GrrlMeetsWrrld

We're were staying at a very nice resort in Riviera Maya last year, and they did NOTHING! Apparently, it' s'more of a big deal in the US than it is in Mexico. I asked some staff about it, and they said it's mostly just a regular day. Sorry to burst your bubble.

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Every line has its own personality, and that is something you should consider, along with the itinerary. Our first cruise was with Royal Caribbean, and I'm glad that was our introduction to cruising. We were on the Grandeur, and it was a great combination of old school elegance and fun night life. RCCL Explorer was fun, too, but a little too big for our taste. HAL Zuiderdam had a great Panama Canal itinerary with outstanding food and service, but was very sedate. We are mid-50s to 60s. I think we'll appreciate HAL more in about 15 years. Celebrity Solstice in the Meditteranean was like a dream come true and is my personal favorite. Right now, we are enjoying NCL ships, mostly for the overall combination of itineraries and really fun shows and night life. We did Pride of America in Hawaii, which I thought was a downright ugly ship, but oh the fun we had! NCL Gem in the Caribbean was equally pleasant crew, service, food and fun. We're scheduled for a third NCL cruise to Alaska soon. We kinda think of NCL as upbeat and active like Carnival, but not quite so wild and crazy. We are not hard partyers but we do like good entertainment. I admit that I've not been on Carnival so I'm sure you're gonna hear from their fans, too. Whatever line you patronize, if you board the ship with a positive attitude and get out and try some activities and excursions, you will have a great time!

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IMHO, you are just too far out for excursions to be showing. NCL will book/renew its contracts with tour operators about six months before the season begins for your itinerary. I know, it's exciting to get it all planned, but there's no way you are gonna see the 2015 excursions until they finish and evaluate the 2014 performance.

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Good times! Nice post--thanks!

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A site called cruise port insider dot com lists the phone access for different companies at each port.

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You can book the deadliest catch tour directly online for $20 cheaper. It is the same boat that the cruise ship's excursion participants will be on. You board the boat right at the pier. I am excited about this excursion.

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I agree

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We always have a wonderful time on our cruises, and we NEVER eat in the specialty restaurants. There is plenty of great food in the MDR, with different offerings every night, and also a standing menu if you don't like one of the nightly offerings. There is also the buffet and Blue Lagoon if you want to mix it up and still not pay more. We also only book inside cabins (never in it but to sleep and change clothes). We prefer to spend our vacay dollars on excursions and extra night before and sometimes after. We have cruised on several lines and have decided that NCL suits us best, mostly bc of the entertainment. We like RCCL, too. I must say I've never had a bad meal on a cruise ship. If I'm not wowed on a particular night, I just remind myself that I didn't have to cook it, so it's always a treat. And, yes, I am a foodie.

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We stayed at the hilton Garden just across from the Newark airport and arranged for a car to the norwegian port. They kept our car for free as part of the booking. Cape Liberty is much closer than port of New York, so your cab ride would be much less than ours. Hilton Garden doesn't look like much on the outside, but the rooms are nice, the staff is super friendly and the restaurant there is surprisingly good for sandwiches, etc. And free parking for entire cruise!

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We did this cruise last year and had a great time on the Gem and in the ports. My suggestions would be:

San Juan, take a tour thru Old Town for the history and the flavor of the town. You can get a tour right off the ship for about $10-15. Then stroll down toward the ship and stop in a little cantina for a few Medalla beers!

St. Thomas, if you want to snorkel go over to Trunk Bay on St. John. Book thru the ship for a worry-free day. They have an underwater snorkel trail there, too.

My favorite day in St. Thomas, tho, was the Ultimate trip (or your ship may call it Best of). Spent the morning on the beach at Magen's Bay, then on to Blackbeard's Castle, where they have many bronze statues of famous pirates amid gardens and pools, continue down the terraces of the 99 steps, visiting the historic cottages, rum factory, amber museum, etc. You end up on the Main Street below. Beautiful Day!

St. Martin, IMHO Orient Beach is boring. We did the Sea n See which the Sea part was a nice trip to see the coral reef in a deep hulled boat with windows.

Samana, whale watching cruise thru the ship was exciting

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Also spent a fun morning at the end of our cruise floating thru the Everglades and visiting the animals at Sawgrass Recreation Center. This was a post-cruise excursion booked thru the ship. Saw many alligators and birds in the wild and at the Center.

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We also spent a full day in Fort Lauderdale before embarking on a cruise a few years ago. One of our most memorable days in all of our many travels turned out to be this one:

Toured thru Bonnet House, a quirky, magical estate, once owned by two artists. It fronts on the beach and1A, but the entrance is a few blocks inland. It's all painted in primary colors and is full of imaginative mural, carousel animals, orchids, and wooden carvings. Fun, kicky discoveries at every turn and beautiful grounds, too. Take a peek at bonnethouse dot org. I'm hoping to get back there some day!

Then take the evening dinner cruise on the Jungle Queen. Tour thru the canals and see all the beautiful homes, then have a BBQ on a little island that has a small zoo and a corny after dinner show. The canals on the return trip at night are beautiful.

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Just realized I posted the Bonnet House recommendation on the wrong thread. But if you ever ARE in Ft. Lauderdale, it's well worth a visit.

If you arrive a day ahead, try to visit Bonnet House a lovely, quirky, magical estate right in downtown along 1A (entrance a few blocks inland). I would go back just to see this again. Evening steamboat cruise along the canals with island BBQ was also fun!

http://www.bonnethouse.org