If you’ve considering a cruise for your next holiday, there are three things you need to think about.
Consider what countries/cities you would like to visit. Are they all relatively close together, so that you can visit some or all during the course of a single holiday? Or do you need to look at more than one cruise itinerary to cover all of your preferred destination? For example, if you want to visit Italy, Greece and Croatia, you’re probably going to find an Eastern Mediterranean cruise that suits both your budget and your taste. On the other hand, if you wanted to visit Croatia and St Petersburg, you’re going to require a combination of cruises, and your personal travel manager can help you find the best fit.
Ships range in size from your own travelling group on a French canal boat to a few dozen passengers on a Turkish gulet, all the way up to several thousand passengers aboard one of the big cruise ships. You need to weigh up the pluses and minuses of every option: a smaller ship has better access to smaller ports and can hug the coastlines more closely, whereas a large cruise ship has more dining and leisure options on board so there’s something to keep the entire group, from oldest to youngest, completely happy.
There are almost as many ship options as there are destinations in which to experience them: think river cruise vs oceangoing cruise liner vs small ship luxury. Do you prefer your vessel to be wind- or diesel-powered? Keep in mind also that you can experience more land-locked parts of the world by cruise holiday as well: you could travel through Eastern Europe, the American Midwest or inland Australia on a riverboat cruise.
When you’ve thought about all the different options talk to your personal travel manager about finding the best cruise to suit your needs. They can help you work through the options and they’ll take care of all the logistics, so you can simply sit back and enjoy the journey. Bon Voyage!