Carribean / Cruise for 9 persons over New Year

A question about : Carribean / Cruise for 9 persons over New Year

Hi,

First post, long time reader.

My family are are not very travel savvy and I've been tasked with booking a family holiday for all 9 of us over New Year; upto 19 nights leaving 26th - 28th Dec. We are keen to visit the Carribean and open to a Cruise. Not sure where to look site and travel agent wise. It's an expensive time of year so looking for good value (Ј2k per person tops). Any direction or insight would be much appreciated.

Many thanks

Best answers:

• https://www.cruise.co.uk
  https://www.cruisecritic.co.uk
  https://www.iglucruise.com/promotion_...FYLItAod_B4Avw
• have a look at the P&O Azura departing 26th December. Nice itinerary (Tortola is one of my favourite places) you should be able to get that for just under Ј2k pp depending on your cabin requirements including flights but your drinks would be on top
• Would it be wise to book flights and the cruise seperately?
• Getting a package makes things easier because if something goes wrong with one part then the tour operator is responsible for sorting out the subsequent elements.
  Book your flights separately and if they are delayed so you miss the boat departure then its your responsibility to work out how to get yourself to another port of call to pick it up etc.
• I think you may struggle with budget also with booking separate. You would likely need to travel the day before and book a hotel for a night as, on separate contracts, should your flight be delayed due to weather (not uncommon at that time of year) the ship would not wait for you
  I would expect flights to be over Ј1k on their own so that would reduce your options for cruises
• The difference of cost in flights arranged thru the cruiseline compared to buying separately is usually about double the cost (but includes transfers etc)....ie cheaper to buy your own.
  Your major decision though is what type of cruise line suits you and your family. e.g. do you like dressing up for dinner, eating set times, or do you want to do what you want when you want to do it?
  eg P&O is very much "dress for dinner" whereas a line like NCL is "do what you want".
• 26 dec to 5 jan - flights Ј612 from Gatwick. opodo
  27 dec NCL getaway Ј1039 oceanview.
  https://ask.pocruises.com/help/PO/li...ard/dress_code
  There are three dress codes in total – evening casual, smart and black tie - though depending which ship you’re on*, there might only be two – evening casual and black tie. Most of the venues on board require you to wear the dress code, though there are also plenty of places to go should you not feel like dressing for dinner**.
  Not for me. I prefer jeans or chinos and a short sleeve shirt.