new to cruising

[new to cruising]

Hi, i am thinking of going on a cruise for the first time. a couple of my friends have recommended royal caribbean - what does everyone think?

[Raoul Fiebig]

new to cruising,

welcome to Cruise-Chat.com.

Generally, Royal Caribbean is a good choice for a frist-time cruiser. However, it's difficult to recomment a particular line when knowing so little about you. What age range are you in, and would you like to take a cruise on a large, floating result, or rather a smaller more intimate ship? Have you looked into any particular destinations / regions?

[new to cruising]

Thanks Raoul. I'm in my early 30's. Am I too young to go on a cruise - or is that a really silly question? What do you think first time cruisers would like about Royal Caribbean? Not sure which I would prefer - big ship vs little ship - how small is a small ship - I might be worried I would get stuck with people who I don't like (or who don't like me! )

[oppis]

Hi, New to cruising

one a one week or five nights cruise your are definitely not too young in your early 30´s.

One some longer cruises (10 nights or more) quiet a lot of people are older than 60 or 70.

We prefer longer cruises, because the flight for us is about 10 to 16 hours.

Are you a party type and would like more action, than go take one of the great RCCL ships, like Voyager. They have a rock climbing wall, ice-scating, shopping boulevard and many events during the day and night. But the itinerary is not that interesting in the Caribbean. What do you want to see?

We like ships in the Radiance class, about 2.500 passengers, thats for me a medium range. The Voyager has a capacity for 3.100 passengers thats a big ship.

But you need to know, what you want. So maybe its better to talk to a travel agent and then ask your questions on this board.

Marita

[Raoul Fiebig]

new to cruising,

there are no silly questions - just silly answers from time to time.

You are certainly not too young to go on a cruise. Actually, I am in my late 20s, and I have been taking cruises for many years.

The "smaller" ships in the North American mainstream market today are approx. 70,000 gross tons (that's more than 1.5 times the size of the infamous "Titanic"!), and accommodate between 1,500 and 2,000 passengers. The really small ships are usually in the premium or luxury segments of the market.

Like Marita said, Royal Caribbean itself offers different kinds of ships. Their "Voyager"-class ships offer all the unique features Marita mentioned, and "Freedom of the Seas", which is now under construction in Finland, will enter service next year with even more things to do (including an onboard surf park). The "Voyager"- and "Freedom"-class vessels mostly operate one-week cruises in the Caribbean.

I agree with Marita that you should get in touch with a travel agent specialized in cruises - not instead of asking your questions here, but in addition to doing so.

[new to cruising]

thanks everyone - i will go ask a travel agent too - see what they say and let you know! thanks for all the friendly advice!