Cruising still a good value?

That is exactly why we decided to do five weeks in Greece. Even though CAD is low, it was/is still reasonable to the Euro.

Plus, tourism was down in Greece and our preference is always spring or fall when the weather is still good but there as not as many tourists. This time our trip to Greece was a bargain. Not just the air fares either. Hotel offerings were excellent and accommodation prices were the lowest that we have seen them in quite some time. Just got back five weeks and only one afternoon with clouds/rain. Cannot wait to go back! We found the locals especially welcoming. We expected to see more Americans. The vast majority of our fellow tourists were French, German, and Scandanavian. Especially in the Islands. Never really heard English until our last two days in a resort in Crete. This was a far better value for us than taking a cruise...spending more for less than half the days and seeing/experiencing much less.

A few years ago we delayed a trip to South Africa by one year. Doing so saved us more than ten percent simply because their currency was sliding.

It's definitely a good value for us. DH hates to fly, so cruising gets us places with a minimum of flying time. If you shop hotel rates, add on food and transportation costs I think cruising is best bang for buck.

Well, we are paying less than $110.00 per diem each for our upcoming cruise on a mid-priced line. I cannot get this level of service and food and lodging for twice the price on shore any longer.

Doc:)

I have never considered cruising a competitive value compared to a static resort. I don't know about the US, but certainly in Europe, I could get a wide range of all inclusive resorts across the Mediterranean including airfare for far less than a cruise. However, firstly, I'd have to fly, when I prefer to cruise out of Southampton, not having to set foot on a plane, and secondly, I'd be limited to one destination - which for 2 weeks would simply bore me to death.

Not only is the basic fare more expensive than on shore in Europe, the drinks on board are far more expensive than on shore and gratuities and service charges are always way more than I would spend in 2 weeks on a land vacation. Cruises don't even feel that all inclusive to me anymore, with the rising costs of drinks and drinks packages and the addition of so many premium food items and speciality restaurants (on the cruise lines I can afford to travel on anyway!)

That being said, I am not rich by any means, I work hard and save up for my cruises and I consider that my money is well spent because it gives me the unique opportunity of being directly on the ocean (I love being surrounded by water) and waking up somewhere new every single day, without the stress I get from travelling (I get very motion sick on ALL travel except for boats!). So I consider it good value for me as a lifestyle choice all round, and if the prices continue to rise, I would still cruise - but may have to do it less often.

Also some things are simply not feasible by land, and definitely not comfortable - for example my favourite cruise so far was the Norwegian Fjords, cruising up the Fjords was an incomparable experience. It doesn't matter if I could get a hotel somewhere for a better price; I would not get the experience that I had... and that's ultimately why I choose to cruise, even though I consider it a fairly expensive way of travelling.

Of course, I see the prices of Caribbean cruises and am very jealous, I can only speak as to Europe.

......Of course, I see the prices of Caribbean cruises and am very jealous, I can only speak as to Europe.

And I am very jealous of you living in Europe. The Caribbean gets boring after a couple of cruises, and there aren't many other itineraries local to the US. Europe, however, has so much to offer. For us living on the west coast of the US, the airfare is often about the same price as the cruise itself! We have done several cruises around Europe, and would like to do more. Unfortunately, doubling the price of a cruise because of airfare is a big drain on our discretionary income. Consider yourself fortunate that you have so many options within a reasonable distance from home.

Is cruising good value?

It depends on where you are cruising. Caribbean per diems are much lower than Europe, Aus, etc.

It also depends on when you are cruising and how you book. Our last Christmas cruise on X was a late balcony booking at $100. USD each per diem for 12 days. A very good deal. THis fall, Med cruises, late bookings, were 2-2 1/2 times what we paid two years ago so we passed.

It also depends on your currency vis a vis the currency of your booking and the on board currency. Last Feb we booked an RCI cruise in Australia. Had we booked in the US or Canada the price would have been 30 percent higher. Not because of currency but because at the time of booking there was a significant difference between US/Canadian and Australian web prices, adjusted for currency. DS booked a Baltic cruise in the UK this year because it was about 15 percent less than booking the same cruise in US/Canada.

And it depends on what other competing travel options/deals are out there in the marketplace.

Well, we are paying less than $110.00 per diem each for our upcoming cruise on a mid-priced line. I cannot get this level of service and food and lodging for twice the price on shore any longer.

 

Doc:)

I can't imagine anyone can argue that is a great price. It will be hard for you to not get your 'money's worth'. :)

Enjoy!

We have only been on 5 cruises with 6th one scheduled but we have traveled on other land based tours for many years. We understand and agree with all the discussions about "everything under one roof, all things included, unpack one time" discussions, however, I still see how many people feel cruises are a bit expensive. Some people appear to have deep pockets and cruise multiple times a year but we do not and normally a vacation for us would not be anywhere as near expensive as a cruise ......and we don't typically eat like crazy as we do on cruises so we would not be spending for multiple lavish meals a day or going to a show every night and our hotel rooms don't cost near as much as cabins do...... so when you say how good a "value" are cruises I think each person really has to answer that for themselves depending on their resources and what they usually spend on non-cruise vacations. For us, we love cruising but it is not a great value for us.

We do other types of travel. Sometimes you cannot do the same comparison.

Just added up all of our expenses. Five weeks in Greece plus a two day stop in Paris on the way home (paid for by lower air fares from Paris).

We spent $8000. CAD, 6K USD total. Includes flights, car rentals, ferry tickets, hotels, the lot.

We do other types of travel. Sometimes you cannot do the same comparison...

I agree. When I do a land-based vacation, I eat much more simply than on a cruise as hotel and tourist-area dining tends to be costly. Hotel rooms tend to be much larger than cruise-ship cabins, so someone who books suites on ships primarily for the additional space might be okay with a standard room in a hotel.

You have to make any comparison based on the way YOU travel, which may not be apples-to-apples :).