Favorite Cruises In May

[MochiiOwl]

What are people's favorite destinations for cruising in May?

 

My husband and I both celebrate birthdays in May, and I thought it'd be a fun way to celebrate our upcoming birthdays on a cruise.  I'd like some suggestions for people's favorite cruises for that time of year.

 

Is May too early for Alaskan cruises?  Is the weather still too cold or waters too turbulent?  

[CruiserBruce]

No, many cruise lines start their Alaska season in early May. Or their season in Europe.

 

If not starting their seasons in  Alaska or Europe, the cruise lines are frequently moving their ships to those locations from wherever they spent their Northern Hemisphere winters. So repositioning ("repo" for short) cruises from Asia or the Australia area to Alaska. From the Florida ports to Alaska (most importantly through the Panama Canal) or to Europe. These can be very popular cruises.

[Mary229]

It is also the early season for eastern Canada. I like Europe in the spring, it is before the tourist season and the flowers are in bloom. 

[Ashland]

Mid to late May is our favorite time to do a northbound Alaska cruise out of Vancouver.

[MochiiOwl]

3 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

No, many cruise lines start their Alaska season in early May. Or their season in Europe.

 

If not starting their seasons in  Alaska or Europe, the cruise lines are frequently moving their ships to those locations from wherever they spent their Northern Hemisphere winters. So repositioning ("repo" for short) cruises from Asia or the Australia area to Alaska. From the Florida ports to Alaska (most importantly through the Panama Canal) or to Europe. These can be very popular cruises.

Okay thank you.  I saw that there were some deals for Alaskan cruises in the month of May compared to June or July.  And was worried that part of the reason it was priced so cheaply was because it was too early in the season for favorable weather.

[CruiserBruce]

22 minutes ago, MochiiOwl said:

Okay thank you.  I saw that there were some deals for Alaskan cruises in the month of May compared to June or July.  And was worried that part of the reason it was priced so cheaply was because it was too early in the season for favorable weather.

May is a bit of a secret, so prices are lower. But kids aren't out of school, so families aren't going to cruise just yet. If you look over on the Alaska board, you will see many who swear by May being about the best time to go.

[MochiiOwl]

4 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

May is a bit of a secret, so prices are lower. But kids aren't out of school, so families aren't going to cruise just yet. If you look over on the Alaska board, you will see many who swear by May being about the best time to go.

Well, that's just perfect for us!  🤩

[jsn55]

River cruise in Europe, there's nothing better to celebrate birthdays.  Our last was Avalon's Rhine & Mosel ... spectacular!

[navybankerteacher]

If you are interested in real travel, you might consider a trans-Atlantic repositioning (usually reasonable fares in May) to the Med, then fly home after spending some time in, say, Spain or Italy.

[cruisemom42]

My favorite May cruises so far have been:

 

Early May -- Mediterranean

Late May -- Baltics, second place to Alaska

 

[pris993]

We cruised in spring and fall a lot, avoiding the summer season.  Would say, some of our favorites were Transatlantic, Baltic and Mediterranean both western and eastern.  

[puppycanducruise]

May is a great time to travel, the daylight hours are getting longer and the temperature is lovely.

Next year we are heading to Europe to do a British Isles cruise.   We've also enjoyed sailing in the Med in May. 

Lots of choices.

[XBGuy]

We have taken two AK cruises that actually departed the last week of April.  I am going to vote with the others that endorsed May AK cruises.

 

As has already been noted, because of school schedules, there are far fewer families traveling.  If you are on an early May cruise  you might see fewer cruise ships in some of the ports,  We have had several port stops in which we were the only ship docked that day.  We have also been the first cruise ship of the year a couple times.

 

On what some might describe as the "minus side:"

 

• You might beat some migrating whales up to Alaska.  That being said. we have never taken an Alaska cruise (We're up to six.) in which we did not see whales from our balcony.  Clearly, though, the later in the spring that you go, the more whales you are likely to see;
• Some businesses in the ports may not be open in the very first weeks of May--most notably in Skagway which is very economically dependent on the cruise industry..  So, a few shops or restaurants may not be open, yet.  This is not a problem in larger towns such as Juneau or Ketchikan which both have large year-round populations.
• The weather might be cooler, but we have never experienced freezing cold.  Yes, take a warm jacket, and, yes, take a hat.  Also, plan on seeing some rain.  Rain happens in Alaska no matter what month.  I cannot say that we have seen more or less in the spring.  If, you have a small umbrella that you can pack, that might be handy for walking around the ports, but, again, that is my recommendation for any AK cruise.  I can report that the biggest storm we ever experienced on an Alaska cruise--heck, on any cruise--was in the Gulf of Alaska in August.

 

Bon Voyage.  I am envious.

 

[lenquixote66]

23 hours ago, MochiiOwl said:

What are people's favorite destinations for cruising in May?

 

My husband and I both celebrate birthdays in May, and I thought it'd be a fun way to celebrate our upcoming birthdays on a cruise.  I'd like some suggestions for people's favorite cruises for that time of year.

 

Is May too early for Alaskan cruises?  Is the weather still too cold or waters too turbulent?  

Our second favorite cruise was in May 2008 to Alaska.We brought clothes for cold weather and the temperatures were at an all time high.

[Joebucks]

April - May is one of my favorite times of the year to do any cruise. Weather is generally pleasant in a lot of areas. Prices are reasonable. Kids are still in school. Towards the end of May, a lot of that goes away.

[MochiiOwl]

5 hours ago, XBGuy said:

We have taken two AK cruises that actually departed the last week of April.  I am going to vote with the others that endorsed May AK cruises.

 

As has already been noted, because of school schedules, there are far fewer families traveling.  If you are on an early May cruise  you might see fewer cruise ships in some of the ports,  We have had several port stops in which we were the only ship docked that day.  We have also been the first cruise ship of the year a couple times.

 

On what some might describe as the "minus side:"

 

• You might beat some migrating whales up to Alaska.  That being said. we have never taken an Alaska cruise (We're up to six.) in which we did not see whales from our balcony.  Clearly, though, the later in the spring that you go, the more whales you are likely to see;
• Some businesses in the ports may not be open in the very first weeks of May--most notably in Skagway which is very economically dependent on the cruise industry..  So, a few shops or restaurants may not be open, yet.  This is not a problem in larger towns such as Juneau or Ketchikan which both have large year-round populations.
• The weather might be cooler, but we have never experienced freezing cold.  Yes, take a warm jacket, and, yes, take a hat.  Also, plan on seeing some rain.  Rain happens in Alaska no matter what month.  I cannot say that we have seen more or less in the spring.  If, you have a small umbrella that you can pack, that might be handy for walking around the ports, but, again, that is my recommendation for any AK cruise.  I can report that the biggest storm we ever experienced on an Alaska cruise--heck, on any cruise--was in the Gulf of Alaska in August.

 

Bon Voyage.  I am envious.

 

Thank you so much!  I really appreciate the in-depth review.  We would be going the last week in May, so it sounds like we're gonna be in a sweet spot in terms of lower crowds while also not missing whales and experiences.

[MochiiOwl]

Wondering about Native Alaskan food experiences.  So, I've seen quite a few TikToks (I know, I know...), regarding traditional Native Alaskan foods of dried fishes and seal oil/seal blubber.  Are there any ports in which this delicacy is available or sold?  It looks fascinating.

[marco]

May is my favorite month to cruise to Bermuda.  Living where we do, it's less than a hr ride to the NY crruise port and not too much longer to Bayone, depending which line we go determines where we wail out of.  I think we've gone to Bermuda in May 6 or 7 times, now.

[Hlitner]

May is still the wonderful "shoulder season" in Europe.  The weather is usually good (not too hot), the tourists have not overrun the continent, and there are still deals to be had!  There are also TA repositioning cruises from the USA to Europe that are a wonderful way to "cross the pond" and avoid the airline hassles.  

 

Hank

[shipgeeks]

I agree with the above; we have done April/May transatlantic cruises several times, and they were excellent.  The only downside we experienced was each May 1 weekend, when thousands of Europeans do a long holiday weekend, and crowd many popular destinations to uncomfortable levels.

However, it sounds to me like you are tending towards Alaska, and I think that might be your perfect choice.

[Diane67B]

3 hours ago, marco said:

May is my favorite month to cruise to Bermuda.  Living where we do, it's less than a hr ride to the NY crruise port and not too much longer to Bayone, depending which line we go determines where we wail out of.  I think we've gone to Bermuda in May 6 or 7 times, now.

I was hoping someone would mention Bermuda!  May is a great time for me to travel and I’ve always wanted to go to Bermuda. What is the temperature that time of year?

[navybankerteacher]

42 minutes ago, Diane67B said:

I was hoping someone would mention Bermuda!  May is a great time for me to travel and I’ve always wanted to go to Bermuda. What is the temperature that time of year?

May is ideal in Bermuda - temps in high 70’s- 80, water becoming warm enough to swim, still few crowds.   Try to find a small ship (such as Oceania’s) which can call at St. George at the East end and alongside Front Street in Hamilton.  All the big ones have to go to that remote tourist trap at Dockyard —- needing a long bus or ferry ride to get anywhere.

[Diane67B]

Thank you! Great information!

[XBGuy]

On 9/30/2022 at 4:38 PM, MochiiOwl said:

Thank you so much!  I really appreciate the in-depth review.  We would be going the last week in May, so it sounds like we're gonna be in a sweet spot in terms of lower crowds while also not missing whales and experiences.

 

Last week of May is going to be great.

 

I just went back and read your opening post.  I might have to disqualify myself from making any recommendation.  I have realized that the only place to which we have cruised in any month of May has been to Alaska.  So, I really have nothing else to which I can compare.  My apologies.