Cruises? Do you love them/ hate them etc ?

Have had a few cruises!

We haven't had a few cruises , DH was not keen initially but has enjoyed them . Yes lots of people but I have never had difficulty finding somewhere quiet to sit and read. I love sea days , love the ocean ! Dressing for dinner is not a big deal , some people do go ' overboard' excuse the pun!! but that is not necessary. I hate dressing up , so for me it's a long black skirt , no tights - flat comfy shoes and two or three different tops- job done! I am not remotely interested in sitting at the captains table either! Love waking up in different places , exploring new places then returning to the cool ship. I am always watching my weight and yes it would be very easy to put too much weight on. However in my experience fresh fruit , salads and cold meats are available. We do enjoy cruising but don't have many , we love our own country too. Think the Covid situation will curtail our sailing for sometime yet though. I can imagine why people think it would be their worst nightmare, but if they try it they may be surprised!

We’ve been on two, the Mediterranean in 2015 and Caribbean 2016, they weren’t megabucks. No formal dress required, that was a deliberate choice and they were smaller ships. We thoroughly enjoyed them, but wouldn’t do it again.

Sad that such strong negative opinions on such fabulous happy times for me from posters.
It’s difficult for me to post and tell you the wonderful times to be had with such forceful negativity.
Our cruises have been saved up for and planned meticulously.
So not because we’ve a few £££ to throw away.
Not because we want to be on a floating tower block either.
There is a huge positive to gleaned but it’s the same as everything you do need to be open minded and know what you are talking about before commenting.

I would never consider going on a cruise, it is my idea of a waking nightmare.
I have never taken a package holiday in my life and certainly would not want to be in a floating tower block,

I really enjoy cruising but I am decidedly selective over size of ship. Small does it for me every time. The very thought of going on one of those gigantic vessels gives me shivers. I find them decidedly ugly and, ridiculously, I always imagine them toppling over because of the massive size of their superstructure. Daft....I know! To me my little ships have more of a friendliness but, at the end of the day, are just a pleasant wardrobe where I can wake up in a different place every day without having to re pack. Wonderful. I'm so lazy. I also love the freedom to indulge in multiple activities or none and to eat or drink of such variety for 24 hours each day if I so choose. Yes they suit me to a T but I am very selective. I should have had a couple of planned river ones under my belt by now but Covid stymied that. Roll on freedom!

No experiences of cruises, the longest journey I've ever done on a boat is to cross from Dover to Calais. I always thought I'd like to go on a cruise, but when the first cases of Covid emerged and it broke out on board a large cruise liner, can't remember the name of the ship, but so many people trapped on board for days turning into weeks that put an end to any such desires for me. In any case before Covid, I had also read about, I think Norovirus, similarly spreading like wildfire, and of course after what the world has been through I think we all have a heightened awareness of infections per se.

I ve never been on one so I guess shouldn’t really comment but I have a friend who goes on many, every year at huge expense (and always comes back a stone heavier) She loves them but what she talks about fills me with even more dislike The thought of being with so many people for days and weeks would horrify me I don’t mind crowds at all, in fact I find it interesting for short periods and as long as I can go home after being in them
The thought of people dressing up to go to dinner/evening meal ( I know it’s optional) but that’s so out my comfort zone
I m a casual dresser and an informal person
I know anyone from any walk of life (providing they have a few thousand to spare go on cruises) but I still feel they are for moneyed people I d rather sleep in a tent or caravan in the middle of a glorious wood and wander amongst the trees and flowers wakened by the bird song to be honest or a nice little B and B or cottage by the sea ( I love the sea but not with thousands of people I wouldn’t normally choose to have in my life)
Good job we re all different

We’ve got one booked for next September......hope it’s a go!
Love them, and all the places I’ve been a privileged to see.

I went on a very short cruise to Norway many years ago but since then cruises just don’t appeal to me. Being trapped on a ship with hundreds/thousands of people would be a nightmare for me I like peace and quiet and I can’t imagine much peace onboard. I understand the appeal and each to his own but it’s not for me.

I love cruising. I go as a single passenger and have company when needed and alone time when is wish. I am happy to wander in European cities by myself but buy a tour from the ship if we are in more unusual places or the city/town I want to see is a long way from the ship. It will be a while yet until I feel safe to sail but hope to start my holidays reasonably soon.