7-Night Southern Caribbean Cruise from San Juan on Dream - November 10th 2023

[KevinFL]

Has anyone done similar Southern itinerary on DCL and thoughts? Our other option which we have done many times is the 7-night Eastern out of Pt Canaveral to St Thomas and Tortola and Castaway. I like the idea of all new ports of call but this comes with the extra travel of flights to Puerto Rico and a hotel stay the night before and after the trip so not quite as turn key as driving within FL to the port.


Day 1 San Juan, Puerto Rico
Day 2 Basseterre, St. Kitts
Day 3 St. John's, Antigua
Day 4 Day at Sea
Day 5 Oranjestad, Aruba
Day 6 Willemstad, Curaçao
Day 7 Day at Sea
Day 8 San Juan, Puerto Rico


Thanks for any feedback!

 

[holula]

I did a Southern back in 2014 and it was hands down the best Caribbean cruise! Loved both St Kitts and Antigua.

I would do another but flights from the UK to PR are a nightmare with layover times and also super expensive.

 

[AquaDame]

Southerns are our favorite; we've done four of them! It IS a little harder to get to for the ones that sail out of San Juan, but worth it, in our opinion. The ones that leave from PC just don't hit the same... too many stops that are western and eastern on other sailings.

 

[auntlynne]

Just did a similar one in May on the Magic. I would put it in #2 spot with Alaska #1. We did Bonaire instead of Antigua.

The itinerary is more tiring than the Eastern, thanks to lots of ports - which just call you to do something.

We got to San Juan late the night before, so no tourist time - but I highly recommend adding in that extra day + night to get the minimum experience. Old San Juan is easy to see, even in your own - and doable in part of a day, if you are not a lingerer. It could also be visited the morning of boarding if you are staying there.

Another option is to visit on disembarkation day; you have nearly a full day - and then you could catch a morning flight the following day. So many times, there is a cost savings by doing this.

I would pick a late PAT and avoid standing outside in the heat (yes, it is hot, even in December; maybe it’s never cool-er). This is definitely not PC, but it is just that one block of time, and then you are on the ship.

I am looking forward to another cruise stop in San Juan - with enough daytime hours for an excursion to El Yunque. (I have been there for both day - my 1st visit and night).

The drawback to these itineraries is the airfare difference between >Orlando and >San Juan. But I still would consider this cruise again as an option. Next May’s itinerary looks spectacular (but we already have the Eastern booked in November ). Airport to Port is a shorter ride than MCO to PC.

Book your hotel early - even before you decide on the cruise - to get a good rate and date. The Sheraton Old Town is closing this year for renovations. We stayed by the airport at the Residence Inn (great pool for actual swimming - and was walkable to the beach). Next door was a Hampton Inn, with Embassy Suites nearby. Aloft, Hyatt House/Place? near the port were sold out when we were booking (5 weeks pre-cruise). The Hilton Caribe, DCL’s partner hotel, gets a lot of mixed reviews - and has for years on TripAdvisor.

Uber is available around the area. Non-chain hotels, BNB, are located within Old SJ - with access to restaurants, drug stores…

Bon Voyage!