Crowds - any ship options for less crowds?

[zgscl]

If you want to avoid crowds there are pretty much 2 options in cruising. The first is to do a ship with in a ship type cruise (i.e.NCL Haven or MSC yacht club). Your suite is in a seperate area with its own pool, restaurant, lounge, etc and you never have to leave. They escort you on and off the ship during peak times. The only time you have to leave is if you want to go see a show or try a specialty restaurant. The advantage of these is you still get all the entertainment and dining options a big ship offers while spending most of your time away from the crowds. NCL’s newest shops even have private elevators for Haven guests. 
 

The other option is to look at luxury or small ship & expedition lines. This is a very different type of cruising, not nearly the same onboard offerings but a much higher end or uncrowded experience. Lindblad, Uncruise, etc have anywhere from 30 to 200 people onboard. Luxury lines offer a higher guest to space ratio than the main stream lines. 
 

Unfortunately all of the above options are quite expensive and may not fit into your budget. 
 

I would normally suggest mid sized older ships like the Millennium class, but you found those too crowded so I would say you probably need to be looking to higher end cruising if you want to make a cruise work for you. 

[joydivision84]

3 hours ago, KKB said:

Trust me, the stats guys will tell you otherwise.

They are profiting by filling as many rooms as possible & selling them at the highest price possible.

 

So if they can sell guarantees at a higher rate than last minute deals, they will, knowing that on average X% will cancel.

Obviously when dealing in numbers, reality doesn't always match.

So they start calling people & offer to move them to another ship that DOES have open rooms (with some perks that cost the cruise line little to toss your way)--TA DA, NOW you have passengers in those empty rooms. (most profit is made by the $ passengers spend while on the ship, not the original fare)

They know the ages of passengers--those of retirement age are more likely to have the flexibility to do such a change, so that is who they call first.

 

It's not terribly different than what airlines do. 

And it's honestly impressive--they clearly are MUCH better at it, as there are fewer requests for people to take bumps on flights (at least in my experience--but have been flying at least 2 flights/month for 2 years, perhaps every 2 months or so for the 30 years prior), and fewer of those VERY last minute cruising deals we used to come across.

They use that data to fine tune & maximize profit. 

(yes, it occasionally costs a little to offer vouchers, credits, etc; but in the long run, it makes them $ or they won't do it)

Yeah I'm sorry but this is nonsense. The only time you saw this was a few years ago and this reeks of "just trust me bro". You keep mentioning similarities between flying and cruising but in regards to vacations there really isn't much similarity at all. A cruise is the vacation, a flight is just transport from one place to another, and as others said most places have multiple options for that, within hours of one another.

 

It's very different. 

 

That's before you start taking into account things like excursions people have booked, plans for ports, flights back home post cruise, hotels post cruise. 

 

I've never heard of this ever occuring but I'm not calling you a liar, I'm sure there's been one offs, but we'd all be hearing about it daily if this was even semi-common.

 

We book our cruises at least 9 months prior to leaving and if I turned up and someone told me our room was going to someone else I'd spontaneously combust. 

Edited May 25 by joydivision84

[Lena11033]

Mostly last year I heard of overbooking but it happened a few times - mostly Royal but Celebrity as well - I believe it was a cruise from Japan.

[KKB]

9 minutes ago, joydivision84 said:

Yeah I'm sorry but this is nonsense. The only time you saw this was a few years ago and this reeks of "just trust me bro". You keep mentioning similarities between flying and cruising but in regards to vacations there really isn't much similarity at all. A cruise is the vacation, a flight is just transport from one place to another, and as others said most places have multiple options for that, within hours of one another.

 

It's very different. 

 

That's before you start taking into account things like excursions people have booked, plans for ports, flights back home post cruise, hotels post cruise. 

 

I've never heard of this ever occuring but I'm not calling you a liar, I'm sure there's been one offs, but we'd all be hearing about it daily if this was even semi-common.

 

We book our cruises at least 9 months prior to leaving and if I turned up and someone told me our room was going to someone else I'd spontaneously combust. 

OK...a quick Google search gives plenty of support from reliable sources on this one.

The reason you don't hear about them--the analytics work.

[ggo85]

If you’re doing mass market, some options . . .

 

Travel mid-Sep through end of October.  Kids are just back in school and parents usually aren’t eager to take them out of school right after it starts.  Workers often have trouble getting away at that time. That can reduce crowds.  Another good time can be mid-Jan through mid-Feb. 
 

Take a cruise longer than 12 days outside of the summer and Christmas holidays. It’s harder for folks who work or who have kids in school to take long cruises, which can reduce capacity. 
 

Pick an older ship. Not only do lots of folks shun those, but prices are often cheaper. 
 

Book late, when you can better gauge capacity.  
 

Avoid popular destinations, especially when a line has few cruises going there (see below). 
 

It is harder now. We took an X cruise in early Feb and every cabin was filled.  It was an ABC Caribbean cruise.  That’s a very popular destination and relatively few X cruises go there.  I would never do that again, any time of year.

[Escruiser1962]

12 minutes ago, ggo85 said:

If you’re doing mass market, some options . . .

 

Travel mid-Sep through end of October.  Kids are just back in school and parents usually aren’t eager to take them out of school right after it starts.  Workers often have trouble getting away at that time. That can reduce crowds.  Another good time can be mid-Jan through mid-Feb. 
 

Take a cruise longer than 12 days outside of the summer and Christmas holidays. It’s harder for folks who work or who have kids in school to take long cruises, which can reduce capacity. 
 

Pick an older ship. Not only do lots of folks shun those, but prices are often cheaper. 
 

Book late, when you can better gauge capacity.  
 

Avoid popular destinations, especially when a line has few cruises going there (see below). 
 

It is harder now. We took an X cruise in early Feb and every cabin was filled.  It was an ABC Caribbean cruise.  That’s a very popular destination and relatively few X cruises go there.  I would never do that again, any time of year.

We’ve followed these ~ intuitively all makes sense. I will not however book a long cruise. 
It is what it is. Cruising is back in full swing. 

[NMTraveller]

The Millenium did not feel crowded.  E class does.

[ggo85]

9 hours ago, Escruiser1962 said:

We’ve followed these ~ intuitively all makes sense. I will not however book a long cruise. 
It is what it is. Cruising is back in full swing.

 

One other thought - pick a port intensive itinerary and stay on the ship.  We’ve done that and, most days, during the time in port, we’ve had the ship to ourselves.  Of course, if you’re going for the ports, that’s a bit hard.  One option is to stay on the ship in the morning and go ashore later in the day.  Fewer people on the ship in the morning and fewer ashore in the afternoon. 

[20165]

I know this point has been beat to death on this post, but suites/retreat is the way to go these days with these ships sailing at 100% capacity.  We were on the Enchanted princess last month that was at 100% and the suite made all the difference for us in regards to a great cruise.  A place to go that wasnt crowded, easy access to restaurants, easy boarding and disembarkation, etc.  We booked a suite on summit in November and hopefully it will be a similar experience. 

Also as mentioned, NCL Haven is also very nice, but you are getting into way more families with younger kids on those ships which is fine if traveling with your family, but we have been there done that and prefer more of adult cruise.

 

[Escruiser1962]

 

6 minutes ago, 20165 said:

I know this point has been beat to death on this post, but suites/retreat is the way to go these days with these ships sailing at 100% capacity.  We were on the Enchanted princess last month that was at 100% and the suite made all the difference for us in regards to a great cruise.  A place to go that wasnt crowded, easy access to restaurants, easy boarding and disembarkation, etc.  We booked a suite on summit in November and hopefully it will be a similar experience. 

Also as mentioned, NCL Haven is also very nice, but you are getting into way more families with younger kids on those ships which is fine if traveling with your family, but we have been there done that and prefer more of adult cruise.

 

I think you're right. I'm willing to pay alittle more, but I'm not willing to stay on the ship on all port days, eat right when the buffet opens when you're not hungry yet, or choose an itinerary I'm not interested in just because it's less popular, etc...

 

I really appreciate everyone's thoughts. I don't have to cruise. We like all-inclusive land vacations and land vacations on our own. I'll check out suite pricing or choose another type of vacation. It's all good!

Edited May 26 by Escruiser1962

[KKB]

11 hours ago, ggo85 said:

Another good time can be mid-Jan through mid-Feb. 

Actually this is PRIME winter cruising time.

4 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

The Millenium did not feel crowded.  E class does.

Funny, we feel E-class to not feel crowded--well laid out with lots of places for people to be.

 

[Ex-Airbalancer]

Do a transatlantic or probably a transpacific cruise , 

on a transatlantic it never feel crowded 

[mnocket]

22 hours ago, phoenix_dream said:

I keep thinking the vacation situation will start to lull as people start looking at their credit card debt which is the largest in history.  So far I am still waiting.  You will not find what you are looking for, at least on Celebrity.  All ships are jammed these days.  I share your frustration.  This may sound incredibly selfish and self-serving, but as a senior with who knows how many years left to be able to do this, it gets frustrating to see everywhere I vacation so crowded.  It makes my remaining vacation travels much less fun (although for the record I truly make the best of it that I can).  Judge me as you will for saying that. 

 

Anyway..........you might find a little bit fewer crowds by booking suites and hanging out in the suite areas.  The E class Retreat areas are particularly nice, although IMHO I have found the rest of the ships on that class to be even more crowded and noisy than S or M class.  I would also recommend trying to book when kids are in school.  This is not a kids versus no kids comment - what I am meaning is that when families bring kids there are more people per cabin and therefore more crowded overall.  Just a fact.  Same goes for longer cruises (although there are fewer and fewer of those, especially in the Caribbean).  They may also be fairly full but usually filled with older people who are not out and about quite as much as the younger crowd.  The only other option as I see it is luxury lines with more space per passenger ratio, but those are often considerably more expensive.

Part of the reason that vacation spending in general, and cruising in specific, remains strong may be the bifurcation of the economy. Inflation is really hitting the working generations hard.  Inflation typically hits retired folk even harder, but for many retirees (especially those who have the resources to travel) the growth in their retirement accounts more than makes up for it.  Many retirees who have significant funds sitting in retirement accounts are actually feeling pretty good about their financial situation.  

 

So while the younger generations who have favored spending on "experiences" (e.g. travel) over savings and material possessions, may start to cut back, those retirees who have been traveling will likely continue to do so. 

[RichYak]

23 hours ago, leaveitallbehind said:

I'm not arguing analytics.  I'm simply stating that I don't believe the cruise lines are routinely making a general widespread practice of overbooking cruises at the risk of passengers being denied boarding.  IMO if this was the case we would be hearing loud and long media and anti cruise groups reporting of the practice documenting the stories of those passengers denied boarding and stranded at the pier.  It would be front and center news.

I believe overbooking is happening. There's too much potential revenue for it not to be happening. With the move-up program, there is a constant flow of cabins becoming available. Cruise lines can resolve the situation prior to embarkation day if done conservatively yet there haven't been enough cancellations to meet the number of guarantees sold. It's a very manageable risk.

[Lastdance]

32 minutes ago, RichYak said:

I believe overbooking is happening. There's too much potential revenue for it not to be happening. With the move-up program, there is a constant flow of cabins becoming available. Cruise lines can resolve the situation prior to embarkation day if done conservatively yet there haven't been enough cancellations to meet the number of guarantees sold. It's a very manageable risk.

I booked my first GTY cabin.  Location and over-booking were the first two concerns that came to mind with Ascent’s TA.  We had a suite on a Caribbean cruise for November, but I canceled that due to my last Caribbean Cruise and something the OP mentioned-crowds. However, the stock is doing great and yes, retirees are spending their money.  I don’t believe in a perfect vacation, but I certainly have had some that were, IMHO, very close.  Those were vacations that had a variety of experiences, not just cruising or in the Caribbean.  

Edited May 26 by Lastdance

[Escruiser1962]

53 minutes ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

Do a transatlantic or probably a transpacific cruise , 

on a transatlantic it never feel crowded 

A cruise that long feels like a nightmare to me. LOL I totally get it though.

[Escruiser1962]

53 minutes ago, mnocket said:

Part of the reason that vacation spending in general, and cruising in specific, remains strong may be the bifurcation of the economy. Inflation is really hitting the working generations hard.  Inflation typically hits retired folk even harder, but for many retirees (especially those who have the resources to travel) the growth in their retirement accounts more than makes up for it.  Many retirees who have significant funds sitting in retirement accounts are actually feeling pretty good about their financial situation.  

 

So while the younger generations who have favored spending on "experiences" (e.g. travel) over savings and material possessions, may start to cut back, those retirees who have been traveling will likely continue to do so. 

I completely agree. We're early-retired and feeling good about our financial situation. Still nothing like wanting to pay for Presidential suites or anything.Also not wanting long cruises. We miss our pup too much on long vacations. 🙂 Obviously there's issues with allowing regular pets, but it did cross my mind wouldn't it be great if we could bring our dog on a cruise. We'd cruise for longer. haha

Edited May 26 by Escruiser1962

[Escruiser1962]

29 minutes ago, Lastdance said:

I booked my first GTY cabin.  Location and over-booking were the first two concerns that came to mind with Ascent’s TA.  We had a suite on a Caribbean cruise for November, but I canceled that due to my last Caribbean Cruise and something the OP mentioned-crowds. However, the stock is doing great and yes, retirees are spending their money.  I don’t believe in a perfect vacation, but I certainly have had some that were, IMHO, very close.  Those were vacations that had a variety of experiences, not just cruising or in the Caribbean.  

Well said! With cruising back in full swing, they don't need my booking. Good for themsemi-bad for me. haha

[phoenix_dream]

23 hours ago, leaveitallbehind said:

I agree that situations can and do occur that can result in this.  My point all along is only that I do not believe it is a common widespread cruise line practice to intentionally and routinely overbook cruises, which is all I've ever said.

Your first sentence asked for specific and documented incidences if i remember the wording correctly.  That implies disbelief.  But if you mean it is not a common widespread practice then we do agree on that.

[leaveitallbehind]

38 minutes ago, phoenix_dream said:

Your first sentence asked for specific and documented incidences if i remember the wording correctly.  That implies disbelief.  But if you mean it is not a common widespread practice then we do agree on that.

It's not disbelief as I had indicated that I do believe instances occur. All I was looking for was confirmation of actual instances rather than anecdotal references to support the discussion. And that was specific to the original comment of people being denied boarding due to overbooking as mentioned in the second comment of this thread. 

 

If you read my responses I have only said that I do not believe it is a common, widespread, intentional cruise industry practice of routinely overbooking cruises.  But thank you for asking.  I hope I have clarified my comments further.

Edited May 26 by leaveitallbehind

[leaveitallbehind]

Deleted.

Edited May 26 by leaveitallbehind

[asctony]

[hcat]

overbooking shoud not happen..

 

late  cancellations can be filled in with move ups..make someone happy!

 

and maybe deep clean some empty rooms.. they are not  as clean as they used to be!

[SkiPro62]

To avoid crowds pick an itinerary that minimizes rainy sea days and maximizes sunny port days.

[C-Dragons]

5 minutes ago, SkiPro62 said:

To avoid crowds pick an itinerary that minimizes rainy sea days and maximizes sunny port days.

IMO, to do that one would need the gift of foresight or prophecy. Especially if you’re booking a year or two in advance.

Edited May 26 by C-Dragons