The Travel's 16 Best Cruise Lines in the U.S. (HAL=7th)

[Destiny0315]

Like any best of list it's subjective but still an interesting read. The lines are ranked by their overall rating.                                                                                    https://www.thetravel.com/best-cruise-lines-in-the-us-ranked-by-rating/#azamara

Edited May 27, 2023 by Destiny0315

[ncgolferette]

The ratings have got to be a joke!  Carnival and Virgin in the top two!

[cruisemom42]

36 minutes ago, ncgolferette said:

The ratings have got to be a joke!  Carnival and Virgin in the top two!

 

I think you have to understand the author's perspective -- this sentence in the introduction says much:

 

"But a key factor for most vacationers is price...."

 

 

[DCThunder]

37 minutes ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

I think you have to understand the author's perspective -- this sentence in the introduction says much:

 

"But a key factor for most vacationers is price...."

 

 

The other perspective is the audience that most likely reads a website like "thetravel.com".  I'd bet there isn't much overlap with the subscribers of Travel & Leisure or other magazines/websites of that ilk.  Hence lines like Seabourne, Viking, Cunard, and Oceania aren't even in the author's Top 10, while Windstar barely cracks it at #10.

 

Also don't forget that Virgin Cruises are the hot "hip" cruise line of the moment, so I'm not surprised they're #1.  They also probably advertise on "thetravel.com" and that can't be discounted either.

 

But I guess the author achieved her objective of getting some clicks on the website with another listicle.

[HappyInVan]

The only ratings that matters are the ones you assign, and the bookings you make.

 

Its not a surprise that Carnival ranks highly among the budget conscious. It is good value and entertaining, if you don't mind the crowds and the crowds.

 

What's been a surprise to me is that HAL has been steadily catching up with Carnival. 🙄

[Mary229]

I do think the list is heavily skewed by value criteria.  The author discusses inclusions extensively.   That a person doesn’t like the style or ambience is hard to gauge 

[OlsSalt]

Interesting how much emphasis was put on the personal care level on HAL ships, and not really mentioned for the other "top" lines. Hope HAL preserves this special "premium" niche--another word repeated in the HAL entry. Which makes one wonder what those other lines really look like on board.

[Sir PMP]

2 hours ago, Destiny0315 said:

Like any best of list it's subjective but still an interesting read. The lines are ranked by their overall rating.                                                                                    https://www.thetravel.com/best-cruise-lines-in-the-us-ranked-by-rating/#azamara

You can take that with a piece of (ols)salt.

[ExArkie]

Makes me wonder about credibility when their example ship from Cunard is actually a Disney ship.

[iceman93]

I repeatedly wondered if the author made a mistake and actually posted the ratings in reverse order.  Either way, HAL is middle-of-the-pack which is probably about right.

[Shalandara]

20 hours ago, ExArkie said:

Makes me wonder about credibility when their example ship from Cunard is actually a Disney ship.

They must have changed their examples -- mine was clearly the Queen Mary 2.

[POA1]

So, a 7th place ranking from a site that doesn't crack the top 25 list of travel review sites is a concern? I could see it were Travel & Leisure, Conde Nast Traveller, TripAdvisor or another site that I heard of, but seriously...

 

This is akin to, "The parents of Cub Scout Troop 81 agree that Royal Caribbean & Carnival are best cuz they have awesome waterslides!" 🤩

[Destiny0315]

Here is Conde Nast's Best Cruise Lines of The World Readers Choice Awards from last October 2022 for a more accurate comparison of the mixed bag that the cruise world offers:

https://www.cntraveller.com/gallery/best-cruise-lines-in-the-world-2022

[ExArkie]

1 hour ago, Shalandara said:

They must have changed their examples -- mine was clearly the Queen Mary 2.

Interesting. I just clicked the link at the top of this topic. The page to which that took me still shows a Disney ship under the Cunard heading. I went the long way to the page, i.e., opened their main page and scrolled down to the article, and found the same picture. If you saw Queen Mary 2 when you looked, which was presumably earlier than I did (I’m always slow) that means they replaced a correct picture with an incorrect one.

 

Or maybe my Web browser is just playing mind games on me….

 

[Shalandara]

6 minutes ago, ExArkie said:

Interesting. I just clicked the link at the top of this topic. The page to which that took me still shows a Disney ship under the Cunard heading. I went the long way to the page, i.e., opened their main page and scrolled down to the article, and found the same picture. If you saw Queen Mary 2 when you looked, which was presumably earlier than I did (I’m always slow) that means they replaced a correct picture with an incorrect one.

 

Or maybe my Web browser is just playing mind games on me….

 

OK, I see now whats happening.  I was referring to the "sample cruise" you could choose and you are talking about the picture -- which I wasn't looking at.  (Visuals on many webpages are often lost on me as I mentally tag them as advert pictures and not relevant! -- unless I am on a specific site where the visuals are relevant such as clothing shopping, map itineraries for HAL cruises, etc)

[HappyInVan]

Here's the assessment of CC Editors...

 

https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/best-cruise-ships-2022-cruise-critic/index.html

 

Best Entertainment: Norwegian Cruise Line

Best Value for Money: Carnival Cruise Line

 

Best Service: Holland America Line

Best Spa: Holland America Line

 

 

[cruisemom42]

28 minutes ago, ExArkie said:

Interesting. I just clicked the link at the top of this topic. The page to which that took me still shows a Disney ship under the Cunard heading. I went the long way to the page, i.e., opened their main page and scrolled down to the article, and found the same picture. If you saw Queen Mary 2 when you looked, which was presumably earlier than I did (I’m always slow) that means they replaced a correct picture with an incorrect one.

 

Or maybe my Web browser is just playing mind games on me….

 

 

I'm seeing a Disney ship also. While there are some similarities in their look, Disney ships have the gold flourishes on the prow. (I also don't think any current Cunard ships have more than one funnel?).