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Help with itinerary for first time cruisers


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I am grateful I found this blog while researching for our upcoming trip. My family and I will go on our first cruise ever this august for a 7 night Caribbean cruise on harmony of the seas. We’re flying into Miami 1 day before which leads to my first question.  
should I rent a car because we kinda want to see Miami as we’ve never been to Miami either. If we rent the car for 1 day can we drop it off at the terminal before we board? The second question will also determine wether we rent a car or not. And conversely on the way back from the cruise. We will be staying 1 night before we fly home. Is there a rental near the terminal? 
once one the ship I know that there’s a bunch of stuff that need to be done like emergency drills and reservations for restaurants. But I’ve read that embarkation day is also the best time to do certain activities like water slides or whatever? The reasoning behind this is that these activities won’t be so crowded since people are still boarding?

What about oceans adventures for the kids 12 and 9? Anyone have opinions on this. Because I want the kids to have some time by themselves and vice versa. 
Any good excursions with kids while on St. Thomas or St Martian. 
what about dining with picky eater? We bought and unlimited dining package for myself and my wife. Should I buy them for my kids? I know it’s a lot. That’s because I am a newbie to cruises and have a lot of questions so any advice with be appreciated 

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There is no rental drop off at the terminal. I always use Avis as they have a location that's close to the port with a shuttle. There's also a Budget car rental next door. You could look into picking up at the airport and dropping off at the Avis cruise shuttle location but it may be at one-way pricing. Alternatively you can rent the car from the airport and then just use Uber or Lyft from the airport to the cruise port. Make sure you consider the costs of parking at your hotel if you're looking to keep the rental overnight. 

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Hi Johnny,

Welcome aboard and feel free to ask any question, questions concerns or whatever. Plenty of seasoned sunburned cruisers to help you out.

We were in St. Marrtens a few years ago with the grands and the parents. The granddaughter was 13 and the grandson was 9 then. I booked an excursion on the Random Wind. Not a Royal excursion, but that was not a problem. The Random Wind is a dual hull catamaran sailboat, I think 65' in length. The trip was fantastic. We anchored up in a really nice cove and had the opportunity to snorkel, float in the water or dive off the deck from the "tarzan swing". You'll have to google Random Wind to check it out. While everyone was having fun in the water the crew was busy getting lunch ready. Grilled chicken kabobs and assorted side dishes. Non alcoholic and alcoholic beverages were served. Both of my grands really enjoyed the tarzan swing, especially the grandson. He would hit the water, swim back t the boat and sneak around the line and cut in front of everyone to go again. I think he managed to get about 10 swing jumps before he got grounded! From there we travelled over to Maho Beach. I'll let you google that. But I will ask, have you ever been less than 100' below a large passenger airline coming in for a landing? 

Hope this wets your appetite. Again, ask away and have a great cruise! 😎

 

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Johnny,welcome to the world of cruising! Warning: it is very addictive. 

You asked about what to do on your first day. It's a great set of questions. The most important thing is to have a to do list.  Generally,  I knock out the to do list while the family has fun. It doesn't seem fair, but that's how we handle it.  Most items can wait for another day, but things tend to be less busy when you first board. Once knocked out, you've got 7 glorious days to enjoy 😉 

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Welcome Johnny. You may want to decide what it is you want to see and do in Miami and select a hotel in that area. We stayed in South Beach our first time in Miami. Everything we wanted to see (and eat) was there or a short Uber/Lyft away. SB hotels are a little pricey but we were able to see what we wanted without the hassle of rental pick-up/drop-off so we felt like it was worth it.  Enjoy Miami and your cruise. We loved Miami. 
 

PS. Check in to your muster station first and then go nuts exploring. Our muster always ends up being the Aqua theater so we’ve made a tradition of riding the ultimate abyss down, check in to our muster station and grab lunch at playmakers right after. 

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Thanks for all of your advice. So I guess now I have to chose between getting a rental for the day. Then returning it that evening and catching a Uber to the terminal the next day. Or choose  a hotel close to the terminal like south beach. ( any ideas on a good hotel?) and then take Uber and explore the surrounding areas the following day. But after our cruise we would spend another day in Miami before our flight home on Sunday morning. So I would have to do that again. 
getiing the muster drill out of the way seems to be the consensus thing to do first. Then book restaurant reservations and booking activities. Of course I have many other questions but I guess I should post accordingly to relevant topic. 

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