I always get the question, “what is the best party cruise?”
To which I reply, “It depends on what you’re looking for”. I’ll do my best to
give you some advice and perhaps point you in the right direction if you’re
looking for a good time on the high seas.
Party Cruising 101
It’s no denying that drinking and partying are part of every
cruise. If you want that type of experience, it’s entirely up to you, and from
my years of experience on the high seas, many of you do.
I’ve worked on all types of cruises, some party-oriented,
some not so much, but rest assured, no matter what cruise ship you are on,
party people will find other party people whether they are in the nightclub,
piano bar, casino they always seem to gravitate towards each other. However, some
ships and itineraries stand out above the rest.
First off, any short cruise (5 days or less) is always a
better party. The motto “we’re here for a good time not a long time” seems to
always hold out. If you’re looking for a guaranteed party, stick with a short
cruise. Also there are certain times of year the party is better than others, I
call it “Party Season”.
In general “Party Season” includes:
1.
Holiday weeks - Halloween, Thanksgiving,
Christmas & New Years (my personal favorite).
2.
Spring Break, (late February through early
April).
3.
Summer Peak Season (late May through August).
The above-mentioned cruises find a bigger cross section of
guests and more mixed generations of families, so if you’re looking to please
the whole family and you have young adults who you know want to party, choose a
“Party Season” cruise.
Now let’s get more specific.
Music-themed and specialty cruises are the biggest parties, as they have
very few, to zero kids or people acting like “mature” adults. Check out http://www.sixthman.net/ to find which
theme suits you best. I’ll cover the topic of music and themed cruises in a
later blog, but know that they are the best for an oceanic party, mostly
because they gather so many people with common interests and those interests
are usually music, partying and travelling, yeah they are pretty cool.
In my opinion the Norwegian Epic consistently offers the
best overall party at sea, it’s always a good time. However, the ship is in Europe
for the summer, so that may be out of budget or interest for some.
If you’re on a tight budget, a weekend cruise is your best
option for a good time and a quick getaway, my favorite short cruises are:
1.
Norwegian Sky – Year-round Freestyle cruising out
of Miami, it has six restaurants and a bustling nightclub and pool scene. It’s
hopping every weekend. Your best bet for
a great party any weekend.
2.
Majesty of the Seas – Royal Caribbean’s resident
party ship, year round also out of Miami. This ship is getting a little “long
in the tooth” but it’s still a good time and you’re sure to a have a great
party pretty much every weekend.
3.
Explorer of the Seas (Seasonal) – out of Bayonne
NJ operates 5 night cruises to Bermuda and that may be a great option for Northeasterners.
The ship is beautiful, huge and I absolutely love Bermuda! You have an
overnight stop and there are tons of things to do both onboard and ashore. The
ships get together and offer a dockside festival and there are bars on the
pier, but if you can afford it a ferry or cab ride to the main city of Hamilton
is well worth it. Hamilton has tons of great bars and clubs that kick till
pretty late in the evening they are pricey but so much fun.
Some of you may be wondering, “Where are the Carnival
Ships?” Carnival is in a category of its
own when it comes to partying so here’s my take on the worlds largest cruise
line: Carnival actively recruits the party crowd. Their whole premise is very
simple … FUN! It’s the most successful cruise ship marketing campaign ever and
still holds up after all these years.
The majority of the Carnival ships are geared for partying
full time, so you can count on the fun ships to deliver on their promise.
However be advised some of their hardware is a little dated, and just like any
great retailer who keeps costs low, understand that lower prices sometimes come
with some give and take. You shouldn’t have the same expectations for a cruise
that is much less expensive. You wouldn’t go on a Carnival ship expecting an
atmosphere similar to Holland America and vice a versa. If you want to choose a
Carnival cruise for a good time at a great price you won’t be disappointed. If
you want to revel in the latest advancements the industry has to offer, choose
the Oasis or Allure of the Seas, the Epic, or even one of Carnival’s newest and
priciest and avoid the 20 year old ships.
Please understand I’m not trying to undermine Carnival in
any way as I mentioned they offer a great price point and many great inclusive
features on all their ships, and again overall it’s a really good value. I’m
just giving you honest feedback. I have many friends who work on Carnival and
they love it and it’s party hardy demographic and spirit, and I’m sure as in
all cruise ships if you want to avoid it, you certainly can, however you
probably wouldn’t have made it this far in the article if your looking to avoid
the onboard party scene.
All right, so that’s my two cents on Carnival, but I’ve got
one more secret and my best advice for cruise loving party animals, or for
those looking to finally give this whole cruising this a shot.
Norwegian Cruise Lines one and two-night cruise getaways. A
few times a year Norwegian offers these from New York City (NYC) or Miami, FL
when a ship is repositioning to or from another destination or to get a ship
back on a Saturday or Sunday departure date. Without a doubt, these are some of
the wildest parties I have ever seen at sea. The whole experience is amplified!
Upon disembarkation of the ship the next day I would find many guests who
probably spent about an hour in their stateroom. The nightclub and casino are
usually open till 5:00 am and the tax and duty free shopping for liquor and
cigarettes is out of control. So if you want to taste a freestyle cruise and
just rock out for a night or two with your friends, take a Norwegian one or
two-night getaway, you will not regret it.
Remember travel agents are still an important part of the
cruise industry; they are educated and have a lot of experience personally
testing the ships out. A travel agent can be incredibly helpful in picking the
right cruise for you, saving you time, money and delivering the right product
for you. There are so many choices in cruising now a days, so check with a
trusted travel agent and let them help guide you to the one that’s right for
you. When you want to invest your money
you go to a financial advisor think of using a travel in the same way. Choose to spend your vacation dollars wisely
and have a travel agent do the some of the legwork for you.
Well, that’s my take on partying hard on the high seas. I
hope you have a blast and find whatever you’re looking for in a cruise!
Till next time,
Keep it on Cruise Control
-Andy Steinhauser
*Readers did I leave anything off the list? Let me know
write me at Ask Andy http://andyscruisecontrol.com/#_
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