Cruise itinerary reviews! Many people cruise because of the ship, I cruise because of where the ships take me. Whether you want to relax, be adventurous, or learn something new, I'll give you itinerary tips to consider when planning your next cruise.
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VISIT w us chanel has the Azamara version.
Recently saw someone from cruise blog do the ncl version. I also saw a video doing the Oceania one.
Great video I have a Regent Itinerary I’m considering, could I sent to you?
Sure! Id be happy to take a look!
Thanks :-) Your diagram showing build date for the two ships has the dates backworks showing Apex as the new one...just FYI 🙂
Ahh... Good catch. Thanks!
Booked the Jan 29 cruise because it works best for me. Not sure how you rate "relaxation" but for me the two sea days at the end to just chill and rest was big for me. This way I come home and am somewhat ready to get back to work.
Awesome - I hope you have a great time! Yes - it's really easy to relax on the ship for sure (and I aggree that I love a day (or two) at sea before getting back home to rest up and prepare for "re-entry" into work. :-) The Relaxation Score is based on opportunities to rest at a port destination itself. Some people may just want to chill on the beach, get a cabana, or even relax overlooking a fjord in Norway. But if there's too much frenetic energy in a port, it can detract from the relaxation score (but alternately, it likely offers some other opportunities to bump that score up). For example, Marseille isn't a relaxing city, (it's great city to visit!), but one has to get into the Aix-en-Provence region to relax a bit more.
I’m going on this cruise ship March 2025 for spring break. I’m super excited.
Nice! I hope you have an amazing trip!!!
@@ThisistheCruise thank you!
You lost me at floating amusement park. That’s something that’s a plus to some of us.
You're absolutely correct. There are so many amazing youtube channels out there covering those very cool ships - so I'm trying to focus on something a bit different and more port-intensive. Unfortunately, the big ships often can't (or won't) do the really port intensive cruises. I wish they would though! Thanks for watching and commenting!!!
Thank you for covering Connie! I'm local to Tampa Bay and am sailing on the Constellation: 11/21/24, 1/2/25, 2/16/25 & 3/9/25. Happy to see one of my sailings as one of your top picks! 😎
Happy to! And wow, that's quite the series of itineraries! (Makes me want to move to Tampa! 😂)
We're looking for a 7-day cruise for the summer of 2025 that includes Geiranger. I don't see this fjord on any of Holland America's cruises in 2025. Have they dropped this fjord from the cruise? Thanks
It looks like it. I know Norway has been working hard to protect their UNESCO fjords, and Geiranger is one of them. It looks like there's a significant reduction in the number of ships visiting starting next year. Holland America may not qualify any longer to visit until they get their ships prepped for lower (or zero) emissions. However, Celebrity Apex is going to Geiranger (departing from Southampton) - that may be worth a look. That's staying in the premium cruise lines. Otherwise MSC is going if you want a big ship (but no carbon emissions) and some luxury lines like Viking.
Just put I WAS VERY, VERY, VERY INTRIGUED in all caps.
Well- maybe only TWO "very"s - three is a bit excessive. :-D
When will you post about 2025 Royal Alaska cruises
I have a few other videos in line before those, but they're in the queue - thanks for letting me know you're interested in those! I'll try to get them done sooner than later!
Cooments: 1) I would agree with you that the March 1st New Orleans cruise looks like a really interesting cruise. However, the price of that cruise is almost 2x per night of the Constellation's other March cruises. Personally, I avoid the New Orleans scene due to the street crime. 2) That March 8th cruise looks like a winner at a more reasonable price. 3) The March 30th cruise is a really good deal, one of the lowest priced cruises with Celebrity. Personally, I am on the March 23rd sailing on the Regal Princess out of Galveston and the April 5th sailing of the Carnival Magic out of Miami. Great video.
Absolutely - NO is a place I don't frequent often. The story I describe in the video was a few months ago on a work trip - and safety was less of a concern given all the factors. I've yet to cruise out of Galveston - have you cruised from there before? What's your take on it as an embarkation port?
@@ThisistheCruise Pros: 1) Easy to get in and out of. 2) Relatively cheap parking. 3) Very cheap hotels in Houston and Texas City. 4) Good cruise fares. 5) Friendliest cruise port that you will use. Cons: 1) More limited options than other pots. 2) Distance from the airports is significant. 3) There are no rental car options between Houston and Galveston that are reasonable. We are arriving in Houston four days before the cruise to attend the Houston Livestock and Rodeo Show and to see other sights. Houston is the 5th largest US city and we will generally get there early as hotels are $75 vs $250 in FLL.
@@ThisistheCruise We have cruised out of Houston twice - Liberty of the Seas and the Regal Princess. The first time we flew into HOU and took the RCL shuttle. On the second, we drove in from Southern Arizona.
✌Stay happy, stay healthy, stay cruisin'✌
You got it!
Hi Clint. I don’t like a lot ports, more days at sea for me. I’m taking a 10-night Bermuda-Southern Caribbean repositioning leaving out of Boston ending in Ft Lauderdale, but only four ports. It’s Bermuda and the ABC’s only. Looking forward to doing a transatlantic cruise.
Totally get it! There are so many amazing cruise channels out there that do incredible jobs covering the ships and the experiences... I figured I'd do something a bit different and focus on the quality of the itinerary that are port-intensive. There are plenty of ports where I'd rather just stay on the ship too - so it's kind of a win-win. Transatlantics are interesting as well... I gotta retire before I can do some of those though! :-D
Hey just an FYI I’ve been sailing Princess since 2008, they’re nothing special. I have 9 cruises with them & they’re going downhill. They’ve lowered standards and increased costs for things that used to be free. Their ships keep getting bigger & bigger! I do not recommend them.
Thanks for sharing - the lower standards seems to be a common sentiment. I hope other premium lines don't follow the same path. What's your favorite line and cruise region?
@@ThisistheCruise at this point I am giving up on “mainstream” lines…..I have one more trip with Princess next week. I’m changing to Azamara, Silversea, & Seaborn or similar. Smaller ships, all inclusive, more port intensity, & small ships. My two favorite trips were 14 night Norway & 17 night SW Asia to include Thailand, Singapore, & Bali Indonesia.
So you have this list or spreadsheet on a website that could view?
Not yet - I'm working on the application - and will hopefully be able to make it available to channel members. (It's a lot of work :-D but coming along very nicely)
Did Celebrity as our first cruise. We didn’t know any better, so it was nice. Now, with a lot more experience, I do not paying for the premium fee for a less flexible and more uppity experience. Even for the same price as a RC cruise, I would choose arC.
Interesting - perhaps this is just one more reason we haven't cruised Celebrity? (Stay tuned - three more to go to figure it all out!) - Also, can you give me an example of something that was 'uppity'? - Thanks for watching!!!
I just subscribed. Because I had questions about the 14 day which I. And get on , so I have to take two ships .
Looks like you're all set. Let me know if you have any other questions!
Hey Clint - your son is right about having a consistent outro. This one seems good to me.
Thanks Geoff!
We are scheduled to go August 19. I picked that because we really wanted to go to Ketchikan. We’re going with 10 other family members so it should be fun no matter what.
I often say that WHO you're traveling with may be the biggest factor. I hope you have an amazing time! Make sure to check out 55 North coffee when you're in Ketchikan! We absolutely loved it!
Good video. This will be my first Alaska cruse on Jun 30, Brilliance of the Seas (7 Night Inside Passage). Really looking forward to it.
Excellent! If you remember, let me know your thoughts when you get back, I'd love to hear about your experience!
I just found you and LOVE how you do this! So inspiring! And by the way, you have a beautiful voice, which makes the whole experience even better. Thanks for all of this!
Wow - thank you so much! I really enjoy the process - just takes time around my day-job. :-)
We booked 9/2, as friends invited us to join them. It will be our first trip, and we are excited either way.
I'm sure it's going to be awesome! If you remember when you get back, let me know how it went - I'd love to hear!
Same here -- booked on 9/2 as we have friends in Seattle that invited us out to join them. First Alaskan cruise and hoping to find some videos that review the different excursions as well. A lot to choose from and we're excited, too.
I'm sure it's going to be great! Is there anything in particular you're wondering about (regarding excursions?)
Our 2nd cruise to Alaska will be on Ovation of the Seas Aug 9th 2024. First time was Norwegian Encore and what a great ship that was.
Hi @Thisisthe Cruise. I just viewed your Radiance of the Seas Itineraries to Alaska this year. I was glad that our itinerary was chosen as the best! However, I noticed that you mentioned the July 19 sailing, but it was not on your visual list of dates for that South bound itinerary. Why wasn't July 19 listed? Thank you.
I honestly don't recall. However - it's likely that one of two things happened (even a combination) - I overlooked it - OR (more likely) it's the same itinerary that leaves at an earlier date and I didn't point it out in the visual. My graphics come from my app, and I try not to have the repeated sailings displayed. (I can easily confuse myself LOL. :-D) I hope you guys have (or had) an amazing time!!! If you remember, let me know how it went - I'd love to hear what you thought! Thanks for watching!!!
Thank you for replying. We're going on the July 19 cruise. Looking forward to it! Have a blessed week!!!
We have actually booked almost the same itinerary from Fort Lauderdale on 21 January. The only difference is that it stops at Martinique and not Grenada. The ship, however, is the Majestic Princess this time. We're really looking forward to it.
That's great! I'm sure it's going to be an awesome cruise! If you remember, come back and let me know how it was. Thanks for commenting!
In terms of Southern Carribean, I have been to Puerto Rico (2X), Aruba (5X), Curacao, St. Thomas(2X), St. Maarten, St Kitts, St (2X). St.Vincent and the Grenadines, St. Lucia (2X), Dominica, Grenada, Trinidad, Tobago, and Barbados. I am looking to visit new islands, which is hard because cruises tend to repeat. My goal is to go to Bonaire, St. Croix, Antigua and Barbuda, Guadaloupe, Virgin Gorda, Tortola and Nevis. (I think I became your 1K subscriber :) )
Thanks for subscribing! (Still sitting at 999... So close!) I completely understand the challenge of trying to get to new places. You end up booking something that goes to a bunch of places you've been to get in just one new place. I can't imagine getting to Bonaire without getting another stop in Aruba at least. Good luck though! I think you can do it!!!! (We're wrapping an Iceland cruise now, but will be back in the Caribbean in a few months)
This was super helpful! I booked Sept 1st for my first Alaskan cruise! Cant wait!
Awesome! Thanks so much. If you remember, come back and let me know how it went!
My parents went on 2 Alaskan cruises and loved the May sailing way more than September’s! Thank you!m for the helpful and detailed analysis!
Absolutely! Thanks for commenting and the insight. We're thinking of a shoulder season cruise next year and we're trying to decide between the two.
You’re awesome! Have you thought about being a cruise travel agent (maybe on the side)?
Thanks so much! Being a cruise travel agent sounds a bit like work. 😉 I just like researching the options for fun. 😃
@@ThisistheCruise likewise! I do a bit too much research on KZread 😜.
Love this series! You’re soooooooo detailed! ❤😂❤ Early in the month when people like me (finance/accounting) cannot take time off work, is almost always cheaper 😢
Thank you so much for the kind words!!!
In the itinerary with the stop in Haines you mention there are no seadays, but the first day after Seward is Hubbard Glacier and the day before arriving in Vancouver is the inside passenger, that‘s 2 seadays in my opinion, as you don’t leave the ship and are a bit more relaxed.
I totally understand. For me, the distinction between a Sea Day and a Scenic Cruising Day is that a Sea Day doesn't offer anything beyond the walls of the ship. Done well, a scenic cruise offers a level of enrichment and enhanced experience you wouldn't otherwise get and a regular day at sea. This really depends on how the cruise line handles a scenic cruising day. For example, Holland America has their naturalists available in some of the public areas during scenic cruises to talk to passengers about what they're seeing. Plus they'll do talks over the P/A (only heard in public areas - or on the stateroom TVs) during those times as well. This is super interesting for places like Glacier Bay or Geirangerfjord Norway. We even had this happen during a scenic cruise of Stromboli - we were watching it erupt while Holland America gave a history of the island, the people, and how they handle the eruptions. If the line just treats it as a way to keep people on the ship and doesn't do anything special, then yes, I completely agree - it's just a little bit more interesting Sea Day.
Good morning. Finally got to watch your video this morning. I agree about the inside cabin. In the Caribbean we do inside cabins. We booked a balcony to Alaska because it was a great price at the time. It was even cheaper than a window room. Thank you for these details.
We take Brilliance of the sea 7 days cruise to Alaska last May 19 will be back at Alaska by Sep. taking Ovation of the sea we love cruising every other month we take a cruise and its free from casino
Very nice!
Like father like son 😂❤
Lol- Yep!
Hi. Pls recommend an intensive Norwegian Fjords cruise that’s budget friendly that goes to Iceland too. Thanks!
Happy to! When do you plan on going and how long of a cruise are you wanting to do?
@@ThisistheCruise June - August 2025 for around 2 weeks. Thanks!
Thank you. I will come back to watch the video tomorrow. A little late now. Congratulations. You are getting close to the 1k subscribers. I recently made it to the 1k with my cooking channel. We are heading on this cruise in couple weeks or so. 😊
Thanks so much and congratulations on your cooking channel! Let me know if you have any questions, always happy to help!
@@ThisistheCruise will do and thank you. We made it home late. We didn’t watch yet. If not tomorrow night, on Saturday for sure
@@CookandBakewithSamer no worries. I'm on a cruise now and will get back to you when I return
I’m going on this cruise in 2 days, but I’m really concerned about the north sea and how rough it is. Did you have rough seas?
Well ... It's hit or miss. The last time we were in the North Sea, we had shockingly calm water and then average seas on the return. I guess we'll find out together in a couple of days how this one is. 😃 My plan is to take some Bonine Sunday night and likely Monday night. It makes me a little drowsy, but I'm usually good the next day. That's at least been my experience.
How did you do? It was definitely rougher than I expected! (Especially between Akureyri and Isafjordor!)
I dont understand why you dont want to say what cruise have you booked?
Because of how far ahead I recorded the video, I just felt it safer not to publish when we're going to be out of town. 😃
Panama canals currently have very low water levels.
Do you know if there's a site to monitor the levels? I don't have this as a resource yet (but will need it when we start looking at the sailing options). Thanks!
Would love this analysis for late May/late June 2025. You’re awesome, Clint! Perfect score is 30? New sub here. Thanks!!
Thanks so much for subscribing! The scoring is a bit complicated. - The score methodology was co-developed with a friend of mine who's a statistics professor at NYU, It's very helpful for comparing itineraries against each other (vs a score of "X out of Y"). If we're being technical, the highest score an itinerary could get is 100. That's practically impossible though. I have ten facets per destination (with a rubric for every point scored - in an attempt to remove as much bias as possible), five additional facets per itinerary (again with a rubric I follow), factor in any scenic cruising and overnights, and then run it through the algorithm. The algorithm uses a weighted average to total everything up and balance it out to what could be 100. Sort of like a school grade (Quizzes are 20%, Homework is 30%, Final is 50% of the grade) The reason it's almost impossible to get to 100 though is because some of the destination facets are so difficult to get 5/5 in multiple categories. For example, I have a "Natural Beauty" score and a "City Quality" score. A place like Amsterdam would land a 5/5 on city, but a 1/5 on Natural Beauty. Geiranger Norway (one of the most beautiful places I've ever been), gets a 5/5 on Beauty, but isn't a city at all, scoring a 0/0. Some places are pretty and great cities, but not as safe as we'd like. (Rome for example) My highest scoring itinerary to date doesn't yet have a video, and it's only 62.8... but that one's coming soon. ;-) I hope that helps - and thanks again for watching and subscribing!
@@ThisistheCruise thanks so much for explaining in such detail. The scoring could be subjective depending on what one is looking for…i.e. natural beauty would be important for most Alaskan cruisers. No perfect place, just like no perfect human being. 😉 Can’t wait to hear/see your analysis on 2025 Alaskan cruise!
@icedteamama176 exactly! Thanks again!
Been on a few Celebrity Cruises. Enjoyed them a lot. Great service and food. If you are a foodie or like fine wines Celebrity does this better (and WAY better than some big names) than most others. Your discussion here is really helpful.
Yep - Now we can just get an itinerary that's great - we'll have the best of both worlds!
I love these itineraries. I just switched my 4 night solo to Cozumel on Enchantment of the Seas in December to the 4 night on Utopia the next week in December. These feel like a way to enjoy this class of ship for shorter trips. I think this is a great option for folks at A very reasonable price. Agree with staying on the ship in Nassau, if you've been to Nassau a couple of times, you've seen it all, although I would be interested in seeing Royal Caribbean's new resort if I wasn't already going to Coco Cay. I can also see myself doing the out and back to Coco Cay a couple times a year. Very solid weekend beach getaway.
Absolutely spot on! Thanks for commenting!!!
Thinking of doing Alaskan cruise next May (last week of May)…not sure if Royal or NCL Encore would be better…we’ll have a 15 year old son with us. Also, is balcony is “must”? Thanks!
Norwegian vs Royal is a tough one. Here's my take. First, it depends on the RCL ship for comparison... but let's assume you're looking at a newer one (the older ones aren't aging well). RCL has better ships, and (IMO) overall better service. NCL may be a bit less expensive, with very good service, and will have better places to view the scenery outside your stateroom. BOTH will be great for your son - no worries there. (I have some good friends who took their three teenage sons on NCL to Alaska two years ago and reported back it was a trip of a lifetime for them.) I'd honestly consider the itineraries + cost over which line. More stops are better. Make sure you're getting a glacier or two. IF the cost is the same, AND the stops were the same AND it wasn't an older RCL ship - I'd go Royal, but otherwise your experience will be great either way. Now, the Balcony. For us, we almost never book a balcony. This is a cost consideration. We want to bring all four of my family (adult-size kids. :-) ) - so we usually get two inside rooms (which often ends up being less than one balcony). Even when we travel just the two of us, we usually get an interior room. This is because I'd rather cruise more often, and to do that, we need to keep our expenses reasonable. Viewing the glaciers (or even inside passage) from your balcony will be the same as seeing it from an observation deck or exterior promenade (NCL is better in this regard). One more consideration - I truly believe that Holland America cruises Alaska better than anyone else. If your son is an introvert (or doesn't need a lot of "teen activities"), and you're looking for a more "Alaska enrichment experience" - I'd consider HAL over the other two. We took my 16yr son (my older one was in college) at the time on HAL and he absolutely loved it. He's an extravert, but was completely enamored by the enrichment activities on board. PLUS you get to visit Glacier Bay - and HAL has that pretty much locked up. (Princess visits Glacier Bay regularly - and sometimes, just sometimes you can find it on an NCL itinerary - but they're very rare). That was a lot - but I hope it helped! Let me know what you decide - I don't think you can go wrong, but there are nuances that may make one better for you and your family than others. :-D
@@ThisistheCruise omg, sooooo helpful!!! We’re looking at RCL Quantum sailing on 5/26/25 or NCL Encore 5/25/25, both RT Seattle and both 5 ports. I keep hearing Glacier Bay is a must (NCL only). Pricing looks about the same for interior, but Royal is much less for balcony. NCL interior cabins are smaller. Never sailed on HAL before, not sure what “enrichment” entails….son usually plays computer games 😅…not an extrovert..he enjoyed FlowRider and Lazer tags on Royal’s mega ships. Just booked HAL Eurodam 5 nights Caribbean this December. Thank you so much your insight!
@icedteamama176 glad to help. Holland often brings on guest speakers and does port presentations. You won't get that much on a shorter cruise, but on Alaskan cruises visiting glacier Bay, they have to bring on park rangers. They do talks and spend time with passengers while cruising the national park. It's the kind of cruise where you leave feeling like you were more immersed in nature and the local culture.
Booked for September 27th
Nice! I know you'll have an amazing time!
We are taking our first Princess cruise in June to Alaska. 14 days on the Royal Princess. We aren't port fans and take cruises for the ship and view experience. Our first time to Alaska for our 25th anniversary. The issue with a point system is that they're weighted towards someone elses interests. We will be comparing against past Carnival and Disney cruises we have been on.
Congrats on 25 years! (My wife and I were married in 1999 too. ;-) One of the great things about cruising are the varying styles and reasons. Like resorts? Then they're great! Want to see new places? They have that covered too! We cruise more to go to new places vs the ships - and there are so many amazing youtube channels that cover ships, and have great "vlogs" - but I wanted to do something a bit different, and more akin to what matters to us. The challenge is trying to keep it as unbiased as possible. So I created a platform of rating ports that attempts to remove the bias, follows a strict rubric, and then weights it more towards the quality of the itinerary over the quality of the cruise line. My guess is, you'll like Princess more than Carnival, and maybe less than Disney - but it kind of depends on the strengths of Disney vs Princess - those may not matter to you. When our kids were of "Disney age" we couldn't afford their cruises. Now that we could, we're not really that interested. :-D - But we've cruised Princess, and enjoyed it quite a bit! Again - Happy Anniversary!!!! (and thanks for commenting!)
Thank you for this video. Hoping you will do something on the Princess' 2024/25 South Caribbean out of Brooklyn, NY
Great idea! - thanks for the tip. I have a really good friend who lives in NYC and had never cruised before - so I looked at some options a long time ago for her. They were on standard cruise lines - not premiums like Princess. Are you more interested in Bermuda, or getting down to the Caribbean? About what duration?
Celebrity ships in my view are some of the best. And then there is the food and wine. The food/wine selections are awesome. The experience is definitely upscale when compared to some of the others like Princess, Holland etc. but so is the price tag.
Yep! - That's kinda the problem. Also, I'm only three ships in, but the itineraries tend to be a bit lacking as well, given the cost. We'll see how the whole series plays out there - there are some itineraries coming that look promising!
I love that you have a metric that balances the itineraries. I wish there was more to go off of for the ships themselves other than the CC rating, but yeah - without sailing every ship yourself what else could you do? Something that's worth considering if booking an inside or even ocean view cabin on this itinerary are the public viewing areas. Grand and Sapphire both have wrap around promenades with ample outside space. Royal Princess' promenade deck has much less unobstructed outside space and doesn't wrap around the ship. Sun deck on Grand and Sapphire also have fewer "tall" glass railings than Royal so again providing more opportunities for unobstructed viewing. I love the Royal Class Ships - they're beautiful, but between these three options I would personally say Grand and Sapphire are a little better suited to this itinerary.
Thanks so much for the kind words and input regarding the ships. The wrap around promenades are one of the reasons we tend to cruise Holland so much. On our Norway cruise last year, we stayed on an interior room on the 4th floor, then just went down a floor to the promenade for amazing views, few crowds (none actually), and some awesome relaxation.