Freedom or Fascination?

Dh and I are going on a cruise next Feb for our 20th anniversary. We already booked Freedom out of Galveston to Cozumel (just went last month on our first cruise), Belize, and Roatan. I have already looked into excursions and we decided that we would like do cave tubing and ziplining in Belize and Daniel Johnson's in Roatan. We like to actually do stuff on vacation, sitting on a beach isn't really for us, I get too bored doing that. Dh is also not a swimmer so he didn't like snorkeling in Grand Cayman, he got too freaked out even with a noodle. Then I started thinking how it would be fun to go to San Juan and visit so many places we have never been. Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, U.S.V.I. •Bridgetown, Barbados • Castries, St. Lucia • Basseterre, St. Kitts • Philipsburg, St. Maarten

The idea of no sea days is actually appealing to me because we got kinda bored with 3 sea days last cruise. But, I was wondering if there are fun things to actually do on these islands, more than just sightseeing, sitting on a beach, snorkeling, or shopping? I would love to see wildlife that we don't have in Wisconsin, like Daniel Johnson's. In GC we did the stingrays (LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this, it was the highlight of our cruise) and in Coz we did the dolphins for reference as to what things we have done and enjoyed.

Which cruise would be best for us? We don't care about the ship, we care more about itinerary. I would love to see as many places as possible that I haven't been to before, which is why Fascination sounded cool, but if there isn't anything exciting to do then Freedom is probably more to our taste even with having already been to Cozumel.

Dh and I are going on a cruise next Feb for our 20th anniversary. We already booked Freedom out of Galveston to Cozumel (just went last month on our first cruise), Belize, and Roatan. I have already looked into excursions and we decided that we would like do cave tubing and ziplining in Belize and Daniel Johnson's in Roatan. We like to actually do stuff on vacation, sitting on a beach isn't really for us, I get too bored doing that. Dh is also not a swimmer so he didn't like snorkeling in Grand Cayman, he got too freaked out even with a noodle. Then I started thinking how it would be fun to go to San Juan and visit so many places we have never been. Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, U.S.V.I. •Bridgetown, Barbados • Castries, St. Lucia • Basseterre, St. Kitts • Philipsburg, St. Maarten

The idea of no sea days is actually appealing to me because we got kinda bored with 3 sea days last cruise. But, I was wondering if there are fun things to actually do on these islands, more than just sightseeing, sitting on a beach, snorkeling, or shopping? I would love to see wildlife that we don't have in Wisconsin, like Daniel Johnson's. In GC we did the stingrays (LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this, it was the highlight of our cruise) and in Coz we did the dolphins for reference as to what things we have done and enjoyed.

 

Which cruise would be best for us? We don't care about the ship, we care more about itinerary. I would love to see as many places as possible that I haven't been to before, which is why Fascination sounded cool, but if there isn't anything exciting to do then Freedom is probably more to our taste even with having already been to Cozumel.

Freedom a much better ship .

Freedom a much better ship .

Agreed. That and the airfare cost to San Juan is why I haven't even really considered Fascination.

I know in Cozumel they have dolphin, sea lions, and manatee encounters at Chankanaab. In Belize there is a zoo! There's also horseback riding at the ecopark there (haven't done it but my parents have) I really don't have many suggestions as far as things with animals go

Agreed. That and the airfare cost to San Juan is why I haven't even really considered Fascination.

I didn't think that the airfare was that bad. I'm boarding the Fascination in March and my girlfriend and I got round trip airfare together for close to $800. We paid substantially more to fly out to Hawaii to board the Legend. To each their own though I suppose.

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As I mentioned to another user, my girlfriend and I are taking the Fascination in March based solely on the itinerary. We have never been on a cruise hitting that many ports in a single run through. We are all about the adventure and this cruise has it in spades. We've signed up for an excursion at every port except St. Kitts which will be a beach day. I was a little nervous as the only other Fantasy class ship I had been on was the Ecstasy but lots of positive feedback from other cruisers who had taken the trip encouraged me. Plus, all of the YouTube videos of others' trips aboard the Fascination made it look like a damn good time. A trip is what you make of it. Besides, I'll get my "bright, shiny, and new" once I board the Vista next year.

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While I generally would never recommend a Fantasy class ship like Fascination (nothing wrong with them physically, just very dated looking and with limited amenities), for you it may be the way to go since as you say the ship itself is not a consideration.

The San Juan itinerary is fantastic! We too are not lay around on a beach people.

In St, Thomas we have done a self-guided walking tour (found ourselves Online) which was very interesting as well as Sunny Liston's tour which takes in a number of sites.

Our one time so far in Barbados we swam with the sea turtles. Amazing! I know you said your other half is not a swimmer but Barbados is beautiful and I am sure there are plenty of options.

We have been to St kitts twice and both times did the Sky Safari zipline. Wow what an experience! Amazing views and they take very good care of you.

St Maarten has tons of options. We have done Bernard's tour which is very popular and a good "overview". We like going over to Marigot on the French side for French pastries, strolling the quaint streets and climbing to the top of the fort.

I didn't think that the airfare was that bad. I'm boarding the Fascination in March and my girlfriend and I got round trip airfare together for close to $800. We paid substantially more to fly out to Hawaii to board the Legend. To each their own though I suppose.

 

 

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I looked up airfare out of Milwaukee for Oct (they didn't have any Feb flights yet) and it was $439 which wasn't much more than flying to Houston. I didn't think that was bad which is why it was even a consideration for the Fascination cruise.

I have been on both. The Freedom is bigger with more bells and whistles. The Fascination is smaller meaning shorter lines on board. I prefer Fantasy class ships over the larger ships.

The southern route is amazing!

St. Kitts has great island tours to take you to the fort (UNESCO world heritage site), the batik factory, and other sights around the island. You could hike Mount Liamuiga volcano, you could even sail across to Nevis for the day.

St. Lucia has island tours to take you around to see all the highlights, you can hike the piton, take cooking classes...

St Maarten is very walkable around Front Street, or you can take a cab or tour to see more of the island. Even go stand on the beach where the jets come in on the runway and get sandblasted. (I never understood the thrill of this...LOL)

San Juan itself has great history with 2 forts and the narrow streets of the old city. Since the cruise doesn't leave until 10 pm, you can drop your bags off and go back out into town.

The Fascination has limited balconies and suites, no steakhouse or really any other specialty dining, but honestly this cruise is for the itinerary, not the ship. I've done the itinerary on larger ships, and am doing it on Fascination for the first time next month, so I guess I will know then for sure :)

BTW, our airfare to SJU was cheaper with non-stop than it was to MIA. That's what helped seal the deal for us.

We just did the Fascination and that Southern Caribbean itinerary is great. Lots of activities to do in port either through the ship or on your own. People put Fascination down because of her age but she is well maintained and her crew is top notch.

I looked up airfare out of Milwaukee for Oct (they didn't have any Feb flights yet) and it was $439 which wasn't much more than flying to Houston. I didn't think that was bad which is why it was even a consideration for the Fascination cruise.

Yeah, we actually went through Southwest directly this time whereas I normally book through Kayak. We just decided to go last July and most times we book one-way tickets going there and back because it ends up being cheaper for us when compared to most round trip tickets. Decent airfare to hit up a lot of ports sounds like a great deal to me at least. Either way, you can always find a good deal if you look consistently enough.

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If it were me I would check out the other cruise lines' southern Caribbean cruises to compare ships and prices. The Fascination may be well maintained but it's still going to have very small cabins lacking amenities like a hair dryer and mini fridge.

Hmmm, lots to think about, I am still torn! Thank you all for your replies, keep the suggestions coming because I still haven't decided.

We just did the Fascination and that Southern Caribbean itinerary is great. Lots of activities to do in port either through the ship or on your own. People put Fascination down because of her age but she is well maintained and her crew is top notch.

Totally agree. We are home aweek after our Fascination cruise.

We've done both itineraries but LOVE the southern itinerary out of San Juan, which is very scenic IMHO. We did it on Valor (2013) and Liberty (2015) but with this itinerary, we spent our time on the islands and the ship was just our transportation and when doing this itinerary, the itinerary itself is the "star of the show". I've seen complaints about the smaller ships, but have also seen a lot of "positives" from recent reviews of Fascination. Many seem to like the less crowded feel of Fascination.

The islands themselves offer so much, so if you're not a beach person, still plenty to do. In Barbados, there's swimming with turtles that is very popular and many companies offer this. Some even have glass bottom boats if your DH isn't a fan of being in the water. In St. Lucia one of the local tour groups offers a "Piton Hike", but we've never done it so I can't comment; there's zip lining in a few of the ports; St. Kitts has a "volcano hike" and there are "wild" monkeys in St. Kitts; There's Maho Beach in St. Maarten to watch the planes come in for landing just above the beach but can be viewed from a bar/restaurant. There are island tours on all the islands that take you to the hi-lights, offered both through Carnival and local tour companies.

I'm sure you've seen the CC "Port of Call" threads...SO much information there. It's unbelievable how many great ideas we've gotten from those threads...so much I need to do this itinerary again, and again, and again...

Freedom is a much better ship but Fascination better itinerary.

Based on what you wrote OP, I suggest doing the San Juan cruise. Agree the Freedom is a better ship but you said yourself it isn't about the ship and more about all the places you will see. You can't get a better itinerary that that cruise out of San Juan. I loved mine but it was on RCI not CCL. Lots of things to do on all those islands. You can't go wrong with the itinerary. I happen to like beaches and just hanging out but trust me there is so much more to those islands than beaches.

Barbados we did the Calabasas snorkeling catamaran. Blast and a half.

St Maarten we always go to the Maho beach to the Sunset Bar & Grill and watch the planes land next to you and fly close overhead. Great food. Of course lots of tour options there too.

St Lucia we did a tour that took us to see the pitons, the sulfur & steam coming out of the ground from the volcano, saw banana farm and drank from fresh coconuts and had an awesome lunch and spectacular views.

St Kitts we enjoyed a beach day. So much to do so that is your cruise for sure.

We have been on many cruises. Sailing on the Fascination in October. The itinerary is what sealed it.

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We've been on Freedom, and we've been on Fascination's sister ships so we feel like we know what we're "losing" as far as the ship is concerned. We had a unanimous family vote for the Fascination this time around. And sailing out of San Juan, we're getting a 6th island on our itinerary!

Sting rays in GC were one of my all time favorites, too!! We don't sail until October, but some of the things people in our group are planning include: snorkeling with turtles in Barbados, full day catamaran to Nevis, zip lining, scuba diving, snorkeling, seeing the Pitons. My youngest found helicopter rides in St. Maarten that she's pushing for.

FWIW: We sailed out of Galveston on the Conquest and I wouldn't sail from there again unless everything else about the cruise was absolutely perfect. For us, flying in we were still too far from the port and trying to manage ground transporation was too much of a hassle. I don't even include Galveston in my searches any more when there are so many ports so much closer to big airports.

Hubby and I are sailing Fascination this summer. This will be our 4th cruise and the itinerary is what did it for us! Honestly can't tell you the names of the other boats we've been on but this is probably on the older side. As a young couple, we want to see places when we travel, not just spend the time on a beach. We like a mix of historical, culture, food, adventure, etc. I spent hours and several days researching this trip so far this is what we have lined up (None are booked with the ship):

We are flying in to San Juan early to spend time there (we've been here on a prior trip but said we could come back and do more). We'll do a rainforest tour & bio-luminescent bay tour on saturday and then a food tour on sunday before boarding the boat.

*St Thomas - we're going to charter a boat to take us out for a couple of hours... I'm not into snorkeling but think my hubby will enjoy it ... I, too, freak out and want to just sit on boat or swim close by ... maybe even lay on beach while he does this. Some beach time on this day.

*Barbados - going to do a private tour as I couldn't find an island tour to go to all the places I wanted to see (Animal Flower Cave, Bathesheba, St. Nicholas Abbey, Morgan Lewis Windmill, St. John's parish)

* St. Lucia - doing an island tour: mud baths, volcano tours, banana plantation, waterfalls, Pitons, etc

*St Kitts - island tour: fortress, romney manor/ batik , timothy hill

*St Maarten - island/food tour: so obviously we're foodies, lol .. we're doing a 4.5 hour food tour that takes you all over the island so we'll see both the french and dutch sides.

Honestly, we've spent more on our excursions than on the actual cruise itself, but again, we're more about exploring than being on the ship. Our plan is to spend the day on the island, shower before dinner, maybe see a show, and then rest before exploring again the next day!

So I went to all those ports besides St. Thomas on the Sunshine last year and its a great itinerary. There's a lot to do in all of those ports. St. Maarten is my favorite one that I've been to.

Airfare into San Juan has dropped considerably over the years due to the large influx of discount airlines. Not only are Southwest and JetBlue now flying to San Juan, but ultra low cost carriers like Allegiant, Sun Country and Spirit now fly there as well. This has translated into lower fares, even on the more reputable and established major airlines in order to compete. Depending on where live in Wisconsin, you may want to look at Chicago or Minneapolis, both which may not only give you better fares due to competition, but also nonstop flights.

And if you do decide to cruise out of San Juan, remember that the most amazing and diverse destination of your cruise will actually be your port of embarkation, so plan on flying down a few days prior and enjoy all the amazing and breathtaking things that Puerto Rico has to offer.

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