While I wore the same Michigan State sweatshirt regularly for so many years after graduating that it literally disintegrated from my body as I was walking my dog, revealing the tattered bra I’d been sporting for just as long, but that was determined to hang on for a few more minutes to avoid scarring a large groups of tourists and further tarnishing the reputation of downtown Seattle AND have stayed married for over a decade to a husband who regularly brings raisins into our home and has never once turned off a light, I can’t in good faith defend myself against accusations of cruise line disloyalty. Because while I’m generally a loyal person, I bounce around from cruise line to cruise line like a caffeinated six-year-old at a trampoline park. Why? Read on to find out!
My 10-year-old son came at me with the following recently: “You’re so cheap when you die you’ll probably walk toward the light…and turn it off.” Rude, right? But considering what I just told you about my husband and the lights, I can’t really dispute his prediction.
I’ve garnered a bit of a reputation as being cheap among my family and friends (and my son’s friends whose “yo mama” roasts are like “yo mama’s so cheap she tries to bargain with a vending machine) and, when it comes to cruising, among the followers of this blog and my associated social media sites. But the same people rolling their eyes at my suggestion that they just run behind the city bus to the cruise terminal to save $2.25 on transportation costs also regularly reach out to ask how I score such amazing deals on my cruises (for example, I recently booked a 7-night cruise on Celebrity for $240 + 200 onboard credit and a 10-night solo cruise to Alaska on NCL for $450 with no solo supplement). While you can learn my full slate of secrets HERE, one of them is that I don’t remain loyal to any one line and ALWAYS price shop among many different lines.
You can save significantly by doing this. NEVER assume anything about cruise pricing. You might assume that because your favorite line is considered a “budget” line that you’re getting the best price. Often that isn’t true, especially for certain itineraries. I’ve cruised to Alaska dozens of times on every non-luxury line and the most I’ve ever paid for an Alaska cruise was on Carnival. You should also not assume that certain lines are always cost prohibitive. I’ve scored unbelievable deals on most major cruise lines, even those many would consider out-of-reach.
Early on in my cruising career I made the mistake of booking nearly all my cruises with Carnival. And for good reason – I loved what the line offered (and still do in many ways). But when I finally started branching out to other lines, I discovered so many things that various lines did significantly better or different. Each line offers a unique experience when it comes to food, entertainment, amenities, and overall vibe. There may be a cruise line that’s a better fit for you, but you’ll never discover that if you remain loyal to one line. Sadly, this is why many give up on cruising after a single experience. I’ve heard many say, “cruising just isn’t for me” and wondered if they’d feel the same way after trying a few different lines. If not, they should check into the hospital immediately, because clearly they aren’t well!
I piss off a lot of cruise line loyalists because one week I’m on a Carnival cruise and I’m like: Ohmygosh this is the best cruise I’ve ever been on – the ship, the food, the crew, the entertainment, the ports! But then a few weeks later I’m on an NCL cruise and I’m like: Ohmygosh this is the best cruise I’ve ever been on – the ship, the food, the crew, the entertainment, the ports! And then the next week I’m on a Royal Caribbean cruise and I’m like: Ohmygosh this is the best cruise I’ve ever been on – the ship, the food, the crew, the entertainment, the ports!
My favorite cruise line is always the one I’m on. And if I’m not on one, it’s the one I’m booked on next. So right now, it’s Holland America! And after that, it will be NCL.
But while I’m not loyal to any particular cruise line, I do have a strong favorite when it comes to cruise line loyalty programs. And the winner is…
Carnival! No, Princess! No, Celebrity! No, Royal! No, HAL! Actually, it’s NCL. No, for real, it’s NCL. Why? Because as Platinum I get to board earlier, get two free meals at specialty restaurants, get invited to several special loyalty events onboard that feature free booze, receive chocolate covered strawberries in my stateroom, receive a discount on internet, excursions, and other onboard experiences and purchases, receive a free bag of laundry, and receive a free behind the scenes ship tour. That sounds pretty great, right? And it is! BUT it isn’t worth remaining loyal to NCL at the cost of everything else I’m going to discuss.
And consider this, if you don’t remain loyal to a single line, you’ll save money allowing you to cruise more often, allowing you to advance through the loyalty programs of MANY lines quickly! I’m to the point now where I’ve reached a high loyalty status on most lines and get to take advantage of loyalty perks on all of my cruises.
Speaking of loyalty programs and how to move through them quickly even without staying loyal to a single line, did you know that some cruise lines will actually match your loyalty status on another line? Royal Caribbean and Celebrity (because they are owned by the same company) will match your status on the other line. And MSC will match your status on ANY line (go HERE to learn about MSC’s status match program and to apply).
Certain cruise lines can be a better fit for certain situations. For example, you may find Holland America the perfect fit for you, but you’re planning an extended family cruise with your grandkids who may enjoy a line like Royal Caribbean, Carnival, or Disney much more. Or maybe you usually prefer the “fun” lively vibe on Carnival, but you’re cruising with a boring, old, retired former college professor (that would be me) who would appreciate a more low-key, understated experience with lectures and a library instead of thumping club parties and belly flop contests. Consider what other lines have to offer depending on your unique situation.
Some lines do certain itineraries much better than others. For example, Holland America and Princess are known for how well they do Alaska (and I can attest to that having cruised there dozens of times on every line). Certain lines also offer longer and unique itineraries and it can take some shopping around across different lines to find them. I’ve sailed on some really interesting itineraries (a 14-night Sea of Cortez itinerary, a 14-night Alaska itinerary, a combined Hawaii and Alaska itinerary, and even some 1 and 2-night repositioning cruises that made for fun little weekend getaways) that I would have missed out on if I’d been loyal to a line other than the lines that offered them. A friend of mine in the cruise community just put me onto a rare Pacific Coastal itinerary offered on Princess next year that I plan to book. Again, it’s ONLY offered on Princess.
I know some people cruise mostly for the ships and don’t care as much about itinerary, but if you want to experience some different and unique (and longer) itineraries, it really does pay to expand your search to other lines.
Let’s start with food. I love food. And I especially love cruise food (partly because I live in Seattle where one meal out costs more than a week-long cruise). But if you were to ask me which cruise line has the best food (go ahead, ask me), I wouldn’t be able to name just one. My answer would go something like this (since you asked): Celebrity has the best buffet, Holland America has the best burger joint and MDR breakfast menu, Carnival has the best overall fast-casual selections, Princess is the best for pizza and complimentary food delivery anywhere on the ship…
You get the picture (and now you’re starving…sorry). Not only will you get different food experiences by cruising various lines, you also won’t get bored with the same menus over and over on the same line. Most cruise lines have fairly standard menus across their entire fleet of ships and these menus don’t change very often (every few years, if that). If you cruise a lot, you may grow tired of the same things (especially if you have food restrictions like me. There is typically one vegetarian item on the MDR menu each night, so if I cruised on the same line all the time, I’d be eating the exact same dinners on every cruise – not the end of the world, but I’d rather mix it up). Speaking of repeat experiences…
The same is true for entertainment – especially production shows that take place in the evening in a ship’s main theater. Those shows are incredibly expensive to produce, so they don’t change very often. If you’re sailing the same line all the time, you’ll likely see the same few shows over and over.
It can be much cheaper and more convenient to sail from a departure port within driving distance (or walking distance in my case when it comes to Seattle) of your home. But smaller cruise terminals may only offer one or two different cruise line options. When we lived in Pittsburgh, we discovered that we could drive to Baltimore to board a cruise. However, only Carnival and Royal Caribbean sail from there. You might need to branch out in order to embark closer to home. Here’s a list of U.S. ports:
Are any of these within driving distance of your hometown? If so, check out which ships sail from there and consider giving one a try!
One time after returning from a cruise, I posted to a cruise line specific Facebook group about an unpleasant experience I’d had at the dining room one evening and the cruise line’s unsatisfactory response, which was: “In the cruise contract you signed, it specifically states that we shall not be held liable for dead rats found floating in cream of broccoli soup.” But instead of the support and empathy I sought, I received the following comments:
“Sorry, but you signed the contract. Maybe bother to read it next time? It’s only 1,538 pages of 8 point font.”
“And you’re going to let that ruin your whole vacation? Some people are never satisfied!”
“I’ve been on 8,000 cruises on this line and I’ve never ONCE found a dead rat in my soup!”
“The plague is a great way to build up your immune system! You should be THANKING the cruise line!”
“I’m pretty sure Rat Carcass replaced Frog Legs on the ‘Rare Finds’ portion of the updated menus. Personally I’m excited to try something new.”
“If there’s something I don’t care for in my meal, I just discreetly pick it out and place it on my bread plate. No need to make a scene!”
“Are you sure that dead rat didn’t fall from your mouth into the soup? I think I sat next to you at trivia and your breath smelled horrible.”
Now while the above story is fiction, of course, the comments aren’t too far off from some I regularly see posted by cruise line “cheerleaders.” A cruise line cheerleader is someone who will defend their preferred line against even the most egregious of missteps and they really annoy those who have legitimate complaints about a vacation they spent a lot of their hard-earned money on. BUT, for the cheerleaders among us, cruising on another line is actually a way to make your cheerleading routine even stronger. Level up to the equivalent of a dozen back handsprings by saying something like, “I’ve cruised on [another cruise line] and I had a rat in my soup EVERY night! Trust me, [preferred cruise line] is SO MUCH BETTER!” Which brings us to number ten…
Hot tip: If you want to feel better about your life circumstances, volunteer to babysit for a family with teething triplet infants (I was feeling down about myself once in college after flunking an important quiz and accidentally wearing my shirt inside out on a first date and that babysitting experience snapped me right out of it and even prompted me to ALWAYS wear my shirts inside out on dates so as not to risk any babies). A similar scenario also applies to cruising. Sometimes you have to cruise on a different line to really appreciate what you’ve got on your favorite line, even if it’s not always perfect.
So, we’ve covered ten reasons why you shouldn’t remain loyal to a single line, but there’s one really important reason you should remain loyal…
Because you have every right to ignore me and do what works for you! If you suffered through all my long-winded arguments and at the end of it said, “nah, I’ll stick with [your favorite line], thank you very much,” then you absolutely should! Cruising is my passion and I want everyone to love it as much as I do. We’re all different and there isn’t one right way to cruise (which is why there are different lines and ships that all offer something special and unique). If you’ve found what works for you, by all means, cruise on [Carnival or Princess or Royal or HAL or Celebrity or Disney or NCL]! And with that…
Class Dismissed!
Homework (10 points): Are you loyal to one line? Share to the comments why or why not.
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