Advise Please.

[Aussie84]

Hi,

 

My partner and I are from Australia and in our early 20s. We are looking at doing an International Cruise. But we are having trouble picking a cruise line and destination. Can anyone suggest any cruiselines that would be suited to us. Ive been thinking Carnival or RC. We are into the whole party atmosphere on the cruise ships (we have cruised three times from Australia to the south pacific and it was amazing) but im unsure with the international cruise lines. We are also thinking Hawaii or euorpe or maybe alaska. Can anyone give any advise of this and some suggestions as to what would be a 'fun' cruiseline and a good destination.

 

Thanks :D

[adamken]

hi there, My partner and I have been on about 5 cruises so far and love Royal Caribbean, we have met other "family" onboard on all of them, Carnival, you will find more families, not the type of family you are looking for, the night clubs on the voyager ships are great... check any of them out or the Freedom of the seas, we are sailing on her on Sept 3 2006

[Darrell6t]

Have you decided you don't want to do RSVP or Atlantis? They make whatever cruise line they are on a PARTY cruise!

[adamken]

we've done RSVP and yes had a great time, but they are so costly, to us and many of our friends not worth the extra cost. We are getting together a gay group cruise for next April on the Mariner, Balcony cabin is $1191.00 for the same cabin on Royal Caribbean on a gay cruise is over $1900, to us not worth it.

[CruisinMaterial]

Hey There,

 

If you want to party like crazy but do not care about sanitation, unruly passengers and the like then I suggest you try Carnival Cruise Line. They are pretty rowdy bunch but you will be hard pressed to find any GLB on each cruise. It's shunned by a lot of the gay community (now you guys who sail on Carnival, notice i didn't say all).

 

RCCL is a little better (IMHO) then Carnival but does not hold up to Princess. Since you are from Austrailia I'm sure you must be familiar with P&O Cruises Austrailia. Their US equivalent is Princess Cruises. The grand class of ships on Princess, especially the Caribbean Princess attracts a younger clientele then their smaller older ships which do longer itineraries.

 

If you are booking for itineraries, Princess offers more exotic cruises than any other line and goes to more places. However, the more exotic of an itinerary you are looking for, the chances are, the smaller the ship will be. Princess does have a DJ onboard every vessel though. The larger grand class ships have dedicated discos. The smaller ones have a lounge with live entertainment that converts to a disco later in the evening.

 

As a loyal Princess cruiser (for non-gay cruises), I'm satisfied with their product. The one time I veered away to Carnival, I was apalled at the clientele on that ship, the lack of cleanliness, the unsightly ship itself, the mediocre food and the crappy entertainment (outside the disco). The disco itself was full of hip hop music, not much dance/house/techno to be found. Seems like the straight guys can't have sex dance on the dance floor if that is playing... what a shame! (I could have missed it and really didn't want to see half of what was going on there.)

 

Enough ranting about Carnival. (I was 23 when I was on that sailing and this was supposed to be a fun cruise for someone my age and I thought it STUNK!)

 

Hope all this helps!

~Jake

[Aussie84]

thanks heaps for your help. I didnt carnival was the way to go. After reading the reviews on other sites made me start to wonder. I have looked into princess cruises but the boats themselves dont seem to appeal to me. Maybe I should look again :D. An Atlantis/RSVP cruise would be great but yeh they are really quite expensive. Expencially once you convert it to AUS Dollers. Anyone have any thoughts on NCL? I have read some bad things also on this cruise line. Expecially Pride of America etc. But i guess every cruise line has that. :eek:

[robtx100]

My partner and I have done a few cruise lines and we like Carnival best. We always meet other "family" as well as straight couples and have a great time. On Norwegian, unfortunately, the ship was mostly old people because of the time of year. RCCL was fun, also. Princess was a little "stuffy" for us. We have a small group planned on the Conquest for next February. We thought there was alot of PWT on Carnival and thought we'd try other lines. Believe me, they are on every line, not just Carnival.

[Aussie84]

PWT on Carnival? What u mean by that.:confused: :D .

[iluvcruzn]

My Partner and I absolutely love NCL. I am 22 and he is 25. We usually stay in one of the suites, so I guess the experience is a little different. We really like the freestyle concept, not being told what to wear, when to eat, or who to sit with. We are both kind of conservative so we don't really get into the party scenes on the ship, but there is always a disco or something happening in Spinnakers.

[Aussie84]

NCL does sound really appealing. The freestyle dinning is the main drawn card in my eyes. Also the ships are pretty different. Where have you cruised to on NCL? Recommend any destinations?:D

[pnhmrk]

What about www.easycruise.com? They are a very "Basic" cruise line but they are cheap! I've just had a quick look at what they have available - I was getting as price of USD49.00 per person per night quite easily! I can't comment on how gay friendly they are but from the show they've had on TV they look very much a "Party Cruise"!

[adamken]

I'm guessing that PWT meant, Poor White Trash

[treyct]

Hey There,

 

If you want to party like crazy but do not care about sanitation, unruly passengers and the like then I suggest you try Carnival Cruise Line. They are pretty rowdy bunch but you will be hard pressed to find any GLB on each cruise. It's shunned by a lot of the gay community (now you guys who sail on Carnival, notice i didn't say all).

 

RCCL is a little better (IMHO) then Carnival but does not hold up to Princess. Since you are from Austrailia I'm sure you must be familiar with P&O Cruises Austrailia. Their US equivalent is Princess Cruises. The grand class of ships on Princess, especially the Caribbean Princess attracts a younger clientele then their smaller older ships which do longer itineraries.

 

If you are booking for itineraries, Princess offers more exotic cruises than any other line and goes to more places. However, the more exotic of an itinerary you are looking for, the chances are, the smaller the ship will be. Princess does have a DJ onboard every vessel though. The larger grand class ships have dedicated discos. The smaller ones have a lounge with live entertainment that converts to a disco later in the evening.

 

As a loyal Princess cruiser (for non-gay cruises), I'm satisfied with their product. The one time I veered away to Carnival, I was apalled at the clientele on that ship, the lack of cleanliness, the unsightly ship itself, the mediocre food and the crappy entertainment (outside the disco). The disco itself was full of hip hop music, not much dance/house/techno to be found. Seems like the straight guys can't have sex dance on the dance floor if that is playing... what a shame! (I could have missed it and really didn't want to see half of what was going on there.)

 

Enough ranting about Carnival. (I was 23 when I was on that sailing and this was supposed to be a fun cruise for someone my age and I thought it STUNK!)

 

Hope all this helps!

~Jake

 

 

I completely disagree with this post. Having been on Carnival more than once...I can say I find it extremely sanitary and have had a blast each cruise. I've yet to be on a cruise with them where I haven't met other gay men and women. As far as what some call "PWT" or "poor white trash" well as in life on every cruise your going to meet some people who you feel are maybe not up to your standards. So What. Alot of times we judge others only because we ourselves have low self-esteme....whatever the case while on vacation I try to meet everyone, doesn't matter if their black, white, fat, skinny, bald or hairy.....sometimes making new friends and networking can bring more joy into your life ;)

 

As it stands with carnvil you get the most for your money. Does that mean its "cheap" in the sense that the cruise sucks. No. You get more variety on there ships than any other. Judge for yourself

[adamken]

I agree, As a travel agent myself, Carnival cruise lines has stepped it up in just about every category over the last few years, The service, the food quality and the price has never been an issue as they have the best value out there, you will find all types on every cruise line, low, middle and higher income everywhere. Royal Caribbean happens to be my choice of cruise lines, I love the Voyager class ships, Been on Holland America also, thought they were suppose to be a notch above RCL, I didn't agree, but every cruise is different and everyone has an opinion and everyone is entitled to their opinion. That's why there are so many cruise lines out there, to give you a choice, they are all trying to get your business, what one person likes another one dislikes...

[gmhohio]

Have you all thought about a GLBT group cruise? The groups usual have anywhere from a couple dozen to hundreds of people traveling on a cruise ship. The ship is definitely mixed between GLBT folks and non GLBT, but everybody has fun. Usually there are special events on the cruise for the group which are included in your group's fare. The best part about going on a group cruise is that many times the cruise rates are about half of what RSVP, Atlantis and Olivia are charging.

 

Best of luck in your decision making process.

[Treven]

I'm not sure how you feel that Atlantis' cruises are that much more than most other cruises. The upcoming Mexican Riviera on RCI's Serenade of the Seas is costing $1145 and that includes prepaid tips as well as port charges. Granted this price is for a lower deck, inside cabin.

[gmhohio]

Interesting Treven. It's kind of hard to make an apples to apples comparison based on the ports of call. Aquafest is doing a 7 day Caribbean Halloween Cruise on board the Zuiderdam. Many of the special events they are having are similar to a charter cruise. The price, for an inside lower level cabin is $597.00, If you were to add in taxes, port fees and suggested tip the cost would be 891.00 for a lower level inside per person.

 

I know it's only a difference of a couple hundred dollars and it's not an all GLBT cruise, but it pays for a good portion of my flight from the midwest.

[iluvcruzn]

NCL does sound really appealing. The freestyle dinning is the main drawn card in my eyes. Also the ships are pretty different. Where have you cruised to on NCL? Recommend any destinations?:D

 

We have done the Western Caribbean and the Alaskan cruises. We're currently planning an Eastern Caribbean for this January. If you are interested in more of a "party" cruise, I'd suggest doing the Caribbean. Alaska draws a much older crowd.

[CruisinMaterial]

I completely disagree with this post. Having been on Carnival more than once...I can say I find it extremely sanitary and have had a blast each cruise. I've yet to be on a cruise with them where I haven't met other gay men and women. As far as what some call "PWT" or "poor white trash" well as in life on every cruise your going to meet some people who you feel are maybe not up to your standards. So What. Alot of times we judge others only because we ourselves have low self-esteme....whatever the case while on vacation I try to meet everyone, doesn't matter if their black, white, fat, skinny, bald or hairy.....sometimes making new friends and networking can bring more joy into your life ;)

 

As it stands with carnvil you get the most for your money. Does that mean its "cheap" in the sense that the cruise sucks. No. You get more variety on there ships than any other. Judge for yourself

 

In response to your posting, since I only did sail Carnival once I chalked it up to a very unpleasurable experience and one that I paid a price to experience (literally). The cruise I sailed on was riddled with problems in places that nearly every other cruise line has logistically figured out from processing of bingo tickets to boarding and disembarkation Carnival was just a nightmare for me. I'm glad you've had good experiences with them.

 

Since I made no mention of what races were onboard, I will assume your PWT or Poor White Trash comments were not directed at me. No one said I didn't meet people onboard, actually, I met quite a few people onboard and saw them regularly during the cruise at dinner and in various places. That didn't help detract from all the negative actions carried out by other passengers that were going on, too much to list here.

 

You like Carnival, I like Princess... we'll have to agree to disagree on this one. Just offering my advice to those who asked for it.

 

~Jake

[CruisinMaterial]

NCL does sound really appealing. The freestyle dinning is the main drawn card in my eyes. Also the ships are pretty different. Where have you cruised to on NCL? Recommend any destinations?:D

 

Hi Aussie,

 

Freestyle Dining is equivalent to Princess' Personal Choice Dining. I have sailed on them once and I was pretty impressed with their ship. I was on the NCL Dawn out of Miami just weeks after it sailed its maiden voyage. The ship itself was delightfully bright and vibrant but didn't have a lot of the glare and neon lights like Carnival does. The ships, especially the ones like the Dawn have tons of dining options available, including private restaurants.

 

The crew onboard the NCL Dawn was very nice and very gay friendly. I must admit this was a gay charter I had taken. Service in all areas of the ship from the Guest Relations Desk to the dining room waitstaff was excellent.

 

If you're looking for flexibility in your dining options then NCL would be the best way to go.

 

Now a note about the NCL AMERICA fleet. Any Hawaii cruise that stays in Hawaii will be a US flagged ship, which means the crew will be all American. Since Americans aren't accustomed to working on large cruise ships and working 7 days a week, there have been customer service issues but they vary from cruise to cruise and from where you stay onboard and who you've had for what. NCLA has pretty much worked out the kinks but there are still some there.

 

Hope this helps.

~Jake

[treyct]

In response to your posting, since I only did sail Carnival once I chalked it up to a very unpleasurable experience and one that I paid a price to experience (literally). The cruise I sailed on was riddled with problems in places that nearly every other cruise line has logistically figured out from processing of bingo tickets to boarding and disembarkation Carnival was just a nightmare for me. I'm glad you've had good experiences with them.

 

Since I made no mention of what races were onboard, I will assume your PWT or Poor White Trash comments were not directed at me. No one said I didn't meet people onboard, actually, I met quite a few people onboard and saw them regularly during the cruise at dinner and in various places. That didn't help detract from all the negative actions carried out by other passengers that were going on, too much to list here.

 

You like Carnival, I like Princess... we'll have to agree to disagree on this one. Just offering my advice to those who asked for it.

 

~Jake

 

nope Jake, the "ptw" was meant for the poster that posted it :) Sorry you had such a bad Carnival Cruise, just didn't want you to judge the whole line on that one cruise, after all they do own Princess ;) ...I've nothing against the Princess side of things, Carnival just has been working for me and since they have nice loyalty perks I've stuck with them.

[CruisinMaterial]

nope Jake, the "ptw" was meant for the poster that posted it :) Sorry you had such a bad Carnival Cruise, just didn't want you to judge the whole line on that one cruise, after all they do own Princess ;) ...I've nothing against the Princess side of things, Carnival just has been working for me and since they have nice loyalty perks I've stuck with them.

 

Good morning... speaking of Carnival's loyalty program, it made a question pop into my mind. Mom still gets Carnival's... I think it's "Currents" magazine. What are their past passenger perks or if you have a link to it, that'd be helpful.

 

Like you, I stay with Princess since they give out tons of past passenger perks when you reach the plantinum level. It's things I can use like the free internet. That helps get through sea days since I don't like sun tanning up on deck.

 

The one thing that Carnival does have that I admit Princess doesn't is shorter itineraries. If Princess offered weekend cruises or a three and four day route on a smaller, older ship (which Princess doesn't have at the moment), I'd be ecstatic! I love the concept of a mini-escape on a cruise ship. It's a genius idea but I love the Princess product so much I guess I'll make do with what they've got!

 

Have a great day!

~Jake

[bilgeboyPa]

We have done the Western Caribbean and the Alaskan cruises. We're currently planning an Eastern Caribbean for this January. If you are interested in more of a "party" cruise, I'd suggest doing the Caribbean. Alaska draws a much older crowd.

Hey Cruisin,

Me, my partner and 2 of my friends are doing the Eastern on the Millie this Jan 28th to Feb 4th. Still good prices and we all like to do the club everynight. Give it a thought. We are gonna have a blast!!

 

Jeff

[iluvcruzn]

Hey Cruisin,

Me, my partner and 2 of my friends are doing the Eastern on the Millie this Jan 28th to Feb 4th. Still good prices and we all like to do the club everynight. Give it a thought. We are gonna have a blast!!

 

Jeff

 

Hi Jeff! Unfortunately, we're both still really limited as to when we can travel. I'm still in college, so I can only go during certain times of the year. Have fun though on your cruise :)

[treyct]

Good morning... speaking of Carnival's loyalty program, it made a question pop into my mind. Mom still gets Carnival's... I think it's "Currents" magazine. What are their past passenger perks or if you have a link to it, that'd be helpful.

 

Like you, I stay with Princess since they give out tons of past passenger perks when you reach the plantinum level. It's things I can use like the free internet. That helps get through sea days since I don't like sun tanning up on deck.

 

The one thing that Carnival does have that I admit Princess doesn't is shorter itineraries. If Princess offered weekend cruises or a three and four day route on a smaller, older ship (which Princess doesn't have at the moment), I'd be ecstatic! I love the concept of a mini-escape on a cruise ship. It's a genius idea but I love the Princess product so much I guess I'll make do with what they've got!

 

Have a great day!

~Jake

 

Platinum gets you free full laundry service, VIP boarding=no lines those are the ones I like the best