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Need help deciding which destinations for Disney Cruise


nevrenuftime
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This is my very first cruise I am planning for my family. We will be booking the Disney Wonder out of Galveston but I am having a hard time deciding which places to stop, as I have not ever been to any of the listed destinations. Falmouth, Jamaica, San Juan, Puerto Rico, Cozumel, Mexico, Georgetown Grand Cayman, Nassau, Bahamas, and Disneys Castaway Cay. What are the advantages and disadvantages of the destinations? I am leaning toward a 2 stop trip at Castaway Key because we love the beach. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

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If you are a beach person, Castaway Cay is very nice. Grand Cayman is one of my favorite ports--things to do include free beaches (plenty of vendors have beach chairs, etc. Stingray City, Turtle farm great snorkeling, etc.

 

Nassau is a "been there, done that" sort of port. Just "meh" as my daughter would say. We usually stay on board and enjoy the ship, but we've been there before.

San Juan is a horrible port. As to the city, the old fort/old city is worth seeing. We've had two bad experiences there (one at the port on a DCL ship) to the extent that my family will not consider any cruise that goes there.

I've been to Jamaica, but not to Falmouth.

Cozumel is OK if you stay on the tourist track.

 

So my ideal cruise would be Grand Cayman and Castaway, and I'm sure that's not one that's offered.

 

Again, if you like easy beaches, Castaway is great. But I like Grand Cayman enough that it makes up for Cozumel.

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Thank you for the advice. My wife has been to the Gran Cayman but it was a long time ago and she said it was just beautiful. I am now looking at either 2 stops at Castaway Cay or the trip that goes to Grand Cayman and Cozumel. Can you elaborate on the differences between the Gran Cayman and Castaway Cay? Thank you for your responses and your time.

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What makes a DCL Caribbean cruise "special", IMHO, is the stop at Castaway Cay. It is probably the best private cruise island in the Caribbean, and has been rated such in a few publications. As you consider your itinerary choices, I would encourage you to chose an itinerary with Castaway Cay, especially for your first cruise. As far as the other destinations go, we don't enjoy Nassau, which is typically only offered on short cruises on the Dream. A relatively large number of guests chose to stay on the ship at that location. The other ports all have interesting excursion opportunities. I confess we have not done many beach excursions in these locations, and others will have a better view of which ports are best for the beach.

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Most cruises stop at several ports so it would be picking the cruise with the most ports you want to visit (along with the dates you want to cruise and how long of a cruise you want); on a Disney cruise, I also recommend looking for more sea days to enjoy the ship and the Disney touches (that's what you're paying for).

 

For roundtrip cruises on the Wonder out of Galveston - it looks like the options are:

 

4 night going just to Cozumel;

6 night going to Cozumel and Grand Cayman;

7 night going to Cozumel, Grand Cayman and Falmouth;

7 night going to Key West, Nassau, and Castaway Cay;

7 night going to Key West and 2 stops at Castaway Cay (November 29 2019);

 

If the date works for you, the last one would be my first choice; if it doesn't then I would do the 7 night going to Key West, Nassau and Castaway Cay - I'm not a big fan of Nassau but Key West and Castaway Cay would be 2 of my first choices for ports.

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OK, looking at what Patricia listed above, the last one with Key West and Castaway Cay would be my choice.

 

Grand Cayman is under British rule. It is clean, as safe as anywhere, and has a real infrastructure and money. They love tourists, but tourists are not the only business on the island (banking and medicine are quite big there). The island is beautiful. The turtle farm is now under government control and has much emphasis on environmental and educational issues rather than raising turtles for soup. The tourist activities are well run and I was very happy with the guides and such. On one trip I did a 3 stop snorkel + Stingray City. OK, I'm 60 something and the guides had no way of knowing that I had been a lifeguard in a past life. I did notice that they were looking out for me perhaps a little more than the others. I was also impressed that all the equipment was sterilized in front of us, etc. All beaches on Grand Cayman are free but you can't trespass on private land to get to them. There are little brown signs indicating public access. You can take a public bus or a taxi to any of the more popular beaches. Our favorite is Cemetery beach which is at the end of 7 mile beach. They are real, natural beaches. The shells are from creatures, not made by Disney. If you want something on the beach, you bring it, rent it, or buy it, in contrast to Castaway where any empty beach chair you see is yours.

 

Cozumel is Mexico. They are virtually dependent on tourist money. IF you stay in the tourist areas, it is relatively safe; get off the beaten path and not so much. Several years ago, CMs from DCL had rented a jeep and taken off for the day....the jeep was in a serious accident with at least one person killed. Rather than calling for help, the locals robbed the injured and dying. OK, that's one example, but the poverty is quite extreme. The taxis are government regulated and fares are set and posted at the port. There are several good tourist locations.

 

Castaway is a Disney beach. THink of it as an extension of the ship--what's included in cruise fare is included on castaway. That's lunch, beach chairs, etc. You'll pay for a can of soda from a roaming server on the beach but you can get complimentary beverages at the beverage station outlets. The beach is well groomed and the area is manicured. It is nicer than other cruise line "private islands" because it really is a private island. It is not a little resort area on a larger, populated island. There are a small number of people who live there, and all work for Disney....it used to be about 60, but I recently was told it was now about 100. They care for the animals and the island, do research with the rays, etc. It is as clean and easy as any beach you'll ever see.

 

Key West is also an easy port. There are many options of things to do and a CVS a few blocks from port in case you forget something. Small perk--your cell service will work there.

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Thank you for all the information. I just realized that Nov 29 is the day after thanksgiving in 2019. The 7 night key west with 2 stops at Castaway Cay may not be feasible because of the date. My other option is to fly to Mco and take a cruise from Port Canaveral. Looks like a lot more options date wise. I know nothing about the following destinations Tortola, British Virgin, St. Thomas, U.S.Virgin Islands, Basseterre, St. Kitts and St. John's, Antigua. I am looking at either the Halloween or Christmas cruises. Any insight on the above destination would be much appreciated.

 

Edited by nevrenuftime
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We have done most of the islands on Disney. We have been to Tortola I just can’t remember it. We might have done a snorkel trip there

 

St Thomas and St. John are the same port. We love St. John because most of it is National Park with great beaches and snorkeling. It was hard hit by the hurricane. And you either get an excursion to get there or take a ferry. Once on St. John there are numerous taxis. It truly is beautiful. St Thomas to me is just a built up island with lots of hotels.

 

Antigua is lovely with beautiful views if you drive in the hills. It’s easy to hire a driver once you get off the ship.

 

St Kitts is where you can see both the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean From the same view point. We did kayaking there. The guides were great and it was s lot of fun.

 

On Basseterre I think we hired a van driver at the port to take us around. Interesting.

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Another thing to consider is pricing. If you sail during any major holiday the price increases dramatically. If you want to cruise over Christmas be prepared for sticker shock! Disney is a great family cruise, but it comes at a premium price. Hopefully, money is not a concern for you, so your can go during the Holidays.

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i would take the 7 night to key west and castaway cay....but i bet it's the most expensive..

if you're going out of PC, probably any of the 7 night cruises is fine..

 

the truth is, we usually stay on the ship no matter what the port...for us the ship is the destination.. :)

 

.

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The ports that you mentioned in your latest post are mostly Eastern Caribbean ports (Tortola, British Virgin, St. Thomas, U.S.Virgin Islands, Basseterre, St. Kitts and St. John's, Antigua). The exception might be Antiqua, and maybe St. Kitts, which are typically Southern Caribbean destinations. IMHO these ports are a better choice than those in the Western Caribbean (Cozumel, Grand Cayman). Moki'smommy gives a good explanation of each of those ports in her post. St. Thomas and Tortola have been recovering from the hurricane's last fall. There is still plenty to do there, although I would give the edge to St. Thomas in terms of recovery effort. We were there in February. St. Kitts is one of our favorite Caribbean islands. I believe you can also go over to Nevis which is nearby. Antigua has some wonderful beaches, although you will see poverty on the way to the beach.

I do agree with the other posters who would have selected Key West with a double trip to Castaway Cay. That is an outstanding cruise.

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