First cruise on smaller ship?

[bigrednole]

We were booked on HotS in August, now November, and truly expect that to be canceled as well. We figured for a first cruise we should go on a big ship with all the bells and whistles. We are considering a smaller/older ship for March if the November cruise is canceled. We are booked on the Mardi Gras in July, but not sure if we would miss out on the grandeur of a large ship on our first cruise. 

 

Our options are Oasis OTS, Explorer OTS, Mardi Gras, Carnival Breeze, and NCL Escape. Oasis, Mardi Gras and Escape are all 7-nights. Breeze is 8-nights and we could get a Lido deck balcony. Explorer is 9-nights. Itinerary wise, Explorer is the best hands down with 9 hours in Labadee, 13 in Aruba, 12 in Curacao, 9 in Bonaire. All of the other itineraries are the normal 8-9 hours at the general ports we like some on each of them and will enjoy them regardless. Price wise, Mardi Gras is the best, followed by Explorer. The rest are about the same.

 

Being that we will be on a large ship in July, is it still wise to be on a large ship for the first cruise? Explorer is smaller (half the size almost), would it be too old because it didn't get the Amped treatment?

[TNcruising02]

I have been on Harmony of the Seas, Breeze, and Norwegian's Escape, among other ships.  By far, the most amazing ship was Harmony.  The Escape was nice though and the Breeze is one of my favorite ships.  I am booked on the Mardi Gras for April, so I am excited about that.  

Anyway, for a first cruise I think you will like any of those ships you named.  I haven't sailed on the Explorer though, but the itinerary sounds great.  I think size matters if you are interested in a very wide assortment of things such as restaurants and entertainment.  The smaller ships have that, but not nearly on such a huge scale.  I have sailed on a variety of  ships and had a great time on all of them, but there is no doubt that the Oasis ships are incredible.  Since I am happy with less, the Breeze works for me.  If you want fancy and a very wide variety of places to eat and things to do, then nothing compares to the Oasis ships.  

For a first cruise, I think you will enjoy any ship.  It's such an amazing experience and you won't be constantly comparing the ship to others.  Everything will be new to you.

[SelectSys]

I think you will be happy with any ship unless you just don't click with the whole cruise experience.  I actually tend to pick the destinations over the specific ship and prefer longer trips over shorter ones.  I think the 9 day on Explorer sounds the best to me.  Also, small is a relative term.  I still think of Explorer as being a large ship and when it first sailed it was one of the largest in the world.

Edited August 7, 2020 by SelectSys

[Aquahound]

Mardi Gras will be Carnival's newest, so I don't think you'd be missing many mega ship amenities by sticking with that booking.  However, I'm very skeptical of that ship because it's space to passenger ratio is one of the worst I've ever seen.  It looks like it's going to be a VERY crowded ship.  

 

I highly recommend Explorer.  It is an excellent cruise and you already like the itinerary more than the others.  Bonaire is my favorite Caribbean island.  Plus, she just completed a $100+ million refurbishment.  She's got many larger-ship amenities like the Flowrider, waterslides, etc.

[Hlitner]

The OP's post makes me smile.  My first cruise ship (Sunward II) was about 14,000 tons and I considered it a large ship :).  Last summer we cruised on the Seabourn Soujourn which is about 38,000 tons and I considered that a medium size vessel.  But new and younger cruisers now think that 100,000 ton ships are small.  

 

I would only offer these words of cruise wisdom,  If you look at the very expensive high end cruise lines vessels you will notice that many are smaller then 50,000 tons.  You will not find 100,000 ton luxury cruise ships.  Large ships are fine (we have cruised on many) but when we want lots of quality we look for ships with no more then 600 passengers and much smaller size.

 

Hank

[navybankerteacher]

Your first cruise is magic --I was fortunate enough to first sail on a 600 passenger ship  - so I got an idea -- later sailings with 2500 passengers (too many for my taste) convinced me that size DID matter: the bigger the ship, the worse the experience.

 

But, to each his own - do you want the sea - shared with a few others who want the same - or a floating casino/amusement park/shopping mall combo - where you do not have to (and probably cannot in any case)  see, feel or smell the sea?

[Cruzaholic41]

Bigrednole, please ignore the previous post. Some obviously weren’t able to read your post and understand you were asking about Explorer being a smaller ship compared to Harmony.
 

Anyways, to answer your question, I’ve cruised Explorer many times, and I recommend that ship over any Carnival or NCL ship. Explorer, while smaller than Harmony, is still a grand ship with lots to do. 
 

And yes - you can still see, feel, and smell the sea. 🙄

[Essiesmom]

Oh no, please don’t ignore that post.  I totally agree.  I would never recommend that a new cruiser start on the largest, newest ship.  Whatever ship you choose is going to seem huge.  Any of the ships will have enough features to keep you exploring the entire week.  EM

[bigrednole]

Thank you all for the replies. I really do appreciate it. Since the original cruises were suppose to be a turning 50, makeup vacation, and sick of the lockdown, we booked Harmony and were going all out. We had some great deals on it when we booked. I expect it to be canceled. Our next opening is the week of Easter. The cost is generally in line with what we would have refunded. For some I have the added cost of flights over Easter. The "splurge" would be a 9-night first cruise on the Explorer. The other "splurges" would be on the bigger/newer ships like Oasis, Mardi Gras, etc. 

 

If we choose Explorer, we would be in an interior room. We will do the Royal Up and hope for the best. The current pricing for OV or Balcony is well above what we think we could get for Royal Up. We would be perfectly fine with an interior room as well. I think we would cruise like we do Disney World. The room is for sleeping and showering. If you need "relaxing" time, finding a seat somewhere with a cocktail in hand shouldn't be too difficult and in the room is not the place for it 🙂

Edited August 8, 2020 by bigrednole

[donaldsc]

The Explorer is more than 3000 passengers.  That is hardly a small ship.  To me, any ship that is more than 1000 passengers is over sized.  I have been doing most of my cruising recently on R class ships which are typically 650 passengers and that is plenty big enough for me.  You are traveling on a ship and not on a floating amusement park.

 

DON

[bigrednole]

8 hours ago, TNcruising02 said:

the Breeze is one of my favorite ships. 

The Breeze was moved to PC for our next sail window. It is 8-nights, goes to Curacao, Aruba, and Turks and Caicos. The port stops are not as long as Explorer. The one thing I liked about this sailing was that they had Lido Deck Balcony rooms. I can really get use to bars and entertainment about 100 feet from my room and not have to do stairs. 

 

Just now, donaldsc said:

The Explorer is more than 3000 passengers.  That is hardly a small ship. 

I was comparing the size to Harmony OTS. 

 

I should have also stated that we will have a then 15 year old daughter. Unfortunately an only child. She is at the vacation age where she needs to be able to meet other kids to have fun and not be attached to my hip. Teen clubs and activities will be equally as important. 

 

Edited August 8, 2020 by bigrednole

[TNcruising02]

5 hours ago, bigrednole said:

The Breeze was moved to PC for our next sail window. It is 8-nights, goes to Curacao, Aruba, and Turks and Caicos. The port stops are not as long as Explorer. The one thing I liked about this sailing was that they had Lido Deck Balcony rooms. I can really get use to bars and entertainment about 100 feet from my room and not have to do stairs. 

 

I was comparing the size to Harmony OTS. 

 

I should have also stated that we will have a then 15 year old daughter. Unfortunately an only child. She is at the vacation age where she needs to be able to meet other kids to have fun and not be attached to my hip. Teen clubs and activities will be equally as important. 

 

I've taken a Carnival ship to Curacao and Aruba twice.  It was fantastic both times.  I always try to get a cabin on the lido deck because it's so much easier to get to the places on the ship where we spend a lot of time on sea days.  I really think you will be happy with any ship you choose.  

Edited August 8, 2020 by TNcruising02

[George C]

My favorite class of ship is voyager class, explorer of the seas is a voyager class , I think it’s the perfect size , love the ice show and other entertainment options , which smaller ships do not have and not the huge crowds of the much larger ships. I think it would be great for a first cruise.

[evandbob]

In the age of COVID, I would not get an interior cabin.  JIC of any diversions or changes of itinerary, I would like the extra open feeling of a balcony to escape to and not be cramped by the 4 walls of an interior (and even an ocean view).

 

We were on the HotS in January with a mid ship balcony and certainly enjoyed the ocean scenery through visual, auditory, olfactory and even tactile (from occasional spray) sensory perceptions.

 

The OP will have at least 3 in an interior, and if a problem arises, that could feel like very cramped quarters.

[cruizergal70]

9 hours ago, donaldsc said:

The Explorer is more than 3000 passengers.  That is hardly a small ship.  To me, any ship that is more than 1000 passengers is over sized.  I have been doing most of my cruising recently on R class ships which are typically 650 passengers and that is plenty big enough for me.  You are traveling on a ship and not on a floating amusement park.

 

DON

Comments like this are not telling of the actual cruise experience.  

 

If you are on the pool deck, that doesn't mean that all the other 2999 people are on the pool deck with you. People are in their cabins, in the restaurants, in the gym, in the casino, playing bingo, doing a trivia contest, taking a dance class,  a cooking class,  etc. 

 

Since no one would ever experience all the other 2999 all at one time, the total number of people on the ship is irrelevant.  I've been able to experience all I've wanted to experience on any ship. The occasional line will not ruin ones cruise.

[donaldsc]

1 hour ago, cruizergal70 said:

Comments like this are not telling of the actual cruise experience.  

 

If you are on the pool deck, that doesn't mean that all the other 2999 people are on the pool deck with you. People are in their cabins, in the restaurants, in the gym, in the casino, playing bingo, doing a trivia contest, taking a dance class,  a cooking class,  etc. 

 

Since no one would ever experience all the other 2999 all at one time, the total number of people on the ship is irrelevant.  I've been able to experience all I've wanted to experience on any ship. The occasional line will not ruin ones cruise.

 

My dislike of large ships has nothing to do w the number of people w the number of other people that I will be sharing the pool deck with.  I have been on large 2000+ passengers and I just don't enjoy the cruising experience.  Sharing a ship with 2999 other people definitely does impact the actual cruise experience.

 

I don't want to have to make a reservation for going to the show as you have to do on a large ship.  I like the idea that I can walk from one end of the ship to another in 3 minutes.  I like the idea that it takes me only 2 minutes to walk from my cabin to a any spot on the ship.  I like the idea that especially on Azamara ships, the captain wanders around the ship and actually talks to the passengers.  I like the idea that after a few days on board, you can actually recognize and chat with other people on the ship.  Most of all, I  prefer to cruise on a ship that was designed as a ship that gets me to interesting places and not as a floating amusement park. I cruise to see things and go to places and not to spend my time in floating shopping malls.  

 

What worries me about the results of the Covid disaster is that the affordable smaller ships will disappear and we will be left with horrible mega ships and really expensive small ones.

 

DON

Edited August 8, 2020 by donaldsc

[zqvol]

19 hours ago, bigrednole said:

We were booked on HotS in August, now November, and truly expect that to be canceled as well. We figured for a first cruise we should go on a big ship with all the bells and whistles. We are considering a smaller/older ship for March if the November cruise is canceled. We are booked on the Mardi Gras in July, but not sure if we would miss out on the grandeur of a large ship on our first cruise. 

 

Our options are Oasis OTS, Explorer OTS, Mardi Gras, Carnival Breeze, and NCL Escape. Oasis, Mardi Gras and Escape are all 7-nights. Breeze is 8-nights and we could get a Lido deck balcony. Explorer is 9-nights. Itinerary wise, Explorer is the best hands down with 9 hours in Labadee, 13 in Aruba, 12 in Curacao, 9 in Bonaire. All of the other itineraries are the normal 8-9 hours at the general ports we like some on each of them and will enjoy them regardless. Price wise, Mardi Gras is the best, followed by Explorer. The rest are about the same.

 

Being that we will be on a large ship in July, is it still wise to be on a large ship for the first cruise? Explorer is smaller (half the size almost), would it be too old because it didn't get the Amped treatment?

Nne of those are what I would consider small ships. Thye are all huge, some just bigger than others. Small ships typically ave fewer than 500 passengers.

[zqvol]

18 hours ago, Hlitner said:

The OP's post makes me smile.  My first cruise ship (Sunward II) was about 14,000 tons and I considered it a large ship :).  Last summer we cruised on the Seabourn Soujourn which is about 38,000 tons and I considered that a medium size vessel.  But new and younger cruisers now think that 100,000 ton ships are small.  

 

I would only offer these words of cruise wisdom,  If you look at the very expensive high end cruise lines vessels you will notice that many are smaller then 50,000 tons.  You will not find 100,000 ton luxury cruise ships.  Large ships are fine (we have cruised on many) but when we want lots of quality we look for ships with no more then 600 passengers and much smaller size.

 

Hank

I have to agree. My first voyage was on Sea Dream with about 100 passengers and 90 crew. Ship size is 4200 tons. We have well over 100 nights on board and those are some of the best voyages we have ever been on.

[cruisemom42]

2 hours ago, cruizergal70 said:

Comments like this are not telling of the actual cruise experience.  

 

If you are on the pool deck, that doesn't mean that all the other 2999 people are on the pool deck with you. People are in their cabins, in the restaurants, in the gym, in the casino, playing bingo, doing a trivia contest, taking a dance class,  a cooking class,  etc. 

 

Since no one would ever experience all the other 2999 all at one time, the total number of people on the ship is irrelevant.  I've been able to experience all I've wanted to experience on any ship. The occasional line will not ruin ones cruise.

 

I am curious if you have ever sailed on a small ship -- say one with 700 passengers or less?

 

I have done both, and I much prefer the smaller ships. It doesn't have to do with crowds per se -- although I have never seen so many loungers (two levels of them) stacked around a pool deck as on the 3,000+ passenger ship -- much of the time there was not even space to walk between the chairs -- you had to climb onto yours from the end.  

 

But anyway, I digress -- small ships offer something that is hard to put a finger on, but since I travel solo I think part of it is more of a sense of community. You're in a smaller group and you run into the same faces over and over. People seem friendlier to others not in their personal group. There is no bustle getting on or off the ship -- no queuing for tender tickets, no long lines on embarkation or disembarkation. Service is also more personalized. 

 

Of course, this isn't everyone's cup of tea, and I get that. Nothing wrong with those who like the big ships and all they offer. But they are totally different experiences.

 

[navybankerteacher]

2 hours ago, cruizergal70 said:

Comments like this are not telling of the actual cruise experience.  

 

If you are on the pool deck, that doesn't mean that all the other 2999 people are on the pool deck with you. People are in their cabins, in the restaurants, in the gym, in the casino, playing bingo, doing a trivia contest, taking a dance class,  a cooking class,  etc. 

 

Since no one would ever experience all the other 2999 all at one time, the total number of people on the ship is irrelevant.  I've been able to experience all I've wanted to experience on any ship. The occasional line will not ruin ones cruise.

Actually, I believe that people who have sailed on both large and small ships DO recognize a distinctly different “actual cruise experience”.  Simply having thousands, rather than hundreds, of others sharing debarking and boarding, dining, entertainment and recreational venues, etc. is noticeable.

[Tapi]

In my humble opinion, for a first time cruiser, "big" is very different than for a seasoned cruiser who has sailed aboard ships of various sizes. For example, we cruised in 2019 aboard the 70,000 ton, 30 year old Carnival Fantasy (rest in peace).  LOTS of first time cruisers. We chuckled as we boarded, hearing several people commenting out loud in awe at the ship's size and "impressive" design.

 

Personally, I consider that an Oasis class ship can be overwhelming, even for a seasoned cruiser. I know that when we sailed on our first ship in this class (Allure of the Seas), I found myself exhausted trying to do it all. We finally gave up halfway through the week and agreed that we would just skip various shows and activities in favor of some quiet and relaxation. It was a wonderful vacation, but I could see how it could actually turn some people off since it doesn't feel like a more traditional cruise vacation. 

 

From the list provided, I think that the OP can't go wrong with any of them, even if they haven't been amplified. All are great ships. I would concentrate more on itinerary. Have a great cruise! 

Edited August 8, 2020 by Tapi

[Hlitner]

3 hours ago, cruizergal70 said:

Comments like this are not telling of the actual cruise experience.  

 

If you are on the pool deck, that doesn't mean that all the other 2999 people are on the pool deck with you. People are in their cabins, in the restaurants, in the gym, in the casino, playing bingo, doing a trivia contest, taking a dance class,  a cooking class,  etc. 

 

Since no one would ever experience all the other 2999 all at one time, the total number of people on the ship is irrelevant.  I've been able to experience all I've wanted to experience on any ship. The occasional line will not ruin ones cruise.

I guess that is not quite our experience, but we only are newbies with over 45 years cruising experience on more then 65 different ships of all sizes.  So lets put this in perspective.  When we are on large or medium size ships (such as on HAL) getting a well located (or any) deck chair often means getting out on deck before 10am and not leaving our loungers for more then a few minutes.  On many large ships these deck loungers are so close that there is not even room for a small table.  In fact, on some vessels the loungers actually are butted up against each other.  When we go on the much smaller luxury ships the loungers are well spaced, there are usually tables next to each lounger, etc.  On large mass market ships folks will line up to get a decent seat in the theater, line up to get into the Lido buffet. line up to get on and off the ship at ports, etc.  But if you are on a small luxury vessel there are no lines, you can walk into the theater at showtime and get a decent seat, etc.

 

Actually the simple way to look at all this is to determine the space ratio (tonnage divided by total passengers).  On the large mass market ships the space ratios tend to vary from the lows 30s to low 40s.  On the luxury ships the space rations are often higher then 70 (tons per passenger).   I would make the assumption that if you have never been on a smaller spacious vessel you have no clue how different it is from its larger cousins.  Personally I am happy on small vessels (we have been on as small as 20 passenger) or really large ships (over 4000 passengers) or anything between.  We simply adjust to the ship.  But being able to walk in a bar on Seabourn, grab a seat at the bar, listen to the music, and eat my included caviar is completely different then standing outside a piano bar on Princess or HAL (they have eliminated most of their piano bars) and hoping that somebody will leave so we can grab a seat.

 

But I will reiterate my own standard that a "small ship" has fewer then 600 passengers.  From about 600 -2400 I would call a medium size vessel and from about 2400 - 4000 would be a large ship.  Beyond 4000 I would call huge and DW would call it the "Blight of the Seas."

 

Hank

[bigrednole]

On 8/8/2020 at 11:53 AM, evandbob said:

The OP will have at least 3 in an interior, and if a problem arises, that could feel like very cramped quarters.

If we go the route of Explorer OTS, we would book interior (because of the price) and do the RoyalUp to get to a Balcony. It is much cheaper to go this route for us. 

 

Here are the concerns I have for choosing Explorer of the Seas. If anyone had some comments on these, it would be helpful. These questions are because we use to do Disney at least once every year and we would be doing stuff all day and night.

• Teen Club with other teens my daughter's age. With this being the week leading up to Easter and 9-nights, will there be enough kids her age to have fun with. This would destroy the vacation for us and her if she had to be joined at our hip the whole time.
• Things to do on the Sea Days. Because the AMP is not happening, the slides, laser tag, and other entertainment things won't be there. With 4 Sea Days, is there enough things to do to stay entertained. The first Sea Day will be to find things around the ship and everything new. That is fine. The second one is after Labadee which will be a nice relaxation. The other two are the last days of the cruise. Maybe 3 days of running the ABCs need those two to relax.

 

 

[Hlitner]

11 hours ago, bigrednole said:

If we go the route of Explorer OTS, we would book interior (because of the price) and do the RoyalUp to get to a Balcony. It is much cheaper to go this route for us. 

 

Here are the concerns I have for choosing Explorer of the Seas. If anyone had some comments on these, it would be helpful. These questions are because we use to do Disney at least once every year and we would be doing stuff all day and night.

• Teen Club with other teens my daughter's age. With this being the week leading up to Easter and 9-nights, will there be enough kids her age to have fun with. This would destroy the vacation for us and her if she had to be joined at our hip the whole time.
• Things to do on the Sea Days. Because the AMP is not happening, the slides, laser tag, and other entertainment things won't be there. With 4 Sea Days, is there enough things to do to stay entertained. The first Sea Day will be to find things around the ship and everything new. That is fine. The second one is after Labadee which will be a nice relaxation. The other two are the last days of the cruise. Maybe 3 days of running the ABCs need those two to relax.

 

 

I will take a shot at the teen question.   Our DD started cruising at age 5 and it continues to this day (beyond age 30).  When she reached her early teen years we noticed a big change.  As a pre-teen it was all about the kids program, counselors, etc.  But as a teen it was about making 1 or 2 good friends.  It did not matter if there were 5 teens or 20.  The key was when she bonded with 1 or 2.  And that kind of bonding is all about luck.  If she made a good friend the activities really were not important as she had fun just hanging out with the new friend or friends.

 

Hank

[bigrednole]

FOMO is setting in as we research what to switch to when our cruise is canceled. We book HotS originally because it was a 50th BDay/18th Wedding Anniversary trip. The attraction to go on Explorer is the itinerary + 9 nights. The attraction to Oasis is that it is similar to HotS. The itinerary is still good (Labadee, always wanted to visit Jamaica, and Cozumel snorkeling), but the time at ports for the ABCs is very attractive.