Lot of questions

[Iceandwind]

Hi, I have never cruised before and this is a whole new world to me. After looking at many destinations and ports to go from Port Canaveral is best for me. I can fly directly from Iceland to Orlando. Planning of going 23 february and either Caribbean West with Carnival Cruise Line on Carnival Breeze or Caribbean Eastern with Norwegian on Epic, which would you recommend ?

Next question how do I go from Orlando to Port Canaveral ? 

Then cabins, Im afraid I could get claustrophobic in a cabin with no window, have you exsperince that ? Im sure I will ask lot of other questions very soon, thanx

[davekathy]

43 minutes ago, Iceandwind said:

Hi, I have never cruised before and this is a whole new world to me. After looking at many destinations and ports to go from Port Canaveral is best for me. I can fly directly from Iceland to Orlando. Planning of going 23 february and either Caribbean West with Carnival Cruise Line on Carnival Breeze or Caribbean Eastern with Norwegian on Epic, which would you recommend ?

Next question how do I go from Orlando to Port Canaveral ? 

Then cabins, Im afraid I could get claustrophobic in a cabin with no window, have you exsperince that ? Im sure I will ask lot of other questions very soon, thanx

Welcome to CC. When we use to stay in inside staterooms we never felt claustrophobic. But everyone is different. Enjoy your first cruise. 

Edited October 31, 2018 by davekathy

[Nic6318]

Hi 

 

Welcome to cruise critic. 

 

So it seems you have narrowed down to a few different cruises. Now you have to decide where you want to go. There are few places that you are likely to go where you won't have a good time. Eastern Caribbean, Western Caribbean , Southern, so, I have been to all these areas on cruises as well as land vacations. I haven't any bad impressions to suggest you shouldn't go anywhere. In fact I would suggest going to all of them, including trying many different cruise lines. While they all have some differences, they are in many aspects very similar. So you big decision is to decide which to do first. That would depend on you, your family, your likes and dislikes.

 

This site has a very good "port of call" section. On that main forums board, if you look down the page, you will find it. You will find links for each island stop that the cruises will go to. See what people suggest doing at each stop. Do internet search for each island, check TripAdvisor. Find places where you can do things that will interest you. Once you decide on your preferred itinerary, you have likely whittled the options significantly.

 

Check the cruise line threads on this site. There is one for each cruise line. Make sure you understand what each one offers that another doesn't. Ask questions about booking/cancellation rules. If you are unsure about anything, ask on the cruise line thread before making any booking commitments or anything that requires an outlay of money. 

 

There are shuttles that go from the Orlando airport to cruise port. They aren't very close to each other. Since you are travelling a long distance, most would recommend arriving at least a few days in advance of the cruise, just to avoid any issues caused from possible delays. There are many things in the area that could fill your time and would enhance your vacation. You can get ideas from this site as well. There is a section dedicated to North American homeports, and more specifically one for Florida. If you do stay more than a few days, then, renting a car would be a benefit. You would be allowed to rent from the airport and return it at the port.

 

As far as deciding what type of cabin to choose, if you feel you would be claustrophobic with an interior cabin, the by all means opt for an OV or balcony cabin. Of course that would cost more than the interior.

 

hope this helps you get started here

have a great cruise

[Sea Hag]

We've had good cruises on both Carnival and Norwegian, so I'd look at the ports of call. Does one sailing look more interesting to you?

 

My husband and are both claustrophobic to some degree in some situations. He found the inside cabins made him feel claustrophobic, but I didn't. Insides were fine with me, but we no longer book them because they're not fine with him. I can't see that there's any way to tell how an inside cabin would affect you. Maybe safest thing is to go with an oceanview.

[GUT2407]

49 minutes ago, Iceandwind said:

Hi, I have never cruised before and this is a whole new world to me. After looking at many destinations and ports to go from Port Canaveral is best for me. I can fly directly from Iceland to Orlando. Planning of going 23 february and either Caribbean West with Carnival Cruise Line on Carnival Breeze or Caribbean Eastern with Norwegian on Epic, which would you recommend ?

Next question how do I go from Orlando to Port Canaveral ? 

Then cabins, Im afraid I could get claustrophobic in a cabin with no window, have you exsperince that ? Im sure I will ask lot of other questions very soon, thanx

I can’t even visit an inside cabin without getting claustrophobic, in fact some ocean views have such a small port hole I get tense.

[jlp20]

Not being rude, take a week or two and read these forums going back a month. Over 95% of any questions will be answered.

[Iceandwind]

Thanks ! Yes I hope this will be my first of many, I plan to arrive in Orlando the day before and leave day after. We will celebrate my husbands 50 birthday and we love animals, wild nature and good food 🙂 its a 7 day cruise im looking at but this is all new to me. Most our vacations we spend horseriding in icelandic nature. We have once been to Orlando and it was great.

[OCruisers]

Do look at the ports of call on each sailing in consideration ... and pick the itinerary which is of the most interest to you.  

[crystalspin]

1 hour ago, Iceandwind said:

Thanks ! Yes I hope this will be my first of many, I plan to arrive in Orlando the day before and leave day after. We will celebrate my husbands 50 birthday and we love animals, wild nature and good food 🙂 its a 7 day cruise im looking at but this is all new to me. Most our vacations we spend horseriding in icelandic nature. We have once been to Orlando and it was great.

The seven-day is a good choice for a first cruise. Shorter sailings tend to be "party cruises". Try to look at shore excursions and those 'port boards' recommended above, see if one more than the other of your choices will get you to wild areas, maybe snorkeling?, rather than beach days!

 

As far as getting from MCO to Port Canaveral, I put "shuttle from orlando airport to port canaveral" in search engine and it looks very doable (much more so than in most of ports I've flown to), with prices starting around US$20pp.

 

Good luck and have fun!

[cb at sea]

I like to have natural light during the day....I would be most unhappy in an inside cabin, using only electric light during the daytime. 

Carnival has pretty standard sized cabins...most are in the 185 sq. ft range, unlike some other cruise lines.  On most, cabins are a bit smaller.

Epic has a weird bathroom set-up...some hate it, others are fine with it.

 

I would research my ports, and see which are more interesting to me, depending on what I like to do on vacation.  I think you'll enjoy either itinerary  and ship!

[John Bull]

Cruise Critic is predominantly an American website, and a great many visit the Eastern Caribbean. But either a Southern or Eastern Caribbean cruise would give you a far broader range of islands, topography, peoples & histories.

So I'd choose eastern, but do check out CB's mention of the bathroom arrangements on some NCL ships - I've stayed in a few "enlightened" hotels with similar immodest arrangements and it's put me off those ships.

 

I too dislike inside cabins, I find them claustrophobic & disorientating even though they're usually identical to Ocean-View cabins but with a curtain or picture instead of a window. When I wake up I don't know if it's day or night, in port or at sea, sunny or rainy. (turning on the TV, tuned to the mast-head camera & with the music muted helps overcome that, but its no substitute.

 

For a first cruise don't pay a fat premium for a balcony cabin.

As a first-timer there'll be plenty that's new & exciting for you to experience and to see & do on the ship and ashore that you won't need a balcony.

And once you've had a balcony cabin you won't want to settle for anything else.    

 

JB

[Iceandwind]

Thank u all so much