Choosing a Cruise
Posted on | January 3, 2010 | 9 Comments
So, you want to go on a cruise! It’s exciting, it’s fun and it’s your way of enjoying the great life. But how do you make the choice of where to go, when and with whom? There are so many choices with respect to cruising nowadays that it can be very confusing. Here are a few tips to consider helping you decide which cruise is right for you.
Listed below are few examples of the types of cruise you may wish to take:
1. Mediterranean cruise
2. Caribbean cruise
3. an Alaskan cruise,
4. a cruise down the Amazon or Panama Canal
5. a Transatlantic ocean crossing
6. South Pacific or Hawaiian Island cruise
7. River cruises (the fjords in Norway, the Danube in Europe, the Nile in Egypt, the Mississippi in United States)
8. Polar cruises to see the penguins in the Antarctic
9. Russian waterways cruises
10. Galapagos Island cruises
11. New Zealand or Australia
Each can be very appealing but are also very different.
1. The first thing to consider in taking one of these cruises is when you want to go—the time of the year can dictate the type of cruise. Some cruise ship lines do not offer cruises to the Mediterranean in the winter months, but transfer their ships to the warmer waters of the Caribbean. Alaskan cruises only run in certain months also due to weather conditions. Ocean crossing cruises (Transatlantic) take place only as the seasons change so that cruise ship companies can reposition their ships to match the high seasons’ tourist industry.
2. You also have to decide on the length of your cruise. A typical choice is a 7-night cruise, but you can take cruises from 3-4 nights to over a month in length, or more. The length of your vacation time available may limit you, but taking a cruise for the first time may also be a consideration. Limiting your cruise to a manageable shorter cruise may help you decide whether a longer cruise at another time may be more advisable. In other words, do you get seasick? Do you like the variety of visiting different ports? Do you wish to simply stay at one destination and relax? Do you like the busy atmosphere of the many activities on a ship?
3. Next, the ports that you wish to visit can be a great part of which cruise is the right choice for you. Have you always wanted to visit Tortugas, the Bahamas or Cayman Islands? Here is your chance to get a taste of it. Make sure that one of your chosen destinations is on your cruise itinerary, and there are endless choices of various itineraries available. Cruises are great ways to experience various places. Then you can decide which destination you would like to see more of on a future vacation.
4. Another consideration in choosing a cruise is the amount of time you wish to be “At Sea”. For a Transatlantic voyage you are at sea for many days at a time, which limits you to being within the confines of the ship at all times. This can be a bonus if you don’t want the hustle and bustle of visiting different ports, but it can also be a downside if you want a lot of variety on your vacation. Some cruises offer very little time at sea, being in a different port every day, and this flurry of activity can be too overwhelming for some vacationers. I would recommend a bit of both—for a 7-night cruise a good happy medium would be 2 days at sea with the other days stopping at various ports of call.
5. Once you have narrowed down your choice of cruise to when and where you wish to visit, the next hardest choice is the cruise line and size of ship you want to use. The size of ship can dictate the cruise line, as some cruise lines offer significantly larger ships than others. Some cruise lines only use smaller, more intimate ships for smaller groups of people. Other cruise lines offer huge ships with passengers in the thousands. You must decide whether you like a small personal touch or like the larger groups. (We found that even on a larger ship, there were still areas where we could go to get away from the crowds. Crowding on the huge ships was not a problem at all.)
6. Fitting the cruise line to your individual personality is perhaps the most important factor in determining your cruise enjoyment. There are many different types of ship lines that cater to varying personalities. Of course, the Disney Cruise Line caters to families, but others such as Carnival Cruises cater to more of a party atmosphere for adults, or Norwegian focuses on a more conservative group. Discuss with your travel agent which cruise line fits you best. Cruise lines also offer themed or special interest cruises, such as an art collectors cruise, golfer’s cruises or culinary class cruises. These may be great to fit in with the interests in your life-style.
7. Once you have found the best itinerary for you on the cruise line that suits your personality, at the best time of year for you, there are still other choices you need to make. Some cruise lines offer “freestyle cruising”, which simply put means that you don’t have a set dinner time at a set table, but you can choose to eat whenever you wish. On most cruises, however, you have a preset dinner time at an assigned table. You can choose an early dinner (usually around 6-6:30) or a later dinner time (7:30-8:00). In choosing your dinner time, take into consideration your off-ship excursions. You don’t want to have to rush back from your shore excursion just to get back in time for dinner. You also usually have a choice of how many people you wish to sit with (usually from 4 to 8 -10 people at a table.) Our travel agent suggested a table of 8 on our cruise—she stated that if you were at a table for 4 and you didn’t get along with the other couple you were stuck, but a table for 8 offered more chance of finding congenial soul-mates.
8. Shore excursions can also be a major part of your cruise experience. There are many different shore excursion packages available, from visiting butterfly farms, swimming with dolphins, exploring ancient ruins, to snorkelling or scuba diving. Of course, if you wish you do not need to go on any shore excursions. You can simply choose to stay on-board and take advantage of the ship’s amenities, or you can simply walk around and visit or shop in the port-of-call.
Choosing a cruise can seem overwhelming, but the main point is to suit the cruise to what you want to get out of the experience. If you want a whirlwind of activity choose a party cruise line with that in mind. If you want a more relaxed atmosphere, choose more time at sea. If you want to sample various cultures, choose a destination-rich cruise. Different types of cruises offer at of those things, and more. Hopefully the above has given you an idea in the choices you need to make to get the most enjoyment out of your cruise. Happy cruising!
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Tags: Choosing A Cruise > cruise > Cruise Ships > Cruise Travel > Cruise Vacation > Cruising > travel > Travelling > vacation
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9 Responses to “Choosing a Cruise”
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January 3rd, 2010 @ 10:35 am
It's kind of hard to give you an idea without any idea of what you are looking for. For example, what ages will be going, budget, length, etc. But here is a general answer for you:
If price doesn't matter, I would say either Oceania or Crystal and Celebrity, which I believe has been rated the best line. All are fabulous cruises and they are wonderful. Here would be my order of preferance:
1). Crystal
2). Oceania
3). Princess
4). Disney
5). Holland America
6). Royal Caribbean
7). Norweigan
8). Carnival
Celebrity is also pretty good, I would throw that somewhere in the middle. Oceania and Crystal are great and the best if you are wanting a bigger cruise line and not if you wanting a more intimate, small cruise. Windjammer is one example of a small cruise line, but there are several out there that are really good.
Royal Caribbean, depending on which boat you use, is one of the most popular lines. There prices are quite low compared to others, but the quality is very good. Disney is a little more expensive, but one of the nicest you can take. Carnival is a low cost cruise, but is known as the Las Vegas of cruise ships, there is lots of parties, smoking, drinking, etc. Celebrity and Oceania are more upscale and luxury lines, but are also more costly. Carnival and Royal Caribbean tend to have younger crowds, with Carnival being college aged kids. Royal Caribbean and Disney tend to have more familes. Princess, Holland, etc. tend to be older crowds.
Assuming you are younger and want to have a good time, I think Royal Caribbean would be a good choice. The overall quality is better than Carnival, it is a little more classy, but you still get good rates.
Really, all the islands are great, so go with the one that fits in your budget best, the one that is on the boat you like, etc. The best thing is to just look over the different options and what the lines offer that you like the most, because they are all good.
Here are some links that should help: http://cruisecritic.com/ports/area.cfm?area=8
http://cruisecritic.com/ports/area.cfm?area=10
http://cruisecritic.com/ports/area.cfm?area=9
One final thing, if you are planning to book a cruise, I would contact a travel agent hat specializes in cruises. Trust me, it is a lot smarter way to book than using online discounters, I've read way too many stories of people that have had their trips ruined from using sites like these. Most of the time my agents prices are lower than these discounters, sometimes they are the same and very rarely they are slightly higher. But the service and knowledge you will get is definitely worth the extra cost.
Hope this helps!
January 3rd, 2010 @ 10:48 am
For me it is all about the itinerary the ports of call help me to decide, next it is the line, and then the ship..
Great question…. Star for you!!!!
Join the best cruise group on yahoo
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Cruiseaddict/
January 3rd, 2010 @ 4:38 pm
Holland America tends to be a lot older crowd. Royal Caribbean, while catering to an older crowd than Carnival, have many activities that are geared toward a younger group (like the rock walls and water slides)
January 4th, 2010 @ 1:36 pm
I have sailed with a balcony, oceanview and inside. I like each of them. The inside was actually nice during the day if I wanted to take a nap. Dark and quiet. The oceanview was good as I could see where we were and look out whenever I wanted. The balcony was great when sailing in Alaska, but most of that cruise was views. If you stay with the inside to save money, remember, you can always go uptop and get a great view or the promenade deck is wonderful for walking and taking in the views. Most people don't stay in their staterooms that much anyway. There are so many activities going on, why sit around in the room? Get out there and have fun.
January 4th, 2010 @ 9:04 pm
No, ocean view windows do not open.
Here is a picture of the Freedom of the Seas …
http://inlinethumb50.webshots.com/32753/2633685530095309218S600x600Q85.jpg
You will note that above the life boats (a good fifty feet above the water line) are the balcony cabins (cabins with doors that open to the ocean). Below the lifeboats are ocean view cabins. Also the forward facing cabins are ocean view cabins.
The ocean view cabins on the side of the ship are too close to the water. Even a small wave could come into the cabin if the window was open.
The forward facing cabins have to take waves large enough to go over the bow. Again, too much danger of the water coming into the cabin if the window was open.
The reason ocean view windows do no open is to prevent water from coming into the cabin.
This is a picture of an ocean view cabin on the Monarch of the Seas.
http://inlinethumb17.webshots.com/41872/2935446910095309218S600x600Q85.jpg
It is hard to see, but at about 4:30 and 7:30 there are clamps. Inside the closet is a metal piece that fits over the window. It can be put on over the window if needed (for example, if the windows breaks).
January 5th, 2010 @ 5:23 am
You have several categories to choose from on any ship:
Inside Rooms: No window, usually smaller but some ships offer "superior insides rooms" like Royal Caribbean. These rooms are available on most all decks.
Promenade Rooms: These are available on Royal Caribbean are are rooms with windows that look onto the interior of the ship (the Grand Promenade). Usually on mid-decks.
Ocean View Rooms: Same as the above but with views of the ocean (always above the water line). They can be large picture windows or just a porthole. Some have obstructed views. Available on most all decks
Balcony (or Verandah) Rooms: These rooms have full size windows with sliding doors that open onto a balcony of varying sizes. These will always be on higher decks.
Suites: These rooms go from a "mini" to a "superior" on most ships. Unless you have $5000 or more per person to spend, you'll probably be in a mini or standard suite. These rooms will offer a larger and seperate sitting area. The balcony will probably be larger and the bathroom will have a tub instead of just a shower. Again, always on higher decks.
These are general category descriptions and will vary from ship to ship and cruise line to cruise line. Usually lower decks are cheaper because all of the common ares are on higher decks. Therefore if your room is on Deck 2 you may save a few hundred bucks but you'll have to go up 5-10 decks to participate in the activities. Some peopls prefer lower because they say you cannot feel the movement as much.
However rooms on higher decks are usually more pricey because they're closer to everything. As you move up from deck to deck the price may increase by $20 a person. So if you're spending $500 on a Deck 2 room – you may spend $600 for a Deck 7 room.
Also rooms and suites vary according to cruise line. Here are some general examples:
Carnival: Rooms tend to be a bit larger than average.
Royal Caribebean: Some ships offer a selection of larger inside rooms and the promenade category.
Princess: They have a plethora of suite categories to choose from.
Celebrity: Some of their rooms can be bought in "concierge class" that offers it's own amenities.
Disney: They have rooms more geared towards family – so they have 2 bathrooms instead of one and a pull out sofabed. Again, the rooms are larger than the norm.
NCL: They have a room category that comes with a courtyard that can only be used by guests in that same room category. (so you can have a pool and lounge area you only have to share with about 50 other guests).
Again, all of this is very general information but it should give you a general idea.
January 5th, 2010 @ 2:57 pm
Hmm…lets see now….Everything you say is correct, from my viewpoint and from the cruises I've been on. Carnival is for 20 somethings…like you. There'll be lots of folks your age, where as the other ships will have older people…40-70 ish, plus 30's with kids.
As for the food, I've always found all the ships had real good food. My hint is though…when ordering a meal, I know it's a little gluteny, but you order a meal, she orders a meal, and you both order a meal to split. This way you get lots of different things to eat and you don't have to eat it all. If there's something special on Monday night say, like lobster…tell your waiter you want that again Tuesday night and you'll get it or if you like the Chocholate molten cake…ask for another to be brought to your room. Nice to see when you return to your room after being out on board all night.
Ask about sitting with the ship's captain one night. This is done while you're showing your tickets to board the ship on the first day. Let the ticket agen know it's your honeymoon, this may help? You may get lucky and you'll find it interesting.
Norweigian has the freestyle eating, which would be real nice, but we always hooked up for the later seating because when you're out on an island, who wants to come back at 3 or 4 o'clock just to get ready to eat.
For me…I'd rather go for the cruise without a lot of days at sea. The ships that depart San Juan usually have the cruises that go to the better islands and not a lot of time spent at sea, since you're pretty much already there. yes, it's worth the extra money. You'll have plenty of time on board the ship at night and early mornings to get your ship fix.
As for entertainment…the ships I've been on are all about the same. Like I mentioned before, Carnival was a lot of fun, even though I was in my forties at the time. They had scavenger hunts that lasted the whole trip, pool parties (that none of the others had, rcn and norweigian and another..sorry I forget now), but Carnival by far had the best on board things to do.
If you've never been…definetely try snorkeling. A good idea is to buy them for Christmas presents now, and bring them. Make sure you go to a good store that will fit the masks for you, so you won't be flooded or your head hurts because of the band being so tight. Cost: $60-100, mask and snorkel. This way, when you get off the ship, head to the first taxi, ask them to bring you to a beach for snorkeling (and give them a time to pick you up…they'll do this) and it'll save you lots of money instead of renting or making arrangements through the ship. Go to cruisecritic.com for questions on where is the best spot/beach. The taxi drivers also will bring you to a seculded beach as well, if you wish. Altough I wouldn't do this on Jamiac…I haven't been there, but the news I've heard…
Anyway, the islands on the eastern side are nicer then the western…only because of Mexico. I'd really suggest looking into the southern side, or west if goes to Aruba or Caymen Islands. They're nice.
Check out iBtraveling.com for some good cruise specials. There's always something on there posted.
Well wish you both the best. Sure sounds like fun! Good luck!
January 6th, 2010 @ 1:27 am
Carnival is doing 5 night cruises from San Diego to Cabo. The best pricing is during the 1/21 and 1/26 sailing starting at $279 per person plus taxes and fees. This is a great deal!
January 6th, 2010 @ 8:22 pm
Go to http://www.love.allabouthoneymoons.com they can plan any type of trip not just honeymoons. If you tell them what you like and your budget they will plan the perfect trip for you.Best of all if you use there service to book your trip there service is free b/c the fee is paid by the cruise line. They have 2 locations in Louisiana so they can help!!