Originally Posted by
DeirdreTours
.....If you parents are willing to depart from Tampa, Fort Lauderdale or Miami, you can get a balcony cabin on Holland America, Princess or Celebrity for the same cost. These lines are generally considered to be a step up from Carnival or NCL with better quality food, better service and nicer cabins.
I second that particularly since these are "parent age" people who may prefer the quieter, more traditional atmosphere of Holland America ships and their better and larger cabins. That seems like a lot of money for extra dining expenses. Main dining room food on Holland America ships is quite good and we found little to no reason to go to their extra charge dining room. ($20)
Shore excursions tend to be the biggest costs as many ports have little on their own to offer or are not even safe to do on your own in the Caribbean. So this is a place to critically look for cost differences because a loss-leader cruise price with expensive shore excursions is in the final analysis no bargain.
Again, we have been pleased with the quality and choice of Holland America shore excursions so that ends up being our only extra besides some extra beverage charges and our own personal indulgences in the shops which is entirely discretionary. I think the initial value of the Holland America basic price is high for overall satisfaction without having to add a lot of extras to make a trip more enjoyable. (Except shore excursions)