Are Ships Getting Too Big?

[babs135]

Is it just me who thinks that things are getting out of hand? Every cruise magazine is full of the new ships arriving on the scene, each boasting 'the best of this, the biggest of that, the first anywhere in the entire Universe, etc, etc'

 

Am I in the minority of people who just want to get on a ship that has an itinerary I want without all the razzamatazz of bumper cars, waterslides and the rest. And yes, I do know there are still ships out there without all this stuff, the question I'm asking is just a general one.

 

I'm not knocking people who love this sort of thing and given the chance I'd be first in the queue to try these things (but not the waterslides as I'm frightened of water and can't swim :)) But has it got to a point of ridiculousness? Robot barmen !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Your thoughts please whilst I watch people soaring over the deck in pods, climbing up walls and ice skating. (Might try the last one though, it sounds like fun)

[babs135]

Something else I should have added - Dynamic Dining or 'Rotational' Dining, the latter one has me in a spin (sorry ;))

 

What happened to dining in the MDR, several other choices included in your fare and perhaps a couple of pay-for eateries?

 

I have enough problems making decisions as it is without more and more being thrown at me.

 

My parents had a saying which is still apt today 'If it isn't broken, don't fix it'. I know we have to move with the times but honestly sometimes .......

[chengkp75]

Well, the ships get bigger because the economy of scale is there. The "overhead" (power generation, fuel consumption, propulsion machinery) only needs to get marginally bigger to allow a much larger increase in passenger capacity.

 

The cruise lines do marketing studies, and all of the "bells and whistles", including My Time Dining, Dynamic Dining, and Rotational Dining, is driven by surveys of what people say they want. Cruise ships these days have become the destination. Many people have been to all of the Caribbean islands many times, and there is no more draw there, so the ship must become the attraction, hence all of the activities.

 

And the lines can't be doing all that bad making all these changes, since they are still making lots of money.

[john watson]

I think that cruise ships have now reached their maximum size and that in the future smaller ships will be built. Oasis class ships are 220,000 tons roughly and there are only two ships of the type. They are alternating about the Caribbean successfully but in my opinion they would offer technical difficulties if they sailed a more diverse range of ports. A lot of facilities on board make them excellent destinations but only in hot sunny weather. You need to find a few thousand people who all want to go to the same place to fill them and when they get there a few thousand people want to disembark, typically immediately. So logistical problems particularly with tendering would occur.

 

Now on I would anticipate cruise lines building big ships but around 140,000 which seems to be about the biggest you can currently run a fleet of many similar ships. In addition I believe there is a market for "small ships" where all the down sides of big ships is avoided and a different experience is offered.

 

Most of the decisions are accountants based as far as I can make out and it seems to me nobody is making the very small ships. In the past it seems that the big cruise lines got these second hand from small lines who got into financial strife or cease to trade. The R class ships for example.

 

Funnily enough the concept of size has shifted over the years and what is now considered small was large years ago.

 

Regards John

[Krazy Kruizers]

Yes -- we think the cruise ships are getting way too big.

We are older and not interested in water slides, ice skating, etc.

Guess this is why we are staying with HAL.

[dhill]

Yes the ships are getting to big all we want is to feel like we are on a ship in the ocean not at an amusement park or a neighborhood in New York. And why do people cruise the Caribbean so much there is a lot of other places to cruise to?:)

[calliopecruiser]

It's a way for cruise lines to keep costs to their customers low, by using economies of scale (as has been mentioned) and by trying to attract more people to cruising - new and repeat cruisers - instead of having them choose a land-based vacation. Those other activities and unrestricted dining room times are things that people could get on land-based vacations and have indicated they like......so if cruise lines want to keep the number of passengers growing (and offer ever-declining cruise costs) they have to offer such things.

 

Smaller ships and traditional dining are still available -- but not on the newer ships (excepting newer luxury line ships).

 

edited to add: I prefer a medium sized ship, but I'm interested in trying a smaller cruise ship (of about 500 people).....but the cost keeps me from actually doing it.

Edited February 16, 2015 by calliopecruiser

[Talisker92]

And why do people cruise the Caribbean so much there is a lot of other places to cruise to?:)

If you live on the East Coast, with the deals that are being offered, it an be an inexpensive vacation.

I am on the West Coast, and the airfare would be mnore than a 7 day cruise!

[NMLady]

We are among those who think the ships are getting way too big. Seems to me it's like being at a theme park or a shopping mall but paying for ocean too.

 

We prefer the smaller ships and won't book a cruise on a ship with more than 2000 passenger capacity. We prefer less than that, even if it curtails size of entertainment venue.

[MrsPete]

I agree, though I understand where you're coming from with the comments about "economy of scale".

 

I tried to get excited about Oasis of the Seas, but I just couldn't -- I've always booked the mid-sized ships instead. What I see is that the number of people is increased, while the things I personally want remain the same in quantity.

[Nebr.cruiser]

We'd like to try the Oasis class ships, just for the experience, but I hope they don't get any bigger. The mid-sized ships are more our speed.

 

We cruise in the Caribbean the most often because even from Nebraska it is fairly easy to get there and has a variety of islands and reliably warm weather.

 

We'd love more exotic cruises but price, especially for flights, and time is a factor. Also the small ships tend to be very expensive.

[cruiseapril]

We prefer the mid-sized or smaller ships.

 

We also like sailing from Florida to the Caribbean for the warmth and also like to spend time in Florida before or after a cruise.

[YubaSutter]

Is it just me who thinks that things are getting out of hand? Every cruise magazine is full of the new ships arriving on the scene, each boasting 'the best of this, the biggest of that, the first anywhere in the entire Universe, etc, etc'

 

Am I in the minority of people who just want to get on a ship that has an itinerary I want without all the razzamatazz of bumper cars, waterslides and the rest. And yes, I do know there are still ships out there without all this stuff, the question I'm asking is just a general one.

 

I'm not knocking people who love this sort of thing and given the chance I'd be first in the queue to try these things (but not the waterslides as I'm frightened of water and can't swim :)) But has it got to a point of ridiculousness? Robot barmen !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Your thoughts please whilst I watch people soaring over the deck in pods, climbing up walls and ice skating. (Might try the last one though, it sounds like fun)

 

I believe bigger is always better, unless it's your wife or cellmate.

[lannp]

The bigger the better does not appeal to me. I do not go to sea for rock climbing, figure skating, etc. I want traditional dining with the same waiter each evening who knows my preferences. I also do not want to cruise with a population which is almost the size of my hometown.

[John Bull]

 

Robot barmen !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

 

 

Are we expected to tip these guys 15% ? :D

 

JB :)

[Hlitner]

Are we expected to tip these guys 15% ? :D

 

JB :)

 

LOL JB. So do you think the cruise lines would remove their 15% (probably soon to be 18%) auto tips just because there are no bartenders? What is more likely is that there will be an additional "robot-tax" for the privilege of dealing with these things.

 

Hank

[lahlah57]

When it's time to book our trips.....I will present the options to my husband and his very first question is, "how many passengers"? It better well be 1,000 or less preferable! We both despise the mega ships with mega people and sorry to say....mega kids!!!!

Yeah for choices and options!:D

[navybankerteacher]

"Too big" is in the eye of the beholder.

 

For cruise lines, the same number of deck and engineering officers/staff can haul around 5,000 passengers on an RC Mammoth of the Seas as the 850 on HAL's Prinsendam, for example. And, while fuel costs and service staff expenses on the Mammoth are greater, they are not six times as much: accordingly, for them the ships are not getting too big. Bigger ships are more profitable - and profit is why they build ships in the first place.

 

For me, yes - they are. I do not want or need all the activities and attractions the larger ships carry -- or the crowds either, and certainly not the feeling of being in Mall of America rather than on a ship. Having the feeling of being on a ship is why I cruise in the first place.

 

I suppose I have been out of step for a while: I remember when the Boeing 747's were introduced - and hyped as though a "wide body" was a good thing for a plane -- I kept looking for 707's and later single aisle models. Just as I will pay more to avoid a 747, I will also pay more to avoid a Mammoth of the Seas.

[navybankerteacher]

I'm being put to the test right now: we are planning a visit to family in England in October and will come back to New York by ship. Balcony cabins on Anthem of the Seas are about $1.100 and on Queen Mary 2 they run about $1,600.

 

We will probably decide in the coming week -- a tough choice!

[cruiseryyc]

Are ships getting too big - YES!!!!!!!!

[pris993]

The newer bigger ones are too big for us.

 

Even so, glad they are there for those who want them. That leave the older and smaller ones for those of us who love the more traditional cruise experience.

 

We still do the older ships on Princess, HAL and Cunard primarily.... even the newer Celebrity ships which we have cruised on 3 times have something missing for us... they are into promoting everyone is a celebrity... part of pop culure which is too much phony baloney for us.

 

We still to the basics, works for us. Glad we still have the choice.

[Warm Breezes]

I would say they are filling a niche in the cruising market. They may not be for everyone but there is definately a target customer filling those ships. Having sailed small (Inspiration/Elation) to mega (Epic) ships, I don't mind the mega ship, but we definately prefer a more mid- to large-sized ship. I would more than likely sail a new mega ship over an older smaller ship in future sailings.

[LindaM]

I agree they are filling a niche. I'm not interested, but I understand many are...even in the older age group. More large ships are being built and not so many small ones, like Viking Ocean's new line. The cruiselines must know they will be able to fill them up!

[OCruisers]

Hoping they don't get any larger than they already are. :o

LuLu

[donnatello]

We think so...our favorites are the "Statendam" class HAL ships.