At Sea
Day 14 - San Diego Disembarkation

Hey, HAL ... are you reading?? Why only round-trip Panama Canal Cruises in the Caribbean? On the above cruise the ship could enter the Canal on the Pacific side, cruise through the cut to lake Gatun, cruise the lake for the rest of the "day" until it gets dark, then make passage back through the cut and exit out the pacific side in the dark ... a neat difference, eh??

[sail7seas]

Embark in Boston.....12 months of the year. :)


Two days down the coast, and a port day at Key West;

travel anywhere in the Caribbean;

stop at 5-6 ports in the next 8 days;

back up the coast to Boston;

Total days = 12

[Sailboater]

I'll vote for Rev Neal's itinerary.

Would love to see more "interesting" cruises on the West Coast.

How about a San Francisco RT -- cruise out under the Golden Gate, wander down Mexico way and return back under the Golden Gate. Should also be good for pre & post cruise excursion promotions.

[Ziggy7]

I too vote for RevNeal's choice :)

[stanford's girl]

I want to be on the "RevNeal Cruise Line"! :) Anyone with a love for sea days, has my vote.;)

[Vic The Parrot]

I'll go!

I'll go!


Great cruise! .... I'd book this in a heartbeat!
And my other choice would be HAL doing the Bermuda run again.
All they need is a ship the size of Prinsendam, or the 'N' ships.


Now that Celebrity will be pulling out starting in 2006, there's an empty berth on Front St in Hamilton. Hey Seattle!
Look!! -------->




Day 1 - NY
Day 2 - at sea
Day 3 - Hamilton
Day 4 - Hamilton
Day 5 - Hamilton
Day 6 - Hamilton
Day 7 - at sea
Day 8 - NY



:)

[RevNeal]

Ok, Seattle ... Since I took the time to suggest this itinerary, IF you ever get around to plotting it ... I get to go for free ... right??? :D

I'll even serve as Chaplain on it!!!! Yeah ...

[ron46936]

I would enjoy more overnights at some of the great ports. Two days at Acapulco would be great.

We've been thru the canal once and that is enough to do us for a while. The problem is most cruises don't combine the canal with other interesting ports.

Actually my favorites are the longer Caribbean cruises that include the Southern Caribbean. I would also like longer stops in Puerto Rico.

[Cuttle]

Revneal

We did almost your intinerary last October on the Statendam only it was 21 days. We had extra stops in Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala and Mexico. It was great. We entered the Panama Canal in the morning and then the ship stayed overnight in Gatun Lake and then returned the way it had come the next day. We did not go through the Gatun Locks. Your idea of an overnight journey through the canal sounds great too but I don't think there would be anything to see in the Cut when it is dark. It was pretty dark in Gatun Lake. The locks would be illuminated though.

[kruzkeen]

Would love to see more "interesting" cruises on the West Coast.

How about a San Francisco RT -- cruise out under the Golden Gate, wander down Mexico way and return back under the Golden Gate. Should also be good for pre & post cruise excursion promotions.

This is a great idea. I think that Celebrity Mercury still does some cruise that is similiar out of San Francisco.

[spirithaven]

Great idea - ARE YOU READING HAL????? Maybe sending out to Mariners a questionnaire could net some good ideas?

[HeatherInFlorida]

Does it have to be based in reality? Because my "dream" cruise is:

Fort Lauderdale
Half Moon Cay
Bora Bora
Moorea
Half Moon Cay
Bermuda
Ville Franche
Sicily
Half Moon Cay
Fort Lauderdale

And there can be a gizillion sea days in between them all ... that's okay with me.

[Oceanwench]

I'd love to sail from Port Everglades to:

St. Barts
St. Kitts
Anguilla
St. Eustacia

I did this route on a Windjammer and it was wonderful!

[cruznon]

I love Revneal's cruise. Listening HAL? Celebrity? RCCL?
I think cruise lines are "missing the boat" by not offering more variety in their West Coast intineraries. We love sailing form West Coast, but basically it's just the same cruise ports. By going to Canal and BACK to San Diego it's more reasonable financially and time-wise for the multitude of cruisers on the West Coast. We really envy those of you in Florida who have so many Caribbean cruise options close at hand.

[jhannah]

I also think Greg's itinerary is great! Additionally, I'd like to see HAL make a Polynesia run like Princess does. Papeete, Huahine, Rarotonga, Raiatea, Bora Bora, Moorea, and back to Papeete. I have heard these islands are not to be missed, and this itinerary would meet some of Heather's stops, too. This would probably have to be sailed by the Prinsendam due to size restrictions. But I think it would be a fabulous trip.

[RevNeal]

We did almost your intinerary last October on the Statendam only it was 21 days. We had extra stops in Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala and Mexico. It was great.

Oh, yes ... I know ... I gave great debate to taking that cruise rather than the Zaandam from Vancouver to Pt. Canaveral. Both were 21 days, and the final decision came down to the tradition of going from one side to the other ... all the way through. In fact, its that 21 day cruise on the Statendam that gave me the idea of a RT out of San Diego. 21 days is long ... if they could get it down to 14 days, it would be easier for more people to do it (similar to the idea of the 10 day RTs to the Canal on the Caribbean side).

We entered the Panama Canal in the morning and then the ship stayed overnight in Gatun Lake and then returned the way it had come the next day. We did not go through the Gatun Locks. Your idea of an overnight journey through the canal sounds great too but I don't think there would be anything to see in the Cut when it is dark. It was pretty dark in Gatun Lake. The locks would be illuminated though.

Acutally, the idea was that one could go through the Pacific side, and the cut, into Gatun Lake in the morning (during daylight) like most Cruise ships do. But, then, the ship would stay until dark, when passage rates would drop, and then head back up the cut and back out through the locks at night. It and a stay at Panama City the next day would enable shore excursions relative to the Canal from the land. :)

Anyway ... thanks for the input!

[RevNeal]

I'd like to see HAL make a Polynesia run like Princess does. Papeete, Huahine, Rarotonga, Raiatea, Bora Bora, Moorea, and back to Papeete. I have heard these islands are not to be missed, and this itinerary would meet some of Heather's stops, too. This would probably have to be sailed by the Prinsendam due to size restrictions. But I think it would be a fabulous trip.

That sounds GREAT. I'd love to do it.
I think an S-class ships is just small enough to be able to do it, too.

[bepsf]

Rev--


Noticed that you're doing the Maiden on Noordam!
Congrats!

My votes are for 15 day Alaska R/T from San Francisco on a Vista-Class ship with departures every other Saturday night

Day 1 - Depart San Francisco
Day 2 - At Sea
Day 3 - Victoria, BC
Day 4 - Cruising the Inside Passage
Day 5 - Juneau Alaska
Day 6 - Cruising Glacier Bay
Day 7 - At Sea
Day 8 - Arrive Anchorage, Alaska (Stay overnight for Denali Excursions)
Day 9 - Depart Anchorage (mid-afternoon)
Day 10 - At Sea
Day 11 - Sitka
Day 12 - Ketchikan
Day 13 - Cruising the Inside Passage
Day 14 - At Sea
Day 15 - Arrive San Francisco


And a 15 day South Atlantic Crossing into the Mediterranean:

Day 1 - Depart New York City
Days 2-5 - At Sea
Day 6 - Azores
Day 7 - Azores
Day 8 - At Sea
Day 9 - Arrive Lisbon
Day 10 - Depart Lisbon AM
Day 11 - Cruising Gibraltar AM
Day 12 - Mallorca or Barcelona
Day 13 - Arrive Monte Carlo
Day 14 - Depart Monte Carlo AM
Day 15 - Arrive Civitavecchia (Rome)

(With reverse itineraries, of course, this route could be done in late spring and summer w/ a pair of R-Class ships - departures every other Friday night)

[Vic The Parrot]

Hey Brian


Nice Med voyage!
It's almost like the route from American Export Lines.

Now that would be a great trip!



:)

[Cuttle]

Oh, yes ... I know ... I gave great debate to taking that cruise rather than the Zaandam from Vancouver to Pt. Canaveral. Both were 21 days, and the final decision came down to the tradition of going from one side to the other ... all the way through. In fact, its that 21 day cruise on the Statendam that gave me the idea of a RT out of San Diego. 21 days is long ... if they could get it down to 14 days, it would be easier for more people to do it (similar to the idea of the 10 day RTs to the Canal on the Caribbean side).

Acutally, the idea was that one could go through the Pacific side, and the cut, into Gatun Lake in the morning (during daylight) like most Cruise ships do. But, then, the ship would stay until dark, when passage rates would drop, and then head back up the cut and back out through the locks at night. It and a stay at Panama City the next day would enable shore excursions relative to the Canal from the land. :)

Anyway ... thanks for the input!

I guess if they cut out the Central American countries - Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala OR include those and cut out several Mexican ports, they could do it in 14 days. There would be more days at sea.

That seems ok and it would cut down one day as you could do the same shore excursions from Amador as was offered on the 21 day cruise. I would do this cruise again anytime.