What's the best cruise line?

We've been on HAL and found the passenger group to be really older. What's another good line?

We've been on HAL and found the passenger group to be really older. What's another good line?

Len3, from your list of past cruises I don't see Celebrity. Normally considered to be a premium cruise line more or less equal to HAL but with possibly a bit younger clientele. Celebrity is owned by Royal Caribbean. Princess is another normally considered to be on a par with RCI maybe just a small notch below HAL and Celebrity. Princess is owned by Carnival which also owns HAL and others. Hard to go wrong with any of these main stream lines. Of course you could consider Crystal, Regent, etc if it fits your budget.:) :D :) :D

have to agree, go with Celebrity.

We've been on HAL and found the passenger group to be really older. What's another good line?

Let me be quick to point out two things: (1) For the Price & Value (2) for the ship amenities (3) For an ADULT Cruise without kids...and I love 'em too...

OCEANIA GETS MY / OUR VOTE HANDSDOWN!!!

How old are you? I am 63 and DH is 66. We cruise Celebrity and Royal Carib.

There is a good mix of ages on both, although X may have a few more "older" pax. It all depends on what you mean by "older". When we were planning our first cruise, my TA steered us away from the Carnival "young and crazy" image and the HAL "old and stodgy" image. The two we have stuck to are somewhere in the middle. :)

In general X has fewer children, at least it seemed so on the longer cruises, which have hooked us even more. RCCL had an enormous # of kids on the 7-night Carib. winter cruises we've taken. They were not a problem, though.

We are extremely happy with both lines.

1/02 Explorer E. Carib.

1/03 Explorer W. Carib.

8/03 Summit Alaska cruise/tour

2/04 Adventure S. Carib.

2/05 Galaxy Panama Canal

6/06 Jewel Brit. Isles/Nor. Fjords + 3 nights in London

1/07 Mercury Mexican Riviera

1/08 Mercury Aust/NZ + extra days in Syd and Auk.

There are a variety of cruise lines you could consider from Princess (Mass Market) to Celebrity and Oceania (Premium) to say Crystal or Regent (Luxury).

Keith

We are in our sixties and always enjoy Regent. It is now all inclusive and is very upscale without being too stuffy.

Mostly a senior crowd ...

Len,

How old are you, and how old do you estimate the passengers on HAL to be? The reason I'm asking is that HAL is my favorite line, and I've sailing them since I was 48. I found the clientele to vary according to destination, time of year, and length of cruise.

Roz

Len, I'm 60 and I want to put in a plug for Royal Caribbean, my favorite. First, I love their ShipShape $ program, which always offers a very wide assortment of activity levels - walking the deck, aquatics, line dancing, stretching, beanbag tournaments, etc. etc. You get rewarded for participation with the ShipShape dollars, which you can use to "buy" from a nice selection of logo products at the end of the cruise.

Some other reasons: their live shows have terrific production values - they will really knock your socks off. The ships are SO beautiful, especially the Voyager Class, you will enjoy just wandering around and discovering the artwork, and then returning to your favorites. Finally, every Royal Caribbean ship I've been on has a distinctly superior library, well stocked, conveniently located, filled with comfy chairs and terrific views. The library usually winds up being one of my favorite hangouts on every cruise.

OCEANIA GETS MY / OUR VOTE HANDSDOWN!!!

Not so loud .....we will never get a cabin!! :D

Stick with any and every other cruise line out there, but please don't bother with Oceania! :D

Their prices have already risen significantly since I booked our first cruise with them a year and a half ago, and they are fast getting to the point where, if they rise any higher, they will be out of our price range. :(

People who must have their formal nights will absolutely despise the fact that you need only be clean and comfortably presentable, a la "country club casual", to partake of their delicious evening cuisine in the Grand Dining Room. (And don't tell my DH I said this, but I saw more foxy looking 55+ dudes in their polo shirts and chinos per capita on my O cruise than all the guys in tuxedos of any age on my other 6 cruises put together! Must be either that being comfortable makes a man look happier and therefore more attractive, and/or, the successful but not stuffy demographic that O pulls in?) :cool:

People who don't like books will absolutely hate the fact that so much space and elegant ambiance is dedicated to the lovely library on board. :mad:

People who need continual rock music fed into their ears will go through withdrawal. :eek:

People who love the smell of stale smoke from previous cabin occupants will find their olfactory sense wanting. :(

I could go on but, after all, I agreed not to mention Oceania.

Stick with any and every other cruise line out there, but please don't bother with Oceania! :D

I could go on but, after all, I agreed not to mention Oceania.

You forgot to mention the lack of lines to get on/off at the ports ..people will not be able practice the elbowing techniques;)

Those fattening desserts at tea time & lunch/dinner OMG I can hear the GYM calling my name...

Lyn

Hi Lyn

Regarding Oceania, I'm glad you mentioned the tendering experience. There is an absolute lack of that special sense of closeness that one experiences when being herded to the tenders on the mass market lines. This, IMHO, is a real deficit on O. After all, when oh when, will I get to interact with fellow passengers if not in the mad competition to get onto a tender? :(

Also, the horrible fact that one doesn't have to wait long at all for tenders. Because of this efficiency, I have less time for daydreaming while waiting, and also less time to practice that ultimate virtue, Patience! :rolleyes:

Keep the humor coming!

Susan

I guess I'll be the only one to mention Carnival. We have sailed on serveral lines, both stateside and from European ports, and I have to say our Carnival cruises have always been great. I think one of the most important factors is that we can now cruise during "off" times, since our children are all out of college and either in graduate school, law school, married, working or parents themselves.

My husband is a retired colonel from the USAFR and Carnival offers the BEST military discounts, another reason. We generally stay in a Cat 11 or 12 suite and have found the service wonderful. Also, all of the suites have a jacuzzi (which is important to me as I have had major spinal surgery and refuse to use a public hot tub). If there's a downside it is that room service does not serve hot meals. I believe Porthole magazine did an article a few months ago basically stating this same opinion.

Our favorite ship is the Conquest, it is just great. The food, in the dining room, is generally very good (we always allow or head waiter to decide upon an entree as they seem to know what is best that day) and the supper club (an additional $30.00 pp charge) is to die for. Yes, they do play all of the silly games but if you don't want to be involved you can sit on your balcony with a book, some tea or wine and just laze the day away.

I think that only you can determine which line is "best", because it's best for you and the only way you can decide upon a favorite line is to try them all. *shaking my head* It's a hard job but someone has to do it!:rolleyes:

RCCL gets my vote.

I am 57 and my DH is 60; we enjoy RCI and have always felt comfortable with the balance of ages on the cruises we have taken. Generally we avoid spring break however we are sailing this Thursday and much of Florida is now on spring break so we'll see how it goes.

We enjoy the artwork on the ships, music (especially in the Centrum); lounges, spa areas, theatre, dining rooms and specialty dining rooms.

Kathy:)

Our thoughts regarding this issue are probably different from most folks here. First, my 88 year old mother says HAL is for old fogeys. She found it boring. Second, account price/value ratio, we usually cruise Carnival. At 65, we find we are not among the oldest group aboard. The spread of ages on Carnival is what one would find in any random group--all over the place. It is not a line that caters to a younger crowd; that is a myth perpetrated by some travel agents.

Doc

Len, I'm 60 and I want to put in a plug for Royal Caribbean, my favorite. First, I love their ShipShape $ program, which always offers a very wide assortment of activity levels - walking the deck, aquatics, line dancing, stretching, beanbag tournaments, etc. etc. You get rewarded for participation with the ShipShape dollars, which you can use to "buy" from a nice selection of logo products at the end of the cruise.

 

Some other reasons: their live shows have terrific production values - they will really knock your socks off. The ships are SO beautiful, especially the Voyager Class, you will enjoy just wandering around and discovering the artwork, and then returning to your favorites. Finally, every Royal Caribbean ship I've been on has a distinctly superior library, well stocked, conveniently located, filled with comfy chairs and terrific views. The library usually winds up being one of my favorite hangouts on every cruise.

I just turned 59 (Feb 26) and my sister turned 61 during our last cruise. I have to agree about the Voyager of the Seas (RCL) being a beautiful ship. I didn't know about the ShipShape program, even though we did walk the track every day. I am glad you mentioned it since it sounds like fun. We will definitely sign up for it next January.

We've been on HAL and found the passenger group to be really older. What's another good line?

The best line and ship is very subjective, as I have not found the perfect ship. That said, sail on the line and ship that you enjoy, as the saying is "different strokes for different folks.":cool:

it s the time of the yr. my wife and i cruise that most of the younger

crowd is back to school..

Jan usually ..and we ve sailed on RCCL, Carnival and more recently

NCL..all have been wondeful..there s no such thing as a bad cruise :p

and inbetween we ll usually take a 3 or 4 day cruise out of San Pedro..

being quite price consious now that im retired..a Carnival agent has been most helpful in getting us the best military pricing among the lines..

We've been on most and of all of them...Drum roll please........

Princess wins......

The ambiance/food/decor/cleanliness/entertainment/shipboard activities are better on Princess.

HAL: Can be a bit dull.....not much to do onboard, if you don't do the ports. The ships are very well maintained and the crew is excellent. For a truly good rest....this is a good line!

NCL: Their "Freestyle" is not what they say it is. The buffet area is way too much like "school cafeteria" for us! And, the decor is too "plastic/aluminum!"

RCCL: A pretty close second to Princess. Some of the food was "canned!" Cabins are a nice size.

Celebrity: I didn't like the beds. DH thought the food was better on Princess.

Regent: Lovely but very pricey.....Can't cruise as often, if we take this line!

Carnival: Very lively; lots of fun; lots of noise; lots of announcments; good for families!......I can't take too much of this, all the time. But, for a good time call them!

We've been on HAL and found the passenger group to be really older. What's another good line?

GOING TO EUROPE IN AUGUST;) .....SO FAR LIKE ROYAL CARRIBEAN THE BEST. ROOMS ARE CLEAN....FOOD IS GREAT...WE ALLSO LIKE THE NITE ENTERTAINMENT ON BOARD:D ...WERE IN OUR EARLY SIXTY .WE NEVER SAW KIDS AROUND I GUESS THEY HAVE THINGS FOR THEM TO DO....WE HAVE ENJOYED OUR TRIPS WITH RC.....:)

I've had mixed experiences -

Carnival - atmosphere/decor/ambience all tilted to the 20-30's crowd, but the best food

Princess - a bit stodgy but not as bad as HAL

Celebrity - I got better treatment on the Bolivar Ferry - food/dining room service was horrible

RCCL - Geared to those from 40-60, but Carnival still has better food (beware the Ranch Steak).

My best experience cruising was with Matson Navigation; however, the cruise side of their line was closed down many years ago. It was relaxed elegance at its ultimate!

I guess I'll be the only one to mention Carnival. We have sailed on serveral lines, both stateside and from European ports, and I have to say our Carnival cruises have always been great. I think one of the most important factors is that we can now cruise during "off" times, since our children are all out of college and either in graduate school, law school, married, working or parents themselves.

 

My husband is a retired colonel from the USAFR and Carnival offers the BEST military discounts, another reason. We generally stay in a Cat 11 or 12 suite and have found the service wonderful. Also, all of the suites have a jacuzzi (which is important to me as I have had major spinal surgery and refuse to use a public hot tub). If there's a downside it is that room service does not serve hot meals. I believe Porthole magazine did an article a few months ago basically stating this same opinion.

 

Our favorite ship is the Conquest, it is just great. The food, in the dining room, is generally very good (we always allow or head waiter to decide upon an entree as they seem to know what is best that day) and the supper club (an additional $30.00 pp charge) is to die for. Yes, they do play all of the silly games but if you don't want to be involved you can sit on your balcony with a book, some tea or wine and just laze the day away.

 

I think that only you can determine which line is "best", because it's best for you and the only way you can decide upon a favorite line is to try them all. *shaking my head* It's a hard job but someone has to do it!:rolleyes:

I'm right there with you, Suse! We love Carnival, and our favorite ship is the Conquest (check out my signature! LOL!). AND we also love the supper clubs! I don't see how dining could be any better than the supper club on a Carnival Conquest class ship. I guess you could say DH and I are "young seniors", since I am not quite 55, and he is 56. To us, age is just a number..... (If you don't factor in the aches and pains of aging! *groan*) We love to DO things on a cruise. We also enjoy being with people of all ages. Our favorite tablemates on any cruise were a young couple, the same age as our children. We thoroughly enjoyed them and found that we had many things in common to talk about. (As opposed to the stuffy "senior" couple we were stuck with once.....:rolleyes: )

My signature will indicate that we have only cruised Carnival and only have Carnival booked for the future. Therefore, I can't comment on the other cruise lines. All I can say is that we have enjoyed Carnival so much that we have no reason to "jump ship" to try a different cruise line. (Plus, the fact that we are working on Platinum status with Carnival! ;) )

We vote for Windstar, for just a plain relaxing cruise with well traveled and educated folks going to places where the big boys can not go. You meet the greatest people and many have become good friends. We cruise on the big ships too, and that is always fun if you need the excitement. It is fun to alternate.