First Time Cruiser

My wife and I are both in our early 50%26#39;s and planning our 1st cruise.We would like to go with a similar age group for a 3-5 night cruise.Destination isn%26#39;t really important,but we would like to leave from the east coast of Florida.Any suggestions?

First Time Cruiser

Go to the website www.cruisecritic.com It is full of reviews of the various lines and ships and includes info about the typical age group that is usually on each ship- for instance most Holland America ships attract an older crowd and have activities/cuisine geared toward them , while the carnival ships generally have a younger crowd and try to have a more';fun ship'; party image. Reading traveler reviews of the various ships will probably help you zero in on a few that would best suit you. You can also frequently find sales advertised by sites specializing in discount cruises and if you follow the link and sign up with them they will send you countless offers via e-mail .

That%26#39;s how I would start. I guess your choices for embarkation ports wouldbe Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Port Canaveral and a few that leave from Jacksonville.

First Time Cruiser

There are cruises that leave from Miami, Port Canaveral %26amp; Fort Lauderdale, I believe.

I am taking a 7 night Western Caribbean Cruise on the Royal Caribbean Mariner of the Seas out of Port Canaveral.

Cruise Critic web site does have nice reviews of the different cruise lines, and each cruise line has elaborate web sites with tons of info. Look and see if you like the style of any things that you find on-line.

Also, this is one area that I would say a travel agent is your best bet for cruise info- there is a ton of info out there!

Take a look at the Majesty of the Seas sailing from Miami. They are 3 or 4 night cruises. The ship has just been refurbished.

or

Look at the Enchantment of the Seas 4 or 5 night cruises sailing from Ft. Lauderdale. She was recently cut in half, lengthened,and refitted.

We have cruised on both. They are both great. You will be treated like royalty and I think it is a pretty good value.

They are both Royal Carribbean Cruise line ships. You can look at their web site and book directly there.

There is a nice mix of age groups on Royal Caribbean. You will fit right in. it is a nice ,fun, upscale, non stuffy getaway.

The cruisecritic.com message boards are an excellent resource for first time cruisers.

Whats cruise ports are nearer to Disney area? Fort lauderdale, Miami or Port Canaveral? Whats the distances for all 3 - many thanks

You can also get a cruise heading out of Tampa ...

and there is actually a cruise forum here on TA :

tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g1-i10703-Cruises.鈥?/a>

have fun planning!

Lara

disney world to port canavral=68 miles

to port everglades(Ft. Lauderdale)=215 miles

to port of Miami= 234 miles

many thanks Donato !