Why we don't go on "all gay cruises" anymore

[micro yaya]

we did a mariner cruise years ago from florida, and there were about 500 g and l onboard. we had a blast, did we care not in the least, and i don't think most of the people onboard did either. we certainly saw some geat costumes on holloween lol, but we have always believed live and let live.

[johhnnyt]

I think I have taken two on Atlantis, one on RSVP, and 8 or 10 I think of the gay group cruises with Pied Piper. The first Atlantis was outstanding the first few days, but for me anyway the novelty kind of wore off after that. Everything was just so in excess drug, drink and sex. It just really felt after a few days that I was trapped in a giant gay bar.

Couldn't really rationalize the cost since it was a third to half more than a gay group cruise. They (all gay cruises) have been a good experience but need to try and make it more than a 2000 passenger gay bar.

In a way I think its kind of cool on the str8 or gay group cruises, because just about every one you meet str8 couples who learn that there is nothing to fear from gay men and women, and like that whole philosophy of showing how alike we are rather than differences by example.

Will probably try the all gay charters again in the future though

Edited January 14, 2011 by johhnnyt

[m183837]

I have been on one gay cruise by Atlantis and loved it. I am going for my second cruise with them in March. :):)

[legaljen1969]

In reality cruise lines do not truly respect diversity regarding Gays unless it is a totally Gay cruise; it is about money.

 

Sometimes we feel we would like to travel/vacation in an environment where being Gay is a non-issue.

 

But an all gay cruise is NOT diverse.

[Kenito]

After reading and rereading these posts, maybe one of the biggest advantages of a Gay cruises is its an environment where being Gay is

a non issue.

 

I have stopped contributing for this thread because all had been said that needed to be said. But once again... "I have not sailed on a gay cruise for my own reasons; I don't preclude the idea that I will sail on one in the future and have a good time."

 

However, when I cruise, being gay is a non-issue. To be honest, I always have straight folks reach out and say they enjoy sailing with us.

 

Does not mean that I could not enjoy an all gay cruise, but I do a gay group cruise yearly and we have an absolutely great time, and that is what I base my decisions upon... my positive experiences. :)

[Darrell6t]

And the entertainment for the next Atlantis cruise has been revealed. One of the big reasons we love the all-gay cruises. Cheyenne Jackson, Andy Bell, Miss Richfield 1981, Pam Am and more. You don't get that on your typical cruise.

[Schplinky]

And the entertainment for the next Atlantis cruise has been revealed. One of the big reasons we love the all-gay cruises. Cheyenne Jackson, Andy Bell, Miss Richfield 1981, Pam Am and more. You don't get that on your typical cruise.

 

 

I've heard of Cheyenne Jackson but the rest are not people I'd buy a cruise to see. Who is Andy Bell?

 

I think that if Atlantis would advertise their headliners before you had to commit money, it would be tempting, but they always seem to announce them after all the decent cabins are gone. It must work because it sounds like people are trying to claw their way onto the Allure sailing.

[cruzeluver]

Who is Andy Bell?

 

The singer form Erasure. Pop duo popular 20+ years ago.

[MDDCFlyer]

I think that if Atlantis would advertise their headliners before you had to commit money, it would be tempting, but they always seem to announce them after all the decent cabins are gone.

 

They cannot - they don't have the contract signed until few weeks prior to the sailing. You can count on the regulars entertainers to be present, but the new name, or big headliner would not be determined almost until the sailing date.

[Schplinky]

The singer form Erasure. Pop duo popular 20+ years ago.

 

 

THANK YOU. It was itching at the back of my head.

 

I think about the biggest name we had on a cruise was Charo. That was on just a regular RCCL cruise. She's a hoot.

[Schplinky]

They cannot - they don't have the contract signed until few weeks prior to the sailing. You can count on the regulars entertainers to be present, but the new name, or big headliner would not be determined almost until the sailing date.

 

I understand what the Atlantis company line on this issue is but why do they need to wait until just before the cruise to do this? Lots of cruises advertise they're going to have this or that entertainer. Some of their acts, I would like to see. Some, like former American Idol non-winners, I would have no interest in.

[Boytjie]

I think that if Atlantis would advertise their headliners before you had to commit money, it would be tempting, but they always seem to announce them after all the decent cabins are gone. It must work because it sounds like people are trying to claw their way onto the Allure sailing.

 

Atlantis often sells out long before the cruise and the entertainment contracts aren't usually signed until much closer to the sail date. Also, the first categories of cabins on a gay charter to sell out are the more expensive and the least expensive.

Edited January 26, 2011 by Boytjie

[BadSeaLegs]

My buddy and I have been on gay cruises to Florida ports, Mexican ports, Mediterranean ports and Baltic ports.

We have enjoyed them all but no longer book exclusively gay cruises.

Mainly because,......... of the price. We find much cheaper prices on regular cruises with the possibility of upgrades and specials through our travel agent.

Secondly,......"straight" cruises have a much more diverse, eclectic group than the homogeneous group aboard the gay cruises.

And finally,.......there seems to be a subtle judgment concerning age, occupation and life style.

True,...all gay cruises alleviate the apprehension of homophobic comments but to date, we have not experienced negative reaction to our life style on straight cruises.

We encourage all cruisers to experience both type cruises. I'm sure some will prefer "gay" while others will enjoy "straight",.....and still others will mix it up.

Looking forward to comments about the gay versus straight cruise experience.

Rick

 

 

I'm curious to know what type of shows and activities were available on these cruises. The regular cruises leave a lot to be desired as far as shows and such. If gay cruises have managed to up the game to make it more interesting to a gay crowd, I would LOVE to hear about it.

[Boytjie]

I'm curious to know what type of shows and activities were available on these cruises. The regular cruises leave a lot to be desired as far as shows and such. If gay cruises have managed to up the game to make it more interesting to a gay crowd, I would LOVE to hear about it.

 

Take a look at the RSVP daily schedule for next moth's Caribbean cruise to get an idea: http://www.rsvpvacations.com/pdf/RSVP%2025th%20Anniversary%20Cruise%20Daily%20Schedule.pdf

 

Or an overview of events and entertainment: http://www.rsvpvacations.com/cruise_2011_caribbean_entertainment.aspx

Edited January 30, 2011 by Boytjie

[GXmanDC]

I'm curious to know what type of shows and activities were available on these cruises. The regular cruises leave a lot to be desired as far as shows and such. If gay cruises have managed to up the game to make it more interesting to a gay crowd, I would LOVE to hear about it.

 

I pasted the link for the entertainment on next week's 20th anniversary cruise for Atlantis. The entertainment is on pages 18-23.

 

http://www.atlantisevents.com/public/PDF/AllureCruise_VacationGuide.pdf

 

This will be my fifth cruise, fourth Atlantis cruise. The entertainment is usually over the top. This voyage is a little different in that we don't have a huge headliner. Allure of the Seas does not have a single performace space that can accomodate all of the guests in two seatings. Past cruises would have Roseanne Barr, Wanda Sykes, Debbie Gibson, Kathy Griffin, Patti Lupone, Alec Mapa, etc.

 

I don't go to all of the dance parties, but I usually will stop by the night

ones to check out the costumes. As any cruise, it is what you make it. For some guys it is a week of events that would make Caligula blush. I'm much tamer.

[BadSeaLegs]

Thanks Boytjie and GxmanDC!

 

I just finished reading through this entire thread, which I should have done BEFORE I posted my question. My bad....slaps wrist!

 

My partner and I tend to be rather sedate, hey middle age, it happens....so it is nice to know that if you don't want to party till dawn that there are other options to choose from. While we may not be bar crawlers we also have to admit that regular cruises have entertainment that leaves us bored. We cruise mainly for the ports of call but it would be nice to actually HAVE something to do during the sea days other than sit around and people watch over coffee.

Thanks for the links too. We need to look this stuff over and consider long and hard about where and what we want to do.

[77Network]

Atlantis often sells out long before the cruise and the entertainment contracts aren't usually signed until much closer to the sail date. Also, the first categories of cabins on a gay charter to sell out are the more expensive and the least expensive.

 

I think is pretty common on all cruises though. The rich people book the most expensive rooms right away. The poor people get the cheapest rooms and hope for an upgrade.

 

I will never go on an all gay cruise. We can't even go to an all gay bar together. We get in there and I start flirting with people. He gets pissed off and leaves. I have to taxi home and sleep on the sofa. I can't imgine how this would work on a ship.

[emjsea]

Past cruises would have Roseanne Barr, Wanda Sykes, Debbie Gibson, Kathy Griffin, Patti Lupone, Alec Mapa, etc.

 

I don't go to all of the dance parties, but I usually will stop by the night

ones to check out the costumes.

 

Wanda Sykes was so funny. I laughed myself sore. And Alec Mapa is really hysterical on Atlantis. Margaret Cho was a disappointment. Joan Rivers was very good also. We enjoyed Chita Rivera a lot as well as the American Idols contest whose name I can't remember now! She had that one dance hit and did the sailing out party on the Celebrity Solstice Jan Cruise a couple of years ago. Excellent!

[iNydro]

Hello! i will be on the ncl epic april 30th sailing to western caribbean! my first solo cruise! really excited and hoping to meet some cool people!!!!know if there are any FOD (glbt) meetings aboard? thanks in advance!

[keithm]

I pasted the link for the entertainment on next week's 20th anniversary cruise for Atlantis. The entertainment is on pages 18-23.

 

http://www.atlantisevents.com/public/PDF/AllureCruise_VacationGuide.pdf

 

This will be my fifth cruise, fourth Atlantis cruise. The entertainment is usually over the top. This voyage is a little different in that we don't have a huge headliner. Allure of the Seas does not have a single performace space that can accomodate all of the guests in two seatings. Past cruises would have Roseanne Barr, Wanda Sykes, Debbie Gibson, Kathy Griffin, Patti Lupone, Alec Mapa, etc.

 

I don't go to all of the dance parties, but I usually will stop by the night

ones to check out the costumes. As any cruise, it is what you make it. For some guys it is a week of events that would make Caligula blush. I'm much tamer.

"For some guys it would make Caligula blush" that's the one reason we don't do gay cruises. We don't need a Whorehouse on the sea to have a good time.

[keithm]

I think is pretty common on all cruises though. The rich people book the most expensive rooms right away. The poor people get the cheapest rooms and hope for an upgrade.

 

I will never go on an all gay cruise. We can't even go to an all gay bar together. We get in there and I start flirting with people. He gets pissed off and leaves. I have to taxi home and sleep on the sofa. I can't imgine how this would work on a ship.

Perhaps you should either do less flirting, or find a boyfriend who's into open relationships.

[GXmanDC]

"For some guys it would make Caligula blush" that's the one reason we don't do gay cruises. We don't need a Whorehouse on the sea to have a good time.

 

Maybe you missed the phrase "For some guys." I don't behave that way. My partner and I go because the entertainment is sooo much better than the standard cruise.

Edited February 22, 2011 by GXmanDC
typo

[Darrell6t]

Keith gave some good advice about relationships, but he is very wrong about what an Atlantic cruise is like. I wonder if he read my review on this forum? No mention of sex at all and we had a great time.

[sdiegocruiser]

My partner and I have been on several all gay cruises as well as many "straight" cruises. At this point we prefer the straight cruises. Better yet we have done organized gay group cruises on a "straight" ship-and those are now our cruise of choice. Primary reasons:

Cost-all gay cruises are much more expensive than the straight or gay group cruises

Atmosphere-not that we are old fuddy duddies (we are in our 40's and very active/social) but the "scene" on the all gay cruises is something I've guess we've outgrown-particularily when it is fairly constant all day/night.

Variety-we prefer the interaction with the straights as well as they gays-you get that with FOD etc on straight cruises and the gay group. we have had some of the best times with straight couples and more than once have been told by them that they much prefer hanging with the gays.

[keithm]

Keith gave some good advice about relationships, but he is very wrong about what an Atlantic cruise is like. I wonder if he read my review on this forum? No mention of sex at all and we had a great time.

I've had plenty of friends on Atlantis/RSVP cruises. They can be quite sex/circuit party related. We've watched the "home movies". I just don't see the need for us(my partner & I)What others choose to do is their business, but we're a bit more sedate than what's normally offered on the gay cruises. The price alone is a deterrant. You're paying the cost of "chartering" a cruise ship as well as paying the company for organizing an all gay cruise. I also never said you were into the "scene",but as you stated, it was there for those who were. The entertainment is not what we cruise for. We like the food(Cunard line)and the shore excursions that we go on. The FOD events are fine by us. We just don't need to do an all gay cruise for us to have fun.