Cruise virgin - reccomend me a cruise

[Ginandtonic4all]

Hi all

I'm new to cruises and actually abroad holidays and need your help.

I am looking for a week(ish) long cruise for me (46) and my boyfriend (50). No kids as they will all be at home. Somewhere hot but not scorching. It's going to be a surprise for him but I just don't know where to start or what to think about or what good company's are etc etc

Please help!

Budget per person?

There are a massive range of cruises out there. What sort of thing are you looking for? Casual, budget, more formal? Party boat, or more sophisticated? Do you want an all-inclusive type holiday, or are you happy to pay for extras as and when you want them? When are you wanting to go?

Perhaps try a site like Vivavoyage. You can search by date/destination/price etc, and it will show you all the cruises available. You can then price it up, and read up on the cruise lines to see which suits you.

Personally, I like NCL - you pay one price which includes food/service charges/drinks package. You can choose to spend more on board if you like, such as specialty restaurants, excursions etc, but there’s no need to if you don’t want to.

NCL also has a casual style, no set dinner times, no need to share tables st dinner, no formal evenings although you can dress up if you want. It suits my idea of a holiday.

Another vote for NCL: relaxed and informal but still the option to dress up and have some luxury. A week in the med on the Epic would be a good first cruise: popular ports that are easy to visit on your own, and a short flight from the UK. You could even have a few days before or after in either Barcelona or Rome (depending on wether you went at the weekend or midweek).

If the price for that is a bit higher than you wanted maybe look at Marella (Thomson) on one of their newer ships. Less fancy and less glitzy but that’s reflected in the price. They do some brilliant itineraries to quieter, less common ports.

If you want a more quiet/traditional experience then probably P&O or Princess/Celebrity. More formal dining, good evening entertainment but don’t expect many late night options and do pack a tux!

You'll find that people tend to have a favourite cruise operator and stick with them. However the one that consistently comes out on top is Celebrity. Everyone I've spoken to raves about them.

Personally I would avoid Marella (Tui) if you're after a special cruise experience. They are cheap as chips if you just want to get to your destination and the excursions are excellent value but it's very no frills. Spend a little bit more and you will have a vastly superior holiday.

I wouldn’t describe Marella as “cheap as chips” the newer ships are nice and the older ones have a certain charm. The food and service is also very good. The entertainment isn’t as sophisticated or polished as on the bigger lines, and they don’t have “big name” guests like others, but they are generally good and enjoyable and are very enthusiastic

The food and drink are not as high end, but that’s reflective of the lower price. It’s still good, and the specialist restaurants (including some free ones) are far superior to what you get in 4* Spanish hotels etc. The dining and drinking experience on Princess/Celebrity, and even P&O and NCL is superior, so maybe if you are “foodies” or people who can only drink a certain year of Merlot with your sea bass, then maybe you would be better with one of those lines :)

Just to be clear, I'm not knocking Marella, we've done some good cruises with them, Their itineraries are very good and the service is excellent. It's a question of how important the cruise experience is for you. They are great value if you're there mainly for the destinations.

Hi Ginandtonic4all, Would love to help but you'd need to provide a bit more information! :-)
If you could provide a date range and approx budget per person that would make it easier to figure out whether it's a UK departure or involves a flight to somewhere warm. .

As everyone says - it is almost impossible to recommend a cruise line without knowing more about what you are looking for and your budget. Cruises range from distinctly low brow to extremely up market and the prices vary dramatically too. Just like the difference between a basic B and B and 5 star hotel. I would recommend you purchase the Berlitz Cruise Guide. It is the Bible!! www.amazon.co.uk/Berlitz-Cruising-Cruise-Ships-?tag=mumsnetforu03-21

Watch Jane MacDonald back to back on catch up TV then pick the one you like the look of. The river cruise from Porto up the Douro looked lovely.