never been on a cruise before

[tomboy1]

have never been on a cruise but would love to do one,do not want a large ship,just a few hundred at most with romance in mind and a bit of sightseeing,has to be warm as well,do not want a budget ship nor the most expensive but one at the top end of the range,any suggestions ?thank you

Edited August 2, 2014 by tomboy1

[CruiserBruce]

Welcome to Cruise Critic!

 

Hate to rain on your parade, but, generally, the smaller the ship, the more expensive and luxurious. It is an economy of scale issue.

 

There are some small ships, in very small markets, like small ship Alaska sailing. So lets start by figuring out where you want to go, and when you might be available to go there? You say "warm". That could be the Caribbean, the Med, or Hawaii, perhaps even the Mexican Rivera.

 

Know any travel agents in your area?

Edited August 2, 2014 by CruiserBruce

[Talisker92]

Dear Tomboy,

i am afraid you have conflicting requirements. The ships with a few hundred passengers are usually boutique ships that are very expensive.

My I suggest either Oceania or the Princess small ships? They are very nice and hold in the order of 700 passengers instead of thousands.

I am sure others will have suggestions also.

[OCruisers]

Welcome to Cruise Critic! :)

Have you considered a riverboat cruise rather than an ocean cruise?

LuLu

[lahlah57]

Yes...larger ships usually mean thousands and families which equals kids! Romance usually isn't part of that equation!

Pay a bit more money and you get hundreds which is much more doable and fewer to no kidlets! Riverboats are a couple hundred at most and very intimate but we loved princess small ships and azamara too for ocean cruising!

Pay for what you want!:p

[Underwatr]

Consider this:

 

http://www.islandwindjammers.com/

 

Two sailing ships, one accommodating twelve guests and the other 24. Prices not really out of the range of mid-luxury lines. Itineraries from 6 to 12 nights - just right.

 

I haven't sailed with them but I have seen Sagitta at anchor in St. Kitts.

[dorisis]

A European river cruise might fit your desires. Grand Circle and Viking are 2 companies that I know of. We used GC and were very satisfied.

[Marie51]

Crystal ships are on the small side....about 900 passengers although pricey.

[Calgon1]

Don't overlook Holland America. Out of their fleet of 15 ships, eight have under 1,400 pax; with many nice itineraries in the $90/night and up range.

[dsrdsrdsr]

Top of the range = most expensive. You can't have one without the other. But if you mean you want a slightly more-frills line than Cruises & Maritime, then try P&O's Adonia, 800 passengers, no under-18s.

 

Just to expand on CruiserBruce's comments, in America (so they tell me) the cheaper lines tend to run whopping great big ships. However, from Britain, that isn't the case - the cheaper lines like Cruises & Maritime, Thomson, Fred Olsen tend to have ships of less than 1,000 passengers. Of those, the one I have tried is Fred Olsen, and I think you'd be wrong to rule it out just because it's cheaper. Most of the extra frills on more expensive lines aren't worth the money IMO (though in other people's opinions, they are).

 

(And one frill Fred Olsen has that P&O doesn't - at the buffet, the alleged scrum for the tables doesn't happen because you are shown to your table on arrival.)

[KirkNC]

have never been on a cruise but would love to do one,do not want a large ship,just a few hundred at most with romance in mind and a bit of sightseeing,has to be warm as well,do not want a budget ship nor the most expensive but one at the top end of the range,any suggestions ?thank you

 

Welcome to Cruise Critic!

[Jabbathehut]

Hi I ah age been wanting to cruise for a few years and my husband was nt keen, however I suffered a massive brain haemorrhage when on holiday in Florida last October , and I required 2 major brain surgeries.

We have booked a 14 day med cruise with Celebrity departing Southampton 7th September.

 

As you can imagine , I am very anxious about this great unknown, and it appears to be a minefield.

 

I see that in the cabins there is not even an iron or board provided, can anyone please give me some tips?

 

Also what drinks are included as standard please?

 

Thanks in advance and please excuse any typos, life is very difficult for me at the minute, but hey it's LIFE

Hx

[spookwife]

have never been on a cruise but would love to do one,do not want a large ship,just a few hundred at most with romance in mind and a bit of sightseeing,has to be warm as well,do not want a budget ship nor the most expensive but one at the top end of the range,any suggestions ?thank you

 

the smaller ships are much more expensive as they tend to be the Luxury lines( all inclusive or all suites).

 

look at River Cruises, they are port intensive, on the smaller side and tend to be more luxury minded without totally breaking the bank

[Flatbush Flyer]

the smaller ships are much more expensive as they tend to be the Luxury lines( all inclusive or all suites).

 

 

 

look at River Cruises, they are port intensive, on the smaller side and tend to be more luxury minded without totally breaking the bank

 

 

It's not necessarily true that smaller ships are "much more expensive." We recently did Alaska and our comparative research into cruise lines and TAs resulted in choosing a well respected west coast cruise agency and Oceania. With inclusive pricing (vs getting "nickeled and dimed" on mass market lines"), air credit, two discount refunds (including one after full payment) and,significant TA OBC, the bottom line cost was close to HAL, Celebrity, etc. and we enjoyed a ship with less than 700 passengers, and what many folks consider to be the best food at sea with service to match.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[dsrdsrdsr]

the smaller ships are much more expensive as they tend to be the Luxury lines( all inclusive or all suites).

 

look at River Cruises, they are port intensive, on the smaller side and tend to be more luxury minded without totally breaking the bank

 

No, the cheaper UK lines tend to run smaller ships of about 800 passengers. (Some of the more expensive lines run even smaller ships, 100 passengers or so.)

 

American smaller ships are expensive. UK ones are not. This poster is from the UK.

[jammen]

Welcome to the CC, Look for a last minute river boat cruise.

[jocap]

I go along with the suggestion of the smaller UK managed lines, including the adult only Adonia.

Relatives of mine have tried several lines, and their favourite is Cunard- but Fred Olsen comes next for excellent service and food. The old ships of Thomson don't appeal to many, but the entertainment and activities are hard to beat.

If you go on any of these lines out of school holidays, there will be few young people on board as no child can be taken from school for a holiday- indeed, I have been on a massive ship during term time and only noticed 7 young people.

[A2Mich]

From what I've seen, Fred.Olsen and Thomson are generally sailing older, smaller ships, and therefore do not have the extremely high overhead of the mega-monster ships like Royal Caribbean, Carnival, NCL, HAL, etc. With lower overhead costs, they can afford to offer less expensive cruises. That being said, some of these older ships may be disappearing in the next few years, depending on whether or not their owners can afford to keep modernizing their ships to SOLAS standards, or until the ships are simply not worth the cost of upgrades. I may be wrong, but I don't believe the UK based ships have to comply with USCG regulations, unless they call on American ports, but most likely have to comply with SOLAS.

[wassup4565]

Gonna chime in here. Not ALL the ships on the mainstream lines are mega-monsters. We have sailed on RCI's Radiance class and found these ships are not crowded, noisy or over-run by children, for example. Sure, if you want to lie on a chaise longue by the pool on a hot day, it will be crowded. But go anywhere else outdoors on that day, and you will find many empty chairs and peace and quiet.

 

I have sailed on Oceania. For the difference in cost, there is no more real estate available on their ships.

[A2Mich]

Gonna chime in here. Not ALL the ships on the mainstream lines are mega-monsters. We have sailed on RCI's Radiance class and found these ships are not crowded, noisy or over-run by children, for example. Sure, if you want to lie on a chaise longue by the pool on a hot day, it will be crowded. But go anywhere else outdoors on that day, and you will find many empty chairs and peace and quiet.

 

I have sailed on Oceania. For the difference in cost, there is no more real estate available on their ships.

 

True enough, but even the 90,000 GRT Radiance-class ships dwarf many of the older and smaller vessels used by some of the European companies.

[TN Vol Fan]

Jabbathehut

Try posting on the Celebrity board for complete answers, especially about drink packages and prices. Some of the standard drinks are coffee, tea (both pre done and tea bag), water (not bottled), Cocoa from packs, fruit punch, lemonade, juices in the am. Soft drinks, bottled water, wine and liquor are additional charges. There is a specialty coffee shop with wonderful teas and flavored coffees that you will pay extra for, but the snacks are gratis even without buying a drink.

Good for you for trying something different & new.

You are correct that on X (Celebrity) ships there are no irons or steamers allowed in the cabins, but there is laundry and dry cleaning services available on board.

Remember you are on holiday- relax and enjoy yourselves!

Edited August 5, 2014 by TN Vol Fan
Directed to particular post.

[jammen]

Welcome to CC.

The smaller ships will cost more. Have you thought about a river cruise?

[Jabbathehut]

Jabbathehut

Try posting on the Celebrity board for complete answers, especially about drink packages and prices. Some of the standard drinks are coffee, tea (both pre done and tea bag), water (not bottled), Cocoa from packs, fruit punch, lemonade, juices in the am. Soft drinks, bottled water, wine and liquor are additional charges. There is a specialty coffee shop with wonderful teas and flavored coffees that you will pay extra for, but the snacks are gratis even without buying a drink.

Good for you for trying something different & new.

You are correct that on X (Celebrity) ships there are no irons or steamers allowed in the cabins, but there is laundry and dry cleaning services available on board.

Remember you are on holiday- relax and enjoy yourselves!

 

 

Thank You but where will I find the celebrity board please?

Hx

[dsrdsrdsr]

Welcome to CC.

The smaller ships will cost more. Have you thought about a river cruise?

Small ship cruising from the UK is usually cheaper than river cruising.

[Slugsta]

The Celebrity section is here -

 

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=28