fav cruise line and why

[cruisetrail]

will be taking a cruise this year once i decide when and where. just wondering what your fav cruise line is and what about that one do you like the most

 

It's a big mistake to choose cruise lines instead of cruise ships.

Most cruise lines (even "luxury cruise lines") have different cruise ships in their fleet that may vary from first class resort ships to old floating sinks.

[RAHKJH]

Cunard. Hands down. No competition. The caliber of the crew. The level of service. The elegance. The chance to play dress up. The enrichment programs. The list is endless. We've had a nice suite on Carnival and have sailed with Norwegian. Celebrity is the only line that comes close to Cunard. We continue to hope that the purchase by Carnival Corporation will not negatively impact the quality of Cunard line.

[tigerlily_scuba]

If you are a first time cruiser, I recommend a short 3-4 day cruise on Carnival because it is a good introduction to what most of the cruise lines offer and they have plenty of activities to keep you busy (game shows, karaoke, etc.), plenty of good food and their prices are terrific! Also, I think it is important to take a short cruise your first time to see if you are susceptible to seasickness, or if you are unhappy about not being in touch with family and friends (your cell phone won't work at sea, of course you can always pay for internet if you want).

 

I must disclose that I am working on trying each cruise line at least once, to find out which is my absolute favorite.

 

I really enjoyed MSC Cruises, the entertainment in the common areas was top notch, (apparently, I can't get enough of Italian love songs), the library was well stocked in books of every language, the massages were dirt cheap, 80% of the rooms were balconies :) and there weren't many planned activities, so there was plenty of time to relax, no hairy men's chest contests on MSC.

 

I did not like Norweigan, I found that even the Chocolate buffet was not palatable, being female, I had never met a piece of chocolate I didn't like...until I sailed on NCL :eek:, although the shows were terrific!

 

Royal Caribbean is very similar to Carnival, I liked their mini-golf and movie theater, although that is probably not offered on most RCI ships.

 

I haven't been on Princess yet, but I always hear good things about them and I am eager to give them a try.

 

Personally, I think you would enjoy any of these but I do find that Carnival is the line most first timers try, so I think that it is a better experience because they cater to "newbies". :D

[srlafleur]

We have cruised on Carnival, HAL, RCCL, Princess, NCL & Celebrity.

Our favorite? We don't have one. Seriously.

We select the cruise line based on the itinerary, timing, and price, not necessarily in that order. And since we've never been on exactly the same itinerary...well, basically, ever...we can't truly compare, since we don't sail specifically for the ship or the line.

There have been things that certain lines and/or ships have done better than others (I have NO idea how Princess managed over-easy eggs in a buffet tray, consistently, during our Alaska cruise) and things that have gone awry on occasion (though I can't off the top of my head think of something that wasn't quickly remedied or was specific to a cruise line that could make me say "no way" to that line). I would choose any of the lines we've previously sailed again, given the right itinerary.

Some complain about the food or entertainment on one vs. another, but that is so very personal. If we don't like the offerings in the showroom, we'll do something else (though we are usually pleasantly surprised). If we don't care for a particular dish, we'll order something else. Do I love the singing waiters in the Carnival MDR? Sometimes yes, sometimes not so much. It lasts a whopping 2 minutes or so, other people obviously enjoy it, so I'll suck it up.

I think a whole lot depends on attitude (we are pretty easy to please) and expectations (a little research can go a long way in managing those).

[stan1]

Cruise lines actually aim at specific demographics, and operate their ships with special featurs to appeal to that demographic: Carnival aims at a younger group of cruisers with entertainment, menus, other activities aimed to particularly please that group. Holland America aims at an older somewhat affluent group of cruisers and the mean age of the many HAL cruises I have taken was about 65, with many wheelchairs, walkers, scooters. Celebrity, Princess, RCL aim somewhere in between, with Celebrity with a higher quality product ( menu, food, service, entertainment). NCL has changed hands so much and varies so much with each ship that I think it is now aimed at a similar crowd as Carnival. My wife and I are older, and prefer Celebrity, HAL, Princess in that order, but the itinerary is the real determinant, since prices are similar per day ( unless there is some special sales campaign).

[Grandma Cruising]

will be taking a cruise this year once i decide when and where. just wondering what your fav cruise line is and what about that one do you like the most

 

We have cruised with Holland America and Azamara and we much prefer Azamara. The 2 ships, Journey & Quest are small (690 passengers) and the atmosphere is fantastic. Nothing is too much trouble from the captain down to each crew member. All drinks are included as are tips, so nothing extra to pay, unless you want extra special drinks. The food is fabulous - you can pay $25 pp to dine in their 2 speciality restaurants, which are fabulous, but the food is so good in the main dining room you don't need to.

Having said that, if you want lots of things to do like skating, zip lining etc, these are not the ships for you. Yes there are quizzes etc on sea days, but as the ships are small, the activities are limited. That didn't worry us at all!

[perkydebrajean]

I chose NCL for my first cruise for the freestyle dining aspect of it. Since I had never cruised before I wasn't sure what I would be doing while on the ship. So I wanted to be able to plan my dining around my day instead of my day around my dining. I'm also a very shy person and the thought of having to share a dinner table with several other people that I didn't know was not something that I was looking forward to.

 

It was just my daughter and I that went. We didn't need an all inclusive cruise because I rarely drink and she doesn't at all so included drinks were not important to us. We also liked NCL because of no formal nights. We had to fly to the port and that was less things we had to bring along with us. Though we still dress decent for dinner. Just didn't have to worry about bringing formal clothes along with us.

 

Also we did NCL because pricewise it better suited our budget. We had originally talked about doing RCCL's Oasis or Allure but the price was too much. And I wanted a balcony room overlooking the ocean.

 

We thoroughly enjoyed our cruise and I've finally convinced my husband to go on one!

[FrökenFluff]

We have tried RCCL, NCL, Seabourn, Azamara and Windstar so far, going on our 8 cruise in January on the beautiful Azamara Journey! Our best has been Windstar, then Azamara. Fantastic service and food. We find the smaller sized ships nicer, more intimate and personal!