Thoughts on a 4 day cruise?

We have done several 4 and 5 day cruises but, most of them have been from our nearby cruise ports in New York and New Jersey. We're doing a 5-day Bermuda in August, it's a twenty minute cab ride to the pier.

All cruises are too short. If you combine your cruise with a short hotel stay it's still a lovely vacation. You could fly into New York and catch Royal Caribbean's brand new Anthem of the Seas which starts it's 5-day cruises to Bermuda round trip from Bayonne, New Jersey.

The Quantum Class ships are pretty spectacular and the prices around $900 and change for a balcony cabin.

Jonathan

As long as you don't come back thinking it is the norm for that cruise line you'll be fine. We've done some very short ones - have a 3 nighter this January - and if I came back saying the ship was rowdy or the service bad - you just can't judge based on these short cruises. You get an entirely different clientele than you might normally - at least this is true on Celebrity.

We can drive to port so this short cruise is just to tide us over to Alaska in May. :D

We've done two 4 day cruises out of Florida and drove down from Vermont both times (with 5 teenage boys in the van:eek:). While it's not a 7 day cruise it can be a good getaway. April is school vacation month in many districts so you may find a larger number of kids, but since the cruise takes place during the week it can be less of a booze cruise than a 3 day. As long as you find the airfare doable I would say go for it.

We're booked on RC Adventure of the Seas in Oct/2016. We live in Ontario and want to go away in April for a couple of days and want a relaxing cheap vacation, what's your thoughts about doing a short cruise?

I see you live in Ontario.

JMO -- I would not go to all that hassle and expense and long travel for a 4 day cruise.

The closest airport to us is Buffalo which is our preferred city to fly out of and cheaper.

1. It's better than a three day cruise

2. It's better than no cruise at all.

I have done several 4 day cruises, because I could drive to the port and that's all there was. I did one three day cruise - to use up Carnival mastercard points and to make platinum. The 3 day was in June, with lots of family groups aboard, matching t-shirts, moving like fish in schools, pushing others out of the way. EM

4 Day Cruise

Day 1 - Unpack and find your way around the ship

Day 2 - Have fun

Day 3 - Pack up and make preparations to go home

Day 4 - Go home

Or another thing I thought of is book a 2017 and maybe get a cheaper cruise5-7

DW and I just finished our 7 day on the Serenade and she wanted to go on another cruise before our Adventure in Mar 16. We booked a 4 day on Majesty in Oct. At the time it seemed like a good idea since we got a really good price. Now after locking in airfare, a hotel the night before, it doesn't look to be such a good deal, I should have booked another 7 day. If I had it to do over again, I would have passed on the 4 day. We don't live close enough to drive to any ports to make it worthwhile. :cool:

Just curious how much your airfare is and your cost to get to the airport and park, plus a hotel since most of us would not risk a same day flight that pretty much makes your first day of the cruise an exhausting washout.

I understand the need to unwind from work and I found cruises was the way to go for years. But even a 7 day cruise was too short to unwind, especially with air travel. If you cannot find something to do closer to home, I would do a staycation and save my money or buy some fabulous electronics that will entertain the whole family for years.

I just wish they sailed out of New Orleans, so is it better to wait till were on our cruise or book sooner?

What cruise are you considering? I'd recommend the Independence of the Seas. In my opinion, it's the best ship doing 4 nighters in April and its out of FLL, which is the easiest airport-to-port destination you can fly in to.

1. Why did you post in Carnival about a RCI cruise?:confused:

 

2. 4 days way too short barely get unpacked and time to pack again.

 

3. Can tend to be booze cruises

 

4. If you are a regular cruiser they can give you a feel for the ship if you know what to ignore.

At some point, this thread apparently had been moved to the "Ask a Cruise Question" board.

We live an hour's drive from the Port of LA (and I guess the Port of LB) so we have taken three short three or four day cruises (Ensenada on the former and Ensenada/Catalina on the latter) for various reasons. But it seems you're on the ship for too short of a time relative to the time it takes to embark/disembark. Even 7-day cruises seem too short for us now after taking a few two-week cruises.

On our last cruise our flight to San Juan was 700 our flight to FLL was 960, when we were looking at flights to Philadelphia it was around 700 for two people. I don't consider Oasis/Anthem really cruising. I would prefer the smaller ships.

1. It's better than a three day cruise

 

2. It's better than no cruise at all.

 

EM

Agree. My very first cruise was a 4-night cruise. I am still in touch with the people at the dinner table.

What are the alternatives? Stay at home kicking yourself for not going?

The biggest ship we were on was Carnival Breeze, smallest ship was 110,000 tons, there was more to do on the Breeze but the smaller ships seem to have more charm, idw if that sounds crazy. It's kind of like the Oasis, lots of stuff to do from what I've seen but idw if it's really cruising, if you know what I mean.

The biggest ship we were on was Carnival Breeze, smallest ship was 110,000 tons, there was more to do on the Breeze but the smaller ships seem to have more charm, idw if that sounds crazy. It's kind of like the Oasis, lots of stuff to do from what I've seen but idw if it's really cruising, if you know what I mean.

RCI's Jewel of the Seas and Brilliance of the Seas have 4 night cruises out of Florida in April. They're smaller ships and very beautiful.

Would you spend 4 days on Brilliance going to Cozumel or 4 days on Enchanment going to Nassau, Coco Cay and Key West?

We were on a 4 day Enchantment cruise last year and enjoyed it. We stayed at a hotel pre cruise and post cruise for more sun and warmth after a Maine winter.

We had a Blue Lagoon excursion planned for Nassau. A planned excursion is good for Nassau, but not needed for Coco Cay or Key West.

Would you spend 4 days on Brilliance going to Cozumel or 4 days on Enchanment going to Nassau, Coco Cay and Key West?

Personally, since I live in KW, I would do Brilliance. However, as a suggestion to others, I would suggest the Enchantment. EOS is a really nice ship and other than Nassau, the itinerary is better....unless you love sea days, in which case Brilliance would be better. :)

One thing...just consider the added transportation arrangements you'll have to make getting from Orlando to Port Canaveral if you choose Enchantment.

Where's KW?

We stayed at the Radisson Resort at the Port before our Enchantment cruise and it was a relaxing extra vacation day. The resort provides a shuttle to the port.

Where's KW?

Key West

I know on the RC blog podcast, there's a guy who loves Enchanment and there is an episode on that ship. How far is the port from Kennedy?

One place I would love to go