A non-dive related cruise question.

[DeputyDan]

I have never been on a regular cruise (have done liveaboards).

My question is:

Has anyone done a cruise where they really enjoyed the ship itself (without regard to the ports of call)?

I figure that if I ever do one, I would like for the ship board experience to be just as good as the ports of call experience. So I guess that instead of picking ports of call and seeing what ship goes there, I would pick the best ship experience and then see where that ship goes.

 

[drrich2]

Yes, but it depends on what you enjoy. In the evenings, there are 'shows' - performances either by the ship's performing staff (e.g.: musicals, dance, etc...) or guest stars (on one of my cruises, the guy who sang the theme song to the old t.v. series Happy Days). Pools and hot tubs appeal to some. Some people like the formal dining room look. I like the Royal Promenade on Royal Caribbean's larger ships, which is like walking down some quaint main street neighborhood on land. The really big ships have the Central Park (nicely planted, really nice) and Boardwalk (e.g.: carousel, hot dog shop, aqua theater for professional diving shows) 'neighborhoods' - enjoyed those on the Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas. The hugest ships can't just dock at any port, so their itineraries are more restrictive. If you're willing to pay extra, the specialty restaurants appeal to some.

What are you looking to enjoy on it?

Richard.

 

[DeputyDan]

My question isn't about what I like.
It was - what did you like.

 

[drrich2]

I like walking and sitting in the Central Park neighborhood on Oasis or Allure of the Seas.

Walking the Royal Promenade.

Taking our daughter on the carousel on the Boardwalk.

At the back was the Aqua Theater where dive performances were done; enjoyed that.

Professional photography by ship staff with family, and the shots we take ourselves (like my daughter and I with 'Mr. Squirrel' (she was almost 3; I know it's not a squirrel)). Wife took this:

I'm not into flow riding or mini-golf.

Hot tubs and pools are okay. Watching my daughter have fun in the water play area up top is fun. Oasis and Allure of the Seas have large play rooms where little kids can have fun, so we do, too. Evening shows can get pretty good, and Royal Caribbean has a number of ships with ice shows we enjoy. Outside show times you can ice skate (not my thing; neither is the rock climbing wall). Some people drink or enjoy the Casino; not for me, but your mileage may vary. They had a zip line.

One of the biggest pleasures is seeing non-diving family blessed with a range of entertainment/enrichment opportunities, especially a child. All neatly packaged so basically all we have to do is show up.

Richard.

 

[DeputyDan]

That's what I am looking for!

If you were to say - I liked this cruise because I could smoke anywhere I wanted to. That would tell me what I needed to know about that ship (as an example).

 

[ps444mike]

Just be careful on what ship you book on.. went to the eastern Caribbean

an ended up dinner was a dress up ever night .. didn't have clothes for that..lol love the smaller ships..

Here are a few pics from a cruise two years ago.. Antarctica def not for everybody.. ended up in a hurricane 101 mph winds an 18 foot waves.. ship was just over 300 foot long.. ya lots of sick people on board.. but once down there.. fun even did the polar plunge.. water temp 34 F

 

[robint]

None of the ships allow smoking anywhere..... there are specially designated smoking areas. Also zero smoking on balconies.

YES, we actually have done 5 cruises in the past few years and had a BLAST. Check out my trip reports, photos and videos here:
http://www.rnrscuba.net/cruises.html

As far as loving the ships.... it all depends what YOU like. We do Carnival, like the price, like the casual atmosphere, like the mixes of ages, like the live music, like the ports. We decided to do the first cruise just to see if we could stand being on a boat with 3000+ people as my hubby was dying to go on an Alaska cruise. We fell in love with it from Day 1 on first cruise.

What did we like best? Number 1 is probably the ease of it... no unpacking, no moving, no car rental, arrive at new port each day. The crew on Carnival is so friendly and happy, we just always have a good time. NO, it isn't the fanciest cruise line, but we aren't fancy people.
If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask...

 

[KeithG]

and consider that there are different types of cruise ships and different types of cruises.

you can do a river cruise on a long thin smallish boat (it has to squeeze under bridges, into locks and around tight corners).

you can travel on a floating monster and invade a new country everyday with 3000+ of your closest friends.

we now prefer the expedition type ships: generally smallish (100ish passengers) with an outdoorsy theme, lots of lectures, zooming about in zodiacs and no shopping, nightclub or casino. great food.

Silver Explorer Luxury Adventure Cruise | Silversea

 

[claymore]

The Oasis of the Seas and the Allure of the Sea are great ships to go on just from the aspect that they are truly a wonder to see but they are HUGE, over 3000 passengers. We have been on every major cruise line except Disney and like Carnival best over all. Holland America tends to have an older clientele, we are late 60's and we seemed to be the younger ones on board. I believe they needed a body bag on the last cruise we did with them.
Each line tends to have an age group or clientele that they cater to or appeal to. Carnival has tended to be a party boat, they have or had a Pirate Ship excursion in most ports that was a big party boat. That being said the food and service on Canival has always been top notch.
We do not care for the Free Style Dinning options on some cruise lines. We prefere a fixed time and table for dinner, the service tends to be better and the Waite staff gets to know you and what you want better when the serve you every night. For the most part most of the evening meals in the main dinning room will have almost the same meals as the reservation only dinning rooms. We have not found the food at the reservation only or up charge Dinning rooms to be worth the extra cost.

When the ship is in port there is not a lot going on on board as far as activities. What you want to do when on shore depends a lot on the port you are in. Some are great for shopping, they sell a LOT of jewelry. Some are better for sight seeing and the local culture. There are some ports that it is best to stay in the main areas or with a tour.

 

[mattia_v]

Only cruise ship I was on went to Antarctica. No boardwalk there, but the trip more than made up for it.

Antarctic cruise with some diving is on the bucket list.