Do You Like Christmas Cruises?

[island lady]

No.  

 

IMHO...Overpriced with masses of ignored and uncontrolled noisy children running wild.  😮 

 

OK...flame suit is on...fire away.  😄 

 

Cruising about 2-3 weeks before, is our choice.  Still get to see the decorations, and enjoy the festive atmosphere....without the....   😉 

[DaniDanielle]

I still think parents wave goodbye to their kids at the start of the cruise and tell them see you at the end🤪

[2chiefs]

1 hour ago, island lady said:

No.  

 

IMHO...Overpriced with masses of ignored and uncontrolled noisy children running wild.  😮 

 

OK...flame suit is on...fire away.  😄 

 

Cruising about 2-3 weeks before, is our choice.  Still get to see the decorations, and enjoy the festive atmosphere....without the....   😉 

No flames from us!!!

We always cruise the two weeks prior to Christmas and enjoy watching all the decorations being put in place. The atmosphere is festive and a lot of fun. We did a cruise once over Christmas and while it was fun, there were just too many kids running around for our tastes. I think a Christmas cruise is more suited to family cruising verses couple cruising. We've never tried New Years.

 

Our Christmas present to our selves is usually a B2B just before Christmas every year.

 

T

 

[2chiefs]

This is the present we put under "our" tree! (A cruise ship!!)

 

Edited December 17, 2020 by 2chiefs

[AC Stew]

Know that as a general rule, we'll avoid any sailing that would attract families with children. That's why we stick to smaller ships and longer cruises. No floating behemoths with water-slides and skating rinks and carnival rides for us! We're also careful to avoid school holidays, especially Spring Breaks.

 

However, get ready ... Christmas is a notable exception! This will be the first Christmas in many years that we won't be on a ship! Love the holiday decorations, the entertainment, the festive atmosphere, the little extras that the cruise lines roll out. And even my "child-averse" heart melts  when we watch Santa and the elves dole out pressies to the munchkins on Christmas morning. (Or maybe, that's a little buzz from the complimentary rum egg nogs!)

 

I enjoy seeing the diversity of multi-generational families celebrating their holidays together. I enjoy seeing the kids dressed up at night, something that you don't always observe on a cruise. I even think that they're better behaved; maybe because the grandparents are watching?

 

True, these sailings are busy, but I really do think that people are nicer to each other.

 

And finally, as a former "crew" member myself, I understand how very difficult it is to be away from home during the holidays. While being cared for by the crew and staff, I always remember that.

 

Next year?!

 

 

[AC Stew]

Forgot to mention: An all the way to the rear aft-facing balcony might be the key to the prefect Christmas cruise. No patter of little thundering feet!

[NateUpNorth]

On 12/16/2020 at 11:23 AM, LuCruise said:

Have never sailed right over Christmas but last year DH and I were on Adventure a week prior so all the decorations were up.  My family doesn't actually celebrate Christmas, but the Promenade was very pretty with the big tree and they had a couple elaborate gingerbread houses (Promenade and Windjammer if I'm remembering correctly).  It was very pretty and impressive.

 

But if cruises are back running by Christmas 2021, then we will be on board for the first time over Dec 25th.  I'll be honest, that I hope that they have stuff going on that isn't just Christmas, but I think it'll be a really happy and pretty time to be on a cruise (everyone in a good mood and cheerful).  Looking forward to it...fingers crossed.

 

Am interested in reading comments of what the ship does over xmas.

 

We are in the same boat (pun intended, sorry)
Don't celebrate Christmas, however we have sailed a few times in that sweet spot between American Thanksgiving and X-Mas (usually the first/second week of Dec) where we can get the KSF that usually runs and it's close enough to the holidays that the kids don't miss a lot of "actual" school work. 

It's also before the giant fare increases for the Christmas/New Year's sailings.

 

And even though we have elementary school aged kids I don't really have a desire to test the waters of what others call the "kids gone wild" timeframe. LOL

[island lady]

43 minutes ago, 2chiefs said:

No flames from us!!!

We always cruise the two weeks prior to Christmas and enjoy watching all the decorations being put in place. The atmosphere is festive and a lot of fun. We did a cruise once over Christmas and while it was fun, there were just too many kids running around for our tastes. I think a Christmas cruise is more suited to family cruising verses couple cruising. We've never tried New Years.

 

Our Christmas present to our selves is usually a B2B just before Christmas every year.

 

T

 

 

 

Tried the NYE cruise once, while the fireworks outside of Nassau were great, and it was very festive, there were just too many extremely drunk young adults partying way too much.  Found them passed out in places, puking, doing "the naughty" in various places on deck.  Ugg...maybe if I was 30 years younger...but definitely not for me.  

 

Agree totally with you...2-3 weeks before Christmas is our deal.  Have been doing it that way as our "Christmas present" to ourselves for many years now.  Unfortunately, the B2B we had booked on Harmony went bye-bye this year...as it did for all of us.  😞 

[island lady]

44 minutes ago, 2chiefs said:

This is the present we put under "our" tree! (A cruise ship!!)

 

 

Me too.  😉 

 

BTW..."Sea" you on board 12/5/21...we are also doing a B2B as usual, but have picked 11/29 and 12/5/21.  We sort of "meet you in the middle.".  🙂 

[LuCruise]

25 minutes ago, NateUpNorth said:

 

We are in the same boat (pun intended, sorry)
Don't celebrate Christmas, however we have sailed a few times in that sweet spot between American Thanksgiving and X-Mas (usually the first/second week of Dec) where we can get the KSF that usually runs and it's close enough to the holidays that the kids don't miss a lot of "actual" school work. 

It's also before the giant fare increases for the Christmas/New Year's sailings.

 

And even though we have elementary school aged kids I don't really have a desire to test the waters of what others call the "kids gone wild" timeframe. LOL

DH and I have gone twice in December prior to xmas and it was great.  Good pricing too.

Unfortunately our kids are too old now to take them out of school so we tend to cruise March break and end of summer.  We were only able to get an ok price for xmas as we booked it right when our March break got cancelled (booked Dec 2020 but then L&S).  Also since it's out of NJ, flight should be less....or we can even drive if needed.  The cost to fly to Florida is too $$$ at that time. My main worry is the line ups for things....We are on Anthem so mostly the SeaPlex activities. But with the other lost cruises, we are giving it a try...and will bear any crowds and kid rowdiness.  Think it will be a really nice time to be on a ship....even without celebrating the holiday ourselves.

[George C]

34 minutes ago, NateUpNorth said:

 

We are in the same boat (pun intended, sorry)
Don't celebrate Christmas, however we have sailed a few times in that sweet spot between American Thanksgiving and X-Mas (usually the first/second week of Dec) where we can get the KSF that usually runs and it's close enough to the holidays that the kids don't miss a lot of "actual" school work. 

It's also before the giant fare increases for the Christmas/New Year's sailings.

 

And even though we have elementary school aged kids I don't really have a desire to test the waters of what others call the "kids gone wild" timeframe. LOL

Totally agree we always cruise the week after thanksgiving, rates are normally very reasonable, tree is up, this is first year in a long time that we couldn’t do that,

[2chiefs]

19 minutes ago, island lady said:

 

 

Tried the NYE cruise once, while the fireworks outside of Nassau were great, and it was very festive, there were just too many extremely drunk young adults partying way too much.  Found them passed out in places, puking, doing "the naughty" in various places on deck.  Ugg...maybe if I was 30 years younger...but definitely not for me.  

 

Agree totally with you...2-3 weeks before Christmas is our deal.  Have been doing it that way as our "Christmas present" to ourselves for many years now.  Unfortunately, the B2B we had booked on Harmony went bye-bye this year...as it did for all of us.  😞 

We were booked on the same B2B on Harmony. We've shifted them to 2021. Maybe we'll see you there?

BTW, I think we've cruised together before.

T

[2chiefs]

18 minutes ago, island lady said:

 

Me too.  😉 

 

BTW..."Sea" you on board 12/5/21...we are also doing a B2B as usual, but have picked 11/29 and 12/5/21.  We sort of "meet you in the middle.".  🙂 

I guess I should read all the posts first... I responded to your earlier one before this one. Yes, hope to meet up with you on the 12-5-21 cruise!

[island lady]

19 minutes ago, 2chiefs said:

I guess I should read all the posts first... I responded to your earlier one before this one. Yes, hope to meet up with you on the 12-5-21 cruise!

 

Lets hope this one sticks!  😉 

[NateUpNorth]

2 hours ago, LuCruise said:

DH and I have gone twice in December prior to xmas and it was great.  Good pricing too.

Unfortunately our kids are too old now to take them out of school so we tend to cruise March break and end of summer.  We were only able to get an ok price for xmas as we booked it right when our March break got cancelled (booked Dec 2020 but then L&S).  Also since it's out of NJ, flight should be less....or we can even drive if needed.  The cost to fly to Florida is too $$$ at that time. My main worry is the line ups for things....We are on Anthem so mostly the SeaPlex activities. But with the other lost cruises, we are giving it a try...and will bear any crowds and kid rowdiness.  Think it will be a really nice time to be on a ship....even without celebrating the holiday ourselves.

 

We have been looking at the NJ/Balt cruises lately..... right now we have a L&S next year in that timeframe outta Miami but after that..... well, we've done the 18hr drive from Southern Ontario to a Florida cruise port enough times at this point..... the exchange rate isn't helping the flying idea.... 7 hours to a port would be a walk in the park!! LOL

 

[cruisequeen4ever]

Christmas at sea are absolutely magical! That said, it does get frustrating dodging children and dealing with more crowds. I still like spending Christmas on a cruise more than anywhere else, though!

[cruisegirl1]

We have taken many Christmas and New Year’s cruises, some  back to back and absolutely love them. I have a birthday that falls in between Christmas and New Year’s so that usually makes the cruise(s)  even more festive. Given a choice I would take New Year’s Eve over Christmas. 
 

There are lots and lots of families on board, but that doesn’t bother us. Seems that we are enjoying different parts of the ship than the families are enjoying.  We tend to hang out in the solarium, have a late dinner in specialty restaurants and don’t find many kids there. We are generally not involved in the family centered Christmas activities.  Honestly, I’ve never seen the type of unruly children that are described on these boards. 
 

It seems there are often more international passengers on board. We enjoy meeting and speaking with others from different countries.  

Fewer upper tier C&A on holiday sailings. For some, that seems to be a plus. 
 

In fact, we had a birthday/New Year’s eve cruise scheduled for this year.   Of course, it is canceled. Looking forward to a holiday cruise to ring in 2022! 
 

Years ago we used to sail the first two weeks of December. They were not very crowded, and had excellent prices. Prices seem to have gone up throughout the years and we’ve moved to New Year’s Eve Cruises from early December
 

m

 

Edited December 17, 2020 by cruisegirl1

[Ourusualbeach]

2 hours ago, NateUpNorth said:

 

We have been looking at the NJ/Balt cruises lately..... right now we have a L&S next year in that timeframe outta Miami but after that..... well, we've done the 18hr drive from Southern Ontario to a Florida cruise port enough times at this point..... the exchange rate isn't helping the flying idea.... 7 hours to a port would be a walk in the park!! LOL

 

My first and only cruise out of NJ was this past March...you know how that went.  I was so looking forward to the 8 hour drive.

 

Back to the long trek to Florida.  Looking forward to the short drive next Christmas....only going as far as PC instead of Miami. 
 

Since the kids are now in University and I have a couple of airline credits to use up DW and I will be flying the next two March breaks...the kids were not amused.  I actually just booked flights for March 2022 last weekend...prices have already jumped from when I booked. 

[LuCruise]

36 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

My first and only cruise out of NJ was this past March...you know how that went.  I was so looking forward to the 8 hour drive.

 

Back to the long trek to Florida.  Looking forward to the short drive next Christmas....only going as far as PC instead of Miami. 
 

Since the kids are now in University and I have a couple of airline credits to use up DW and I will be flying the next two March breaks...the kids were not amused.  I actually just booked flights for March 2022 last weekend...prices have already jumped from when I booked. 

Nice you'll be flying March 2022. Forgot that they would be selling already. Would consider booking but we are double booked so not sure our plans now (depends how 2021 plays out).  Am worried though the cost of flights once travel is back .

[LisaLisa87]

We’ve only been on one cruise that was actually over Christmas, and that wasn’t even our primary reason for choosing that week! We were celebrating my 50th birthday on 12/23. We loved the decorations and festive atmosphere and had a great time. The weather wasn’t the greatest, but we may have just been unlucky. I found a great collapsible Christmas tree for our room. 
 

 

[OACAggie]

On 12/16/2020 at 1:15 PM, LuCruise said:

Our xmas cruise is a rebook of Anthem that we both lost last March break.  

Our paths will cross in NJ. We get off when you are getting on. We have never been on a ship around Christmas, so looking forward to seeing the decorations.

This will be our 2nd time on Anthem and enjoy the shorter drive...though don't mind the drive to FL either if getting on a ship is at the end of the road!

[OACAggie]

On 12/16/2020 at 1:15 PM, LuCruise said:

Our xmas cruise is a rebook of Anthem that we both lost last March break.  

Double Post.

Edited December 18, 2020 by OACAggie

[LuCruise]

5 minutes ago, OACAggie said:

Our paths will cross in NJ. We get off when you are getting on. We have never been on a ship around Christmas, so looking forward to seeing the decorations.

This will be our 2nd time on Anthem and enjoy the shorter drive...though don't mind the drive to FL either if getting on a ship is at the end of the road!

Edited (as misread).  You are on the one before xmas?  

Really want to try Anthem (with shows running and all)....so hoping Dec 2021 will be the one.

Edited December 18, 2020 by LuCruise

[OACAggie]

1 minute ago, LuCruise said:

Are you on the New Years Anthem cruise? 

We are on the 12 night before Christmas. Get off on the 24th. We are taking kids out of school, but they will only miss the last week before the break, which they don't do anything anyways. My son's grade 8 class is doing pizza and playing XBOX today in school...I think we are ok to take them out of school next year.🤣

[RFerrington]

15 hours ago, cruisegirl1 said:

Prices seem to have gone up throughout the years and we’ve moved to New Year’s Eve Cruises from early December

 

Prices were so weird for Christmas/NY for our Symphony 12-23-21 and 12-31-21.  For non-suites, the Christmas cruise was more expensive than the NY cruise....but for suites, the NY cruise was more expensive than the Christmas one.  That would tend to suggest that families sail in non-suites, which, I guess, makes sense.  Both of our cruises were Empress L&S so we got good prices on both.