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My boyfriend and I are planning a cruise for April 2011. Neither one of us have ever been on a cruise before. I was wondering what cruise lines people have had good experiences with and would recommend for first-timers. We found one we were interested in on Princess, but I've heard that cruise line is geared towards older passengers (we are in our 20's). Thoughts? I've heard good things about Carnival but my boyfriend wants 24 hour dinning. Royal Caribbean has also been recommended to me, but it's a little out of our price range. Thank you in advance
First find an Itinerary you want to do. Then see what lines are doing it and for what prices. For a couple in your 20s I say there are two options. Carnival or Royal. Maybe Norwegian Cruise Lines.
It's all personal decision and so much will go into the type of crowd you'll have on the ship - beyond the ship itself (where is it going, how long is the trip, is it during school break, etc)
for specifics on recent ships, itineries, etc I can't recommend cruise critic enough ... great webpage that we relied on a lot for ours
My wife & I went on a Princess cruise through the eastern carribean when in our late 20s and we really enjoyed it ..... the internary was best suited to what we wanted (not only the ports we went to, but how much time was allocated to that port)
I would say we were younger than the average for sure, but definitely didn't feel out of place. They had their little night club on the ship and you'd definitely see young people on the upper decks when they'd have bands and things like that around the pool
We were looking to mainly relax - waterslides, rock walls, etc really didn't mean much.
We liked the shows in the theaters, the comedy acts were good, movies under the stars was a nice feature, we spent one sea day at the sanctuary and really dug it, the food was good, we had good dinner companions when we wanted to share a table and had no problem being seated at a table for 2 when we didn't
take a look at what you want to get out of the cruise and see what seems to fit best for you .... beyond the generic reputations
It's all personal decision and so much will go into the type of crowd you'll have on the ship - beyond the ship itself (where is it going, how long is the trip, is it during school break, etc)
for specifics on recent ships, itineries, etc I can't recommend cruise critic enough ... great webpage that we relied on a lot for ours
My wife & I went on a Princess cruise through the eastern carribean when in our late 20s and we really enjoyed it ..... the internary was best suited to what we wanted (not only the ports we went to, but how much time was allocated to that port)
I would say we were younger than the average for sure, but definitely didn't feel out of place. They had their little night club on the ship and you'd definitely see young people on the upper decks when they'd have bands and things like that around the pool
We were looking to mainly relax - waterslides, rock walls, etc really didn't mean much.
We liked the shows in the theaters, the comedy acts were good, movies under the stars was a nice feature, we spent one sea day at the sanctuary and really dug it, the food was good, we had good dinner companions when we wanted to share a table and had no problem being seated at a table for 2 when we didn't
take a look at what you want to get out of the cruise and see what seems to fit best for you .... beyond the generic reputations
I second that comment. Cruise Critic has been invaluable to me, not just in choice of cruise but how to get the most out of a particular cruise line or ship as well as how to get on-board credit, etc.
Not widely publicized but, Carnival Corp provides an on board credit if you own 100 shares off CCL stock ($45.70 / 52 wks $29.68 - $48.18) at time of sailing. Credits range from $50 for 6 days or less, to $250 for 13 days or more. This applies to all of their North American lines, Carnival, Princess, Holland, Cunard, Seaborn, Costa.
We bought shares just before we left and sold them when we got back and made a couple hundred off the sale on top of our $250 credit. Some people hang on to them indefinitely and have recouped their initial purchase many times over.
Wouldn't worry too much about the perception of too many elderly on board. While there are some lines that seem to attract an older or younger clientele, it's also a factor of cruise length and itinerary too.
Not widely publicized but, Carnival Corp provides an on board credit if you own 100 shares off CCL stock ($45.70 / 52 wks $29.68 - $48.18) at time of sailing. Credits range from $50 for 6 days or less, to $250 for 13 days or more. This applies to all of their North American lines, Carnival, Princess, Holland, Cunard, Seaborn, Costa.
We bought shares just before we left and sold them when we got back and made a couple hundred off the sale on top of our $250 credit. Some people hang on to them indefinitely and have recouped their initial purchase many times over.
Wouldn't worry too much about the perception of too many elderly on board. While there are some lines that seem to attract an older or younger clientele, it's also a factor of cruise length and itinerary too.
I bought 150 Carnival shares specifically to get the on-board credit (yes, I know I only needed 100). So far it has been worth $250 OBC and I will get another $250 OBC this year when we cruise with them in June. That, for me is like getting a 5% tax free dividend ... you will not find a CD that gives you that They also pay a regular dividend on top Oh, and I bought them at $30.37
The other thing to look for is referral credit. If it is your first time on a particular cruise line, you can often get referred. The person doing the referring gets a credit and so do you. Check cruise critic for specifics and for a "referral exchange".
One more question....any tips on parking at the various ports? We will most likely be leaving from either Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, or Port Canaveral. The fee per day is pretty heafty! We live in SC so we will be driving...
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They also pay a regular dividend on top 
