[cordenny]

My husband and I would like to go on a 3 or 4 day cruise in Jan. or Feb. Is it wise to book a cruise early or is it cheaper to wait until it gets closer to the date. Also, we don't want to have to dress in formal attire. Do they have alternatives to eating in the main dining room. We are novices at cruising so any suggestions would be appreciated!!

[calgone]

Go to Ocala travel in Buffalo Ridge. Ask for Teresa. Earlier us better for booking. No need to formal dress.Slacks/ golf shirt/ casual tops are fine any night.

[calgone]

Buffets are good. Pizza and sandwich shops, plenty of places to eat. Try room service, it's free on any ship.

[coloradotim]

January and February are popular cruise months so it won't necessarily be cheaper if you wait. If you book now you will have a better selection of staterooms. Also for most cruises the deposit is fully refundable up until your final payment, so if you book now and your plans change before the final payment date you can cancel and get your money back.

Many 3 and 4 night cruises have one formal night. You can skip eating in the main dining room that night and eat in the buffet, instead, where there is no dress code.

I think you are wise to try a 3 or 4 night cruise to start to see if you like the experience. That's what I did with my family back in 2000 for our first cruise and now I have been on over 30 cruises! It's a great vacation.

[Trayderjoe]

Originally Posted by cordenny

My husband and I would like to go on a 3 or 4 day cruise in Jan. or Feb. Is it wise to book a cruise early or is it cheaper to wait until it gets closer to the date. Also, we don't want to have to dress in formal attire. Do they have alternatives to eating in the main dining room. We are novices at cruising so any suggestions would be appreciated!!

The greater flexibility you want, the sooner you should book. There are last minute deals out there, but some cruise lines offer them to returning guests first before the deals go out to the general public. Keep in mind too that the deals don't apply to all staterooms, so you could be offered a deal on a premium stateroom which may or may not be what you want. Better to pick the cruise line, itinerary, and stateroom type you want than to wait until the last minute unless you truly want to just "go with the flow." There is nothing wrong in that, in fact I plan to do the exact same thing looking for last minute deals. A bigger thing to consider is what cruise line you wish to travel on and what they offer. Good luck!

[2010mustangGT]

A great place to go for all sorts of cruise information is Cruise Critic. A forum similar to TOTV, you can search the boards and pose questions. Check it out...

[Madelaine Amee]

Where you are so new to cruising use a travel agent for at least your first one. They will ask you the right questions to find out what it is you like to do and how you actually like to spend your time, whether you want a balcony or not etc. etc. We use AAA, but there are several in and around TV.

Just bite the bullet and go ............ if you are anything like the rest of us you will be hooked!

[tadpoleKM]

If you're thinking Disney I can answer these questions for you . If you don't mind booking pretty close to your trip you can search with code "FLR" and get some great Florida Resident rates. In February, my family of 3 sailed on a 4 night cruise for a total of $1100!

Disney does something great called "Rotational dining" - on each night you eat in a different restaurant and your server and assistant server follow you so they know what you like, what you might be allergic to etc. By the end you just want to take them home! And of course all the food at your meals is already included in your cruise fare so order anything you want. if you want two appetizers and three entrees and three desserts - go for it! (I think alcohol is extra though)

Disney also does a fantastic job seating you with table mates. We've done it both ways, sitting alone and with people and we were amazed at how well we were "matched up". On our first cruise we were seated with a mother and her two girls who were about my age so we had a lot in common. On our last cruise we only booked 5 days out so we weren't surprised we had our own table.

Bathing suits are not allowed in the dining rooms and jeans are not recommended but people do it. For dinner we did capris, nice pants, and nice tops.

I believe its the 4 and 7 night cruises that have optional "semi-formal" nights and 7 night cruises have a formal night but again totally optional. Formal night they have photographers all over the main atrium so you can have some nice photos taken.

The longer cruises also have "Pirates In the Carribean" Night. Some people actually choose to dress for dinner in full Pirate Gear and then after dinner theres a huge pirate party and fireworks up on deck. (Disney is the only cruise line allowed to shoot off fireworks at sea).

Disney Cruise Line does have two "premium" restaurants. Palo which is very Northern Italian and costs about $20 a person. Ive heard the brunch at Palo is amazing but haven't been able to book it yet. The other is Remy which is about $75 a person but is basically a floating 5 star restaurant.

In addition to the three rotational restaurants , Palo and Remy, DCL also has Cabanas which by day is buffet style but at night turns into a more casual sit down restaurant. But trust me you will not want to miss any of the rotational restaurants!

There is also "quick service" pizza and grab and go's on the main pool deck open for most of the day and of course room service.

And yes, being Disney there are characters but its incredibly well done - even the shows feel like your stepping out to see a full blown Broadway show just jam packed with Disney characters! Ugh...is it time to go on another cruise?

[2010mustangGT]

We like NCL. Formal night(s) are optional. You are free to eat whenever you like. The buffet is normal pretty good ans opposed to the Main Dining Room. Like others have said, you may want to use a travel agent for your first cruise. Happy cruising!

[RItaly]

There are so many cruise lines. I'm interested in the posters views of which is number one in service and value. I would want an outside balcony, I don't serf, climb rock walls and don't look for large group activities.

[justjim]

Disney and Royal Caribbean both sail out of Port Canaveral which is only a 2 hour drive from TV. You can't really go too wrong with either cruise line. You might want to try a seven day cruise to really get the "feel" cruising.

AAA can arrange your cruise for you and do a good job. Also, Ocala travel as mentioned by a former post. I would make reservations soon. Have fun!

[784caroline]

We personally would stay away from the 3-4 night cruises. From our experience (Elite PLus Captains Club members on Celebrity) these routes typically have older ships and you may get different clientel compared to a longer cruise. If you do a 7 night I would also stay away from the RCCL Mega Ships...dont get me wrong these are great ships but just too big to learn the ins and outs for a first time cruiser.

I agree a good cruise agent is the way to go but dont get one that will only show you the cheapest price....that does not always translate to the best cruise. Tell the agent what you like, party, drink, tour, quiet, table for 2 or share w/8, or is dancing /entertainment more to your liking. Celebrity will always have a formal night(s) so that is probably not for you....although there are way to enjoy yourself without partaking in the formalities.

[Trayderjoe]

Originally Posted by 784caroline

We personally would stay away from the 3-4 night cruises. From our experience (Elite PLus Captains Club members on Celebrity) these routes typically have older ships and you may get different clientel compared to a longer cruise. If you do a 7 night I would also stay away from the RCCL Mega Ships...dont get me wrong these are great ships but just too big to learn the ins and outs for a first time cruiser.

I agree a good cruise agent is the way to go but dont get one that will only show you the cheapest price....that does not always translate to the best cruise. Tell the agent what you like, party, drink, tour, quiet, table for 2 or share w/8, or is dancing /entertainment more to your liking. Celebrity will always have a formal night(s) so that is probably not for you....although there are way to enjoy yourself without partaking in the formalities.

I would respectfully disagree about staying away from the 3-4 day cruises. While on some cruise lines it may be that the older ships handle those cruises, Disney does use one of its newest cruise ships (the Dream) on the 3-4 day cruises. The main reason I would disagree about staying away from 3-4 day cruises is that if you have "never been", it gives you a chance to try it without a larger investment, but more importantly, avoiding a longer time of "suffering" if one doesn't care for cruising, either due to cabin size, sea sickness (it can and does happen on smooth waters on a cruise ship-people are all different), or maybe it turns out not to be someone's "thing". It took me years to convince my wife to try a cruise and when she finally agreed to try it (she was more worried about heights) we started with the 3 day Disney cruise. Literally 11 cruises later (all Disney), we are going on our first Royal Caribbean for a 7-day western Caribbean cruise. I would only do a 3 day if I got a deal that I couldn't refuse, as now they seem too short for me. So for the OP, I would highly encourage the 3-4 day as you plan, and if you like it, look at the longer cruises if they are an option for you.

[Lauren Sweeny]

We have about 130 days at sea. Because we are seniors we prefer quieter ships . We are partial to Holland America line. Yes , it may be a bit formal (and referred to as the walker and cane cruises,) but we like this ambience. We like the Divina out of Miami for its nightly Las Vegas style shows. The food on most Holland ships is outstanding usually. As newbies I suggest you try a smaller ship so you do not get overwhelmed and lost on all the big ship decks. Try looking at the Walmart on 466, Expedia Cruises has a bulletin board with fantastic deals, Shirley Kurzon will help you find the right ship and price. Don' t forget to check on Florida resident deals. We just signed up on a deal like this for $1,099 for 7 day veranda suite to Western Caribbean. Also check on line " Cruise Critic " to get a review of all ships and cruise lines directly from passengers! You can also PM me for more help or info.

[buggyone]

Mrs. Buggy and I are avid cruisers. We are Elite Plus members on Celebrity. As for fretting about formal night and eating in a pizza place or buffet - fret not! Do not go to the buffet for dinner! Most men no longer wear a tux or dinner jacket to the formal nights. A sport coat is perfect. A tie is not required or expected. Ladies will be perfect in a good pair of black slacks and a sparkly top - or a tropical sundress.

We have done NCL ( so-so), a couple of big RCI ships (not my favorite, by any means), Holland America (very nice but older passengers), and Celebrity (yes!).

Contact me by PM if you wish and I can give you lots more info via phone regarding ship and travel companies to use and to avoid.