Which cruise line for foodies

[jonj]

We have sailed on Carnival 2x, NCL 2x, Disney (many times), RCCL 3x, HAL 1x, Princes 1x a long time ago before kids. Our children are now young adults and we are no longer looking at kids activities as one of the more important features of a cruise line.

 

We have had fun on all the cruises we have been on, we are pretty easy going however we are foodies and looking to expand our cruise experience. We do like ships that are kept up well, We really enjoyed our cruise on HAL and at first we were thinking of going back but are concerned about the reviews of the ships being old.

 

Based on the food experience which cruise lines / ship(s) should we consider?

We are coming up on our 25th anniversary and looking at is as celebration cruise for the two of us. We are open to different itineraries and would like to first choose a cruise line / ship and then see what our options are

Edited July 17, 2016 by jonj

[LHT28]

look at some of the premium or luxury lines

 

I am not a foodie not even sure what that means

 

We do like quality food but not too fancy so Oceania ticks our boxes

[OCruisers]

Princess will be having the new Club Class Mini-Suites which will include Club Class Dining.

You might want to look into doing that. :)

[SuiteTraveler]

Among the mass market lines, Celebrity is a definite step up in terms of quality of food, especially if you are in a suite and therefore assigned to the restaurant (Luminae) for suite passengers. They also have several specialty restaurants which are quite good (Murano, QSine, etc)

 

Here you can see the Luminae menus from 2016:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2360875

 

That said, the premium lines all offer premium dining experiences and I also want to mention River Cruising - for example Uniworld - WOW - they buy the food they serve along the river, so you are eating things and usually drinking wine that are from the area in which you are cruising! That's a fantastic experience! Wine is included with dinner on many river cruises. Also many river cruises do specific culinary cruises - another opportunity to have something wonderful. Tauk is another river cruise line that is even more upscale than Uniworld and does many culinary cruises.

 

If you want to try Celebrity - go on any of the Solstice class ships.

 

For Uniworld, I'd go on almost any of their ships, and the same for Tauk. In regards to the premium lines - they usually only have 2 or 3 ships and they keep them immaculate, so it is ok to go on any of them to see what it is like.

Edited July 17, 2016 by SuiteTraveler

[Shorex]

It would help to know more about your definition of "foodie." Are you looking for something like miso black cod, wagyu beef, Iberico ham, fois gras, etc? You can get those selections on cruises, but only on the luxury lines.

[buggins0402]

https://www.smartertravel.com/2016/05/18/10-best-cruise-lines-foodies-2016/

[jonj]

Thank you, I guess I should have not used the word foodie. Thank you for information provided it gives me a place to start

 

 

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[BourbonNBluesLuvr]

Hello,

 

You also stated that you really enjoyed your HAL cruise, but were worried about old ships...why not look at their brand new ship...Koningsdam...that might be a good option.

 

Enjoy BBL

[Lionesss]

Having only sailed three lines....

 

Disney

Cunard

RCI

 

I enjoyed Disney the best.

 

Just saying

[jonj]

Having only sailed three lines....

 

 

 

Disney

 

Cunard

 

RCI

 

 

 

I enjoyed Disney the best.

 

 

 

Just saying

 

 

We enjoyed our Disney cruises also. However the cost for a similar itinerary is more than double than other cruise and with it being our 25th anniversary looking for somethings no different. We can do a suite in most other lines compare to a cost of a balcony room on DCL

 

 

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[cruisemom42]

If you are looking for a 'foodie' experience onboard ship, you'll either need to go with one of the premium or luxury lines or else consider a suite (with separate dining room) on a mainstream line.

 

Oceania is known to have good food (and in fact has won some awards in that regard).

 

However, IMO, it's best kept in mind that these ships are serving lots of food every day and it's likely that not every meal is going to be a culinary experience.

 

Rather than focus too much on the food aboard ship, I prefer to look for opportunities to dine ashore when i have the chance. Often a much better (and likely more authentic) experience than dining onboard.

[jonj]

.

 

 

Rather than focus too much on the food aboard ship, I prefer to look for opportunities to dine ashore when i have the chance. Often a much better (and likely more authentic) experience than dining onboard.

 

 

Thank you, we do that in our land vacations and like to immerse ourselves in the country we are visiting. When on a ship it is as much the destination as the ports we are visiting

 

 

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Edited July 17, 2016 by jonj

[ducklite]

We've sailed on four lines, Windstar had the best food. When the galley is only cooking for 300, it's more like a true restaurant than a banquet hall. Food comes out piping hot, they can make changes on the fly, and you can get a steak (a strip or filet) any night with no up charge for the asking.

 

In fact there are no up charges for anything served in any restaurant, and no additional charge for any specialty dining. The only thing you pay extra for is alcohol, some shore excursions, laundry, photos, and spa. Many of the ports they stop at are right by the major tourist attractions, and because the ships are small, they can visit ports larger ships can't. We spent two weeks in the Wind Surf and are hoping to do the Baltics with them for our 25th. The masted ships are very romantic.

 

No formal nights, every night is sophisticated casual--think resort wear. Cute dresses or slacks and a blouse for ladies, polos and chinos for men. One of my favorite things is that for $100 for the length of the cruise you can buy a laundry package and get everything washed every day a go home (or journey inward) with a suitcase of clean clothes. :)

 

We had never cruised in anything smaller than a 1BR suite before we sailed with them--in a 180 s/f cabin. We were a bit worried, but as soon as we got settled in, we realized we had no reason for concern. The cabin was bright, comfortable, well laid out and offered great storage and plenty of space. We also found that we used it to sleep and shower. The cruise was port intensive with only one sea day a week. They offered lectures (not just "buy our shore excursions or shop where we tell you) but interesting information about the ports, plus wine tastings, a demonstration by the chef, a handful of other diversions. They have a small but well stocked library--It looks like more than a few of the books have been donated by previous cruisers so there were a variety of topics from new releases to classics in fiction and non-fiction, plus a lot of books in various ports and regions the ship sails to. They also have a couple hundred DVD's you can borrow from.

 

There are two evening lounges, the main one which has a show band--typically 5-8 piece who play a variety from classic to contemporary. The smaller lounge hosts a solo or duo. The volume is always low enough that you can converse. There is a small casino with slots and table games and it seems to vary night-by-night as to how lively it is. I want to recall some board games also available in the library, although I don't recall seeing anyone play them. I imagine they would get a lot of use if the weather was iffy or on a TA. There is a gym that seems to get some use, and they have some water toys that can be used in certain ports--sea kayaks for example--no extra charge.

 

Typical passenger is 40-70, active, relatively well traveled, a lot of empty-nesters.

 

Back to the food...

 

Breakfast is pretty typical, a buffet with scrambled eggs, meats, pastries, yogurts, fruits, juices, cheeses, cereals, etc. You can also order eggs or omelet eyes cooked pretty much any way, if they have it in the kitchen they'll add it to your eggs in request. You can also get Eggs Benedict each day. I can't think of anything I might have wanted for breakfast that they didn't offer or couldn't make.

 

Lunch was the one meal that I thought they could improve in. It seemed very hit or miss. They always have a buffet with various meats, cheeses, breads and rolls, salads, etc. Usually some sort of hot dish as well on the buffet--pasta or Swedish Meatballs or something like that. The days they fired up the grill do cook burgers was always a hit--they were huge! Two could easily split one and be full. All that said, we found ourselves ashore most days and had lunch there rather than returning to the ship. This was the most common scenario for everyone, as a result I think they prefer to concentrate on dinners where pretty much everyone is dining on board.

 

Dinners were very good. Typically there would be four or five choices of appetizers plus a couple types of salad and at least one soup. There were typically 5-6 entrees and 4-5 desserts. You could also always opt for grilled fish, chicken, or steak. The night of the deck party it is a buffet.

 

In the morning the espresso bar was always open, and you could grab pre-made sandwiches there as well. (No additional charge for any of it).

 

The smaller lounge had a small breakfast buffet each morning as well with coffee, tea, juices, pastries, yogurts, and fruit, and offered afternoon tea which usually had coffee, tea, scones, cookies, and fruit on offer. There was ice cream for the asking at any time. Room service had no additional cost, just a tip if you wished. They would also deliver off the room service menu poolside.

 

Let me know if you have any other questions.

[Keith1010]

For Mass Market I would look at Celebrity.

 

For Premium look at Oceania.

 

For Luxury look at them all.

 

Keith

[OzKiwiJJ]

I haven't had the pleasure of cruising in a suite or Aqua cabin on Celebrity so would have to say that the cuisine in the regular dining rooms is not as good as Princess, both in variety of dishes over a two week cruise, and quality.

 

I thought Murano was good but not sensational. Very old-style French cuisine, and expensive at $50pp

 

I did enjoy Sabatinis on Princess and it is worth the $29pp extra.

[Flatbush Flyer]

This past week, we attended a presentation by the president of Azamara. When asked to compare that line with Oceania, he remarked that Oceania's stellar hallmark is its food (while Azamara's is evening port time/excursions).

 

Oceania's keystone is the quality and variety of its food, followed by its service, which includes SERVED dishes from its casual restaurant (Terrace Grill) and pool cafe (Waves). There is nothing more unappetizing than the thought of hundreds of passengers pawing the self-serve "Golden Corral/Appleby's" buffet offerings on a mass market line - so gross!

Note, of course, that there's no extra charge for specialty restaurants.

 

Remember too that, on Marina and Riviera, you can also enjoy cooking lessons at the Jaques Pepin inspired culinary academy, which is a state-of-the-art dedicated facility.

Edited July 18, 2016 by Flatbush Flyer

[alexspepa]

Oceania's food and service is top-notch - grilled lobster, filet mignon, lamb chops on the buffet every night. The specialty restaurants are excellent and no-charge and everyone gets to visit them at least once each cruise.

 

Lots of fresh fruit options at breakfast and the outside grill has a lobster-filet surf and turf sandwich!

[worldspan]

After 135 cruises I would say in terms of bang for the buck on food your choice should be Oceania.

[geoherb]

The food on our last Celebrity cruise was disappointing. Both Princess and HAL served us better. The main dining room of mass market cruise ships, though, will never be on the same level as a Michelin-starred restaurant. I'm happy if it's tasty and nutritious.

[loubetti]

I never had a bad meal on Cunard or Celebrity and, thankfully, I do NOT describe myself as a "foodie", heaven forbid! :cool:

[FredT]

Well, I DO see myself as somewhat of a "foodie"... (And my waistline shows it) Our last three cruises have been on HAL, and I have to say that while not BAD, the quality of the food has slipped on each subsequent cruise.

 

This has never bothered us though, as we take a great deal of time and effort to plan at least one meal ashore at each port... And have had the pleasure of finding some spectacular restaurants... (If anyone has a day in Auckland.... the Te Whau Vineyard & Restaurant out on Waiheke issland... Oh My GOD!!! ) :D

[Glaciers]

This is certainly very subjective but this is our list in order. Seabourne was amazing.

 

Seabourne

Cunard

Windstar

Oceania

[kitty9]

We stopped cruising Celebrity after over 35 cruises because of the decline in their food. We took an Oceania cruise and we will never look back. Their food is amazing, their specialty restaurants are no extra charge, and the food in those specialties are beyond what we expected.

[jonj]

Thank you everyone

 

 

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[pris993]

Among the mass market lines, Celebrity is a definite step up in terms of quality of food, especially if you are in a suite and therefore assigned to the restaurant (Luminae) for suite passengers. They also have several specialty restaurants which are quite good (Murano, QSine, etc)

 

Here you can see the Luminae menus from 2016:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2360875

 

That said, the premium lines all offer premium dining experiences and I also want to mention River Cruising - for example Uniworld - WOW - they buy the food they serve along the river, so you are eating things and usually drinking wine that are from the area in which you are cruising! That's a fantastic experience! Wine is included with dinner on many river cruises. Also many river cruises do specific culinary cruises - another opportunity to have something wonderful. Tauk is another river cruise line that is even more upscale than Uniworld and does many culinary cruises.

 

If you want to try Celebrity - go on any of the Solstice class ships.

 

For Uniworld, I'd go on almost any of their ships, and the same for Tauk. In regards to the premium lines - they usually only have 2 or 3 ships and they keep them immaculate, so it is ok to go on any of them to see what it is like.

 

Celebrity is always my last choice, so that says how subjective food rating are...

 

We have cruised 9 different lines over the years. "Worse" was NCL, next Celebrity... largely because not flexible, i.e., we like to order off menu.

 

By contrast Princess and Cunard are the most flexible and rate the highest for us in terms of responding to our requests.

 

We are not foodies but like fresh and healthy meals.