Buyers Guide

When going on a cruise there is never a dull moment with so much activity and opportunity to partake in something new. However, you might like to spend your holiday doing absolutely nothing or visiting the luxurious spa onboard to be pampered for the duration of your cruise. Activities can range from ship to ship and you will generally find among mainstream cruise lines the more modern the ship the more choice of activities.

Doing it for the kids

Children are very well catered for when embarking on a cruise with age groups broken down and activities to fit specific ages. However, it is important to ask about the children’s facilities when booking your cruise. Certain cruise lines will even have separate areas and swimming pools within the ship purely just for children. You can relax in the knowledge they are having the time of their lives whilst you get everything you want out of your holiday too.

The active life

Sports are generally well catered for onboard. You can practise your putting, go to the driving range or play a huge array of sports on the courts which can encompass basket ball, tennis or football. Royal Caribbean, for example, like to take their activities to another level with ice skating rinks on some of their ships or rock climbing on the back of the funnel. You can even practise your surfing on their latest ships on the ‘Flow Rider’.

In the know

For the those that wish to try something less energetic there are the enrichment programmes onboard whereby you could try your hand at learning something new, maybe a language or attending guest lectures. World renowned chefs are often onboard and share their secrets at lectures which you can attend or even get involved in. Enrichment programmes tend to be a key focus with the more luxurious cruise lines. With expedition cruise lines, activities onboard tend to be slightly more limited with ports of call taking up a key element of what goes on both on and off board. For example guest lectures on the itinerary planned, getting the most out of each new destination.

Picking the right destination is extremely important as you need to ensure you are visiting that destination at the correct time of year. For example it’s advisable to avoid the Caribbean in hurricane season, or for personal preference, you may not wish to be visiting certain countries in extreme hot weather conditions. So selecting the most suitable time of year for that itinerary is a must. The size of ship and also the type of cruise you are looking to go on will have an impact on your chosen destination. Whilst all cruise lines cover a vast array of destinations, you may find that the ports of call you wish to visit might not be covered by a particular cruise line at certain times of year. Similarly, it is important to look at the size of ship when thinking about your destination. For example, with certain ports of call within the Caribbean, the ship may well operate a tender service ashore rather than docking at the port due to it’s’ size. This may not be something you are comfortable with, so is another consideration to be taken. But don’t panic, our specialist cruise agents know all the hints and tips to guide you through deciding what suits you best.

With so many ships on offer, and even more new ships being launched every year,it’s no wonder that finding the best ship for your needs can be confusing. But there’s no reason why it should be any harder than deciding which hotel suits you best . Once you’ve decided where you want to cruise to, all you need to think about is your budget, what type of facilities you need and what type of view to wake up to every morning. Once you have decided on this, our cruise specialists can guide you through which ships match your requirements.

Budget

Ocean Village, Island Cruises and Thomson Cruises.

Generally speaking the level of activities available on a budget cruise operator will not be as extensive as on the other cruise lines, however, there will be very relaxed atmosphere onboard due to the freedom of choice offered. For example there are no formal nights on an Ocean Village cruise, they operate casual dining where you can choose when, where and what you want to eat. Some choices
available to you will be slightly more limited and the guest to staff ratio will be higher in comparison to higher budget cruises.

Mainstream

RCI, P&O, Fred Olsen, Carnival, NCL, Costa and MSC

Mainstream cruise lines (sometimes referred to as ‘contemporary’) offer fantastic value for money offering a 4* to 4.5*experience in terms of dining and lifestyle experience. New ships today are full of every facility and activity you can think of. For example, rock climbing, Ice Skating or surfing onboard Royal Caribbean’s
innovate fleet, experiencing the best of British with P&O Cruises’ fine dining and live bands, or pamper yourself amongst the elegance of an Italian MSC cruise. Many
cruise operators in this category do not fall short on entertainment with many offering west end style theatre productions and comedians.

Premium

Princess, Cunard, Celebrity, Holland America and Azamara

Premium cruise lines have all the same activities and entertainment onboard as mainstream cruise ships however the standard is taken to the next level, with additional features. The staff to passenger ratio is lower meaning the attention dedicated to you gives your cruise that special touch. The ships tend to be smaller and more intimate and some entertainment has an educational element to it
to, teaching new skills and learning about places you are visiting. For example Celebrity offer an Enrichment Series, with a line up of experts and destination driven lectures and special interest programs. When it comes to cuisine, a gourmet style and a refined service all round sets the scene for your time onboard.

Ultra Luxury

Silversea, Regent and Crystal

Intimate atmospheres and unrivalled service is what ultra luxury cruising is all about. High up on the agenda is delicious, gourmet food and plush, uba comfortable accommodation. Usually with high end cruisers, the staff to guest ratio is extremely low sometimes as low to 1 staff member to 2 guests. The feeling of space and exclusivity should take you to a place you’ll never want to come back from. Fine dining is a big part of the luxury experience, and menus will be varied, creative and fresh, delivered to the highest standards of presentation by world-class chefs.
Sommeliers will be onboard to recommend wines (included in the price on many luxury ships), premium spirits and champagnes (usually at an extra charge). Some of the ships in this classification take as few as 150 guests which gives a complete intimate feel to your time at sea.

Discovery

Hurtigruten, Silversea Expedition.

These include cruises on very small ships to far flung, off the beaten track destinations. Exotic itineraries focus on adventure and breath-taking experiences.

The beauty of discovery cruising is getting to destinations that maybe larger ships can not access. The destination is the main focal point of the cruise, with the itinerary and ship life, in terms of educational lectures for example, geared towards guests’ understanding of the destination they are visiting and seeing sights only a handful of people have seen. Ships tend to be small, enabling them to get close to coastal and river gateways and into small ports. Service and comfort is still a priority but you can expect to be woken at dawn to catch that once in a lifetime sight of a killer whale or to experience the thrill of watching penguins at play.

The price of a cruise ship cabin or stateroom is dependent on its size, layout, and location. Cabins on mainstream cruise ships are usually advertised as standard inside, ocean view, balcony, or suite. If you want to try and save some extra pennies, and the view isn’t your priority, you can also get obstructed view cabins, which as the name suggests are obstructed; usually by life boats and there will be a reduced price for these staterooms.The differences between the inside stateroom right up to the balcony/suite grades will usually be the extra amenities in the staterooms, such as the size of the stateroom and the position within the ship.An inside stateroom is the most affordable category and offer great value for money. For a little extra money, outside staterooms will always have an outside view through a window or port hole, so you watch as you cruise into port, or just stare out at the vast ocean in front of you. For those who want to push the boat out a little further, staterooms with balconies have an outside veranda area for you to spend some quality time in peace and quiet. To really go to town, suites have the largest space available with separate sleeping and sitting areas, with a balcony. A real home from home. Most interior staterooms come equipped with air conditioning, telephone, satellite television, refrigerator, personal safe. A handy tip.... Sometimes a guaranteed stateroom will be on offer. This means that you will be assigned a stateroom within the grade you are looking at but you will not be assigned a stateroom number. If this option is available you will find the price is more competitive.

During your cruise if you wish to visit lots of different ports of call, then it would not be advisable to choose a cruise with not many days at sea. It is worth bearing in mind one of the advantages of a fly cruise as opposed to an ex uk cruise is you are flying straight into your chosen destination be it Mediterranean, Europe or even Caribbean. Cruising from the UK is likely to mean a full day at sea straight away, maybe two depending on where you are cruising to before actually hitting the heart of your cruise destination. Although this gives you plenty of time to get your bearings before the action starts. You will need to think about what you wish to see, activities you wish to pursue when you are ashore and the excursions that are available at the particular port of call. Have a think a about what is important to you on your cruise. There are many destinations with hundreds of ports of call. Europe is a growing segment of the cruise industry which can be seen by the increasing number of ships deployed there for 2009. But with so many itineraries, home ports and ports of call, how do you choose? You can break down the Mediterranean in terms of western and eastern, from this you will then be able to see that eastern Mediterranean cruises usually feature Greece, the Greek islands, Turkey, Italy and Croatia. Similarly western Mediterranean cruises will be based around Italian ports, Spain, the Canaries and the French Riviera. In terms of European cruises, you can break the ports down in to northern Europe and the Baltics. Many northern European cruises feature capital cities such as Stockholm, Berlin, Helsinki, Oslo, and Amsterdam. With Norwegian ports of call and St Petersburg featuring within the Baltic cruises. Caribbean cruises are one of the most popular destinations for cruisers. You will need to think about eastern or western Caribbean. It all depends on what your interests are as to whether you will decide on eastern or western. It all depends on what your interests are. So in addition to selecting the right ship, you need to research the ports of call before you book, whether it be the destinations mentioned or anywhere else in the world. The good news is your local Cruise Club expert can help you do all of this without any stress or strain.