Caribbean cruise guide

By Douglas Ward

The Caribbean is the most popular cruise area in the world. Such is the demand for Caribbean cruises that cruise lines operate all year round, although they are most popular during the cold winter months in the UK.
 

Going to the Caribbean by cruise ship offers a chance to visit several islands in the space of a week or two, whereas trying to do the same thing by flying and staying in hotels and paying for island transport takes a lot more work – and is always more expensive. In other words, a Caribbean cruise offers fantastic value.
 

Naturally, the Caribbean holds huge attraction for children because of all those beaches (Antigua, for example, claims to have a beach for each day of the year), as well as activities such as the possibility of swimming with dolphins and horse-riding on the beach.
 

Departure ports

Caribbean cruises depart from one of the gateway ports in Florida (such as Miami, Fort Lauderdale or Port Canaveral), from ports around the Florida Panhandle (such as St. Petersburg or Tampa), or even from New Orleans (Louisiana), or Galveston (Texas).
 

Alternatively, your cruise may start from one of the islands, such as Barbados, or from Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic), with direct flights from the UK.
  
Although there are over 7,000 islands in the Caribbean, there are basically three Caribbean cruise and geographic regions: eastern, western and southern.
 
Eastern Caribbean cruises
 Cruises typically include the Leeward and Windward Isles, with ports such as Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Martinique, Puerto Rico, St Croix, St Kitts, St Maarten, St Lucia and St Thomas.
 
Western Caribbean cruises
 Cruises typically include the Cayman Islands, Jamaica, and Mexico.

Southern Caribbean cruises
 Cruises typically include the Netherlands Antilles (Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao), Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, and possibly La Guaira (the port for Caracas, Venezuela), Tortola.
 
When to go

You can cruise the Caribbean year-round, but the best time is between November and May (although prices are typically slightly higher then).
 
June 10 to November 30 is the official hurricane season in the Caribbean (including Bermuda and the Bahamas). Note that cruise ships may change course quickly to avoid storms or other weather problems, which can also mean a change of ports or itinerary. However, if a cruise line needs to change course, or abort a port call due to weather-related problems, they are under no obligation to pay compensation of any kind.
 
“Private” islands

Some cruise lines also include a beach day on a “private island” either owned or leased in The Bahamas or the Dominican Republic. Disney Cruise Line, for example, has its own private island experience at the pirate-sounding “Castaway Cay”. But because it costs a lot for cruise lines to develop these island experiences, renting watersports equipment (such as sunfish sailboats), float beds or family cabanas can be pretty costly. Still, if you don’t go too often, these things should all be part of your holiday experience.
 
Many Caribbean island beaches can be overrun with hustlers and hawkers, so having a private island experience is hassle-free – including security – so there’s no fear of being mugged, which can, and does, happen on some Caribbean islands.
 
The best private island experiences for families with children include Castaway Cay (Disney Cruise Line), and Labadee (Royal Caribbean cruises). Best for adults are arguably Half Moon Cay (Holland America Line) and Princess Cays (Princess Cruises).
 
On-shore activities

Cruise lines now offer an enormous range of activities ashore. You can go mountain biking in Antigua (about $60), go on an off-road 4x4 jeep safari in Tortola (about $90), go swimming with dolphins in The Bahamas (about $175), go on a nine-mile Bob Marley tour in Montego Bay, Jamaica (about $100), or zip-line over a tropical forest canopy in Belize (about $85). You can also go deep-sea fishing (about $150-200), take a sail and snorkel trip in Barbados (about $75), or go on a two-tank scuba dive in Barbados costs about $125.
 
Cruising excursions: 50 of the best

How long to go for

If you don’t have time to do a seven-day or longer cruise, you could try a short three- or four-day jaunt (known as a “taster” cruise) to the Bahamas, which are useful if you are already holidaying in Florida, for example. These may include a one-day “private” island experience, with ships sailing from Miami, Port Everglades (Fort Lauderdale) or Port Canaveral (Orlando), from where you could also combine a cruise with a stay at a theme-park resort in Orlando.
 
Alternatively, you can also leave the UK winter behind by sailing from the UK (and cruise or fly back from somewhere like Antigua, Barbados or Santa Domingo) aboard the ships of Cruise & Maritime Voyages, Cunard Cruises, Fred Olsen Cruise Lines and P&O Cruises, depending on the cruise length and programmes featured.
 
Which cruise line to opt for

Nearly all the major cruise lines (Carnival Cruise Lines, Celebrity Cruises, Costa Cruises, Holland America Line, MSC Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line, Princess Cruises and Royal Caribbean International) sail to and in the Caribbean (all except Costa Cruises and MSC Cruises are year-round). A few cruise lines, however, have recently stopped their fly-cruises, such as Fred Olsen, citing the rising cost of air travel.
 
The ships really are large moving resorts in themselves, carrying up to 5,400 passengers.
 
My choice

For families with children: Carnival Cruise Lines, Disney Cruise Line, and Royal Caribbean International.
 
For entertainment and activity: Carnival Cruise Lines and Norwegian Cruise Line.
 
Mature adults: Holland America Line, and Princess Cruises.

For relaxation: for a slightly less hectic experience, try one of the lesser-known cruise lines like Azamara Club Cruises, Oceania Cruises, or Regent Seven Seas Cruises.
 
For luxury: for a more “upscale”, country club experience – including higher quality food and more personal service – try one of the boutique/small ships of SeaDream Yacht Club, Silversea Cruises, or The Yachts of Seabourn, with between 100 and 600 passengers.
 
For affordable/good value cruises: Celebrity Cruises; MSC Cruises; Norwegian Cruise Line; Princess Cruises
 
For something different: the sail-cruise tall ships of Sea Cloud Cruises, Star Clippers or Windstar Cruises (the ships sail from Barbados or St. Martin) may prove to be a delightful alternative, given their unstructured and slower-paced onboard lifestyle. Windstar Cruises’ ships also have a few watersports toys, and an aft marina platform (normally offered once per cruise).
 Telegraph