Cruise from somewhere in USA -Aussie needs help

Hi

I finally succumb to my Hubby's demands??? :eek: He is running in the New York Marathon 2014, 2 November. I trying to organise a cruise to tag onto our trip after it.

I'm not a great flying and the thought of at least 18 hours from Australia...well not looking forward to that at all.

Trying to research on RCI website is driving me potty.

The pages not updated etc etc.

Plus our TA's over here have not left me me with great confidence on travel I've done down under..the thought of them booking and getting it right or wrong, send chills down my spine.

So I don't really care on destination so a couple of hours flying to a Port to embark ok, a cruise anywhere from 3-10 day cruise will be ok. It would be nice to go out of the NY area, but if that's not possible I'm open to any suggestions.

We will be flying into and out of NY

But Like Australia, the USA is a big place so I really need some guidance.

so any help will be fine.

I will ring RCI, but our Australian call centre can be a mine field, and I want to have some ideas before I ring.

We are cruising in December on Rhapsody & Radiance here in OZ and want to book on board.

So the info gathering starts now.

Many thanks in advance.

Thanks

V:)

Hi

I finally succumb to my Hubby's demands??? :eek: He is running in the New York Marathon 2014, 2 November. I trying to organise a cruise to tag onto our trip after it.

I'm not a great flying and the thought of at least 18 hours from Australia...well not looking forward to that at all.

Trying to research on RCI website is driving me potty.

The pages not updated etc etc.

Plus our TA's over here have not left me me with great confidence on travel I've done down under..the thought of them booking and getting it right or wrong, send chills down my spine.

 

So I don't really care on destination so a couple of hours flying to a Port to embark ok, a cruise anywhere from 3-10 day cruise will be ok. It would be nice to go out of the NY area, but if that's not possible I'm open to any suggestions.

We will be flying into and out of NY

But Like Australia, the USA is a big place so I really need some guidance.

so any help will be fine.

I will ring RCI, but our Australian call centre can be a mine field, and I want to have some ideas before I ring.

We are cruising in December on Rhapsody & Radiance here in OZ and want to book on board.

So the info gathering starts now.

Many thanks in advance.

 

Thanks

V:)

You can look at cruises from New Jersey which is next to New York, a train ride away.

Too bad the race is on the 2nd...there's a nice Explorer cruise, right next door to where you will be, but it leaves on the 1st. Maybe your husband can run *really* fast? ;-) Enjoy your trip. I really could use a VB about now.

If it was me … I’d be looking at the Southern Caribbean … here’s a couple

Out of San Juan PR the 7-day on the Jewel (departs Nov. 8) heads down to the incredibly beautiful southern islands … Tortola, St. Kitts, St. Maarten, Dominica and Barbados. Insides going for $629, balcony at $929.

I rather like the looks of the 9-day on the Vision (departs Nov. 6) from Ft. Lauderdale FL to Labadee, Curacao, Aruba Grand Cayman and then ends up in Tampa FL. Insides going for $629, balcony at $1349.

I have to assist a fellow marathoner. Explorer and Quantum sail next year from Cape Liberty, which is just across this Hudson River from Manhattan. The problem is there are no cruises that leave around your time frame (EX sails on 1 Nov). Unfortunately, that's the challenge across the board in other departure ports. You best and really only option would be to fly down to Florida and cruise from there the weekend after the race - or sail Majesty or Enchantment on 3 Nov to the Bahamas.

I'm curious - how does your husband know he's in next year's race? Did he defer from last year? Best of luck to him.

Your New York area options are very limited. You will have to wait until the 9th to catch a cruise from there. You have Norwegian Breakaway and Carnival Splendor as options on the 9th. (Unless you can afford 14 days on Crystal Serenity).

If I were you, I would take a direct flight (about 3 hours) on Jet Blue from NY to Orlando, take a shuttle to Cape Canaveral, enjoy some days in Cocoa Beach, and board Freedom of the Seas :) Hope this helps you get some ideas.

When you do a search on the RCL website look for these ports:

Cape Liberty

NY, NY

(These would be reachable by local transportation)

Baltimore

Boston

(These would be reachable by rail, in a few hours- although come November there are not many cruises out of Boston!)

Most of these cruises will involve a couple of days in the "cold" Atlantic before heading to warmer climes.

If none of those please you, or you want a "warm" cruise from day one and you are up for an interior flight; your best bet is to fly to Florida, there are many flights from NY, fairly cheap, and there are many cruises out of FL ports. (And you have a better chance of finding a cruise less than 7 days) You may have to do some research to see if you can find a cheap flight to:

Miami (you could fly here and easily find transport to cruise from FLL)

Fort Lauderdale (you could fly here and easily find transport to cruise from MIA)

Tampa (west coast of Fl)

Port Canaveral east coast of Fl and not as easy to access MIA OR FLL without a car)

Wherever you find the cheapest flight, search for a cruise from that port.

If you want Royal Caribbean, and one that closely matches that description, there's a cruise on Legend of the Seas that leaves the following day from Quebec. 12 nts and goes down the coast, then to Bermuda to finish at Florida (where you'll have a wealth of choices - and are still in the US, so makes flights back easy).

From New York fly to Fort Lauderdale to ride one of the biggies Oasis of the Seas or Allure of the Seas. Do it properly and ride the best in the fleet. I do not know one disappointed Aussie in cruising the big ones.

I would suggest coming to Orlando, Florida and doing Disney/Universal. You can do a 7 night cruise on Freedom of the Seas out of Port Canaveral. She does an Western on the 9th.

If you want Royal Caribbean, and one that closely matches that description, there's a cruise on Legend of the Seas that leaves the following day from Quebec. 12 nts and goes down the coast, then to Bermuda to finish at Florida (where you'll have a wealth of choices - and are still in the US, so makes flights back easy).

Question, since they must leave to US to catch the ship in Canada do Visas allow multiple entries to the US?

I would suggest coming to Orlando, Florida and doing Disney/Universal. You can do a 7 night cruise on Freedom of the Seas out of Port Canaveral. She does a Western on the 3rd and a Eastern on the 10th. Your choice as to doing Orlando venues before or after the cruise :)

in 2014? :confused:

I agree with flying to Florida or Puerto Rico and spending a few days on land, exploring, before getting on a ship the following weekend.

in 2014?

Corrected date :eek:

Hi

I finally succumb to my Hubby's demands??? :eek: He is running in the New York Marathon 2014, 2 November. I trying to organise a cruise to tag onto our trip after it.

I'm not a great flying and the thought of at least 18 hours from Australia...well not looking forward to that at all.

Trying to research on RCI website is driving me potty.

The pages not updated etc etc.

Plus our TA's over here have not left me me with great confidence on travel I've done down under..the thought of them booking and getting it right or wrong, send chills down my spine.

 

So I don't really care on destination so a couple of hours flying to a Port to embark ok, a cruise anywhere from 3-10 day cruise will be ok. It would be nice to go out of the NY area, but if that's not possible I'm open to any suggestions.

We will be flying into and out of NY

But Like Australia, the USA is a big place so I really need some guidance.

so any help will be fine.

I will ring RCI, but our Australian call centre can be a mine field, and I want to have some ideas before I ring.

We are cruising in December on Rhapsody & Radiance here in OZ and want to book on board.

So the info gathering starts now.

Many thanks in advance.

 

Thanks

V:)

We spent almost 8 weeks in Australia earlier this year and loved it! The Gold Coast is my favorite! :)

If at all possible spend a few days in NYC. Mid town Manhattan is very walkable and one of my favorite places in the world.

Sorry for the highjack, back to the original subject. :D

I had the same desire to not have another long flight from Australia to the US so we cruised back as far as Honolulu. That was great and very relaxing after a very long trip.

Now to throw a spanner in the works :eek:

We might be able to do a cruise 1st and be back in NY in time for Hubby to run seen as he will be in tapering period??? what ever that means..I'm sure I'll find out sooner that I need to know.

Thanks

V:)

My advice is to try and cruise on Oasis of The Seas or Allure of the Seas -usually from Florida to The Caribbean. We just don't get ships like this in Australia. I would be happy to answer any questions from an Australian's perspective if you would like to email me at jenl@spin.net.au. I have had so many wonderful cruise critic members help me over the years, I am only too happy to "pay it forward":) there is so much to do on board and the activities cater to a variety of interests. The shows are just amazing! There are many small "clubs" offering a variety of entertainment (comedy, classical, South American, piano bar etc) and so it does not feel crowded (other than muster time and when the main theatre empties out after the show). I think if you have to take that long flight, then do something REALLY special that you can't do at home. We always break the journey midway in Hawaii - Waikiki one way and an Island on the other stopover offers further variety and actually makes it feel as if you are having yet another new holiday.;) Try googling "Royal Caribbean Cruiseline in U.S of A" to log on to the American website, otherwise you will automatically be put on the Australian website. Good luck.

Question, since they must leave to US to catch the ship in Canada do Visas allow multiple entries to the US?

Yes - referring to the ESTAs that most Australians get.

If an actual visa is required, you can get multiple entry depending on type of visa, but something like this (for a marathon/tourist/short stay) wouldn't be an issue.

Now to throw a spanner in the works :eek:

 

We might be able to do a cruise 1st and be back in NY in time for Hubby to run seen as he will be in tapering period??? what ever that means..I'm sure I'll find out sooner that I need to know.

 

Thanks

 

V:)

If you're looking before cruise, another option with RCL is Explorer of the Seas for 9 nights out of Bayonne, NJ and return on Nov 1, going to the Caribbean. Similar pricing to the Legend I mentioned before.

Now to throw a spanner in the works :eek:

 

We might be able to do a cruise 1st and be back in NY in time for Hubby to run seen as he will be in tapering period??? what ever that means..I'm sure I'll find out sooner that I need to know.

 

Thanks

 

V:)

If you can do that, take a look at the Explorer. I believe it arrives home the day before the race, so that might work for you.

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I agree with those that say it would be awesome for you to experience the Oasis or the Allure of the Seas, but because they run Saturday to Saturday and Sunday and Sunday, respectively, you'll need to spend some time between the cruise and the marathon.

If you do the Oasis beforehand and dock in Ft. Lauderdale Saturday morning, I wouldn't recommend trying to get a flight to NYC and land in time for your husband to pick up his packet at the expo. While it's technically doable and November weather is usually pretty reliable, I wouldn't risk a flight delay on Saturday. New York Road Runners does not allow packet pickup on the day of the marathon. This option would be too much stress in my book, plus, the day before a marathon, I like to relax and know everything's covered.

Flying down and trying to catch the Allure on Sunday (the same day as the race) won't happen (unless your husband can ran a 2 hour marathon time :) ). Plus, flying the day after a marathon is no fun - I remember the cramps now...!

So that leaves catching the Oasis on Saturday the 8th or the Allure on Sunday the 9th. I agree with the previous poster who recommended spending some time in NYC before traveling to Florida.

If you don't have that much time, I would look into the Explorer cruise that arrives back the day before the race that another previous poster mentioned.

Good luck!

You can look at cruises from New Jersey which is next to New York, a train ride away.

The Marathon is in November so any cruise would be at least 2-3 days just to get to somewhere warm. I would go ahead and fly into Florida and then catch flights home from Miami.

you don't want bad weather, mechanical failure, etc. delaying your hubby's getting to that starting line!

As wife to a marathoner, I know how important a runner's goals are. Missing the NYC Marathon would be devastating.

you don't want bad weather, mechanical failure, etc. delaying your hubby's getting to that starting line!

 

As wife to a marathoner, I know how important a runner's goals are. Missing the NYC Marathon would be devastating.

I agree with this. Even on a cruise that arrives back in NY the day before the race, there is a chance of a delay which would mean missing the expo and packet pick up. I wouldn't risk it. I'd stick to the plan of cruising after the race.