Cruises vs Land Based Holidays

We have just returned from a family holiday in Crete.The trip included me and my DH, my 4 children, their partners and my 2 Grandsons. It was a special holiday to celebrate my 50th Birthday.

The last time we all went away together was 2011 when we got married on board Oceana.

When we were planning this holiday, we discussed whether we should go on a cruise or go land based.

Our youngest (now 16) absolutely loves cruises. She has made so many friends over the years and still keeps in touch with many of them.

My other children (27, 28 and 31) were not as keen so we decided on a land based holiday in Crete.

We have been cruising (DH, me and our youngest daughter) for the last 10 years doing 1 or sometimes 2 cruises a year since 2008. So this was always going to be different for us.

The hotel complex that we stayed in was very nice. The areas around the pool etc. were kept clean and tidy and the entertainment was good for the children. That's where the nice bits for us ended.

The behaviour of a lot of the other guests was disgusting. We actually observed a Russian woman scooping up potato salad, smelling it, tasting it then putting the serving spoon back in the dish.

The food was vile and the drinks were weak rubbish. We were all inclusive but spent a fortune eating and drinking elsewhere.

I got what I think was food poisoning. I was ill for 3 days and still not right now after returning home last Friday. There were no hand washing facilities or hand gel in any of the eateries. Luckily I always have a pack of baby wipes and a travel hand sanitizer with me.

My husband, youngest daughter and I kept saying how much we missed being on a ship for our holiday. Maybe we have got used to being spoiled on board. It made us realise how much we enjoy our cruises with P and O and we are so much looking forward to our 2 future cruises booked with them.

Our Daughter made 1 friend the whole time because there was nowhere the teens could meet. She is used to meeting lots of friends on board.

That's just our opinion of course and many of you may have a different look on things. Ours was a 4 star water park hotel. It wasn't cheap and we could have had a cruise for less than we paid.

For us, it will be a long time before we stray from cruises again.

Having said all that, I had a fantastic time with my lovely family. Just wish it had been on a ship.

Anybody else feel the same about cruises vs land based?

Janine x

The biggest advantage of a cruise to my mind is that one gets to visit lots of different places with no effort. With a land holiday the only way of doing that involves the hassle of often long and tiring journeys between locations and the need to check into and out of a lot of hotels, with all the unpacking and repacking that that requires.

We felt the difference a few years back, when Thomson was sailing the Red Sea. We chose a stay/cruise in Sharm...again, fabulous hotel, private beach, good food and plenty of alcohol...but we found it very difficult having conversations with people- and we did try! There was limited entertainment, and most people sat around in the gardens after dinner, in small groups.

I couldn't wait for the cruise part to start...and within minutes of arriving on board, people were chatting as if we'd been friends for years!

I'm not sure why there's such a difference between hotels and ships, but we've noticed it even in hotels in Southampton, with the same folk who will be getting on your ship the next day.

The advantage of cruising is that you can choose a beach itinerary or a sightseeing itinerary and so on. If you are travelling with children beach holidays can be really good. However, night life is much safer on a cruise ship in my opinion than in a foreign resort where all sorts of people are coming and going. All aspects of security and behaviour are far better on a cruise ship.

Regards John

We have recently returned from a hotel in Croatia. We loved the hotel and have booked to go back next year, but we did notice that we did not get chatting to people in the hotel as we do on a cruise.

So we have booked a cruise on Azura too 😉

Just returned from two weeks in Majorca. We cruise a lot but just break it up now and again with a land based holiday. This one was a four star all inclusive with fabulous reviews. From the first day it was fairly obvious that we had stepped into the Majorca Mother and Toddler play group! The food was pretty good but the constant wailing of tiny children throughout every meal wore you down. The entertainment was also pretty good if you could ignore the kids club dance that appeared to be going on from six at night until about half eleven directly in front of the acts. As expected the drinks seemed to be about half strength and so we tended to drink elsewhere.

Oh well that's life, September we are back on Queen Victoria and next January a month on Ventura going TA and Caribbean. Peace perfect peace!!

Peter and Jenny

They say “you get what you pay for”, that is very true whether it is land or sea. Generally speaking cruise food is better but the gradual decline in food quality is very noticeable especially on P&O. That’s why we always pay the extra and eat in the specialty restaurants whether that is on P&O or Celebrity.

Go to an Ikos hotel in Greece then the food is a better standard but even then if you what quality you have to pay extra even there. Land based holidays always cost more comparatively but variety is the spice of life. These days I tend towards land as the pollution aboard cruise ship is becoming intolerable.

We had a land holiday in Pafos, Cyprus in 2014 in a hotel that we have been to many times in the same room - beautiful hotel and wonderful place.

Having been on our cruises through, it just didn't feel the same for some reason.

The price was the same as when we went on Oceana the year after so no price comparison.

On reflection we felt that the land holiday missed the excitement of being in a different place each day - we just love to explore new places. There is nothing like sipping wine on the balcony at sail away.

Having said that, we would still like to return to Cyprus and will no doubt have a land holiday ----- just hope we don't see any cruise ships sail past !!!

Sounds awful. think I will stick to cruising. I don't find the food bad at all. Yes there are some nights, when I don't really want anything on the menu, so then I just take the salmon or a steak.

Despite having done many cruises over the last few years, we are lucky enough to do land-based holidays also. We have never done an all inclusive. However I enjoy my land holidays, and the variety they afford, every bit as much.

I love early mornings in a resort and watching it come alive. Equally I like to see places in the evening and not have to be concerned with a ship’s departure time. I have a favourite hotel in a favourite resort on the shores of Lake Garda for instance, and we like to rent a car and see the neighbouring towns at our own pace. We also like to see new places without a possible couple of thousand other people hitting the same place at the same time! I’m never happier than when planning a long road trip, in say Canada or the USA. Not all land-based holidays are created equal!

Lots of positives for cruising undoubtedly, but not all the time, for me at least.

The OP has not described a cruise vs land based holiday, but has put a great complaint on a cruise forum about a hotel the person stayed at.

Must admit I have a particular dislike of Greece (both for land hols and also as cruise ports) but that apart there are many really good hotels in many countries and often they work out much cheaper than a cruise, especially if you want a big balcony and decent sized room with a far superior bathroom then you are likely to get on a cruise. There are also some pretty crummy cruise companies around. Cruising does give quite a different holiday to hotel based ones but that is a choice taken by each person - we like both and choose what we want to do where we want to do it. Basically we cruise for unusual destinations, or ones that are hard to get to, or are very expensive for land based hols, but that is our choice.

Now if I have a bad cruise, I could always post a great complaint about it on a non cruise forum...................:rolleyes:

Perhaps the OP should look into hotels (and their reviews) before booking a holiday. The same also goes for a cruise.

Tring, that is a great post IMHO, and gets to the real issues much better than my ramblings ;).

The OP has not described a cruise vs land based holiday, but has put a great complaint on a cruise forum about a hotel the person stayed at.

I completely agree, and not only that, they have not compared 'like for like'. A cruise takes you different places but they have compared it to a stay in a single location.

For fairness compare it to something like the last tour of the middle of Spain I recently did. Starting from Madrid before heading to Segovia, then on to Salamanca via Avila, and on again to Valladolid via Zamora, then up to Burgos before returning to Madrid for a few days. An absolutely fabulous trip staying in wonderful hotels, superb food, seeing some wonderful sights, and taking into account all spending, around the same price as a cruise.

The most significant difference for me between a cruise and a land based stay is on a cruise you arrive at 9am with the day trippers and leave at 4pm with the day trippers. I want to be strolling through the streets of Malaga, Cadiz, Palama, etc late into the evening when the heat has fallen away and the crowds have left, just enjoying the town.

I completely agree, and not only that, they have not compared 'like for like'. A cruise takes you different places but they have compared it to a stay in a single location.

 

For fairness compare it to something like the last tour of the middle of Spain I recently did. Starting from Madrid before heading to Segovia, then on to Salamanca via Avila, and on again to Valladolid via Zamora, then up to Burgos before returning to Madrid for a few days. An absolutely fabulous trip staying in wonderful hotels, superb food, seeing some wonderful sights, and taking into account all spending, around the same price as a cruise.

 

The most significant difference for me between a cruise and a land based stay is on a cruise you arrive at 9am with the day trippers and leave at 4pm with the day trippers. I want to be strolling through the streets of Malaga, Cadiz, Palama, etc late into the evening when the heat has fallen away and the crowds have left, just enjoying the town.

I agree - we decided to spend a week in Santorini after several one day stops on cruises. We had a nice hotel with accommodation in small groups around pools. Never crowded, quiet and very civilised. It was not all inclusive though or geared to families ie apart from the pools no children's entertainment. We stayed in Thira and each day radiated out to different locations on the island doing the highest village, the archaeological remain, old Thira, the beach etc, and Oia after 3pm when the cruise ships left. A varied week which gave us the chance to go somewhere different each day generally away from the crowds. In the evening a walk, a meal at a taverna and drink overlooking the caldera - a very different experience to cruising but one we enjoyed equally as much.

We're planning a week in Garda and will radiate out from there each day to visit somewhere new - much as we do on a cruise. We don't expect it to be the same kind of experience though in terms of dining, meeting people or entertainment but just something different. I think we weigh up what each type of holiday can offer and then decide if it's for us. I certainly wouldn't write off land based holidays when there's so much choice and the chance to experience/explore places a cruise can't offer.

I agree it's not hugely fair to compare a bad hotel with cruising, as obviously you get bad cruises and amazing hotels!

It's hard to say 'one is better than the other' but cruising really suits our holiday style of 'relaxed but busy' which I suppose makes no sense! I do feel cruising is excellent value as well- the last couple of Europe trips we've done have felt painfully expensive due to the exchange rate. It's very nice knowing you have food and drink all included and waiting for you, without the location restrictions of an AI resort (which we tried once and is not for us!)

We do have one land based trip booked, but it's to Orlando where it's not possible to go bored or be hungry :D

We were on A P&O cruise many years ago, and it was the captains last cruise before retirement, and we were invited to his retirement party. Wonderful event, the crew were wearing national costumes, and of course he was interviewed, the one question I remember was, what are you going for holidays?, his reply, going to the many places he had called at for a 'proper' stay, and not by cruise ship!

I would agree that cuises are a great way to find places that you want to go for a “proper” stay. Going in at 9am and leaving again at 5pm is just a taster and can give a very superficial view of a location. As others have said you are also in with the thousands of others off ships and cities and towns can be totally different once they have all left.

I love cruising, the friendly people, entertainment, reasonable food and different places to visit. No airports if from the UK and unpacking just once is also a bonus.

I also love land based holidays as you get to know more about the local people, the culture and the food of the locality. Even the smallest room in a decent hotel is usually significantly bigger than a standard balcony cabin on a ship which is also nice. We have been in hotels where the service, food and ambience was every bit as good if not better than a cruise ship.

Both holidays have their advantages. You just need to ensure you pick the right ship or hotel for your specific preferences.

I find that we are doing more land based holidays and tours more recently as the ships itinerary are the same old ports they have done for years and we have been to many of them several times now. The new areas for 2020 might change that to an extent.

Ok it is difficult to beat cruises when you get to see a number of places while keeping the same hotel room,in contrast we have been used to road trips in the USA for our main holiday,once doing over 3000 miles in just under 3 weeks,the last one,for various reasons,saw us stay at 9 different hotels in a similar time(we got used to living out of suitcases but had trouble remembering our hotel room number!),we are not serial cruisers,after our first in 2007 we have so far managed 3 & a bit with one booked for October 2019.

I would definately consider land based holidays to be better value,for one thing I have yet to stay in a hotel room quite as compact as a regular cruise ship cabin(although we have come close!),I think I have seen too many programmes about them being built & it just keeps coming to my mind that we are staying in a furnished container!

We have recently stayed a couple of times in Portugal,beautiful hotel on the beach,huge room with balcony & sea view,only B&B(a buffet for breakfast,great selection of good food & no rude people like we saw on Britannia in March so far anyway!) but local restaurants are cheap & excellent,great staff all for far less than I can get a cruise to the Med.

Also I think you have to throw in your familiararity with the hotel./resort,if is a regular haunt then obviously you are familiar with the area,sights & sounds,people,restaurants & bars,no nasty surprises.

Also of course while at some hotels you will get hit with daily charges for things like city taxes & car parking they wont IME be charging for the staffs tips!

Obviously we are all different & like different things which brings me to meeting people,many of those we have met on board are 'serial' cruisers,nothing wrong with that,but for us non 'serial' cruisers striking up a conversation can be difficult as many only seem to want to talk about cruising!

I do hope that you wouldn't write Crete off on the basis of 1 AI holiday. The truth is that Crete is not the best place for All Inclusive, as apart form a very small number of wildly extravagant places, the majority of AI hotels provide food that is based solely on economics, not quality. However, if you stay B&B or self-catering, one of the absolute joys of Crete is to wander around the village/ resort, choosing where to eat that evening. & almost everywhere (even Malia has a pleasant Old Town with decent tavernas) the tavernas are family owned by proud people wanting to provide delicious food. & another advantage is that these are locally owned, managed & staffed, unlike the international AI conglomerates.

[quote name=snaefell;56551714 ".................)' date='I think I have seen too many programmes about them being built & it just keeps coming to my mind that we are staying in a furnished container!

cruising![/quote]

As a sometime designer of land based hotels I can assure you that more and more of them WILL be furnished containers too..... prefabrication and site stacking by robot cranes is the future.......:)

If I was doing another land based holiday, I definitely would not go all inclusive. We would find it very boring to eat in the same place each night, especially in Greece or Italy. So many lovely little restaurants and different food to try.

If I was doing another land based holiday, I definitely would not go all inclusive. We would find it very boring to eat in the same place each night, especially in Greece or Italy. So many lovely little restaurants and different food to try.

The best compromise I found was a tour operator who ran activity holidays, mainly in Greece, where it was full board apart from three evenings a week.

So you had the advantage of evenings where you didn't need to think about where to go, but for the free nights the opportunity to try some of the local restaurants without feeling you had wasted money by not eating in resort.

If I was doing another land based holiday, I definitely would not go all inclusive. We would find it very boring to eat in the same place each night, especially in Greece or Italy. So many lovely little restaurants and different food to try.

Very much tend to agree although IME there are many on cruisers who will dine in the MDR every night,same time,same table,they certainly get to know there fellow diners & waiting on staff!

Just come back from a week on an AI basis, a return to a hotel we last visited 2011.

difficult not to do AI due to severe lack of restaurants on the island close to the hotel. To go anywhere is £10-30 for a return trip in a taxi.

The hotel was excellent, great pool, huge room, very quiet and clean beach.

However the downside has to be the airport! Manchester is currently being extended and T2 will be twice the size by 2020. The ten minute bus service from the car park was actually a 20 minutes wait.

2 hours from car park to airside thanks to lack of staff. Two flights of 200 people sent to adjacent gates with 100 seats. It was also next to the toilets and an info desk where another 200 people were sent to pick up meal vouchers due to a delay.

Airbridge failed. Couldn't find any stairs for the aircraft. 45 minute delay at the crowded gate.

On return the pilot was pleased to announce we had favourable tail winds and would arrive 30 minutes early. Excellent for a 3.5 hour flight. Landed early, sent to a stand and waited 40 minutes for stairs and buses! So much for the early landing.

Three flights arrived, queue for passport check about 200m. Another 25 minute wait for a 10 minute bus service. 90 minutes from landing to getting back to the car.

Give me a ship to drive to and avoid the airport madness!

It’s hard to get past that one, isn’t it?