Realising it costs the same to cruise in a suite on most “regular” cruise lines (like Royal Caribbean, Celebrity and so on) as it does to cruise on an ultra-luxury line (like Regent, Seabourn & Silversea), I look at which is better and why. And when you should stick on a “mainstream” line rather than go on an “ultra-luxury” cruise line.
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ABOUT TIPS FOR TRAVELLERS: If you want to get cruising right, Tips For Travellers makes it easy to plan and have the incredible cruise experiences you dream of every time. All my Tips For Travellers advice, tips and tricks tips draw on everything that I have learnt on the 101 cruises I have done to date.
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00:00 Start
01:00 Obstacle #1
02:27 Obstacle #2
03:50 Experience
06:18 Food
07:07 Excursions
07:25 Service
08:53 Which is better?
source
Good Day Gary,
We are cruising this Christmas Down Under on Regent then in April we will be on Celebrity in Hawaii-Vancouver. As someone who now exclusively cruises on Regent and in the Celebrity Retreat, I think your comments are in line with ours. If we want to spend many days afloat, we choose Celebrity Retreat. If we are looking for unique ports and excursions with fewer participants, we choose Regent. In addition to your observations, the similarities in Celebrity Retreat and Regent dining and personalized experience is close to the same. The biggest differences for us are 1) Regent is all inclusive including business airfare for international travel which means that I don't have to do a thing but show up to the airport and they take it from there, 2) The Regent Explorer class ships have an onboard cooking school and since we are foodies, we put a premium on the experience of cooking school even if it is an additional cost.
We have compared the cost of a similar size suite on Regent and Celebrity Retreat. We have found that when you add business airfare, specialty dining, and limited size excursions the cost is not that much different.
I wish more informational YouTubers presented information like Gary. He could talk about itemized receipts and I would find it interesting – and I would be able to tell you afterwards exactly what I just learned.
Gary, have you ever done a TUI Marella cruise? We are looking at doing our first one and like the idea of all inclusive and smaller ship.
I have been to the ports before so for me it's about the ships and what there is to do on them. I travel solo mostly on NCL I get the cheapest state room with the "free at sea" deal and then upgrade for the top drinks package. I will be at the night club / bar until 2-3 am and then up and out of my cabin for sunrise. The deck 15 out door bar has the same view no matter what cabin I book.
We love Regent cruises. Great food,service , and staff. Small … about 350 cabins .. very relaxing.
GLAD THE SERVICE WAS SOO GOOD!
GOOD INFO HERE!
Hi Gary, I experienced two things I have never had happen on previous cruises that happened on last week's disappointing RCL cruise. I enjoy following your YouTube videos and I was hoping you might find time to address. It would be helpful to know how you might of handled these instances. Number 1, I was a single passenger on this cruise (which I have done often) and RCL sat me at an empty table for 10 people. I didn't enjoy my evening dining experience at all. Needless to say, dress to impress night turned into pizza night. Number 2, on my first day of the cruise, the lady in the balcony next to mine leaned over the railing to peer into my cabin. When she saw I was shocked and startled she just laughed and said "I'm just checking things out". I was so paranoid of her behavior I couldn't enjoy my balcony or leave my curtains open the entire trip the way I enjoy. I would have asked others at my dinner table that evening if that behavior is common – Oh, but wait, I sat with 9 empty chairs!
It all looks like a holiday camp at sea – regardless of the level of ‘luxury’ – I think I would hate it
Imagine all the great cruise channels we have here on YouTube. But you don't have to imagine who's the best!! Gary, you're the greatest!
The off the beat, small group excursions is definitely why we’ve picked Regent for both Caribbean cruises (along with the food! There’s a reason the steakhouse is so popular!) We’re not traditional travelers in the least; we prefer learning culture and history over doing your typical swimming with dolphins, snorkeling, beach bumming excursions. We get to do so many of these on Regent and we’re often so tired the night entertainment isn’t important to us. We’d rather watch an episode of something and sleep.
I’m doing Alaska with my dad in 2025 on HAL so it’s going to be interesting. I’ve never been on a “regular” cruise line so we’ll see how well I handle the noise. 😂
Why are you so interested in those quick superficial relationships with people that you are paying to be your friend? I'm ok with just a hello, I don't need a hi Gary, similarly, since I drink more than just coffee with skim milk, I'm ok with "what can I get you today?" (I choose based on itinerary… as a vegetarian 99.9% of the food isn't an option for me so not unlike the beverage packages being a waste for you the caviar and lobster are similar for me.)
Hi Gary , I saw maybe +10 different videos of yours they are useful 👍 I am from UAE and want to plan 2024 in Easter Carribean and hopefully to take your advice or if you can send video link if you did already cover a good cruise lines for ( Easter Caribbean cruise ) maybe for 8-10 days could be good .. I did last summer wonder of seas by royal Caribbean in Europe and was enjoyable as also was my first experience in cruise 😀 .. Thanks
I'm taking Celebrity in the Caribbean
I liked this ❤ thank you. Can you do more for ultra luxury vs other premium lines? And add cost quakifiers of 3x more expensive overall, double overal, base comparison. You dont have to give exact numbers, but premium vs ultra luxury is a place many people occupy.
And the different in clientele would be nice as well 🙂
Gary, your distinguished British accent and amazing graphics and informative content really makes your videos so enjoyable to watch! Have you ever done one of those yacht cruises? There's one offered by Ritz Carlton.
Curious if the revenue from making these YouTube videos covers the cost of the cruises, especially these high end ones.
I've traveled on 2 ultra luxury cruises. I prefer getting a top tier suite on a big ship for the same price. The choice of facilities and shows were really the difference maker. You get just as pampered on the large ship for being a suite guest.
The smaller ships with great food and service on intensive itineraries suit best is our thoughts too. If doing the usual repeat on Med/Greece/Caribbean etc the big ships are better and in fact when the itineraries are the same as past ones the big ships let you feel not so bad about maybe just having a walk around the port and local town.
We've had many cruises on Princess. Recently we sailed on Oceania Riviera because we wanted to try a smaller ship with more inclusions. Bottom line, Oceania has become our 2nd home. It's a perfect fit for us. Finest cuisine at sea, in our opinion, and great attention to detail.
I may have missed it but what was the price of these cruises you are comparing?? I know they change from trip to trip but I'd love to know your prices when you compared
We are booked on oceania in September. Got a ridiculously cheap fare for a porthole cabin. We usually cruise mass-market lnes but wanted to try one luxury cruise. And of course the food…
Nope, not even if it were free. I’m perfectly content in my suite on a standard cruise ship.
I hounded a travel agent a bit to get an apples to apples comparison between balcony cabins on NCL vs Silverseas, to Alaska and all in all, it wasn't that bad of a difference–like $100 per day per person. Seems worth it for the all inclusive experience with better service and small excursion groups.
I have looked into Regent and Oceania as they are other NCL products. Regent now offers round trip business class flights for two with each booking. I did the math and it’s about the same as our upcoming 10 days cruise on NCL to the Mediterranean plus round trip business class. I really enjoy your videos and pro and cons of each line and category.
HI Gary–when booking a cruise, do you recommend working with a travel agent? Everything can be done on the cruise lines app in terms of booking reservations, excursions, etc., thus I'm not sure of the benefits of working with a travel agent. Do you use an agent every time you book? We are from Boston and were thinking about booking with Harr Travel since they seem to be experts on the NCL and Royal Caribbean lines. Thank you! Barbara
I cruise just once a year if I’m lucky. I prefer casual, anytime dining, and spending money on excursions vs luxury over the top cruises.
All those reasons are why I chose Regent Seven Seas. I don’t need multiple bars, constant entertainment, giant suites, and masses of people. Small ships and world class service are what I look for.
We were Crystal Cruisers… Now we are solid Regent Seven Seas Cruisers. Just the best! We have been on some other lower cruise line with "drink ticket" and 1 bartender for 300 people. UGH… Mega Ships, Yuk! Just give me great food, luxury and service.
I don't like most cruise ships as they are too crowded and they charge you for every little thing. I don't like being nickeled and dimed.
Another great video! If a consumer is not price sensitive, it all comes down to preference. Larger ships have more facilities and entertainment. Smaller ships offer better service and food. For me, it is all about the date of departure, destination and ports. We have to go by our child's school schedule and that is one major restriction on the cruise options we have. I do agree that it's nice to have a very large suite on the main cruise lines versus the standard size suites on the smaller luxury cruise ships. There is just something nice about being able to walk around the cabin and not feel constricted. There were times when we were on our Silversea cruise that we wished had a bigger cabin. The size of the cabin didn't match up to having butler service, because our butler had to squeeze through the room to deliver our meals and at times like that we wished we had a larger cabin for the price we paid. So, when a cruise opportunity aligns with our schedule and we can choose a large size suite, that is a bit of a treat for us.
We’ve never cruised on a luxury cruise line and most likely won’t. We’d rather go on a premium line in a balcony room and be able to go on two, or more cruises rather than to be able to say we went on a luxury line. Those who like luxury lines make choices for those. We don’t. Each to his own.
The only reason I cruise is for the excursions. I like very healthy food, so most food on a cruise line is wasted on me. Same with alcohol. Learning about the area in which I am cruising is extremely important to me. So is exercise. I like to spend sea days working out in the gym. Doing a lot of walking is great for me. So the smaller the ship and the better the excursions, the better.
Is virgin voyage from barcelona to france worth the money?
Interesting video I cannot imagine having c£1200+ to spend a night on a cruise. £100 is my limit and with clever and price watching planning can cruise Cunard several times a year. I feel I get everything I need for that money.
Look forward to comparing notes on Japan as my wife and I will be traveling on Celebrity at the same time. Also taking your advice and sailing Oceania Vista to the Eastern Med next year. Seems like Celebrity, NCL are all trying to sail 3000+; we are finding we are not fans. Will need to do some home work on jumping up even another level.
Sounds like it’s worth the extra $ to me. Destination is most important for me.
Just one big example of the haves and the have nots.
Hello Gary, thanks for your tips. I watch you for a few years now and we’re making our first cruise to Norway with MSC for 15 days. We’re excited about it and I remember some of your tips but most of them I forgot. We will make it our own cruise because my girlfriend has a handicap. So we depend on having a wheelchair. Despite that, we think we can make it. Beautiful videos.
The big boats are like going to Vegas. Except you can’t go for a walk when you want. No thanks.
Interesting point about the choice and the programs…but this is actually what many people look for (myself included), less is often more! Thanks for this interesting and excellent look into the upper segment of cruises! To the point – and we can make up our own minds.
I did SilverSeas about 2 years ago and I'm doing them again this month. Expensive? Yes as I'm traveling solo, but the solo premium was only 25% more. First time was Greek Islands. This time, the western Med and Morocco. I love the personalized service. I was amazed after the 1st day that a lot of crew could address me by name and knew my tastes. My butler did my unpacking and when I returned from a shore excursion, would appear with Champaign and caviar. Excursions were kept small and it never felt like thousands of people trying to get off or on the ship at port. I paid nothing except for souvenirs and even though it's included, I gave extra to my butler who saved me when I forgot to pack my tie by lending me one of his own, as an example. Yes, the shows were mediocer and smaller, but other than that, I loved it.
FYI, after your trip to the Galapagos Islands, I think I will to that for my 70th birthday in 2025 with SilverSeas.