Which is your favourite cruise line and why?

[Jsim2011]

So far we have sailed with three, Royal Caribbean, Holland America and Princess.

 

Royal Caribbean is our favorite, and we have sailed 5 times with them, one each with the other two lines (hmm, maybe 6 times with Royal Caribbean).

 

We prefer Royal Caribbean because it seems to have a broader mix of passengers, more families and because of that, we have found to the entertainment better suited to our tastes.

 

In general the food has been very good on Royal Caribbean too, although on the one HAL ship (Oosterdam), the food was also very good. the worse cruise food we have had was on Princess (Royal Princess).

 

We are thinking of trying Norwegian as they have a couple of itineraries that interest us.

[PROCRUISE]

So far we have sailed with three, Royal Caribbean, Holland America and Princess.

 

Royal Caribbean is our favorite, and we have sailed 5 times with them, one each with the other two lines (hmm, maybe 6 times with Royal Caribbean).

 

We prefer Royal Caribbean because it seems to have a broader mix of passengers, more families and because of that, we have found to the entertainment better suited to our tastes.

 

In general the food has been very good on Royal Caribbean too, although on the one HAL ship (Oosterdam), the food was also very good. the worse cruise food we have had was on Princess (Royal Princess).

 

We are thinking of trying Norwegian as they have a couple of itineraries that interest us.

 

Only been on NCL twice. The NCL Sun was fabulous in every respect, the NCL Star was mediocre at best. Hope you enjoy whatever cruise and line you decide upon. My favorite cruise line - Celebrity! Just seems to offer a little refinement in the cruising pleasure experience.

[GUT2407]

Only tried five lines so far. A few more coming up.

 

But so far Princess seems best for us.

 

But the only one I'd really need some incentive to go with again is P&O (Aus) though some I trust tell me it has improved a heck of a lot.

[GUT2407]

Only tried five lines so far. A few more coming up.

 

But so far Princess seems best for us.

 

But the only one I'd really need some incentive to go with again is P&O (Aus) though some I trust tell me it has improved a heck of a lot.

 

 

Maybe I should have said, Princess was also our first. So that may help their rating.

[bUU]

We choose based on itinerary and fare. No cruise line is so much better than the others, by experience or reputation, with regard to both what they offer and what they charge, that it would warrant sub-optimizing a vacation by choosing based on anything other than itinerary and fare. I think we'll be cruising Carnival a lot in the future, though, because we can build up whatever experience we'd want more readily, and at least online I've gotten a much stronger down to earth and friendly feeling about the folks who generally cruise Carnival.

 

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[paul929207]

We have 2 each on Carnival and NCL, 40 on Princess and 7 on Grand Circle (river cruises). I think our preference is obvious. In addition to service and perks, we love their itinerary. We have been all over the world with them.

[navybankerteacher]

Celebrity, HAL and Cunard all offer the quality of service, food and general ambience we prefer. Generally any ship with much over 2,000 passengers is just too big. Of course, itinerary is important so we have occasionally chosen NCL, in spite of poorer service and ambience - which lower price sometimes does not justify.

[Threedrones]

We've cruised Carnival, Disney, Norwegian, Princess, RCCL and Celebrity. While we really like RCCL ships, they have really upped their prices too much in our view. We switched to Celebrity and enjoy the small differences like smoke free casinos and soft drinks by the can instead of refillable cups. We still like RCCL ships but will stay with Celebrity for the value.

[cruisemom42]

I started cruising as a child, quite a while ago in the 1970s with Sitmar. I loved their smaller ships and wonderful service. It's hard to find that kind of experience now on the mass market lines, so I mostly cruise with more niche lines like Voyages to Antiquity (only one ship; 350 pax). They also are solo-friendly, with low supplements and have great lecturers online to complement their itineraries.

 

Definitely NOT a Caribbean cruise-type experience. But then, I have done my share of those!

 

I am also strongly considering Viking Ocean and have a cruise booked on HAL's elegant smaller ship Prinsendam.

[Aquahound]

Of the cruise lines I've sailed, my current ranking, favorite to least favorite is:

 

1. Celebrity

2. Royal Caribbean

3. Princess

4. Holland America

5. NCL

6. Carnival

 

Why? I love Celebrity's and Royal Caribbean's ships. Celebrity has the slight edge with me due to their strict no smoking policies and slightly better food. I find Princess and HAL nice, but nothing really makes them stand out with me. I've had fun on NCL and Carnival, but they just feel cheap and crowded to me.

[retiring soon]

Hi all!

 

My favourite cruise line is NCL because of their studio cabins & my travelling solo a lot of the time..I've done most of the major lines & find NCL more to my liking although Carnival comes a close second. I'm platinum on NCL, Emerald on RCL & gold on Carnival so that's the way it's been going. I did like the food on X & thought it the best of all.

 

~ Jo ~ :)

[luvs2beachit]

We have sailed on all the mainstream lines and have found that they all offer something that we like. We pick our cruises based on itinerary, price and or what we want to do.

If it is a TA cruise we usually go with Princess or Holland. If it is just a get away vacation we tend to book with NCL or Carnival. NCL is local and year round for us here in NYC so it's simple and convenient. If we are heading to Florida than Carnival is our frequent choice.

We like Holland and Princess for there style and a bit more upscale atmosphere. HAL in particular for it's port lectures.

We like NCL and Carnival for their more relaxed easygoing agenda.

Food is subjective so what we like may not be to others liking. In the past I would have said Princess or Celebrity had the best food but not so much now. NCL has improved significantly and Carnival has some great offering that we love (Guy's burgers and Blue Iguana).

We do like the smaller ships more than the 4000 plus size ships but a big ship is not a deal breaker either

[navybankerteacher]

 

...

 

 

I am also strongly considering Viking Ocean and have a cruise booked on HAL's elegant smaller ship Prinsendam.

 

I think you will enjoy Prinsendam: her size and layout set her apart, as do her usual itineraries. Finally there seems to be a sense of pride on the part of her staff who see her as the gem of HAL's fleet - and who show it in their attitudes and performance.

[calliopecruiser]

My favourite is Crystal - the service is very good, the food is terrific, and there's the wonderful sense of calm on board with virtually no crowds. And as a solo passenger it offers a terrific deal -- I likely wouldn't sail with them unless I could get such good value (about 30-35 percent supplement).

 

After that, I would say HAL gives me the best on-board feeling of relaxation. I have also sailed on Princess and Carnival.

[Warm Breezes]

We have sailed Princess 1x, Disney 2x, NCL 3x, and CCL 9x with upcoming cruises booked on NCL and CCL. Of all these cruise lines Disney was our first and favorite due to our kids being the right ages to get the most out of the Disney experience, Palo, room size, and Castaway Cay. They were also the most expensive and not one I will sail again without a really good deal or Grand kids to spoil. Princess was our least favorite due mainly to the demographics we sailed (most were either snow birds or retirement communities in their late 60's +), the entertainment or lack of at night (besides the production shows), and we just had the poorest experiences of all our cruises in service in the MDR and buffet on that cruise. While we are not ruling it out for future cruises it would be our last pick if we had other viable choices.

 

NCL and CCL are pretty much tied in between. I would give NCL a little edge. DH would give CCL a little edge. NCL has better entertainment. CCL has better rooms. Food and service are very similar on the 2 lines with CCL getting the edge for their MDR, Deli, and Guys Burger and NCL getting the edge for their Buffet, O'Sheehan's, and variety of choices in Fee Restaurants. Carnival usually has the edge when it comes to pricing. Our next cruise on CCL Fantasy was a great bargain with a Casino Promo. But our FCC and Promo's on NCL (UBP and 4 SDP) enticed us to book our next cruise on NCL Escape. We hope to try more lines out in the future if they meet our wants for the vacation we are planning at a price we are willing to pay.

[hubofhockey]

Cruise line is not as important as the itinerary, ship, and value.

[PROCRUISE]

I started cruising as a child, quite a while ago in the 1970s with Sitmar. I loved their smaller ships and wonderful service. It's hard to find that kind of experience now on the mass market lines, so I mostly cruise with more niche lines like Voyages to Antiquity (only one ship; 350 pax). They also are solo-friendly, with low supplements and have great lecturers online to complement their itineraries.

 

Definitely NOT a Caribbean cruise-type experience. But then, I have done my share of those!

 

I am also strongly considering Viking Ocean and have a cruise booked on HAL's elegant smaller ship Prinsendam.

 

Hope you have a fabulous time on the Prinsendam! I think many who have cruised a lot, like yourself, are striking out a bit for something smaller and better. I'm booked with Windstar this coming late August out of Tahiti and then the Viking Sea out of San Juan in January 2018. Should be an interesting experience. :)

[jocap]

Mainly, which ever ship is going to where we want to go.... the line is not important. If it's a cold cruise, we prefer one which is not set up for Caribbean-type entertainment out on the decks, and has plenty of indoor space for poor weather days.

Being in the UK, we look first at itineraries with ships by P&O, Thomson, Fred Olsen etc, and we enjoyed our cruise with Louis/Celestial for the amazing voyage to Turkey and Greece.

[kelmac]

I'm going to leave Azamara and Oceania off my list as they are much more premium lines and you pay for it. For the "mass market" lines I would put them in this order:

 

#1 -- Celebrity -- dollar for dollar, the best deal at sea. Good food; tons of space; bright and modern.

 

#2 -- Cunard -- great MDR food; very much adult onboard; very formal.

 

#3 -- NCL -- only great if you eat every evening meal in an alternative restaurant; avoid the buffet; crowded;

good entertainment.

 

#4 -- Holland America -- pretty good food; old school; dark and traditional; yep, old people.

 

#5 -- Royal Caribbean -- so so food; good alternatives; great ship design and entertainment; stay off older

ships.

 

#6 -- Princess -- nothing bad, just not great; poor alternative restaurants; crowded.

 

We want to like Princess, but it just hasn't happened yet. NCL is a surprise up and coming line!

 

Enjoy!

Kel:D

[biker@sea]

24 NCL cruise's ;p

[OCruisers]

We like to "sleep around" from time to time ... but Princess remains the best fit for us and our favorite. :hearteyes:

[port msp]

#1 Celebrity-- It's the sweet spot for shipboard experience and value. We're really happy with Aquaclass and BLU. But, their Caribbean itineraries were extremely unappealing this year, and no private island, so we went with our #2 HAL for the '17 winter getaway. I like the ship size of HAL Nieuw Amsterdam, and they had better itineraries this year. But, their food offerings were very limited and quite bland. It was an 11 night cruise and it was like being at an assisted living complex at sea. I don't think we'll be back anytime soon. And I didn't like Nieuw Amsterdam's layout. It was a lot like it's namesake, crowded and annoying to get around. We had a great time on RCCL AOS, in fact it may be the best overall cruise we've taken. I just don't need all of the amusement park amenities. An ice rink at sea? Really? I didn't like the dining scrum of NCL. Princess was ok. Food was mediocre, but we liked MUTS. I think we're more interested in the shipboard experience these days, but still want some interesting ports. I check the port calendars and plan to stay on board when there are multiple ships in port. If one of the behemoths of the seas is in port, I look for a different cruise to avoid being in port with them.

[bigsky]

I think it's pretty subjective as far as favorite ship. Everyone wants different things out of their cruise. Also depends on age. For us, our favorite is Royal. I love their ships! We prefer the larger ones with more to do. I actually find the larger, the less it feels crowded. So many more places to spread out. Their entertainment is a notch above the others in that fleet. They're all beautiful and like the layouts of them. We've been on Disney. Not for us. Very expensive as well. They are very nice ships though. Princess...An older crowd, but nice ships. Didn't like the cabins. Layout was horrible too me. Too small. Carnival....I enjoyed their food, but I wouldn't go back unless it was on a newer ship, good itinerary and a really good price. Everyone wants something different. Royal had a nice balance of what we want out of a cruise (larger ones)

[ducklite]

Windstar. They are, as they say, 180 degrees from ordinary.

 

No formal nights. A casual elegance every night. Fellow passengers who are well traveled, interesting, sophisticated but not snobbish. No children. Cabins are exceedingly clean, comfortable, and intelligently designed The food is great--they have a partnership with the James Beard Foundation. Interesting ports, many that larger ships can't get into. No lines, ever. The Captain greets each passenger as they board. They are handed Champagne to sip while completing the requisite paperwork and receiving room keys. Rooms are ready immediately. Back to the food--it is like a restaurant as opposed to a giant cafeteria with bread warm from the oven and everything cooked to order. Three restaurants for dinner most nights, and no upcharge for alternate dining options. In fact no upcharge for anything on any menu--alcohol excluded. Open bridge policy. No pressure to take shore excursions, no never ending announcements, no ridiculous poolside contests or other annoyances. Plenty to do or do nothing. And never a problem getting a chair right next to the pool--or anywhere else.

[Hlitner]

We have been on 14 lines and cruised for over 35 years. Our lines included everything from budget lines (i.e. the now defunct Regency) and luxury lines (such as Crystal). But most of our cruises have been on the mass market lines. We still try to cruise at least 100 days a year,,,but honestly do not have a favorite. We love variety in itineraries and cruise lines. Cruising the same lines means some repetition in menus and entertainment. And since each line has its pros and cons, constantly changing keeps it young and fresh. Even after more then 1000 days on cruise lines we get excited as we board any ship. We have met folks who tell us they are bored with cruising...but most of them only cruise on 1 or 2 lines. We have met folks who tell us about their favorite line....which is the only line they have ever cruised (or cruised in the past 5 years) and we wonder, how can they have a favorite when there is no basis of comparison? Our general "go to" lines now include Celebrity, HAL and Princess. Folks need to understand that cruise lines are always reinventing themselves, so very good food on line A today...might be not so good food tomorrow. In the past decade we have experienced cut-backs on nearly every mass market line although we think that Princess has recently (the past 3 years) been on an upswing. Meanwhile, Celebrity (under their new and current CEO seems to be determined to cut out all the little things that make Celebrity popular...in favor of becoming just another mass market line. HAL.....well, HAL is simply HAL!

 

Hank