Shaken_Bake Posted June 14, 2004 #1 Share Posted June 14, 2004 We're leaving three weeks from today on our first cruise (Enchantment)! I was looking at a globe this weekend and noticed that we have skirt around the western tip of Cuba to get from Key West to Cozumel. I'm just curious - can you actually see the coast of Cuba, or even the lights of Havana, on this route? How about when you're sailing from Cozumel to Belize - does the ship stay within view of the coastline? That might make for a pretty view. Sailing on Enchantment July 5, 2004 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mabinbklyn Posted June 14, 2004 #2 Share Posted June 14, 2004 sometimes. I think it depends on which shipping lane they're in. Usually the Captain will make an announcement. Mary BOS: 2004 QE2: 2003 & 1987 AOS: 2002 VOS: 2000 NE or SOA: 2003, 2001, 1999, 1998, 1997, 1996, 1995, 1994, 1986 Cunard Princess: 1989 Home Lines Atlantic: 1988 HAL Viendam: 1984 SS United States: 1968 until the Voyager of the Seas! until the Norwegian Dawn! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FinelyCruising Posted June 14, 2004 #3 Share Posted June 14, 2004 Yes, you can see it off on the distant horizon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SAYHEYRENEE Posted June 14, 2004 #4 Share Posted June 14, 2004 Make sure your out on the deck while leaving Belize. You pass at least 20 mini islands some that have houses on them, some people just pulling up by boat fishing off the beach, etc. It is so pretty. NEXT: Majesty of the Seas 8/23/04,Carnival Legend CTN 10/22/04 PAST: Inspiration 8/24/03 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Criscomia Posted June 14, 2004 #5 Share Posted June 14, 2004 Was on Volendam 2003 and was heading the Southern route. Woke up to see Cuba and at 10:00 pm we could still see the lights of Cuba. It's a very long island. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBRay Posted June 14, 2004 #6 Share Posted June 14, 2004 Renee is correct. I was amazed at just how many inhabited islands we passed during our trip. We could clearly see Cuba both going and coming back. And also how many ships are out there with you. Seems like everyone's in the shipping lanes. 9/19/2004 Mariner of the Seas *** Royal Hounds Cruise *** 1/30/2005 Mariner of the Seas **Our First Balcony (Corner Aft of Course!**) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glo1 Posted June 14, 2004 #7 Share Posted June 14, 2004 I hope so..it will be the closest I will have been to the place of my birth since I was 4 years old. We are going to the Navigator in Aug of 2005, and am hoping..... Til my cruise on the Navigator of the Seas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matisse05 Posted June 14, 2004 #8 Share Posted June 14, 2004 I have seen Cuba on 2 past cruises. Binoculars really helped on the second cruise (a tad bit foggy). Happy Cruisin', BichonBabe (Michelle) Explorer 10-24-04 Navigator 12-14-02 Sea Princess 10-9-99 10/24 Explorer of the Seas--Days until we sail!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hess2201 Posted June 14, 2004 #9 Share Posted June 14, 2004 Last summer on the Grand P, we went very close,,,,you could make out buildings. Oceanic 1988 Oceanic 1992 Sea Princess 2000 Summit 2001 Galaxy 8 of 2002 Horizon 2 of 2003 Grand Princess 5 of 2003 Horizon 6 of 2003 Horizon 9 of 2003 Zuiderdam 1 of 2004 !! Voyager OTS 5 of 2004 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaken_Bake Posted June 14, 2004 Author #10 Share Posted June 14, 2004 This is very cool! Thanks for the replies. Having never cruised before, I got the impression that once we left port, all you could see was open ocean and that's it. Is there any kind of bridge tour that will let the passengers see where the ship is - or any detailed charts available of where exactly the ship is sailing? I love maps and would love to get a clue of where this ship is at the time. Sailing on Enchantment July 5, 2004 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pcbeck Posted June 14, 2004 #11 Share Posted June 14, 2004 Our family saw Cuba two years ago with no problems after we left Jamaica. When I lived in Guantanamo Bay I remember seeing the cruise ships sail by wishing I was on one of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maria65 Posted June 14, 2004 #12 Share Posted June 14, 2004 We had a very clear view of Cuba on the Western Caribbean route of Voyager last year. I'm not sure how close we were in miles but it seemed very close. I was very surprised how many other cruise ships you see along the way too. Some of them, like the Grand Princess, have a very distinctive silhouette and are easy to pick out. You can follow the ships progress at sea on your cabin TV which will tell you the precise location. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEVEROO Posted June 14, 2004 #13 Share Posted June 14, 2004 <BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by pcbeck: Our family saw Cuba two years ago with no problems after we left Jamaica. When I lived in Guantanamo Bay I remember seeing the cruise ships sail by wishing I was on one of them.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> My father was in the Navy and we were stationed in Gitmo too! When were you there? We were there in 1963 - 1965 (I was a kid then). That is when I fell in love with the Caribbean and have been back several times (of course, not to Cuba). Happy cruising!!!! Bev Legend - Panama Canal - 10/17 Where The Ocean Meets The Sky I'll Be Sailing!!!!! Past Cruises: Majesty OTS - 06/1999 Splendour OTS - 11/2000 Radiance OTS - 05/2001 Radiance OTS - 09/2001 Infinity (Celebrity) - 10/2002 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kimba1910 Posted June 14, 2004 #14 Share Posted June 14, 2004 We could see Cuba from the Navigator in February until I turn the big 40 Enchantment of the Seas 10/02 Navigator of the Seas 2/04 Mariner of the Seas 2/06 until our bi-annual family cruise on the Mariner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoopster3145 Posted June 14, 2004 #15 Share Posted June 14, 2004 At night, you can see a lot of light houses and towns along the side of the island, As has been stated it is a long island, so it goes in and out of view for several hours! THe best view i have had has been going from Miami to Cozumel. 1/01 NCL Majesty 1/02 NCL Majesty 1/03 RCCL Brilliance of the Seas 3/03 Carnival Jubilee 8/03 RCCL Navigator Of the Seas 1/04 RCCL Adventure of the Seas 3/04 RCCL Radiance of the Seas 8/15/04 Rhapsody of the Seas 14 DAY LEGEND OF THE SEAS PANAMA CANAL CRUISE (12/26/04) 3/12/05 SPRING BREAK on the GRAND PRINCESS 7 DAY WESTERN ON THE EXPLORER (5/22/05) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imsulin Posted June 14, 2004 #16 Share Posted June 14, 2004 Every time we fly to Cancun from Atlanta (and back) , we pass near Cuba, and the pilot points it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrm9999 Posted June 15, 2004 #17 Share Posted June 15, 2004 Shaken_Bake - On the Enchantment they do not have a bridge tour, but there is a real time map they run on the TV in your room showing where you are. On Voyager class ships, they have some windows you can look into the bridge from and watch them drive the ship. - Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D4 Posted June 15, 2004 #18 Share Posted June 15, 2004 Shaken-Bake: Most ships sell the nautical map of the itinerary in the gift shop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare TPKeller Posted June 15, 2004 #19 Share Posted June 15, 2004 As far as I know, all the Voyager class ships have the "peek-a-boo bridge" where you can go look into the bridge from a deck above and behind. In this viewing area, they have computer consoles which display the current charts and location of the ship. (This area is only open during the day, not at night.) Also, this is a great excuse to go out and get yourself a hand held GPS receiver! Most of them won't have maps of the Caribbean, but any good paper chart will have lats and longs, so you can plot your way along, and keep the crew "honest" with their position updates! If you're new to hand held GPS receivers, http://gpsinformation.net/ is the best place on the net to find information. Theron click to e-mail me Explorer of the Seas 9/27/03 Western Celebrity Century 9/28/02 Eastern (Thanks to Lili) Cruise Tip Calculator - Calculate the amount and type of bills you need to stuff your tipping envelopes: http://members.aol.com/CruiseTip/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cbcloud Posted June 15, 2004 #20 Share Posted June 15, 2004 <BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Shaken_Bake: ...Is there any kind of bridge tour that will let the passengers see where the ship is - or any detailed charts available of where exactly the ship is sailing? I love maps and would love to get a clue of where this ship is at the time. Sailing on Enchantment July 5, 2004<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Not sure about the Enchantment, but the Voyager class ships have the "peekaboo bridge" where you can see down on the bridge (or part of it), and there are radar displays on the peekaboo with the ship route, heading, winds, geographical features, etc. VERY interesting..! My ship routine was to get on deck before sunrise...get a cup of coffee, get some sunrise pics, then head to the peekaboo bridge, strike up a conversation with anyone else who happened to be there...then take the DW a cup of tea... And I think ALL the ships have 24-hour display of ship's course, distance traveled, distance to next destination, weather, etc. on one of the TV channels as well as a pic off the bow of the ship... Legend of the Seas - 8/2002 Rhapsody of the Seas - 3/2003 Brilliance of the Seas - 1/2004 Voyager of the Seas - 3-4/2004 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boingy300 Posted June 15, 2004 #21 Share Posted June 15, 2004 In 1991 My husband and I , on our honeymoon Song of America- RCCL, ran up to the top deck at 4am- just to see Cuba-we were right on top of it according to the TV map. I still chuckle when we get up there- it is pitch black, and an older gentleman standing on deck smoking a cigarette. I'll never forget my disappointment!LOL! Eventually you could make out the outline of a mountainous range. Too funny. Karen O. Song of America 1991 Majesty of the Sea 1993 Monarch of the Sea 1996 Sov.of the Sea 1999 Disney Wonder 2001 Explorer 12/13/03 Mariner of the Seas 6/19/05 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goldenshroom Posted June 15, 2004 #22 Share Posted June 15, 2004 To answer the original question, Yes, you will most likely see Cuba and if you take a portable tv you can watch Cuban TV. If you are going towards Labadee, you will probably not see Havana as it is near the western tip of cuba. Most ships don't pass close enough on that side. Mariner Of The Seas, Back to Back 10/10-24/2004 Caribbean Princess 05/28/2005 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cbcloud Posted June 15, 2004 #23 Share Posted June 15, 2004 <BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Shaken_Bake: ...Is there any kind of bridge tour that will let the passengers see where the ship is - or any detailed charts available of where exactly the ship is sailing? I love maps and would love to get a clue of where this ship is at the time. Sailing on Enchantment July 5, 2004<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> I found a picture of the Voyager bridge, taken from the peekaboo bridge. You can see it here: http://www.pbase.com/image/30197006 Legend of the Seas - 8/2002 Rhapsody of the Seas - 3/2003 Brilliance of the Seas - 1/2004 Voyager of the Seas - 3-4/2004 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allisons Posted June 15, 2004 #24 Share Posted June 15, 2004 Can you see the islands of the Bahamas? We are going on Navigator of the Seas Western Caribbean in January 2005 and we have a port side balcony, but the starboard side of the ship will face Cuba. Should we change to the other side of the ship so that our balcony faces Cuba? We are going on Explorer of the Seas Western Caribbean in January 2006 and we have a port side balcony again. However, that cruise goes in the opposite direction so the port side of the ship will face Cuba. RCI Sovereign of the Seas 12/27/96 Bahamas 3-night RCI Nordic Empress 1/19/98 Southern Caribbean 4-night RCI Viking Serenade 12/27/99 (Millenium Cruise) Mexican Riviera 7-night RCI Adventure of the Seas 1/12/03 Southern Caribbean 7-night RCI Serenade of the Seas 1/3/04 Southern Caribbean 7-night RCI Navigator of the Seas 1/8/05 Western Caribbean 7-night RCI Explorer of the Seas 1/15/06 Western Caribbean 7-night Days until my next cruise . . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.