took one cruise - and I am hooked..need help with next cruise

[Boca_Raton]

Enjoyed the Princess experience in Alaska. Never thought I'd be a fan of cruises but I am now.

I have the luxury of living within driving distance of the So Florida ports, and I'd like to plan a long weekend cruise this winter. Not particular about destination.

I really liked Princess - the service, the ship and the crew were first-rate. The food was so-so but I'm not THAT fussy. I don't know what other llines are comparable to Princess. I heard that some lines have older ships that are run down. Some are very party hardy (Carnival) and some don't have turn-down service ...something I value in a good resort or hotel as I like to come back to the room and find fresh towels etc. Someone I met said that they were on a cruise for six days and never even met their cabin steward! (Wish I could remember what line). Our steward was ALWAYS around.

I am single and would travel with friends. We're in our forties and fifties. Of course, a weekend when school is in session would rule out most of the families. The only downside I found with our Princess ship was it seemed the large majority of cruisers were retirees. Happy, fun and lovely people...but perhaps a bit of a younger crowd would be more to my liking for a the next trip.

Everything looks good online. I'm willling to experience a different cruiseline and found the boards invaluable when planning my first cruise so... your comments would be appreciated.

[moesyk4]

Well, if you really are talking a long weekend but aren't looking for the party scene, I would look into a 4 or 5 day cruise. Unfortuantely from the guidelines you are looking for, you might be disappointed in these because 1. I don't believe Princess or any lines considered "on that level" does shorter cruises and 2. Most of the cruise ships dedicated to that length of cruise are generally older ships.

We sailed a 4 day on the Sovreign and really enjoyed it. I would say if you would like to stick with the 4 or 5 day instead of a week long cruise, I would go with an RCCL ship. They are generally considered a little classier and less party line than Carnival. We enjoyed their food and they provided more of an elegant atmosphere than the Carnival cruise. I've only been on two cruises, but I've never heard of anyone having a problem with their room steward not being at their beck and call. In the end, I think you will enjoy it if you want to and any cruise is better than no cruise at all!

[fllady]

Celebrity Century leaves from Miami with 3-4 night cruises. Also RCL has a couple but not sure what ships. If you drive to Port Canaveral, RCL has Sovergign of the Seas doing 3-4 nights cruises, this ship was refurbished a short while ago.

[janetz]

"Shorter" cruises host more party people. At least go for 5 days. Celebrity offers a excellent product. The longer the time sailing, any ship will have more "older folks". We really enjoy Princess and Celebrity, but Princess does not offer shorter cruises then 7 days, I don't thnik. :)

[Coolmama_1]

I also think that you will find a younger crowd cruising out of Florida. Alaska seems to attract an older crowd, not just on Princess. We are 50 somethings and really enjoy Princess. On each cruise we have found a good mix of ages, families etc.

 

Either way, enjoy your next cruise!

[Grandpaul]

NCL's Jewel has 5 day cruises out of Miami that go to Grand Cayman, home of the Sting Rays. Very nice ship and a great excursion.

[firefly333]

The ones that have 3 and 4 day cruises alternating, the 3 day is over the long weekend and the 4 day is during the week. Not surprisingly the 3 days are known more to be party ships, no matter which cruiseline you choose. The prices will be about the same.

 

Royalcaribbean right now seems to be having the best specials for fall, but a lot of the september dates for the really cheap prices are already gone. They started to heavily discount a month ago for fall. I didnt see the same price cuts for Carnival for instance. Carnival has bigger cabins, one thing that you might or might not care about. Those cabins on the lower priced royal caribbean ships are really tiny. 119 s.f on the Sovereign and Majesty for insides. 122 s.f. outsides. They do have better storage than you would expect.

 

Lucky you to be able to drive to any port the day of embarkation.

 

There are even a few Disney 3 and 4 day discounted cruises for this fall. Prices on four of the 3 days are still showing at $389 and a little more for the 4 day. Disney doesnt have gambling, but they do have some adults only activities and areas they actually enforce and their ship is rated 5 stars and lots of younger parents and younger folks love Disney, fewer older folks. They also allow you to carry on some booze that other cruiselines are not as good about allowing and have free soda and their shows are top notch if you like shows and they show first run disney movies in the disney theater all day.

 

Lots of good choices from where you are. I would be going crazy.

[jerseygirl3]

If you liked Princess, the only short cruise I would consider would be the Celebrity Century out of Miami. It does 4 and 5 night itineraries to the Caribbean. We did the 5 nighter this past Easter, and my SIL (who we had to drag onto the ship kicking and screaming...she hates cruises) was so blown away she was sorry we opted for the shorter 5 night cruise. But knowing how much she didn't enjoy cruising, our family (we were doing a family reunion cruise with several generations) decided a 7 night cruise would be torture for her, so we all agreed to do the shorter one. I, for one, wouldn't do a short cruise again unless it was for an issue like the one we had with my SIL. Two days into the cruise, my SIL was blaming me for booking us on such a short cruise...that's how much she loved it and now she and my brother and their three kids are planning a Mediterranean cruise for next summer on Celebrity.

[manmtnmike]

Enjoyed the Princess experience in Alaska. Never thought I'd be a fan of cruises but I am now.

 

I have the luxury of living within driving distance of the So Florida ports, and I'd like to plan a long weekend cruise this winter. Not particular about destination.

 

I really liked Princess - the service, the ship and the crew were first-rate. The food was so-so but I'm not THAT fussy. I don't know what other llines are comparable to Princess. I heard that some lines have older ships that are run down. Some are very party hardy (Carnival) and some don't have turn-down service ...something I value in a good resort or hotel as I like to come back to the room and find fresh towels etc. Someone I met said that they were on a cruise for six days and never even met their cabin steward! (Wish I could remember what line). Our steward was ALWAYS around.

 

I am single and would travel with friends. We're in our forties and fifties. Of course, a weekend when school is in session would rule out most of the families. The only downside I found with our Princess ship was it seemed the large majority of cruisers were retirees. Happy, fun and lovely people...but perhaps a bit of a younger crowd would be more to my liking for a the next trip.

 

Everything looks good online. I'm willling to experience a different cruiseline and found the boards invaluable when planning my first cruise so... your comments would be appreciated.

 

We're looking to start a Cruise Critic 7 day group saing 2/28/09,

on the new RUBY Princess,let me know if you're interested.

Check it out on Princess board...or check out the 2/27/07 8 day Miracle group by clicking on the links below, people are still joining up!

Mike

[Krazy Kruizers]

Cruising is addictive, isn't it!!??

[rwalls]

Most short cruises often are on older and smaller ships. This would probably be a step down from what you experienced on a large Princess ship in Alaska. Also if you are looking for a younger crowd, they tend to go to the Caribbean because 1) they are looking for the beach scene, and 2) the Caribbean cruises often are less expensive. I have been on 14 cruises worldwide over a span of 25 years, and many of them have been on Carnvial. They tend to cover the Caribbean with many cruises and you are likely to find some good specials. Age difference has never been an issue with me on Carnival. There's always so much to do. I'm not into the sun and beach scene, and I rarely am ever bored. It's interesting that most of Carnival's bad reputation has come by word of mouth from cruisers who have never been on Carnival and keep passing on the rumors they've heard. Rest assured, Carnival is casual, yet there are two "formal" nights which tend to be semi-formal. Some of my best food has been on Carnival. My Princess food on my Alaskan cruise was so-so, and good food and cooking is a passion of my life. But recommendations and reviews tend to be rather subjective, biased by the likes and dislikes of the reviewer. We all have different tastes and preferences. No one recommendation is likely to help that much. Find a good deal for a cruise that looks especially interesting. Take a chance! You will probably have a good time. INTERESTING FACT: Carnival is the largest cruise company in the world. They own Princess, Holland American, Cunard, and over 20 more well known cruise lines. Each of them cater to different income and social levels. You may wish to consider these two factors when choosing your cruise line and ship.