Top 10 Ultra-Luxury Cruise Accommodation

[Texas Tillie]

In the past Holland America might have been considered premium, but with all the cut backs on number of crew and quality of food, I don't think it would qualify now. I'll be on HAL again July 10th and will let you know my experience. My other cruising experiences are Crystal and Princess. I don't think HAL could be considered a higher category than Princess any longer. From my understanding, Azamara and Oceania would qualify as premium.

[Keith1010]

Texas Tillie, personally I have never cared for HAL, but I do know that there is a difference in the experience depending on the ship. For example, many long term cruisers would tell you that they consider the Prinsendam which is part of HAL to offer a premium cruise experience. This is why I mentioned that it depends on which HAL ship you sail on.

 

Unfortunately, unlike the Luxury cruise lines there is more of a difference between cruise lines/ship which have been categorized as premium. I tend to think that some premium cruise lines are getting closer to Mass Market although they are probably still a little bit above them while others are clearly a cut above.

 

Keith

[Travelcat2]

I agree that Azmara and Oceania are classified are "premium". The only cruise lines I am aware of that are considered by TA's and travel magazines as "luxury" are Regent, Silversea, Seabourn, Crystal and Seadream.

[Keith1010]

I agree that Azmara and Oceania are classified are "premium". The only cruise lines I am aware of that are considered by TA's and travel magazines as "luxury" are Regent, Silversea, Seabourn, Crystal and Seadream.

 

 

You are right with the ones you've listed but there are actually a few more.

 

Luxury

Hapag Lloyd (mostly attract European passengers but this board is world wide and some USA passengers also go on selected sailings)

Seadream

Crystal

Silversea

Regent

Seabourn

Sea Cloud

 

Premium

 

Cunard (some would say Grills Class Luxury) but the overall ship is Premium

Asuka

Celebrity

Holland

Windstar

(and a few small ships and river cruises that I am not listing)

 

I think in time that another category could be used so that there are actually four not three categories and sometimes there is a variance within a cruise line (eg,. Holland).

 

Keith

[wripro]

Actually, I think Oceania and Azamara are referred to as deluxe. Cunard Grill accommodations are usually considered luxury but not imo because you still have to deal with a huge ship of 2600 people. Deluxe is a step above the premium lines such as Celebrity, HAL and probably Princess. From there you go to the mass market lines such as Carnival, RCCL and NCL.

[Keith1010]

wripro, sounds like a good category to me; Deluxe to differentiate some of the premium cruise lines from one another as there is a difference between the top and bottom ones in that category.

 

And on the list I provided below I forgot (oops) to list Azamara and Oceania). My fingers on the key board were not in sync with my brain on that one. :)

 

Keith

[MMDown Under]

Thank you very much everyone for your comments in relation to premium ships.

 

Keith1010, I appreciate your comparisons to hotel brands, which make it easier to visualise the difference.

[SeaDawg]

Here is another way to break down cruise lines by category. I know some will take exception to this because many people are fiercely loyal to their favorite cruise line.

 

Luxury

Cruise lines known for more intimate ships, spacious staterooms (most with balconies), high crew-to-guest ratios, exceptional service (some suites include butler service), and gourmet food and wine options (often all-inclusive).

American Safari Cruises<?XML:NAMESPACE PREFIX = O /><O:P></O:P>

Crystal Cruises<O:P></O:P>

Cunard*<O:P></O:P>

Paul Gauguin Cruises<O:P></O:P>

Regent Seven Seas<O:P></O:P>

SeaDream Yacht Club<O:P></O:P>

Silversea<O:P></O:P>

Yachts of Seabourn<O:P></O:P>

 

*Cunard's Queens Grill and Princess Grill suites are considered "luxury" but the rest of the ship is firmly in the "premium" category.<O:P> </O:P>

Premium<O:P></O:P>

Premium lines are one notch below the luxury lines and offer some of the best deals in cruise travel today. They offer upgraded amenities and impeccable service.<O:P></O:P>

Azamara Cruises<O:P></O:P>

Oceania Cruises<O:P></O:P>

Windstar Cruises<O:P></O:P><O:P> </O:P>

Deluxe<O:P></O:P>

Deluxe cruise lines are excellent choices for those who are not looking for an all-inclusive experience (one including food, alcohol, and gratuities). Your experience will be more a la carte than vacations aboard a luxury or premium vessel, but the service and amenities are still excellent.<O:P></O:P>

Celebrity Cruises<O:P></O:P>

Cruise West<O:P></O:P>

Holland America Line<O:P></O:P>

Princess Cruises<O:P></O:P>

SeaCloud Cruises<O:P></O:P>

Star Clippers<O:P></O:P><O:P> </O:P>

Mass-Market<O:P></O:P>

Mass-market cruise lines are most often marketed to families, young couples, and retirees. Ships are some of the largest in the industry, staterooms are basic (although most offer suites of some kind), and you'll need to sign a chit for everything from a soda to a spa treatment.<O:P></O:P>

Carnival<O:P></O:P>

Costa<O:P></O:P>

easyCruise<O:P></O:P>

Disney Cruise Line<O:P></O:P>

MSC Cruises<O:P></O:P>

Norwegian Cruise Line<O:P></O:P>

Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines<O:P></O:P>

 

 

[flag fan]

Seadawg -- I agree with your categories. I was wondering where Star Clippers fits in; now I know.

[editor@cruisecritic]

this is an interesting topic and I'm not sure if I have the energy tonight to hurl myself into the big ship/little ship luxury debate but I love the question: what are the best accommodations at sea?

 

I'll weigh in on my favorites (and by the way I think the bigger suites are more important on bigger ships than on luxe ones, where the whole ambience is about luxury, whether you're in your cabin or not).

 

Most recently, I was in a Crystal penthouse suite (the second biggest on the ship) and it was comfortable (if dated; it was on the Symphony and they're going to be reworked later this year) and beautifully designed. Big bathroom. Separate tub/shower. Loved that the bedroom and living room could be separated with a curtain (hubby sleeps late so I could move around without disturbing) though would prefer two different rooms, in all honesty.

 

Second best cabin recently -- and oh, I hear the groans coming :) -- was on MSC Fantasia. We had a Yacht Club cabin that was superb, two separate rooms, a bedroom that wrapped around the front of the ship, huge big windows, a completely separate living room (fantastic as I had serious jet lag and was quite nocturnal), a nice (lukewarm on this one) bathroom, not as nice as Crystal's).

 

Regent Seven Seas has a category of penthouse suites -- the most common of the suites -- on Seven Seas Voyager and though it was a big room in an L-shape it was roomy and had a great bathroom. Not thrilled about RSSC renovating bathrooms and eliminating bathtubs. Seems the antithesis of luxury to me, frankly.

 

We also were in Queen's Grill on QM2, a front-of-ship suite (Princess Anne) that was vast and so very comfortable! No balcony cause of front-of-ship spot but bath-and-a-half, lovely dining area with antique furnishings, roomy bedroom. Very comfortable there....

 

So what are your favorite cabins?

 

Carolyn

 

 

Carolyn Spencer Brown

Editor in Chief

Cruise Critic

[Travelcat2]

 

 

Regent Seven Seas has a category of penthouse suites -- the most common of the suites -- on Seven Seas Voyager and though it was a big room in an L-shape it was roomy and had a great bathroom. Not thrilled about RSSC renovating bathrooms and eliminating bathtubs. Seems the antithesis of luxury to me, frankly.

 

 

Carolyn

 

 

Carolyn Spencer Brown

Editor in Chief

Cruise Critic

 

 

Just a comment about RSSC eliminating bathtubs. This is only on the Mariner. They made HUGE mistake when they built this ship. The ceiling in the bathtubs are way too low. Although they supposedly accommodate someone who is 6' 2", I felt like my head was going to hit the ceiling and I'm only 5' 3". Their new shower suites are lovely -- big showers with seats. They still have the bathtub/shower suites -- Regent just wanted to give a choice.

 

To stay on topic here. . . . my favorite suite is 1125 on the Navigator (this is a Navigator suite -- one of a kind on deck 11)

[editor@cruisecritic]

My bad, you're right about Mariner, and thanks for the background. Couldn't understand the back story --

 

Carolyn

 

Just a comment about RSSC eliminating bathtubs. This is only on the Mariner. They made HUGE mistake when they built this ship. The ceiling in the bathtubs are way too low. Although they supposedly accommodate someone who is 6' 2", I felt like my head was going to hit the ceiling and I'm only 5' 3". Their new shower suites are lovely -- big showers with seats. They still have the bathtub/shower suites -- Regent just wanted to give a choice.

 

To stay on topic here. . . . my favorite suite is 1125 on the Navigator (this is a Navigator suite -- one of a kind on deck 11)

[Host Dan]

A favorite suite was on HAL Noordam. Lovely aft suite witha HUGE private wrap around balcony. Wonderful watching the wake from the suite. Very relaxing. The suite I'm really looking forward to experiencing is one of the verandah suites on the new Seabourn Odyssey! (Glad I'm not on the inaugural!) ;)

 

Host Dan

[editor@cruisecritic]

Great question (and excellent answer, Keith); we have banned the use of premium, deluxe, etc. in Cruise Critic's stories (not on boards) cause they're just not clear terms.

 

In our view, there's luxury. There's what we call Luxury Lite -- lines like Azamara, Windstar and Oceania that offer a blend of both upscale and mainstream -- and then there's mainstream. The last is a big old umbrella under which any ship that's larger than 1,200 passengers (moving target that number :) ) gets lumped into and that means Celebrity and Carnival, HAL and Royal Caribbean.

 

We're not saying that they're all equal and we go to much effort to showcase pluses and negatives of the big ships but that's the one thing they all have in common when you're trying to categorize.

 

I don't know if you've seen our newly revamped luxury section (it's here: http://www.cruisecritic.com/luxurycruises/). One of the new and really cool additions (you can't really see it yet, hopefully by next week) is a whole new emphasis on small ship luxury cruising, along the lines of American Safari, not in the mainstream that Seabourn et al occupy but really interesting lines that are worth checking out and frankly hard to find. We'll write a note about it when you can actually find them :)

 

We also started last year -- and these you can find -- to really explore soft adventure lines so have added quite a bit in that category. Certainly a line like Lindblad is definitely a blend of luxury and expedition.

 

Carolyn

 

 

A luxury cruise line will provide very upscale service. You will find this in the level of service, quality of cuisine, finish out of ships, and the quality of a whole variety of items from bed linens, room acommodations, to even the quality of the bath products. On a luxury cruise line you won't find any of the nickel and diming that you find on mass market ships and that over the years has actually expanded to the premium cruise lines.

 

If the cruise line was a land based hotel and you think luxury think of a Ritz Carlton or a Four Seasons Hotel.

 

A premium cruise line often features a somewhat more sophisticated cruising experience than a mass market cruise line. Overall, the amenities and overall cruise experience will be of higher quality than those offered on a mass market cruise line but not at the levels found on a luxury cruise line.

 

If the cruise lines was a land based hotel and you think premium think of a Hyatt Resort Hotel or a Westin Hotel.

 

Some folks in marketing stretch the use of the word premium as they probably do with luxury but to a lesser extent. I think over time with the number of cruise lines that are now trying to market themselves as premium that you will see a forth category added or maybe some lines being categorized and moved into the mass market category. Yes, some Holland Ships have much more of a feel and look of a premium cruise line than some of their other ones. Same with a few of the other premium cruise line ships.

 

Keith

[Host Dan]

I don't know if you've seen our newly revamped luxury section (it's here: http://www.cruisecritic.com/luxurycruises/). One of the new and really cool additions (you can't really see it yet, hopefully by next week) is a whole new emphasis on small ship luxury cruising, along the lines of American Safari, not in the mainstream that Seabourn et al occupy but really interesting lines that are worth checking out and frankly hard to find. We'll write a note about it when you can actually find them :)

 

We also started last year -- and these you can find -- to really explore soft adventure lines so have added quite a bit in that category. Certainly a line like Lindblad is definitely a blend of luxury and expedition.

 

Carolyn

A few years ago I had the pleasure of spending a week on Le Ponant. Any chance that this ship will be included in the new luxury cruise section??

 

Host Dan

[Jade13]

 

I don't know if you've seen our newly revamped luxury section (it's here: http://www.cruisecritic.com/luxurycruises/). One of the new and really cool additions (you can't really see it yet, hopefully by next week) is a whole new emphasis on small ship luxury cruising, along the lines of American Safari, not in the mainstream that Seabourn et al occupy but really interesting lines that are worth checking out and frankly hard to find. We'll write a note about it when you can actually find them :)

 

We also started last year -- and these you can find -- to really explore soft adventure lines so have added quite a bit in that category. Certainly a line like Lindblad is definitely a blend of luxury and expedition.

 

Carolyn

 

Carolyn, you might want to look at Minerva (Swan Hellinic) as I believe it fits this category, especially when run by Abercrombie & Kent. We were on Minerva in Antarctica in February. It was pretty much all-inclusive with the pre-paid gratuities and alcohol and expedition with the zodiacs.

[mrtoad]

Just a comment about RSSC eliminating bathtubs....

To stay on topic here. . . . my favorite suite is 1125 on the Navigator (this is a Navigator suite -- one of a kind on deck 11)

 

Hi

I am new to cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com and to the cruise scene as well... having only taken one other Regent cruise (the Paul Gauguin).

My question concerns Navigator Suite 1125 which my wife and I have booked for a 20 day cruise in May 2010... I booked the suite because I liked its location... it wasn't down a hall under the pool deck, etc... Since that time, I have noticed comments like, it is smaller than the other Navigator Suites (i.e., 441 vs 495, or about 10%), it is on too high of a deck and, consequently, will sway too much, it is not decorated as well, the floor plan isn't as good, etc...

but as an experienced cruise traveler Travelcat2 gave it very high marks... which means a lot to me... so my remaining questions are

1) Where is the entrance relative to the elevators and can you hear elevator noise in the suite.

2) How private is the balcony, for example, I can't tell how well it is screened from Suite 1123. By comparison, the 9th floor Navigator Suite balconies are very private.

3) How small is the bedroom area vs other Navigator suites... is it an issue?

4) Is the sway noticeable (my wife has some minor issues with motion sickness)

If anyone has the time I would love to hear responses to these questions... as well as any other relevant comments. Also, if anyone has pictures of Suite 1125/balcony that you feel like sharing that would be great. My email address is john@hart.name

[wripro]

Mrtoad,

 

I suggest you post your question on the Regent board where you will find many more posters with the knowledge to answer you.

[Travelcat2]

[/b]

 

Hi

I am new to cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com and to the cruise scene as well... having only taken one other Regent cruise (the Paul Gauguin).

My question concerns Navigator Suite 1125 which my wife and I have booked for a 20 day cruise in May 2010... I booked the suite because I liked its location... it wasn't down a hall under the pool deck, etc... Since that time, I have noticed comments like, it is smaller than the other Navigator Suites (i.e., 441 vs 495, or about 10%), it is on too high of a deck and, consequently, will sway too much, it is not decorated as well, the floor plan isn't as good, etc...

but as an experienced cruise traveler Travelcat2 gave it very high marks... which means a lot to me... so my remaining questions are

1) Where is the entrance relative to the elevators and can you hear elevator noise in the suite.

2) How private is the balcony, for example, I can't tell how well it is screened from Suite 1123. By comparison, the 9th floor Navigator Suite balconies are very private.

3) How small is the bedroom area vs other Navigator suites... is it an issue?

4) Is the sway noticeable (my wife has some minor issues with motion sickness)

If anyone has the time I would love to hear responses to these questions... as well as any other relevant comments. Also, if anyone has pictures of Suite 1125/balcony that you feel like sharing that would be great. My email address is john@hart.name

 

Hi -- while I cannot compare the size of the bedroom the the other Navigator suites, because I have not been in them, it is on the small side. However, the living room, dining area and closet are large. There is no particular reason to hang out in the bedroom.

 

There is a double door entry way into suite 1125 -- this is probably why you can not hear the elevator.

 

We could not see any other suite from the balcony. Very private.

 

We noticed a definite smell of clorine on deck 9 where the other Navigator suites are (only in the aft section). The jacuzzi and pool maintenance area is in the middle of the Navigator suites on deck 9. Reports are that you cannot smell it from the suites, but it is noticeable in the hallways.

 

On deck 9, you are under the pool deck. It is possible to hear noise when you are on your balcony. Also, some of the most forward Navigator suites have noticed smoke wafting down from the pool bar.

 

A side note -- we do not typically use the laundry facilities when we cruise. However, there are very few suites on deck 11 and the laundry room is close by. We did end up utilizing it simply because it was so convenient.

 

In terms of decor -- the only thing that appear a bit old was the sofa. However, it will be going into drydock soon and may be replaced. The bathroom was large. It did take a bit longer to get hot water than in suites on lower decks. There are plasma (or LCD?) televisions in both the bedroom and living room.

 

Last -- the motion of the ocean. Yes, we did feel it a bit more on deck 11. We do use electronic wrist bands as well as small doses of Bonine so there was not a problem. When lying in bed, we just envision ourselves being rocked to sleep. I assume that the this would be the same on deck 9. It is only on decks 6 and 7 - midship -- that the motion is the more stable.

[mrtoad]

Wow, thank you very much for taking the time to answer all my questions, etc... We will definitely stay in 1125 and I will post an update after our trip in May about our experiences... thanks again!