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.

 

[Pushka]

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

One of our best times was the period around 6-9pm at the bar at the forward part of the ship, overlooking glaciers in Alaska, cruising at 4 knots due to environmental issues and watching them as we drifted by. About 10 of us and the bar tenders were with us just gazing in awe. Then the show finished. The crowds emerged. The bar keeper went back behind the bar and we left for dinner. They'd been watching a stage show and never knew what they had missed.

 

[Scarlett]

I see the phrase “there’s cruises and then there’s Cruises” mentioned a few times. Being as I don’t know a P&O, from a Silversea, from a VV, can someone please break it down for me in terms I’ll understand. Which ones are:
- JQ (or more generically LCC)
- FR (uurrgghh) (or more generically ULCC)
- QF (mediocre but usually dependable)
- SQ/QR/Bling Air
- Netjets

 

[Buzzard]

+1 and I enjoy cruising, we currently have 5 booked. Our next cruise later this year is with Azamara.
This morning +1 spotted a 21 day package with Seabourn, an absolute bargain at under $5,xx_. Unfortunately the dates don't work.

 

[RooFlyer]

I see the phrase “there’s cruises and then there’s Cruises” mentioned a few times. Being as I don’t know a P&O, from a Silversea, from a VV, can someone please break it down for me in terms I’ll understand. Which ones are:
- JQ (or more generically LCC)
- FR (uurrgghh) (or more generically ULCC)
- QF (mediocre but usually dependable)
- SQ/QR/Bling Air
- Netjets

It’s a bit more complicated than that. Because of the size of the vessels there are a whole range of experiences possible on them, much more than the experiences possible on board an aircraft. so people can like or loathe a particular vessel, let alone a cruise line for the same characteristics.

There are luxury big ships and there are luxury small ships. Some like the luxury big ships ( Cunard) others like me like the luxury small ships ( SilverSea).

There are expedition cruises when you are out and about on zodiacs exploring and there are traditional cruises where the voyage and days in port is more of the attraction.

EDIT: and then there are river cruises like the Danube in Europe and blue water cruises.

So quite a complicated matrix, sorry.

In general, big ships are cheaper than small ships.

I haven’t done enough variety to probably give you the whole spectrum and except for one time when I tried Princess with AFF I’ve only ever done small ships.

I'd put Seabourne and SilverSea near the top of the list plus Cunard which I haven’t done and I’d put any of the monster Carnival type vessels near the bottom.

But your milage will almost certainly vary!

 

[Pushka]

This morning +1 spotted a 21 day package with Seabourn, an absolute bargain at under $5,xx_. Unfortunately the dates don't work.

Spill. Just in case.

 

[Buzzard]

Spill. Just in case.

Ring CruiseAway on 1300 412 914

 

[SYD]

I see the phrase “there’s cruises and then there’s Cruises” mentioned a few times. Being as I don’t know a P&O, from a Silversea, from a VV, can someone please break it down for me in terms I’ll understand. Which ones are:
- JQ (or more generically LCC)
- FR (uurrgghh) (or more generically ULCC)
- QF (mediocre but usually dependable)
- SQ/QR/Bling Air
- Netjets

Further to what @RooFlyer mentioned, this blog (there are others) breaks down the market, provides a bit of a summary of the different cruise market segments and who's on top/bottom of the segments.

Best And Worst Cruise Lines RIGHT NOW According to Cruisers!

Best And Worst Cruise Lines RIGHT NOW According to Cruisers! I've trailed the reviews and these were the results I found.

www.tipsfortravellers.com

However, ratings will always be subjective and can vary wildly depending on the individuals preference and where they're at in life: eg young solo traveler, younger couple (no kids), families, mature couples and oldies (set adrift for the rest of their years).

Also, as mentioned in the article. The ships themselves can make a big difference. Lines often operate multiple classes of ships

For example, the big "resort" style mega-cruise ships would be a complete turn-off for many here. Yet, perfect for a family who might go to Disneyland or Universal Studios type things.

Younger peeps and the JQ crowd might be quite happy with the cheaper "booze cruises" that you can get with Carnival, P&O (now Carnival) etc. They're also favored by Americans (and Australian) who like to eat, all they can eat and often. Don't stand between one and a lobster tail... The funny thing also, is sometimes the cheaper the line, the blingier they can be on the inside. Gaudy without being tasteful.

Interestingly Cunard is dropping in ratings - despite marketing as the still glamorous option - probably because their Carnival owner bean counters are scrimping. I have friends who love Cunard and dressing up in Black Tie etc but they recently did a Celebrity cruise and thought the food was better.

 

[Buzzard]

Over the last 30 years I've been on quite a few cruises ranging from cheap P & O to more upmarket Azamara. TBH even though some I wouldn't rush back to, I've enjoyed them all even if it's because of the friends I've travelled with. To some extent you can create your own heaven or hell. When very good friends asked me to join them on a cheap and cheerful cruise I thought why not? As a small group we had a ball.

 

[Pushka]

Further to what @RooFlyer mentioned, this blog (there are others) breaks down the market, provides a bit of a summary of the different cruise market segments and who's on top/bottom of the segments.

Best And Worst Cruise Lines RIGHT NOW According to Cruisers!

Best And Worst Cruise Lines RIGHT NOW According to Cruisers! I've trailed the reviews and these were the results I found.

www.tipsfortravellers.com

However, ratings will always be subjective and can vary wildly depending on the individuals preference and where they're at in life: eg young solo traveler, younger couple (no kids), families, mature couples and oldies (set adrift for the rest of their years).

Also, as mentioned in the article. The ships themselves can make a big difference. Lines often operate multiple classes of ships

For example, the big "resort" style mega-cruise ships would be a complete turn-off for many here. Yet, perfect for a family who might go to Disneyland or Universal Studios type things.

Younger peeps and the JQ crowd might be quite happy with the cheaper "booze cruises" that you can get with Carnival, P&O (now Carnival) etc. They're also favored by Americans (and Australian) who like to eat, all they can eat and often. Don't stand between one and a lobster tail... The funny thing also, is sometimes the cheaper the line, the blingier they can be on the inside. Gaudy without being tasteful.

Interestingly Cunard is dropping in ratings - despite marketing as the still glamorous option - probably because their Carnival owner bean counters are scrimping. I have friends who love Cunard and dressing up in Black Tie etc but they recently did a Celebrity cruise and thought the food was better.

And the Brit family travel on Cunard a lot and they recently travelled on a Celebrity and UK P&O and thought the food better on Cunard. I think of the larger ships that Princess is known for for the better food? But we didn't find that to be the case.