Xmas cruise, family of 5? Warm enough?

[cindyleigh]

I guess I've got a couple of questions, actually.

First, our kids will be (NEXT Christmas): 2 boys, 23 and 21 years old. One daughter, 16

We have all been one one 5 day CArnival Western Carribean cruise before, except oldest.

We'd like to cruise around Dec. 20 NEXT year. We won't have many more Christmases when we are all together. (some day not too far off we will be competing with in-laws!)

We are looking at 7 day Carribean cruises. Some ports include Charlotte Amalie, S. Maartin, Aruba, etc. I see the ave temp is around 80 and it's rainy season in Dec.

Will it be too cold then to enjoy the outdoor areas of the ship? Will our in-port acitvities get rained out? I'm looking at RC, that ship with the surfing wave gadget, and I don't want to spend all that $ if it's too cold to enjoy.

 

Next, what is the best configuration? We're thinking outside for mom, dad, and daughter, with inside acros hallway for boys.

 

Are there any lines that are more family-friendly, regarding staterooms, than others? Would it cost the same for a small family suite vs two different cabins? (the four of us were in one cabin last time)

 

I know it's much more expensive at XMAs, but it's the only time all 3 kids have the same time off from school.

 

Thanks for any advice, ideas!

[GTO-Girl]

We've taken that same route in February and doing it again this February. The temps were around 85 degrees and it was fabulous!!!

[Tanker4]

Agree with the above poster. We've taken quite a few cruises to the

Caribbean in Jan/Feb and the weather has always been great. We just got back from a 10 day last week and it was in the mid 80's every day. Had a couple of brief showers but no lingering rain. You will have a great time. Don't worry about the weather as this time of year, there won't be any humidity and that's a good thing.:).

[cindyleigh]

Agree with the above poster. We've taken quite a few cruises to the

Caribbean in Jan/Feb and the weather has always been great. We just got back from a 10 day last week and it was in the mid 80's every day. Had a couple of brief showers but no lingering rain. You will have a great time. Don't worry about the weather as this time of year, there won't be any humidity and that's a good thing.:).

REally? Curacao lists an ave of over 3 inches of rain in December.

With an ave temp of 79, was it too cold to use the outdoor amenities, like pool, mini golf, rock climbing, etc?

When we cruised in FEb. to Mexico some days it was chilly on the upper sports decks. I'm thinking Dec. cold be worse. None of us are the "stay indoors" kind.

[cb at sea]

While it may be the "rainy" season, the temps will be summer-ish--it's the tropics, after all! In the evenings, you may need a light jacket/sweater....if you're on deck in the wind, but in the daytime, you'll be tanning and toasty!

[Gonzo70]

REally? Curacao lists an ave of over 3 inches of rain in December.

With an ave temp of 79, was it too cold to use the outdoor amenities, like pool, mini golf, rock climbing, etc?

When we cruised in FEb. to Mexico some days it was chilly on the upper sports decks. I'm thinking Dec. cold be worse. None of us are the "stay indoors" kind.

 

I am curious where you are from that 79 would seem too cold for mini golf and rock climbing?

 

Although the temperature will be a few degrees cooler in December than during the summer, it is still warm/hot by my standards. In the Caribbean showers are not uncommon (it is the tropics) but usually they pass fairly quickly and the sun tends to shine for a good part of the day most days. While you are likely to see some rain, it is doubtful you would have rain most of the time. Royal Caribbean ships do have tons of activities, so even if the weather turns out to not be ideal, there is still much to do. I would think that booking two staterooms versus one suite would be the cheaper route to go, but this may vary for some sailings.

 

Hope you have a nice vacation. :)

[cruisinbuddy]

As far as warm enough, go with a western or southern itin. They tend to be a bit warmer than the eastern.

[Tanker4]

REally? Curacao lists an ave of over 3 inches of rain in December.

With an ave temp of 79, was it too cold to use the outdoor amenities, like pool, mini golf, rock climbing, etc?

When we cruised in FEb. to Mexico some days it was chilly on the upper sports decks. I'm thinking Dec. cold be worse. None of us are the "stay indoors" kind.

 

The cruise you asked about in your original post lists ports in the Eastern Caribbean. Correct me if I'm wrong, but Mexico is Western. We were in Antigua, St Kitt's, St Marteen and Tortola last week and the weather was great. Have also been there in Jan/Feb and it was about the same.

[kitty9]

Unless you're from Arizona, why would you feel that temps in the 80's would be too cold for being outdoors? It will also feel warm because it's humid in those areas, so you shouldn't have a problem being outside. As for the rain, some of what you're reading could be the rain in the hilly/mountainous areas of the islands and not on the beaches. Plus, the rains are brief, albeit sometimes heavy, but they do last maybe 20 to 30 minutes at the most.

[alicam]

REally? Curacao lists an ave of over 3 inches of rain in December.

With an ave temp of 79, was it too cold to use the outdoor amenities, like pool, mini golf, rock climbing, etc?

When we cruised in FEb. to Mexico some days it was chilly on the upper sports decks. I'm thinking Dec. cold be worse. None of us are the "stay indoors" kind.

 

Not a lot of rain spread out of 31 days...and as for heat, I would love a cold day of 79 in December...I would kill for that when all I see is snow and spent 30 hours at work because all the roads were closed...

 

You can't judge what may happen a year from now

[Nebr.cruiser]

Unless you get really, really unlucky, almost anywhere in the Caribbean will be nice and warm. We've sailed Southern, Eastern and Western routes several times, all in December or January, and never had really cool days. It might be a little cool sailing out of Miama--or not--depending on weather patterns, but normally we're talking 70 ish, not 40 ish.

 

Normal days temps for most of our cruises ranged from 72-90's. The Southern route is the warmest, usually. We had slight showers in the rain forest on Dominica, and, weirdly while docking in Aruba, just this month. They were tropical showers, not lasting long. Except in rain forest areas, we've never encountered significant, all-day rainfall. Maybe we're just lucky!

 

Coolest ports to sail from in December are Galveston and S. California, or, of course, any of the more northern ports.

 

Sometimes I need a jacket at night if I'm on deck, but the only days at sea that were too cool for swimming, etc., for me, were out of Galveston and San Diego.

[AmoMondo]

I've been in the caribbean various times from late december through to late march and have always found it warm enough. temperature usually in the mid to high twenties 9centigrade that is). The sea has been warm enough to bathe in. Sure there is the occasional rain shower 9usually a heavy burst that doesn't last that long) but it is sunshine the rest of the time. Plus it is also late enough after the hurricane season, for it all to be over and any mess cleared up by then.