Article: My First Cruise: Would I Book Another One?

[SYD]

Im still enjoying the benefits of a VA to VV status match from the ill fated season in Australia, which I used for a 12 night Caribbean, and have booked Iceland - Greenland - Newfoundland - Halifax - New York in 2026.

Oh, I meant to mention earlier that the VA/VV status match should still work if you have an upcoming VV cruise booked and are VA Gold or higher.

Sailing Club Status Match - Cruise Loyalty Program

For a limited time, we’ll match your status from most cruise lines and select Virgin brands, then fast-track you into the Sailing Club.

www.virginvoyages.com

 

[antycbr]

Oh, I meant to mention earlier that the VA/VV status match should still work if you have an upcoming VV cruise booked and are VA Gold or higher.

Sailing Club Status Match - Cruise Loyalty Program

For a limited time, we’ll match your status from most cruise lines and select Virgin brands, then fast-track you into the Sailing Club.

www.virginvoyages.com

Yes it does to the mid tier “blue extras”. For some reason - most likely Virgin/Bain lack of IT investment - I’ve matched to Deep Blue Extras which includes the holy grail of a free laundry bag and $100 bar tab. I’m not going to complain at all…

 

[SYD]

Yes it does to the mid tier “blue extras”. For some reason - most likely Virgin/Bain lack of IT investment - I’ve matched to Deep Blue Extras which includes the holy grail of a free laundry bag and $100 bar tab. I’m not going to complain at all…

Yeah, I only got the “Blue Extras” off VA SG. That still comes with free Laundry but not the bar tab. After two cruises, I’m still only BE (so’s SYD+1 now). I was expecting/hoping to get to DBE after the 2nd but looks like it’ll be after the next VV cruise (if any). Kicking myself I didn’t do one of the short Oz cruises…

 

[RooFlyer]

I don’t think that the cruise the author took is indicative of cruising in general

Personally, I love cruising but I doubt that you could’ve got me on board that ship

totally agree.

@Steph123 I think you missed a bit by looking at 'cruising' through the prism of that monstrosity of a ship chosen for your first cruise. But I recognise the circumstance. I can only recommend small ships - less than 250 passengers - and expedition cruises. you’ll never look back.

 

[Zulu0929]

As someone has already mentioned, there are Cruises and Cruises. I have been on several and now avoid the larger vessels and all that goes with them, i.e. too many people, too much noise, queues for a lot, Drinks packages that you have to have for two people and expensive when the other half does not drink much, those passengers focusing on the trip being a drinking binger, etc.
The best deals are with the likes of Silverseas Cruises... yes, slightly more expensive, but the cabins are magnificent, no one walking past your window or doors, everything included, butler and smaller vessels between 250 and 600 passengers....... changes cruising for ever.

 

[Aeryn]

Whilst i love a day of sailing or cruising the reef, I know multi-day cruising is mostly not for me. From what Ive observed they are rarely a good deal for a solo passenger (i dont always travel with my partner or friends), most offer very limited time off ship to properly visit a place and gouge you on excursion prices, the main demographic of the lux ships skews considerably older than my partner and I; and we have zero interesting gambling or RSL/Cabaret type entertainment.

I have done 1 small ship cruise (and I mean small - 30 passengers + 8 crew) down the Dalmatian coast from Split to Dubrovik. the good points were:

• adults only
• had no at sea days
• dropped anchor each day somewhere so we could swim or paddleboard off the boat
• we were in a different port before sunset each night so you could walk off the ship and come back whenever it suited you as long as back before sailing at 8am. So you could choose to dine cheap or Michelin star and didn't have to hare a table with randoms

The main con was the room not as nice as my usual standard of hotel.

We arrived in Dubrovnik on a day where no big cruise ships were in port (the largest was a 50 passenger one next to ours) and exploring the old town was calm and lovely. The next day huge cruise ships in port swamping everything we ended up hiding on the other side of town with some locals.

My sister otoh loves cruising but then again she also likes fancy dress parties which I loathe but seem to always feature on cruises.

Id only consider a cruise again if it was really the only way to properly visit a place i.e. Antarctica and then only if i could afford one of the ships that actually has you set foot on the continent, had proper guides etc.

I feel that almost everywhere else you get to experience a place much better not on a cruise. Im an efficient packers and use cubes, so i dont fine moving hotels frequently an issue.

Even in the Galapagos we flew in and stayed on the inhabited islands, taking some long day cruises to other islands.

I happy others love it, but too restrictive and questionable value to me.

 

[VPS]

Whilst i love a day of sailing or cruising the reef, I know multi-day cruising is mostly not for me. From what Ive observed they are rarely a good deal for a solo passenger (i dont always travel with my partner or friends), most offer very limited time off ship to properly visit a place and gouge you on excursion prices, the main demographic of the lux ships skews considerably older than my partner and I; and we have zero interesting gambling or RSL/Cabaret type entertainment.

I have done 1 small ship cruise (and I mean small - 30 passengers + 8 crew) down the Dalmatian coast from Split to Dubrovik. the good points were:

• adults only
• had no at sea days
• dropped anchor each day somewhere so we could swim or paddleboard off the boat
• we were in a different port before sunset each night so you could walk off the ship and come back whenever it suited you as long as back before sailing at 8am. So you could choose to dine cheap or Michelin star and didn't have to hare a table with randoms

The main con was the room not as nice as my usual standard of hotel.

We arrived in Dubrovnik on a day where no big cruise ships were in port (the largest was a 50 passenger one next to ours) and exploring the old town was calm and lovely. The next day huge cruise ships in port swamping everything we ended up hiding on the other side of town with some locals.

My sister otoh loves cruising but then again she also likes fancy dress parties which I loathe but seem to always feature on cruises.

Id only consider a cruise again if it was really the only way to properly visit a place i.e. Antarctica and then only if i could afford one of the ships that actually has you set foot on the continent, had proper guides etc.

I feel that almost everywhere else you get to experience a place much better not on a cruise. Im an efficient packers and use cubes, so i dont fine moving hotels frequently an issue.

Even in the Galapagos we flew in and stayed on the inhabited islands, taking some long day cruises to other islands.

I happy others love it, but too restrictive and questionable value to me.

I love sea days

I also never participate in any fancy dress and also I’m not the least interested in most of the entertainment which I’ve found is mostly American focused

 

[RooFlyer]

Id only consider a cruise again if it was really the only way to properly visit a place i.e. Antarctica

bingo. Antarctica, Svalbard in the Arctic and Greenland for me. Canary Islands. Kimberly.

yes, Antarctica on SilverSea which included the Falklands and South Georgia was expensive but worth every cent

 

[drron]

There are some things that you certainly more likely to see on a cruise than from land. And much more likely on a small ship than a large one.
We were on a 16 passenger catamaran in the Galapagos and we didn't waste time doing the long passages during daylight hours so more time interacting with the wildlife. I wouldn't recommend a larger ship for the Galapagos.
That was my second cruise. Mrsdrron was very smart so my first cruise was on an 8 passenger converted crab boat on the Inside Passage Alaska. We were kayaking one day and all you could see the spouts as whales surfaced and all you could hear was whale songs. Across the other side of the passage a Carnival ship was cruising quickly north. We wondered what they were seeing and hearing. A humpback then answered that question by surfacing right beside us.
My third cruise was a 110 passenger boat in the Kimberly. Fourth was a 132 passenger ship to Svalbard. None of those easier to do by land.