Choosing the right cruise
Royal Caribbean International's Oasis of the Seas
There are around three hundred and fifty cruise ships, which between them travel to over two thousand destinations around the world, any one of which can be carrying between fifty to five thousand passengers.
There are eleven major players in today's international cruise market, eight of which are owned by just three companies.
A FEW POINTS TO CONSIDER WHEN BOOKING A CRUISE
If a cruise is very cheap and seems too good to be true, then it probably is. Cheap cruises generally mean poor service, mediocre food and entertainment and possibly hidden charges for basic on board services.
The larger the ship, the more passengers it can accommodate. The more passengers the ship can accommodate, the noisier it will be. So if it’s peace and quiet you want, stay away from the larger, resort ships, which can carry as many as six thousand people, and instead opt for a much smaller vessel.
Do make sure that the cruise itinerary is right for you. If you don’t fancy three days on the trot out on the open sea, keep away from Atlantic Ocean or Pacific Ocean cruises and choose instead a coastal cruise or Mediterranean or Caribbean cruise, all of which will make regular stops.
Be sure to let your cruise company know about any special diets or services that you may require during your time aboard ship, such as wheelchair access, babysitting services, a gym or the need of a resident on board doctor or nurse.
Do make sure before booking that your chosen cruise ship is right for you, such as, if you smoke - is smoking allowed on board, if you are very tall - will the beds be long enough or if you want to party every night - what sort of entertainment does the ship lay on.
Do check before buying your cruise package that all services and amenities are included in the price, as some cruise ships have been known to charge for extras, even when the cruise package has been sold as fully inclusive.
TYPES OF CRUISE
There are many types of cruise packages available on the market, the most popular being -
Arctic / Antarctic cruises.
Caribbean cruises.
Coastal cruises.
Expedition cruises.
Mediterranean cruises.
North Atlantic Crossings.
Pacific cruises.
River cruises.
Tall ships cruises (sail powered).
CRUISE SAFETY CONCERNS
Twenty years ago a cruise ship would have been called a floating hotel, today they are more likely to be called a floating city, due their vast size and high passenger numbers.
This has led to concerns from some people, worried that these vessels are becoming much too large and subsequently unsafe. But, this isn't the case, with today’s newly constructed vessels built to the highest standards to ensure both passenger safety and comfort.
Safety aboard ship is a cruise company’s main priority with each and everyone of their employees trained to the highest standards in order that they can properly deal with any on board emergency or evacuation procedure.
Guardrails are fitted on all open deck areas, stringent fire drills are put in place and all ships carry enough life jackets and life boats to ensure mass evacuation runs smoothly.
However, problems will and do arise, just as with any mode of transportation, but the number of instances of cruise liners having a major fire or even sinking are minimal.
CRUISE SHIPS WHICH ALLOW SMOKING
Most cruise lines prohibit smoking aboard ship and the few that do only allow it on open decks or in cabins with private balconies. It is imperative that you smoke only in a ship’s designated smoking areas for the obvious health and safety reasons.
Smoking is allowed aboard the following cruise ships:
Asuka Cruises' - Asuka II.
Carnival Cruises' - Grand Mistral.
CDF Cruises' - Bleu de France.
Crystal Cruises' - Serenity, Symphony.
Cunard's - Queen Elisabeth, Queen Mary II, Queen Victoria.
Hapag Lloyd's - Europa I, Europa 2.
MSC's - Armonia, Fantasia, Lirica, Magnifica, Musica, Opera, Orchestra, Poesia, Sinfonia, Splendida.
Norwegian Cruise Lines' - Dawn, Gem, Jewel, Pearl, Star, Sun.
Phoenix Reisen's - Amadea.
Regent Seven Seas' - Mariner, Voyager.
Royal Caribbean International's - Adventurer of the Seas, Brilliance of the Seas, Explorer of the Seas, Freedom of the Seas, Independence of the Seas, Liberty of the Seas, Mariner of the Seas, Navigator of the Seas, Radiance of the Seas, Serenade of the Seas, Voyager of the Seas.
Saebourn Cruise lines' - Odysee.
Silver Sea Cruises' - Shadow, Spirit, Whisper.
Star Cruises' - Superstar Virgo.
CRUISE LINE COMPANIES WHICH CAN ACCOMMODATE ON BOARD WEDDINGS
Most cruise line companies can arrange shore weddings at a visiting port if the law of that land allows it, but for those wishing to tie the knot aboard ship, there are a few cruise lines whose ship’s captains are also notaries, enabling them to marry couples aboard ship. These same ships can also provide facilities for wedding receptions and honeymoon suites. Companies that can arrange these wedding packages are:
Azamara Cruises.
Cunard Line.
Celebrity Cruises.
Princess Cruises.
CRUISE LINE COMPANIES WHICH OWN PRIVATE ISLANDS
Several cruise lines have the added luxury of owning their own private islands, where passengers can enjoy the solitude of a private location far from the madding crowd. Cruise companies which offer this facility are:
Celebrity Cruises – Catalina Island, Dominican Republic.
Costa Cruises – Serena Cay, Dominican Republic
Disney Cruise Line – Castaway Cay , Bahamas.
Holland America Line – Half Moon Cay, Bahamas.
MSC Cruises – Cayo Levantado, Dominican Republic.
Norwegian Cruise Line – Great Stirrup Cay, Bahamas.
Princess Cruises – Princess Cays, Bahamas.
Royal Caribbean International – Coco Cay in the Bahamas and Labadee Island located off the coast of Haiti.
CRUISE SHIPS WHICH ARE MOBILITY FRIENDLY
Most cruise ships will make allowances for wheelchair users aboard their vessels, but even taking that into account, ships in general are not that easy to get around due to their design. The cruise ships which have been rated the best for wheelchair users, by other wheelchair users or disabled people are:
Asuka Cruises' - Asuka II.
Carnival Cruises' - Grand Princess.
Celebrity Cruises' - Constellation, Eclipse, Equinox, Infinity, Millenium, Solstice, Summit.
Crystal Cruises' -Serenity, Symphony.
Cunard's - Queen Mary II.
Holland America's - Prinsendam, Rotterdam.
MSC's - Fantasia.
Norwegian Cruise Lines' - Dawn, Star.
Princess Cruises' - Crown Princess, Golden Princess.
Regent Seven Seas' - Mariner, Voyager,
Royal Caribbean International's - Adventure of the Seas, Explorer of the Seas, Freedom of the Seas, Liberty of the Seas, Mariner of the Seas, Navigator of the Seas, Serenade of the Seas, Voyager of the Seas.
Silver Sea Cruises' - Spirit.
Star Cruises' - Princess.
CRUISE SHIPS WHICH ARE CHILD FRIENDLY
Cruise ships are great places for children of all ages, provided you choose the right ship. Cruise companies which are renowned for their child friendly vessels and high standards of children's entertainment packages are:
Aida Cruises.
Carnival Cruises.
Celebrity Cruises.
Cunard Line.
MSC Cruises.
Disney Cruise Line.
Norwegian Cruise Line.
P&O Cruises
Princess Cruises.
Royal Caribbean.
Star Cruises.
Thompson Cruises.
TUI Cruises.
CRUISE COMPANIES WHICH PROVIDE ROUND THE WORLD CRUISES
Around the world cruises can take from ninety days to just under a year to complete and can dock at as little as twenty four ports to over two hundred, depending upon which cruise company package you choose. Most of the major cruise lines will have at least one round the world cruise a year, some may well have more, depending on supply and demand.
Cruise ship companies which are known to supply regular round the world cruises are:
Crystal Cruises.
Cruise West.
Cunard Line.
Fred Olsen Cruises.
Hapag Lloyd Cruises.
Holland America Line.
P&O Cruises.
Regent Seven Seas Cruises.
Saga Cruises.
Seabourn Cruises.
Venus Cruises.
CRUISE SHIPS WHICH ALLOW PETS
It is rare for cruise ships to allow pets on board, so rare in fact that only one shipping company allows it. Cunard Line’s, Queen Mary II allow pets to travel onboard but only on her North Atlantic crossings.
CRUISE SHIPS WITH CELEBRITY CHEFS
For the foodies among us several cruise ships have begun to endorse, or in some cases even personally employ, well known celebrity chefs at some of their on board restaurants. Found below is a list of the cruise lines along with the name of each celebrity chef or chefs, followed by the names of each of their restaurants and the ships on which they can be found.
Carnival Cruises - Guy Fieri at Guy's Burger Joint on board Carnival Conquest, Carnival Freedom, Carnival Glory, Carnival Sunshine & Carnival Triumph.
Crystal Cruises - Nobuyuki Matsuhisa at Silk Road on board Crystal Symphony and Crystal Serenity.
Cunard Line - Todd English at the Todd English Restaurant on board Queen Mary II.
Disney Cruises - Arnaud Lallement & Scott Hunnel at Restaurant Remy on board Disney Dream and Disney Fantasy.
Norwegian Cruise Line - Geoffrey Zakarian at Raw Bar and restaurant Ocean Blue on board Norwegian Breakaway and Norwegian Getaway.
Oceania Cruises - Jacques Pepin at Jacques Restaurant on board Marina and Riviera.
P&O Cruises - Atul Kochhar at Restaurant East on board Ventura & Restaurant Sindhu on board Azura.
Marco Pierre White at the White Room on board Ventura, the Ocean Grill on board Adonia, Arcadia & Oriana, the Cafe Bordeaux on board Aurora and the Cafe Jardin on board Oceana.
James Martin who hosts a cookery club on board Britannia.
Royal Caribbean - Jamie Oliver at Beyond Buzzed on board Quantum of the Seas & Anthem of the Seas.
Michael Schwartz at Michael's Genuine Pub on board Quantum of the Seas & Anthem of the Seas and at 150 Central Park on board Oasis of the Seas & Allure of the Seas.
THE WORLD’S TEN LARGEST CRUISE SHIPS
Ships in general are measured by weight of tonnage. Below is a list of the world’s ten largest cruise ships by tonnage and how many passengers and crew each one of them have on board per cruise.
Allure of the Seas – Royal Caribbean – 220,900 tonnes – 5,400 passengers and 1,400 crew.
Oasis of the Seas – Royal Caribbean – 220,900 tonnes – 5,400 passengers and 1,400 crew.
Anthem of the Seas - Royal Caribbean - 167,800 tonnes - 4,180 passengers and 1,500 crew.
Freedom of the Seas – Royal Caribbean – 154,407 tonnes – 3,634 passengers and 1,397 crew.
Independence of the Seas – Royal Caribbean – 154,407 tonnes – 3,634 passengers and 1,397 crew.
Liberty of the Seas – Royal Caribbean – 154,407 tonnes – 3,634 passengers and 1,397 crew.
Norwegian Epic – Norwegian Cruise Line – 153,000 tonnes – 4,200 passengers and 1,730 crew.
Queen Mary II – Cunard Line – 146,528 tonnes – 2,620 passengers and 1,254 crew.
Explorer of the Seas – Royal Caribbean – 137,308 tonnes – 3,634 passengers and 1,181 crew.
Voyager of the Seas – Royal Caribbean – 137,280 tonnes – 3,634 passengers and 1,176 crew.
THE WORLD'S MOST LUXURIOUS CRUISE SHIPS
A cruise ship is classified as a five star, luxury vessel by continually offering a flawless service, a high crew ratio, excellence of food, wine and entertainment, by having no hidden extra charges for on board services, for supplying top quality bedding, towels and toiletries, high space ratio in public areas, large cabins, cabins with sea views or balconies, separate gangways for staff and passengers, quiet public areas, an abundance of on board services and courteous and experienced staff.
Several cruise companies, both large and small, can boast the above assets, with the highest accolades being given to:
Crystal Cruises’ - Crystal Serenity and Crystal Symphony.
Cunard Line - Entire fleet.
Hapag – Lloyd’s - Europa I and Europa 2.
Regent Seven Seas’ - Seven Seas Mariner, Seven Seas Navigator, Seven Seas Voyager and in 2016 Seven Seas Explorer.
Silverseas’ - Silver Cloud, Silver Shadow, Silver Spirit, Silver Whisper and Silver Wind.
THE WORLD'S NEWEST CRUISE SHIPS
Cruise liners which made their maiden voyages within the last twelve months were;
AIDA Cruises' - AIDAprima which was launched in March 2015.
P&O Cruises' - Britannia which was launched in April 2015.
Royal Caribbean International's - Anthem of the Seas which was launched in April 2015.
Viking Ocean Cruises' - Viking Star which was launched in April 2015.
Norwegian Cruise Line's - Norwegian Escape which was launched in November 2015.
CRUISE SHIPS WITH MAIDEN VOYAGES IN 2016
For those of you who wish to make a maiden voyage aboard a brand new cruise liner here are the names and dates of the various ocean going cruise ships that will be making their maiden voyages during 2016.
Carnival - Vista - May 2016.
Holland America Line - Koningsdam - May 2016.
Holland America - Ovation of the Seas - May 2016.
Regent Seven Seas - seven Seas Explorer - July 2016.
Royal Caribbean International - Harmony of the Seas - May 2016. At 227,000 tonnes Harmony of the Seas will be the world's largest cruise ship.
Seabourn - Encore - July 2016.
Viking Cruises - Viking Sea - April 2016.
