Would you do a Caribbean cruise and stay on the ship for all ports ?

[George C]

2 hours ago, Honolulu Blue said:

I'm surprised you haven't done this already.  On two of my first cruises after the restart (one music charter, one not), I didn't get off at any of the offered ports at all.  On some others, I only did a short appearance on the dock to stretch my legs, take pictures, and maybe get some souvenirs.

 

On another of my themed cruises, I probably would have stayed on the ship in port, but one of them had these guys make an appearance, and I was too weak to resist:

On one of our charters I believe in Cozumel there was a excellent well know band playing at our pool and there was a large oasis class ship next to us with people on there balconies cheering the music from our ship . Even though I have dozens of tank tops etc I still sometimes get off to get more . Also have to get off in st Thomas so wife can shop and we can have a nice Italian lunch .

[navybankerteacher]

If I ever take another Caribbean cruise it will probably be because I just wanted to get away and found a good price - an an itinerary that matched some land travel that put me near the cruise port.  I like staying on St. Maarten and St. Barth’s. , but seeing them on a cruise is just too much of a mob scene -  so, yes, any future Caribbean cruise is likely to be stay-aboard for me.

[SPacificbound]

I love sea days, so sure, why not. 

[evandbob]

On 4/17/2023 at 10:21 AM, George C said:

We have done about 60 Caribbean cruises and the older I get (73 currently) the more I want to just stay on the ship, nothing is crowded , drink package is included on our cruises and we also do music charters that have great entertainment even in port . 

Very similiar experiences in age with 60+ cruises, added that we have also stayed for land vacations on most Caribbean islands, often several weeks worth at different resorts on the same isle.

 

It's very relaxing to stay on board the entire week or 10 day cruise, uncrowded decks and adult areas, no kids, hot tub often only people using it.

[George C]

22 minutes ago, evandbob said:

Very similiar experiences in age with 60+ cruises, added that we have also stayed for land vacations on most Caribbean islands, often several weeks worth at different resorts on the same isle.

 

It's very relaxing to stay on board the entire week or 10 day cruise, uncrowded decks and adult areas, no kids, hot tub often only people using it.

We also love adults resorts have done Sandals many times and always enjoy them . 

[BklynBoy8]

Are we getting older or smarter.

 

With the islands getting more crowded now, not like it wasn't in the past.

 

Maybe getting older you appreciate the ship more.

 

This coming sailing, looks like possible out of three, getting off once, maybe twice.

[glalonzo0408]

Absolutely.....have many times

[Luckiestmanonearth]

For most Western Caribbean itineraries, I would stay on board

[Mick B]

Hi,

For folks like me who have to fly in all the way from the UK to either NYC or Miami to board a cruise ship to sail to the Caribbean, I would say the following...

 

Getting off the ship at all ports, yes - if possible, after all, you have chosen to visit the Caribbean, but consider these things...

 

Have you been to the port before, and is there actually anything of interest you remember that is there for you to do that you haven't already done?

 

What class of ship are you on? Depending on the ships activities, you may want to stay on at a certain port (whilst just about everyone else is ashore) in order to get a go on things like the Zip Line or Flo Rider (if they are open) as these may be busy on sea days at the start and end of your cruise with fairly big queues which you wouldn't want to waste your time waiting in line for when there are other things to do.

 

You may want to stay on the ship just to get a sun bed (if chair hogs haven't gone ashore and left towels on them) and just get some sun or get a seat at the North Star Bar or somewhere like that (which is normally rammed at other times) and try some new drinks. Perfect if you have a drinks package or are Diamond and above with the CAS.

 

As it has been said before, it is your holiday and your choice. We have sailed into St Kitts several times and sometimes we have stayed on and other times we have jumped in one of those buses/vans and had a trip round the island to that nice mountain top, but again it depends on the weather, no good if its raining.

 

And that's the thing with the Caribbean, the weather, sometimes you just can't predict what the weather is going to do from one island to another and also if its raining then staying on the ship means staying indoors or in the solarium or other covered areas to avoid the rain which also limits the activities you can do onboard depending again on the class of ship you are sailing on.

 

If I may make a suggestion, after spending lots of money on a Caribbean cruise, it may pay you to google each island you are visiting beforehand and see if there is something there that you either did not know about before, or only found out about it last time you were there after someone told you when back on board what they had done there that day. I used to hear all sorts of stories in the Diamond Lounge from people who had stood on a beach with planes coming in just feet above them, so I goggled it and when I went back to St Maarten I was able to get the bus to that beach and experience people being blown into the sea for myself. I am sure every island will have something of interest, even if its just a shuttle bus ride to a nice beach for a few hours. Nice to find a little bar and have a drink, sometimes something not available on the ship.

 

As for Labadee, I have done both the Zip Line and the Roller Coaster which need booking in advance to be guaranteed a place.

 

Not been back to Coco Cay since 2014 so cannot comment on the new stuff there, except from what I see which is that you will be getting off a ship that may have a zip line to pay for a bigger zip line. Getting off a ship with a water slide to pay for a bigger water slide. Its up to you, but I would rather spend my dollars on visiting things like waterfalls, caves, mountain tops, nice beaches and bars.

 

One other thing I would suggest is either get a 12 night or above cruise or if  not, then do a B2B with different ports as 7 day or less cruises won't show you the best the Caribbean has to offer.

 

Also, my wife and I are both in our mid to late 50s and although I am in perfect health, my wife is sadly not and gets tired after a few hours of travelling or walking etc, so again, certain factors have to be taken into consideration when deciding what to do at each port of call. If my wife has had a busy day then the next day she may want to stay on board and chill, so planning the right amount of trips verses rest time also comes into play as you get a bit older or are not as well as you used to be.

 

Lastly, dodgy ports of call. I have been lucky in the past to have always found nice people on board to talk to on cruise ships who have been to ports we may not have been to yet and sometimes its possible to either go ashore with them or at least to listen to what they say about the port and take their advice. 

Crime is fairly low around those parts as some of the islands need and depend heavily on money from tourists, so robbing/killing them is counter productive and is taken seriously by the local authorities. But... sometimes you can get overrun with local people trying to sell you things including rides to exotic beaches which may not be the best the island has to offer. All of this can leave a lasting impression and influence your choice not to get off at that port again. Luckily for me, I have not had these issues, but I have seen other people get taken in by them and also heard stories from passengers later on during the cruise.

 

I hope this helps,.

 

Mick.

 

Edited April 21, 2023 by Mick B
spelling

[K32682]

3 hours ago, Mick B said:

Hi,

For folks like me who have to fly in all the way from the UK to either NYC or Miami to board a cruise ship to sail to the Caribbean, I would say the following...

 

Getting off the ship at all ports, yes - if possible, after all, you have chosen to visit the Caribbean, but consider these things...

 

Have you been to the port before, and is there actually anything of interest you remember that is there for you to do that you haven't already done?

 

What class of ship are you on? Depending on the ships activities, you may want to stay on at a certain port (whilst just about everyone else is ashore) in order to get a go on things like the Zip Line or Flo Rider (if they are open) as these may be busy on sea days at the start and end of your cruise with fairly big queues which you wouldn't want to waste your time waiting in line for when there are other things to do.

 

You may want to stay on the ship just to get a sun bed (if chair hogs haven't gone ashore and left towels on them) and just get some sun or get a seat at the North Star Bar or somewhere like that (which is normally rammed at other times) and try some new drinks. Perfect if you have a drinks package or are Diamond and above with the CAS.

 

As it has been said before, it is your holiday and your choice. We have sailed into St Kitts several times and sometimes we have stayed on and other times we have jumped in one of those buses/vans and had a trip round the island to that nice mountain top, but again it depends on the weather, no good if its raining.

 

And that's the thing with the Caribbean, the weather, sometimes you just can't predict what the weather is going to do from one island to another and also if its raining then staying on the ship means staying indoors or in the solarium or other covered areas to avoid the rain which also limits the activities you can do onboard depending again on the class of ship you are sailing on.

 

If I may make a suggestion, after spending lots of money on a Caribbean cruise, it may pay you to google each island you are visiting beforehand and see if there is something there that you either did not know about before, or only found out about it last time you were there after someone told you when back on board what they had done there that day. I used to hear all sorts of stories in the Diamond Lounge from people who had stood on a beach with planes coming in just feet above them, so I goggled it and when I went back to St Maarten I was able to get the bus to that beach and experience people being blown into the sea for myself. I am sure every island will have something of interest, even if its just a shuttle bus ride to a nice beach for a few hours. Nice to find a little bar and have a drink, sometimes something not available on the ship.

 

As for Labadee, I have done both the Zip Line and the Roller Coaster which need booking in advance to be guaranteed a place.

 

Not been back to Coco Cay since 2014 so cannot comment on the new stuff there, except from what I see which is that you will be getting off a ship that may have a zip line to pay for a bigger zip line. Getting off a ship with a water slide to pay for a bigger water slide. Its up to you, but I would rather spend my dollars on visiting things like waterfalls, caves, mountain tops, nice beaches and bars.

 

One other thing I would suggest is either get a 12 night or above cruise or if  not, then do a B2B with different ports as 7 day or less cruises won't show you the best the Caribbean has to offer.

 

Also, my wife and I are both in our mid to late 50s and although I am in perfect health, my wife is sadly not and gets tired after a few hours of travelling or walking etc, so again, certain factors have to be taken into consideration when deciding what to do at each port of call. If my wife has had a busy day then the next day she may want to stay on board and chill, so planning the right amount of trips verses rest time also comes into play as you get a bit older or are not as well as you used to be.

 

Lastly, dodgy ports of call. I have been lucky in the past to have always found nice people on board to talk to on cruise ships who have been to ports we may not have been to yet and sometimes its possible to either go ashore with them or at least to listen to what they say about the port and take their advice. 

Crime is fairly low around those parts as some of the islands need and depend heavily on money from tourists, so robbing/killing them is counter productive and is taken seriously by the local authorities. But... sometimes you can get overrun with local people trying to sell you things including rides to exotic beaches which may not be the best the island has to offer. All of this can leave a lasting impression and influence your choice not to get off at that port again. Luckily for me, I have not had these issues, but I have seen other people get taken in by them and also heard stories from passengers later on during the cruise.

 

I hope this helps,.

 

Mick.

 

 

Excellent points. It is hard to envision anyone who would fly a great distance to an exotic locale and then not actually visit the place they traveled to and instead hole up on the boat. That makes as much sense as flying across the ocean to stay at a mid-range hotel in Rome, Paris or London and never leaving it.  

[kelkel2]

On 4/17/2023 at 9:21 AM, George C said:

We have done about 60 Caribbean cruises and the older I get (73 currently) the more I want to just stay on the ship, nothing is crowded , drink package is included on our cruises and we also do music charters that have great entertainment even in port . 

I absolutely would. 
My husband and I have been on a few cruises and my kids just went on their first. So we’re kind of starting over on ports and going places knowing our kids have never been. But as things become repetitive I would not even hesitate to stay on the ship.  I always say I book for the ship and the ports are a bonus. 

[Mick B]

Hi,

I normally do this...

Find a cruise to ports we want to visit.

Find a ship that has all the entertainment/facilities we want/require.

Find the best time of the year to go and the best price we can find.

 

The whole holiday is a holiday.

We normally travel down to London and stay in a nice hotel and go out for a nice meal. Then get the best flights at times that suite us to NYC or Miami and again stay in a nice hotel overnight and go out and have another nice meal. Then get on the ship. Spend a few days at sea enjoying and discovering everything it has to offer, then getting off at just about every port of call and enjoying everything it has to offer.

My wife and I are not rich people and work hard and therefore have to make sure that we enjoy every second of every day we are on holiday whilst we can afford to do it and still have our health.

That doesn't mean we have to rush around doing everything, just the things we want to do and those can be planned for beforehand by simply spending a little time checking up on what's available during your cruise before you go on it.

 

Off the top of my head in the past I have done the following things at the following ports of call.

 

Done a submarine trip to bottom of the sea at Barbados (via cruise line).

Done a Zip Line at St Lucia (via cruise line).

Also, done the walk into Castries on other occasions.

Done a Helicopter ride to Montserrat from Antigua (via cruise line).

Done tour to Nelson's dockyard at Antigua (via local van) on other occasions.

Done island tour of St Kitts (via local transport).

Done tour to Maho Beach at St Maarten (via local bus/van)

Also had drinks at hard Rock Cafe on some occasions.

Done the tour to Magens Bay at St Thomas (via local bus/van)

Visited the Pina Colada pub in San Juan on foot (not far from ship).

Done the Zip Line at Labadee on one occasion and the Dragon's Tail roller coaster on another and just swam in the lovely sea too.

In fact the beach at Labadee is one of the best and easiest to reach as the ship pulls up less then 5 minutes from it.

 

These are just some, but not all of the things I have done. I do try to use local transport, not only to save money, but to also support the local folk. I do however, sometimes have to use the ship's tours for things that are just impossible to do yourself (like helicopter rides and zip lines) or where you risk losing your money if the ship cannot dock at the port of call for whatever reason. I would say if the cruise lines prices are only a few dollars more, then book through them as you will get either a refund or a cruise credit if things don't go to plan.  

 

I can normally find something new to discover at each repeat port of call. However, coming from the UK, we have only visited the Caribbean about 5 times in the last 15 years as we also get to do Europe and the Baltics (well we did before Feb 2022!).

I do try to alternate things to avoid going back to the same places too closely so that I can look forward to enjoying them again.

 

Lastly, anyone who gets on a cruise is a lucky person. You simply cannot find what a cruise ship holiday offers on land. All the food, entertainment and destinations. Enjoy it whilst you can! 

 

Mick.

Edited April 21, 2023 by Mick B

[Rxtosail]

I love both options of staying on or getting off the ship and just going with the flow of life. 

Edited April 30, 2023 by Rxtosail

[ExpatBride]

I always stay on the ship during port days. I sail for the scenery (Norway) and I love being on the ship when most people are ashore.

[Lois R]

Hi George, I have done it multiple times.......actually I was on a Caribbean Cruise back in January and never got off the ship😀I agree with whoever posted about it being my vacation, my money, my time.......do what makes you happy! Now, it is only in the Caribbean that staying on board all the time appeals to me. When I cruise "across the pond", I always disembark because I love seeing places around the world. I am going on a British Isles cruise in August and have a lot of excursions booked🙂It will be my first time visiting every port on the itinerary!

[George C]

On 4/30/2023 at 8:04 AM, Lois R said:

Hi George, I have done it multiple times.......actually I was on a Caribbean Cruise back in January and never got off the ship😀I agree with whoever posted about it being my vacation, my money, my time.......do what makes you happy! Now, it is only in the Caribbean that staying on board all the time appeals to me. When I cruise "across the pond", I always disembark because I love seeing places around the world. I am going on a British Isles cruise in August and have a lot of excursions booked🙂It will be my first time visiting every port on the itinerary!

Totally agree we always get off and do excursions most of the time in Europe.

[happy cruzer]

Some vacation, some travel, we do a bit of both....

[ecs66]

If the ports are those that we've seen before we stay on the ship.  Port days on the ship are great!

[evandbob]

It's good to see people pointing out that there are many things to do on an isle by getting away from the immediate port area and exploring.

 

I am amused by folk who say they've been to a port 10 times and "seen everything" but have never left the port area.  Of course that gets old!  Go to a beach, hike a mountain, dunk under a waterfall, eat local food in a local restaurant, experience the island culture and vibe.

 

Restricting oneself to the port area with its chain stores and restaurants is well, restricting, and far from seeing it all..

[happy cruzer]

A bit off topic -

 

How many cruises do you have booked?  Even though they are going to the same ports in many cases.  With the recent inflation, we decided to hold some cruises.  We have 5 on hold, never had more than 2 before.  And when we reprice them notice that holding them was a good idea prices are going UP. 

 

Try to get refundable deposits or deposits that will turn into future cruise credits if changes are needed.  Also we currently have medical insurance that covers out of county.

 

 

[CHEZMARYLOU]

The ship is our destination when on a Caribbean cruise. We've stayed on board for the last 5 or so cruises.

[Sailin Gal]

Yes, have done this.  Had been to the ports previously, we needed an ‘unplugged from work’ vaca, and got a good deal on a cruise from a port we could drive to. It was a wonderful do-nothing week.

[Mike981]

Yeppers. Last cruise we "had" plans to do things on shore, but our room and some special places on the ship were so fun that we just stayed on the ship and enjoyed the peacefulness.

[MissP22]

On 4/17/2023 at 10:21 AM, George C said:

We have done about 60 Caribbean cruises and the older I get (73 currently) the more I want to just stay on the ship, nothing is crowded , drink package is included on our cruises and we also do music charters that have great entertainment even in port . 

We're like you having done many Caribbean cruises and hardly get off the ship any longer. There's really nothing for us left to see plus spending money on tours or taxi fares just isn't worth seeing the same things over and over again. 

The ship is practically empty, no chair hogs and the buffet crowd is minimal. It's a good time to catch up on my movies and wait for the pier runners.

[Mike981]

2 hours ago, MissP22 said:

 

The ship is practically empty, no chair hogs and the buffet crowd is minimal. It's a good time to catch up on my movies and wait for the pier runners.

 

 

We enjoy that as well. Years ago we were watching for runners and I couldn't believe how many people (hundreds) were just taking a leisurely stroll and I was actually getting nervous for them. I told my wife and she said, "they are going on another ship you can't see, the pier splits to the left." Another proud moment.