Cruise line/timing recommendations.

[Papamag]

Hello!

A good friend and I, both mid thirties, straight, and single, are planning a vacation for sometime in 2019. We decided on somewhere with sun, cocktails, and good food. This, of course, led us to consider a cruise. When I started my research, I realized that there are a million different possible combinations of date, destination, line and ship, and am a little overwhelmed.  I was hoping that I could use the wealth of experience and knowledge on this site to help us make sure we make a good choice.

 

We are both laid back, easy to please people, and destination is less important than overall experience. We can pretty much go any week of the year and are looking for a 7 day journey. We would prefer a ship with a population close to our age, if possible. While we may not be specifically looking for a singles cruise, we would definitely like to meet other single people to interact with. We both enjoy party atmospheres and a lively, loud ship would not bother us at all. In fact, a busy, full ship is a positive for us. High quality food, over all, is probably our number one priority. 

 

Thank you for taking the time to read this and I welcome any advice that you guys could give us. 

 

[NantahalaCruiser]

If you exclude the upscale luxury cruise lines, Celebrity usually gets the highest rating for quality food but has older demographics. Carnival generally has the youngest demographics, but is not known for the highest quality food. Norwegian and Royal Caribbean are sort of in between.

 

If you wish to cruise with more adults and less children, then avoid spring breaks and summer-time cruises.

 

Wish you well on your search and an enjoyable cruise.

[FlyerTalker]

Quality, including food, and liveliness/youthfulness are at two ends of the spectrum, IMO.

 

I fear that you are going to have to make some difficult decisions, and only YOU can prioritize what's important.  If you are looking for a young, single, party environment, you're gonna give up the food that you value so much.

 

I would highly recommend Oceania, Crystal and Regent for top-notch food experiences - and I base that on personal experiences.  I've sailed on Celebrity and found their food offerings to be better than most mass-market lines, but far below anything that I would consider a "foodie-worthy" dining experience.  They are great by comparison to RCI or Princess, but that's a low bar to surpass.

 

Disclaimer:  My experiences with RCI, Princess, HAL and Celebrity have been "one and done".  And for good reasons.

 

 

[jagsfan]

If high quality food is your highest priority, I would recommend Seabourne, Crystal or Regent. 

That would change the demographics, skewing to an older less lively age group. 

If you can pad the dining experience with specialty pay restaurants, then Royal Caribbean has the age group and the vibe that would suit you better. 

The newer ships and longer (think 10 days instead of 7) cruises would give you less of a party hearty atmosphere, but still lively bars and activities. 

[Heidi13]

Finding a cruise line with top notch food, with a younger demographic and a party atmosphere will be very difficult.

 

You indicated high quality food is your priority, so I concur with the previous responses, in that you check out luxury and premium lines.

 

In addition to the previous suggestions, I would check out Viking Ocean. They have multiple dinning options, with some of the options having a Nordic focus. They have 2 specialty options, which are complimentary - an Italian restaurant and the Chefs Table, where they have multiple courses with wine pairings. The themed Chef's Table menu changes every couple of days.

 

Onboard atmosphere is very laid back with no formal nights and dress code being smart casual every night.

 

The passenger demographics are widely varied, but probably a bit older than OP.

 

Good luck finding a cruise. May I also suggest finding a knowledgeable local travel agent, as they can be invaluable in helping novice cruisers.

[mef_57]

As per any forum, there is a lot of material to get around.  It might not be a bad idea to go to the boards home page and scroll through your options.

all cruise lines have their own forums.  There are specialty sub groups - solo travelers, over 55s, First time cruisers, etc. River cruises have their own forums too; as do ports of call.

We cannot recommend specific travel agents, but as someone just starting to dip a toe into cruising, it certainly can be overwhelming and a well experienced cruise travel agent can be a real help.  Ask friends and co-workers.  You don't mention on your avatar where you are from.  If Canadian, there is a great chain of cruise experts that are a boon for helping get a good price for the Canadian sail market.

As food for thought, if from the US, are you anywhere in close proximity to a cruise port?  Are you able to travel with relatively short notice?  Some people book very far in advance to get the cruise they want.  Others take advantage of sailing last minute when prices can be rock bottom in order to fill the ship.  If you are close to a port, then you don't have to consider flights and you might find a cheap deal to use as a first step into cruising.

Check your close port for what ships sail and itinerary and see whether any are of interest.  Look at a time that would suit for your vacation and then keep checking back on pricing.  It requires flexibility and a sense of adventure, but short listing to just a few ships and itineraries coupled with the chance of a low price might be considered advantageous by some.

[Essiesmom]

It would help if you could give us an idea of what you consider high quality food.  For many young people, that would be anything beyond fast food, any place you sit down to eat.  We are not sophisticated diners, and find the comfort foods served on Carnival to be very satisfying.  We also enjoy the more upscale menus of Celebrity.  We have been underwhelmed with the food on Cunard.  We have never sailed a luxury line and don'e envision ever having the funds to do so.  EM

[cb at sea]

Most cruises will have a mix of families and the over 60 crowd....families vacation...older folks can go anytime, and usually the funds to do so.

You will fit into the age group of most families....but I don't think that's what you're looking for.

 

Food has declined in recent years, both in presentation and taste, (IMO).....the true "luxury" lines will have better food, but generally an older population.

 

If I were you, I'd go to Vegas...check into a NICE hotel, and you'll have some great food, entertainment, and cocktails are not a problem!  Spring or Fall...great times to be there!  Winter is COLD.  Summer is HOT...I like hot, so I'm ok with summer, too!

[KmomChicago]

This is so hard to answer, and thank you for trusting the Cruise Critic crowd, but most of us skew toward what we like personally, and even in the same demographics people have widely varying tastes.

 

HOWEVER, since you are asking, I would recommend Royal Caribbean, specifically an Oasis class ship, which would be Oasis of the seas, Allure of the Seas, Harmony of the Seas, or the brand new Symphony of the Seas.  They just have so much to offer, and even the included meal options are extensive and, in my not-very-picky opinion, excellent.

 

Choose the lowest fare you can find for a 7 day on one of these, because that's not only a good way to save money, but you will have fewer families and more adults without children during those times.  There will also be more retirees, but the sheer size of the ships means you should still get a decent mix of thirty somethings. 

[leaveitallbehind]

On 12/4/2018 at 1:10 AM, NantahalaCruiser said:

If you exclude the upscale luxury cruise lines, Celebrity usually gets the highest rating for quality food but has older demographics. Carnival generally has the youngest demographics, but is not known for the highest quality food. Norwegian and Royal Caribbean are sort of in between.

 

If you wish to cruise with more adults and less children, then avoid spring breaks and summer-time cruises.

 

Wish you well on your search and an enjoyable cruise.

I understand what you are saying and not to contradict that, but to qualify your comments somewhat.  As a frequent cruiser with both RCI and Celebrity I would say it isn't so much a younger v older demographics as it is RCI focuses more on families with venues and activities appealing to them, and Celebrity on adults with more of a traditional cruising atmosphere with less family venues and activities.  But yes,  there will be more families and children on RCI and more of an adult mix on Celebrity as a result.

 

But there are plenty of younger people who either do not have children or cruise without them who cruise on Celebrity,  just as there are plenty of older people who cruise on RCI.  My point being that they each offer a different style of cruising that can appeal to people of all ages.

[navybankerteacher]

For OP’s desired demographic: NCL or Carnival;  for “high quality food” : Crystal, Seabourn, Oceania;  when it gets to be time to fish or cut bait, OP probably should think about Royal Caribbean-   as the aforementioned are polar opposites.

[George C]

I would suggest rccl , voyager or freedom class . As for food if you want high quality you need to either eat in specialty restaurants or in ships that have suite restaurants like celebrity or rccl oasis class. Rccl does offer a deal where all specialty restaurants for dinners are included and some lunch’s.