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I am a retired English teacher and department head, the mother of three grand mother of four, and have been married to the same man for 52 years. I subscribe to Dr. PM Forni's concept of Civility. I was born in South Philadelphia and grew up in the 'burbs. I love soft pretzels and cheesesteaks, the Phillies, the Eagles, and San Diego. I love being Mom, Aunt Kathy, Nona Kathy, and Teacher. I spend a lot of time in my gardens in the spring and summer, and in the winter I plan what I'm going to plant. I also am an avid reader and photographer.

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Tuesday, May 18, 2010

THAT Ship Has Sailed...

Because we've cruised on Norwegian, we frequently receive notice of special deals.  Lately, they've been hitting us hot and heavily with specials on Epic their new mammoth ship.  It boasts 4200 capacity/double occupancy. (Does this mean it can hold 8400 passengers?) Doesn't matter; 4200 is way too many for us.  And while watching ships like Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas pulling into port is certainly thrilling, we won't be on them.

I think cruise lines, like NCL, have made a big mistake.  Yes, these floating communities featuring courtyards, spas, rock climbing walls, and offer guests full resort amenities and entertainment.  For some this appeals, but traveling with that many people holds absolutely no enjoyment for us.   In fact, we had originally chosen NCL, because they offered cruising to Alaska on a 'smaller ship', Norwegian Wind (occupancy about 1700), which was retired in 2007.  Last year, our trip to Bermuda on NCL's Norwegian Majesty, a ship of commensurate size to Norwegian Wind, was a wonderful experience as we departed out of Baltimore and down the Chesapeake Bay into the Atlantic. Now, NCL can no longer cruise out of smaller ports like Baltimore and Vancouver, because the ships are too big.

I could be totally wrong and building and sailing these behemoths may be economically viable. Will we recant and reconsider?  No. I think these ships will be sailing without us.

12 comments:

Jay said...

I've never been on a cruise, but would like to go. One problem I see with them is that they seem crowded and cramped.

happyone said...

I AGREE!!

Lena said...

I have never been a cruise either. I know people rave about them, but just too chicken to try it.

Linda said...

Love your garden residents, real and unreal.

Count me out on cruises. At one time I wanted to do an Alaskan cruise but no more.

George said...

I agree with you. I don't think these huge new ships even look like ships! We're planning an Alaska cruise for our anniversary next year -- I hope we can find a 'smaller' ship to cruise on.

Kimberly said...

Did one cruise through Hawaii - was too sick to consider it again (although the ones to Croatia are tempting me). I agree though - that seems way too big for me!

Mage said...

We so agree. We have been on a variety of ship sizes, but our last trip was on the Ryndam....one of the small Stadendam sized HAL ships. I found it a human sized ship and loved it. Next I want to try the Prinsendam.....a very small but charming cruise ship.

Linda Reeder said...

I have only done an Alaskan cruise and that ship was about 2000. We spent as much time off the ship as we could, and much of the rest od the time walking off the food down on the prominade deck. Shipboard entertainment just doesn't interest me. But we did cruise on Viking river boatsin the Netherlands and on the Seine in France. Capacity was about 120. Much different, and nice to have your hotel travel with you.

Gilly said...

We are going on a cruise round the British Isles in September, but we have chosen a small ship, only 800 p[assengers. A larger ship would be unable to get tyo the small ports we are looking forward to visiting.

My sister and husband go on cruises with the Princess Line, which have 3,000 passengers! I would hate it, but they say you don't notice them all as the ship is so big. Exactly. No way would you get me or Mr.G on a cruise like that. In fact I was surprised I managed to get him to come on ours, but we are booked! The Ship we are going on in September also does other cruises, in the Mediterranean, to Norway, the Arctic Circle and Spain. Maybe next year........

Anonymous said...

We did a cruise of the Greek Isles and Croatia two years ago. It was a first for both my husband and I. We may do another cruise at some point. Ours was a medium liner and against some other in ports it looked like a tugboat! I agree with you re the huge ships they are building today. TOO BIG! Friends of our cruise on small ships (less than 400 people) and go on river cruises in Europe. They went last year, loved it and are going again this year.

Sweet Virginia Breeze said...

I've never been on a cruise, but I don't think I'd like one of the larger ships. I don't enjoy being in large crowds. I need my space.

Rick Rockhill said...

We've taken lots of cruises. I like both, but there is something more special and intimate of small ship cruises. We do Princess a lot, although we're headed to Bermuda on NCL in two weeks...