We cruised the Eastern Caribbean at the end of June through into early July. This scheduling was dictated by school holidays as usual. It was a little late in the season for the best weather. Even so, overall, the weather was fine with some overcast days. The hurricane season officially starts in July, so some risk in going in July. Worth noting that most hurricanes are usually in September and October. The sea water is easily warm enough to swim in through June and July.
We selected this itinerary so that we could cover as many islands as we could in the Eastern Caribbean in one week. Some of the cruises are designed to come back to the USA after one week. This is so that the US citizens with their two weeks annual holiday can only use one of their two weeks. If you don’t want to come back to Miami halfway through the cruise, check the itineraries of the ships carefully. This might rule out some cruises or even cruise lines. Also worth checking their port times so that you can select those with the best length of shore time in each location. The longer the better!
MSC Seaside – Eastern Caribbean Cruise
We used the MSC cruise company and sailed on the MSC Seaside. Not having been on any other ships for years, they sure have improved a lot. I was more impressed than I thought I would be.
Our kids absolutely loved the boat. The ship is essentially a massive five-star hotel. It has sixteen floors, three or four swimming pools, shops and dozens of restaurants.
Depending on the package you have, you can eat and drink anywhere. You probably have more flexibility than you might have at a remote hotel resort on some islands, given you can walk everywhere.
The downside, if it is one, is that there is a specific schedule, which you have to meet while you are on the cruise. Of course, there is nothing stopping you from choosing what you want to do each day.
Miami, United States
We had boarded this ship a week ago, on the Western Caribbean cruise. So, this time – when the ship docked in Miami – we simply relaxed by the pool, while everyone disembarked or boarded.
San Juan, Puerto Rico
On this Eastern Caribbean cruise circuit, it takes two days from Miami to arrive late afternoon in San Juan.
This extra day at sea gives everyone starting on this cruise time to explore the ship. Believe me, it can take a full day to do this properly.
The ship arrives in San Juan late afternoon, which is not really ideal. We only had the late afternoon and evening to explore the island.
This was a shame, because San Juan is really great. The colourful colonial buildings with narrow little cobblestone streets. With the quaint little pubs, this makes this a place I want to explore more of.
Charlotte Amalie, Virgin Islands
After an overnight journey, the early morning approach into Charlotte Amalie is really beautiful. This is a big advantage of cruises, you get to see views of the islands that you do not see if you are simply staying on the island in an hotel.
This cruise allows a full twelve hours on the island, giving us another chance to explore the island. This time round we did another catamaran cruise around into some picturesque coves on the Eastern Water Island in the bay for snorkelling, then back into Charlotte Amalie for some further exploring. The sea water here again is crystal clear and warm, swimming and snorkelling here is a pleasure.
The views of the islands from the deck of the catamaran are amazing, Even with the whole day here, I really want to come to this island again, as there is lot to do and explore here.
Philipsburg, St Maarten
It was another quick over night cruise to Philipsburg, giving us most of the day here.
On this island we rented a 4wd jeep and toured the dutch side of this island. This island is split in half, half owned by the Dutch, the other half owned by the French. The island is pretty small at just under ninety square kilometres.
Philipsburg is quaint with colonial style buildings and cobblestone streets and small villages up in the hills in the centre. It must be fun flying into this island, both ends of the runway end at the water edge. We did drive over into the French side of the island along the coast to Marigot Market right on the bay, with awesome views everywhere and then drove back to Simpson Bay close to the Yacht Club Isle de Sol or a few hours on the beach. Given we were able to drive pretty much all over this island, and while it is beautiful, this whole day was enough to explore a lot of the island.
Nassau, Bahamas
After St Maarten, its another two-day cruise back to Nassau, although this stop is very short from midday to around 6pm. As we had been here before, we did not consider it worth jumping off for the few hours remaining and basically relaxed by the pool with cocktails.
There are however quite a few shorter tours either relaxing on a beach or exploring the local area that could easily be taken,
Another alternative is just to hire a local taxi to drive around a bit, that can be a lot cheaper than the packages tours from the ship.
Miami, United States
After two weeks on the ship, we were sad to go. From here we went straight to the airport via taxi to start the long flights back to Australia.
Best time to visit the Eastern Caribbean
We travelled to the Eastern Caribbean in the first month of the official wet season, the first week of July. We did not experience any rain during this week, although we did have a few days with quite a few clouds in the sky.
Dry Season: December to May
This is probably the best time to travel in the Caribbean, with mostly clear skies and great beach weather. Lowest rainfall is usually from February through to May
Shoulder Season: May to June
The start of the rainy season, with increasing humidity. However you can still get plenty of sunny days before the peak summer heat.
Wet and Hurricane Season: June to November
Rainfall is now much more frequent, and hotter and more humid. August through to October is normally the wettest and most volatile period.
Practical Tips before you book an Eastern Caribbean cruise
- Make sure you have data available on your phone or phones. There is Wi-Fi everywhere onboard so worth getting a Wi-Fi data package on board especially if you have kids. Both options are very useful if you are privately organising shore trips rather than using the cruise company’s options. Having data on the islands does mean that you can track where you are on the island, handy if you get lost. See our useful article about data packages for your phone on the islands.
- Taxis are widely available on the islands, but make sure you have small cash change, usually you only need US dollars.
- Make sure question No.1 is how much to go somewhere, before you do.
- Keep US dollars cash aside for snacks and taxis.
- Watch the clock, and be firm with your taxi driver about what time you need to be back at the dock, with a safety margin!
- Make sure you have a battery bank and a USB multi-charger, because the average family has multiple devices, phones, tablets, game consoles, and the average ships cabin only has one to two spare plug points. This way you also then only need one adaptor for your cruise.
Final verdict: Is the Eastern Caribbean worth the distance?
Absolutely, YES!
This trip was an attempt to see as many islands as is possible, essentially as an introduction to the Caribbean. It is anywhere from twenty-five to thirty-five hours to get to Miami from Australia. So, to really be worth the added expense of the long flights, two or more weeks cruising makes the Caribbean worth the time and money to get there in the first place.
But flights aside, the Caribbean as a whole is worth the distance for sure. The different islands all have such a different flavour and experience. Of course, with the added benefits of crystal clear waters everywhere and the opportunity to view the islands as you sail around them, just add to the experience.
Doing all of this while in a massive five-star floating hotel resort, is actually another benefit, with no packing and unpacking needed from one island to another. There are so many cruise options and cruise lines available in the Caribbean. You can have the standard of cruise and cabin you can afford. Some of the longer length cruises even go further south down to Curacao and Panama. There are around 7000 islands in the Caribbean with around a hundred of them permanently inhabited.
The Eastern Caribbean cruise shore times were not as useful as the Western Caribbean circuit. Two shore stops had shorter stops, with only three or four hours free to visit San Juan and then from midday only to visit the Bahamas.
FAQs about planning a one or two week Caribbean cruise
How long is required for a Caribbean cruise?
Flying from Australia to the Caribbean takes time and adds cost to the holiday. That really means that only longer cruises can be justified. Looking at the selection of cruises available for around the two-week length came up with at least seventy cruises in one month alone, so there are many options.
Is the Eastern Caribbean worth visiting?
Yes! The Caribbean and the cruising around it is pretty unique, in that you can get to multiple countries fairly quickly, often overnight. Each of the islands/countries we visited were interesting with a good variety of activities for all ages. The range of options in each location, from country and city exploring, 4WD ATVs (four-wheel drive all-terrain vehicles), to beach clubs and holiday parks and sail cruises out to little bays and reefs for snorkelling. There are both family friendly tours to keep the kids happy and plenty of more adult focused explorer options available.
What is the best time to visit the Caribbean?
Worth reading the section above about the best time to visit. We were not really visiting at the best time, being right on the edge of the shoulder to wet season. The weather was still pretty good, we could swim every day, and we did not get hit with any rain. To limit the risk of bad weather, it might be safer to focus in the dry or shoulder season only.
Is the Caribbean good value for Australians?
The price for a beer for example is about the same as in Australia, at least in the more popular islands of the Caribbean, with other islands slightly cheaper. Local beers are cheaper and not bad. Overall, expect the costs to be about the same or slightly less to Australian prices.
Is the Caribbean safe to travel to?
This varies depending on the itinerary that you select, as with a cruise you are covering multiple countries. Most of the Caribbean is generally safe, but one should always check as with so many countries involved this can change.
Counties like the Cayman Islands, Turks and Caicos, the British Virgin Islands are considered very safe, whereas both the Bahamas and Jamaica governments recommend a high degree of caution.
Having been to both the Bahamas and Jamaica, and loved both locations, I think being aware and careful and up to date on all recent information is advisable.
