We are looking for a 5 day cruise somewhere in the carribbean in Oct of this year any recommendations for ports or cruise lines. I think we want to go to the bahammas for scuba diving but other then that were open to anywhere else.

I was going to say not a bahamas fan but you seem to agree. I have been on two, one to Grand Cayman, Jamaica, and Cozumel, and the other one to Aruba, Dominia, St. Thomas, and Barbados. I would recommend the latter more, but it was a 7 day. I have also been on a bahamas 5 day one and I like the 7 days more.

Be VERY VERY careful of taking a cruise in September / October = Hurricane season. That's why cruises are typically cheaper that time of year.

If you are willing to hold out and take a bit of a chance, you can get really good deals on www.vacationstogo.com. They post cruises 90 days out.

I've been on 6 cruises....4 Royal Caribbean, 1 Princess, 1 Carnival.

The Carnival cruise was when I was like 13 years old.....4 Royal Caribbean's between 14-22 years old, 1 Princess cruise last year at 23 years old...Just to give you an idea of how long ago it was, and at what age I was on the ship (Carnival the fun party ship wasn't that awesome at 13 years old).

From my experience, Royal Caribbean is the way to go...Middle of the road in price, but I preferred it to Carnival (from what I remember) as well as Princess.

I've been to many ports....Some memorable one's:

Grand Cayman - great island, swim with the stingrays here
Jamaica - nice island, poor area, safe but a little scary, climb the waterfall there
St Thomas and St. Maarten - Very clean, nice islands with a lot of shopping and beaches

I went to some Bahama Islands, they were not too nice....very dirty, this was several years ago. A popular port of many cruises is Roatan, Honduras....There were little flea-like bugs everywhere...Everyone on the ship had little bites all over them, I would not get off the ship if I ever went back....

I would avoid the Bahamas was there about 2 years ago on a Carnival cruise and it was dirty and the locals wouldn't leave you alone to buy stuff. Very disappointing.

hmm good info about the hurricanes we want to go in oct because thats when my girlfriends dad turns 60 and her brother turns 30 but i will have to let them know about that as well

Been on two cruises and as far as ports, St. Thomas was by far the most enjoyable one. Just very clean, beautiful scenery, good shopping and didn't get hassled much. With that said, I haven't been to one port that I didn't enjoy. Jamaica had people in your face the whole time, but you just have to be able to blow them off.

Don't do the bahamas. i was thoroughly unimpressed. St. Lucia, Barbados, St. Thomas, Antigua, these are the places you want to go.

I've heard good things about Holland America cruise lines.

BRF's wife is a Cruise Specialist who arranges trips.....for real....at good prices. Give me a pm if you are interested.

BTW, Jamaica is the shit-hole of the world. The people touching you and trying to sell you stuff...yuk! (And watch out for that "walk the falls" tour, as they will follow you with a camera and then at the end demand big money and tip.....just say "NO"...and then you get to walk a gauntlet of vendors on your way out...touching you!...it's called Dundee Falls...avoid it) Also, I agree that the Bahamas is not that good. My vote for best is St. Maarten with a nice beach and shopping in the same location. St. Thomas is good, too. FYI, any US territory you visit, you can use your cell phone on normal charges.

Be VERY VERY careful of taking a cruise in September / October = Hurricane season. That's why cruises are typically cheaper that time of year

Cruises are cheaper because typically kids go back to school and there is less demand. Hurricanes are NOT a problem as the ships can steer around/away from them, although they may cause your itinerary to change if one is in the area.

HitsRus;632772 wrote: Hurricanes are NOT a problem as the ships can steer around/away from them, although they may cause your itinerary to change if one is in the area.

AND, they have these huge stabilizer bars that shoot out sideways from the front of the ship. Also, the ships are very fast and can out run weather or even PIRATES!

AND, they have these huge stabilizer bars that shoot out sideways from the front of the ship. Also, the ships are very fast and can out run weather

The stabilizers can keep the ship from rocking even in relatively rough seas.

I am going to have to disagree with you about Jamaica a bit. Climbing the falls at Dunn's River was an absolute hoot, and was a most exhilirating experience. We climbed the falls in a tropical thunderstorm.....there was water pouring on us from everywhere! Yes, we bought the video, and had it delivered to our ship in time for departure. It is a great souvenir and worth the money we paid for it ($40) The straw market vendors on the way out can be avoided...follow your tour guides directions.

would you choose a port of jamaica or cozumel

^^^You can look up available shore excursions for your cruise online.


Zip line in Jamacia vs. parasailing in Cozumel....kind of a tossup.

I think Cozumel is just nicer in general than Jamaica (Which I feel is really sketch). Either way I'd pay more to go to the Eastern Caribbean and would also look into the extra 2 days, it is worth it.

Hits: I'm glad you had a good time at Dunn's (not Dundee like I said). I wish we could have avoided the exit like you did! However, I would choose Cozumel.

BRF;632730 wrote:BRF's wife is a Cruise Specialist who arranges trips.....for real....at good prices. Give me a pm if you are interested.

BTW, Jamaica is the shit-hole of the world. The people touching you and trying to sell you stuff...yuk! (And watch out for that "walk the falls" tour, as they will follow you with a camera and then at the end demand big money and tip.....just say "NO"...and then you get to walk a gauntlet of vendors on your way out...touching you!...it's called Dundee Falls...avoid it) Also, I agree that the Bahamas is not that good. My vote for best is St. Maarten with a nice beach and shopping in the same location. St. Thomas is good, too. FYI, any US territory you visit, you can use your cell phone on normal charges.

Everything about the waterfalls is true, but I still felt it was worth the climb....We fell for the fake exit the first time, which puts you in the middle of the grabby/pushy vendors....We learned from that mistake and did not fall for the fake exit time the 2nd and 3rd time we were there...

Both Cozumel and Jamaica are great, but even though it seems a bit more dirty and dangerous, I would choose Jamaica. The waterfall climb is awesome, and one of my favorite excursions of all time is in Jamaica....Horseback riding around the island, then into the ocean...I'm sure you can do this many places, but we did it in Jamaica, and while I wasn't expecting much, it was freaking awesome.

Maybe it's just me, but I wasn't that impressed with Duns Falls. Just seemed kind of childish.

In Jamaica we got off the boat and were hassled by all the cabbies. Had one guy ask where we were from and we said Ohio. He then asked if we were from Toledo, Cleveland, Columbus or Cincinnati? We were impressed, so we hopped in his cab. He took us up the mountain and showed us the "real Jamaica". It was a little sketchy, but very cool.

I've been to the Bahamas and loved it. Atlantis is a sight to behold and the whole marina area there. The HUGE Yachts there were amazing = MONEY!!!!!