Very Lengthy Cruises.......Anyone?

[longtimecruiser]

I have taken a 33 day cruise and a 34 day cruise. Both cruises the time just flew by. I could have stayed on the ship both times and gone around again. It was hard to get off after all those days. You get into a routine aboard the ship and just relax. I kept in contact at home with my daughter by email and called her from most ports on my cell phone. It was reassuring to know that all was well at home and I could relax and not worry about things at home. Would I go again, YES. The ony problem is that I would like to do an even longer cruise the next time like 60 days. I hope someday to do a world cruise. My Mother went on three world cruises on the RotterdamV and was never bored or homesick for one minute. I know I wouldn't be either. I guess it is in my genes. Adele

[JimVrhovac]

7-10 days is my limit.

 

Ruth could live on a cruise ship.

 

We did back-to-back last year (14 days) and the last several days were pure hell for me. The only thing that saved me was that i brought along my laptop with some computer games loaded on it.

 

Got a lot of crazy looks siting in the Oceans bar drinking and playing my games. It keep me sane.

 

Have 14 day schedules in November and have purchased two new games for the cruise....

 

Jim & Ruth

[MISSYLOU]

Two weeks is the norm for us but we have done one 21 day Hawaii round trip and I loved every minute of it. Have a 29 day Sydney to LA booked for 2007. While I am still working the longer the cruise the better but I think once I retire I may not want to be gone from home any longer than two weeks. Time will tell.

[RuthC]

After several long cruises I'm having a hard time imagining how my next cruise of seven days will feel. A long weekend, perhaps?

 

One long cruise is different than back-to-backs of the same total days. You get more familiar with the other passengers. The pressures of the world fade away, but are not replaced with the desire to "do. do. do." that comes with a shorter cruise; you know there will always be another day to try that special massage, or bread pudding, or....

There are different activites on a longer cruise. There is ample opportunity for various lecture series that you just don't find on the shorter cruises.

The way of life is different on a longer cruise. And it is more like a way of life than a vacation. The other passengers are travelers---not tourists. Their experiences are diverse and vast. Makes for great conversations.

A longer cruise may not be for everyone, but until you consider how it is different you can't be sure how you would like it.

[Classynfun1]

My first cruise was the 22 b2b I was on this summer. It was wondeful! So great that I was back on another HAL ship a couple of weeks later. I can't wait to spend another few weeks on a HAL ship (during a break of course)!

[JimVrhovac]

Agree with the back-to-back being different.

 

The second weeks group was not as much fun as the first. Do not know if it was me or the group thought so I will not criticize them.

 

We did have extreme problems in the dining room during the second week and did not eat there after the third night and that did not help things out.....

 

Jim & Ruth

[sail7seas]

That brings up another point, Jim.

 

Imagine being on a ship for 60 days and being totally unhappy with the dining time you were assigned, your table location, your tablemates.........There goes a huge chunk of enjoyment right out the window. If the ship is full and you can't get switched, that would be really unpleasant. IMO

 

Yes....of course a b-to-b is quite different than a single cruise. We've done so many b-to-b's and often we do see a big difference in our fellow pax from one segment to the other.

 

We are booked for a fourteen day cruise this spring vs. two seven dayers b-to-b. That will be a different crowd as most usually you will pull (for the most part) different folks on a seven day Caribbean vs. a fourteen day cruise.

[RevNeal]

Ruth, where are you going for just 7 days??

[JLT]

After several 7 day cruises years ago, my husband and I took a 16 day Panama Canal cruise. When we got to our cabin, we looked at each other and said "16 DAYS!" But the time went quickly and we felt like we just got into the rhythm of life aboard when it was time to get off. I've since taken a 21 day btob to Hawaii. And could have stayed on board longer. I once heard a woman comment that her husband wouldn't get the suitcases down for less than 10 days. That's how I feel now. I'm off on a 30 day Panama Canal/Amazon cruise next month and looking forward to every day at sea. Maybe 60 days will be next.

[RevNeal]

Jim,

 

What is it about the longer cruises that make you restless? Do you get bored, or just tired of routines?

[blackbird71]

That brings up another point, Jim.

 

Imagine being on a ship for 60 days and being totally unhappy with the dining time you were assigned, your table location, your tablemates.........There goes a huge chunk of enjoyment right out the window. If the ship is full and you can't get switched, that would be really unpleasant. IMO

 

 

I have made up my mind, as a single cruiser, on longer trips with fixed time and tablemate seatings I would get a table for two. I just got off the Radisson Seven Seas Mariner and loved the open seating. A couple nights out of the 12 one or two table mates where not of my liking but I knew I probably would not get them again soon.

 

One thing some people did not bring up is the L word :D Laundry... One very nice thing about the Radisson ships is the self service laundry on most floors. That make it very nice. OK I hate San Juan and did laundry there :p but I had almost all my clothes clean when I got off the ship in FLL.:eek:

 

To me there is never enough days in a cruise.

[sail7seas]

On most of HAL ships (not on the Vista Class), there are Passenger Laundry Rooms. Washers/ dryers/ ironing boards/irons.

 

All Suite Pax ("PS" and"S") have included dry cleaning and laundry for no extra charge.

[RuthC]

Ruth, where are you going for just 7 days??

Alaska. After asking for three years I finally got permission to take the older grandgirl there. :)

(Guess her parents thought I would lead her down the road to Perdition. Even my granddaughter says "around Memere I have to be the grown-up one." :D )

That cruise is on the Volendam next July. Followed, of course, by The Voyage of the Spammed!

[willowoodf]

Does anybody but me worry about their pets? Right now it's not possible for us to take longer than about a 14 day cruise because of work, but I am afraid I would miss and worry about my pets! I know, I'm stupid! LOL!

 

Mary

[Aussie Gal]

We have taken quite a few 14 day cruises and our latest one was 17 days - Boston to Rotterdam. I must admit, we were glad to be leaving the ship when we arrived in Rotterdam. We were looking forward to some warmer weather. Perhaps if we had had long sunny days and we could have sat outside, then we would have been happy to stay on board.

 

We are doing a 21 day cruise in January but we are going to some exotic ports and seeing Antarctica. That will be a lead up to our next cruise which is our longest ever.

 

We have booked a 35 day cruise for next September. It will probably be our only really long cruise but it does combine the west coast of the U.S., going through the Panama Canal and up the Amazon which actually finishes our sightseeing in South America.

 

I love being on board ship but my DH is not so keen on the sea days. He has always been a person who has kept himself very busy and he finds it hard to relax and just sit down and read. As we are both retired, we do have all the time in the world to enjoy these longer holidays.

 

Jennie

[kryos]

Am I alone here among all of us who love cruising that isn't sure I want to be on a ship for 30 (or more) days? We love being aboard for 14-15 days but I somehow am reluctant about cruising longer. The major attraction would be the ability to see many exotic ports but I don't think I'm all that eager to spend a month (or more) on a single cruise.[/b]

The longest cruise I've thus far been on has been 15 days. In January I will be going on a 30-day cruise. That will probably be my longest ... at least until I retire, which is many years off yet. I guess it doesn't bother me being on a boat for an extended period because I don't look upon it as one destination. I am going to several places ... about 12 in all ... so I don't think the length of the voyage will be a problem. Of course, I will worry a bit about things at home, about work, and about my dad (who refuses to set foot on a cruise ship). But, I will ensure things are taken care of before I leave ... someone to check in with dad regularly and checking email/voicemail on a regular basis to make sure there are no problems at work. Other than that, I will enjoy my trip and will probably think 30 days is too short when it comes time to disembark.

 

Also, my own take on it is to make sure that if you do take a long voyage, make sure it is a good mix between sea days and port days. If you are one who, like me, can't bear to stay onboard when there is a new place out there to explore, too many ports can leave you more exhausted at the end of the cruise than at the beginning of your vacation. On the other hand, too many days at sea could get a bit old too.

 

Maybe long voyages aren't for everyone ... but I think if the itinerary was something that appealed to me, the voyage could be 150 days and it wouldn't be long enough.

 

Of course, ask me again after I return from my January voyage, and maybe my opinion will have changed.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[JimVrhovac]

Just tend to get bored with the shipboard routine.

 

We are very limited in what we can do on shore because of Ruth's mobility problems. Don't like to gamble.

 

Last cruise was the first time I took my laptop with new games on it and it seemed to solve a lot of the problems with boredom. Ruth and I have been wrangling over me bringing my laptop for years and I gave in to the back-to-back as long as I can took my laptop. That is why I am taking it in Nov and Dec. Will see how that works.

 

She is already talking about or 30+ day cruise next year.

 

Have worked a 60+ week for almost 50 years and it is a hard habit to break.....

 

Have retired twice and went back to work each time. Last time I retired I was 45 and that lasted 2 years and then I went to Nursing School for a change of pace.

 

Maybe it is the lack of a challenge that bores me. Don't know......

 

Any Advise........

[kryos]

One long cruise is different than back-to-backs of the same total days. You get more familiar with the other passengers. The pressures of the world fade away, but are not replaced with the desire to "do. do. do." that comes with a shorter cruise; you know there will always be another day to try that special massage, or bread pudding, or...

There is definitely a difference between a 15-day Hawaii cruise say ... and two 7-day back to backs in the Caribbean. On the longer cruises, especially if there are a lot of sea days, there is definitely a much stronger onboard enrichment program. Lots more activities to keep you occupied. On the seven-dayers ... where maybe five of those days you are in port ... I can well imagine boredom setting in ... especially on sea days. After all, just how many times can you play Bingo or trivia?

 

Also, as you note ... on the longer cruises, you get to know your fellow passengers better. You run into each other repeatedly in your favorite haunts. I have many wonderful memories of the people I met on my recent Island Princess cruise hanging out in Churchhill's ... the smoking lounge. On a seven-day back-to-back, most of those passengers you've gotten to know in the first week would be getting off, and you'd have a whole slew of new faces for the second week.

 

Don't get me wrong ... I love b2b's ... and I will be doing another one onboard the Westerdam in October of 2006. But, I think I love the longer cruises just a little bit more.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[Bill B]

The longer the cruise the better - I've been on cruises for 22 days on the Ocean Princess, 49 days on the Regal Princess and 21 days on the Amsterdam. You won't get sick of it!

[Tricia724]

Now that we're both retired, we're looking into some longer itineraries. We're easing our way up...next month a 14 day and next year a 17 day repo on the Westerdam. We'd both like to do one of the South America cruises, and I would like to try a South Seas cruise, but we do have financial limitations and a longer cruise will require more planning.

 

I could see myself booking a 30-35 day cruise, but I'm not sure about anything longer. Even if resources were unlimited, I doubt I'd sign on for a world cruise. It's not about having problems leaving my "regular" life for a long period of time. For me, I'm just not sure I could maintain my enthusiasm for so many new places all at once.

 

Still, it's funny how your ideas change. My first half dozen cruises were all one weekers when I was working. When we booked our first 10-day Panama Canal cruise, I remember thinking of it as a "long" cruise. Then came a 14-day b2b....and we could have easily stayed on another week. So perhaps by the time we get into a 20+ day cruise, that will be a new norm. We're definitely going longer but I'm not sure what my cut-off point is yet.

[sail7seas]

The longer the cruise the better - I've been on cruises for 22 days on the Ocean Princess, 49 days on the Regal Princess and 21 days on the Amsterdam. You won't get sick of it. !

 

That is ONE of the things about which I have reluctance to think about a cruise of more than 30 days.....I could well get tired of the routine aboard the ship and 'want to go home'. I don't know that I won't get sick of it.

[sea dwag]

Agree with a lot that has been said and maybe its just us, we do enjoy our cruises, but last year we did 21 days a 14 and 7 day back to back on the Veendam, before that we had done 17 days a few times. Around day 17 we both felt we had been at sea long enough.

[SHayesShip]

I was given a graduation present of a world cruise on the Rotterdam V when I was very young. I had one of the very small single outside cabins with a porthole. My parents had taken me on a couple of crossings and a couple of cruises from the age of 6 so I understood ship life to a point. I was extremely excited because of all of the things that I would experience. I was also the youngest paying passenger onboard for the full 101 days. It was truly an experience of a lifetime that I have never forgotten.

Sometimes I think about those days when I did not have a care in the world and I could just get up and go.

I would like to think that I could someday have that same just get up and go attitude. However, I have consumed myself with day to day living that fills my mind with ambitions and responsibilities that go against the very essence of being carefree. Am I sad? No! When I was young I thought of only myself. Over the years, I have welcomed wonderful people and new experiences into my daily life.

Some day, if it is meant to be I may do it again. I would like to. But it will not be with an all or nothing attitude that will consume my thoughts daily.

[Bill B]

I guess whether or not one will 'get sick of it' will depend a lot on one's individual preferences/mind state, but there's always a new port to look forward to and (usually) the most sea days in a row are four. My experience has been that there will be special activities and things like a huge buffet lunch in the dining room put on during those longer blocks of sea days.

[babyher]

Sail,

 

 

I could possibly see you getting a little restless on a long cruise. Between all your many cruises and other travels in the past, you have been to so many places, that the ports may not hold the same fascination for you that they would for some one like me with a fraction of the travel time you have.

 

I know you have said that on some cruises the ship is the destination for you and DH more than the ports, so as you said earlier if the cabin, service, food or fellow pax isn't up to snuff, it could make for a "LONG" long cruise.