The Weekend Cruise… Would I Do It Again?

When I booked a weekend cruise, I did not know what to expect. Would I be too bored due to lack of ports of call? Would I be overwhelmed by too much to do in such a short period of time? At the end of the day, the most important question is, would I do it again?

There are definitely aspects of cruising that I feel align best with weeklong trips, the bread and butter of Caribbean cruising. That said, it was a great change of pace, and I really enjoyed our time onboard. The following weigh the pros and cons of doing a weekend cruise.

This article is part of my Cruise Trip Report: Weekend in the Bahamas including:

• Affordable and Efficient: Southwest to Florida
• Booking a Cruise: Triple Stack
• Liberty of the Seas: Interior Cabin Review
• Liberty of the Seas: Ship Review
• Perfect Day in Coco Cay Review
• Spending a day in Nassau
• Lounge Review: Centurion Studio FLL
• The Weekend Cruise… would I do it again?

The Pros

Let’s start off with the highlight. There is no vacation that is quite as relaxing as a cruise. Everything is bundled in and you never have to worry about where to eat dinner or making arrangements, it’s simply all taken care of for you. That very much held true on a weekend cruise, and I would argue it was one of the most relaxing weekend trips I have gone on.

There was also something for everyone. Whether  chasing the Caribbean blue and wanting some time on the beach,  or desire something more thrill based, such as rock climbing, water slides and the flo ride, there are perfect options for everyone onboard and enough variety to make everyone happy.

It was also a very easy trip to book and enjoy. Nice direct flight to Florida and at the port in under 10 minutes. It makes it much easier than having to worry about planning a hotel, rental car, buying lift/theme park passes and flights, it was pretty much a two-stop shop: flights and cruise.

Overall, the food was good, the activities were fun, the entertainment was enjoyable, and the trip was an overall success. I was happy to make it to the beach and the family was happy as well, so all good from that regard.

The Cons

You really don’t have too much time to get settled. By the time you figure your way around the ship it is time to get off. That said, that may be true for many different types of trips, weekend trips are short and don’t allow for the same level of habit that a longer trip allows.

Trying to fit everything in was a lot. Given that there are countless entertainment options and activities, a longer trip allows you to spread them out. Wanting to make the most of it, there were some evenings when we went to back-to-back shows in order to try to fit it all in.  

There were no at-sea days to enjoy all that the ship has to offer. Rather, getting back on-board after a port of call in the afternoon that allowed us to explore the amenities of the cruise ship. This ties into the last point. With ports of call every day, the trip felt as though we had to go-go-go rather than just relax.

The last point is that we were not able to build a relationship with our dining room server or stateroom attendant. On prior cruises it was always a joy to get to know these individuals that were making our trip even more memorable, but such a short journey did not allow for that.

The Last Point

Overall, I would gladly go on a weekend cruise again. Even with some of the downsides of what felt more rushed than a typical week-long cruise, it was still more relaxing than a weekend ski trip or trip to theme parks.

I really enjoyed the time and given the right deal popping up again, I would gladly head back down to Florida to spend a weekend in the Bahamas.