Planning the perfect cruise holiday can quickly become hard work.
Picking the perfect destination, the right cruise line, the ideal cruise ship, drinks packages, and shore excursions can all be tricky. Get it wrong, and your dream experience can instantly shatter.
I have put together my top picks from my experiences as a customer and as a travel writer. I recommend the best cruise ships and itineraries for a range of holidaymakers, including solo travellers, couples, and families. I also suggest tips of things you should definitely book, tips on what is best avoided, and resources worth checking out before you book.
On Harmony of the Seas, I met with ‘Royal Genie’ Reyno Varkevisser to discuss the finer side of luxury travel. Sat in the comfortably spacious Suite Lounge in the ship nursing cappuccinos, Reyno walked me through the Royal Genie service...
When it comes to hitting many different locations over the course of one holiday, luxury cruises are second to none. The nature of cruise travel is that you get to thoroughly enjoy not only the destinations themselves but also the means by which you...
I boarded Balmoral as a passenger and left one week later indoctrinated as a member of a close-knit family. Perhaps it was due to the happy, can-do attitude from the crew-members. Or maybe it was the infectious fun and laughter over dinner. Either...
The Caribbean is a great big playground, and Carnival’s shore excursion brochure lives up to this image. Before I flew out to Miami for my Carnival Breeze cruise, I scoured through the options to see what excitement awaited me. Alas, when you...
I took a toddler on a pair of transatlantic flights – and survived. For an entire year I researched how to cope on a nine-hour British Airways flight from London Heathrow Airport to Miami International Airport. I have distilled a total of 18...
Can pregnant women sail on a cruise ship? Yes, expectant mothers can sail on a cruise ship but normally only until their 24th week of pregnancy. All cruise lines have a cut-off limit due to a lack of medical facilities onboard to cope with an early...
I quizzed wildlife presenter and enthusiast Nigel Marven about his new television series called ‘Cruise Ship Adventures’. The television series, exclusive to UKTV’s Watch channel, is set on Azamara Club Cruises’ Azamara Quest...
At the core of family-friendly cruise ships is usually a water slide. In the race to entice more families to try cruise holidays, cruise lines are installing a range of water slides on their vessels. When once a water slide was a rarity, now ships...
Earlier this year I stumbled across a book entitled ‘Unofficial Guide to the Disney Cruise Line’. The book claims to be a complete guide to all things Disney Cruise Line, but do you need to buy a book that only covers a small fleet of...
The ‘Berlitz Cruising & Cruise Ships’ series of books celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. Written by Douglas Ward, the book claims to be “the world’s foremost authority on cruising”. I was sent a copy of the...