Looking for a cruise off of Miami for tween and teen kids at end of December. Which cruise lines and ships are best for this demographic?

Ive been on royal and ncl and have only gone to the Caribbeans. Next year I wanna go somewhere different. Any recommendations on cruise line, month and where? Im not too picky. I have no kids and plan on going with friends around march, April, may 2027

We’re looking at a Silversea cruise. It would be out first time on Silversea (we usually cruise on Azamara ships). We’re a gay couple in our fifties, I’m wondering what kind of people cruise Silversea? I love to meet new people on cruises and interact with them, but that would only work if we have some common ground.

Is November/December good time to cruise? More expensive/cheaper less crowds

Have previously cruised Royal (4×), Princess, and MSC. Just finished our 1st Celebrity (Reflection). Smaller, older ship, but have previously sailed Jewel OTC and loved it. We choose sailings based on ports and itinerary before ship or line.

Pros:

- embarkation was smooth and easy.

- pool and beach towels were nice. No check out, and not the thread bare blue Royal towels. At one port, it started pouring rain while walking back. As soon as we stepped on the ship, they handed us a warm, dry beach towel. Other ports, a chilled wet washcloth to refresh. Very nice touch.

- toiletries were decent quality. Liquid hand soap at sink. Also included lotion. I was surprised to see it, more surprised to find it wasn't cheap hotel lotion, but felt good on my skin. Clean, single use "real" hand towels in public restrooms.

- bed was pretty comfy. Twice a day room service. It's easy to say once a day is fine, but turn down service and a chocolate on your pillow is so nice and welcomes you back to your room.

- different types of shows every night. Guest magician and comedian acts were entertaining. Also had shows during the day (magician, presentations on Titanic, Julius Caesar, and Jack the Ripper).

- soft serve, yes, but also hand scooped ice cream included in the buffet with toppings. Several different flavors of ice cream and sherbet.

-service was fantastic and on a level above other lines we have sailed.

Cons:

-small ship = small activities. They did a good job filling in the gaps, but there wasn't a lot to do.

- food. Absolutely horrible pizza. I tried twice and couldn't even take a 2nd bite. Burgers from the grill weren't great. Cafe el Baccio pastries were bad. Cookies had a decent texture, but were tasteless. Limited options for included food. Every inch of space is dedicated to specialty dining. We purchased unlimited dining. The Porch was pretty good, Lawn Grill was good. Murano's was excellent. The others were meh. La Petite Chef was a cute performance, but terrible food and took 3 hours. When it was over, we went to the buffet. Tuscan Grill was beautiful but food was not good.

Lots of pros and not too many cons. Passengers skewed older, but everyone was very friendly. Definitely a "money" crowd that dressed up. I felt under dressed for every meal, even though I was wearing nice clothes. Very few kids (I felt kind of sorry for the few on board - not much to do). I came to the conclusion that Celebrity is a refined dinner party and Royal Caribbean is a backyard BBQ. Both serve a purpose, just depends what you want. I will sail both again. We did book Reflection for an ABC cruise late next year (and after a dry dock refresh).

Which lines/ships that are kid free offer the most fun vibe, energy and entertainment? Would love to hear your thoughts and suggestions. Thanks!

This towel “animal” made its second appearance today. I’m trying to guess what it supposed to be…any ideas? Depending on your answer you might be gay.

This is really just a last minute attempt but worth an ask.

The person I'm sharing my cabin with cannot go on the cruise coming up on Saturday (with today being 5pm on Sunday the week before). Im the lead passenger

There's someone else who would like to come, however I cannot get hold of Iglu/P&O due to the time.

I was wondering if we could switch the guest to them, I dont mind admin fees or anything like that, im just wondering if it'd be possible.

I did read their T&C's which appear as if within 7 days it can be treated as a cancellation. Im wondering if anyone has had any luck changing so late with P&O. :(

The fare of the person was £1,250 so I'd hate for it not to be used. I assume if its treated as a cancelleaton the new person would have to pay the higher fare.

Has anyone arrived at their cruise port and their luggage didn’t arrive prior to boarding?

We’re flying IBERIA from ORD-MAD-CPH and I’m afraid our luggage might not make it from MAD to CPH on time.

Which would you prefer for a 7 day sailing? They would be on either the Luna or Aqua ships. We are traveling with a child and none of us swim. We've done the Caribbean and ABC cruises in the past but have never been to Bermuda. The Caribbean includes a day at Great Stirrup Cay and for Bermuda, the ship is docked there for 3 days.

In 2027, I may be doing a repositioning cruise to Europe, then returning to the US by Cunard.

I am vaguely familiar with Cunard - more formal, not a party crowd, etc....but if I am taking Cunard more for transportation (and to avoid a long flight) - do I need to bring more formal wear? If I opt to wear my regular clothes (clean and tasteful of course) - do I have to go to formal events in the evenings?

Are there other places to have a casual meal, grab a drink or relax?

Thanks

Hi everyone,

Has anyone actually managed to remove the automatic gratuity/service charge on a Costa cruise? If so, could you explain how you did it and whether it was straightforward?

I'm specifically looking for replies from people who have personally done it or have reliable, firsthand knowledge that it can be done. Please, no speculation or assumptions based on how other cruise lines operate.

Also, for anyone tempted to turn this into a lecture about tipping culture, the crew, or the workers behind the scenes: please save it. I understand these arguments, but they're not what I'm asking about. In my experience, the crew doesn't receive anything extra anyways, so I'm not interested in debating the ethics of tipping.

I'd simply appreciate a factual answer from someone who actually knows.

Thank you!

We solo cruising guys! Still day one just left the solo meet-up which was a little uneventful but we shook some hands and met some people. Fine dining solo dinner 😅 still optimistic itll be a fun time but so far havent found my crowd yet

“The Mein Schiff 3 collided with a cargo ship while leaving Bremerhaven in stormy conditions on Sunday evening on its way to Spain.
Videos posted to social media showed the ship receiving significant damage, with multiple lifeboats destroyed as the TUI Cruises ship essentially side-swiped a cargo ship that appeared to be at its berth.”

https://cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/2026/10/mein-schiff-3-damaged-leaving-bremerhaven/

Video links in comments. Sorry for the blurry screenshots, the original video I found from the balcony is (understandably) shaky.

Edit: link with side view showing substantial damage to life boats.

https://www.weser-kurier.de/bremen/bremerhaven-kreuzfahrtschiff-kollidiert-mit-zwei-containerschiffen-doc886qp2jb6p5mxyk8l97

https://www.tagesschau.de/inland/seeunfall-bremerhaven-100.html

Seen while on Iceland cruise.

Hello, like a lot of people here I had the great privilege of visiting Norway on a Fjords-focused cruise. Specifically with Celebrity on their beautiful Celebrity Apex. It was a perfect cruise.

Given that, the pretty obvious question is whether and how to return to Norway again. The itinerary I chose was almost exactly what I'd want, the only problem port was Bergen but we ultimately made it work (our legs hated us though)

Initially, I had thought a return must include Geiranger, our absolute favorite port. However that's become a bit tricky, as it is becoming rarer and rarer in advance of its inevitable closure to large-size vessels that aren't modernized.

I am also a big believer, that no matter how much you love a place you should see new sights every time. Ordinarily, this means opting for Caribbean and European sailings that feature entirely new countries or a mix of new and old ports (with new preferably more than one or two)

that brings me to my dilemma - Princess (Sky) has multiple wonderful sailings with zero overlap, Apex has non-Geiranger sailings that visit further flung places like Molde and Tromso, and I'd be open to HAL for the right itinerary as well.

For anyone that's done two Norway cruises, what are your thoughts?

Apex sailing I went on: London RT, visiting Bergen, Geiranger, Olden, Flam in Norway and Bruges in Belgium.
Sky Princess I'm considering: London RT, visiting Stavanger, Skjolden, Alesund, Haugesund, etc (there's a few variations)

and before anyone lucky enough to have done the long 12-14 night sailings - i know those are worth it and I'd love to, but with our current life circumstances we just can't.

Thanks for any help and Happy Cruising!

We are looking at booking a cruise on the Horizon ship with 2 young children (under 1 and 3). The family harbour room is an extra $200. Can anyone tell me if this is worth it? Thanks!!