No Excursions, No plans, no...nothing.

Cruising the Caribbean vs the Med are totally different animals. Yes, you want to plan your port days to see all the sites.

With the cost of flying overseas, it would be a crime not to have a plan in place.

Have a great cruise!

I would agree. We've been to Europe about 20 times (mostly land trips) and still feel like beginners. When it comes to the most ports my OCPD (obsessive cruise planning disorder) goes into overdrive. Not so much planning minute by minute, but looking at how to get to various point to points with DYI transportation options and having plan B's in place if things go astray.

We're planning a Caribbean for December. I've decided to free wheel this one to simply relax. The Caribbean is still very new to us, so I'll research enough to know where we might want to beach it and where we might want to town it (or whole island it) but it will be very laid back compared to what I go through with Europe. After this last winter as long as it's warm we'll be happy campers.

We have been to the caribbean many many times..and only once did a private excursion (Bernard's in St Maarten) and only because we had several family members with us...we're DIY especially in the caribbean. Sorry, but it seems so many feel they have to have every port and every hour pre-planned...this isn't the way we choose to spend our vacations.

We had a period of time between our 2005/06 cruise and the next one in 2010/11. Things were going on in my hubby's life including finding out that his mother had a terminal illness. So for months he was helping her get her affairs in order and also taking her to treatments to slow things down for a while. A year later he was ready for a vacation (in those years, we took a two day trip up the coast just to relax).

We found out that there were a few cabins left on the Hawaiian cruise (we had enjoyed the same one in 2005) during the holidays (the only time we could go with a school-aged girl). But he said he didn't want to do any excursions and certainly not rent a car (we had rented a car on one of the islands during our Hawaiian honeymoon, so we pretty much saw everything; our girl wasn't into sightseeing but we did go on a tour of the Big Island on the previous cruise). I was fine with that.

My girl said she wanted to help plan things, so I gave her brochures that covered all of our ports and did come up with a few places to stop at (after eliminating a couple of places that were closed on our port day). But there was nothing set in stone and we ending up walking, taking buses, taxis to get where we decided to go. Nothing booked ahead of time. Much of the time winging it in the four ports (we didn't get off the ship in Ensenada, but it seemed most people on board treated it like a sea day).

Anyone ever do this? Just cruise with NO plans in place? What did you end up doing?

 

We're going to Grand Cayman, Belize, Roatan, and Cozumel -- it will be our first time at GC and on the advice of friends who have been there a few times, we're thinking of renting car...but not planning on anything definite.

 

We've been to Belize, Roatan, and Coz and are happy to wing it in all three places...

Yeah, we generally book the trip and then decide what to do the day of arrival at port.

In GC don't miss Stingray City. Or if you have kids, hit the turtle farm. They'll love it and it's cheap.

Ahhhh, but dare we disagree. We have done an awful lot of cruising in Europe and the Med (as well as a lot of driving trips) and seldom concern ourselves with planning our port days. Over the years we have learned to know most of our options and just make up our minds within a few days of arrival or sometimes not until we actually walk off the ship. The one big exception is when we want to rent a car, which we must normally reserve in advance. But often, with a rental car, we do not know where we will go until I am behind the wheel and say to DW, "what do you want to do today?"

 

Now you might think this is nutz, but to us it makes perfect sense. We often make our decisions based on the weather. A good example might be Civitavecchia where we might be thinking about going to Rome, but then it turns out to be one of those awful hot/humid days that is all too common for Rome. At that point we might decide to do something totally different to avoid the heat in Rome.

 

Hank

Hank, I certainly understand your point of view but you must admit that your extensive travel experience is not typical of many of the posters on this site.

I was referring to someone like myself that may have never traveled to Europe.

Research is vital prior to a European cruise vs a Caribbean cruise where many people just hit the beach in each port.

Truth be told, I always did my homework for every cruise but it was nowhere to the level of my one and only European adventure.

I live on St Thomas......for me taking a cruise is about the ship. Many Caribbean ports I do not get off the ship............I love having the boat to "myself".

We do the same in the Caribbean although we do not live in the islands. And sometime it is the cabin for our destiny. Soon we will be back on Caribbean Princess to see what the window suites are like.

We see lots of people who stay onboard whilst in port. Most have "Been there. Done that Island.'

How much planning depends on where we are going and if we have been there before.

I could leave tomorrow on a Caribbean cruise without any planning what so ever because I have been to most places that the ships go to or have read enough around here to know what the main sights or activities on each island are.

If I were to go on a Baltic or Austaian/New Zealand cruise tomorrow with no planning I would be lost and I would definitly be using valuable cruise time trying to find out what I should do from the second port onwards.;)

Hank, I certainly understand your point of view but you must admit that your extensive travel experience is not typical of many of the posters on this site.

I was referring to someone like myself that may have never traveled to Europe.

Research is vital prior to a European cruise vs a Caribbean cruise where many people just hit the beach in each port.

Truth be told, I always did my homework for every cruise but it was nowhere to the level of my one and only European adventure.

I'm pretty much with Hank on Europe. Sure, you are going someplace where "seeing the sites" is the primary thing to do vs sitting on a beach (getting drunk) or grabbing a tour at the pier in the Caribbean. But, I don't plan an excursion at every port to "see all the sites". Yes, you do have to research. I do. But, I will pick out one or two things that I really want to see and/or do. I will figure out how to get there and do it (I'm NOT a tour group/private excursion person) and DIY (unless it is something that I cannot do on my own). But, I always leave the majority of my time for walking around, observing, locals watching, grabbing a leisurely meal, perhaps a glass (or two) of wine. My vacations and cruises are my one time a year to relax. I'm not going to have it planned out to the minute and be on the go the entire time. There are some places on the Med cruise itineraries that I've been to a few times; for those, I rarely plan, but just "go"..

Our last two cruises were to the Med (with different itineraries). We booked a private driver and guide in every port and were on the run at each port. I can't say enough about what an amazing trips they were and I enjoyed everything. We had everything planned from our hotels pre and post cruise, tickets purchased in advance, and each day was filled from the time we got up (VERY early) until we finally dropped into our beds at night. We decided to do a Caribbean cruise next. We chose an itinerary we had done twice before on a ship we have sailed previously (Freedom of the Seas). We love the ship and since we've seen the islands on the itinerary, we don't intend to make any plans for excursions. I'll probably get off the ship to purchase some lotion I love on one of the islands, coffee and rum and the rum cakes. We will have some beach time but other than that, our plan to to relax. We've only done this one other time and that was a short, last minute cruise, also to ports we had previously visited.

Another no planner here. Once in a while I'll grab a tour once off the ship. When I had my cruise partner, we booked randomly at the dock.

It drives me nuts to read about people booking and planning many months in advance. I know, some are planners, but it leaves the mystery behind and the potential for cancellations etc. Then, they get all upset about it.

Sometimes it's better to plan because you have: A) something to look forward to...B) some places only allow a certain amount of tourists in a day/hour/etc.. C) I feel like an idiot getting off the ship and saying, "OK, what do you we do now?", when all I needed to do was do a little research, be it on CC, or maybe Trip Advisor....D) There are generally 5 possibilities in most ports in the world, but on a Caribbean port: 1) Stay on the ship..2) Beach day...3) PLANNED excursion like Cultural, Nature Park, swimming with Dolphins, etc.. 4) Get off the ship & just "wing it" or walk around..5) Shopping ( like in St.Thomas/ St.Maarten)...but even a simple beach day takes some planning..which beach? Do you want facilities? Food & bar? Water sports? I do NOT book randomly at the dock because many of those people are just out for your $$, and are crooks- I have had that happen early in my cruise career...wouldn't you rather trust some people here on CC and get some good recommendations ..if you went to Paris, London or Rome for a day, would you just wing it with soooo many places to see? Of course not..there are only so many hours in a port day on a cruise ( usually 7-10 hrs.) , so why not spend a few moments and see what might interest you & anyone else..BTW, if there is a cancellation due to weather ( like a water oriented excursion) or whatever, you should always have a plan B....If you are planning to swim with the dolphins ( an AMAAAAZZZINNGG experience!!) in say, Cozumel, and reserve a spot for that 3-4 months ahead of the cruise day, don't you think you would be excited about doing that and looking forward to it- looking forward to wandering around is a bit too lame for me..just MHO...

Big Al

Anyone ever do this? Just cruise with NO plans in place? What did you end up doing?

 

We're going to Grand Cayman, Belize, Roatan, and Cozumel -- it will be our first time at GC and on the advice of friends who have been there a few times, we're thinking of renting car...but not planning on anything definite.

 

We've been to Belize, Roatan, and Coz and are happy to wing it in all three places...

We had no plans to cruise this summer at all till The cruise line called me yesterday with a $299 pp 7 day Bermuda cruise .

We sail tomorrow morning . :D

No plans . It should be fun winging it .:)

We had no plans to cruise this summer at all till The cruise line called me yesterday with a $299 pp 7 day Bermuda cruise .

 

We sail tomorrow morning . :D

 

No plans . It should be fun winging it .:)

That's awesome, enjoy! Not exactly an island a day or a major city to explore daily and very little chance that the ship will leave without you at 5 or 6 everyday so it is indeed the best cruise to wing.:D

Another no planner here. Once in a while I'll grab a tour once off the ship. When I had my cruise partner, we booked randomly at the dock.

It drives me nuts to read about people booking and planning many months in advance. I know, some are planners, but it leaves the mystery behind and the potential for cancellations etc. Then, they get all upset about it.

Sometimes it's better to plan because you have: A) something to look forward to...B) some places only allow a certain amount of tourists in a day/hour/etc.. C) I feel like an idiot getting off the ship and saying, "OK, what do you we do now?", when all I needed to do was do a little research, be it on CC, or maybe Trip Advisor....D) There are generally 5 possibilities in most ports in the world, but on a Caribbean port: 1) Stay on the ship..2) Beach day...3) PLANNED excursion like Cultural, Nature Park, swimming with Dolphins, etc.. 4) Get off the ship & just "wing it" or walk around..5) Shopping ( like in St.Thomas/ St.Maarten)...but even a simple beach day takes some planning..which beach? Do you want facilities? Food & bar? Water sports? I do NOT book randomly at the dock because many of those people are just out for your $$, and are crooks- I have had that happen early in my cruise career...wouldn't you rather trust some people here on CC and get some good recommendations ..if you went to Paris, London or Rome for a day, would you just wing it with soooo many places to see? Of course not..there are only so many hours in a port day on a cruise ( usually 7-10 hrs.) , so why not spend a few moments and see what might interest you & anyone else..BTW, if there is a cancellation due to weather ( like a water oriented excursion) or whatever, you should always have a plan B....If you are planning to swim with the dolphins ( an AMAAAAZZZINNGG experience!!) in say, Cozumel, and reserve a spot for that 3-4 months ahead of the cruise day, don't you think you would be excited about doing that and looking forward to it- looking forward to wandering around is a bit too lame for me..just MHO...

 

 

Big Al

Even though I am a planner, I am finding that the more we cruise, the more we are mixing it up a bit and having some port days that we go in with no plans. Especially to ports we have been to several times before like Cozumel, Grand Cayman, and Nassau. I always research cruise ports, but sometimes that research and past experience at that port lead me to the conclusion that we will wing it on that port day. Having no plans though, does not mean I don't know what is available for us to do if we so choose. That is the planner in me being prepared with options, even if one of those options is just exploring the port area on foot or staying on the ship. I don't like going in blind and wasting half the day trying to figure out what our options are. Especially when we only have a few hours there.

Most ports though, especially ports we haven't been to before, I will find something that would interest the family and book ahead of time. You can find some great deals on things to do with good ratings with just a little research. Sometimes what we want to do is only offered through the ship or the island has a reputation that makes sticking with a ship tour preferable....I like to know that information so I can plan for us accordingly. FWIW I don't get upset when plans go wrong. We had that happen 2x. Once in Grand Cayman when we ended up in Progresso instead. We had a tour booked through Carnival. We received a refund for the tour booked.....and once in Costa Maya where we had a beach break booked through Island Marketing and it poured all day. They gave us a refund as well. Things happen. Just because you booked it ahead of time doesn't mean you can't be flexible when life happens.

I think of myself as more the of the middle ground type of person. While I love planning ahead and having things so we just have to get off and enjoy our day without trying to figure it out when we get there....there are times when just winging it is just as fun. Neither way is wrong if it is right for you :):p:D. The main thing to keep in mind when cruising is to be flexible, whether you booked ahead or not. It makes the trip so much more enjoyable when you can go with the flow rather than get upset when things don't go as you had hoped.

Even though I am a planner, I am finding that the more we cruise, the more we are mixing it up a bit and having some port days that we go in with no plans. Especially to ports we have been to several times before like Cozumel, Grand Cayman, and Nassau. I always research cruise ports, but sometimes that research and past experience at that port lead me to the conclusion that we will wing it on that port day. Having no plans though, does not mean I don't know what is available for us to do if we so choose. That is the planner in me being prepared with options, even if one of those options is just exploring the port area on foot or staying on the ship. I don't like going in blind and wasting half the day trying to figure out what our options are. Especially when we only have a few hours there.

 

Most ports though, especially ports we haven't been to before, I will find something that would interest the family and book ahead of time. You can find some great deals on things to do with good ratings with just a little research. Sometimes what we want to do is only offered through the ship or the island has a reputation that makes sticking with a ship tour preferable....I like to know that information so I can plan for us accordingly. FWIW I don't get upset when plans go wrong. We had that happen 2x. Once in Grand Cayman when we ended up in Progresso instead. We had a tour booked through Carnival. We received a refund for the tour booked.....and once in Costa Maya where we had a beach break booked through Island Marketing and it poured all day. They gave us a refund as well. Things happen. Just because you booked it ahead of time doesn't mean you can't be flexible when life happens.

 

I think of myself as more the of the middle ground type of person. While I love planning ahead and having things so we just have to get off and enjoy our day without trying to figure it out when we get there....there are times when just winging it is just as fun. Neither way is wrong if it is right for you :):p:D. The main thing to keep in mind when cruising is to be flexible, whether you booked ahead or not. It makes the trip so much more enjoyable when you can go with the flow rather than get upset when things don't go as you had hoped.

Flexibility is key..a wise person once told me, always have a " plan b"

Winging it in the Caribbean is fine, particularly if this is a return visit. Europe is another story. You might not find much right at the port as many are industrial and away from the cities and villages close by.

I think one might miss a lot winging it in Europe.

Personally, I think it is fun to plan.

We took a 7 day cruise and never left the ship ( had been to the ports in the past) and LOVED it.

We took a 7 day cruise and never left the ship ( had been to the ports in the past) and LOVED it.

I don't think that this will be that unusual of an occurrence in the near future. The prices of cruises from Florida in the fall and January can be very inexpensive. Many people that retire in Florida take lots of cruises so as the age and get less mobile the ship and the ocean become the vacation not the destination.

Winging it in the Caribbean is fine, particularly if this is a return visit. Europe is another story. You might not find much right at the port as many are industrial and away from the cities and villages close by.

 

I think one might miss a lot winging it in Europe.

 

Personally, I think it is fun to plan.

Totally agree!