by Ana Montano

Created on: January 06, 2010

Getting the most out of a Caribbean cruise really depends on what you want from it. Whether you're cruising in order to spend a lot of time at your favorite island or in order to see all the exotic isles you've never been to, the trick to getting the most out of your cruise is to plan.

You usually have to base your decision on how long a cruise you can take. Then you can figure out where it is you want to go. If for instance, your favorite Caribbean island is Jamaica and you want to spend a lot of time there, look for cruises that dock there for more than one day. On the other hand, if you're just interested in visiting many different places, you can take a cruise that has many stops.

In order to get the most out of your trip, you'll want to go on a cruise that stops at places you haven't been to and that doesn't stop at places that you have or that you can easily access. For example, if you live in Miami and you're taking a Caribbean cruise, you might not want to book a cruise that has a stop in Key West, since you can easily take a day trip there on any given day from your home. To get the most of out your money, you should plan your cruise to allow you to see places that would be more costly to visit. Think about it, you're basically spending extra money on two nights and one day at a location you can see any time. 

Once you've decided where your cruise is going, the next step is to plan out your activities in those places. Usually, these activities can be booked through the cruise any time. However, a lot of things are more popular on certain islands and will sell out early. You should definitely plan your day to day activities in advance, because often cruises are only docked for a few hours. You certainly don't wanna spend that time wandering around aimlessly looking for things to do. 

Finally, you should make sure you rest and that you're up early the days the cruise docks somewhere. Vacation is no fun if you're exhausted or if you sleep in and miss half of your trip to the Bahamas. There are tons of things to do on a cruise at night from comedy shows to dancing or going to the bar. If you're going to make it a late night, you shouldn't do it on a night when the cruise is stopping at an island the next morning. 

If you follow these simple tips, you will have a great relaxing vacation that will be fun and full of adventure. All you have to do is put a little extra effort into planning it, but it will definitely be worth it later. 

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