cruise OMG

A bare boat charter is an excellent alternative and something I did years ago in a previous life. You do need sailing experience and a good level of fitness though. Greek islands are pretty easy beginners and some sailing firms offer lessons as part of a flotilla I believe.

Thanks to Jayanna9040 and trisher. I will pursue both of your tips with vigour. Currently working on Annecy. Found cheap flights. Just the digs to go. Have done cruising. Last minute stuff for bargain rates. Just use it as a convenient wardrobe with lots of nice places to visit daily. Greek islands was a favourite with a group which did pay as you go on everything consumed. This suited us rather well as we normally breakfast sparingly. Lunched sumptuously on whichever island we were at then only needed either wine or coffee in the evening on board. I find when it's an 'all in' deal my baser self comes out and I eat far too much. Ugh!

My friend put two stone on last cruise

We have been on 4 cruises with an assortment of lines and have no idea what people mean by 'snobs'! We have always done our own thing same as we would on any holiday. There has never been an occasion when supposedly 'snobbish' passengers could have ever spoiled our holiday. We have very good times and some not quite so good times but then that applies to every holiday we have had. We have met some super people we were happy to have a Drink with, those who were not our cup of tea, we never saw again (literally). Those people who were bored rigid on every sea day, presumably knew that they bore easily, whilst we found too much to do and had to prioritise how we spent our time. I say go with a positive outlook and make up your own mind!

I've been on Saga, Voyages of Discovery and Cruise & Maritime. Yes you CAN dress up, but don't have to - there's always somewhere less formal you can eat if you prefer. "Formal" for me is a pair of black trousers, a normal strappy top (£3 from New Look) dressed up with a couple of overjackets from Wallis (I think) that cost me £14 each. One pair of trousers, 4-5 tops and the 2 jackets and you have a different outfit for almost every night for fortnight's cruise.
I didn't find people snobby - OK the odd one or two but you meet them anywhere and you can always avoid them easily. I suspect that the bigger cruise lines/bigger boats may well be more snobby but certainly not all cruises are.
You will also find that some ships have fixed dining but others don't, and again if you prefer to eat when you want, they have casual dining areas where you can eat at any time.
I'm not a great lover of water so I was very unsure the first time but we thoroughly enjoyed seeing lots of places without living out of a suitcase so cruising is now our favourite type of holiday.
I wouldn't go on a cruise with several days at sea in a row but generally there are enough activities to take part in if you want to - I've done lots of new craft-y things which I've enjoyed, been to lots of interesting lectures about things I knew nothing about and met LOADS of very interesting people.
I'd say go for it. You could start with a short one - say 7 days - to see if you like it but I've seen more negative comments here than I have heard in the past 8 years so I think you would enjoy yourself. If you haven't had a holiday in several years, this is for you!

Cruises these days are not like it was years ago. Very relaxed. Just wear the clothes you wear at home going to a nice restaurant at night. Anything casual during the day. Relax. Royal Caribbean is our favourite. Perfect and loads to do. Go and enjoy you'll love it ?

There are many differences. To atart with you need to know which ship you could be travelling on. If, for example, you would be on a Princess Cruises ship then you have nothing to concern yourself about.

They do have formal occasions BUT you are not expected to attend. They do have formal dining but they also have 24/7 dining where you help yourself and sit in a pleasant area, usually with a view our to sea.

You can wear casual all day and even to the evening shows. Tipping has always been a fraught experience for anyone not having been on board before but recently this has been handled differently. Now you have the option of following shipboard suggestions and paying one lump sum. That is just so much easier. However, it does not stop you should you so wish from tipping any staff member if they have given you exceptional service.

Cruising is the best form of holiday. You get hotel service and accommodation, all your food and drinks (not alcohol), entertainment, different ports most days (arranged tours or DIY) and the freedom of a large vessel to wander around or just sit and stare, or swim or a dip in a jacuzzi or play games or learn to dance or even shopping if you feel like it.

All that at a price you cannot meet by taking a holiday elsewhere. It may seem expensive until to take in just what you get for your money.

Well I'm sorry to say that I was horrified on my last cruise by the attitude of a couple of female table colleagues.
We were in Cunard princess grill and when it was mooted that a the friend of a very nice American lady at our table be invited to join us for a meal. The two women concerned vetoed the idea stating that they had payed extra to be in the grills and did not want to mix with someone who had not paid as much as them!
The prospective guest was a delightful college lecturer who was both charming and witty.
I had to apologise to the American lady I was so ashamed of my fellow citizens

Cruising is the best form of a holiday That should say FOR YOU Cardiff not everyone's cup of tea as you can see by the many posts

A lot of people don't realise that paying the tip money amount the ship recommends is not compulsory. On the first Day on board you go to the desk and tell them you will be tipping yourself. You will then not be charged any tip money. We do this every time and tip whoever we want to.

You can go with a more informal cruise line such as Royal Caribbean or Thompson. We book a set time for Dinner in the Restaurant, but only go there one or two nights - you can use the informal help-yourself Buffet on a different deck at any time for no extra charge. Ball gowns are not necessary on any night, but on the couple of special nights smart dress is expected.

We have been on 3 cruises all with Saga. There is no tipping as the company look after all that. There are usually 2 formal evenings in a 2 week trip but they aren't obligatory and few ball gowns to be seen. The ships are relatively small but with enough facilities and activities to allow you to pick and choose what you do. Dining is between 7 and 9 and not at set tables so you aren't stuck with people you don't get on with. We mostly found people very friendly. You don't have to socialise if you don't want to. Yes there are some people who are a bit up themselves. We had some English people who were a bit wary of us from N. Ireland and treated us like an unusual species.

Excursions tend to be optional and expensive but you can leave the ship and do your own exploring, as long as you are back on board before the ship sails. And we were never checked for bringing on alcohol. You just have pass cards so that all passengers are accounted for and none left behind.

Sailing to Norway, Western Europe, the Med and the Baltic doesn't entail several days at sea, usually only one or 2 at most.

The staff are mostly Phillipinos who are pleasant, helpful and unfailingly cheerful.

The only possible problem may be seasickness if you are prone to it, but the doctor on board has a range of treatments available (at a price). Personally, I don't suffer from this.

It is a great way to travel if you are on your own and a bit scared.

My favourite cruise was the wine tasting one. Every day a new region and new wines to taste. I spent a lot of the time in a gentle alcoholic haze ?

I meant to add that all food is inclusive. No unexpected bills. You do pay for alcoholic drinks in the bar. Some cruises have wine included with dinner too on a voucher system.

And when I say 'all food', you could eat 24/7 if you wanted to! Our last cruise ship had a free sweet shop on one of the decks. I kept nipping up to get a handful of my favourite sour lemon sweets: one of my little weaknesses!

I've taken first step I've got a passport form

Jolly good ethel

Go for it ethel I'm sure you'll love it.

I went on a cruise with my brother, sister in law and her mum with Caribbean cruises. It was a smaller ship compared to some of them nowadays, held about 1000 passengers I think. They were mostly Americans and I never really felt I was looked down on and believe me, I have nothing to be snobby about. The dress code for the dining room was smart/casual. I had one 'dressing up night' which was the captains cocktail party and we just stayed in our own group. I loved the freedom of being to be able to wander round the ship at anytime of day/night and feel safe. Food was available 24/7 for free, plus certain drinks. Their were some older American women who dressed up every night, they reminded me of the 'Golden Girls' from the TV. But I never met anyone I could not sit and chat with and have a laugh and if I went anywhere alone, I was always told 'come and join us'. It was the best holiday I had without my hubby.

BlueBelle "I too have wondered if the river cruises are less formal Anyone have any experience?

Lovely and very informal.

trisher "One thing I do fancy is a Turkish Gulet cruise- just worry that maybe I am a bit old. Has anyone ever done one?" We have, loved it, very informal. We are 70.

Answering question anout river cruising. We Went on a 2 week river cruise last autumn, apt, an australian company. Budapest to Amsterdam. Majority of Passengers were australian, all Very friendly. . It had no formal nights And dress is what you would normally wear on holiday. Its an expensive option though cost more than twice as much as a caribbean cruise we took in january (treating ourselves ) and there were things i didnt expect, ie 70 locks from hungary through austria, each one sometimes took over an hour to get through. All goes dark. The top deck was closed for 6 days due to low bridges and when we docked it was side by side with other boats which meant pulling curtains, putting lights on and being unable to use our balcony (did say we were spoiling ourselves) because the boats are parked so close together. A nyone with mobility difficulties would find it awkward as you need to climb up and over up to 3 other ships. However we did enjoy it but the few brits onboatd were astonished to find those whose long haul flights from australia cost considerably more than our local flights had paid less than we had, and they had an extra week included in the vist. Finally i never got a decent g and t, the tonics were always flat. ?Gin was ok though? Food good, staff nice. I just wish i had been warned about locks, sundeck, privacy,and tonic?

I did a river cruise on the Mekong. It was brilliant. Various optional trips on land each day or just stitting on the top deck dipping in the pool. Fabulous scenery. Not formal. Met lots of nice people. Would recommend.