Do Caribbean cruises make up the majority of American cruise line business?

[lenquixote66]

19 hours ago, clo said:

So you went there but not on a cruise?

Where ?

[clo]

35 minutes ago, lenquixote66 said:

Where ?

As I replied to you: Europe and Asia. Not all your intl travel was on cruises.

[lenquixote66]

42 minutes ago, clo said:

As I replied to you: Europe and Asia. Not all your intl travel was on cruises.

I have only flown to Puerto Rico and parts of North America.

[clo]

13 minutes ago, lenquixote66 said:

I have only flown to Puerto Rico and parts of North America.

You've been to Europe, haven't you?

 

Oh, and isn't Puerto Rico part of N. America? I'm poor at geography.

Edited April 8, 2021 by clo

[lenquixote66]

37 minutes ago, clo said:

You've been to Europe, haven't you?

 

Oh, and isn't Puerto Rico part of N. America? I'm poor at geography.

I have never been to Europe

 

Yes,you are correct Puerto Rico is technically N.America

[slidergirl]

9 hours ago, clo said:

I loathe hot and humid and have to remind myself that I'm in the minority.

I'm another person who can't stand hot & humid.  I'll do it if it's the only time available for me, but otherwise, I'll avoid Florida and parts south after May and until November. 

[slidergirl]

7 hours ago, SelectSys said:

My why is because I enjoy beach-style vacations and this is an extremely easy way to achieve that end.  I also like the experience of being at sea and the changing of scenery - recognizing that many islands  are similar.

 

While I prefer the Caribbean for scenery and ports, I am OK with a Mexican Rivera cruise as it is a simple drive from my house.  For San Diego departures it's even easier - train/uber/friend.   

 

Someday I would like to see more cruises into the Sea of Cortes.  This would be tougher as it requires more than the standard 7 day LA-based round trip.

 

I have never done an AI, and maybe I would like this as well as an alternative to a cruise.  I am interested in trying our Xcaret at some point in the future when the price looks right to me.  

HAL was seriously looking at doing Sea of Cortez cruises out of Rocky Point.  But, the cartel activity put a quick end to that.  It would have been good AND people from Arizona could just drive to Rocky Point (as they used to for beach weekends pre-cartel).

 

I've done a lot of the Caribbean via land trips (USVI, BVI, Caymans, Puerto Rico (San Juan, Rio Grande, Fajardo, Vieques), Cancun, Cozumel) that comprise the usual E/W Caribbean cruises.  Nothing better than to be in those places on a non-ship (or very low) day!!  Far more than what I could do in a few hours in each port.  I actually like repo trips - I can do what I want to do, relax, not have to worry about a schedule of debarking/embarking...  

[dogs4fun]

13 minutes ago, slidergirl said:

I'm another person who can't stand hot & humid ..

 I'll avoid Florida and parts south after May and until November. 

Same here - I simply can’t tolerate hot & humid. 🥵 

[Joebucks]

It is so popular because all of the planets align for a solid experience. The ports are easy to reach for a large population, the trip is reasonably priced, the scenery would otherwise be rare for many. I don't know why any of that would be confusing.

 

As much as I don't get the Caribbean hate, I've come to understand that a lot of people who don't like it generally just don't care for beaches/tropical weather. It's a crazy thing to me, but not everyone has the same interests. As one example, I will never forget going to Hawaii with people who I was told didn't care for that type of trip. I didn't believe it until I saw it. They showed absolutely zero enjoyment of its beaches. They would rather be in the Mediterranean. Meanwhile, I could sit on their beaches and snorkel almost all day. I, for one, also cannot understand those who judge an entire island because a vendor or two asked them to buy something. It's like judging a big city because a few bums asking for money. Yet you know nothing of the cities' treasures. I don't buy the statement from a lot of people who state they have exhausted every bit of every Caribbean island, and it's boring. The people who truly have done so, seem to continue to enjoy it. 

 

I have local beaches, downtown areas, etc. I have bean to each one dozens of times, downtown probably hundreds. I still don't snub my noses at them because they are boring and I have seen it all. So how would an island I spend 8 hours on once every 1-3 years suddenly do that? 

[clo]

30 minutes ago, slidergirl said:

I'm another person who can't stand hot & humid.  I'll do it if it's the only time available for me, but otherwise, I'll avoid Florida and parts south after May and until November. 

A few years ago we spent almost a month in SE Asia. It was incredible but awful also. Temps over 100F and humidity around 98%. Walked out of an AC hotel and it felt like a hot, wet, wool blanket was thrown over me. Our tour went to Angkor Wat late in the afternoon for better "photo ops." As wonderful as I'm sure it was, I bailed. Ugh.

[2wheelin]

1 hour ago, Joebucks said:

 

As much as I don't get the Caribbean hate, I've come to understand that a lot of people who don't like it generally just don't care for beaches/tropical weather. It's a crazy thing to me, but not everyone has the same interests. Meanwhile, I could sit on their beaches and snorkel almost all day. I, for one, also cannot understand those who judge an entire island because a vendor or two asked them to buy something. It's like judging a big city because a few bums asking for money. Yet you know nothing of the cities' treasures. I don't buy the statement from a lot of people who state they have exhausted every bit of every Caribbean island, and it's boring. The people who truly have done so, seem to continue to enjoy it. 

 

Those are the truly boring ones who are unadventuresome. There are multitudes of adventures in the islands. Off reading on a 4-wheeler, jeeping down dirt roads, zip lining, obstacle courses, diving, cliff and rock climbing, mountain hiking, kayaking, horse back riding, motorcycling, just to name a few. There are also plenty of opportunities for museums, cultural tours, ruins, history. D

Edited April 9, 2021 by 2wheelin

[clo]

20 minutes ago, 2wheelin said:

Those are the truly boring ones who are unadventuresome. There are multitudes of adventures in the islands. Off reading on a 4-wheeler, jeeping down dirt roads, zip lining, obstacle courses, diving, cliff and rock climbing, mountain hiking, kayaking, horse back riding, motorcycling, just to name a few. There are also plenty of opportunities for museums, cultural tours, ruins, history. D

Wow, I'm impressed. So you can do those things during a port call? That's great. Thanks.

[cruisemom42]

10 hours ago, 2wheelin said:

Those are the truly boring ones who are unadventuresome. There are multitudes of adventures in the islands. Off reading on a 4-wheeler, jeeping down dirt roads, zip lining, obstacle courses, diving, cliff and rock climbing, mountain hiking, kayaking, horse back riding, motorcycling, just to name a few. There are also plenty of opportunities for museums, cultural tours, ruins, history. D

 

Unfortunately I not only am not a beach person but am also unathletic. I wouldn't have done half those things even when I was young enough not to know better. 🤣

 

While the islands offer some museums and cultural opportunities, they are not exactly plentiful on most of them. 

Edited April 9, 2021 by cruisemom42

[2wheelin]

1 hour ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

Unfortunately I not only am not a beach person but am also unathletic. I wouldn't have done half those things even when I was young enough not to know better. 🤣

 

While the islands offer some museums and cultural opportunities, they are not exactly plentiful on most of them. 

I kind of like a mix of activities and we are both very active in our 70s. My retirement gift was to go skydiving. I love the architecture of Europe but museums for me start running together if too many in a short time. To each his own.

[Ride-The-Waves]

Cruise lines themselves have come to the realization that cruising in the Caribbean can be repetitive and boring.  To compensate they created their own "fantasy islands" where people can get off the ship, drink, eat, shop and swim in relative safety.  Realistically, there is little new to see during repetitive visits to the same Caribbean ports.  Most are geared towards either shopping or sunbathing, the latter can be done onboard or by my pool at home.  Cruise lines have also shortened Caribbean cruises with few now going to the southern Caribbean islands unless its part of a canal transit.  The most fascinating Caribbean island we have visited is Devil's Island.

 

Today's relatively short flights to Europe offer a fully different world experience and one we much more appreciate over the Caribbean.  We last sailed south in February 2020 for a 2-night stay in NOLA for the Mardi Gras, then we didn't get off the ship in Cozumel or Grand Cayman.  Been there, done that.  For 2022 we have booked three cruises of which two are trans-Atlantics and the other a central Med/Adriatic.  There is always something new to experience in the towns along the Mediterranean.

[clo]

13 hours ago, 2wheelin said:

Those are the truly boring ones who are unadventuresome. There are multitudes of adventures in the islands. Off reading on a 4-wheeler, jeeping down dirt roads, zip lining, obstacle courses, diving, cliff and rock climbing, mountain hiking, kayaking, horse back riding, motorcycling, just to name a few. There are also plenty of opportunities for museums, cultural tours, ruins, history. D

Again, so you can do any of those things during a few hours port call?

[Hlitner]

11 minutes ago, Ride-The-Waves said:

Cruise lines themselves have come to the realization that cruising in the Caribbean can be repetitive and boring.  To compensate they created their own "fantasy islands" where people can get off the ship, drink, eat, shop and swim in relative safety.  Realistically, there is little new to see during repetitive visits to the same Caribbean ports.  Most are geared towards either shopping or sunbathing, the latter can be done onboard or by my pool at home.  Cruise lines have also shortened Caribbean cruises with few now going to the southern Caribbean islands unless its part of a canal transit.  The most fascinating Caribbean island we have visited is Devil's Island.

 

Today's relatively short flights to Europe offer a fully different world experience and one we much more appreciate over the Caribbean.  We last sailed south in February 2020 for a 2-night stay in NOLA for the Mardi Gras, then we didn't get off the ship in Cozumel or Grand Cayman.  Been there, done that.  For 2022 we have booked three cruises of which two are trans-Atlantics and the other a central Med/Adriatic.  There is always something new to experience in the towns along the Mediterranean.

LOL.  We will ignore that Devils Island is not in the Caribbean.  I do agree that the Med is a great place to cruise as are parts of Asia, the South Pacific, Oceania, the Middle East, etc.  Although we still love cruising in the Caribbean (and have done it at least once a year for decades until COVID) I do think this is just an example of different strokes.  When we want to cruise in warm weather and not deal with the logistics and cost of flying to Europe or further, Caribbean cruises are an easy option.  Now, we must simply replace cancelled Caribbean cruises with some All Inclusive trips (there are many excellent AIs scattered all over the Caribbean and in Mexico).  

 

As an aside about Devils Island we have never actually gotten ashore on that island despite an attempt.  Several years ago we booked a lengthy 3 Continent cruise on the Grand Princess.  The ship was scheduled to stop at Devils Island before moving across the South Atlantic to Dakar, Senegal.  The Senegalese government had a rule that anyone who had recently been in French Guiana (who owns Devils Island) had to have a current Yellow Fever vaccine certificate.  So over 3000 cruise ship passengers had to spend over $100 per person to get those Yellow Fever Vaccinations (not always easy to arrange).  But when we arrived at Devils Island the seas were too rough to allow for safe tendering so we skipped the port.  That meant over $300,000 of passenger's money were spent on shots that were totally unnecessary.

 

Hank 

[ontheweb]

1 hour ago, 2wheelin said:

I kind of like a mix of activities and we are both very active in our 70s. My retirement gift was to go skydiving. I love the architecture of Europe but museums for me start running together if too many in a short time. To each his own.

We end up at a lot of museums on our cruises since DW is an art teacher. The one time I did find that for me they ran together was on an Eastern Mediterranean cruise including several Greek Isles. At some point I just felt I had seen enough Greek artifacts. I don't believe DW got bored with them.

[capriccio]

16 minutes ago, clo said:

Again, so you can do any of those things during a few hours port call?

I'm not 2wheelin but here's my response...

 

Most Caribbean port stops are longer than a 'few' hours arriving in the early morning and departing in the late afternoon.

 

While we live on the beach in South Florida, we aren't really 'beach' people.  In the Caribbean we have done

• zip-lining
• an island tour with a group on a 'trike' (3 wheeled vehicle)
• an independent island tour on a golf cart
• a group tour on Segways
• took part in an 'America's Cup' sailing race
• did tours including multiple snorkeling stops. 

We've also taken island tours that visited historical sites, lovely gardens, and scenic views. The only island where we now stay on the ship is Princess Cays when traveling alone.  Next year we hope to have a stop there with our kids, their spouses and our grandchildren and we will disembark and, I'm sure, have a great time.

[ilikeanswers]

I've only been to the Caribbean islands once briefly visiting two islands but as a land vacation. Rented a car drove around for a few days (I did also a road trip down the Caribbean coast of Mexico and Belize, not sure if that is considered visiting the Caribbean😳?). I found it to be pretty fascinating. It would be nice if they had some expedition style cruises that focused on culture, food, history and ecology. The one time I had a look there really wasn't much beyond the mass market lines and the itineraries were a bit blah. If I do go back for a more thorough Caribbean trip I would most likely do land trips as it is a pretty hard to get to place from Australia and I would want to get as much value experience wise from the trip as possible. I just don't think I could do that with one day trips to each island🤔

[SelectSys]

23 hours ago, clo said:

What about other parts of the world? Non cruising?

Pretty varied.  I like land travel as well.  I am planning a trip to South America when things there are more open. My goal is to make a big loop around the Andes covering both the Chilean and Argentinian sides.   I also want to take a slower land trip in Japan and get back to Australia and New Zealand.  Mexico and the US both have many sites to see.  Canada too! My partner wants to do the "Camino de Santiago" for at least a couple of hundred km.  The list is long and seems to get longer every day... That's why I plan to retire once travel is more freely available. 

Edited April 9, 2021 by SelectSys

[cruisemom42]

3 hours ago, 2wheelin said:

I kind of like a mix of activities and we are both very active in our 70s. My retirement gift was to go skydiving. I love the architecture of Europe but museums for me start running together if too many in a short time. To each his own.

 

Hey, I understand that they'll soon be adding a new activity for Caribbean cruisers -- you can fly over an active volcano.

 

Volcano Erupts On Caribbean Island Of St. Vincent : NPR

 

😱😱

 

What in the world are they going to throw at us next???

 

 

[ldubs]

5 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

Unfortunately I not only am not a beach person but am also unathletic. I wouldn't have done half those things even when I was young enough not to know better. 🤣

 

While the islands offer some museums and cultural opportunities, they are not exactly plentiful on most of them. 

 

Anytime I'm near an ocean I am pretty happy.  But, I do not do sunbathing, so guess I'm not a beach person either in that sense.  What I enjoy most is kind of just walking around and hanging around and taking it all in I guess.   

[neverbeenhere]

8 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

...

What in the world are they going to throw at us next???

 

 

I’m hoping for escape room featuring a Caribbean jail. There seems to be enough old jails throughout the Caribbean. If not a jail, as someone raised Catholic, it could be a church escape room. 

[Ride-The-Waves]

22 hours ago, Hlitner said:

LOL.  We will ignore that Devils Island is not in the Caribbean.  I do agree that the Med is a great place to cruise as are parts of Asia, the South Pacific, Oceania, the Middle East, etc.  Although we still love cruising in the Caribbean (and have done it at least once a year for decades until COVID) I do think this is just an example of different strokes.  When we want to cruise in warm weather and not deal with the logistics and cost of flying to Europe or further, Caribbean cruises are an easy option.  Now, we must simply replace cancelled Caribbean cruises with some All Inclusive trips (there are many excellent AIs scattered all over the Caribbean and in Mexico).  

 

As an aside about Devils Island we have never actually gotten ashore on that island despite an attempt.  Several years ago we booked a lengthy 3 Continent cruise on the Grand Princess.  The ship was scheduled to stop at Devils Island before moving across the South Atlantic to Dakar, Senegal.  The Senegalese government had a rule that anyone who had recently been in French Guiana (who owns Devils Island) had to have a current Yellow Fever vaccine certificate.  So over 3000 cruise ship passengers had to spend over $100 per person to get those Yellow Fever Vaccinations (not always easy to arrange).  But when we arrived at Devils Island the seas were too rough to allow for safe tendering so we skipped the port.  That meant over $300,000 of passenger's money were spent on shots that were totally unnecessary.

 

Hank 

Its not really all about the money...

 

Think positive:  you are now ready for an Africa safari.  We did 14 days in Tanzania and Kenya with Tauck and it was the best, most educational and fascinating trip ever.  Up close and personal with the "Big Five," Great Migration, Olduvai Gorge, Masai Mara river crossing, visit to a Masai village, hot air ballooning, etc.  And first class all the way to include  a "clamping" tent on the Mara River with full bath and shower.