Cruise Holiday

Stegsie

Stegsie

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Evening all

Anyone ever done a cruise for a holiday - if so, any recommendations / comments?

My folks have done them for years around the Caribbean but I'm thinking about booking the family (Me, the Mrs and our 14 and 6 Year old daughters) on one around the Med.
 
Did our first cruise this summer around the Baltic, visited Copenhagen, Stockholm, Tallinn, St Petersburg and Berlin. Really enjoyed it. We didn't get a balcony room but would consider it on a warmer cruise. Also didn't bother with a drinks package on board as we don't drink that much, if you have more than five or six alcoholic drinks a day it may be worth it. Eating on board is great and there is plenty to do during the days when you are at sea - go for it

just retread your post about kids, don't do celebrity eclipse as it was for the older generation, hardly any kids and most over forty
 
We only tried one Med cruise with Royal Caribbean and it was excellent.
I would recommend a cabin with a balcony.
Food was tremendous so expect to put on a few pounds and the entertainment was first class.
We did enjoy it , but not really our scene.
PM me for more details :thup:
 
We have done half a dozen cruises, all bar one have been with Royal Caribbean so I can only really comment on them. None of them have been from the UK though. We have either started from Barcelona crossing the Atlantic or visiting various locations in the Med or starting off from Florida going to The Caribbean and Mexico. We absolutely love them and have thoroughly enjoyed every one we have been on. Waking up in a different country almost every day and not having to unpack your suitcases is a real bonus.

As WA says expect to put on weight. I put on a stone in a week the last time despite going to the gym and swimming every day. If you are cost conscious, prepay for tips and drinks packages for the kids before you go. The trips are also overpriced so you can always arrange your own at the ports you visit but don't be late back as the captain won't wait for you.

The last few times we haven't even bothered to eat in the main dining room as there is far more choice in Windjammers and the times are more flexible. Formal nights were also ok the first couple times but after that I couldn't be bothered carting my DJ around with me.
Entertainment is usually first class with plenty for the kids and adults. We certainly enjoyed Matt Yee's shows in The Schooner Bar.

I would suggest a short cruise to start, say five or seven days, just in case you don't like it.
 
Funny how this thread has come up as I've just been looking at transatlantic crossings on the Queen Mary.

Never been on a cruise before so I can offer no advice but will look forward to reading the thread.
 
Never done one myself but friends have had good experiences in both Caribbean and Nordic....especially those who did a few days in NYC then Caribbean cruise, back to NYC and home day before yesterday....good timing!!!
 
Just looking at a short break first seems like a great idea.

Cheers!

The Mrs is worried about feeling SeaSick etc, but I assume they are all much more stabilised since they are so huge nowadays?
 
Stegsie said:
Just looking at a short break first seems like a great idea.

Cheers!

The Mrs is worried about feeling SeaSick etc, but I assume they are all much more stabilised since they are so huge nowadays?
Click to expand...

The stability in modern liners are very good but given certain sea conditions any size of ship will roll, pick a trip after spring and you should be ok.

If concerned about seasickness go to a chemist and ask for tablets called stugaron,hid has used them in the past.
 
Stegsie said:
Just looking at a short break first seems like a great idea.

Cheers!

The Mrs is worried about feeling SeaSick etc, but I assume they are all much more stabilised since they are so huge nowadays?
Click to expand...

We didn't even realise we were sailing , too busy unpacking until we looked out and we were miles away from land.

Only felt a bit wobbly once , but we were warned it was going to be a bit rough
But when you're back on land it does feel a bit strange for a while.
 
We were on the QE2 a few years ago for a short cruise.
It was rather spoiled by my Mrs having a bad fall whilst out walking a few days before we boarded.
She cut her eye and had quite a shiner so we avoided the 'posh' end. I did get lots of funny looks:angry:
The food was fantastic but the weather was rough so we could not go off the boat/ship

We have always fancied the Norwegian west coast cruise.
A friend went last year and really enjoyed it.
However another friend went a while ago and had a week of sea fog.
 
Doon frae Troon said:
We were on the QE2 a few years ago for a short cruise.
It was rather spoiled by my Mrs having a bad fall whilst out walking a few days before we boarded.
She cut her eye and had quite a shiner so we avoided the 'posh' end. I did get lots of funny looks:angry:
The food was fantastic but the weather was rough so we could not go off the boat/ship

We have always fancied the Norwegian west coast cruise.
A friend went last year and really enjoyed it.
However another friend went a while ago and had a week of sea fog.
Click to expand...

We go and land fish on various places on the west coast of Norway, must have been there 50/60 times over the years,rarely see much sea fog.

Highly recommend a cruise there as the scenery is stunning .
 
We've been on a couple of Royal Caribbean cruises to the Caribbean, Island hopping. We really enjoyed them both and if I can give any tips from our experience:
  • Our first trip was during Thanksgiving and whilst the ship was full of kids we never really saw them as they had lots to do in their own area, supervised but away from the parents and they enjoyed it.
  • As advised, pay for your tips and soft drinks in advance if you can. It's cheaper in the long run.
  • They did check our bags after every Island to make sure we weren't smuggling copious amounts of booze on board.
  • The food is superb, loads of places to eat with a big variety.
  • DON'T BE LATE! There are plenty of videos on YouTube of people being left behind as they thought the ship would wait for them. IT WON'T!
  • Try to get an outside cabin if you can. It is worth it for the views entering and leaving the ports.
  • The only real movement we felt was on leaving the port but the stabilisers soon calm it down. My missus gets sick on a Pedalo but had no issues.
  • Try to get as many stops as you can in your trip. Some have longer times at sea with less stops and we avoided those.
  • Do go ashore. Make the most of all the port stops you have got.
  • We enjoyed the main dining room. There is less selection it's true but still plenty and it's nice waiter service.
  • The new ships are amazing. So big and so much to do in them.

Enjoy the holiday :)
 
Robster59 said:
We've been on a couple of Royal Caribbean cruises to the Caribbean, Island hopping. We really enjoyed them both and if I can give any tips from our experience:
  • Our first trip was during Thanksgiving and whilst the ship was full of kids we never really saw them as they had lots to do in their own area, supervised but away from the parents and they enjoyed it.
  • As advised, pay for your tips and soft drinks in advance if you can. It's cheaper in the long run.
  • They did check our bags after every Island to make sure we weren't smuggling copious amounts of booze on board.
  • The food is superb, loads of places to eat with a big variety.
  • DON'T BE LATE! There are plenty of videos on YouTube of people being left behind as they thought the ship would wait for them. IT WON'T!
  • Try to get an outside cabin if you can. It is worth it for the views entering and leaving the ports.
  • The only real movement we felt was on leaving the port but the stabilisers soon calm it down. My missus gets sick on a Pedalo but had no issues.
  • Try to get as many stops as you can in your trip. Some have longer times at sea with less stops and we avoided those.
  • Do go ashore. Make the most of all the port stops you have got.
  • We enjoyed the main dining room. There is less selection it's true but still plenty and it's nice waiter service.
  • The new ships are amazing. So big and so much to do in them.

Enjoy the holiday :)
Click to expand...

Id agree with much of this having cruised a number of times. I've only done Royal Carribean and Cunard and both are excellent Cunard is top notch but the evenings seemed to be just the nightly show and ballroom dancing whereas others will be less stuffy and potentially better for the kids.

It's a great way to see loads of places and the food is non stop and amazingly good - try and get a drinks package or you'll rack up a bill!
 
evahakool said:
We go and land fish on various places on the west coast of Norway, must have been there 50/60 times over the years,rarely see much sea fog.

Highly recommend a cruise there as the scenery is stunning .
Click to expand...

Thanks for that, I think we will definitely go in the next couple of years.

Silly me......... west coast! unlikely to be the east coast is it.:lol:
 
Did the Baltic cruise with Royal carribbean and loved it. The weather was gorgeous and that helped. Full of elderly people and it was culturally fantastic. Have a pal who has done cruises with his kids and loved it. When you go on them you will meet folk who have done X number of cruises and this particular cruise was better than that and so on and so on.
 
Doon frae Troon said:
Thanks for that, I think we will definitely go in the next couple of years.

Silly me......... west coast! unlikely to be the east coast is it.:lol:
Click to expand...


If you do choose to go I would highly recommend a cruise that includes Hardangerfjord one of the most majestic sites in Norway, it's not to far from Bergan, also a good experience coming in by boat ,a city that's surrounded by 7 mountains a trip up on a cable car is recommended if time allows as the views are fantastic.
 
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