5 Cruises To Stay Far, Far Away From. And Why!
I told my friends not to book the cruise as it was one that I keep warning cruisers to stay well clear of as they almost always disappoint. But they insisted and sadly, three days before they were due to depart, what I feared would happen did. It was cancelled.
I’m Gary Bembridge and I’m here to warn you about this and 5 cruises I suggest you NEVER book, along with tips of what to do instead - or how to reduce your risk if you really do want to do them.
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ABOUT TIPS FOR TRAVELLERS: If you want to get cruising right, Tips For Travellers makes it easy to plan and have the incredible cruise experiences you dream of every time. All my Tips For Travellers advice, tips and tricks tips draw on everything that I have learnt on the 101 cruises I have done to date.
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00:00 Start
01:08 Maiden
03:46 Dry Dock
05:48 Peak
07:50 Taster
09:23 Themed
A motorcycle themed cruise-ship is funny to me. Like... let's go to the one place we cant do the thing we like to do. 😅
They get to show off their motorcycle themed accessories, I guess. 🙃
As someone that rides, I 💯 agree. Only exception is maybe, and only maybe a 1 way cruise to a certain port that have the bikes ready for a tour etc. party few days then ride from a to b
its similar to cat themed cruises though
25 years of working on all classes of ships- this video is spot on
When browsing potential cruises on their web sites, the lines should make it clear there is a big block booking or a theme on that cruise. It may deter some from booking, but surely paying passengers should know of possible adverse cruising conditions.
Yes, agree!
Indeed they should, but they know it would deter more than just "some" and that ships might sail half empty, or require enticing price cuts to fill them up.
Personally, I'd love to be part of a Star Trek cruise, or general science fiction theme. I remember a convention we had a long while back that turned into a nightmare, because the other convention being held at that hotel that weekend was a political leadership convention for one of the parties in my province. The delegates were ungodly rude, making snide remarks about those of us in costume (I was dressed in a floor-length gown meant to represent a lady of the court of Majipoor, in Robert Silverberg's novel Lord Valentine's Castle). Some of them crashed our panels, that we PAID to attend, and they thought they could just walk in for free. Add to that the noise (our room was next to one of the candidates' hospitality suite), the smoke (indoor smoking wasn't prohibited then, and I'm terribly allergic to smoke of all kinds), and so on. To top it off, they tried to get us kicked out by phoning the police and claiming that drug use was going on in our consuite. When the police came to investigate, all they found was two people drinking coffee and having a quiet conversation. It was sweet karma on Saturday night when the political delegates got kicked out - partly for their efforts to make our convention a living hell, but also because they were carrying open alcohol containers in the hallways (that's against the rules here; if you want to drink in a hotel you have to do it either in the restaurant, the bar, or your room). All of which is a long-winded way to point out that it's often not the science fiction fans who are the problem.
@@Shan_Dalamani I’d like to go on a sci-fi cruise also
We're going on our first Star Trek Cruise in 2025. I'm really excited about it @@Shan_Dalamani
For some reason the major cruise lines think that a cruise is akin to a dinner reservation. For most people it is not. It is an expensive treat that is planned sometimes years in advance. Canceled cruises after passengers book and pay are, except for true emergencies, inexcusable.
You can’t cruise on a ship that isn’t ready.
For some reason you seem to think cruise lines want to cancel a cruise like they won't lose money when they do
The cruise liners don't care if cruises are cancelled. They just let the insurance policies that customers paid for pick up the tab with only a certain level of reimbursements. Cruises are the biggest scam rackets out there.
As we have cruised more and more over the last 15 years. We prefer smaller, older and longer voyages. Days at sea and less ports are more inviting to us. We did a Hawaiian Holiday cruise years ago, that was almost a nightmare. Families with lots of children running loose was not fun. Had a crew member whisper to me "If you trip them, we won't say anything".
We did a Hawaiian. Very few children. I think the fact we were onboard over Halloween might've helped with that!
"If you trip them, we won't say anything." I'm literally on the floor.🤣🤣🤣
@@NeilTruick This was during the Christmas / New Year's weeks. Children from 5 to 16 running around and getting into all sorts of mischief. There was a lot of affluent South American families that normally had Nannies (we were told). New Year's Eve was the worst. Beside decorations being destroyed, the Make Room or Sleeping in cards on almost every room had been switched around. We stopped one rather big woman from taking things into her own hands (literally) after accusing at 12 yr old from stealing her expensive wine. And yes, a crew member did tell us that, "Trip them, and we won't say anything".
@@NeilTruick Same here!
@@NeilTruickthats what happens when you trip :)
I only travel off season because I do not like crowds! I will remember these tips if I eventually go on a cruise! Thank you for the video.
Needless to say - the principle of offer and demand regulates the price. During the last week in August, prices in Europe do drop very fast and substantially.
Great tips Gary! I love shoulder season cruises 👍 Most always good weather and way less crowds!
yes 100% agree !
My wife and I are booked on a Royal Carribean Voyager of the Seas cruise in the Mediterranean in next years late May shoulder. Our first cruise was our Honeymoon and this time we'll be on board for our 15th Anniversary! Good to know we're in for a less crazy time of year, looking forward to it.
I was surprised to see that only 3 out of 10 cruises on a new ship weren’t cancelled or rescheduled. Not a vey good record. And to add the higher cost, makes those definitely ones to avoid. Good tips Gary!
Yes they are not doing well on hitting timings, and have not been since shutdown....
Then there was the good ship Titanic - granted not really a cruise ship but the trip was cancelled mid-maiden voyage.
The tip about searching for group cruises is great!
Even worse than the maiden voyage of a ship is the maiden voyage of a new cruise line. In addition to all the "growing pains" of a new ship, you'll find the company executives closing off large areas of the ship to throw themselves private parties, etc. At least on a new ship, a good portion of the crew has come from other ships in that line. On a new line, NO ONE knows what they are doing! Great video, as usual.
Good information as always. My wife and I love the weekend cruises. We live close enough to easily drive to most Florida ports and it is easier to fit those trips around our work schedules. We are not booze hounds or wild party people. Having been on 25+ cruises over the years our experience is that there are misbehaving people on cruises of every length and demographic.
Yes!! This!! I am still in working mode, go to Florida often for work and family, and I can easily take 2 -4 days off every so often. I save my “big vacations” for being with family and friends that don’t share my love of cruising!
I agree with all of those other than Drydock. My family went on a post-Drydock cruise and yes, some things went wrong but the compensation the cruise line (Carnival in this case) went above and beyond to compensate us. This was a 16-day post-drydock cruise which ended up costing us about $800AUD each when the combinations of compensation elements were added up. Things were inconvenient for boarding (the ship ran 4 hours late) and for the first couple of days of the cruise but overall, paying $3200AUD for my family to cruise from Singapore to Sydney via Indonesia was well worth it
Weekend cruises were fun for me when I lived in Southern California, it was a nice and relatively inexpensive weekend getaway since the port was within train/bus distance and all you needed was a carryon sized bag but you're right, it's definitely more of a party vibe, though it did get me interested in taking longer cruises. I was once on a NCL cruise that had a bunch of "furries" on it, and that was a fun and interesting time. Some real "party animals" there, haha and I had a great time with them. But I can see how that might have been off putting to some people who were looking for a more quiet, relaxed experience. Love your videos, Gary. keep up the good work!
I agree 100%. Unfortunately, we booked onto the 4th trip to avoid the first couple trips but due to the cancellations we were on one of the 2nd cruse. The staff and services were good as those bugs were sorted out. However, as you mentioned the production shows were not ready and they substituted other entertainment to compensate. Our other constraint was that the other folks we were traveling with had a small window to travel in. As I mentioned I do not want an inaugural trip. Personally, I prefer to wait until the ship has miles behind her.
I did the maiden voyage on Queen Mary 2 and vowed never again, these days I wait until the ship has been running for about a year. That’s why I’m booked on Queen Anne for June 2025 to give the ship and crew time to settle in.
Ha ha - we're booked on it in August, here's hoping!
The QM2 maiden season was ripe with issues
@@pumpkin462 ah well - we’ll just have to hope Cunard have learned from that!
We did the maiden voyage of the Oosterdam. We had our rooms upgraded and it was excellent!! Always enjoy Holland America. Like the smaller size.
Another good video with good advice. Thank you. On the other hand, if you're part of the conference or themed group - especially on a fully chartered ship - the experience can be wonderful.
My wife and I are booked on the Sun Princess in May 2025 sailing the Mediterranean. We've never been on a maiden voyage. The titanic cured us of that 😅
Don't worry - you will not hit an Iceberg in the Mediterranean All you risk hitting is The Rock of Gibraltar.
I’ve done the NcL joy transatlantic repositioning cruise right after her dry dock in February. The only closed section was the new thermal suit. They did soft open on the last day. Some people were disappointed because it could have been a good place to hang out for the 11 night non stop cruise. I didn’t bother that much as I wasn’t going to pay for it.
Brilliant. I agree with everything you detailed in this! Particularly the Group Cruise issue. I have had my cruises cancelled due to the cruise line chartering the ship out to a ‘Group Cruise’. I was always thinking when joining the ship afterwards if everything had been cleansed throughly. 🤨Celebrity were terrible for this Group Cruise issue so I have stopped cruising with them now. Great work Gary as always. Thank you.
Agree! It takes time to build a cohesive team. That's why instead of booking on an Oasis, try why not book Wonder of the seas, whose got the mega ship thing down now.
Your advice is so very sound and useful! I’m going on an Alaska cruise in Sept/Oct (late shoulder season) with a credit I got from checking the cruise fare reductions on a Panama cruise I did last year. That tip was on one of your videos - MANY THANKS‼ My own suggestion would be to do a Panama transit on a smaller ship as the new big ships have to make the transit on the high tides, due to their size and the low water levels in Lake Gatun. We started our transit at midnight (Norwegian Bliss), I made it till 3 am but then missed all of Gatun and some of the lowering locks.
i found the short cruise information very helpful always worth watching.
Best cruise review EVER. So tired of gurus telling folks what lines they should or shouldn’t sail. There is a cruise line for everyone: party animals, family/kid friendly, older/seasoned cruisers, etc. This review presented situations (new ship, maintenance, hurricane season) that you need to be aware of when booking. He did NOT say cruise line ABC is great but XYZ is terrible. What’s great for the reviewer us not necessarily best for the individual watching the video. Haven’t run across your channel before but just subscribed. Love your balanced approach vs trying to push your favorite cruise line/ ship on your audience like so many other do. Keep up the good work
I do work for a cruise line first off. But what you say is true. There is no bad, best, worst, greatest cruise line. There is only the best for you and the cruise that is right for you. I don't always agree with everything Gary says but I respect his opinion. A guest has to determine what is right for them at a price they are willing to pay. Carnival Corporation operates 9 cruise lines of which I work for one. Because not everyone likes and can afford the same thing. There are 22 flavors of Jell-o for that reason.
@@burningblue1254this is so true! I get asked a lot about what was my favourite cruise and to be honest I have loved them all for all different reasons- Pros and cons with each different line but always more Pros overall. We do tend to focus more on destinations but are always open to a deal 😊
@@rosemarie9956 I am a Hotel General Manager for Princess Cruises. I thank you for your being a guest on cruises! I agree with you 100%. It's like going out to a restaurant, sometimes you want Italian, other times Mexican, Thai, or American. I was on loan to Cunard for 2 contracts as Chief Purser at the time on the QM2 and it was a wonderful experience. The British tradition!
I pretty much agree with your suggestions, but we have experienced excellent cruises on two inaugural sailings on HAL ships (Koningsdam and Nieuw Statendam). There were no new ship issues that affected us and we got to do some very unique things on those voyages.
Looking very nice. Thank you for continuing to give great views on cruising.😊
We just returned from a 4 days taster cruise and I would never book it again. Overcrowded with people who were determined to drink as much as possible, eat as much a possible and experience everything at once. Very busy and chaotic, even the crew commented on that.
Thanks for your advice. I would however like to go on a Crochet/knitting Cruise.
When I was on Odyssey of the Seas in 2021 there was a group of knitters. Some worked in public areas in small groups. They also made use of business rooms/convention spaces aboard. Royal Caribbean lists their themed cruises on the website. Search "themed cruises" lovely group of people 11:14 .
I started out cruising because of quilt cruises. Cruised for 5 years. Eventually went on my own and loved it. Have been on 15 cruises HAL and Royal Carribean. Stopped cruising in 2015. What I am reading now about cruises is sad. So much has changed and solo cruisers are not welcome. I wasn’t always solo but I did prefer it. Someone asked me once wasn’t I lonely cruising alone I replied, nope. I can do what I want when I want!
Good advice1 My Carnival Jubilee Maiden voyage was also cancelled! I then booked on the Carnival Venezia “maiden” voyage, which did sail, BUT it really wasn’t a maiden voyage in all senses since the ship was new to Carnival but had sailed with Costa previously. As to sailing during busy times, I agree; simply don’t have a choice when traveling with grandkids. And I personally wouldn’t take a cruise under 7 days because of wanting to avoid “booze cruises” and the expense of traveling to the cruise port.
I look forward to your videos which are always a good source of information. Thanks Gary!
Glad you like them!
Thank you, Gary. I was previously aware (thanks to your advice) about the risks of booking a maiden or early voyage as I could expect there to be ongoing work and some anticipated elements of the new ship to be unavailable - the complete entertainment programme, all the venues etc. Appreciated also that the same caution should be applied to a post dry dock cruise but hadn't absorbed the likely impact of cruising immediately before a ship heads to dry dock, that work aboard may have already begun causing disruption. Glad to have your valuable insights on what to consider when planning a cruise.
Thanks for watching and great to hear!
Thanks for this information Gary. Very helpful.
Glad it was helpful!
Great tips! Saving this one for our next cruise!
I got on the icon of the seas maiden voyage and it was wonderful. We got many special gifts and they never appeared on later cruises. Everyone onboard was super excited and half of the guests are elite members.
We were so fortunate that the inaugural sailing of Icon was amazing. The crew was very prepared, everything was finished, it was an amazing experience. We also booked the night that the itinerary was released with an agent who had a block of rooms and we paid no more than any other sailing we'd done recently! But I understand that this was an unusual experience.
Excellent information, especially about the downsides of inaugural cruises!
I completely agree with staying away from the prime cruising season. We cruise shoulder seasons with fewer crowds and better prices. Thanks for another terrific video! ❤
Totally agree!
Thank you for the great information.
Like trying new ships but never before 2 to 3 months. So, yes, once again agree with you 100% Over 8 days cruises are different type of cruisers!
Good Tips Gary and I guess I didn't realize about themed ship cruises.
Great information Gary as always. We learned, not while cruising, that in many European cities they close their businesses during July and August. So restaurants, museums, stores, etc., are closed.
Top professional advice - indeed. Talking about Europe - most major factories and those that run 24/7 operations shut down in either July or Augst for mainenance purposes. Not surprisingly - that's when Europe is on vacation. Prices are in general 30 % higher. Paris - all you will meet are other tourists - the Parisians are on vacation.
All great points; however, we experienced the maiden voyage of the Carnival Celebration in November 2022. It was amazing, and makes it worth it if good! We also got a great deal-possibly because it was also repositioning? I am so grateful for that experience. And, yes, it was obvious that everyone was getting used to the ship, but the atmosphere was laid back and relaxed.
I am not going on a cruise, but I enjoy listening to you. 😊
Entertaining it is - and much cheaper.
Not a cruise related comment, but I want to complement Gary on the edit from inside the ship to outside just after 3:25. Sweet, sweet transition, bro!
Thanks :-)
One of the most useful videos I’ve even seen, nice one Gary!
We’re booked on the Queen Anne for late June. Its maiden voyage is due early May, so hopefully all will be well. If not, then we’ll live with it. It’s a cruise, not a major life crisis.
We did the maiden voyage on the Norwegian Bliss from Southhampton to New York via the Azores and Halifax. For us, the trip went off without a hitch. All the venues were open. I don’t recall many or even any workman. It was wonderful. Sounds like we were lucky.
Thank you! This info is so valuable.
Glad it was helpful!
I don't understand why there is so much demand for maiden voyages. It's well known by now there will be problems, even if they do stick to the announced sail date (+ the extra cost, just because it's inaugural). Same with dry dock (and also true with the last 1-2 cruises before drydock, plus the crew is kind of in vacation mode already). Peak season is to be avoided for land vacations as well, for me at least. Taster cruises are just chaotic. Wonderful tips, as always, so nice that you gave alternatives!
We took our first and only cruise for our 25th Wedding Anniversary. But the year before we had a holiday in Bergen Norway travelling there and back by ferry. This included a night on board. Dipping our toes in the water.
Good advice!
Super interesting, thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it!
My very first cruise was on Royal Caribbean to Alaska in August 2003. I was part of a medical women’s group. Including families, we had about 165 people, out of approximately 2500 passengers. We had booked specific conference spaces many months in advance, but before we sailed, Royal Caribbean had repurposed them, so we ended up having to reorganize some of our activities to fit the available conference rooms. That was disappointing but we had a wonderful time. Because our group was relatively small and we were not a rowdy group, I honestly believe we didn’t interfere with the enjoyment of other passengers. The passengers I met certainly didn’t think we did.
We went on the inaugural cruises of the Celebrity Ascent and of the RCL Icon of the Seas and they were great.
The one and only maiden we ever did was Grand Princess (so it’s been a while). So, so many little things went wrong. Exactly as you described - never again!
I love your vids! I wish you would do a video on how to deal with drunk passengers. I had to deal with this on royal Caribbean and it was awful. I was terrified. I’d really like your opinion on this. Thank u!💕
I know you picked on the "biggest" cruise regions in the world, for when to cruise. However, it's worth keeping in mind in other parts of the world, such as Australia/Oceania, South Africa, and even Asia, it can be difficult to cruise at the best time. Of course, you can avoid our big summer Christmas/NY cruises, however due to the seasonal nature of cruising, many lines will only have ships in those regions at certain times of year. For example, here in Australia, many lines are only here from September/October to March/April. The only truly year long line here in P&O Australia, and they have really become the Jetstar/Ryanair/Jet Blue of cruising, sadly.
100% agree. Pre covid P&O was good. Now they're really bad and not worth the money. Carnival Luminosa was brilliant recently as an alternative cheaper but decent cruise, but still short time here
We took a "taster" on Disney a few years ago. It was an excellent experience, and I didn't think the mix was likely much different from their usual (Disney fans and families with young children), but that may not be true for a lot of lines. We usually take at least a week (Carnival or occasionally Royal) but that Disney cruise cost as much as we usually pay for one of those!
Great tips as always!
Thanks for watching!
I sailed on the rmfirst inaugural cruise on the Celebrity Ascent last November. Everything was perfect!
Fantastic tips, as always, Gary. I'm on a charter next year (all but one of my cruises have been music charters). The promoter has announced the dates for our next charter, but not the ship - rumours have been of a sister ship of the one we most recently cruised. Using your tips, it looks like the ship is in dry dock until our cruise, then it's not in service for a week (shakedown cruise?), then it's back in service. No choice on that, but I'm not there for the cruise line's shows, I want to see my favorite bands.
On my Alaska cruise (many years ago) the show "Baywatch" was filming an episode. This was not disclosed prior to the cruise. Parts of the ship were closed all week, other areas closed without warning, public areas were crowded with production equipment, staff and onlookers. Entertainment venues were crowded with young, noisy Hollywood people, there were fights, thefts, and general unpleasantness. It could have ruined our cruise, but we were there for the natural beauty of Alaska - which was spectacular.
Great tips Gary!
Glad it was helpful!
I agree with you about sailing during peak season, but *hopefully* I've avoided the problems you mentioned by sailing during New Year's in the Caribbean on Virgin Voyages. No children in sight!
Really helpful information...
The super short cruise is good for upping your trip count to run up your loyalty level! ;)
I travelled on Crown Princess in ‘22 and Sapphire Princess in ‘23 both straight out of dry dock.This was because I love shoulder seasons and they sometimes unusual itineraries they do close to the repositioning. This was not planned. Both were just perfect! Crown had a newly renovated Crooners that was gorgeous (and a fixed propellor blade that had been damaged and caused problems during the season). Sapphire had usb ports on bedside lamps added. The crew was rested and refreshed. Was I just incredibly lucky?
Well, since my name is also Colleen, and we love France and your videos, and red is my favourite colour...it would only be fitting to send me your extra red scarf! Let's go ❤❤
There's something very Star Trekky about those ships easing into and out of those covered docks. Great guide.
Great tips ❤
One thing people should really check is weather for a particular area. Hurricanes and tropical storms season runs from may to November. Peak is usually August to October. Hurricanes are uncommon in November but there is still risk involved. I couldn't go in December and January is too late so the only month I could go is November so I have to hope that there isn't a Hurricane or tropical storm in the gulf of Mexico in November.
Excellent info.
Weird topic request Gary, but could you talk about finances if you're comfortable? For example, how you managed to retire young and still have enough income for cruising (even before you started this channel)? I'm in my 20s and would love to hear any financial advice you have to share, if it's not too personal for you. Thanks!
I remember when hen nights suddenly started appearing on short cruises when they stumbled across this as heir bargain bang for buck venue 😮 Even the comedian told me, 'Ive done the toughest northern club circuits for decades, and never seen anything like this. It's taking the staff hours cleaning the carpets(!), but the bar takings are through the roof. But for the other (older) passengers who booked to try cruising, being hit over the head with a 6ft inflatable [male organ] by the hen parties is just frightening and assault.' Yikes.
Well, we just learned the hard way. Of coarse, as a parent of a Spring Breaker, we found a cruise with an itinerary we wanted to do out of Port Canaveral. While we did have fun and enjoyed the ports, i will NEVER cruise out of Florida in March again. Especially out of Orlando!
My wife and I took a spring Caribbean cruise this year on the Norwegian Epic. Never again. The ship was at capacity but with much fewer servers on board than we were used to. Getting drink service was unbelievably slow and I personally lined up for 30 minutes at one of the deck bars. Getting into any of the specialty restaurants was practically impossible. The ship allowed upper echelon points members to reserve seating in regular restaurants on the last night. The rest of us had to line up and wait our turn. Again, we hadn’t experienced this on this ship before. Also, one of our excursions had to itinerary changed without our knowledge. Had we known in advance what the change was we would have opted out. We had sailed this ship several times before and had positive experiences, but maybe it’s time to try a different line. Oh, and the mandatory gratuities seemed quite exorbitant this time around. Many hundreds of dollars for the two of us over a seven day cruise. Given the poor drink service we would have saved money tipping for each drink instead of being gouged.
You have the best info as always.
I appreciate that!
My first cruise was a 5-night, and I considered it a taster. We had 2 sea days and 2 port days. It was just right for me.
Unfortunately, we've got to land our cruises during the height of tourist season right now because we ourselves are stuck cruising at exactly those times - my husband is a professor and the late July time frame is literally the only time he's not teaching! To compensate, we always spring for a big enough cabin with a private balcony that allows us to retreat to our room when we need quiet time away from the crowds, and we stick to quieter shore activities like museums where we're less likely to be crushed in a crowd.
Maiden voyages certainly can have their moments. Not every cruise line operates the same way. Sea trials test the ships in terms of actual ship operation, mechanical, navigation, equipment etc. Tested and retested. In my cruise line's itinerary, crew will be onboard testing every light, toilet, sink, door, balcony, etc. etc. Any failures are listed and corrected. We also put seasoned crew on maiden voyages because they are best at adapting to the new environment. However, nothing made by man is perfect!
09:23 Just came off a 14 day HAL Zaandam Mexican cruise for the Total Eclipse. It wasn't a "themed" cruise but had a large contingent of the Sky and Telescope group (about 300) and there were lots of closed off "private events" for them during the cruise....enough that the comedian performing on the World Stage mentioned it lol. So I can only imagine how bad it would get for a themed cruise. I must also say that the advice about booking on older ships for deals is a great one. I've done 2 cruises in the past year on the Celebrity Millennium and HAL Zaandam which are both older ships and loved both of them...although HAL itself wasn't the best experience with their terrible app and disorganized embarkation experience that included sending out incorrect information (Deck 1 was told to show up for embarkation at 1400 for a 1500 sailing!) but the crew made up for lots of that frustration.
My husband and I just took a cruise to Canada and New England last fall that had ports canceled and we were outrunning a hurricane in the Atlantic ocean. We were on a smaller ship. And even our ship steward got seasick!
We went on a maiden voyage and will never do it again! Lots of things went wrong!
Agreed Gary!
thanks for making this video. BTW, are you using the Insta 360 X3? I am thinking of purchasing it. From your experience, what are the pros and cons. Thanks
My last cruise was a three day one, which I hadn’t done since my first cruise in 1997. Of course, it was a group theme cruise, so it was different in that respect. It would not have shown up on any group cruise thing as it wasn’t an officially booked block thing with private venues blocked off on the ship. Long story. The three day feels VERY compressed. I am mostly destination based, so I travel on older ships most of the time. I’m not really interested in maiden voyages. I’d prefer a ship that has been operating for some time, with the kinks worked out of both the ship and the staff. I canceled my Egypt / Holy Land cruise for August 2024 after Hamas did their thing, because I felt the Israel ports would not be in operation (I was right), and moved to a September sailing on Disney Wonder in Alaska. It was cheaper than the August sailings, and with Disney already expensive, I think I made a wise decision.
I was booked on Brilliant Lady Dec 2024...didnt sail. However Resilient maiden did happen last June 2023. Coin issued.
The cruise lines will take their most experienced staff and put them on the ship. So you are right that they are new on that ship but they are the highest tier crew members. Be worried about older ships that get new workers who have no idea what they are doing.
We were going on p and o iona in the first month of sailing not planned just how it worked out show when lockdown started we were not bothered so we never planned them we go by price, destination and date.
There have been pre-maiden short cruises added in because the construction went faster than planned.
I remember stories of those day cruises seaescape used to offer & how their ships lit up in the 80s.
I would add South Africa to the sea sickness area as well. Regarding my maiden voyage on the NCL Breakaway - we had an Aft-Facing Haven Suite and the experience was not worth 400 bucks per person per day.
There are many potential issues with forward and especially aft facing cabins. I try for mid-ships when I can.
Instead of "maiden voyage" they should replace the term with "rookie voyage". :)
I've thought about taking a themed cruise before... local group does a partial charter through a travel agent then sells the tickets to individuals to be part of the group. Did it once once on a resort trip. Since this group typically has up to a couple/few hundred people, and none of the "exclusive" events are mandatory, no more than 1 venue was ever blocked off (secondary pool area, restaurant, etc). They also tried to make it less likely to interfere with others, like using a breakfast/lunch only restaurant for an evening party, or using a smaller venue normally only available to certain members. I saw that last year they did a Mediterranean trip in August on Celebrity Edge. I had assumed they were small enough compared to the ship it would have caused minimal disruption to other guests, but what do you think? Would ~200 people in a group like that be a problem? (The thing that the people in the group had in common was being from the same region and listening to the same radio station.)
Carnival Jubilee was also canceled (Southamton-Galveston)
Great video.
We did a b2b on Celebrity Silhouette - one was 7 day Norwegian Fjords followed by 4 night to Amsterdam - felt like a completely different ship and cruise line during g the last 4 days.
It is amazing how much those short cruises change the line vibe and mix
I wouldn't go on a ship the week before the ship goes into dry dock either. I have been on a couple and the crew is distracted.