What's the "ideal" length of cruise for you?

[jhannah]

For us it's 10-12 days. We've been on a 14, and that was fine ... but I was ready at the end to go do something else. Sounds strange (even to me) when I love cruising so much. Maybe it was due to the fact that the itinerary was so port intensive. Three sea days in a row is about my max, too. After that, I want to go ashore and explore.

[mamaofami]

We started out with 7 day cruises and thought they were great. We've done a 14 day cruise in ALaska and I was ready to come home. Did a three nighter this summer on the Eurodam and while it was way too short, it was very exciting. So far, 10 days seems to be perfect to us. I love sea days. I'm never bored.

[mek]

10-14 depending on the itinerary. Not retired yet, so it's nearly impossible to get more than that at one time.

[DesertDogs]

We like 10-15 days but I am willing to try something longer.:) Maybe a 30-day South Pacific Cruise would be nice when I retire.

[kryos]

Our next cruise as a couple will be 14 days. I'm hoping we'll find that just about enough time. So, for you, what's the ideal length of cruise?

365 days would be my ideal length. :)

 

But unless I hit the Powerball, that ain't likely to happen. :)

 

Seriously, though, I love long cruises ... about 30-35 days is nice. I am the type of person who prefers to take longer cruises, even though that means I can't cruise as much as I would like. I usually do one 30-dayer every other year, with maybe a 10-15 dayer in the intervening year. That's about all I can afford.

 

I understand that some people can get bored ... especially if the sailing is heavy on sea days ... but I honestly never do. While the prospect of six sea days in a row is intolerable to some people, I find the sea days to be among the best ones of the whole cruise. I seem to fill them up with things I enjoy, and amazingly, I don't even do very many of the onboard activities put on by HAL. I find the sea days relaxing ... sleep in a bit, then wander up to the Lido for breakfast, meet up with friends somewhere on the ship, and sit around talking. Maybe take in a lecture, or some other activity, and then ... wow! It's time for afternoon tea. Then, of course, afternoon nap, and before you know it, dinnertime ... preceded, of course, by "twofer cocks" in the Ocean Bar! The days just fly by. Then after dinner, perhaps a show,

perhaps sitting around some more with friends, and then it's off to my cabin by somewhere around 9:00 or 10:00 where I spend several hours writing.

 

My days are full on those sea days, and often I am left shaking my head and wondering where the day went.

 

On a shorter cruise, I just can't get into that relaxed sort of groove. By the time I do, the cruise is almost half over and I know that embarkation day is not that far away.

 

I guess the reason I like these longer cruises is because I work pretty hard. I maintain a rather demanding full-time job, as well as having several "side" ventures. My days at home are full ... and not with things that could be considering relaxing or necessarily "fun." So when I cruise, I like to fully relax and recharge my batteries, a longer sailing lets me do that quite nicely.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[orangearmy]

For my DW and myself the distance and cost to get to our cruise would be a factor in the length of our cruise. We live in the great white north so if we were leaving from Vancouver, a week would be fine. As for any departure ports we have to fly too; We would probably settle for nothing less than 10 days.

[TCF]

We started with 7 days...went to ten....then thirty-six!

Seven was too short....and thirty-six was way to long for me but DW loved it. I have settled on 10 - 14 days for regular cruises and 21 days for a long treat for DW.

[ldog]

We were on the Prinsendam Amazon trip last Nov/Dec. The cruise was 26 days but we were gone from home for 30. Before that the longest we had cruised was 16 days.

 

There is such a different rhythm to the longer cruise. You aren't in such a panic to fit everything in. There is time to sip tea and enjoy the sea. You actually get to know your fellow travellers.

 

We have booked a 32 day Athens to FLL next Oct/Nov. That will be interesting as it's very port intensive at the beginning in the Med and then there is a six day trans-Atlantic, followed by one day at Half Moon Cay at the end. I like the idea of touring hard at the beginning and relaxing at the end.

[Cruising-along]

 

We have booked a 32 day Athens to FLL next Oct/Nov. That will be interesting as it's very port intensive at the beginning in the Med and then there is a six day trans-Atlantic, followed by one day at Half Moon Cay at the end. I like the idea of touring hard at the beginning and relaxing at the end.

 

I like the way you think. We're hoping in a few years to do a land trip in France, maybe Italy, and then hop on a trans-atlantic back to the states. I like the idea of touring hard in the beginning and relaxing at the end too.

 

Your 32-day sounds heavenly!

[RevNeal]

7-day cruises are too short for me. I'll take them if there aren't any other options (like Alaska cruises)

 

10-day cruises are just barely long enough to give me enjoyment, but not nearly long enough to satisfy my desire to stay aboard.

 

15-day cruises are great ... they give me enough days to really relax and enjoy my days aboard ship and still get in a nice shore excursions. I don't like disembarking, though ... I'm just getting settled into the cruise routine, and it's almost a sin to disrupt it so soon.

 

20-day cruises are fantastic ... and tend to be more "voyages" than cruises. I love cruises of this length, and longer, because not only can I relax and enjoy the ship and take lots of shore excursions, but I can really get into the "zone" where I'm not rushing to do anything yet fully participating in everything I want. And, when I disembark the ship I'm sufficiently satisfied that I can leave without having to battle my desire to stay aboard.

[English_in_Spain]

I have tried cruises of different lengths from 4 days (my first cruise as a sampler), 7 days to 36 days.

 

I find 7 days not enough and more than 14 days too long.

 

Having said that I think it depends on the type of cruise.

 

We have done 21 days in the Caribbean and the Med and found both these too long (Caribbean because the islands were not different enough from each other and the Med because we live in Europe and visited most of the places before).

 

I think I would be prepared to try longer cruises to go around South America but I could never contemplate 100 or so days on a World cruise.

 

For me as soon as any vacation becomes a 'routine' then it is time to go home.

 

Also, for us, where we live now makes a difference. We are close to some of the nicest beaches in Europe and have a wonderful climate most of the year so being at home (we are now retired) can be like being on vacation.

[PenelopeCorelli]

Oh yes - one other problem on the longer trips - my clothes seem to shrink alot more on the longer cruises.;)

 

Good one!

We are going on our FIRST cruise and it's a B2B 24 day Med cruise. It's been a long time coming, we have our oldest and his family taking care of home, it's our 40th anniv, so we are excited. We're also going to Poland before, Milan after. All in all, we'll be gone from June 27 to Aug 2 almost 40 days! I don't know if it's too long, but it's SO port intensive that the 3 sea days will be welcomed...I don't think I'd like too many sea days, my clothes would shrink! (I'm hoping w/ all the walking, that maybe they won't shrink much?? Or is that just wishful thinking?!!)

[Bramcruiser]

I feel like I have to apologize since the longest cruise I have yet taken is 7 days.:o Still, I can see myself going on one longer (say 10 or so) or a B2B in the future. The problem with being a full time worker is that time and money are often hard to depart with especially with other commitments in your life already.

 

I once felt like I could do a world cruise (everyone has their fantasies!:)) but I must admit......after watching four months of a friend's world cruise blog last year I got bored with it. Maybe there is too much of a good thing after all?:eek:

 

David

[jhannah]

(I'm hoping w/ all the walking, that maybe they won't shrink much?? Or is that just wishful thinking?!!)

Wishful thinking! ;)

[CowPrincess]

The problem with being a full time worker is that time and money are often hard to depart with especially with other commitments in your life already.

 

 

We too are "worker bees" and find that all the incidental expenses really add up -- pet care especially (we usually spend AT LEAST the cost of an inside cabin for our pet care). So we have to factor 3 cruise fares for the 2 of us to travel :)

[wander]

My two longest, 64 and 65 days, were great for me and each time I was ready to stay on for more. For my husband, 30 - 35 days is max. and he gets off while I stay on, as pre-planned.

 

Two factors work into my interests - what ports we visit and sea days between to rest-up. i would not enjoy a series of B2B cruises that stayed in the same area. On a recent cruise (35 days) we had interesting ports 14 of 16 days, a bit port intensive for me, but more than 2 sea days in a row is not my favorite either. Guess I am just fussy.

 

Now. IF I could afford a full world cruise with a Suite and free luggage shipping, I could really enjoy staying on a long, long time regardless of the other factors. With the free luggage I could bring things to keep me busy on sea days and they would be great. I could do some of the same things as I do at home, except no cooking, cleaning, shopping for food, etc. Then, on port days I could see and learn about interesting places. (I have NEVER been to a port that I did not find interesting in over 500 days of cruising. Now some were only interesting for half a day, but most I would gladly go back, some by ship and some by land travel.)

[RevNeal]

We have done 21 days in the Caribbean and the Med and found both these too long (Caribbean because the islands were not different enough from each other and the Med because we live in Europe and visited most of the places before).

 

I think I would be prepared to try longer cruises to go around South America but I could never contemplate 100 or so days on a World cruise.

 

For me as soon as any vacation becomes a 'routine' then it is time to go home.

 

I would entirely agree with regard to the Caribbean ... anything more than about 14 days at a time is too much for me in the Caribbean. I've already been to most of those Islands that are on cruise itineraries and there is too much of the "same thing" on them that I find 10 and 14 days in the Caribbean about as much as I can effectively enjoy at any one time.

 

However, when combined with a much longer itinerary a few stops in the Caribbean are fine. For instance, crossing the Caribbean and stopping at an island or two before going through the Canal and then striking out north, south, or west to far-flung ports or sea days are great. Similarly, 21 day 20 or more days cruising around South America, with stops in Antarctica, are diverse enough that there's no time to be bored.

 

Similarly on a crossing ... there are plenty of glorious sea days to relax and enjoy, and then there are ports on either end to spark one's interest. That's what I really love about the 15-day Hawaii cruise that HAL offers: one begins with 5 days at sea, relaxing from the long weeks and months of work, then one knocks oneself out with 5 hectic days touring the Islands, followed by 5 glorious days of relaxing and recovering from touring the Islands. One actually docks back in San Diego feeling rested and ready to return to work.

[tlbuckingham]

We have taken 4, 7, and 10 day cruises. The 4 day was too short but I really enjoyed the 7 days cruises we have had. Although we are usually more worn out from all the activities and lack of sleep :)

 

I do recommend for anyone that takes their first cruise to keep it below 8 days (to test the waters so to speak).

[Guest kookeekrisp]

The ideal length of a cruise for myself is one that never ends!!:D:D

[hammybee]

 

 

365 days would be my ideal length. :) --rita

 

One of my fantasies is 365 days onboard a cruise ship, but not the same ship. The goal would be to maximize the number of different cruise lines, ships, countries, continents and ports without spending a night on shore.

 

In other words, the opposite of relaxation.

[AlohaPride]

I couldn't do anything less than 10 days. I've been lucky that I haven't had to. With the cost of air from Hawaii, 7 days just wouldn't be worth it. Plus by the 7th day, you're just getting into relaxation mode ;)

[agabbymama]

I couldn't do anything less than 10 days. I've been lucky that I haven't had to. With the cost of air from Hawaii, 7 days just wouldn't be worth it. Plus by the 7th day, you're just getting into relaxation mode ;)

 

YOU CRUISE TO RELAX:eek: I go on vacation (cruise/land) to visit exotic and different places, not to relax. Relaxing not allowed!

 

I'm coming to Hawaii (Big Island and Oahu). I already have each day planned down to bedtime. We will have a rental car, and I plan to be on the road by 8:00 each day and probably not back to the house until 10:00 each night. I want to see and do as much in the 9 days I have to make it worthwhile to spend the money to come over there.

 

I can relax at home, not on vacation!

[W8tn2sail]

10 days minimum for us, but only if it's the Caribbean (no flights). We've done 14, 16, and 33 days and, being retired, are looking forward to at least one more HAL cruise of 30+ days

[nitnyleo]

Between,travelling to the port and back (I refuse to fly) and packing, unpacking, repacking and reunpacking, a cruise less than 2 weeks is pretty much worthless to me. (I took a 7 dayer once; never again!).

 

My first cruise was 19 days; toward the end of the cruise I kept inquiring whether there were any cancellations for the reverse sailing; there weren't and they made me get off.:mad: My longest cruise was 29 days (east Med back-to-back with TA; plus, add 6 day crossing on QM2 and a week in Paris). The ship was my least favorite of any that I sailed, but I really hated having to debark.

 

I really, really, really want to do the South America circumnavigation on Prinsendam....60something days...but, I have the feeling that will be too short also.

[COLLEYBERRY]

Our first cruise was a 7 day it felt too short. We just found our 'cruise legs" and it was time to go home.

Second cruise was 10 days ,we were sorry to see it end ,but glad to see kids , puppy boy, home, gardens and catch up with friends. Hubby had a little spearation anixety being away from his busniess After getting home and making sure all was well, I was ready to go again.

Next cruise,14 day Transatlantic We will be in London for four days before we sail.I am thinking this maybe our max.length. to be away.

Actually it's the length of time between cruises that seems be the biggest decision:)