Hello
My family and I are frequent cruisers (well, more my parents, but they like to take us kids still) and I've been to the Caribbean 4 times on cruises. I'm a frequent cruiser with Royal Caribbean so I might be a little bias, but I'll keep the tips general
- Don't worry about sea sickness. The ships are so big these days that the rocking is not very noticeable. However, if you are really concerned about seasickness, request a cabin in the centre of the ship and on a lower deck. However, the wedding suits are generally on the top decks, but I assure sea sickness shouldn't be a problem
- The one problem I don't like about Fort Lauderdale departures is that the cruise ship centre is about an hour away from the airport. Price check for shuttles from your hotel to the port, sometimes it's cheaper to use the option of having your cruise arrange it, sometimes you find a better deal.
- Arrive in Fort Lauderdale a day early before your cruise. This is just in case for delays or if the flight loses your luggage. Boarding usually begins at around 1 or so, so it's really tight to get to Florida from Calgary on the same day.
- Do your homework about the cruise line you want to go on. They are all different and cater to different crowds. Carnival is the entry level one and generally more of a young people crowd. Royal Caribbean is geared towards families and have the biggest and most innovative ships. However, they also have the most people on board. Princess/Holland America is geared more on the older crowd and may not have as many activities to do on board as the other 2 previous mentioned ships. However, they have the better food and service and generally more upper scale. For ports, all of them usually go to the same ones and the port activities don't vary too much from ship to ship
- September-November is the cheapest time for cruises to the Caribbean, but that is due to it being hurricane season. Cruise ships will avoid bad weather and may change their destinations but you won't get jipped on the number of ports. However, you might get rainy port days during those months
- No matter which ship you go on, there will always be food, all the time. For a romantic time, I recommend requesting a private table for dinner seating (unless you wouldn't mind meeting new people). Also, I prefer 2nd seating to have dinner later in the evening to give you more time to enjoy your day.
I can't think of anything else off the top of my head, but feel free to message me if you have any questions
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