Rotterdam Posted November 30, 2020 #1 Share Posted November 30, 2020 Just as a boost.... why don't we post positive experiences we've all had while planning & being onboard. Whether sailing solo, with friends or w a partner(s) it will be fun to hear who we met and what ensued.🍸🍷🥂 BON VOYAGE🚢 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zitsky Posted November 30, 2020 #2 Share Posted November 30, 2020 WHY ARE YOU SHOUTING? LOL. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jared2 Posted November 30, 2020 #3 Share Posted November 30, 2020 Pretty much all the ones I meet on regular cruises are fine people. Now a gay cruise, that's a different story... Probably why I avoid them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zitsky Posted November 30, 2020 #4 Share Posted November 30, 2020 I've met some nice people but they still kept me at arms length. Hello and how are you were about all we did together. No shared tables or anything like that. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jared2 Posted December 1, 2020 #5 Share Posted December 1, 2020 Well as far as I am aware there are no laws of nature that say that gay people on a cruise need to associate with each other 😉 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zitsky Posted December 1, 2020 #6 Share Posted December 1, 2020 4 hours ago, Jared2 said: Well as far as I am aware there are no laws of nature that say that gay people on a cruise need to associate with each other 😉 But it's nice when it happens. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CntPAcruiser Posted December 1, 2020 #7 Share Posted December 1, 2020 Some years ago we booked an excursion privately for Antigua, and had to walk out from the pier to meet a van for the ride to where the excursion originated. We ended up in a small van with two other couples, two guys and two gals. I wonder if the driver of that van realized he had three gay couples on board. We had a blast talking on the way out and enjoying the scenery, and sharing our experiences on that cruise so far. As often happens, we saw the others on board fairly often after that, and occasionally had drinks. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicken_Lips Posted December 3, 2020 #8 Share Posted December 3, 2020 Meeting gays on cruises is a mixed bag. It's the same as in a gay bar. Some guys will be cool and friendly, while some guys will be shallow and rude AF! I think a lot of extroverted people get frustrated when cruisers travelling with others, don't respond to their greetings as expected. Just be aware that a lot of people, gay and straight, who go on cruises as couples or with friends, just aren't interested in socializing outside their immediate group. This is how people behave, don't let it ruin your day. If you click, you click. If not, move on and enjoy the rest of your cruise. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Volunton Posted January 24, 2021 #9 Share Posted January 24, 2021 I totally agree with a number of things. For example, just because you work with someone else who might be gay or lesbian, does NOT mean they will be your BFF nor will you want to be THEIR BFF. We have two kids (boy and girl) who are 13 y.o. We were in P'town in August 2019 and definitely felt the vibe that other gays and lesbians did not want to come near us. It was as if we were kryptonite. We saw a few other couples (both gay and lesbian) with kids but none of us approached each other to 'bond'. It was probably more a matter of every family having their own issues or doing their own thing. However, having said all that, my partner and I had just boarded a cruise ship for a trip down the Nile (sorry about the boast) and started spontaneously chatting with a M/F Spanish couple from the UK. We hit it off, spent the rest of the Egypt trip hanging out with them and have met them at their house in the UK and in BC on a mutual vacation and still chat virtually and hope to meet up post-pandemic. Oh, btw, we met them in about 2006! So, there is no rhyme or reason as to what to expect on a trip or cruise. Every cruise is different. Every all-inclusive is different. The dynamics are always such that, if you had gone the week before or a week later, your experience - good or bad - may have been altered forever. I'm fortunate that, as per my example, we met "The Spaniards" on our trip in 2006. They call us "The Canadians". Anyway, we have a cruise booked for March 12, 2022 on the Norwegian Escape and are certainly open to meeting NICE people, whether they are gay, straight, bi, orange or turqouise. Just my .02. 🙂 3 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zitsky Posted January 24, 2021 #10 Share Posted January 24, 2021 It's normal to meet straight couples and make friends. After all they are the majority. But it's nice to meet other LGBT couples or individuals on a cruise. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric79DAM Posted February 11, 2021 #11 Share Posted February 11, 2021 On 1/24/2021 at 5:11 PM, zitsky said: It's normal to meet straight couples and make friends. After all they are the majority. But it's nice to meet other LGBT couples or individuals on a cruise. Very true! On our last voyage we met like 20 gay guys and we ended up sharing some meals not all of them but every happy hour we met at a bar. We all kept in touch since it was great fun. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zitsky Posted February 11, 2021 #12 Share Posted February 11, 2021 12 hours ago, Eric79DAM said: Very true! On our last voyage we met like 20 gay guys and we ended up sharing some meals not all of them but every happy hour we met at a bar. We all kept in touch since it was great fun. Wow! What a great experience! I hope I meet that many on our next cruise. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbtan Posted March 10, 2021 #13 Share Posted March 10, 2021 On 11/30/2020 at 12:46 PM, Rotterdam said: Just as a boost.... why don't we post positive experiences we've all had while planning & being onboard. Whether sailing solo, with friends or w a partner(s) it will be fun to hear who we met and what ensued.🍸🍷🥂 BON VOYAGE🚢 We found Cunard/Princess to have the best get togethers & Celebrity & Oceania the worst. Oceania is the only line where we have been seated with some rather unfriendly(not nasty)pax. We don't cruise looking for friends, but on Princess we grouped a few times in the specialty rest. & had a great time. It's nice when it just clicks. We have found that sometimes foreign gay pax were pretty reserved. Mostly because of language barriers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zitsky Posted March 10, 2021 #14 Share Posted March 10, 2021 3 hours ago, rbtan said: We found Cunard/Princess to have the best get togethers & Celebrity & Oceania the worst. Oceania is the only line where we have been seated with some rather unfriendly(not nasty)pax. We don't cruise looking for friends, but on Princess we grouped a few times in the specialty rest. & had a great time. It's nice when it just clicks. We have found that sometimes foreign gay pax were pretty reserved. Mostly because of language barriers. Do you have any stories you care to share? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SireDoime Posted March 14, 2021 #15 Share Posted March 14, 2021 On 3/10/2021 at 1:16 PM, rbtan said: unfriendly(not nasty)pax What is or who are "pax"? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zitsky Posted March 14, 2021 #16 Share Posted March 14, 2021 8 hours ago, SireDoime said: What is or who are "pax"? Passengers? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbtan Posted March 14, 2021 #17 Share Posted March 14, 2021 On 3/10/2021 at 4:48 PM, zitsky said: Do you have any stories you care to share? Good or bad? The best was on Princess Regal. We grouped in dinner parties of about 15 & ate in Sabatini's or Crown Grill. Similar to what we did on Cunard. Celebrity just really has completely poor set ups for LGBT groups/meetings(so much for Ellen plugging that line in the past!)Oceania, until recently offered no meetings at all, but we always find our kind. Shared a table with a Texas couple. After about 2 min. he "figured" us out. They clammed up. Made for a rushed meal just get away from them. Staff was going to seat us together again one night & I declined. Following year staff was going to seat us with another couple in Jacques. The wife said "Oh, we're too close to the door!" If we were any further from the door we'd be in the Ocean. LOL! They were seated elsewhere & we had the table to ourselves. In the specialty restaurants on Oceania, you sometimes "have" to share a table. A table for 2 was never a problem in the GDR(Grand Dining R 1 hour ago, zitsky said: Passengers? (yes) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zitsky Posted March 14, 2021 #18 Share Posted March 14, 2021 @rbtan thanks for the stories! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SireDoime Posted March 15, 2021 #19 Share Posted March 15, 2021 10 hours ago, rbtan said: Celebrity just really has completely poor set ups for LGBT groups/meetings I can confirm this. I went on my first cruise to the Western Caribbean on Equinox back in July 2019. The one meeting they had in CRUSH was blah. I saw the gay cruise director there, but the whole vibe was just off for me. While they were pretty gay friendly (that surprised me), and there were plenty onboard - it just seemed cliquey and geared towards the 20something crowd. But I guess it depends on the time of year... 😎 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darrennj Posted March 15, 2021 #20 Share Posted March 15, 2021 Hi Sire, Sorry to hear about your experience. When I'm on a regular cruise without an LGBT type group, I experienced mostly similar to you. The exception was the transatlantic cruise we took on Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the Seas during its maiden transatlantic cruise. The LGBT meetings at their Robot Bar were well attended and we met a couple nice people who we met up with several times. The best LGBT cruises for me are with listeners of www.derekandromaine.com. Derek and Romaine were popular radio hosts on Sirius OutQ for 12 years, but after the channel was cut, they moved to online. But they have been hosting cruises and sometime they have 200 to 300 people on their trips. See www.dnrtravel.com. I've never been on an Atlantis Cruise. I think it would be too much. Maybe if I was younger. RSVP is probably a better option for me, if I wanted a full ship of LGBT. But I'm happy with DNR Travel. I can hang with the group when I feel like it, and just blend in with everyone else when I want. It helps to be a fan of their show, because you'll get the jokes, etc. Darren 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bigmike911 Posted June 15, 2021 #21 Share Posted June 15, 2021 Recently ( for the past ten years or so ) have have cruised exclusively on Cunard's Queen Mary 2. Because QM2 is a real ocean liner and crossing the Atlantic on her is something special. They have a nightly gathering of Friends of Dorothy, or Rainbow Pride and lately LGBT at 5 pm in the Commodore Club. I have always found it well attended and have often met folks I have stayed in touch with over the years. One was a Lawyer from Austin, who had attended the same private school in Houston I did (though I predated him by about ten years) Another couple who live in Suburban NYC have stayed in touch as have a couple of guys from Little Rock. Some you meet in the gathering and become friendly with, others you just say hello to, but to me these gatherings are a highlight of the crossings. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zitsky Posted June 15, 2021 #22 Share Posted June 15, 2021 2 hours ago, Bigmike911 said: Recently ( for the past ten years or so ) have have cruised exclusively on Cunard's Queen Mary 2. Because QM2 is a real ocean liner and crossing the Atlantic on her is something special. They have a nightly gathering of Friends of Dorothy, or Rainbow Pride and lately LGBT at 5 pm in the Commodore Club. I have always found it well attended and have often met folks I have stayed in touch with over the years. One was a Lawyer from Austin, who had attended the same private school in Houston I did (though I predated him by about ten years) Another couple who live in Suburban NYC have stayed in touch as have a couple of guys from Little Rock. Some you meet in the gathering and become friendly with, others you just say hello to, but to me these gatherings are a highlight of the crossings. Lucky you. I'm on a cruise that isn't very active (November). Not sure we'll meet any LGBTQ. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbtan Posted June 15, 2021 #23 Share Posted June 15, 2021 55 minutes ago, zitsky said: Lucky you. I'm on a cruise that isn't very active (November). Not sure we'll meet any LGBTQ. Could be worse. They have virtually nothing on Oceania. Last cruise they had the LGBT meeting right at dinner. I snuck out quick to see if anyone was there. No one showed. Thee were a fair amount of gay pax, but they seemed to just keep to themselves. Princess on our Hawaii trip was little better. A couple of stuck up queens & that was about it. Cunard has always had a great attendance. Or 2016 cruise on the Regal Princess was well attended as well. Celebrity is a mix. They host it at the martini bar. Not a good spot. The Commodore room was always excellent. The reason we don't do Cunard anymore is the fact I'm fairly relegated to vacation after the holidays. Catering slows after the holidays & it's when we cruise. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zitsky Posted June 15, 2021 #24 Share Posted June 15, 2021 I've only done a few cruises.. I find these hit or miss. Once I met LGBT pax. Other times it was empty. Sometimes pax on first day only. Best was Norwegian I think, at Champagne Bar. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SireDoime Posted June 16, 2021 #25 Share Posted June 16, 2021 (edited) 5 hours ago, rbtan said: Celebrity is a mix. They host it at the martini bar. Not a good spot. I tried to attend the gay night while on Equinox and it was just the Director and a couple of people. It didn't seem to comfortable to me. I love Martini Crush, but I wish the gathering was something else - like a little buffet setup in the conference hall that was never used on that cruise. I did meet some friendly young gays at Sushi on 5 one night. That really seemed to be the spot. Edited June 16, 2021 by SireDoime 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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