Tips for cruising after a 20 year break.

[Birdwatch]

My husband and I have taken a half dozen cruises between Celebrity, RC and NCL but it has been almost 20 years. We just booked an Alaskan cruise on Princess and from what the travel agent said, cruising is a whole new deal. We aren't too concerned, but since my husband is interested in getting into cruising again I was wondering what cruise lines we should look at, what locations are desirable nowadays etc.  If it matters, we are in our late 50's. We've cruised to Bermuda and the Caribbean but are open to anything.

Edited June 11 by Birdwatch

[CruiserBruce]

What interests you? There are dozens of wonderful itineraries out there...all over the world. We don't know anything about your interests.  The cruising world is a very big place.

[SoloAlaska]

What does your husband miss about cruising? What makes it special for him? A lot of lines are going away from traditional formal dinners. If your husband likes dressing up and white glove service then you will have to very carefully select a line that still does that.

[clo]

48 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

What interests you? There are dozens of wonderful itineraries out there...all over the world. We don't know anything about your interests.  The cruising world is a very big place.

Also there's the question of whether you're ship oriented or port interested.

[Birdwatch]

Interested in seeing new places using an affordable, easy way to travel.  

[CruiserBruce]

3 hours ago, Birdwatch said:

Interested in seeing new places using an affordable, easy way to travel.  

"Affordable" is very subjective. We don't know your budget.

 

Start looking at cruise line schedules, focusing on what interests you. Panama Canal? Mediterranean?  Baltic? Scandinavia? The limit is your budget. 

[Birdwatch]

 I think my post was too general, but thanks for the tips!  

[mammajamma2013]

I would start by deciding where you want to go. That might limit you to certain lines with smaller ships. If you like a more inclusive service, look at the more upscale lines, which will also include smaller ships. I honestly think these lines go to more interesting ports. Princess is considered mass market, and as much as I love sailing with Princess, I'm looking at other lines because they offer more interesting (to me) itineraries.

.

Since you're using a travel agent, can't s/he answer this question?

[Azure Moon]

Cruising on Princess in Alaska is a good choice.

 

What ship did you book on?  What date?   If you haven't already, check to see if there is a Roll Call for your sailing.  You will get a lot of ideas for ship activities, dining, excursions, etc. reading and talking with others there.

 

My husband, a friend, and I went on a Princess cruise (Crown) the first time we went to Alaska.  That was back in 2014.   In thirty-four days we will be boarding the Sapphire Princess for our second time in Alaska.  This time we  booked a cruise tour so we get to see even more of that beautiful state.

 

We found Princess an easy, laid-back way to cruise Alaska.   We never once dined in the dining rooms, just dined in the buffet, and we were happy.  They had a lot of great food there so we didn't feel we missed anything by skipping the main dining rooms.   That is one of the factors that encouraged us to choose going on Princess again.

 

Another factor is size of the ship.   It was very walkable for us.  The three of us are a little less mobile these days, so hoping the Sapphire will suit that.

 

 

[Capt_BJ]

1) A LOT has changed in 20 years!!!! You can pretty much forget the old dress code. Today on pretty much all cruise lines except CUNARD, formal night is a recommendation / option. Food is NOT what you might remember.

2) In the future you may want to look at a line like VIKING with smaller boats. Not as much walking and more 'included stuff'. And Viking is no kids .....

3) May want to consider River Cruises ..... a totally different experience. Yes a cruise but 130 folks versus thousands .... and new places to go.

[ecs66]

From a Princess cruiser's perspective:

 

Better communications now -- internet, wifi calling.  Starlink made a big difference.

 

More on cabin TVs than CNN and ship's CCTV.

 

Food in MDR not as good (trying to steer you to up-charge venues).

 

Staff, especially Room Stewards and MDR Waiters, are not as attentive as, and are more surly than, they used to be.  Since gratuities are shared, staff has no reason to provide excellent service looking forward to a great tip at the end.  (If you plan to surreptitiously sneak an extra tip to them, they can get in trouble -- or so I've been told.)

 

Fellow cruisers are more rude.  Not all, but the overall vibe is more negative.

 

Over-emphasis on technology, which is more unreliable than reliable.

 

Shows are less frequent than in the past, and are cheesier.  (I recall a big elaborate show every night, but not now.)

 

Many changes.  Some good.  Some not.

 

[mjkacmom]

2 hours ago, ecs66 said:

From a Princess cruiser's perspective:

 

Better communications now -- internet, wifi calling.  Starlink made a big difference.

 

More on cabin TVs than CNN and ship's CCTV.

 

Food in MDR not as good (trying to steer you to up-charge venues).

 

Staff, especially Room Stewards and MDR Waiters, are not as attentive as, and are more surly than, they used to be.  Since gratuities are shared, staff has no reason to provide excellent service looking forward to a great tip at the end.  (If you plan to surreptitiously sneak an extra tip to them, they can get in trouble -- or so I've been told.)

 

Fellow cruisers are more rude.  Not all, but the overall vibe is more negative.

 

Over-emphasis on technology, which is more unreliable than reliable.

 

Shows are less frequent than in the past, and are cheesier.  (I recall a big elaborate show every night, but not now.)

 

Many changes.  Some good.  Some not.

 

I’ve never sailed on princess, but folks tip extra to cruise ship staff all of the time, of course it’s not discouraged.

[ecs66]

1 hour ago, mjkacmom said:

I’ve never sailed on princess, but folks tip extra to cruise ship staff all of the time, of course it’s not discouraged.

It's definitely discouraged on Princess.  Everything is shared.

[ecs66]

1 hour ago, mjkacmom said:

but folks tip extra to cruise ship staff all of the time, of course it’s not discouraged.

This is an interesting thread re gratuities on Princess:

 

[Markanddonna]

I think you will discover these things:

- passengers have isolated themselves more and are often on their electronic devices. The cruise lines apps are partly to blame. 

 

- rules and guidelines are now made to be broken. You have a hard time keeping up with them because they are always in the state of flux. The old rules may now be just suggestions.

 

The MDR experience is often disappointing, not just with the food but also with the idea of socializing. Many passengers want to avoid interacting with other passengers, so you will likely see lots of two-tops.

 

- the dress code is just a suggestion. We have seen some pretty outrageous things in the past year. One cruise had a single male furry (had no companions) who walked around the entire Caribbean cruise in his hot skunk furry costume. The staff made him take off his mask as it was scaring people. People increasingly wear their bathrobes to breakfast (Celebrity...) and swimwear with no cover-up to lunch in the buffet. No one says anything.

 

The positive: more choices

 

[clo]

7 hours ago, Markanddonna said:

- passengers have isolated themselves more and are often on their electronic devices. The cruise lines apps are partly to blame. 

 

We don't travel - cruise or otherwise - to make friends with fellow travelers. We're friendly and enjoy a little chatting but that's about it. We're very outgoing and likable (I think!) but don't travel for anything beyond the superficial. BUT we DO love hanging out with locals when we travel. Not impossible on port days as we head in the opposite direction of the visitors 🙂

[ldubs]

7 hours ago, Markanddonna said:

 

The MDR experience is often disappointing, not just with the food but also with the idea of socializing. Many passengers want to avoid interacting with other passengers, so you will likely see lots of two-tops.

 

 

Back in the good old days, there were a limited number of two tops.  Now they seem to have sprouted everywhere.  But still, is it a problem now days to get a shared table?  At least now you can be relatively sure those you join are also inclined to socialize.  

[Markanddonna]

21 minutes ago, ldubs said:

 

Back in the good old days, there were a limited number of two tops.  Now they seem to have sprouted everywhere.  But still, is it a problem now days to get a shared table?  At least now you can be relatively sure those you join are also inclined to socialize.  

Yes, you can still share but with different people every night. We became weary of giving our summaries each night. With a fixed group, you can talk about your day, tomorrow's port, family, other things.

[ldubs]

Just now, Markanddonna said:

Yes, you can still share but with different people every night. We became weary of giving our summaries each night. With a fixed group, you can talk about your day, tomorrow's port, family, other things.

 

Aw, very good point.  Princess seems to be returning to that option later this year.  

[Markanddonna]

2 minutes ago, Markanddonna said:

Yes, you can still share but with different people every night. We became weary of giving our summaries each night. With a fixed group, you can talk about your day, tomorrow's port, family, other things.

This was on a Celebrity TA.

[MacMadame]

If you make friends on the cruise, you can request to be seated together. (I know people who have done this; no personal experience.)

[K32682]

The MDR is vastly improved from the days when you were expected to eat with an assortment of random strangers one of whom was often an overbearing busybody who believed her life's mission was to generate dinner conversation instead of just letting you quietly eat your dinner. 

 

The loss of pretentious dress codes and formal nights are a definite improvement. Less luggage to carry and no more sharing the dinning room with men crammed into the tux they wore to their high school prom or zaftig ladies spilling out of sparkly dresses that perhaps fit them decades ago.

[Markanddonna]

19 minutes ago, K32682 said:

The MDR is vastly improved from the days when you were expected to eat with an assortment of random strangers one of whom was often an overbearing busybody who believed her life's mission was to generate dinner conversation instead of just letting you quietly eat your dinner. 

 

The loss of pretentious dress codes and formal nights are a definite improvement. Less luggage to carry and no more sharing the dinning room with men crammed into the tux they wore to their high school prom or zaftig ladies spilling out of sparkly dresses that perhaps fit them decades ago.

Whew, pretty negative, but I agree with the more relaxed dress codes. To us, it is more of a luggage issue. I don't recall seeing men or women stuffed into their tuxes or dresses.

 

How awkward is no conversation at a table. It is only problematic when one or two people monopolize the conversation. 

 

Generally, the people we ate with for 7-23 days have met have positively added to our lives. You don't get the same vibe on the cruises for less than seven days. We have only once asked to be moved from our assigned table: one couple was a no-show, two French Canadians who said they spoke no English, and an elderly couple where the woman was angry/crabby and her husband was silent. I wasn't going to tolerate that for 23 days on a TP.

[Ferry_Watcher]

Make sure that you register online with what ever cruise line that you are going to sail on and do the online registration.  Don't expect your travel agent to do it for you. Prior to the cruise, download the cruise line's phone app and familiarize yourself with it.

 

Know the date that your final payment is due and be responsible for paying. 

 

Also make sure what documents you need to bring along, and if your cruise involves an international flight, that your passport has at least 6 month still remaining on the passports

 

Consider travel insurance.

[K32682]

4 hours ago, Markanddonna said:

How awkward is no conversation at a table. It is only problematic when one or two people monopolize the conversation. 

 

A table without conversation is preferable to one where an overbearing matron discusses her medical conditions and past surgeries, a devout Christian asks diners to join hands before they talk to their sky pilot or being named the "Mystery Man" because you won't tell people what you do for a living.