First time Cruiser, 25th Wedding Anniversary, need a quite ship
 

Hi everyone,
I have a lot of question. Thanks for all your responses in advance.
We are in late 40's, We live in Ft Lauderdale.We are not sure were we want to go for our first cruise. Its our 25th wedding anniversary. We are looking for cruise that is on the smaller size. We were thinking the oasis of the sea ,but we think it is way too big. We are planning to go late November to early December 2010. We are also looking for a balcony stateroom that is quite. We are confused, Please help.

Look at Holland America. They have ships that tend to be smaller - if 83000tons is small, but compared to 200,000 tons, it is. They have larger cabins and lots of verandahs. and they are pretty quiet. No big time partying etc. Some say too quiet, but we like their ships. The luxury is about right - for us. I would be uncomfortable with too much fuss.
For a first cruise, the Eastern Caribbean is nice.

Also look at Oceania, an upscale line with only about 700 passengers per ship. But also agree that HAL has very nice ship that are much smaller than Oasis.

First choice: Princess. They bill themselves as the original love boat. They have chapels where the ship's captain will preside over the exchange of vows. They also offer special anniversary packages. There is a quiet area (for extra $$$) for adults only.

Second Choice: Celebrity, similar to the Princess minus the love boat image.

HAL's fellow passengers are more mature and at or past retirement age.

The entertainment on Princess and Celebrity are more geared towards the slightly younger crowd with music from gthe 60's and 70's.

Suggest you visit or call a travel agency. When you go, tell them you want to speak with a certified cruise specialist. Travel agencies have agents who specialize in cruises; ones who specialize in land vacations, i.e. Disney; A certified Cruise specialist can show you which cruise lines would be suitable for you, your age, your first time cruising, etc. They can map out a wonderful 25th Anniversay cruise. My wife and I celebrated our 25th anniversary on a cruise. It will be fun.

Having been on Princess, Royal Caribbean, Carnival, etc.. our choice for special occasions or any occasion is Celebrity.. The Soltice might appear big, but you would never know it.. A dinner in Muranos can be the opportunity to celebrate your anniversary.. I know we willl be celebrating our 55th in Muranos on the Equinox.. As for entertainment..I absolutely disagree.. especially on the Soltice where in all the venues there is fabulous music...theatre tunes in Michaels, jazz outside, sweet guitar music.. and of course there is a disco

If you can afford it, look at Regent, Oceania's big sister. Amazing staterooms, almost all with balconies. And most of their Caribbean itineraries start and end on Fort Lauderdale. All-inclusive, drinks, tips, even excursions. Expensive, but worth it, especially for a special occasion like this.

Another option you can look for is Island Cruises http://www.bassharborcruises.com/. On Island cruises you will enjoy excellent facilities and great sights; it is the feeling of freedom that will really stand out.

I have to retract some of what I said about HAL. We just returned from an HAL cruise and the ship was crowded with kids, from self-indulgent teens to out of control kids. A lot more noise than I've seen on HAL.

Aristotle, what was the itenary on that HAL cruise? It could be the time of year (school's out) and destination. I found that July and August Alaskan cruise has a lot more family on all the ships we have been on regardless of cruise line. Last summer, on a Celebrity cruise to Alasak, one quarter of the passengers are kids 12 and under ... Lucky for us, the one that we have come across are quite well behaved.