Would You Take a Seven Day "Stationary" Cruise?

[gizmo]

Not for me. The floating hotel is not the part of the cruise that I go for - I could do that at a fancy hotel with bigger rooms. I want the ports and the 'at sea' experience.

 

My exact thoughts. :)

[Jade13]

Although it sounds like an oxymoron if there ever was one, a well known budget travel writer Arthur Frommer is suggesting that the new behemoth cruise ships loaded with amenities would do well just to remain in port. They could then offer seven day "stationary cruises" and never go anywhere, but guests would stay on board as in a traditional cruise, but never leave the dock. This would save foreign port fees and, most advantagious of all, costly fuel.

 

Would any of you be interested in such an arrangement or are there other benefits to traditional cruising at sea that you would miss, even if traditional cruising would cost substantially more than a "stationary cruise"?

 

 

That is similar to a Cruise to NoWhere. At least on a Cruise to NoWhere, pax can watch the water from their balconys or in the pool area. Who wants to walk around a promenade Deck on a ship that is not moving?

[firefly333]

no..... I want to see something besides a port. Besides..... what port charges would you save..... we would have to pay for the port we are tied up at. :rolleyes:

 

Cruises to nowhere anchor out at sea. Thats why they are really cheap per day.

[Chichi99]

Absolutely! I have severe motion sickness and although I have taken multiple cruises, I never fully enjoyed them because I was always sick, dizzy, vomiting, nauseous!  Also, staying around the coast of the US would also be a great option with going into different ports!

[Shmoo here]

42 minutes ago, Chichi99 said:

Absolutely! I have severe motion sickness and although I have taken multiple cruises, I never fully enjoyed them because I was always sick, dizzy, vomiting, nauseous!  Also, staying around the coast of the US would also be a great option with going into different ports!

Ummm... the question was asked 12 years ago.

 

Not sure such a "cruise" is legal.  Unless the ship is actually a hotel (anchored to land) that's shaped like a ship.  Generally shops and such are not open when "in port" so not sure how that would work on it.

[navybankerteacher]

Sounds like a truly stupid idea:  who would want to build a resort hotel that had to meet Coast Guard safety requirements, that had to have watertight integrity, that had to generate its own power, process its own waste, etc., etc., etc, ?

 

Then, who would want to pay for that limited environment in a resort hotel?

 

The concept is suggestive of developing a pineapple with an outer covering like what is found on a banana.  Wouldn’t that be great?

[Capt_BJ]

resurrection from 2007 .....

 

look up 3 posts . . . 

[lenquixote66]

I know Arthur Frommer and I doubt that he would ever have wanted to do a non moving cruise.

[ldubs]

No way I want this.  I mean really, how would we debate flying in two days early to avoid missing the cruise? 

 

OTOH, a pineapple with a banana skin -- hmmmm.   

[donaldsc]

What you are asking about is called a resort hotel or an all inclusive resort.  

 

DON

[brillohead]

Since this got resurrected from a dozen years ago, I'll chime in on the hypothetical subject.

I joke with my mom about this subject.  She would love to cruise with me, but her motion sickness simply won't allow it.  (She can have trouble just riding to the grocery store in town.)

She'd like to see things like Central Park and Boardwalk and the Royal Promenade and the ice skating show and the Aquatheater show and other entertainment.  She'd enjoy relaxing on a lounger, in the pool, or in a hot tub.  She'd enjoy the service level in the Main Dining Room, with a variety of foods offered every night.  Same with the Tutti Salad in the MDR at lunchtime.  

I've stayed at an all-inclusive resort, and it was really nothing like a cruise ship.  The foods offered in the buffet didn't really vary much from one day to the next, and there wasn't much variety in what was offered -- certainly not a dozen or more different entree options. If you wanted a sit-down / served meal, you had to pay extra for "specialty dining" and it wasn't particularly formal or service-oriented.  

Entertainment was basically the same type of singing/dancing show every night, and there was only one nightclub for dancing and drinks at night.  Daytime activities were limited to the pool or the beach, with golf or tennis or an excursion for an additional charge.  

I'm sure there are many types of all-inclusive resorts, just as there are many types of cruise lines/ships.  But dollar for dollar, I didn't get the same level of entertainment and food and features and service from an AI as I do on a cruise ship.

That being said, for me personally, I'd love a cruise of all sea days and no ports as much as I love a regular cruise.  I keep wanting to do a trans-Atlantic, but something always seems to get in the way.  

Maybe instead of a constantly-docked ship, Royal could offer a "specialty non-sailing" cruise once or twice a year specifically marketed toward people who have issues with motion sickness, travel phobias, open water phobias, documentation/immigration legal issues, etc.  Kind of like how trans-Atlantics are twice a year and draw a certain crowd that likes that type of experience. 

It might even be able to be coordinated with Coast Guard inspections or maintenance or crew training drills that require docking but not necessarily dry-docking, killing multiple birds with one stone, while also generating revenue.  I remember reading a post here recently about someone's itinerary being changed to include several days in a row in the same port, because of some sort of inspection needing to be done.  Instead of disappointing people who wanted to be at sea, that cruise could have been planned as a "docked" cruise in the first place.



 

[DirtyDawg]

15 hours ago, Shmoo here said:

Ummm... the question was asked 12 years ago.

 

Not sure such a "cruise" is legal.  Unless the ship is actually a hotel (anchored to land) that's shaped like a ship.  Generally shops and such are not open when "in port" so not sure how that would work on it.

 

So what if the question was asked 12 years ago. We should congratulate the this decade's OP, Chichi99, for using the search function and digging this up for their very first post on CC. Good job Chichi99!

 

As for the question itself. I wouldn’t go on a zero-cruise cruise because it would be like an AI but without the beach, without the nice BIG rooms, and probably without the All Inclusive goodies of an AI. These days the mainstream cruise lines are not much different in food quality, specialty restaurants, and entertainment compared to good AI's. 

 

Lastly, who would the zero-cruise cruise ship sell those inside cabins to?  Have you every stayed at a land-based hotel or resort in a room without a window? 

 

Keep on searching, Chichi99!

 

 

Edited March 9, 2019 by DirtyDawg

[brillohead]

1 hour ago, DirtyDawg said:

Lastly, who would the zero-cruise cruise ship sell those inside cabins to?  Have you every stayed at a land-based hotel or resort in a room without a window? 

I've stayed in hotel rooms in big cities where the window was a foot wide or less and looked out onto a brick wall that was maybe 4-6 feet away.  No big deal, as I don't sit in a hotel room looking out the window.  Even now, I'm in a hotel room with the curtains drawn closed.

Insides make it nice and dark for sleeping in or taking an afternoon nap.  I have a whole pool deck if I want to look out a window. 

[Sea Hag]

No, I wouldn't like that at all. If I want a land-based vacation, there's a thing called a hotel.

[cb at sea]

If I'm not going somewhere, I'd rather be in Vegas!  Better rooms, better food, better casinos....lots to do!

[gooch47]

We seldom get off the ships at ports anymore.  Been there, done that.  My first inclination was that I'd be happy with just going to sea and sailing around for 7 or 10 or whatever days.  But I also enjoy sitting on our balcony at ports watching people or tour boats or whatever.  So I guess we'll just keep on doing what we do.

[Aplmac]

If it was docked at Pier 90 in Manhattan

where one could go ashore, go to MOMA and the Met, do some NYC shopping

and come back to the ship(hotel) -on a cruise line I'm already loyal to-

yes that could work, at least the once ..maybe even twice.

 

But ports of call are kinda nice too

.

[jocap]

Sunborn hotels are luxury yachts moored in Gibraltar and London, which don't sail. 

Cruise and Maritime has one ship which moors in London occasionally in winter, and offers dinner, entertainment, bed and breakfast, at low rates (for London), without going anywhere.

We were on board Azura overnight for her naming in 2010, and didn't miss the sea... but we would have done if we'd been on board for much longer.

[AL3XCruise]

8 hours ago, Aplmac said:

If it was docked at Pier 90 in Manhattan

where one could go ashore, go to MOMA and the Met, do some NYC shopping

and come back to the ship(hotel) -on a cruise line I'm already loyal to-

yes that could work, at least the once ..maybe even twice.

 

I agree there are plenty of places where the opportunity to explore for multiple days would be great.  Most, however, probably have good alternatives compared to a cruise ship.  NYC is a good example of an exception: the cost of a hotel room, food, and entertainment in Manhattan would certainly be more than that of comparable cruise accommodations.  In most places, however, I'd lean towards a resort or traditional hotel if I was staying more than a few days AND the ship was not providing me with transportation to/from the location.

 

6 hours ago, jocap said:

Sunborn hotels are luxury yachts moored in Gibraltar and London, which don't sail. 

Cruise and Maritime has one ship which moors in London occasionally in winter, and offers dinner, entertainment, bed and breakfast, at low rates (for London), without going anywhere.

Queen Mary and QE2 are both stationary, though I think they are marketed more as "floating hotels" than "docked cruise ships".

[sanger727]

When I first read this post my first thought was no way. Then I re-read it and started to see some sense to it. Assuming the ship was docked in a Caribbean port (say Cozumel) as opppsed to an embarkation port; this wouldn’t be entirely different than staying at an all inclusive. A floating hotel with meals included, activities, entertainment, drink package if you chose. Based on the premise that the cost could be lowered by saving fuel; it could be in line/lower cost than a traditional AI. Interesting concept. We enjoy AIs but overall find the food and entertainment better on a cruise ship.

Edited March 17, 2019 by sanger727