How important is the ship that you cruise on?

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Lew

We pick our cruises for the itinerary, in the first instance, the ports of call and area's of interest and the cost is also a consideration.
A few years ago we sailed on a cruise ship that was built in the 1950's and it had more interesting design features than the modern, mass built, flat-pack, cloned, cruise ships of to-day. I have to admit that it didn't have rock walls, surf pools, full size boxing ring, full size shopping mall, gardens, zip line etc, but I didn't miss those features.
It actually looked like a cruise ship and the cruise was really good.
The age of the ship doesn't matter as long as it has had regular refits and is well maintained and looked after.
Unfortunately the new Solas regulations come into effect soon so like the QE2 all these interesting ships will be scrapped or sold to be turned into hotels.
The chance of sailing in a real cruise ship is disappearing fast.

Kevin L

Not so much. Usually most companies are pretty good about keeping the ship up to date.

I actually personally prefer Royal Caribbean's Radiance class ships over just about anything. They don't have all the bells and whistle's of Voyager and Freedom class, but that also usually means fewer kids. Which is a bonus in my eyes.

Tivogal

i think the attitude of the crew and the service is important, but YEs sometimes the newer the ship the nicer the experience.

cruisecritic.com

EC-S

I think the ship you cruise on may be very important -- especially if the cruise you choose has many days at sea. If the cruise you choose has you in a different port every day, then you might well not miss the newer features as much (if at all).

When you browse around on-line or look at the brochures, you start thinking things like, "Yeah, I want the one with the driving range, the skeet shooting and the skating rink." But ask yourself if you are actually going to use the driving range (I won't), the skeet shooting (nope), or the skating rink (cool to think it's on a boat, but I'd rather be in a pool).

For my son's sake, it's gotta have a rock-climbing wall, a good arcade, and some place pre-teens can hang out (get hot dogs, soda pop, listen to music, etc.)

For me, I want a ship where I don't have to go to dinner at a set time with a group of people I don't know and don't want to feel like I am being forced to hang out with. And I absolutely do not want to have to bring a formal gown. This is my vacation and I want to relax, not relive the senior prom.

So I would suggest that you consider what YOU really want out of the cruise. If you aren't going to use all the fancy new features, then don't worry about going with a slightly older ship (as long as it has been recently renovated). If you really will use those new features, then you MUST book on one of those ships or you will feel that you cheated yourself.

Nikki (: â™¥

I just started to cruise in 2001, and normally I wouldn't book a cruise that was first launched before 1995. To me, the newer ships have better technology and the ships seem to have more to do and different things. I'd rather book a cruise that's a lot newer, than book a cruise like you said was first launched in the 80's or 09's, just because I've never been on an "old" ship like that before.

ni5haâ™¥â„¢

my family and i prefer to go on newer ships because they are usually in better shape and have new features.

for other people it rele depends if they're more intrerested in the destinations or spending time on the ship and its facilities.

Mr. J

Personally, I have been on both the Monarch (3) and Vision (1) ships. Vision was renovated back in 98 if i'm not mistaken. Next year, I get to board the Mariner, which I know their interior rooms are slightly larger than the older ships. I also look for the different activities (FLORIDER, GOLF) then the typical rock climbing wall. I can't wait to sail on the OASIS.

trillianxo

The year a ship was launched has less to do with my decision than does the size of the ship. I find the older ships more difficult to maneuver around - elevators that only go up to certain floors, half decks, having to go down one deck, across the ship, and then up two decks to get where you want. The flow of the newer ships is much better.

However, I don't really want to be cruising with 3,000 or more other passengers, so the newer, bigger ships don't hold much appeal for me.

C B

I do find myself being drawn to ships that are new, if not the newest one out there. I like a large ship that has plenty to do. I do look at the list of when ships first launched when trying to decide on a cruise. If all was the same (itinerary, ports, price, etc) I would use the launch year as a way to pick and would choose a newer ship, but that's just my preference.

Rebecca

The age of the ship is very important. Depending on what you enjoy, choose a cruise that has activities for you. As you said, the newer ships have more activities. If you want to relax, it doesn't matter as much, but if you want to have fun, some ships now have water parks, bowling alleys, etc.

blue knight

I would have to pick a newer ship for the simple reason that they do have more things to do . I think that industry has changed the way they look at our vacations . For the better of course . The newer ships also go faster and smoother .
I think that these are all pluses for the customer .

Dammmit.!!!

Ok..Let me show u how i pick a cruise...1st. i select a cruise liner. 2nd. make sure u have the dates your gonna go on, and the duration of it. 3rd. Input those dates on the site like carnival.com find a cruise. 4th. Look @ the destination 5th. Look @ the ship. 6th. Run it through my oarents and see if they like it. 7th. let them pay 4 it 8th. Have a Blast

Okay.. When i choose a ship i always make sure that it is a fairly new ship no more than 8 y.o and if it is it has 2 have been recently refurbished. Also the ship has 2 be BIG! So when dock every 1 will be looking @ that ship and saying how big it is. And u can say youre on it.

Mary L

I personally don't care a bit when a ship was launched, and have been on ships ranging from very new to rather old (QE2). My interests are which cruise line owns and runs the ship, since that will indicate whether the ship's atmosphere is formal, informal, or something inbetween, as well as the general age of the passengers. Cunard, for example, is formal and generally attracts an older group of passengers, while Carnival is more for the party-hardy folks. I am heart-sick that the QE2 has been sold, and have spent many weeks of pure pleasure on board.

Another interest of mine in ships is available cabins. I am perfectly happy with an inside cabin for crossings, but won't accept anything less than a veranda for any other trips.

Finally, I want to know whether the swimming pools are fresh water or salt water. (My only consistent complaint with the QE2 is that only the hot tubs are fresh water.)

star

the age dosnt matter its how well its in shape. and what it has on it. look at lots of pictures of the ship and have fun and those ships are very safe so dont worry

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