What's your why?

[CruzerDeb]

Why do you like to cruise? What do you like about Princess?  Why do you choose your ports?  This was my most recent "why", 6/22 - 29 aboard the Ruby Princess to Alaska: 

 

[Colo Cruiser]

Wow great shots!  😎

[c-boy]

adventure. Both on board and on shore. 

[neverbeenhere]

Edited July 11, 2019 by neverbeenhere

[JimmyVWine]

I’m a wanderer. I like to go to many places. My wife likes to unpack once not jump from hotel to hotel. BOOM! Cruising solves that incompatibility. A minority of our vacations are cruises. But they are an easy sell for us as they meet both our needs. 

[kywildcatfanone]

I like travel without having to figure out how to get where I'm going, or determine where I'm going to eat and sleep.  Cruises simplify this for me.  The ports are nice and all, but I just like that I can turn my brain off from thinking too much and relax.

[Lido deck main]

22 minutes ago, kywildcatfanone said:

I like travel without having to figure out how to get where I'm going, or determine where I'm going to eat and sleep.  Cruises simplify this for me.  The ports are nice and all, but I just like that I can turn my brain off from thinking too much and relax.

Ditto

[shanecindy21403]

Basically because it's just so simple. Just book pack and go. I like just having to unpack once and not worry about anything for a week or 2. The ports really don't matter I can always find something to do. Sometimes even just stay on the ship and enjoy the emptiness. Price wise I think cruising gives me the most bang for my bucks food, entertainment, lodging and some beverages all for one price.

[Tak8]

I would get bored in one spot.  Cruising makes it easy to get around and I leave the steering to the Captain.

[shanecindy21403]

BTW your photos are phenomenal! I tried getting some of the whales and mine didn't turn out anywhere as nice as yours.

[CruzerDeb]

1 minute ago, shanecindy21403 said:

BTW your photos are phenomenal! I tried getting some of the whales and mine didn't turn out anywhere as nice as yours.

Thank you! I can't believe I got these!

[Laurie S.]

I cruise to dive, so the most important thing for me is the itinerary.  I've only cruised Princess once before and that was to French Polynesia.  I was booked for a great Middle Eastern cruise in 2011, but Egypt had a revolution and so I canceled.  No sense cruising if you can't go ashore.  Making up for that next month finally with a liveaboard and land tour of Egypt.  I have sailed also on Holland America (my favorite line), Royal Caribbean (my least favorite), and Carnival.  I love Carnival and am Platinum there.  I also am a Three-Star Mariner on HAL.  My friend and I last did a Mexican Riviera cruise in August 2017 and we wanted to go again.  Carnival did not have a good itinerary, but Golden Princess does for May 6, 2020, so we booked it.

Edited July 11, 2019 by Laurie S.

[Near PDX]

Our why for having taken 12 cruises to AK:

 

 

[Thrak]

Many reasons. One of them is so that I can see this smile. Cruising lets us visit many places and makes my wife smile. Chris wearing her hat from St. Kitts while having a margarita in Hussong's Cantina in Ensenada:

 

[nukesubsailor]

We like to take cruises of 3-4 weeks.  That means 21 or more days  without my wife having to cook a meal, make a bed, clean the shower, or grocery shop.  Happy wife = happy life. I don't have to put up with getting multiple daily calls from telemarketers or politicians.  One more thing I like about take a cruise on Princess-----the scenery is better than it was on all those Navy cruises.

[Thrak]

6 minutes ago, nukesubsailor said:

We like to take cruises of 3-4 weeks.  That means 21 or more days  without my wife having to cook a meal, make a bed, clean the shower, or grocery shop.  Happy wife = happy life. I don't have to put up with getting multiple daily calls from telemarketers or politicians.  One more thing I like about take a cruise on Princess-----the scenery is better than it was on all those Navy cruises.

 

I do the majority of the cooking, my wife does make the bed, we both clean the shower and we both shop for groceries. You are correct though in that it's great neither of us has to do those things when cruising. 😉

[nattie]

Why cruising?

We both work, so not having to do any housekeeping for 1-2 weeks AND not have to worry about driving anywhere in traffic AND not to have to entertain DH/DS is priceless to me. 

Also, where else can I convince 10 yo to wear a tux???

 

Edited July 11, 2019 by nattie
spelling

[nattie]

As for why Princess?

We have tried all mass market lines and Princess fits the bill for all of us. It is fun for all of us, everyone is entertained and I feel like DS is learning to be a polite and refined young man that can fit in with anyone (his age, my age, old timers, etc.)

Also, I really appreciate all the live bands on board, I feel like Princess has really stepped up with quality of acts on board.

 

Ports?

We normally choose Caribbean for flight convenience, especially if we travel with my grandmother (90yo), but recently did Baltic and LOVED it. DS is heavily lobbying for Greece cruise next summer 😃

[stoneharborlady]

50 minutes ago, nattie said:

Why cruising?

We both work, so not having to do any housekeeping for 1-2 weeks AND not have to worry about driving anywhere in traffic AND not to have to entertain DH/DS is priceless to me. 

Also, where else can I convince 10 yo to wear a tux???

 

And he looks super handsome in it!!!

[Slugsta]

There are some lovely photos on this thread, thank you all for posting them :)

 

My 'why' is because I can't sit for very long without pain but still want to travel. So, I tolerate the 45 minutes to our nearest port and then the world comes to me. It is unfortunate that this makes Alaska unlikely for me but I remind myself of how very blessed I am  . . .

 

 

[LoriPhil]

Started with Alaska cruise on the Coral, and though we tried Celebrity returned to Princess because we enjoyed the atmosphere and accommodations.  Love the familiar feel of arriving at our cabin, sitting on the balcony with book and a glass of wine while listening to the sound of waives as the ship sails.  Love selecting whether it will be the dining room or horizon court as our only decision of the day.  Love being up really early morning and chatting with International Cafe crew while grabbing coffee before heading to Internet cafe.  Love the casual socialization with other cruisers, snorkeling in crystal water with snaggly  wet hair blowing in the breeze slurping a rum punch as the excursion boat heads back.  Love strolling the decks at the end of the first leg of another Alaska B2B, knowing we have another week to go before we become one of those sad-packers.  Once home, love wearing a vacation tee or sweatshirt, and starting to plan our next trip.

 

ummm, time for another cruise...

[Dani24]

I'm an over-planner in so many aspects of my life. I love getting into the details of everything, but sometimes I need a break. Cruising is a great way to accomplish that. Don't get me wrong... I still over-plan my cruises. But it's takes maybe 20% of the effort of our other vacations. I don't have to research where to eat, where to stay, where all the local amenities are, how to get from destination to destination, what all the entertainment options are, etc. On a cruise I can book it and then more or less show up and enjoy (or plan out the things I want to do, but it's so easy once I'm on board to actually enjoy those things).

 

Additionally, I'm a very active vacationer. I like to see, taste, experience everything. I have had a problem in the past building in time to just "relax" (because in my mind I can relax for free at home -- why spend money and time travelling somewhere, with all kinds of neat things to experience, only to sit by a pool or whatever and do nothing?) On the flip side, my husband is a very go-with-the-flow kind of guy who likes vacations where he can just chill. We started cruising because it was a really good happy medium. We could both be on the same ship, enjoying some activities together, and then splitting up so he could relax while I go explore -- without feeling like we were abandoning each other in a foreign city. We could easily pop in on the other or join in/opt out at our leisure. And I'm much more inclined to relax on a cruise -- particularly on sea days -- than on land-based vacations, and I know that's good for me.

We love Princess because it has the right balance of activity vs relaxation for us. Plus it's quiet and has a sense of down-to-earth refinement and class. We feel pampered and indulged on Princess. And we always leave wishing for more. Plus we love that it lets us sample different areas of the world without committing to a vacation to a place we may not ultimately enjoy. Cruising has introduced us to several places we never had considered otherwise that now are on our list of places we plan to vacation to someday.

[Id rather be diving]

My biggest why I cruise is that it’s a great way to cross things off my bucket list that would otherwise take much more time planning and researching not to say money.  For example, the #1 item on our bucket list was attending a Formula 1 race on another continent...so no Montreal, Austin, or Mexico City.  We were able to sail from Rome thru the Suez (never thought I’d be going through the Suez!) to Abu Dhabi and took in the race there.  It was very economical to get there via a cruise not to mention getting airfare home through the cruise line.

 

The why I choose Princess.  To use their old tag line....”it’s where I belong” and the reason I belong there is the way they treat my husband who is mobility impaired.  We have sailed Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, and Celebrity and none of them can hold a candle to Princess.  For example, as soon as he rolls up to the buffet someone asks him if they can help him through the buffet.  This allows us to sit down together to eat, not me getting his food then going back for mine.  When we got caught in the hot tub in a hail storm on the Sapphire....there were four deckhands holding towels over my husband until their colleagues could get him loaded on the pool lift and then they all surrounded him with towels as soon as he was lifted out of the water.  They were truly amazing!!  So, their service is what brings me back over and over!

[crystalspin]

As others have said, only unpacking once -- then having my living quarters set up the way I like. My other two favorite travel modes are travel trailer, and renting a hotel room or apartment for a week or more. See the connection?!! Least favorite is "If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium" bus trips, moving every day or two, living out of suitcase... but we are booked on one to Central Europe in October, just to make sure!

 

Why Princess is so far actually Why Not Princess. Have looked at and failed to book several in the past, because HAL's balconies are like mini-suites on Princess, with a sofa and bathtub, and now Princess is even removing second chairs from balconies, OVs and insides. And that really isn't trivial! Also their drink package is 33% more than HAL's if bought before sailing. On a 28-day cruise that's a thousand dollars. Almost like real money!

 

So I still want to TRY Princess, but have become convinced it's only going to happen when booking mini-suite(s) during Sip-n-Sail makes sense as it did for next June's Alaska cruise. 

[CineGraphic]

The ability to do your own laundry is the one thing we appreciate most. It's both convenient, and practical.