The Pros and Cons of Cruises: Episode 137

Les and Kathe talk about the pros and cons of cruises In this episode, Les and I talk about our experience of going on a two-week long cruise abroad the Celebrity Millennium ship. The 18-year-old ship took us on a cruise to different Asian countries including Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea, Japan, and mainland China. We decided to record an episode discussing what we liked about the cruise (and what we disliked). Both of us have been going on cruises for a long time and here are our thoughts on the pros and cons of cruises: The Pros of Cruising: We booked the tickets for the spa level class, which was the higher class on the cruise. Les and I got a top floor room, and it came with a nice balcony. We just loved the open skies and endless ocean on view! The upper-class service was as expected. Les and I got our food in a separate blue restaurant, which the cruise said had healthier food to offer. We were even given a personal waiter who ensured that he knew our preferences from before and set our menu accordingly. What I personally loved the most was that the staff at the restaurant even accommodated our diet choices, making protein shakes for me each morning. We also had a waiter, who always welcomed us by name each time he saw us. A personal touch is always lovely. All classes in the ship are also given a personal room attendant, and I did find it to be convenient. While the personal attention that we got from the staff was because of the tickets we had booked, I had been to other places which didn’t really meet up to the same standard. What did I and Les like the most? It’s perhaps being able to meet new people and make friends with others. Both Les and I now think that cruises have an older population, and our travel was a wonderful way to meet people who are our age and of the same mindset. Did I forget to mention about the captain? He always had a joke up his sleeves, no matter what! If I compare the pros and cons of cruises, I think you cannot argue that the value a cruise experience has to offer. The Cons of Cruising Les is prone to seasickness and staying on the 11th floor did not help him! So pro tip: if you stay on an upper floor you will be most affected by rough seas. If you get sick easily, we suggest you book a lower floor room. Les feels that cruising, in general, robs the chance to explore the culture and habits of the local people. I agree with him. If you want to explore local cultures cruising may not be the best route to go. If you want to immerse yourself in local culture and people, home sharing is what you should be looking for, as it helps you to experience all of that closely at an affordable price. Sometimes, I did feel our room to be a tad bit warm, but it was probably because of an HVAC problem, which the staff fixed later after I called them. The only significant problem I had on the entire trip though, was when we were trying to board the ship. The staff, for some reason, misled us to another port. We had to pay extra to our cab to get to the right port and catch the ship! Talk about a stressful beginning!   So, there you have our pro's and cons of cruises. Overall this was a good cruise and the service was great. We may be doing more land vacations for a while but I think since cruising has become more affordable, everyone should try it at least once.