After your first cruise.. what next?

[Michaline]

I've noticed that A LOT of you have been on multiple cruises (from multiple cruiselines as well as ships). I was just wondering how you decided which one's to go on. For instance, I'll be going on the Carnival Triumph as my first cruise, and if I like it, how would I choose which one to go on next? Do you usually do the same cruiseline with different ships if you liked that line? Or do you try each cruiseline at least once before repeating? Just wondering what kinds of things play into your decision about where you'll cruise next.

[cruise memories]

Michaline we usually pick the destination then the ship. We have only been on two lines so far but DH likes to pick a newer ship. He is funny the bigger the better!

[Tarkus]

I usually look for deals + destinations. I'm a diver, so that dictates a lot of my Caribbean interest. Plus, I'm single - and prefer rooming that way - so deals are all-the-more important.

 

Oh, and while I've done Carnival three of those times, I likely won't do them again - not from dissatisfaction, but simply demographic: I'm approaching 50, and they're great when you're in your 20's or 30's... but the near all-night partying of the younger types is now more of an irritant than something I enjoy. Celebrity is next on my "to-cruise" list! :)

[Nliedel]

I like to tr different things. I loved RCI when I started cruising so I picked another RCI ship but then I got adventursome and jumped ship to Carnival, then Princess, then back to RCI. NCL I am on the fence about (I am not a big "freestyle" fan but the Dawn looks so lovely), and Celebrity is in the future, I am now thinking seriously about Celebrity for a short cruise next spring. I also try a different hotel everytime I go to Las Vegas as well. I actually like familerarity. I get into routines at home and travel is one area in life where I can "shake it up" and try something different.

[catmand]

...........we get a great big map of the world.........

[CaptData]

First I need newer ships as I'm disabled. Older ships usually are not as friendly to me. I look at where it is going, price (I'm single travelling by myself) and if I've been there before. I've done Panamal, eastern Carb, Western Carb and Southern so ports are now becoming important. I'm going to Hawaii on Summit next.

[mii]

We started with Princess and stayed with them for 6 cruises until in three weeks from today we sail Celebrity because I happen to like the itiniery out S.F. better than Princess and also it is try another line.

 

Marilyn

[Cotton]

QUOTE=Tarkus]Plus, I'm single - and prefer rooming that way - so deals are all-the-more important.

 

I'm also a solo cruiser. Hard to get good 'deals' with the supplements, but it CAN be done.

 

 

Oh, and while I've done Carnival three of those times, I likely won't do them again - not from dissatisfaction, but simply demographic: I'm approaching 50, and they're great when you're in your 20's or 30's... but the near all-night partying of the younger types is now more of an irritant than something I enjoy.

 

Hmmm. I'm in my early 60s, and I don't find young folks partying to be an irritant. Nobody forces you to party hardy. There are quiet lounges all over the ship - just stay out of the disco!:D

[Tarkus]

i'm approaching 50 myself - perhaps "irritant" was a little strong, but these days i just seem to favor a bit more sedate indulgence than the more raucous partying on carnival. as i say, have done them more times than any other cruise company so that must say something... just trying to expand the horizons a bit.

 

and, yeah, "deal" should remain in quotations for singles - the term is definitely relative! :rolleyes:

[familycruzer]

For our first couple only cruise we went to Bermuda because there was a ship leaving Philly so we did not need airfare. It was great to experience a cruise without the kids but we loved it so much we needed to take them along the second time.

We then headed to a family 4 night Carnival cruise because it fit the budget but we did not like the food, service, or design of the ship and cabins.

Our third cruise was back to Bermuda because we wanted to go back so our kids could see what we were talking about. Celebrity was great for the adults but lacking for the kids.

This time around we are heading out on the VOS which we are hoping will be the best of both worlds.

Once we find a cruise line, I doubt we will go back to a dulplicate port until we have been everywhere we want to go.

[karen2cruz]

It's been fun to try different cruiselines. Our first priority is itinerary, then price and cruisline about equal. We are divers and so we picked this latest cruise on itinerary. The price is great but I am a little nervous about an older ship. My DH loves the idea of "Freestyle" dining and not dressing up on formal nights- boo hoo.

 

The different lines can vary greatly in experience such as going on Royal Caribbeans Vision class versus Voyager class... or....Princess smaller classes versus the Grand class. When our teens are with us we tend to go on those bigger ships.

 

Bottom line is a cruise is what you make it, not the ship. We have never been disappointed and just love the cruise experience. We treat the staff kindly and they bend over backwards for us.

 

Have a wonderful first cruise!!

[hajekfam]

For our first cruise, our TA asked us a lot of questions. He then told us about this fairly new cruiseline and a brand new ship that he thought we would like. We went on the Celebrity Zenith and were hooked. It was an experience that we couldn't believe. Celebrity is such a good match for us that decide our cruise by looking at Celebrity's schedule for when we want to cruise, or look to see when Celebrity is offering the itinerary we want. We also look to see if Celebrity is offering a special that is to good to pass up. We find that we get the same experience on any Celebrity ship. Sure a few of the amenities may differ - the Millennium class have a specialty restaurant and aquaspa cafe, the Horizon and Zenith do not have a thallasotherapy pool, but we find the service and qualitiy are the same Celebrity ship to Celebrity ship. Ports don't matter to us as we consider the ship our destination and any ports are gravy.

[MSC]

Our first cruise was Halloween on the Disney Magic. We had such a terrific time that we rebooked while on board for the following July. We are going to Alaska July 3 aboard that Amsterdam and back to the Caribbean on Costa's Magica next March. :)

[stanford's girl]

We've cruise 3 times and about to do our 4th. All 4 cruises will have been on different lines. We chose by price and destination. To us, there is no such thing as a bad cruise. Things are not always perfect but we just roll with the punches. The worst day on a cruise is better than the best day at work!:D

[Tess2mommies]

After your first cruise, book another one! I actually had so much fun planning the first one, I was researching a second before we even went on the first. :) We are staying with the same cruiseline we tried the first time but a different class. Eventually, I want to try Radission, Royal and HAL but for the time being Princess is fine.

[MichTraveler]

Seems like each cruiser has a different style. Some stick with what they know and others try things new. If you choose to stick with Carnival, consider doing a deposit for a future cruise onboard. I'm not sure about Carnival, but Princess has a future booking desk. The benefits are: reduced deposit of $100/pp and OnBoardCredits in addition to the best price you negotiate with your TA including any OBC for booking. The deposit is fully refundable within 4 years or so if you decide not to cruise. Enjoy your cruise!

[ClaudiaF]

Love that!

[traveller99]

Hi, Michaline. I've read you on just about every forum on C/C. Are you, like, writing your thesaurus on the Travel industry, with a minor in Crusing? Just wondering.. and pulling your leg, too:D. I used to do this type of thing at the dining room table - throw out a topic, watch the carnivours attack and sit back and have an evening's entertainment. This is interesting though. While we all have our preferences/loyalties, I'd say that the Itinerary has a large degree of importance. Yes, I can go to hither and yon, but not necessarily when I can go. Point - Kids, (19 & 20) one week in August - a little less expensive, foreign - CARIBBEAN. Who's there - Princess, hands down. Only done Celebrity twice, can we do this - YES and it was very nice and the "Kids" loved it. Our next cruise (After Bermuda on the CELEBRITY HORIZON) will be the Baltic area. So, who has the cruise for us? We'll see... ENJOY!

[Cruisin' Chick]

Hubby is another "bigger is better" fan. Also "new" ships. He had already taken his first cruise (Carnival to Caribbean) when he met me. After an "one day" cruise, he got me to take a Mexico cruise with him, but he found the Jubilee to be too small. The next one was another Carnival one (a really new one) to W. Caribbean (he discovered I was one of those white knuckle flyers).

 

The next one was another Carnival one -- 3-day because of his schedule, he couldn't take a 7-day off from work. We had also looked at RCL but they were still letting people smoke in the dining room and I was preggers. The next time, we had a certain date in mind and RCL was sold out so we went on another Carnival one.

 

Then the Paradise, which we wanted to try because it was a non-smoking ship (until last Fall). One of my favorite cruises as we didn't have to worry about enjoying the fresh air on deck and then having smoke blow our way.

 

After another Baja one (again Carnival), someone who worked for my hubby --and whose girlfriend works for Princess -- offered us a really good rate on the Princess Star, which was still pretty new.

 

My hubby decided he wanted to go on the RT to Hawaii on the Island Princess (which was a new ship). By now, we have to go during school vacations. But then he discovered the Regal was still doing that route, and the late December one was already sold out. So we booked the Sapphire for Alaska (took the time from central California up to Seattle). When we were on it, it was only two months old!

 

Next one will be the Island. Lots of sea days but we like them.

 

So, for us: big, new, different itineraries from time to time (I'm so over Mexico), avoidance of flights (because of me as well as the hassle of security and long lines -- hubby hates to wait in lines). We usually take inside cabins to save on $ and we don't want to risk a balcony with a little one. Disney is too expensive. And not interested in the hoity toity cruiselines -- hubby thinks they're too crowded with people so full of themselves.

 

But it's really to each their own. Get some different cruiseline brochures and flip through them and some place will grab your attention. Some places you won't have to book way far ahead. Read these boards and you'll get lots of info. Just take some of what you read with a grain of salt. And enjoy!:)

[stevenpatty]

you will love the triumph. we sailed our first cruise on the same ship in 11/2004. we loved it so much we are now booked for 8/2005 and taking along our 19 and 21 year old "kids". the 8/2005 cruise will be on the carnival sensation and our selection was based on past experience (we loved the first cruise with carnival) and then price and port. we are sailing out of new orleans and chose that port as none of us have ever been to the city so staying there precruise for some early vacationing. have a great time and enjoy.

[geoherb]

I started with a Carnival cruise with a couple of friends, then took one with my current DH on Norwegian. Once we went on Royal Caribbean, I knew we probably wouldn't go back on those first two lines. Lately, we've taken Celebrity and Princess cruises. I just did my 12th. It averages out to one every 18 months--not nearly enough. If I start counting the last half, we've been doing them every 8 months. That sounds a lot better to me.

[SailAways]

What in the world is that little rectangle which identified my internet information???

[cim]

Usually like a different ship. Try the newer ones. Then destination. This past April I went on Destiny which is the only ship I have been on twice. The destination was the key. Wanted to do southern and they had best intinary for me.

[tinsel57]

Well I seem to be the only one trying to build my Crown and Anchor points!

It seems most lines all offer a similar itinerary for the more common cruises areas and we've been pleased with RCC so I've been planning with this line to build points so I can obtain a discount on a pricier itinerary for the future.

 

That being said, I've got my eye on Radisson Tahiti for my own 50th birthday! Points or not!

[wrp96]

After my 1st cruise on RCCI, I was in love with the cruise line so I looked for cruises that fit the itinerarys I wanted to do on RCCI within my price range. For my last cruise, it was who had a deal for single cruisers for when I could go, which happened to be RCCI. RCCI's land customer service screwed up (but the cruise was great), which made me look at other cruise lines for my next cruise, but they couldn't beat RCCI for the itinerary and type of ship that I wanted to do. Also, at this point, I'm trying to build up my Crown and Anchor level. After my next cruise, I'll start choosing based on itinerarys and price. I probably won't do NCL, not because they aren't a good cruise line, but because Freestyle doesn't appeal to me (glad they have it though for people it does appeal to), although if a really good deal came along I wouldn't pass it up. I've stayed away from Carnival because of the party ship image but, because of cruise critic, I may try them because they seem to be moving away from the fun ship image, which isn't me. Basically I've come to the conclusion that any day I can spend at sea beats a day I spend on the shore. I look forward to the day when I have the time, and the money, to go on a cruise whenever I want.