The best cruise lines in the world: 2023 Readers' Choice Awards
Table Of Content
This targeted advice aims to cater to the diverse needs and preferences of the modern cruiser, acknowledging the importance of inclusivity and the desire for personalized travel experiences. News & World Report ensures its rankings resonate with a broader audience by providing diverse options beyond traditional family and couple categories. This approach not only aids travelers in making informed decisions but also underscores the publication's commitment to covering the multifaceted nature of cruise travel.
Are pets allowed on cruises?
The experience on a Royal Caribbean ship can be just as elegant — or more so — as the experience on a Princess ship. But as survey after survey has shown, most people who try a cruise for the first time give it high marks — and many end up cruising again. The world is also filled with "never cruisers" — people who, for various reasons, wouldn't even think of getting on a ship for a vacation. We used customer satisfaction data from several sources, including Cruiseline.com, to inform our decision. We also considered ship inspection data published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Best cruise line for younger travelers
Cruise Critic is an online cruise community with more than 650,000 ship reviews of 700 ships from experts and cruise aficionados. Your Personal Suite Steward will take care of everything from laundry to snacks to little surprises you hadn’t even considered. You’ll feel well taken care of, and that’s the biggest luxury of all. While there are a few things you can no longer do on cruises, this cruise line will make you forget all about them. The aptly named Celebrity Cruises treats all passengers like A-listers.
Silversea Cruises
“There’s also a greater space ratio onboard, allowing for less crowding and more space for guests to spread out and enjoy,” she says. The world’s largest cruise line, Carnival boasts 23 ships that are favorites among those looking for less expensive fun on the sea. Although they’re known best for their Caribbean itineraries—good for a quick weekend getaway—Carnival also sails to many other destinations, including Europe, Mexico and Hawaii. Regent offers an all-suite fleet so travelers can enjoy spacious and luxurious accommodations. Each suite has a private balcony, a dedicated attendant, an in-suite minibar and a separate sitting area.
How to choose the right cruise ship cabin
Viking operates smaller ships with a maximum of 930 passengers, which makes it easier to visit ports that larger cruise liners cannot navigate. Mediterranean cruises can last anywhere from seven days to two weeks, depending on the company and itinerary. Booking every excursion through the cruise line can add up, but luckily, there are typically more affordable options through third-party companies. My biggest tip for any cruise — but especially for Americans traveling to Europe for a Mediterranean cruise — is to arrive at your embarkation city at least a day before your sailing starts.
The floating megaresort lines
The best restaurants on a Virgin Voyages cruise ship - Business Insider
The best restaurants on a Virgin Voyages cruise ship.
Posted: Sat, 20 Apr 2024 12:36:00 GMT [source]
The site features more than 650,000 cruise reviews and hosts the world's largest online cruise community where travellers share experiences and opinions with fellow cruisers. Cruise Critic was the first consumer cruise site on the Internet, launched in October 1995 by The Independent Traveler, Inc., a subsidiary of Tripadvisor, Inc. It's a hard-to-categorize little line specializing in adventurous, outdoorsy, ship-based trips in remote parts of Alaska. It operates the tiniest of vessels, with the biggest among them holding just 86 passengers.
Like Royal Caribbean and Norwegian, MSC Cruises operates big, resort-like vessels that appeal to a broad audience. Among the highlight of its cruises in North America are stops at its new private island in the Bahamas, the Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve. Tradition long has been a touchstone for this storied line, which dates to 1873 and is known for carefully crafted, globe-circling itineraries on midsize ships. Before the pandemic, about 10% of people that had never cruised said they "never" would. According to the survey, this number rose to 17% in June 2021, but fell to 14% by August. Disney dominates the family cruise category, as it has every year since U.S.
Big expedition cruise destinations include Antarctica and remote parts of the Arctic, including the icy islands of Svalbard, Franz Josef Land and Canada's Northwest Passage. The wildlife-filled Galapagos, where many islands are uninhabited, is another classic expedition cruise market (with a vessel ecosystem all its own, thanks to unusual local regulations). This type of cruising is so different from what the big mass-market lines offer that it might as well be considered an entirely different form of travel. You'll likely pay extra for gratuities and some drinks on ships in this cohort, for instance. If your idea of a vacation is being pampered at every turn, and you have lots of money to burn, you'll want to start your search for a cruise line among the luxury cruise operators. These lines include Germany's Aida Cruises and TUI Cruises, both aimed at German-speaking travelers with onboard programs conducted in German.
Royal Caribbean International’s ships sail to a wide variety of destinations, from shorter trips to the Caribbean and Mexico to longer vacations to Alaska, Europe, Asia and the South Pacific. Paul Gauguin Cruises operates just one ship, but it is exquisite, hosting 330 guests and sailing only in the South Pacific to destinations like Tahiti, Fiji, Tonga, and the Cook Islands. The ship is small enough to access private ports at remote beaches and take travelers well off the beaten path. Viking Cruises is a river and ocean cruise line that recently added expedition sailings and the Great Lakes trips to its repertoire.
Note that one of the luxury lines mentioned above, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, is a German line that operates many of its cruises in German only. But in recent years, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises has occasionally marketed to English speakers with specific sailings operated on a bilingual basis. While relatively unknown in North America, it operates several of the most elegant, spacious and service-focused cruise vessels anywhere in the world. When talking about berths in this story, I am referring to the number of beds on a ship based on double occupancy per cabin — or what used to be known as "lower berths" in the industry. The totals do not include extra sleeping spots created with pull-down bunks and pullout sofas that can inflate the "total berths" number some cruise lines list for their ships. Carnival also doesn't target as wide a demographic as the floating megaresort lines — at least when it comes to income levels.
Smaller cruise lines — with ships that fit hundreds rather than thousands of guests — dominated U.S. The line’s newest ship, Silver Nova, which holds 728 passengers was ranked as the Best New Luxury Ship. This environmentally-friendly ship, which began its inaugural cruise in August, 2023 is the industry’s first hybrid luxury cruise ship.
Premium cruises are generally mid-size (1,500-2,000 passengers) to large (over 2,000 passengers). Romantic types will love Windstar's three vessels with sails — a relative rarity. Foodies can choose one of the James Beard-themed cruises, which include market tours and cooking demonstrations with a James Beard Award-winning chef. Virgin Voyages' first three ships (Scarlet Lady, Valiant Lady and Resilient Lady) have suites by acclaimed designer Tom Dixon. Destinations include the Dominican Republic, Mexico and a private beach club in the Bahamas, as well as parts of Europe and Australia.
As a result, there is less variation among river ships than there is among ocean ships. That said, the brands above offer a range of experiences and price points. For those staying in certain room tiers, a concierge team is available to help travelers with special requests and booking excursions.
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