Originally Posted by
SonofaBish
I think the mixed reviews come from everyone's own personal preference on what a "vacation" is..... I have absolutely NO interest in just sitting on a beach and drinking for 6-7 days.... so the all-inclusive resorts do me nothing... and if i'm gonig to sit on my butt, i'll do so in front of my television at home, and save myself a ton of money. I like to relax some, but also see different places, etc.
As for departures - I've gone out of Miami to the Caribbean, Fort Lauderdate to the Caribbean, San Juan to the Southern Caribbean, NYC to Bermuda/Caribbean, and Los Angeles to Hawaii... My parents have been on WAY more than me, including Austrailia/New Zealand, Tahiti, Alaska, etc...... I don't really know of any places to avoid, but I would make suggestions on where to go....
Bermuda is the greatest place i've ever been (partially the reason for my suggestion to the OP). Hawaii is nice, but not worth the money. There's nothing there that you can't get within a couple hour plane ride, so no need to go all that way. If you would like to do some bargain shopping as well as beach and other stuff, the Eastern Caribbean is a good choice. St. Thomas and St. Maarteen are famous for the fact that you can get jewelry, watches and liquor at less than 1/2 the cost of the States..... I've never done a Western Caribbean run, which is why we're doing that in January.
If you're interested in the destination, go to Bermuda. You can do a 6 night cruise out of Baltimore that spends 3 days in Bermuda. That would be spectacular. The one we're doing in January is out of Fort Lauderdale, but we're doing it because of the ship, which is another factor in the decision ... The Allure and Oasis (both Royal Caribbean ships) are BY FAR the largest in the world, and are floating cities. We've been on the Allure one time in the past (its the ship we're doing in Jan), and its an experience like no other.... The other ships are all great too, but once you've been on these two, the rest will seem outdated.
Another thing you want to consider is demographics. Royal Caribbean is a good middle-ground, both cost and demographics. There will be some kids, some old people, but mostly middle aged, with enough people my age (late 20's). Pricess cruises (which i've done 2 of) is mostly an older crowd - probably 80% of it is 55+, with only a few kids - middle priced. Celebrity (owned by Royal Caribbean) is mostly older crowd, withe VERY few kids... Higher-middle priced..... Carnival is a more family oriented, with lots of kids, but low priced... Then you have lines line Holland America, which is a MUCH older crowd from what i've heard, but never expereinced it myself.... Oh, and Disney, which is pretty high priced and its obvious who its geared towards
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