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Original poster

Cruises - which company

57 replies

FlyingHighandDry · 04/04/2023 09:40

Hi.
I'm looking to book a European cruise for my mum as a treat but have fallen at the first hurdle!
Which company do I book with?

She has been on a few cruises previously but all with Tui (Morella?) and always all-inclusive.
Would any wise cruisers be able to rank companies for me in order of 'niceness'?
I'm thinking that Tui probably aren't that high up?
Thank you!

OP posts:
Original poster
FlyingHighandDry · 05/04/2023 09:01

@Bells3032
No budget - in fact I have no idea how much a cruise costs! Can afford to pay up to £4k each.
DM and step dad. Step dad has limited mobility.
1-2 weeks.
Has to be out of UK as they can't fly.
Europe.
DM really likes cities, culture and sightseeing.
They are not bothered by entertainment on the ships. They do like nice food and drink!
Thank you so much!

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Bells3032 · 05/04/2023 09:58

Ok so that narrows it down a lot.

I'd deff look at celebrity and cunard as my first ports. I think they're both good starter lines - medium size ships etc. Both sail out of southhampton. We went on the celebrity Beyond last year and is was fabulous. Cunards a little more posh and formal but the service and food are great. it depends what you prefer.

I know celebrity also has introduced the always included package which includes tips and drinks so means they have nothing else to worry about. Cunard doesn't include anything beyond tea, coffee and water really but can add a drinks package on. You also need to budget for gratuities (about £15 per person per day i think)

If you think you'd like smaller, more intimate ships then azamara or oceania are your best call IMO

Look at cruise critic or iglu and compare. most ships will have tours uploaded onto youtube. I'd deff try and go for a newer ship as some of the older ones got very tired over covid.

Let me know if you have any more questions!

Original poster
FlyingHighandDry · 05/04/2023 10:09

That is perfect to start with!
Thank you so much for taking the time!

OP posts:
Zipps · 05/04/2023 10:16

We've been on 30+ cruises with all different companies including Marella, which are brilliant in my opinion we've never had a bad cruise with anyone so whoever you go with I'm pretty sure you will enjoy it.

Original poster
FlyingHighandDry · 05/04/2023 10:33

Thanks @zipps

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dew141 · 05/04/2023 10:43

The other thing I'd recommend is looking at how far the key attraction is from the port. For example, Rome and Florence are a bit of a schlepp (though doable by train) whereas you go straight into Cannes on a tender.

I've only ever organised my own excursions (these are easy to find as lots of companies cater for cruise passengers) but it can also get tiring sightseeing day after day and I'd be tempted to stay on board more next time. Partly as I've done two European cruises so I've seen a lot of the places I've wanted to visit.

TizerorFizz · 05/04/2023 11:24

@FlyingHighandDry
I think the best range of ship holidays can be found on Noble Caledonia. They are expensive but you get a far smaller ship and lots of help. We have been in ships up to 2000 passengers and never again. Once you have been on a small ship you certainly won’t want a behemoth.

Blueberrycreampie · 05/04/2023 11:28

Have a look at 'Emma Cruises' on YouTube- she has hundreds of reviews on there. Having been with lots of different lines myself, I know there are good and not so good points with all of them. Although I've never been with Celebrity, I did cruise on the Marella Explorer in February, which originally was the Celebrity Galaxy, and it was a beautiful ship, and I was pleasantly surprised. As far as itinerary goes cities like Barcelona and Valencia are great as they have hop on off buses allowing you to get off when you like and back on again - brilliant for anyone with mobility issues!

lightisnotwhite · 05/04/2023 11:32

I’d start by just looking at what your budget allows. Go to Cruise Nation, Igloo cruises and see what’s available. They all have the itineraries and you’ll pretty soon get a grip of what ship is doing which route at what price. If you sail from Southampton you get a kettle in the room. Check this, as not all fly sail ships do.
Remember the price you see is usually an interior cabin. Balconies on some sailings can be the same price though on offer so bear in mind “value”. It’s definitely worth a bit more imo.

I never buy Wi-Fi as you can use the port wi fi and I don’t want my phone on. I always buy a drinks package as I love a free bar and even fruit juice adds up.

Prices differ massively. I would never go straight through the cruise company. Use a travel agent or online booking agent. They have loads of add ons.

I’m sure you’ll be amazed whatever you book. It’s a very easy way to travel.

crazeecatlady · 05/04/2023 11:59

We've been on a couple of cruises (Holland America and Saga) We like our holidays to start off relaxed, so we like to sail from Southampton. Saga arrange transport from your front door so that takes away that anxiety. Prices look to be higher, but everything is included - gratuities, drinks, speciality dining. (We looked at one line a couple of years ago that offered a round the world cruise at a very good price - until we added up all the extras. They came to more than the price of the cruise. Watch out for 'gratuties' which are compulsory and are added to your end of cruise bill. The company often sets a base rate of xxx dollars per day per person and that really adds up. ) Best of all no children. We have met some very interesting people, yes they might be an older demographic but least they have something to say. The ships are smaller so service is good.
For some the actual cruise ship IS the holiday, ports of call are blips on the horizon (literally), for others the ports of call are more important. You do need to consider the total number of sea days.

Good luck in finding what you want.

Ishouldbeoutside · 05/04/2023 20:54

Any recommendations for travel agents?

Ishouldbeoutside · 05/04/2023 21:00

gogohmm · 05/04/2023 07:34

I quite like Marella, excellent food and great musicians on board, really friendly entertainment staff, chatty. Yes they did silly pool games but they aren't compulsory.

Mostly we sail Cunard but they are more expensive and you need to like classical music and academic style lectures to really get your moneys worth because they specialise in that (great band though playing nightly in the night club).

Looking at princess for next trip as prefer the itinerary. My parents are sailing p&o

Cunard seems to sail from Nee York though?

Chickenwing2 · 05/04/2023 21:05

Royal Caribbean!

lightisnotwhite · 05/04/2023 21:22

@Ishouldbeoutside Cunard have cruises from Europe including Southampton too.
southampton .
Expensive for a first cruise if you don’t know what you like ( although seen s decent value for 2 weeks - they have the RSC onboard! ). The extras will add up too.
I’d do a cheaper 7 day one first.

14 nights - Mediterranean Highlights - June 2023 - Cunard

Experience the Mediterranean with a voyage on board Cunard's Queen Mary 2, departing Southampton in 2023.

https://www.cunard.com/en-gb/find-a-cruise/M316/M316

Walkacrossthesand · 06/04/2023 06:50

@Ishouldbeoutside I've used ROL Cruise for years, they seem to cover all the cruise lines and a browse of their website gives you an overview of what's available. You get 'cruise miles' for each booking, which can add up if you become a regular.

shutupppp · 06/04/2023 07:40

Ishouldbeoutside · 05/04/2023 20:54

Any recommendations for travel agents?

Bolsover cruise club are brilliant.

chimichangaz · 07/04/2023 00:06

If your mum will be travelling alone (sorry, can't work out from op) have a look at Passion for Cruises website - they also have a Facebook group. Offer deals for solo cruisers (I think they also do solo holidays?)

honeyrider · 09/04/2023 00:52

I'm currently on a prin

honeyrider · 09/04/2023 01:02

I'm currently on a Princess cruise, in San Francisco at the moment and loving it, first time on Princess having previously been on 3 different MSC cruises which I loved too.

It's not crowded and the entertainment is fantastic.

I booked it last summer 6 nights on board including all meals, entertainment, drinks package, crew tips and wifi staying in an inside cabin was only €961.

First time in an inside cabin and it's fine as we're only in it to sleep and get ready for dinner. We're sleeping better as there's no light getting in. Always had a balcony before but when at sea or in some ports it's too windy to sit out on the balcony.

Nat6999 · 09/04/2023 04:38

I love P & O, sailing from Southampton is easy if you drive, the last one I went on was an early May one before spring Bank Holiday so no school holidays. The entertainment & activities were excellent as was the cabin & the food was amazing. I had expected it to be full of pensioners but it wasn't. I could have happily stayed on the ship & not bothered with the excursions. The new ships look amazing & the range of venues to eat & drink look like you could eat somewhere different every night.

Ishouldbeoutside · 09/04/2023 06:26

Anyone been on a Nike cruise? I have never been on a cruise and find it difficult to work out which cruise line is the best. Horrified by the prices!

Ishouldbeoutside · 09/04/2023 06:26

Nile

Bells3032 · 09/04/2023 09:58

@Ishouldbeoutside I've been. We went Oberoi. No idea if they're still going. But it was not long after Arab Spring and everything was dirt cheap. We paid about £1k a week each and it was amazing. Only 10 people on a ship built for 60

Original poster
FlyingHighandDry · 10/04/2023 16:50

You lot are fantastic.
I’m sitting down with mum tonight to hopefully get something booked for her.
I appreciate you all taking the time to help!

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