questions by a first time cruiser

[eyeguy590]

Some poeple have told me there is a fee if they see you have brought your own alcoholic bev. on board. I booked a cruise with my wife on enchantment on 7/17/03. We could only go on a 4 day cruise. Is this enough time or does it seem rushed? Is the Mian ruin trip worth it? my last question is why is the one week cruise almost the same price? This is the 4 day western caribbean cruise

[This message was edited by eyeguy590 on May 02, 2003 at 11:26 AM.]

[eyeguy590]

Some poeple have told me there is a fee if they see you have brought your own alcoholic bev. on board. I booked a cruise with my wife on enchantment on 7/17/03. We could only go on a 4 day cruise. Is this enough time or does it seem rushed? Is the Mian ruin trip worth it? my last question is why is the one week cruise almost the same price? This is the 4 day western caribbean cruise

[This message was edited by eyeguy590 on May 02, 2003 at 11:26 AM.]

If they discover you are bringing it onboard they will keep it for you until after the you return to port. The exception is if you have a special occasion and want to have your own bottle of wine. Then they will keep the wine until your special time and charge you a corking fee of around $15. I noticed overall policy was loosely enforced so....

[Bets]

A four day cruise will probably make you wish you had booked for more days but it also will be as much fun as you make it...We have never visited the Mayan Ruins but wish we could see everything...It is so much fun to read about the places you visit after you return and throughout your life...You hear different things about carrying liquor on board...they seem pretty lax abut the rules sometimes and we have seen passengers who carry it on by the case..and have visited with passengers who always have a few drinks in their cabins before dinner etc...Have a great time....

[amy68]

I've noticed the same thing with the prices being the same for a 7 day vs a 3 or 4 day cruise. I'd be interested in knowing what everyone's take is on this. My educated guess would be maybe it has something to do with taxes or port cost's. Maybe these are flat fees no matter how long you go for. I really don't know. I've been on a 3 day cruise (way too short) and a 7 day cruise which might have been just a smidgen too long. The 5 day cruises sound just about right. But I really think even 1 day could make a difference for you and 4 days might be just about perfect. As for the ruins, I haven't been there myself, even though I just came from Mexico. I heard too many mixed reactions about it. The excursion's seemed costly to me and you can't even video tape it without having to pay some sort of fee. They say it's a long ride to get there and there's supposedly a huge mosquito problem. Plus they say it's boring and not worth the money paid (a testimonial from a friend who's just recently been). And that's why we chose to do other things in Mexico. If you're adventurous and like history, maybe that would be perfect for you. In any case, have a great trip, 4 days is only what you make of it. We were on the Enchantment in March, you will love the ship.

Amy

[NancyN]

First, port charges are fees charged by local governments where the ship docks. Size of vessel, length of stay and number of passengers all enter into the figure. Bottom line: More ports of call= more port fees. As for why some 7 day cruises are little more than the cost of a 4 day cruise, it comes down to supply and demand. In today's market, cruise lines are having much more success filling their 3 and 4 day cruise itineraries than the 7 day. Cruise lines want their ships to sail full, so if they need to, will offer substantial discounts to soft sailings, while keeping their pricing firm on ships that are filling without the discount.
Nancy