To wonder why everyone raves about cruises?

Aurora - v small Australian outfit. Really liked them.

I live somewhere with loads of them. I've seen lots of attractive boats but yet to see an attractive cruise liner of any size.

@Marinade you make some valid points but you won't win anyone over by sneering and mocking.

I don't agree that cruise ships are monstrosities. I think they're beautiful! Some are a bit odd-looking I grant you.

Cruise ships aren't allowed to dump sewage at sea of they are more than three miles off shore. Ost ships send it to local water treatment centers when they are in port.

A lovely relaxing cruise full of cruise bores? No thanks.

I can't be arsed with answering all your comments but really the things to which you refer are not comparable at all with cruises. Veganism is not a sustainable life style for many whereas Sue and Tony can go without their cruise.

Banning meat is just stupid and reductive as it is a cheap and necessary source of protein for people, particulary children. You don't sound very up to speed and are throwign things into the air to justify your choice regardless of their equivalence or suitability as a comparison.

Pets - not bothered either way as I don't really like them but can see that they have emotional and societal advantages for people who might be lonely otherwise.

You crack on with your floating blocks full of naff entertainment throwing sewage into the sea, whilst congratulating yourself on only producing one offspring.

@softmauve not been on Silversea myself but I have friends who have and they loved it.

@ZoeyBartlett that's my retirement plan! Which cruise line?

We've been on 2 expedition cruises - one to Antarctic and one to the Artic. No entertainment but lots of talks. Lots of getting up v early and putting on wet weather gear to jump in zodiac and head for land. V small number of people. Really enjoyed them but really because of the places they gave us access to. I'd like to do a longer Northern one next from Greenland to Canada.

If you don't enjoy it then cruising isn't for you I'd imagine. Silversea is definitely one of the nicer lines.
Hope you have a lovely holiday.

I love cruises. They are my favorite holiday by miles with the kids, as a single parent. The kids are safe - eyes on them at all time, loads to do, and it’s a massive brain break for me. They couldn’t cope with the packing and unpacking of a road trip and so a day in a new place suits us fine.

We go with MSC which is a bit “Wetherspoons on sea” and there’s a high sleeve tattoo factor. We go out for the day and are generally knackered by 10 so don’t mix much with the proles. It’s way cheaper than a package holiday and next time we are doing the “ship within a ship” called Yacht Club. Can’t wait.

I agree with all of the above, having cruised with Royal Caribbean from Southampton twice now.

On balance though, personally I would add into the mix, for me personally, I would only book a minimum junior suite so that I could dine in coastal Kitchen every evening - this is my hard line. I like a more intimate and less cramped, quieter dining experience for the dining and am not so fussed about the speciality restaurants tbh. Windjammer is fine for a quick Pitstone for breakfast and lunch but it's so busy and noisy.

@malificent7 - if you are curious about sailing, I'd encourage you to join a few Facebook groups for various different sailing dates or, for example, there's one purely for Anthem of the Seas. I'm sure there are for others too. Test way you'll get a good overview of other people's experiences, good & less so of their sailings for you to get a balanced view of what to expect before you commit to booking one.

Hope this helps.

So you are using more fuel and resources to get there on tenders. Got it.

And how long does it take to get on the tenders? Queing up to squeeze onto tenders to see Venice, you could not make this up.😅Its like being in the dinner queue at school.

What a horrible way to enter the beautiful lagoon of Venice. But I get that people are desperate to travel on these floating monstrosities so please, fill your boots.

They are still going, just dock further out and come in on a Tender

https://www.mundycruising.co.uk/cruise-news/cruise-advice/cruise-ships-in-venice-which-ships-are-not-banned-from-venice

Perhaps read this? Thankfully the larger species of these monstrosities have been banned from Venice so clearly they don't bring the benefits you seek to promote?

It's not that simple.
I live in a location now popular with liner tourism and local residents have very mixed feelings - nobody listens to us though.

As someone who lives in a location being destroyed by liner tourism I completely abhor the whole industry tbh.

If Venice didn’t want cruise ships, it wouldn’t have cruise ships … like every other port, they like the money that the cruise ship brings. It not just spending (and many cruise ship passengers will buy things), it’s mooring fees, port fees, wages for coach drivers, guides, taxis etc.

if there was not a benefit to the local economy, the ships would not be allowed to dock.

Silversea .. lucky you, their ships look amazing. I hear good reports. You might want to join a site like Cruise Critic, you’ll find review on all lines .. and roll-calls for future cruises

My brother & his wife have been on a few. He doesn’t like flying so a cruise is a good way to get to see the world together. They’ve been to lots of countries they probably wouldn’t have visited otherwise.

Both of them speak really highly of the cruises, the food always looks amazing too.

They are both early 30s. The last one they went on, they said there were more young people on as opposed to previous years, so perhaps they are gaining popularity with the younger crowd?

I find it irritating to be told that you can't criticise something that you have never experienced.

I think most people are not rushing to reply because they know that cruise ships are an absolute eyesore at ports, they flood the areas they arrive in with tons of people who wonder around all day but do not spend much in comparison to those people who are holidaying there (see Venice where they are not liked at all for this reason), the entertainment is naff, you are cheek to jowl with tons of other people, spending days at sea just sounds unappealing, the pools are small, and the environmental concerns are legitimate.

When I was in Split, Croatia, the lovely port was ruined with the sight of these awful white industrial looking monstrosities, set against the smaller charter boats. Horrible. And they have signs up warning people not to sit down because I understand the cruisers do not like eating lunch as they have filled up on breakfast so they dont want to use the restaurants.

You reference to green house gases is very lame as it is seeking to place the blame on the International Maritime organisations, but even this does not address the sewage that is chucked into the oceans. A vessel is simply not comparable to a cruise in terms of the amount and type of sewage. Are you seriously content with this?

…you need to chill out a bit, I know, go on a lovely relaxing cruise.

BTW … it would be much much better for the planet to have a lower birth rate, having no children at all means no environmental impact. If indeed the argument is that we should consider the environment before making any life choices, no children, or maybe only 1, would be the environmentally friendly option.

Pets have a huge impact on the environment .. all that land given up to raise crops & animals for pet food. What about all the waste product they generate ? If you are worried about the environment ban pet ownership.

You miss the point with veganism … the huge environmental impact of the meat industry far outweighs the environmental impact of cruising. Want to save the planet ? Stop eating meat.

Me & my husband only have 1 child .. I’m offsetting my future cruises, by not having another - no need to thank me.

Judging by the pages of adverts in the Daily Mail, it's readers must be their core passengers. That's enough for me.

@Marinade gosh you're being quite strident here aren't you. I think most people aren't rushing to reply because who knows where to find reliable stats and figures?

There are environmental pluses .Cruise ships take sea water to turn into drinking water. That's got to be better than the equivalent thousands of tourists in hotels using the local water in dry areas.

Clearly greenhouse gas emissions are too high but its the International Maritime organisation sets the targets. 2030 is the milestone year to reduce emissions by 40% .MSC have already cut their green house gas emissions by 37.8% from 2008.
Sewage is treated according to strict international regulations. Cruise ships have follow the same guidance as all the hundreds of other vessels on the sea. Technology moves on in response to demand.

@Sirzy I have been on Sky Princess and found it no better than P&O sadly although possibly more entertainment on the ship. The decor is very American and a dated considering the ship is relatively new.

Interesting to read all these viewpoints. We are going on a Silversea cruise soon...anyone been with them?
First time cruisers so it's an adventure.

I see you have come up with a set of non relevant and non comparable facets of life in an attempt to defend the fact that massive floating hotels that disperse sewage into the oceans have an horrendous impact on the oceans and the environment.

Having children - necessary to perpetuate the species.
Having a car - for some people the only means they have to get around.
Vegan - vegan children are on average 3cm smaller it is not a viable health choice for many.
Pets - how is this relevant?

Did you read the article mentioned above where it is stated that the 218 cruise ships in Europe produce 4.4 times as many sulphur oxides as all the cars in Europe?

Perhaps it would have been better for the proverbial cat to get your tongue than to set out such futile attempts to justify them?

I’d love to go on a cruise but I can’t because if I looked out to see and didn’t see any land, I’d probably have a panic attack.