“We’re taking a cruise!”
Great! What cruise line? Which ship? How long? Where to? Who’s going?
Ahoy, landlubbers!!! We’ve now sailed into Cruise Month, where we’ll talk about how to get on the water your way.
A cruise is like being at an all-inclusive resort, except it moves. Food, drink (usually for extra $$), and entertainment are all included. Loads of activity choices for any kind of temperament.
(This is me being soooo active on last fall’s transatlantic trip on Virgin’s Scarlet Lady.)
Trying to make sense of it all
Cruises can take a variety of forms, a real smorgasbord of options.
The thing is, choosing the wrong type of cruise can put you off this form of travel forever.
There’s no way I can give you a complete resource for cruises and cruise lines. More than two dozen companies are operating in the US alone!
What I can do is give you a categorized view that can help you understand available options and what kind of cruising appeals to you.
That said, this categorized view is a little messy. Not every cruise fits neatly into my little structure. In some cases, there are caveats and “alsos” to add in. Consider this a primer, a basic description, to help steer the wheel in the direction that suits you best.
I’ve come up with three categories to characterize cruising options. I’m thinking the intersection of the three would give you the best options to consider for a cruise.
Type of cruise
Type of passengers
Level of luxury/cost
The cruise lines I’ve listed tend to be the most well-known, but they are not the only options. When you have a clear idea of your cruise goals, you can use the ones here as a jumping-off point to research all the lines that fit your criteria.
1. Type of cruise
Your cruise experience will depend mainly on the type of cruise you take. Longer itineraries will have a different air than short ones. The part of the world you travel to also has an impact on the experience.
I will refrain from going into a lot of detail about each cruise line. If I did that, this thing would be endless!
Short breaks (1-4 nights)
Short cruises tend to be party cruises. Passengers are taking a long weekend or have just a few days off work, and they are determined to make the most of their time on board.
That’s not to say you can’t find quiet space, but compared to the other cruise types, a short break will most likely be all party, all the time. Examples are Caribbean cruises from Florida ports or Galveston, Texas, and Pacific cruises to Mexico from Los Angeles or San Diego.
Long breaks (5 -10+ nights)
These itineraries hit more ports and often have at-sea days between stops. Because of the longer length, the mood aboard ship is likely to be calmer than the short breaks. Itineraries include destinations like:
Alaska
Caribbean
Mediterranean
UK/Scandinavia
Repositioning
At the start/end of a season in one location, many ships need to move to the next location for the next season. Repositioning cruises can be as short as four days or as long as 28 days. Because they start in one port and end in another, the pricing for these cruises can be quite reasonable.
Transatlantic
For most cruise lines, this is a subset of repositioning cruise types. Itineraries include moving from Southern California ports to Seattle or Vancouver to start the Alaska cruise season or from Miami, New York, or San Juan to a European port in the spring to start the Mediterranean or Northern Europe season. The one exception is Cunard, whose Queen Mary 2 traditionally operates seven-day transatlantic voyages—usually between New York and Southampton—throughout the year.
World
Some lines offer world voyages. Though most are not complete global circuits, all offer the opportunity to visit a large part of the globe. This article from Cruise Critic covers the list of cruise lines offering world voyages in 2026 and 2027, along with pricing for each.
Expedition
Expedition cruises are sort of above and beyond the usual cruise experience. Ships go into areas not usually visited, like the Arctic and Antarctica, as well as the Galapagos Islands and the Amazon. This list of expedition cruises is a good reference.
River
If you watch PBS, you know about river cruises, specifically Viking River Cruises.
This type of cruise is attractive for a number of reasons. Little to no seasickness because of lack of wave action, low passenger count (200 or fewer), and the ability to visit lesser-known ports are three of them. Also, the boats often dock in or near the center of town, allowing passengers to get into the action as soon as they step onto land. River cruises operate worldwide, so you can enjoy various countries and cultures.
Themed
Many cruise lines promote trips for special interest groups. Classical music, blues, Star Trek, jigsaw puzzles, scrapbooking, cat lovers—there are all kinds of themed possibilities. If you are a fan or hobbyist in a particular area, a cruise focused on it will put you among others with the same interests.
2. Type of passengers
Who gravitates toward which cruises? Knowing what demographic you can expect to meet on a cruise is helpful. If you have kids, for example, you’ll want to take cruises that offer lots of things for them to do. If you don’t have kids, you may not want to bump into a lot of them during your strolls on deck.
Families
Family-oriented cruises are great for…well…families. The ships offer amusements and programs for different ages as well as opportunities for parents to steal moments on their own.
Disney Cruise Line is a stand out for me in this group. Royal Caribbean, Princess, and Carnival also operate ships focused on families.
Adults
Adult-only cruise lines and adult-oriented cruises promote getaways without the kids. They are also great for couples or individual travelers.
Virgin Voyages is a prominent adults-only line. Passengers must be 18 years or older, and all the spaces and entertainment are tailored for grown-ups. Many, if not all, of the luxury brands also cater to adults.
Singles and solos
While there aren’t any ships that are singles-only, you can find cruise lines or ships that offer rooms, amenities, and entertainment for singles and solo travelers.
Norwegian and Virgin are the most prominent in this space. Some of the newer Norwegian ships offer solo cabins opening onto a solo-only lounge. Virgin offers solo cabins (though they sell out fast!) and solo-focused activities.
3. Luxury/cost level
Level of luxury is pretty much directly proportional to cost. Big surprise, right? Like my three categories, these three buckets are a bit messy. For example, some companies’ older ships may fall into the best bang bucket, while newer vessels are in the midrange one.
Best bang for the buck
There is a wide choice of good value cruise lines. MSC, Carnival, and Margaritaville at Sea are part of this group, along with some itineraries from other lines like Royal Caribbean and Norwegian. Cruising on these lines can be great if you don’t want to spend a lot of money and aren’t picky about food or service quality.
Midrange
Midrange cruise lines offer higher quality on board without a luxury price tag. Décor, amenities, and entertainment are a step up from the value lines. I’d say that this is the center of the bell curve among all the options. Companies that fall in this category include:
Disney
Norwegian
Royal Caribbean
Virgin Voyages
Holland America
Princess Cruises
Emerald (River) Cruises
Luxury
All cruise lines have a high-level fare category offering suites, butlers, and all kinds of extra goodies. Then there are the others, the ones that provide a luxurious experience to their passengers (with a corresponding price tag).
Luxury lines to check out include these:
Viking River and Ocean ships
Seabourn
Silversea
Azamara
Cunard
Celebrity
Avast, me hearties!
There are a lot of experienced cruisers out there, and many swear by a single line. Frankly, even within one line, the experience could be different, depending on the ship, where it’s sailing, and how long the itinerary is.
If you are new to cruising or, like me, tried it a while back but didn’t take to it, how about revisiting this kind of travel experience? I did that and found my cruise line soulmate (more on this later in the month).
I’d love to hear about your experiences with cruising. Favorite trips? Places? Ships? Let me know!
We have taken a couple of Caribbean cruises, which were some of my favorite vacations. Just looking at the sea and the sky is restful, and getting into the warm, clear Caribbean water smooths out my blood pressure and feels healing. I'm always in pain by the time I finish packing, and again after some of the walking excursions, so a good masseuse and a good pool and jacuzzi are essential amenities for me. The more modern Royal Caribbean ships served us well. Healthy food is important, too, and the more upscale restaurants on Royal Caribbean were good in that regard.