East or West Caribbean - first timer

[jdvmd]

Another vote for the Eastern Caribbean itinerary. I just think the beaches and surroundings are much more appealing. This was our first cruise itinerary also. That said, I think the Pearl and the mini suite might be a better fit since you have nothing to compare it to. The Epic is going to have tons of entertainment options but with a small one that may not even come into consideration.

[che5904]

Another vote for the Eastern Caribbean itinerary. I just think the beaches and surroundings are much more appealing. This was our first cruise itinerary also. That said, I think the Pearl and the mini suite might be a better fit since you have nothing to compare it to. The Epic is going to have tons of entertainment options but with a small one that may not even come into consideration.

 

Linda this thread was resurrected from June, not sure why. The OP eventually did choose the Eastern Caribbean but on another cruiseline.

[jdvmd]

Linda this thread was resurrected from June, not sure why. The OP eventually did choose the Eastern Caribbean but on another cruiseline.

LOL. Cheri, since you have sailed on the Dawn, what kind of cabin did you have? I am still thinking about this little Quebec City cruise in October.

[che5904]

LOL. Cheri, since you have sailed on the Dawn, what kind of cabin did you have? I am still thinking about this little Quebec City cruise in October.

 

I had a BA deck 10 on both of our cruises. Since basically ships have walk-in closet sized cabins and I'm Claustrophobic, I didn't dare do anything less than a balcony. We loved our cabin and wasn't sorry we had chosen it.

 

On the MR trip most days was a little chilly to use our balcony much but we enjoyed the large view it provided. So it may be the same in your case, depending on what date you are looking at. Our Septembers can be relatively nice in temperature, but October is very iffy, we can have snow by halloween. But you wouldn't have the fall colors until October unless it is a cool September, so either way you probably wouldn't get much use of the balcony.

 

We loved the Dawn but don't have other ships in the fleet to compare it to since our other cruise was the Star.

[jdvmd]

I had a BA deck 10 on both of our cruises. Since basically ships have walk-in closet sized cabins and I'm Claustrophobic, I didn't dare do anything less than a balcony. We loved our cabin and wasn't sorry we had chosen it.

 

On the MR trip most days was a little chilly to use our balcony much but we enjoyed the large view it provided. So it may be the same in your case, depending on what date you are looking at. Our Septembers can be relatively nice in temperature, but October is very iffy, we can have snow by halloween. But you wouldn't have the fall colors until October unless it is a cool September, so either way you probably wouldn't get much use of the balcony.

 

We loved the Dawn but don't have other ships in the fleet to compare it to since our other cruise was the Star.

I think the date of the cruise is Sept. 28, seven-night from Quebec City to Boston. There is one that is a few days longer but I don't want to pull Matthew out of school for an additional three days. It is his fall break. Normally, I am all over the Caribbean during this time frame and love the cheaper prices because of hurricane season but I am also longing to do something different. This will be cruise 47 or 48 so I am really looking at the intineraries. Really would like to be on NCL also since we will be platinum.

[ocntscha]

Either itinerary would be good. I'd probably choose the western just because I much prefer port days to at sea days and the western has 4 port days vs. 3 on the eastern.

 

I was just in Jamacia over Thanksgiving. Went to the beach all day. Beautiful beach. Noone offered me any drugs and we where barely even bothered at all actually. One lady was trying to get my wife to pay her to braid our daughters hair. My wife told her maybe later so of course the lady kept asking every hour or two and in the end my wife just told her no and it wasn't a big deal. My wife should have just told her no in the first place. Some other guy tried to sell me some bracelets for the kids and I told him I wasn't interested and that was that.

[halos]

I have never cruised before, but have always wanted to.

My wife and I have decided to go for it this year and bring our 1-yr-old (at cruise time) along with us.

 

I've narrowed it down to:

Norwegian Epic

(East Caribbean: St. Maarten, St. Thomas, Nassau)

or

Norwegian Pearl

(West Caribbean: Great Stirrup Cay, Ocho Rios, Grand Cayman, Cozumel).

 

 

To complicate things, a Mini-Suite (w/tub) on Pearl comes to essentially the same price as a balcony on Epic. There are several variables here and that's why I'm asking for help.

 

Here are some of my thoughts:

 

Ship: Epic is latest and greatest, but I have no real reference to decide since I've never cruised before.

 

Stateroom: The extra room and bathtub in the mini-suite would be great with the baby (but, I've never cruised before, so maybe balcony is sufficient?)

 

Port Calls: I've always wanted to go to St. Martin (French side), but it doesn't have to be on this trip. I've been to Ocho Rios... didn't care much for it. I've never been to the other spots. I doubt we'd be able to do any excursions with the baby, so our intent for this holiday is just to relax and enjoy the sights.

 

 

What specific help do I need?

1. I'm leaning towards the Pearl mainly because of the stateroom. Please share your experiences on these ships.

2. East Caribbean is more appealing to me mainly because of St. Martin. So, if you've been on these routes, please share your experiences.

3. If you've traveled with an infant in a balcony stateroom, please share.

4. If you traveled with an infant in a mini-suite: after you rave about how great it was that you got the extra space, please let me know if you honestly would've missed it in the balcony room.

 

Without even having to contemplate, my vote is for the Pearl because the extra room in the cabin and the bathtub are going to be essential with an infant.

 

 

Linda this thread was resurrected from June, not sure why. The OP eventually did choose the Eastern Caribbean but on another cruiseline.

 

 

 

ooops.

Oh well.

[wafflesniffer]

Call me selfish, but I would never take a cruise with a one-year-old. In fact, we waited until our kids were 7 and 9 before taking them on their first cruise. I would certainly never take a child who is not eligible to be left with the kids club (under two).

 

In fact, we just cruised the Star last week with our now 11 and 13 year olds, and left our 2 1/2 year old at home with an automatic feeder.

[che5904]

Call me selfish, but I would never take a cruise with a one-year-old. In fact, we waited until our kids were 7 and 9 before taking them on their first cruise. I would certainly never take a child who is not eligible to be left with the kids club (under two).

 

In fact, we just cruised the Star last week with our now 11 and 13 year olds, and left our 2 1/2 year old at home with an automatic feeder.

 

I wouldn't call you selfish, you just vacation different than some. I've seen this comment many times by posters, who look at their vacation to party, have fun, leave the worries at home including their kids, some claim unsafe medically speaking and many more reasons. Some want the peacefulness of a cruise and time spent with their baby that they may not have the opportunity to do at home. What nicer place than on a cruise in the middle of nowhere to enjoy as a family.

 

And this post is too late for the OP anyway since they set sail on another line in November c/w baby, I think.

[jdvmd]

Some people don't have a choice in leaving their baby at home because of a lack of babysitters, grandparents etc. I have never left mine at home and took my son on his first cruise when he was three months old.