Some cruise guidance needed

badbnagdway

People ask us all the time what we are doing for our honeymoon, and my response is that we haven't had time to think about it and it will just depend on the budget situation as we get closer. Our wedding is next May. My fiance really wants to go on a cruise and I'm not opposed to that idea but I've never been on one so I don't know a lot about them. Like everyone else, I read about those cruise horror stories all the time. I would also be content doing something more locally, like driving to the mountains (plentiful destinations within 3 hours drive) and just relaxing in a nice cabin for a few days. 

Anyway, my fiance had dinner with his cousin last night and I guess he told the cousin we are considering doing a cruise. The cousin said that he and the other cousins (five of them) would all chip in and pay for it. This is extremely extremely generous and I don't know whether it will come to fruition or not. 

I decided I better get a better idea of what a cruise would cost and where we might want to go in case this is a serious offer. We don't live near a port city so we'd have to fly to one, I think a Florida city would be the easiest. I've looked some at travel sites but it doesn't seem like many cruises are available in May, maybe because it's too far off? I'm just wanting to get an idea of what this would all look like. What travel sites are good for finding crusies, and are there any cruise lines to stay away from?

Jells2dot0

Check this out to see if it helps:

http://forums.theknot.com/discussion/1033912/cruise-tips-from-the-cruise-queen#latest

It's a post at the top of this forum.

mlg78

I love cruising! We just got home from one this past Sunday and we leave for another a month from today!  I book directly with Royal Caribbean.  I don't like dealing with travel agents as I want to control my booking myself and not deal with a middle man (the TA).  Travelocity is a good site for searching for cruises but I prefer booking directly with the cruise line.  I like that they give the option of pricing per night to sort because I want to get the best deal possible.

For our honeymoon we flew to San Juan, PR and did a 7 night cruise to the Southern Caribbean (St. Maarten, St. Kitts, Antigua, St. Lucia and Barbados).  It was a very port intensive cruise and we only had one day at sea.  We loved every minute of it!  My only regret is that I didn't research the ports a bit more to know what to do going into it...but I was a little busy planning the wedding

This past cruise we left from Galveston, TX which I didn't like at all but that was my complaint with the port and not Royal Caribbean.  We had a wonderful cruise again traveling to Roatan, Belize and Cozumel.  This cruise we purchased beverages packages.  I'm a pretty big drinker but I struggled to get my money's worth.  I actually kept track of drinks and I didn't get my money's worth until 4pm on Saturday and we left the ship Sunday at 9am...

I know you mentioned leaving from Florida...  I found cheap flights on Southwest for our flight to Orlando for our cruise out of Port Canaveral in December. Miami, Tampa, Ft Lauderdale are all a little easier to cruise from because you don't have to travel a good distance to the port like you do with Port Canaveral...which is partially why I also disliked cruising out of Galveston, Texas. 

Feel free to ask more specific questions!

CMGragain

If you PM me, I will share my cruise travel agent.  I have booked my last 7 cruises with him, and he is very knowledgeable.  You just telephone him during business hours and he will answer all your questions. There is no obligation to book through him.  (I'm the Cruise Queen.)
Carnival Cruise Lines is the largest and cheapest, but if you can afford just a little more, I recommend going with another line like Royal Caribbean or Princess.

CMGragain

mlg78 said:

I love cruising! We just got home from one this past Sunday and we leave for another a month from today!  I book directly with Royal Caribbean.  I don't like dealing with travel agents as I want to control my booking myself and not deal with a middle man (the TA).  Travelocity is a good site for searching for cruises but I prefer booking directly with the cruise line.  I like that they give the option of pricing per night to sort because I want to get the best deal possible.

For our honeymoon we flew to San Juan, PR and did a 7 night cruise to the Southern Caribbean (St. Maarten, St. Kitts, Antigua, St. Lucia and Barbados).  It was a very port intensive cruise and we only had one day at sea.  We loved every minute of it!  My only regret is that I didn't research the ports a bit more to know what to do going into it...but I was a little busy planning the wedding

This past cruise we left from Galveston, TX which I didn't like at all but that was my complaint with the port and not Royal Caribbean.  We had a wonderful cruise again traveling to Roatan, Belize and Cozumel.  This cruise we purchased beverages packages.  I'm a pretty big drinker but I struggled to get my money's worth.  I actually kept track of drinks and I didn't get my money's worth until 4pm on Saturday and we left the ship Sunday at 9am...

I know you mentioned leaving from Florida...  I found cheap flights on Southwest for our flight to Orlando for our cruise out of Port Canaveral in December. Miami, Tampa, Ft Lauderdale are all a little easier to cruise from because you don't have to travel a good distance to the port like you do with Port Canaveral...which is partially why I also disliked cruising out of Galveston, Texas. 

Feel free to ask more specific questions!

I respectfully disagree.  The prices for most cruises (I've been on 17) are several hundred dollars higher if you book directly through the cruise line.  Booking a cruise without a travel agent is like going to court without a lawyer.  Most cruises are fine, but if something DOES go wrong, you will be standing in a long line at the front desk trying to get it straightened out.  I just text or telephone my travel agent, who works for a huge discount company, and he calls the cruise line and fixes it.  (Travel agents have a special call-in line so they don't get put on hold forever.)  The cruise line doesn't want to piss off a company that books thousands of cruises every year for them!  There is no advantage to booking directly with the cruise line, and there are a few perks for booking through a major travel agency.  (Free wine, cruise credits)
ALL ON-LINE BOOKING SITES ARE TRAVEL AGENCIES!  This includes Expedia, Travelocity, Sam's Club, Costco, etc.

mlg78

CMGragain said:

mlg78 said:

I love cruising! We just got home from one this past Sunday and we leave for another a month from today!  I book directly with Royal Caribbean.  I don't like dealing with travel agents as I want to control my booking myself and not deal with a middle man (the TA).  Travelocity is a good site for searching for cruises but I prefer booking directly with the cruise line.  I like that they give the option of pricing per night to sort because I want to get the best deal possible.

For our honeymoon we flew to San Juan, PR and did a 7 night cruise to the Southern Caribbean (St. Maarten, St. Kitts, Antigua, St. Lucia and Barbados).  It was a very port intensive cruise and we only had one day at sea.  We loved every minute of it!  My only regret is that I didn't research the ports a bit more to know what to do going into it...but I was a little busy planning the wedding

This past cruise we left from Galveston, TX which I didn't like at all but that was my complaint with the port and not Royal Caribbean.  We had a wonderful cruise again traveling to Roatan, Belize and Cozumel.  This cruise we purchased beverages packages.  I'm a pretty big drinker but I struggled to get my money's worth.  I actually kept track of drinks and I didn't get my money's worth until 4pm on Saturday and we left the ship Sunday at 9am...

I know you mentioned leaving from Florida...  I found cheap flights on Southwest for our flight to Orlando for our cruise out of Port Canaveral in December. Miami, Tampa, Ft Lauderdale are all a little easier to cruise from because you don't have to travel a good distance to the port like you do with Port Canaveral...which is partially why I also disliked cruising out of Galveston, Texas. 

Feel free to ask more specific questions!

I respectfully disagree.  The prices for most cruises (I've been on 17) are several hundred dollars higher if you book directly through the cruise line.  Booking a cruise without a travel agent is like going to court without a lawyer.  Most cruises are fine, but if something DOES go wrong, you will be standing in a long line at the front desk trying to get it straightened out.  I just text or telephone my travel agent, who works for a huge discount company, and he calls the cruise line and fixes it.  (Travel agents have a special call-in line so they don't get put on hold forever.)  The cruise line doesn't want to piss off a company that books thousands of cruises every year for them!  There is no advantage to booking directly with the cruise line, and there are a few perks for booking through a major travel agency.  (Free wine, cruise credits)
ALL ON-LINE BOOKING SITES ARE TRAVEL AGENCIES!  This includes Expedia, Travelocity, Sam's Club, Costco, etc.

I know that you cruise different cruise lines but Royal Caribbean's prices are the same with TAs or booking directly with them.  The only difference is that some TAs might offer small perks (bottle of champagne, a specialty dinner restaurant, etc.).  I originally had my Alaska cruise in May booked through a travel agent but after I found two price drops and she was impossible to reach to get those new prices, I cancelled with her and booked on my own.  Many problems that may arise can be handled by yourself if you're prepared.  On our cruise last week my best friend and I both booked directly with RCI.  Her on board credit amount from the promo when she booked was incorrect.  I had the paperwork to prove it, she didn't.  Mine was corrected...and she's battling it out now after the fact.  TA vs booking directly is a personal preference.  There's no right or wrong way.  If you go the TA route, just make sure you use someone who specializes in cruises.

CMGragain

Sounds like you had a bad travel agent!  My agent responds 7 days a week, though he is only in the office Mon. - Fri. 

PS.  I will share my agent with anybody who PMs me.  There is nothing in it for me, but I want him to stay in business.  He has saved me a lot of money!