I get asked all the time “what is the best cruise line to travel on?”.
I'm asked most about which is the best of the premium cruise lines, those offering a
more traditional cruise experience.
It’s been made even more complicated, and risky, to recommend a line
because they all have changed significantly emerging from the pandemic shutdown. So,
even if you think you are familiar with the line, that may be dated.
So, I revisited them, travelled on many of them again.
And I am ready to tell you, which, I think, is the best,
based on the changes, differences and the things that they're doing really well right now.
By the way, if you're new here, welcome aboard. I'm Gary Bembridge, and it's my goal
to make it fun and easy to discover, plan, and enjoy unforgettable cruise vacations.
The first big question is: what is a premium cruise line? Everybody
has different views of what they are, but it’s complicated because there's no
official category in the cruise industry about what falls into which category.
However, it's generally accepted that the premium
cruise category consists of mid to large ships carrying 1,500 to 3,500 plus
passengers that offer a traditional cruising experience and traditional cruising ships.
So, they're not resort type cruises. So, although you can get incredibly premium experiences on say,
Royal Caribbean, where you can spend up to $70,000 a week for their biggest suites,
or you can stay in The Haven on Norwegian Cruise Line, those are considered more resort
ships, have a more resort experience and are not considered part of the premium cruise category.
The cruise lines that are usually considered as in the category are Princess Cruises,
Holland America Line, Celebrity Cruises, and Cunard Cruise Line.
On the surface, they all appear to be largely similar.
They're have pretty classic-style cruise ships without resort features and bells
and whistles. They offer accommodation ranging from inside cabins to suites.
Their daily programs have broadly the same mix of on-board traditional cruise activities:
enrichment, quizzes, dancing classes, cooking demonstrations,
bingo and so on. It's hard to differentiate the daily program between them.
They all offer alternative dining venues. Their evening entertainment tends to be
review-type song and dance shows, live music around the ship, and guest entertainers,
many of which will flit between the different lines.
The ports and itineraries are largely the same. They do some kind of world voyage and
cover the Caribbean, Mediterranean, and Alaska. They also visit Australia and parts of Asia.
All are placing more effort on food and specialty dining with celebrity chef partnerships and
more venues, which include a steakhouse, Italian, sushi and Asian and usually seafood.
Their excursions are also basically the same and appear to often to be provided by the same
or similar port agents. I can see no real significant difference in this area between them.
Certainly, on the surface, they appear to be incredibly similar.
So, does that mean they all are the same and equally appealing?
These are some key differences beyond the obvious, and again these are changing. And so, in my view,
it's important to understand what they're dialing up and what they're focusing on.
I'm going to tell you what their big difference is, what the main pro
and the big con of cruising with them each is, and who I think they're best for and why.
Let's start with Princess. Princess is the biggest of the premium cruise lines,
based on number of passengers carried and also, currently,
based on the size of the fleet. They have 14 ships in their fleet at the time of recording.
They offer a pretty relaxed American-style cruising experience, and cruise globally.
Their biggest difference, in my view, is actually the sheer scale of their itineraries.
They cover the biggest and broadest breadth of the world and can take you most frequently to
pretty much wherever you want to go. This is of most value to travellers.
Some of you may have thought I would say the Ocean Medallion, the wearable device,
was the key difference of value to travellers. In my view it is not.
This is the device that does things like open your cabin door, use it to buy things onboard,
order drinks and food to your location, track down friends or family that you're cruising with
speeds up boarding process. But a number of lines have similar,
and in fact much of the benefit is linked to the App which all the lines have added functions too.
What are the pros of cruising on Princess? Well, first of all,
as I’ve said the biggest pro is the fact that you can go pretty much
anywhere on a Princess cruise. So, if you like the Princess Cruise experience and a traditional
cruise experience, you have an enormous range of itineraries to choose from, all around the world.
For me, the con or the downside of cruising with Princess is they're shifted into bigger
and bigger ships. They're moving their fleet into much bigger ships, and that I feel is less
appealing as it means more crowds, more lines and while it does mean more on-board option,
it comes with that downside.
On the food front, I find Princess to be good
and consistent but some others, as I will discuss, probably have a slight edge.
So, who are they best for?
They're great for couples, and still mostly a 50s plus crowd,
seeking varied and wide range of destinations and
itineraries within each region. But they're now a good option for multi-generational travel.
They're putting more and more focus on ramping up their kids’ clubs and trying to create experiences
that will cater for grandparents, parents, and kids more evenly. If you want to travel
with a range of ages but don’t want a resort experience that you get on Royal Caribbean,
Norwegian and Carnival or the full Disney experience then consider Princess.
But are they the only ones in this category suitable for this? What about Holland America?
Holland America is one of the oldest of all of the premium cruise lines,
with around 150 years in service.
They have slightly smaller fleet than Princess, with 11 ships at the time of recording.
In my view their biggest difference is they're focusing and doubling down on a couple of key
areas that is increasingly setting them aside from the others. Areas that may appeal to you.
The first is around music and music partners. They've created the Music Walk
on their ships. Depending on the size of the ship, this consists of up to five venues.
There’s the Lincoln Centre Stage, which is classical music in partnership with
the Lincoln Centre. Billboard on Board, a partnership with the famous music organisation,
which has two pianists playing popular music around themes, often decades.
There’s BB King's Blues Club, which is extremely popular,
with an eight-piece band. On the new Pinnacle-Class ships, they have the
Rolling Stone Rock Room, a partnership with the famous magazine featuring rock music.
And then, they have the World Stage, which is their big theatre,
which is now focusing more on music and dance.
They’re putting visibly more effort on their food options, although as I said
earlier this is true of all the premium lines, and while they have definitely improved overall
and in specialty dining specifically it does not significantly count
as a massive difference when comparing. Though their “Port To Table” cooking demonstrations
are the most slick and multi-media compared to the others.
So, the big pro of cruising on Holland America is that if you're into music,
you will find a great experience there and newer ships have more themed music artworks
around them, and along with good food.
They also have a big expertise in Alaska. They were the first cruise line to move into Alaska,
and they have enormous experience, so that's a big pro if you're thinking of cruising to Alaska.
On the downside, it is seen overall as being a line that attracts an older profile.
And certainly, in my experience, you do find, probably, Holland America does attract a slightly
older audience than some of the others in this category. But not significantly.
It does have a reputation of a quieter and less energetic or partying experience
and it closes down early at night. I don't find it as sleepy and quiet as its reputation at all,
but it does have a more laid back and genteel atmosphere.
So, who is it best for? Well, I do think Holland America is best for couples, particularly couples
in their fifties and sixties. But they do have big and growing kids’ clubs, especially on their newer
ships where they also have some family cabins now. So, it is a consideration for multi-generation.
But for me, this is a couple cruise line and if you want to be fairly sure that there’ll be few
or no kids on board, Holland America probably has an edge over the other lines in this category.
Although they have limited solo cabins, they are popular and a good fit for solo travellers
and they are embraced by fellow travellers and the line.
If Princess sounds too large ship
and Holland America sounds a bit too staid for you, what could be good for you then?
Celebrity may be a fit.
Celebrity is a cruise line that is working hard to grow fast and change
more than the others it seems.
At the time of recording this, they have 11 ships in service, but they have two more coming
on the line. They then also have some expedition ships in the Galapagos.
The difference is Celebrity are evolving to become the modern,
contemporary, and more luxurious option in this medium to large-size premium cruising category.
I mentioned earlier that all of these premium cruise lines have ships that are largely
the same. However, Celebrity is changing this.
They have introduced the "Edge" class of ships, which looks very different outside and inside.
It has the Magic Carpet on the side and other features like infinity balcony
cabins. Their décor on these, which has been applied to the rest of their older fleet,
is much more modern and stands out versus the other premium lines.
They are pushing, very much, the luxury experience, with an enormous amount of
change in their suite experience, which they're now called "The Retreat”
with large, dedicated Retreat Lounge, Retreat Deck, and restaurant.
So, the big pro is, if you're looking for something that's perhaps a bit chicer,
a bit more contemporary, a bit more modern, a bit more youthful then Celebrity is definitely
one to look at. And if you want a different ship to the others then they are for you.
On the con side, I would say of Celebrity, is price. As they're pushing themselves
more into luxury, they have moved their prices upwards. And they've done that partly
because they have moved into only all-inclusive fares. Before that, there was lots of add-ons.
A Celebrity cruise fare now includes a drinks package, gratuities and Wi-Fi included.
By the way, Princess Cruises and Holland America have partly followed this as both offer
opt-in all-inclusive fares alongside cruise only fares.
Celebrity is, in my view, definitely very much for travellers looking for
a more youthful and energetic but still traditional cruising experience. It’s not
necessarily mean for younger travellers as such but for people who a lively experience.
Whilst it’s still mostly for couples it’s for those who want a chicer
adult and traditional experience than they would get on resort ship lines.
It’s a bit trendier, a bit more youthful, a bit more contemporary
than the others in the premium cruise category.
Celebrity is also more families,
especially perhaps those in their 40s and 50s with kids or teens.
If none of these lines I have spoken about so far sound totally right,
there is one big and famous option to consider. Though it has a really big downside for many.
Cunard Cruise Line is the smallest of the premium lines, soon to have 4 ships in its fleet.
It has been going for over 175 years and has the most distinctive offering of all.
Its biggest difference is the only of the premium lines offering a richly British cruise experience,
versus the more American style of the others. It also is firmly rooted in the
design and format of cruising from the glory days of cruising before flying.
The décor on the fleet is heavily art deco inspired and it has a clear and overt three-class
system: Britannia, Princess Grill and Queens Grill. The grade of cabin determines which
restaurant you eat in. Although this is also true in Celebrity now, this is less obvious.
It is also the only cruise line that has a true ocean liner versus cruise ship design
in its fleet, in the Queen Mary 2. With specially designed and strengthened hull,
Cunard is the only line that runs a scheduled transatlantic service, which runs from around
April/May to about October time and then more ad hoc in the winter season.
The biggest pro, without a shadow of a doubt,
is the Queen Mary 2 and the Transatlantic Crossing. This is one of the iconic
and probably the only must-do trip no matter what line appeals to you for any other trip.
Other pros they do have is they have the best insights and enrichment speaker program of all
of lines, and they have a large orchestra every night in the Queens Room for ballroom dancing.
The downside is probably the dressing up. They are very strict with their
dress codes. Formal nights do mean, for gentleman, at least a dark suit and tie,
although most will be in a black tie or tuxedo, and ladies in very glamorous gowns.
So, the biggest con for many people is the dress code is really, really strictly enforced.
I also think another con for Cunard is, it's actually not as glamorous as the image suggests,
once you're on board. It is fairly similar on a day-to-day basis, to all the other cruise lines.
It's not as glamorous as you would expect, except on those formal, dressing-up nights.
Who's it best for?
It's definitely best for people who want to do that iconic transatlantic. It's also
great for people who want a British experience rather than the American one the others offer.
It does work best for couples over 50 who also like the formality and like on Holland America
it is very good and used to catering for solo travelers, thought there are limited solo cabins.
They do have a smallish kids club, and some do bring kids on board,
but it's not really for families in my view and most guests
do not seem thrilled when there are kids on the ship, in my experience.
To find out more about each if these lines watch this playlist of 4 videos,
each one a deep dive on one of the lines starting with the
biggest surprise and challenge I face about cruising on Cunard