Caribbean Cruises

The Caribbean is a great place for couples to escape, whether it is for your first visit or second honeymoon. It is by far the most popular cruise destination so there are a huge number of choices. The Caribbean is divided into three itineraries: eastern, western, and southern (explained below) . Please let us know when you fill out our Quote Request Form which itinerary you prefer.

The Caribbean is also great for family vacations too!

Royal Caribbean: Voyager, Explorer, Mariner, Navigator & Adventure of the Seas (best for families)

Disney Magic & Wonder (for families that love Disney)

Radisson Mariner and Navigator (best luxury cruise)

Holland America: Maasdam, Ryndam, Volendam, Veendam and Zuiderdam

• The Eastern Caribbean is St. Thomas, San Juan, and either one or two more ports or private islands. This is more the "shopping" side of the Caribbean, with great stores in both St. Thomas and San Juan. San Juan also has some good sightseeing, and St. Thomas has very good snorkeling places and some excellent beaches. Most ships depart from Miami or Fort Lauderdale, but there are some from Port Canaveral (near Orlando), and along the Eastern seaboard..
  
  
• The Western Caribbean is usually Cozumel, Grand Cayman Island, and Jamaica, again with the possibility of a private island. Some also go to Belize and or Costa Maya a new port developed for cruising. Grand Cayman, Belize and Cozumel have some of the best snorkeling areas in the Caribbean, or you can visit the Mayan ruins near Cozumel. The incredibly large and well-preserved Mayan city of Chichen Itza is also a great historical site near Cancun & Costa Maya. So this is more the "sightseeing" itinerary. Most ships depart from Miami and Fort Lauderdale, and now also from Tampa, Port Canaveral, Galveston and eventually New Orleans again (once reconstruction has been completed).
  
  
• The Southern Caribbean means flying to San Juan then sailing to the smaller, more exotic islands such as St. Maarten, Martinique, Barbados, St. Lucia, etc. There is much more variety on this one as far as the choices of islands, and you will have fewer days at sea. Keep in mind, though, that these islands are not as large or as built up as those on the Eastern or Western itineraries. They do offer straw-market type shopping, in general, and without as many opportunities for sightseeing. Here you mainly are going for the beaches or just to see something different.
  
  We generally recommend that if this is your first time to the Caribbean you start with either the Eastern or Western itineraries, then come back later and try the Southern part of the Caribbean.

For the latest Caribbean and other destination specials see our Great Deals page which is updated daily.

Royal Caribbean:

The new Voyager Class ships and the new Freedom of the Seas are the best to the Caribbean for families! These ships arevery impressive and offer more choices of things to do than any ship afloat. Voyager, Explorer, Navigator,Mariner and Adventure of the Seas are all 142,000 tons some of the largest cruise ship ever built they are is also designed beautifully to make them seem much smaller than they are. They need all that space to offer things like the first ice skating rinks, rock climbing wall, full sized basketball court, and the first four story inside street fair the Royal Promenade (longer than a football field and 3-car lanes wide) with restaurants, bars, shops, parades and street entertainment. You can even get an "atrium view inside cabin" that overlooks the Royal Promenade. Voyager Class also has a sports bar, the largest health & fitness center at sea, the largest and nicest children's center at sea, a jazz club, a 5-story theater, a $12 million art collection, a 2-story library with internet access, an aquarium bar with large tanks that hold 56 tons of saltwater. There are 757 private balcony cabins (80% of the oceanview cabins). The new Freedom of the Seas will be the largest ship afloat when she arrives in 2006 and will offer all the Voyager Class features plu more water features and more family cabins.

For dining there are 3 main dining rooms each on a different level but sharing a common atrium. This is the most beautiful dining rooms we've seen on any ship afloat including all the luxury cruise lines. It is stunning! Voyager also has a smaller, more intimate Euro-Italian restaurant, the Portofino, which is a reservation-only alternative restaurant (cover charge), steakhouses (some ships), a 1950's style diner (Johnny Rockets), an Island Grill and the Windjammer buffet for casual dining, or Cafe Promenade which is on the Royal Promenade and open 24 hours a day. There are also 36 bars, many lounges with music from swing to disco or country. Of course there is a 24-hour ice-cream parlor, a business center with internet access, a 9-hole golf course, an adventure beach with water slide for kids, a 900-seat concert hall that has its own television studio, a wedding chapel, and a huge casino. Voyager Class ships offer a huge number of choices for adults and the children. They are something very special! We were very impressed. Please see our on-line brochure for the Voyager of the Seas for photos and more details on the spectacular new Voyager Class and her identical twins the Explorer, Mariner, Adventure and Navigator of the Seas all doing various Caribbean cruises.

• Voyager, Explorer, Mariner & Navigator of the Seas These Voyager Class ships offer cruises to the Eastern Caribbean and Western Caribbean. They also sail from Miami and from Port Canaveral (Mariner of the Seas).

• The Adventure of the Seas has two Southern Caribbean cruises roundtrip from San Juan. Itineray one is the most common and calls on Aruba, Curacao, St. Maarten & St. Thomas. Itineray two calls on St. Maarten, St. Thomas, Antigua, St. Lucia and Barbados.

RCI has it's own private island called Labadee. Several other lines use Coco Cay (pictured). These private islands are great and a big hit with passengers. Labadee is a lush tropical paradise (much like parts of Hawaii) and our favorite overall.

Celebrity:

• Millennium offers 7-night Eastern Caribbean cruises roundtrip Ft. Lauderdale and her identical sisters the
• Constellation offers a range of 7 to 12-night cruises to the Caribbean in the spring, winter and fall from San Juan, Ft. Lauderdale and New York.
  

Azamara

• Celebrity's new Deluxe Azamara Cruises .

Azamara Journey is a new Deluxe ship offering great high end Canal & Caribbean option. They offer luxury like service, amenities, and dining choices but with cabins still the same size as premium class ships at half of luxury class ships. They also have no formal nights, no smoking, open seating with 3 great restaurant choices.

Great new choices at great values. Similar to Oceania but for a lower price!

Holland America:

ms Noordam, Prinsendam, Westerdam, Veendam, Volendam, Ryndam, Maasdam, Zuiderdam all sail to the Caribbean in the fall, winter & spring. These beautiful mid-sized ships offer a refined atmosphere with fewer kids, great food and service. The amenities in the suites are great. The captain really likes these ships. Please see our on-line brochure for these beautiful Holland America ships.

Princess:

Grand, Star & Golden Princess are our favorite Princess ships and one of our favorites overall. We rate them 5 minus stars (a little below 5 stars). They have several dining choices with the regular dining rooms, plus an Italian Restaurant, and a Southwestern Restaurant. The Horizon Court (buffet) is also open 24 hours and serves a limited sit down menu with table. Crown, and Caribbean Princess - are also good choices but even larer with over 3000 passengers and ranked below our ratings for Celebrity for upscale/premium class and Royal Caribbean's Voyager class for family cruises.

Oceania & Radisson:

Radisson and Oceania have only a few Caribbean cruises very year. They do offer an opportunity to try these upscale luxury products usually at a great price.

Carnival:

Carnival is a great cruise line for the most active fun seekers that want the most active cruise possible and will accept a lower level of food and service to get that unique Fun-ship atmosphere. The ships are much more crowded than Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Holland America or Princess ships which have a more upscale atmosphere with better food and service.

Disney Cruise Line:

• 3,4 or 7 Nights cruises or cruise and Disney hotel packages Take either a 3-night cruise and 4-night Disney World package, or a 4-night cruise and 3-night Disney World package for a great combination. Children traveling as third, fourth, or fifth passengers in the same cabin with two adults go at a much lower rate. Disney is a premium product which charges a premium price - a fact I am sure you know if you've ever visited one of their theme parks.
  
  We recently sailed on the Disney Wonder and think it is a wonderful product for family cruises. The ship is gorgeous and the children programs are outstanding. If you are a couple traveling without children, we would recommend a different cruise line unless you prefer your cruise liberally sprinkled with pixie dust and Disney characters. The children's program on the new Voyager and Explorer of the Seas is as impressive as Disney's program and there is much, much more for the parents to do.

For the latest Caribbean and other destination specials see our Great Deals page which is updated daily.

How to send us questions or quote requests

For a quote request please review our cruise price estimator at Cruise Price Estimator then fill out our quote request form by clicking on the button below.

For questions please email the captain@galaxsea.com. We welcome your feedback too.

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Ramona, CA 92065 (760) 789-9635 or (800) 923-7245 or Fax: (760) 789-7869 email: captain@galaxsea.com