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What
kind of cruise is right for you?
It can truly be said that the cruising industry
has something for everyone. Big ships, small ships. Many
ports of call or lots of days at sea. Casual or formal. Short
cruises or long cruises. How can you possibly make up your
mind which is right for you?
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First,
find a good travel agent. We have seen many of the
ships of the various cruise lines, or have clients that have
reported back on their experiences, and we can give you a good
idea of what your experience will be like.
Big
ship or small ship? I just sailed on my first under-2000
passenger ship last month, the Tahitian Princess, which holds
670 passengers. While
there weren’t
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as
many dining and entertainment venue options as you have available
on the larger ships, the compactness of the ship made it
possible to actually run into people during the day that
you’d seen
on excursions or at dinner. The smaller ship was definitely easier
to navigate and any passenger lines we experienced either embarking
or disembarking moved very quickly. The smaller ships are also
able to sail into many harbors the large ships can’t enter.
On some itineraries, the small ships tender (use one of the lifeboats
to go to shore for excursions), so dependent on the itinerary,
a larger ship may be better for someone with mobility problems.
My advice: chose your destination, look over all of the itineraries
offered and then select your ship.
Many ports of call or lots of days at sea? The
deciding factor to this question should be what your vacation
goals are. If you are looking for a relaxing vacation, a Mediterranean
cruise visiting ten ports in twelve days should definitely not
be your choice. And if bingo, trivia games, reading and gazing
out over the horizon for five days straight is not your cup of
tea, don’t book a transatlantic voyage. Most cruise itineraries
are a good mix of both port and sea days, so you have a chance
to visit three or more locations and also experience the onboard
activities the ship offers.
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Casual
or formal? If you refuse to bring a sports coat
with you on vacation and would prefer to spend most of
your time
in shorts or jeans, there is a cruise for you. If you
love to bring out your tuxedo or sequined gown for dining
several
nights on vacation, there’s also a cruise for you.
If you fall somewhere in between, you’re in luck;
you’ll
be fine on almost any cruise. Most
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ships
offer one or two “formal” nights
where men are asked to wear a suit and tie and women,
cocktail attire. If
this is something you don’t want to participate in, you
have the option of dining in the buffet or having room service
on most ships. On other occasions, dining room attire is usually
nice casual wear (but many cruise lines discourage jeans). Information
and pictures on the cruise lines’ websites will give
you a good feel for the ambiance of the ship.
Short
or long cruise? Many people who have never cruised
ask me if they should “try it out” by taking a
weekend cruise. My answer, unless this is all the time or money
they can spend, is “no”. While short cruises usually
offer most of the experiences you might get on a longer cruise,
including a “formal” night on some, there’s
just not time in three or four days to get a true cruise experience.
Also, most of the ships that are used on the weekend cruises
are older ships in the fleet and will not give you a feel for
some of the wonderful innovations that have come about in the
last five years of shipbuilding. (Short, repositioning cruises,
where a ship is moved from one area to another, are another
story). I suggest a new cruiser start out with a seven day
cruise, with at least three port stops, and then decide whether
or not you like cruising.
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