Cruising with Jane Macdonald VS The Cruise!

So, they both started their new series’ in the New Year whipping all excited fans of cruising (us at cruise.co.uk included) into a frenzy.  But how good are these shows and what are they all about?

‘The Cruise’ is on ITV on Thursday evenings.  It lasts just half an hour and follows life on-board the Majestic Princess this series which is travelling on her maiden voyage from Shanghai to Sydney.  The shows concentrate mainly the ship, crew and passengers with some minimal coverage of the destinations they are docked up in.  As a cruise enthusiast I find it fascinating to see all the day-to-day dramas and fun had on-board.  It’s great to get an insight into what it takes to run a ship of that size and I enjoy watching the hilarious predicaments some crew and passengers get themselves into along the way.  I loved last nights scenes showing crew and passengers getting food thrown all over them all in the spirit of tradition of first timers crossing the equator.  What fun!

‘Cruising with Jane Macdonald’ is on for a full hour on Channel Five on Friday evenings.  It follows Jane Macdonald this series, firstly travelling through Australia on land, then after 2 episodes, reaching the Sun Princess to embark on a cruise around Australia.  The show is very much based around the star of the show Jane Macdonald.  It shows a lot more of her exploring on-land and scenes showing her room and meeting passengers on-board but not much about the running of ships.  It is great to see the destinations though!

So, which one do you prefer?  In my opinion, although I tend to watch them both, I much prefer the Cruise!  I find Jane very self-indulgent and the programme as a whole.  Especially the song at the end of every episode which is when I tend to turn the show off! I do enjoy the fact that it shows a wide range of ships and destinations throughout the different series so is great to watch to see what the ships and destinations are like.  The reason I enjoy the Cruise more though is as it is more light-hearted, and you get a real feel for the ship and daily cruising life.  There are some great characters on it, and it is not just about one person (which a cruise definitely isn’t!)

I’d love to hear your views and opinions on the two shows!