Hi Bluemoon - well really a lot depends on what you and your wife want. I have been on a few cruises 'Thomson' and the reason I chose Thomson is because I enjoy the informality of their cruises and the ship is still small enough to chat to people if I want to or not as the case may be, I am also a solo traveller so this is important to me.

Back to you, things you need to have a think about - do you want informal, i.e. not necessarily posh frocks dinner jackets etc, or would you quite like that, smaller ships or larger ships, round the Med or Caribbean maybe and pricing also - there are lots of cruises around, but have a think about that and we can then hopefully suggest something.

Hya Miss Pink, really looking for informal not into over dressing up, possibly flying out to meet the ship so a med cruise would really suit us best, we are not stuck to dates so thinking of last minute or do they not do late deals on cruises? do you book them through a local travel agent or cruise specialist? I have been trying to find ships that have an all inclusive option. Thanks

Agree with Miss Pink, I have just returned from a Thomson Caribbean cruise. I chose Thomson as it was a smaller ship than some of the more modern super cruise ships also it was A.I. this included all gratuities (these can be expensive on some ships) although I did tip the cabin steward. With regards to drinks they offer 2 options either pay where they are added to your on board account or you can get a drinks package when you book. You may still have to pay for some items such as premium brands and strangely bottled water. The drinks still show on your on board account but come up as zero cost.

Bluemoon Nick and I are obvious Thomson converts, I am going on another in March and part of the deal that I booked I got an AI drinks package too with the Island Escape, so thats worth having.

Thomson either on the Med or Carribean are very informal, they have the captains dinner, and you can put on your best suit/frock if you chose to, some of ladies like to wear the sparkly cocktail type gowns for this, I usually just wear a summer cotton dress along with with many others too. There are usually a few restaurants on board, the self service 24 hour buffet one and then a restaurant that you receive waiter service and and then one which usually has a small cover charge. There are 3 or 4 bars on board, with entertainment in the evening in all forms, piano bar cabaret, Mr & Mrs type contest. live music quizzes, bingo, all sorts. The cabins are dependant upon how much you want to spend and how high up you need to be, generally speaking the higher up then the more expensive it will be. In March I have paid a bit more and have a balcony cabin, I love the idea of fresh air in the cabin.

The staff are lovely, well I have found them so and whilst tips are included I tend to seek out the staff that have personally made my trip worthwhile and thank them personally with a gratuity.

Reference booking, I tend to search on the net and get the best price I can then I either go into the local Thomson shop or this time I phoned Thomson direct and they price matched and gave me the AI drinks package.

If it's small and friendly yet still have plenty to do then Thomson may be the answer - I understand that Fred Olson are also very good, I personally have not tried them their prices for solo travellers are not that good for me.

Hope that this helps a bit, if you need any more information then let me know.

Be aware that the AI drinks package is often only available if you book early and is sometimes not available a few months after the cruise come out.

luci

Another informal cruise line is N C L you could fly to Barcelona and join a med cruise.
our first N C L will be this June on the Pride OF America . as its informal it saves the
extra packing of posh evening wear for ladies and suits for men we are flying to
Honolulu via Las Vegas[staying one week]and then cruising the islands of Hawaii
annxa

AI narrows you choice a lot since not may provide that option.

The Thomson family do AI.

More up market but needs a jacket a couple of night Celebrity they do an AI package.

Casual but no AI(unless group), NCL.

RCI do have AI deals through certain TA's.

whats the budget?

Hya have been looking at RCI Grandeur of the Seas, would this be an ok ship for a first timer? do you know if any travel agents do an AI package on this ship? I was looking at 12th June this was priced for an inside cabin at £455pp cruise only, do you know if this is a good price? Thomson's are coming out at arounf £800pp with a supplement of £199pp for AI.
Thanks for all the info

Would definately recommend Royal Caribbean over Thomson. Nicer ships too. I don't think any do AI though.

They will certainly be 'nicer' newer ships all depends on what your priorities are.

I am easy my only priority is to be away on the 13th June, otherwise just an informal crusie. Have rang around a few agents and all have said RCI are ok for a first cruise. There just seems so many to choose from I am at a loss, I don't understand decks either, is it better the higher the deck or if you have an inside cabin does it not matter? sorry for all the questions. Was thinking of leaving it till last minute as i'm not tied to dates and there seems to be some good bargains around for May so nearer the time maybe June will be cheaper??

Bluemoon there are a lot of choices out there of course, and only you can decide what 'type' you like. As we have mentioned Thomson are less formal and smaller and they do have the AI package on drinks - barter when booking, although the one I have for my March holiday was a promotional and was included the previous holiday package I bartered and got the price down a bit.

Royal Carribean are definitely grander than the likes of Thomson, bitter ships, more facilities don't know about pricing for two so can't help you there - and they are not as personal, with their sizes they can't be obviously.

Decks the higher up you go the more expensive the cabiin, it depends how much you have in the kitty and what your priorities are - I have booked a cabin with a balcony as I want the fresh air etc.

We chose a smaller and more informal ship for our first cruise.

We got a steal of a deal when we booked as the tour operator had loaded the cabins incorrectly and we got one of only 2 suites that had names instead of numbers at the same cost as a basic cabin on the lower decks

I don't like to be told when to get dressed up or what to wear so this type of cruise suited us down to the ground and we absolutely loved it.

We did find that you really don't spend that much time in your cabin so unless you specifically want an outside cabin with a balcony I would recommend you get the best cabin price wise on as high a deck as possible. To me, lack of engine noise or noise from the entertainment room is far more important than having a posh cabin!

I would hasten to say that we found cruising was not as relaxing as we anticipated - we did a 7 day cruise each time so woke up every day in a different port. Early starts to complete the disembarkation for excursions, getting back on board and getting ready in time for lunch, dinner or whatever meal is there at the time (plus mid morning tea and biscuits, afternoon tea and cake and the midnight buffet) is all quite time consuming so there's not much time to hang around in your cabin. Find a nice sunlounger and take it from there

Our first cruise itinerary got changed due to fighting in Israel and we ended up doing a re-route with a trip to Meteora instead which was brilliant. The second cruise got changed completely due to a tour operator cock up in not realising it wasn't possible to sail directly from Cyprus to Turkey so that got competely cancelled and we changed to sailing from Majorca instead of Cyprus taking in Malta, Naples and Florence which were thoroughly enjoyable.

We've also done Nile cruises which are completely different and are now trying to decide if we should do another Mediterranean cruise or back to the river Nile...... Waiting to see what comes up with a number of options!

The first ship we sailed on was the Ausonia (now renamed and sailing under Louis Cruises and after that the Island Escape) - both very informal but we preferred the first ship for ambience and food.

That was 10 and 8 years ago respectively. I'm now 52.

Enjoy!

Shell
Limassol, Cyprus

There is an old topic HERE New to Cruising which may have some useful information.

luci

Thanks all for the information just one more thing if I do decide to book last minute who would I book with?? Thank you once again