Cruises from LA - any differences compared to Florida cruises?

[asnaleah]

We enjoy Pacific cruising and are looking forward to our LA-Santiago cruise December, 2023. It is a different crowd from the Caribbean but lovely.

[ScottC4746]

On 8/6/2022 at 2:12 PM, 8420PR said:

Are there any differences between Celebrity cruises from LA, compared to from Florida?

 

We are from Europe and have only cruised X from Florida so far - the prices for Celebrity Solstice out of LA are currently too good to ignore - are there any differences?   Different crowd?  How do the mexico ports compare?

The main difference is Florida is on the east coast, thus a shorter flight for you and LA is on the west coast and about an 11 hour flight from LHR.  Mexico ports are, in my opinion, meh.  Been there done that.  Our last cruise to the Riviera was on HAL and we stayed on the ship to relax and enjoy the quiet atmosphere and pool availability.  I will say to be extra cautious in Mexico.  I strongly suggest looking at shore excursions.  There was a time we used to wander around the ports, but no longer.  We only got off in Mazatlan to go to Wal Mart across the street.

[LGW59]

3 minutes ago, ScottC4746 said:

The main difference is Florida is on the east coast, thus a shorter flight for you and LA is on the west coast and about an 11 hour flight from LHR.  Mexico ports are, in my opinion, meh.  Been there done that.  Our last cruise to the Riviera was on HAL and we stayed on the ship to relax and enjoy the quiet atmosphere and pool availability.  I will say to be extra cautious in Mexico.  I strongly suggest looking at shore excursions.  There was a time we used to wander around the ports, but no longer.  We only got off in Mazatlan to go to Wal Mart across the street.

I absolutely LOVE Mexico, the culture, people, food...but I do have to agree one needs to be extra cautious in some ports, Mazatlan (as beautiful and quaint as it is) being one of those IMO.  I have never felt unsafe on my own in Puerto Vallarta, Cabo San Lucas.

[lorimay]

We have done several Mexican Riviera cruises. Cabo and Puerto Vallarta are just as charming as some of the Caribbean ports. Mazatlan is not. However, don't think that just because you take a ship's excursion you might not run into trouble. The last time we were in Cabo we took an excursion where you drive your own jeep in a convoy into the countryside and then to the beach. We were way out in the country on a dirt road when some men in a pickup truck forced the leader off the road and stopped the convoy. There was intense negotiation going on for quite a while but we were finally let go. Added a dimension of excitement to the excursion. 

 

As in most ports, if you stick to the tourist areas you should be fine - which is the same advice I would give if you were visiting Belize City, Puerta Plata (there's armed tourist police on every corner from the port to the main square) or Costa Maya (was on a ship's excursion there and had the tour bus stopped and searched by someone in a uniform with a machine gun).

 

I think one of the big differences between Caribbean and Mexican Riviera ports is that in the Caribbean tourism is everything and a lot is done to not let the tourists see what real life is like. There's a lot of governmental control. In Mexico, tourism is important but the areas are not as regulated, which is why you see so many people begging on the beaches and there's a little bit of lawlessness wherever you go.

[Sheffben79]

We couldn't resist the prices they were offering for Summit, the Pacific Coastal cruise on 1st April has some amazing ports and the overnight in San Fran is such a bonus.

This will be our first time cruising that coast but we have visited the area many times and prefer it to Florida.