* TEXAS Cruisers *

We'd love to here from other Texans who love to cruise. It seems that every time we cruise there are many other people from Texas on the ship with us. Let's talk!

Karen

Me and my DW love to cruise its just so hard with work and all to get it all scheduled. Going in June with our 2 daughters and my sister out of Galveston. Like the fact that we can go from there instead of flying somewhere. It's our 6th our daughters 3rd and my sisters 2nd.

I am from Texas and Lovvvvvve To cruise. In the Arlington Area. Future home of the Dallas Cowboys. We will Be sailing on April 6th Celebrity. Our 7th Cruise:D

We are Michelle and Kevin from Flower Mound. We are Loyal to Royal so we were excited to see the Voyager here. How do we get her to stay year 'round?????!!!!!!

Take care,

Michelle

My husband and I live in San Antonio. We're sailing on the Celebrity Summit on April 11 (three weeks from today) and are really excited. This will be our second cruise, also with celebrity. We've looked into cruising out of Galveston but both times have been able to get better deals on other cruise lines, even with having to buy plane tickets. Why is that?

We took a cruise to the caribbean last march and it was fun to hear all of the passengers from up North talk about how glad they were to get away from all the snow and ice. We just laughed! Silly people, they should just move to Texas!

We are from the Arlington area and we will be going on our third cruise on May 11 on Celebrity Mercury going to Alaska...our previous two cruises were on Royal...one on Rhapsody (we loved) and one on Voyager (it was ok). They were both out of Galveston. We will probably go back to Galveston after this year and may try Carnival...RCL has gone down hill and I hear it has gone farther down...we are trying Celebrity because we hear it still has better service. We will see! I do know that they are owned by the same parent company as RCL...so we shall see if they are a cut above...Jim

Jim - I have never been on a RC or a Carnival Cruise but I want to tell you that Celebrity knocked my socks off. I was very impressed with the whole experience. It reminds me of a classy hotel with a lot of fine food, beautiful spaces, great live music and a lot of sumptuous relaxing. The service was great and the ship was always spotless.

Jim - I have never been on a RC or a Carnival Cruise but I want to tell you that Celebrity knocked my socks off. I was very impressed with the whole experience. It reminds me of a classy hotel with a lot of fine food, beautiful spaces, great live music and a lot of sumptuous relaxing. The service was great and the ship was always spotless.

What port do you usually sail out of on Celebrity? I've never been on Celebrity, but would love to try it.

We have cruised on RCCL, Carnival, and Princess. Mostly we've been sailing on Princess, and I liked it when Princess left out of Galveston. I'd like to here more about Royal Caribbean out of Texas. It is so much easier to cruise from here, but I got tired of the repeated cruises to Mexico. I prefer visiting the islands in the Caribbean.

Where do you like cruising?

In the name of transparency, this will only be my second cruise so I'm not an expert! We cruised on the Celebrity Millennium last March out of Fort Lauderdale into the Caribbean. We looked at RC out of Galveston at that same time thinking we could save a lot of money by driving but the fare was so much higher than celebrity that we were able to go on a nicer cruise, even with plane tickets. I think that sometime people just assume that it is cheaper if you don't have to buy plane tickets. Unless you have a whole family, it might not be! Of course, goodness knows that Galveston needs all the business it can get now. I can't believe how torn up it still is. It is really sad!

For example, my husband David and I are sailing out of San Juan PR in three weeks to spend a week in the southern Caribbean on the Celebrity Summit (St.Maarten, Grenada, Dominica, Bonaire and Aruba) we got our plane tickets for approximately $240 each. With the economy being in such poor shape, you can get great deals to travel!

We had wanted to try Princess this time around but there wasn't a good cruise that fit our tight schedules this year. We're definitely going to try them next year! I know that both lines have very loyal fans who love to have deep discussions about why one is better than the other. All being told, I was very impressed with Celebrity and would highly recommend them to anyone who is looking for less of a party boat and more of a luxurious, relaxing vacation. Spotless, great service, beautiful ship, wonderful food, understated elegance at its best.

Hi mkschles. We are doing a very similar southern caribbean cruise out of San Juan on Princess in a few weeks. One difference I noticed between our itineraries is I have St Thomas instead of St Maarten. We did the same cruise last April on Princess, but a different ship, and loved it! I can't wait to go again. It was the best cruise we had ever been on. Do you have port excursions planned out yet?

I can't really talk about Celebrity yet. Let you know what I think about it after April 17th. that is when I return from the constellation.

I have sailed twice on Princess. the Grand and The Crown. one out of Galvestion and the other from San Juan. I loved them both. I esp liked their embarktations. They were set up by decks when you checked in. that was an easy process. We sail out of San Juan on Carnival Destiny and it was a mad house. But loved the cruise.

On the destiny we did the southern carribbean also. We had the best time on the ship. Didn't see much of Dominica cause my hubby taped a TV broadcast there. So that took up our whole day. :(. We have friends that live there so we'll go back one day.

Grand Princess was at one time docked in Galvestion. But pulled out due to the Port charges rising and the difficulties they had there with the port authorities. Or at least that is what I heard by crew employees while we were on board. The Crown Princess is a sister ship and it was much like being on the Grand. We enjoyed the service and the ship. was more upscaled than Carnival.

Now we are trying Celebrity. My friends only Cruise with Celebrity and have high reguard for that line So we are testing it to see.

Almost always we fly to our ports. Hubby has 200k + miles on AA so we fly for free.

What port do you usually sail out of on Celebrity? I've never been on Celebrity, but would love to try it.

 

We have cruised on RCCL, Carnival, and Princess. Mostly we've been sailing on Princess, and I liked it when Princess left out of Galveston. I'd like to here more about Royal Caribbean out of Texas. It is so much easier to cruise from here, but I got tired of the repeated cruises to Mexico. I prefer visiting the islands in the Caribbean.

 

Where do you like cruising?

RC out of Galveston was fine...we have sailed both of their iteneraries and enjoyed each cruise for different reasons...We enjoyed the Rhapsody of the Seas because of the great service and the friendliness of the crew on our Jamaica, Grand Cayman, Cozumel cruise and we really enjoyed Grand Cayman...a wonderful friendly place to visit... the Voyager cruise was Cozumel, Roatan, Honduras, and Progresso...we enjoyed the ports more than the cruise on this particular itenerary...We LOVED Roatan, and Progresso was more of the old Mexico type of cruise port...not a lot of glitz like Cancun or Cozumel, but friendly people and little shops selling all types of things...made for a fun day...Embarkation and disembarkation were trouble free for us...though disembarkation can be a long process...we decided on the Voyager cruise to just be some of the last off the ship since we weren't in a hurry to catch a flight and we were able to walk straight to our bags and were through customs in two minutes...so, all in all, cruising out of Galveston was great...I do note that on some of the Voyager iteneraries, they have reversed the trips to the islands by starting with Cozumel and ending in Jamaica thus giving you two straight days sailing at the end of the cruise instead of at the beginning...that was one of the suggestions I made on our Rhapsody cruise and I am glad they did that...Gives you a day and night of rest (or partying?!?) before you have to pack...Jim

Jimi, Your cruise sounds fabulous and wow you get to go 2 weeks from today. Does this ship go thru the Panama Canal? My husband has been talking about wanting to do that. I'm anxious to hear what you think of Celebrity. It would be great information from someone who has cruised some of the the same ships I know. I also went on the Grand out of Galveston, and appreciate your sharing your knowledge because I didn't know why they stopped using that port. My favorite ship to date is the Crown. I've been on it 2 times and love it. When you get back, please let me know what your thoughts are of Celebrity.

I, too, agree that there should be more ships sailing out of Galveston or even the brand new cruise facility out of the Houston Port...Hopefully, one of the ports will "see the light" and reduce some of their port charges so one or more of the other lines will start cruising out of the area and, hopefully, offer some different itenerary options...I would love to do a Panama cruise or a cruise to some of the other Caribbean ports out of Houston or Galveston...I think there would be enough interest to support some of these...just need to convince someone to try it...Jim :)

Jim, Speaking just on the ships, did you like Rhapsody of the Seas or Voyager better?

I, too, agree that there should be more ships sailing out of Galveston or even the brand new cruise facility out of the Houston Port...Hopefully, one of the ports will "see the light" and reduce some of their port charges so one or more of the other lines will start cruising out of the area and, hopefully, offer some different itenerary options...I would love to do a Panama cruise or a cruise to some of the other Caribbean ports out of Houston or Galveston...I think there would be enough interest to support some of these...just need to convince someone to try it...Jim :)

Jim, I like the way you think. A Panama cruise out of Houston, I'd like that!

I will definately report back. We do not go thru the canal. Only up to it but there are excursion to the canal to watch the other ships. The cruise was so much cheaper than those going thru it and we get to fly to and fro to the same city. Otherwise, it was fly to FLL and come back on the west coast somewhere. My hubby hates doing that. He flies so much that on vacation he like to take the easy way. I really don't care. We alway fly with Airmiles.

I am really looking forward to this cruise because it is for 11 days and this will be our longest cruise. Yeah!! oh did I say YEAH!

Hi mkschles. We are doing a very similar southern caribbean cruise out of San Juan on Princess in a few weeks. One difference I noticed between our itineraries is I have St Thomas instead of St Maarten. We did the same cruise last April on Princess, but a different ship, and loved it! I can't wait to go again. It was the best cruise we had ever been on. Do you have port excursions planned out yet?

We actually have not planned any shore excursions at any of the ports. Neither of us has been to any of the island before and we will likely just take local transportation to see more of the non-touristy stuff. I've been dong my research in preparation. We enjoy mixing with the locals and learning about the destinations through them.

I do want to see a spice plantation in Grenada!

With St. Thomas, we took a local water taxi from downtown Charlotte Amalie over to St. John (about 45 minute ride) and took a local taxi to the beaches there. It looks like a postcard! I would recommend Trunk's Cay. I think that was our favorite destination. 2/3 of St. John is a national park so it is untouched.

He flies so much that on vacation he like to take the easy way. I really don't care. We alway fly with Airmiles.

I am really looking forward to this cruise because it is for 11 days and this will be our longest cruise. Yeah!! oh did I say YEAH!

My DH is the same way. We took a 15 day to Hawaii out of LA instead of flying over and catching a cruise out of Honolulu because he said he spends enough time in the air and he'd rather cruise across the Pacific than fly across.

 

With St. Thomas, we took a local water taxi from downtown Charlotte Amalie over to St. John (about 45 minute ride) and took a local taxi to the beaches there. It looks like a postcard! I would recommend Trunk's Cay. I think that was our favorite destination. 2/3 of St. John is a national park so it is untouched.

Would you mind telling me the details of how to get over there and what you do after the ferry to get to the beach. I have seen threads on it before and didn't pay close enough attention to the specifics to know how to get myself to the beach. Now that our cruise is coming up I'm thinking it is something we will probably try. The looking like a postcard destination sound appealing.

Karen

Would you mind telling me the details of how to get over there and what you do after the ferry to get to the beach. I have seen threads on it before and didn't pay close enough attention to the specifics to know how to get myself to the beach. Now that our cruise is coming up I'm thinking it is something we will probably try. The looking like a postcard destination sound appealing.

Karen

The ferry will take you to "downtown" St. Johns. From there, grab an open air taxi. Ask the driver how much to Trunk's Cay and he'll tell you. I want to say it was $6/pp. You'll share the taxi (it is really like an open air van) with other people. The drive to the beach itself is beautiful as St. Johns is very hilly. The way I discovered the idea to do this was from our Frommer's Guide. I find that little book to be invaluable! The whole process was easy and we got back to our cruise ship with plenty of time to spare. It is a little nerve wracking since you are traveling to another island from where your ship is docked but it really was fine.

[Fun and Breezes 2

My hubby wants to do this also one day. He really wants to go to Tahiti. You can cruise from Ohau to Tahiti on some lines or you could at one time. I am not sure about that anymore since I have not checked in a while. My hubby loves sea days. He says he can sit enjoy the ocean and read. And I am not having him do anything. That is the part I think he really loves. LOL

Hi to all. DH and myself love to cruise and we live in Spring, Tx. We are booked on 2 cruises (so far) this year and that will make 22 for us. Glad a thread like this was finally posted. Sometimes these boards can get so overwhelming. Looking forward to chatting with you all.

Please feel free to ask any questions - since we have cruised quite a few times on a number of vessels - mostly on CCL and RCCL. We have never tried Princess or Celebrity.

We are true fans of CCL and everytime we have left them - we always end up asking ourselves, "why?" We have been to quite a few ports as well. Bye for now. Crystal.

[Fun and Breezes 2

 

 

 

My hubby wants to do this also one day. He really wants to go to Tahiti. You can cruise from Ohau to Tahiti on some lines or you could at one time. I am not sure about that anymore since I have not checked in a while. My hubby loves sea days. He says he can sit enjoy the ocean and read. And I am not having him do anything. That is the part I think he really loves. LOL

Jimi, I actually wanted to do the Oahu to Tahiti, but DH liked the LA to Hawaii and back to LA better and thats what we decided to do. I know they also do repositioning cruises from the states to Hawaii, so pairing that up with an Oahu to Tahiti would be fantastic. I hadn't thought of that before.

Hi to all. DH and myself love to cruise and we live in Spring, Tx. We are booked on 2 cruises (so far) this year and that will make 22 for us. Glad a thread like this was finally posted. Sometimes these boards can get so overwhelming. Looking forward to chatting with you all.

Please feel free to ask any questions - since we have cruised quite a few times on a number of vessels - mostly on CCL and RCCL. We have never tried Princess or Celebrity.

We are true fans of CCL and everytime we have left them - we always end up asking ourselves, "why?" We have been to quite a few ports as well. Bye for now. Crystal.

Hi Texarribean, glad you found us. Where do you like cruising most?

Texarribean Chick

I have a dear friend who lives in Spring. She lost her husband a few years back at a young age. I see you do cruise alot. We have tried to do two cruises a year. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. It is easier now that I am Semi Retired. (this just means I get tired-er and tired-er each day LOL) I now work for my husband. He travels so much and usually is gone every weekend. He speaks in Churches on Sunday All over the place. So we have to arrange a cruise when he has time off. Which is seldom. But we have one coming up in about 12 days...:D

Hi to all. DH and myself love to cruise and we live in Spring, Tx. We are booked on 2 cruises (so far) this year and that will make 22 for us. Glad a thread like this was finally posted. Sometimes these boards can get so overwhelming. Looking forward to chatting with you all.

Please feel free to ask any questions - since we have cruised quite a few times on a number of vessels - mostly on CCL and RCCL. We have never tried Princess or Celebrity.

We are true fans of CCL and everytime we have left them - we always end up asking ourselves, "why?" We have been to quite a few ports as well. Bye for now. Crystal.

Have you been to Dominica? What did you do when you were there? Any must do's or should avoids? What are your thoughts on the Spas onboard the ships? Worth it or not worth the money?

Last question - Do you and your husband (or anyone on this board) ever cruise with friends? Is it fun or do you get sick of each other?