September Cruising

[dawnie216]

I am looking to book a cruise somewhere between july-sept and I know that is prime hurricane season, however I really love cruising and Im super excited about it because it will be my boyfriends first one. These are the best times for me to take off work and you really cant beat the september prices. Has anyone gone on a carnical cruise in september??? Id love to hear how the experience was good or bad bc i would love to save money but not at the cost of being miserable. We are leaving out of NYand cruising to half moon cay, bahamas and grand turk. Any info would be great help :)

[G'ma]

I generally always cruise in the September-November time frame....for a couple of reasons.

 

The prices are lower

There are fewer children onboard.

 

Yes, it's hurricane season. When you book during that time, you have to realize that the itinerary can be changed, ports missed, delayed arrivals and departures can be part of that experience. The Captain will NOT sail into harms way ever. So, you need to be flexible and not get all upset if everything doesn't go exactly as shown in the brochure.

 

Other than reroutings, itinerary changes, etc, the only thing I've experienced is rough seas - which doesn't bother me at all. Once, a ship was delayed leaving Miami for several hours while waiting for a bunch of folks trying to get there....me included. Florida airports were closed for a couple days and I had decided to drive....(and adventure all unto itself)..

 

It's a good time to go - but not for everyone. If you simply MUST be at Port X on a certain day at a certain time...then, avoid hurricane season..

[Rockportgirl]

Our last cruise was on Conquest September of '08, the infamous Hurricane Ike cruise. I will never sail during hurricane season again. The savings for sailing off-season is just not worth the worry. We lost our vehicle in Galveston, worried about our home the entire time, had to pay to fly home because I had to get back to work, and on and on and on... all in all it ended up costing us over $10k.

 

We had cruised twice before in September without incident, but after that, never again.

[gacat93]

We sailed on the Glory last September. It was our families first cruise and we loved it. Our daughters enjoyed Circle C although there weren't that many kids on the ship. We had no problems at all and would certainly do it again. That being said, as the previous person commented, you have to take the chance that a hurricane could happen and things could be effected.

[rocketship]

I have cruised 3 times during september and never had a problem. I do recommend travel insurance for peace of mind, because we never had it and were always a little worried come time of cruising.

[golfadj]

We generally cruise during October for good pricing and the weather is kind of mild in the caribbean.

 

Can have problems due to weather but that is the chance you take. Do not have your heart set on any particular port as that is subject to change due to the weather.

[SummerXU]

I was on the Holiday in Sept '07 and the Liberty this past October. I have a very flexible work schedule so I always book my cruises when the prices are the cheapest. Nine times out of 10, that tends to be during hurricane season. I book knowing the risks and being willing to accept those risks.

 

We did encounter some very rough seas on the Holiday, but I'm weird in that I don't mind rough seas or rough air. Adds to the experience!

[DanusLight]

We have cruised in September the last 3 years. We book a cruise based on ship and dates. Itinerary is last. G'ma covered all the basics with cruising during hurricane season. The prices are low for a reason. If you are booking a cruise for a specific port, do it outside of hurricane season ... as there are no guarantees!

[Traveler353]

I usually cruise during Hurrican season. Have been redirected almost 50% of the time. You cruise during Hurrican season and you takes your chances. If a specific port is important to visit don't count on getting there by boat. If it is that important take an airplane and spend a few days actually visiting and getting to know the place.

[CMM]

I am looking to book a cruise somewhere between july-sept and I know that is prime hurricane season, however I really love cruising and Im super excited about it because it will be my boyfriends first one. These are the best times for me to take off work and you really cant beat the september prices. Has anyone gone on a carnical cruise in september??? Id love to hear how the experience was good or bad bc i would love to save money but not at the cost of being miserable. We are leaving out of NYand cruising to half moon cay, bahamas and grand turk. Any info would be great help :)

 

We cruised twice out of New York in Sept once with Carnival and once with Princess. There are very few kids compared to the swarms on summer sailings which is nice if you are not traveling with kids and the rates are lower as a result too.

Keep in mind crusing out of New York will be a bit rougher anyway. To us it is really ideal as we live in PA.

[Cigar Dude]

G'ma hit the nail on the head! :D

 

We cruise in September too. Check out my past cruises in my signature. At worst case you'll visit some other port besides your scheduled itinerary; no big deal. That probably won't happen anyway. Go...have fun! ;)

[toby #1]

I am looking to book a cruise somewhere between july-sept and I know that is prime hurricane season, however I really love cruising and Im super excited about it because it will be my boyfriends first one. These are the best times for me to take off work and you really cant beat the september prices. Has anyone gone on a carnical cruise in september??? Id love to hear how the experience was good or bad bc i would love to save money but not at the cost of being miserable. We are leaving out of NYand cruising to half moon cay, bahamas and grand turk. Any info would be great help :)

 

We have cruised half our cruises during hurricane season and never had a problem(knock on wood). We do it because it is cheaper and hardly any kids, and it is our anniversary month. You do take your chances but unlike other disasters you know when a hurricane is going to strike and are prepared for it. We were in the Bahamas once and they were boarding up because one was coming our way but we didn't have a problem, we were out of there before anything could happen.

 

We lived near Charleston,S.C. in 1989 when Hugo came through. We stayed and we had trees in the pool, trees on the house ( they had to redo the upstairs) and trees on the car and truck. we got out of it okay and I wouldn't stay for another one but we had to experance one,:eek: Like I said you get plenty of warning so I wouldn't worry about it. Book and enjoy!

[LambKnuckles]

We have sailed in September both west and east ports...

In September '09 the water was as SMOOTH AS GLASS!!! on our B2B sailing to both east and west!

In September '08, we were the first ship put from Baytown in Houston after IKE. And the cruise was fine!!!

It's a gamble -- but storms can pop up at anytime! Anywhere...

I like cruising after school is in session, for the lower rates and the fewer kiddos...

[Razorbackfan2010]

We cruised the Conquest in October one time. Didn't have any hurricaine problems, but had rain in every port for at least part of the day. Not a problem, except bad hair. We had a great time anyway. We have one booked for August this year and I'm not worried. It couldn't be any worse than being at work.

[NavarreCruiser]

Do you know that hurricane season is from June to Dec. Most people cruise during that time. Have many many cruises in Sept. never had a problem. But if we did we would just go with the flow.

[*Mach*]

I sail every year in September and have yet to miss a port due to weather. In fact, the weather has been exceptional for all of my cruises during that time of year.

Now, there have been close calls. I sailed two weeks after Ike devastated Galveston for example.

Even if there is an active storm in the Gulf or the Caribbean you won't sail into it... you'll sail around it... perhaps to different ports... perhaps to no ports at all!!

Go, have a great time and enjoy that deep, blue water!!

:)

[cruisekwazee]

All of my cruises have been in September as well. I would highly recommend it to anyone, especially if you are planning an Alaska cruise.

[texankhj]

I have a B2B booked out of Galveston Sept this year! No worries here!