Carry On Cruising Or Not?
Recently Jane Archer and Raphael Giacardi posted a article on TravelZoo in relation to ‘The Evolution and Future of the Cruise Industry’ you can find the full article here:
http://www.travelzoo.com/uk/from-the-deal-experts/the-evolution-and-future-of-the-cruise-industry/
Although extremely interesting, it is a long read so maybe a cup of tea is needed.
Personally, I think that ‘The Evolution and the Future of the Cruise industry’ has both good and bad points. We all know the story of the Titanic but quite often when I watch it, I find myself wondering how it must have felt – especially travelling first class – being amongst the few privileged to be on-board. Just about anyone can cruise and I am not saying that’s a bad thing but as more and more people cruise, the ships get much larger and crowded.
I am not against larger ships, don’t get me wrong but you do lose the sense of tradition and the charm you find with the smaller ships and although this is not everyone’s cup of tea, I would say in the past 15 years we have really seen the main transformation from the much smaller ships to the larger cruise liners that grace our oceans today. I love the old R Class – the ships mainly owned by Oceania and Azamara which cover the ‘luxury sector’. I love the small ship charm and elegance of them, but is demand now for the bigger brighter American ships?
On to a more controversial subject: I think everyone has the right to go on holiday and relax and enjoy themselves but when you have two generations of cruisers – people before the 20th century and people from after it – I quite often hear ‘Oh the ship was all full of lower classes’. How does anyone really dictate who should cruise and who shouldn’t? I personally think it’s a good thing. I have done cruises where you are sat at the table and it’s all politics and economy talk. You’re on holiday! Do you really want to hear about what’s going on with the government? I know I don’t. Some of the most interesting people come from the less privileged background so why should they be treated any different?
At the same time, it can be a bit of a nightmare being woken up at 3am in the morning with people screaming and shouting outside the cabins. I think the all-inclusive drinks packages on the more mainstream cruise lines haven’t helped in contributing to this. There is a fine line between people enjoying themselves and people ruining the atmosphere for everyone else.
Then again, who says it’s just the lower classes that drink excessively? We all know how much champagne and fine wine the upper classes can drink. We all like a new cocktail or glass of wine whilst away.
Is it the fact that cruise lines are dropping the prices so significantly that is attracting the Benidorm market as its proving more cost effective to cruise, especially with the drinks packages?
This said, I have nothing against who you are. I appreciate its your holiday and I hope you have a fantastic time but a certain level of behaviour and use of language is expected whilst cruising, its a way to relax and see lots of different places in a short amount of time but somewhere not designed for drinkers to be binge drinking 24 hours a day. If you want to do that then you may as well go to a holiday resort rather than upset people who are going to take advantage of what a cruise is all about.
Lets throw some figures into the mix. In 1992 when the cruise industry really started to see the bigger influx of cruise liners being produced, just 273,000 Britons went on a cruise as it was seen to be much too regimented and too expensive. The 1990’s saw the delivery of the much loved P&O Oriana, Fred Olsen’s Black Watch and the Costa Classica.
And as we reach the early 2000’s we saw the addition of the Diamond Princess and then later, the Independence of the Seas – then the biggest ship in the world. The Oasis and Allure soon took her place at a mammoth 225,282 gross tonnes – equivalent to 8 Adonia’s!! That’s a huge 6,296 passenger capacity with 2,384 crew, basically a city at sea!
Personally as the ships get bigger and bigger we are losing the charm from small ship discovery cruises, which means more people, more queuing and lower standards, but this should not be the way. Although prices are coming down, standards are slipping with some cruise lines with what you get included and benefits. Just the other day I had a gentlemen who had cruised with a particular cruise line for 47 years and had a small problem. Their attitude was ‘oh well, if he wants to go elsewhere let him’. Loyal customers are getting the same service as the last minute cruisers who are paying less than half the price. Is this really fair?
The smoking ban on the cruise ships has also become a controversial subject. Should you be able to smoke on your balcony? Royal Caribbean have recently decided they’ll no longer allow smoking on the balconies or inside the ship however they’ll allow it in the Casino. We all know why this is! One of my regular customers has said she would be willing to pay more than the average price of a cruise to be able to smoke on board. Maybe the cruise lines have shot themselves in the foot here? I personally don’t have a problem with it, but what do you think?
With the addition of the low prices, and glitzy new ships, why is it that only 1 in 8 holidaymakers actually books a cruise holiday? Too many people are unable to see past the outdated misconceptions of cruising.
Fiction: It’s expensive – Fact: It’s value for money.
Fiction: It’s for old people – Fact: There are more family friendly ships than ever now.
The recent television show filmed on board Fred Olsen, ‘The Cruise, a Life at Sea’, has not helped however this is what suits the generation that choose to cruise with Fred Olsen and overall they are a fantastic product which is why their ‘past passenger’ ratio is so high.
Another thing that frustrates me is this. The American’s are less inclined to book a European cruise due to the cost of the transatlantic flights which means we, as the European market, are missing out. Carnival Cruise Line have completely pulled out of Europe and Royal Caribbean have gone from 12 ships to 7.
So when you have cruises at £399pp, what is stopping you from trying a cruise? At the end of the day, we have cruise reviews and pictures however this is nothing like stepping aboard your first cruise for the first time.
This statement shocked me:
All the cruise ships in the entire world filled at capacity all year long still only amounts to less than half of the total number of visitors to Las Vegas — Cruise Market Watch
Cruise ships have Casinos onboard – what’s so great about Vegas that you won’t do a cruise?
I would love anyone and everyone to try a cruise at least once. I am sure I can settle your fears and misconceptions as to why you don’t think a cruise would be suitable and I have lots of photo’s to show you that cruising is not all about being expensive and for old people.
What are your thoughts? Have you cruised before? if not what is stopping you from cruising? I would love to hear your feedback.
www.tomstravels.co.uk – 0800 408 6143 – [email protected]
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About Me
Hello there, I'm Tom Harding and I have been in the Cruise and Travel industry for about 10 years. Cruising has always been a passion of mine ever since I was little. I love the elegance and sophistication that comes with cruising and to be able to see lots of places…
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