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My wife and I went on cruises every year for more than 10 years starting mid-90's. At the time, it was more relaxing (with less to do) and gave the opportunity
by freemonster 7y ago
My wife and I went on cruises every year for more than 10 years starting mid-90's. At the time, it was more relaxing (with less to do) and gave the opportunity to disconnect. We liked to dress up for dinner and sit with the same (random) people for the entire time of the cruise. Internet was as outrageous of a cost as a phone call at the time so where I worked doing software engineering, I told them to call me anytime! Perfect, the never did... and as a plus we got to visit many ports of call to see what we would like to go back to for longer (taste of different places to decide if we would mesh for a whole week there). Shopping was fine if you take the time to bargain and know your market prices before you go. Tourist traps are still traps at land or at sea... keep your guard up on vacation either way.
Our last cruise was not the same. Lots of fun stuff to do (which we can't complain about trying a few with super long waits). Wifi everywhere (who needs phone calls) to keep in touch with work ALL the time. Random people every meal time at dinner who never dress up (unless you include polo shirts and shorts as dressed up). Basically, for us it did lose appeal to try it. So, for some this is exactly what they want, but lost its luster and special experience.
Advice - pick a cruse line that matches your preferences (kids, no-kids, party, no-party, luxury, casual, etc) and you probably would have a good time.
- ethbro 7y agoWhat line did you cruise with in dressier days gone? I'm younger, but that type of cruise is the only that really appeals to me. Sadly, I've heard passenger standards have decreased as ships try to maximize size for economies of scale.
- wincy 7y agoI’ve heard that the classiest cruises are the ones with the highest staff to customer ratios. An approximation, at least. Obviously they’re going to also be more expensive. https://www.cruisewatch.com/top-10/ships-passenger-crew-ratio/ https://www.cruisewatch.com/top-10/ships-passenger-crew-rati...
- Hoasi 7y ago> Random people every meal time at dinner who never dress up (..) Things changed. According to this article[^1]; fun onboard P&O's Britannia is... special. [^1]: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/jul/27/passenger-in-clown-suit-prompts-mass-brawl-on-po-cruise-ship?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/jul/27/passenger-in...
- indigochill 7y agoFrom the article: "...things kicked off when another passenger appeared dressed as a clown. This upset one of their party because they’d specifically booked a cruise with no fancy dress." For some reason classifying a clown costume as "fancy dress" tickles me.
- jboles 7y agoIt’s a British turn of phrase meaning any kind of party costume, not even necessarily anything “fancy”.
- ashildr 7y agoIt followed an afternoon of ‘patriotic’ partying on deck What is „patriotic partying“?