I’m just back from a 7-night Sky Princess Scandinavian cruise where I challenged myself to test out eight cruise tips I think cruisers massively under-estimate, including one that I have seen totally wreck entire trips – and almost created a massive problem for me.
Offers:
Dreaming of an Alaska cruise? You’re not alone. With epic glaciers, wildlife sightings from your balcony, and ports packed with charm, it’s easy to see why this bucket-list destination is more popular than ever.
But with high prices and tons of options, choosing the right ship is crucial. I’ve analysed real cruise reviews to reveal the top-rated ships for Alaska—and what made them stand out.
A quick note on how I pulled this list together, because there are a couple of important things to clarify.
Firstly, this is not a ranking of every cruise ship that sails to Alaska. If I tried to do that, this guide would be way too long for anyone to read. I stopped counting when I got to 50 ships – it’s a popular region!
So instead, I had to narrow it down, and I decided to focus on the biggest cruise lines and then choose the one ship from each that visits Alaska most often.
There may be other ships for these cruise lines that visit Alaska and have a better average review score, but that score might be based on cruises to other destinations. The fairest method was to stick to the ships sailing to Alaska most frequently.
As for those review scores, they’re an average of the customer reviews from Cruiseline.com, Cruise Critic, and TripAdvisor. This gives the widest range of opinions and means that none of these rankings are based on the biased viewpoint of just one person.
According to customer reviews, the best cruise ship for Alaska is Seabourn Quest. The ship departs from Vancouver but also offers departures from Juneau heading in the opposite direction. Consider this carefully when choosing which side of the ship to book for your Alaska cruise.
This is an ultra-luxury cruise ship, renowned for the outstanding service offered onboard and the fact that it scores so highly with customers shows that this isn’t just an empty promise. Choose Seabourn Quest if you want fine dining, opulent accommodations, and an all-inclusive fare as you explore.
Also, if you want the best small cruise ships to Alaska, Seabourn Quest is the smallest on this list. It is ideal if you hate crowds or enjoy a more intimate atmosphere where guests mingle and share tales of their shore excursions each day.
Another of the best cruise ships to Alaska from Vancouver is Viking Orion, one of the ultra-luxury ships belonging to Viking Ocean Cruises.
Viking’s ships are all quite new and so offer guests beautiful accommodation options and public areas to unwind. The service is outstanding too, but what really stands out is the quality of the excursions. Viking is fantastic for planning unique tours and bringing experts onto the ships to bring each destination to life, which, for Alaska, is perfect.
Viking’s luxury sailings are expensive enough to price out a lot of cruise passengers, but cruises are all-inclusive with a free excursion in every port, too, so you have to weigh up the value against cruises where you’ll pay for a lot of extras.
You won’t find many large or super-sized cruise ships in Alaska. They can’t manage the smaller ports and shallow waters. Of the best midsize cruise ships to Alaska, Celebrity Summit comes out on top (no pun intended).
Significantly larger than the ultra-luxury cruise ships in the region, this can also have its benefits. You’ll get better views of the glaciers and scenery from higher decks, and more space onboard to unwind. You’ll also get to enjoy a wide range of premium dining options.
The average prices for Celebrity Cruises in Alaska are actually some of the lowest for the cruise line, and well below ultra-luxury cruise prices for the region, but remember that you don’t get drinks, tips, WiFi or excursions included, so those will all cost extra.
Regent Seven Seas’ ships are another option for the most luxurious in the world, and an excellent choice if you want to explore Alaska in style.
With Regent, all of your shore excursions are included (along with tips, all drinks, all speciality dining and more), so once you’ve paid your fare you can just relax and explore the incredible towns and surrounding Alaskan scenery at your leisure. True, it’s a high price you pay, but this is a ship aimed at people who want to feel truly special.
Seven Seas Explorer is also one of the ‘larger’ small ships to Alaska, so it feels even more spacious – perfect if you want to sip a cocktail, soak up the view and feel like you’re on your own private yacht – albeit a big one.
The last of the truly ultra-luxury cruise ships on this list, Silver Nova, is a stunning ship in her own right. Silver Nova replaced Silver Moon in 2023 as the main ship in the Silversea fleet for cruises to Alaska.
If you want that small-ship, luxury cruise experience for your Alaska trip, this is absolutely one of the better ships to choose. While she may have scored lower than her competitor cruise lines’ ships, this is still a high average score.
The six-star service is exceptional, and the excursions are well put together, giving guests incredible insights into Alaska. Silver Nova falls down a little on things to do while sailing, and the food quality isn’t rated as highly as other luxury ships, but guests on the ship have high expectations, so the food is still very good.
Choose this ship if your priority is to relax, and you don’t need an extensive daily schedule while cruising between ports.
Radiance of the Seas is one of the best Royal Caribbean cruise ships for Alaska, despite being older than her Quantum-class sisters which also cruise in the region. Radiance offers more itineraries and is smaller too, though it’s worth checking out Ovation of the Seas if you want to experience some of Royal’s more innovative features, including the excellent North Star – perfect for aerial views of the Alaskan scenery.
On Radiance of the Seas, you can enjoy the typical Royal Caribbean experience – one packed with fun activities, great live entertainment, loads of dining options and more. Choose this ship if you want the cruise itself to be just as exciting as the destination.
One of the best features of Radiance of the Seas for a cruise to Alaska is the adults-only indoor pool in the Solarium. Most ships on this list only have outdoor pools, hardly suited to the colder temperatures of Alaska – so if you want to relax poolside, Radiance of the Seas could be the ideal choice.
If budget is a major factor when picking your ship for an Alaskan cruise, then consider the Carnival Miracle. She offers a range of cruises from San Francisco, though there are other Carnival ships sailing from Seattle too, if you prefer.
A Carnival Miracle cruise to Alaska is perfect for families or for those who want to balance the amazing experience of the destination with a fun-packed sailing. You’ll be able to enjoy a host of live music and comedy, kids will love the Camp Ocean clubs, and adults can escape to the Serenity Retreat when they need a little bit of peace.
The excursions offered on Carnival Miracle aren’t going to be as unique as those on a more luxurious ship, but you’ll still have plenty of exciting options for exploring the towns and seeing the glaciers up-close.
One of the best Holland America ships for Alaska is also one of the newest – Nieuw Amsterdam has a fantastic selection of cruise options, including many with additional land tours either before or after you sail, giving you the chance to delve deeper into the region.
Another great advantage of the ship is the choice of destination ports. Along with Vancouver, she offers some of the best cruises to Alaska from Seattle, Anchorage and even smaller ports like Fairbanks – flexibility is always a good thing when planning when and where you’re cruising.
Expect a premium experience onboard – not quite ultra-luxury cruising, but a step above mainstream cruise lines like Carnival and Royal Caribbean. Nieuw Amsterdam is best suited to solo travellers and couples, with more of a focus on relaxation and exploration than ‘fun’ during the cruise itself.
With Princess Cruises, there are several ships offering sailings to Alaska. Grand Princess has the most but not by much – so you have plenty of other options available too, if you’d prefer.
Grand Princess is a good choice for all passengers – solo, couples and families. There’s plenty to do onboard, and the service is very good, but it’s not a party ship and has quite a relaxed vibe onboard. Young kids might get bored, but the Camp Discovery club is popular.
The drawback of Grand Princess is her age – she’s over 25 years old now and despite careful renovation, it does show a little. She’s far from past her best, though, and if you don’t mind the slightly dated decor then she offers a comfortable experience, great as a base for exploring the Alaskan ports.
Oceania’s cruise ships offer a five-star experience – not quite as decadent as some of the ultra-luxury ships sailing in the Alaska region, but a clear step above mainstream cruise lines in terms of service, decor, dining options and more.
Oceania is another cruise line to offer a range of flexible tour options, so if you want to extend your trip with a hotel stay or a land program before or after you sail, it’s easy to find some fantastic options.
Oceania is also one of the best Alaska cruise options for families. Kids won’t enjoy Regatta as much as they might one of the mainstream ships, but the Alaska Explorer Youth Program is enriching and fun – so you can still enjoy a grander ship when travelling with your children.
Norwegian Jewel is another mid-sized mainstream cruise ship offering cruises to Alaska. Similar to Princess, there are actually a number of ships you can choose from for an Alaskan NCL cruise, but Jewel is one of the highest-ranked NCL ships overall too.
While the NCL fleet is generally good for families, Norwegian Jewel is a better choice for adults – when refurbished in 2018 she had her waterslide removed, and new bars were added instead. Still, there isn’t much call for water slides in Alaska.
Choose this ship if you’re a younger traveller or couple who wants plenty of bars and evening entertainment while on your cruise to Alaska.
A note on the average cruise prices:
These averages are based on a balcony cabin or entry-level suite (where balconies aren’t available) on a 7-night Alaska sailing. They’re intended as a guide only – actual prices may vary depending on the sailing date, cabin category, and available promotions.
While this guide ranks the best ships for Alaska cruise holidays by real reviews, you can’t just accept that the number one ship is the one you should book.
Cruise lines are very different from each other, and there is no single “cruise passenger” type, so there is no single “Alaska cruise ship” type either.
You need to weigh up the typical cruise experience of each ship alongside the reviews. It’s no good paying for an ultra-luxury ship when you can’t afford it and you hate dressing up formally, just because it’s placed higher on the list.
Other things to consider are the type of staterooms offered – after all, a cruise to Alaska is one where you’re going to want to soak up the views. Do you want a ship with more balcony cabins, or even a suite with an expansive verandah space?
So, I’ve tried to cover the typical dining, entertainment and accommodation options for each ship to help you make up your mind.
Whether you want to try a luxury small ship cruise to Alaska, or you want the fun and features of a mid-size ship from the likes of Carnival, Royal Caribbean or NCL, there are some fantastic options available.
Don’t rush your decision – there’s an Alaska cruise ship that’s perfect for you, so take your time, read my guides on each cruise line, and you’ll find the one that’s right for your cruise getaway.
Don’t miss these offers…
Jenni Fielding is the founder of Cruise Mummy. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 30 cruises. Now, she helps over 1 million people per month to plan their perfect cruise holidays.
Marella Cruises has introduced the All-Inclusive Cruise Calculator, a free tool that reveals the cost of sailing with the company.
The company said in a press release that the tool demonstrates savings from booking an all-inclusive offering.
The tool highlights the all-inclusive offering, which includes flights, food and drink, transfers, entertainment, tips and service charges.
Chris Hackney, managing director at Marella Cruises, said: “The new All Inclusive Cruise Calculator allows customers to see the value for money we provide to our customers.”
If you’re taking a cruise from Southampton, you may wish to explore the city for a few hours either before you embark or after you bid farewell to your ship.
But finding places to leave your luggage isn’t always easy, that’s why I’ve created this list of the best places to store baggage for the day in Southampton.
I discovered a need for left luggage in Southampton when we had to disembark a cruise at 9 am, but our flight back to Manchester wasn’t until the evening. We wanted to explore Southampton without our suitcases, so I looked on Google to find somewhere to leave our luggage in Southampton.
I really struggled to find a good answer to this simple question. So, I decided to do some research, walk around the city taking photos of the best luggage storage options, and write this guide to help others having the same problem.
Since then, many of these places have closed and new ones have opened. But as I visit Southampton frequently, I’ve been able to keep this guide updated with the latest info for you.
There are several places where you can store luggage in Southampton city centre. Cruise port staff often aren’t aware of it, but there are several shops and hotels that will store your suitcases securely for a few hours.
If you plan to store your luggage, it’s always a good idea to call ahead. Luggage storage facilities only have so much space, and it would be annoying to arrive with your cases and find that it’s full, or that the opening hours have changed.
Here’s my list of places to leave bags and suitcases in Southampton…
The best place to leave your luggage in Southampton is at the Premier Inn. It’s situated in the centre of Southampton and costs £4.95 per bag, per day.
The service is available from 7 am to 11 pm so this is a great option if you need to drop off or collect your bags early in the morning or late in the evening.
The Premier Inn is a great choice even if you aren’t staying there because it’s close to both the train and bus stations, and you can pre-book online so you’re guaranteed to be able to leave your bags with no hassle.
Address: Southampton SO14 0AB
Telephone: 0333 321 9006
Opening Times: 7 days a week, 7 am to 11 pm
Rates: £4.95 per bag
If you’re getting the coach or train into Southampton then Maynards News and Food could be the perfect place to leave your luggage. It’s around a 6-minute walk from the main stations, and you can book online too to reserve your place.
You’ll need to though – the one downside of Maynards is they don’t have a lot of spaces. So reserve your spot with plenty of notice if you want to store your bags here. And they’re shut on Mondays and Sundays too.
Address: Southampton SO14 7FJ
Telephone: 023 8063 4974
Opening Times: Tues to Fri – 7 am to 9 pm, Sat – 10 am to 6 pm, Sun to Mon – Closed
Rates: £4.95 per bag
Biltong and Bangers is a food and gift shop with a focus on South African products like beers, biltong and biscuits. It’s located in a super convenient spot on the High Street, right next door to where Oceans used to be before it moved.
There’s a sign outside saying that you can leave your luggage. Unfortunately, though, you can’t book online, so you’d have to just turn up and hope that they have space for your bags.
Address: 161 High Street, Southampton SO14 2BT
Telephone: 02381 789 946
Opening Times: Mon: 9-5:30pm, Tues: 9-5:30pm, Wed: 9-5:30pm, Thu: 9-6pm, Fri: 9-6pm, Sat: 9:30-5:30pm, Sun: 10-4pm
Another good place to leave suitcases for the day is the Southampton branch of the courier service and printing shop, Mail Boxes Etc.
This luggage storage facility is also located on the High Street, so you can walk from the ship and can start sightseeing immediately after dropping off your bags.
Mail Boxes Etc is open for until 5.45 pm during the week, but it’s open for only half a day on Saturdays and is closed on Sundays. If you want to leave your luggage for more than four hours, you’ll be charged double.
You also can’t book in advance.
Address: 151 High Street, Southampton SO14 2BR
Telephone: 023 8033 5777
Opening Times: Mon to Fri – 9 am to 5.45 pm, Sat – 10 am to 2 pm, Sun – Closed
Rates: £5 for 4 hours, £10 for the full day
When we walked out of Southampton’s City Cruise Terminal with our suitcases, the first hotel that we came across was the Holiday Inn. I headed inside to ask if they could mind my luggage, even though I wasn’t staying at the hotel.
The lady behind the front desk kindly said yes! When I returned a few hours later, she didn’t ask for any payment, so I tipped her £5 per bag as a thank-you.
She explained that they can’t store luggage for everyone, but as she had the space available, she was happy to.
Sometimes in life, I find that if you don’t ask, you don’t get. So, if you pass any hotels on your way, it may be worth asking if they can store luggage as you never know! And if you pass the Holiday Inn, it’s worth asking if they have space.
Address: Herbert Walker Avenue, Southampton SO15 1AG
Telephone: 023 8017 9600
Opening Times: 24 hours
Rates: Free (tips appreciated)
There is a left luggage service at Southampton Airport which costs £10 per bag, per day.
Southampton Airport is about four miles from the city centre, so this isn’t the most convenient place to store luggage after a cruise if you want to spend the day in Southampton.
However, if you plan to take a trip to Eastleigh, Winchester or the New Forest National Park, this could be an option to consider.
Address: Southampton SO18 2NL
Telephone: 0344 481 7777
Opening Times: 24 hours
Rates: £10 per bag
Another option that you can use to book your luggage storage in advance rather than turning up and hoping that there’s space, is CitySpareSpace.
The company partners with trusted local businesses to provide you with convenient Southampton luggage storage. Starting from £6 per bag, you can explore the city hands-free. It’s the same price for the whole day for small bags and no extra charge for large bags.
Thousands of travellers book luggage storage online with CitySpareSpace’s partners which are located all over the UK, including Southampton city centre. The company provide dedicated customer service, and every booking is backed by a reimbursement guarantee. They vet every individual partner to ensure the utmost security and quality.
With this option, you must book online as in-store payments won’t be accepted. Book on CitySpareSpace.com to confirm your reservation.
To keep this list as comprehensive as possible, I’m including here places that used to offer luggage storage in Southampton but do not currently, as of my last visit in August 2023.
Oceans in Southampton used to be the most popular place for cruise passengers to leave luggage and it was one that a lot of people recommend. This is because it was located right in the centre of Southampton, within walking distance of each of the cruise ports.
The business moved to Robins Nest in January 2022, but it has since closed completely.
Address: 160 High Street / Robins Nest, 129 High Street, Southampton SO14 2BT
Robin’s Nest was a wonderful vintage shop that’s located in the former Natwest Bank on the High Street in Southampton. Being an old bank building, it has lots of secure storage down in the vaults beneath.
After I dropped off my luggage at Robin’s Nest, I used to love looking around the shop too as it had a lovely selection of vintage cruise memorabilia at the back. It’s a real shame this place has closed.
There are no lockers at Southampton train station. It isn’t possible to leave bags at the station at all. You can instead leave luggage at a number of shops on Southampton High Street for a small fee.
There’s also no luggage storage facilities at Southampton Cruise Terminal. Staff at the terminal may not be able to advise you of nearby places to leave bags either.
Once the cruise terminal opens for the first guests to check in, you can drop off your luggage. So even if your check-in time isn’t until later, you can leave your bags as soon as the check-in opens for those with earlier check-in times than yours.
Those flying to Southampton typically find that, once they disembark their cruise ship after breakfast, they have a few hours to kill before heading to the airport.
There are lots of places where you can store luggage for the day in Southampton, leaving you hands-free while you explore the city or do some shopping in the WestQuay shopping centre.
Whichever option you choose, it’s wise to call ahead to make sure that storage is available, particularly during busy periods.
Jenni Fielding is the founder of Cruise Mummy. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 30 cruises. Now, she helps over 1 million people per month to plan their perfect cruise holidays.
The vast majority of people who book a cruise have an amazing time – it’s the kind of holiday that people just keep coming back to.
But not every cruise goes smoothly, and sometimes people don’t have a great experience – and some cruise lines seem to be worse than others for this.
Typically it’s not because a cruise line is ‘bad’, but because someone chose the wrong cruise line for them.
So in this guide, I’ve looked at the worst cruise lines according to real reviews. How many of them have you cruised with, and do you agree?
I’ve used Cruise Critic for this guide – it’s one of the biggest, if not the biggest, cruise review websites in the whole world, so it makes sense. There are over 200,000 reviews that have gone into my research for this!
I’ve decided to ignore any cruise line with fewer than 50 reviews, because the average scores would be affected much more by a few strong opinions. So, this list has the 14 cruise lines with the lowest average scores, provided they have 50 reviews or more. Most have at least 200, and one has over 40,000 reviews!
I’ve included the fleet size, because sometimes the worse reviews are only for a part of the fleet – if a cruise line only has a small fleet, you know the experiences are more likely to be typical across them all. And I’ve given an approximate price per night, because that adds important context for the reviews.
Costa Cruises is an Italian cruise line that stands out for its distinct Mediterranean style and vibrant atmosphere.
Known for its rich Italian heritage, the cruise line really embraces that European vibe with crew speaking many languages onboard and a lot of dining options that incorporate the ingredients of the Med.
The atmosphere onboard the mid-sized ships is quite lively, although don’t expect a huge range of entertainment facilities.
The ships are family-friendly and have good kids clubs but you won’t find much in the way of unique attractions like you’d find on bigger American cruise lines.
With a score of 3 out of 5, there are a lot of people who have a great time and an equal number who rate the cruise line very poorly. Customer service tends to be mentioned frequently, with staff described as everything from “unhelpful” to “aggressive” in their manner.
Food is another common complaint, particularly for vegetarians and especially vegans with limited options available. Nothing is labelled in the buffet, and vegan protein sources are scarce. I ate pasta with tomato sauce for lunch every day on my cruise!
The buffet is described as overcrowded and even chaotic by some guests, with poor management. This is something I can attest to – as even with no seats available in the buffet, crew members prevented me from taking my food and sitting at one of the hundreds of seats outside.
Costa’s cruises are some of the cheapest available, and that can show with the quality of a cruise holiday onboard, but if you’re on a budget and you know what to expect then you can still have a great time.
Suggested read: My £30 Per Day Costa Cruise (Honest Review)
MSC Cruises is another Italian cruise line that offers affordable ocean cruises on mid-size and large ships. While the cruise line is Italian and offers some European touches through its dining options, it is really more of a European-American blend of cruise styles, and many of the ships sail out of the US too.
Fares are affordable and there’s a good range of entertainment onboard, including fun daytime activities such as bowling, mini golf, arcades and a Formula 1 driving simulator – although these do have additional costs attached. And you won’t find a lot of the best features on the older, smaller ships.
Many of the ships have launched in the last few years and so are modern and well-kept but there are some older ships in the fleet that are a little more dated now.
One important point for MSC – they don’t tend to run traditional cruises with a single start and finish port. Instead, guests will embark and disembark at most ports on the cruise – your first day might be halfway through someone else’s cruise on the ship. The flexibility is good, but it can also make each port visit a little hectic.
There are two recurring themes to the negative reviews of MSC Cruises – the range and quality of the food are often commented on, as are the standards of service. Some people have found the crew to be less helpful or unresponsive to concerns when compared to other cruise lines.
Suggested read: Why Are MSC Cruises So Cheap?
Of the cruise lines on this list, Ambassador is one of the newest. This British cruise line was only formed in 2021, although it was launched by the former CEO of Cruise & Maritime Voyages, which went bust in 2020 – so there was heritage there.
While the cruise line is new, the ships are not. Ambience was the first ship acquired, which was first built in 1991, while sister ship Ambition is a little newer having been first built in 1999. Renaissance, a ship that they’re chartering for Caribbean cruises, was built in 1995.
The cruise line offers a wide range of itineraries, sailing from ports around the UK. Most cruises are adults only although some are multigenerational during the school holidays. The atmosphere onboard is very relaxed and the clientele does tend to be older.
There are now some fly-cruises in the Caribbean on Renaissance, too.
The age of the ships is mentioned in a lot of the negative reviews for the cruise line – despite extensive renovation for each ship, guests still mention issues with the dated facilities, while the cabins (and the bathrooms) are particularly small in some cases.
Guests have also criticised the organisation, with last-minute cancellations along with how crowds are managed in particularly busy areas. There are also mentions of the age of passengers in a negative way, but that’s as much on the guests to research before they travel so that they understand what the likely audience will be.
Suggested read: Ambassador Ambience Cruise Review
P&O Cruises is an established cruise line catering to the British market. The ships have traditionally been mid-sized, though the more recent additions of Iona and Arvia are definitely large cruise ships, offering even more variety of bars and restaurants onboard.
The ships are quite relaxed and modern – don’t expect to find crazy water slides, robotic bartenders or any other gimmicks. Instead, the focus is on providing excellent service, great quality food, and a pleasant vibe that’s as suited to families as it is to older guests travelling solo or with friends/partners.
Because P&O Cruises is modernising, there are elements that disappoint long-standing fans, and a lot of the negative reviews are from self-confessed long-time P&O cruise guests who feel that the service standards are slipping as ships are getting bigger and crowds are becoming harder to wrangle.
On the flip side, reviews of the smaller ships focus on deteriorating cabins and a lack of excitement onboard, especially from those who admit to trying P&O after trying other, larger cruise ships.
I’m a little surprised that the average score is just 3.4 because I’ve loved my cruises with P&O and never really had a bad experience.
But other long-time P&O Cruises fans don’t seem to be as enamoured as they once were. And with changes such as the new charges for reserving places in the kids clubs, I think a lot of people are just starting to fall out of love with the direction the cruise line’s heading in.
NCL is one of the bigger cruise lines in the world, with a large fleet of ships. While none are close to being the biggest ship in the world, they’re all at least mid-sized and some of the newer ships have capacity for around 4,000 guests.
A Norwegian Cruise Line cruise is typically aimed at families and at younger adults, with a lot more amenities for enjoying a day packed with fun. The latest ships even have the only go-kart tracks at sea, while you can expect thrilling water slides, rock climbing walls, bowling and more.
NCL’s fares are a little tricky to unpick, because they can sometimes seem high but you have to take the More at Sea offers into account, which will get you drinks packages, free WiFi, shore excursion credit or speciality dining meals included.
But one of the biggest criticisms of the cruise line in recent reviews – and a long-standing one for NCL – is the ‘nickel and diming’ onboard, referring to how many small additional costs there are if you want to enjoy everything that the ships have to offer.
Guests also comment on the disorganisation in the dining rooms, with long wait times for sit-down meals and overcrowded buffet restaurants. The food quality is also described as a bit samey and sometimes of low quality.
Many reviews focus on the port-side customer service too, rather than the actual onboard experience, so if you don’t need to speak to the customer support teams before or after you travel, you might find that the service on the ship itself is actually very good.
Suggested read: NCL Ships Ranked Best To Worst
Celestyal Cruises is a cruise line that does things a little differently, compared to larger companies. It focuses only on the Mediterranean and specifically the Greek Islands, but what makes the cruises so special is that you’ll often enjoy multiple ports of call in a single day.
Being able to visit different islands for a few hours at a time is a lot of fun, giving you even more chance to explore, though it does certainly feel a little less relaxed than a cruise where you’d have up to 8 hours in each port.
Also, since the focus is very much on the ports of call, don’t expect a wealth of things to do during the day on your ships, although the evening entertainment helps to bring much of the local culture to life.
The quality of the ships does get some negative attention in the reviews – the ships are older and the renovations haven’t always made everything brand-new. Some guests have reported broken furniture, dirty cabins and general wear and tear around the ships.
With such a packed schedule, dining hours are a little more limited on a Celesytal ship and that’s drawn some ire in the reviews too, along with some instances of poor customer service.
That’s not what I found though – check my Celestyal review to read my own experience.
Fred. Olsen is another British cruise line, though it has a much smaller fleet. It has a very long heritage, with the shipping company existing since 1848 and cruises available since 1966.
The ships are quite old now, but have been carefully refurbished to keep them comfortable. Fares are also higher on Fred. Olsen ships than they are on some other British cruise lines, but they aim to offer a more traditional cruise experience with high standards of service.
There aren’t a huge number of negative reviews for Fred. Olsen, and those that there are have been accrued over a number of years. But there are a few themes that do stand out, including the food, which some guests found repetitive and a little bland, although there were just as many reviews praising the dining options too.
The ships are older, and so there is some criticism of their upkeep, especially in the cabins. Broadly though, the refurbishments have kept them to a good standard.
Most of the negative reviews focus on things outside of the cruise line’s control, including the weather either causing itinerary changes or spoiling excursions for the Northern Lights.
Fred. Olsen certainly has a loyal audience of older guests, and those who know what to expect tend to really enjoy their time onboard.
Suggested read: Fred. Olsen cruise review
Marella is a cruise line primarily targeting the British market, but it’s a little unique in that it doesn’t ever sail from the UK. Instead, it offers cruises in the Mediterranean, Caribbean, Canary Islands and Asia, cutting out the sea days by sailing from ports much closer to the action.
As such, flights are always included in the fare you pay, and they’re often run by TUI, Marella’s parent company. With flights and cruises handled by the same company, guests love the seamless experience as you know you’ll never miss a ship departure, since it will wait for any delayed flights.
Cruises are also more inclusive than other cruise lines – you don’t have to pay tips and you get a wide range of drinks covered by your fare too. WiFi isn’t included but it’s a lot cheaper than other cruise lines.
So, why does it make this list? The ships are a little older, and while they have been refurbished, some guests felt that they still showed their age. Others criticised the lack of variety in the food too, particularly in the Marketplace casual dining venue.
Some guests also felt that the ships were crowded, especially on the pool deck. The great value offered by Marella often means that ships sell out, so they can feel quite busy. But most guests love the service of the crew, the fact that you don’t need to pay any hidden extras, and all the extra time you get seeing ports since you’re flown right to each destination.
Suggested read: 22 Fun Things To Do On A Marella Cruise
There are several cruise operators in North America that focus almost exclusively on the continent either for cruises of the Great Lakes, or of the coastlines around Canada and New England. They are often priced high compared to other global cruise lines. Pearl Seas Cruises is one such example.
The experience is advertised as one of luxury – guests can expect all dining and snacks to be covered along with soft/hot drinks, complimentary cocktail parties and entertainment on the ship. Crucially at these high prices, they are not all-inclusive – port fees and taxes are separate, and gratuities also need to be paid too.
A lot of the negative reviews felt that the ship didn’t meet the standards advertised, and that while the cruise was expensive, it certainly wasn’t luxurious. Guests felt that the cabins in particular fell some way short of what was expected, including worn-out furnishings and problematic heating systems.
Food quality was another common criticism, as was the quality of the onboard entertainment – guests felt that their time on the ship was a little basic, and the fares didn’t reflect good value.
The highlight of these cruises should be the itineraries which are broadly praised, but some guests did feel that excursions were rushed or that last-minute changes were poorly communicated.
If you want to really delve into the regions that Pearl Seas Cruises offers, then it’s still worth considering – an average score of 3.7 out of 5 shows that most do have a good time. But don’t expect opulence.
Regent Seven Seas Cruises has a reputation as one of the world’s most luxurious cruise lines, and for most people that reputation feels deserved. The cruise line has a fleet of smaller ships and a high crew-to-guest ratio, ensuring that everyone enjoys a more personalised service.
The cruise line is all-inclusive, too. The approximate prices I’ve quoted are without flights but you can choose fares with flights included too. Otherwise, you’ll find that all dining, drinks, tips and excursions are covered, along with transfers to/from the ship from the airport.
The ships offer suite accommodations only – no basic cabins here. And everyone has use of a butler who will go above and beyond what you’d expect from a stateroom attendant – they’ll make reservations for you, serve canapes in your suite, and even shine your shoes.
The lower scores are a result of guests finding a dip in service standards in recent years. Most people are still impressed, but some guests have criticised issues with housekeeping, and said that the food isn’t always the same quality. “Hit or miss” was a phrase used a couple of times.
Some of the ships are older, too, and guests say that they’re showing it with some maintenance issues. Some reviews also mention poor organisation around itineraries or shore excursions leading to frustrations.
Regent has very high standards, and those can sometimes mean guests are even more critical in their reviews – arguably with these prices, they’re entitled to be.
Scenic Ocean Cruises is a luxury cruise line from a company that is well-known for its river cruise options. You’ll pay a premium for a Scenic cruise, but you get a lot included for the price as well, such as your shore excursions and your drinks, and your flights are always included in the fare as well.
The experience is designed to be opulent. The ships are described as “Discovery Yachts” as they are smaller than most cruise ships, and capable of exploring many parts of the world others can’t reach.
Don’t expect a loud atmosphere – crowds are minimal, the ambience is always relaxing, and the guests are typically looking for a blend of adventure and serenity.
And with average reviews of 3.7 out of 5, there are more hits than misses, but a common complaint of the negative reviews is that customers didn’t feel that the ships were luxurious enough for the price paid. It’s not so much in the styling or furnishing, but in the layout, which is clumsy and counter-productive for relaxation.
Guests also felt that the entertainment onboard was severely lacking – the ships are aimed at exploring ports, but when sailing you won’t find there’s much to keep you busy. Dining complaints were less about the quality of food and more about scheduling, with meal times clashing with excursion schedules leading to guests feeling frustrated and rushed.
Most guests enjoyed a luxurious getaway with Scenic, but there are occasional issues which dampen the experience.
Suggested read: Scenic vs Emerald Ocean Cruises
Carnival is one of the biggest cruise lines in the world, with a massive fleet of ships. Particularly popular in the US for cruises to the Caribbean, Bahamas and Mexico, the cruise line calls its fleet “Fun Ships”, with a focus on a party atmosphere.
Expect an experience that’s bold and a little brash – kids will be having loads of fun with the various facilities, such as roller coasters and water slides, while adults enjoy taking advantage of the many bars serving all manner of cocktails and beers.
A score of 3.8 out of 5 tells you that most people have a great cruise, but there are some negatives. Because the ships are on the larger side, common review complaints include overcrowding around the more popular parts of the ship, as well as delays and poor organisation, especially on embarkation day and when in port.
Dining is another element of Carnival that can come under fire, both for the lack of variety (especially on the older, smaller ships) and for the overall quality. With Carnival, you aren’t paying luxury prices, so you shouldn’t expect fine dining.
Entertainment also comes under fire for the quality compared to other cruise lines, but it does tend to have good comedians onboard in particular.
Avoid Carnival if you don’t like the idea of a loud, hectic cruise but if you love a lively atmosphere, it could be perfect.
Suggested read: Carnival Cruise Guests Share Their Worst Cruises Ever
Amadeus is a river cruise line that also trades as Luftner Cruises for the German market. Under the Amadeus brand, the marketing is more global, but the result is a fleet of ships that attract a multicultural group of guests. The crew are comfortable in English as well as German so communication issues aren’t anything to worry about.
Amadeus offers a typical river cruise experience, primarily exploring the rivers of Europe and offering a relaxed atmosphere onboard, albeit with little to do during your sailing time beyond some simple entertainment. The aim here is to spend your time exploring – not fill your days with endless activities onboard.
I have to draw a line on the rules for this list, but Amadeus River Cruises can perhaps call itself a little unlucky to make the list. Of the 66 reviews the cruise line has, there are just 12 that are either 1 or 2 out of 5, compared to 27 that are 5/5.
Of those negative reviews, the main issues seem to be around the limited dining options and the quality of the food that was served, and the accommodation quality, with small and unwelcoming cabins.
Guests also said that the cruises sometimes felt that the senior crew weren’t organised, and that excursions were missed due to poor management.
Margaritaville at Sea Cruises is not like the rest of the cruise lines on this list – there are no long itineraries, with a focus instead on shorter cruises lasting no more than 5 nights but most only lasting 2 or 3.
They’re described as a resort at sea – this is more about the onboard party experience than your destinations, though you will at least get to experience at least one port on your cruise.
The focus with Margaritaville at Sea is all about fun – this is not a luxury cruise experience, nor is it a calm and relaxing one. Expect live music and shows throughout the day and a very lively atmosphere onboard, although there isn’t a huge amount to do onboard in terms of facilities – there’s a spa, salon and casino, and pools and hot tubs too.
Complaints from customers in the negative reviews primarily focused on the ships themselves, with cleanliness being a big issue – especially of the cabins. Guests also criticised the overall quality of the cabins including very small bathrooms and furnishings that are worn out.
Food quality is praised by some and harshly reviewed by others, with some guests saying that food was basic or even inedible.
Some of the poor reviews focussed on the lack of variety on the ships and generally being bored, while others said that they felt there were a lot of hidden costs, and that the budget pricing was actually misleading.
And some people felt that their cruises were a bit rushed – a 2-night cruise was really only one day, since guests didn’t get onboard til late and were rushed off the ship on the last day.
If you book a Margaritaville at Sea cruise knowing that it’s a short break, you can have a great time, but don’t expect the same standards as bigger cruise lines.
Also, it’s important to clarify the jump in scores recently – from 2024 to 2025, the average review score has jumped from 3.7 to 4.1. Maybe they shouldn’t even be on this list anymore?
Remember, none of these are really bad scores – even the worst cruise lines have an “average” 3 out of 5.
And you get what you pay for, too – some people forget that they only paid £50 per night for a cruise and then complain about things like slow service. £50 a night for accommodation and all your meals is a pretty sweet deal!
In most cases, with a little bit of research and prep, you can find the perfect cruise line for you, and it could well be any of the cruise lines on this list. I’ve had a fantastic time on several of these cruises myself.
Some of the negative experiences will be justified, but some people just love to complain.
Don’t miss these offers…
Jenni Fielding is the founder of Cruise Mummy. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 30 cruises. Now, she helps over 1 million people per month to plan their perfect cruise holidays.
One of the most common questions that I get asked in the DMs on my Instagram page is about what you get with Royal Caribbean when you book.
Which I guess isn’t surprising. It’s one of the biggest cruise lines in the world, if not the biggest. And when you book a Royal Caribbean cruise, it’s not always obvious what the cruise fare includes.
So here are all the things you get for free when you cruise, as well as the hidden costs on Royal Caribbean cruises (though they aren’t really hidden…)
Firstly, let’s talk about the thing that most people want to know about – the drinks!
The free drinks on Royal Caribbean cruise ships are:
All other drinks are chargeable. You can add each drink to your bar tab via your SeaPass card and pay for your drinks at the end of your cruise, or you can buy a drinks package for all-inclusive drinks throughout your trip.
The free drinks aren’t available in all venues and at all times, but you can find out exactly where and when to get them here: Guide To Royal Caribbean’s Free Drinks.
The drink prices on Royal Caribbean ships are:
You can see the bar menus for Royal Caribbean here: Royal Caribbean Drinks Menus With Prices.
The price of the Royal Caribbean drinks package varies depending on your cruise ship, itinerary and when you purchase the package. Royal Caribbean’s Deluxe Beverage Package usually costs somewhere between $50 and $115 per person, per day.
If you don’t drink a lot of alcohol, the Deluxe Beverage Package is rarely worth it. Instead, you may wish to consider the Refreshment Package or the Classic Soda Package.
I have a full guide to Royal Caribbean drinks packages which answers all your questions about them here: Royal Caribbean Drink Packages.
Whether or not the Royal Caribbean drinks package is worth it can be tricky to work out. To make it easy for you, I’ve made a drinks package calculator.
Just enter the drinks that you like to have and it will estimate your bar bill with and without the package.
The next most-asked questions relate to what food you get included with your cruise…
Royal Caribbean cruises include meals and snacks in a choice of dining venues. For something special, you can pay an extra fee to dine in one of the many speciality dining venues onboard.
On each ship, you can eat for free in the Main Dining Room, the Windjammer and at least two more free dining venues.
You can eat for free in these Royal Caribbean complimentary dining venues:
Not every dining venue is available on every ship, but there will always be a choice of options available and the menus change every day.
Room service is free for continental breakfast items, but everything else has a $7.95 cover charge per order.
There’s really no need to pay anything extra for food as the free food is all excellent, but if you want to treat yourself then you might want to consider dining in one of Royal Caribbean’s speciality restaurants.
The prices for speciality dining on Royal Caribbean cruises vary depending on your ship, itinerary and when you book it.
To find the exact prices for each speciality restaurant on your particular cruise, you’ll need to log into Royal Caribbean’s cruise planner.
To give you a rough idea, here are the speciality dining prices for two cruises I’ve taken. Remember, these are just examples from two particular cruises. They are not average prices and yours could cost more or less than this.
Anthem of the Seas
Dining Packages
Harmony of the Seas
Dining Packages
Children aged 5 and under dine in speciality restaurants for free. For children aged 6 to 12 you only pay $10 for speciality dining when ordering from the kids’ menu.
For a first cruise, I wouldn’t recommend booking speciality dining unless there’s a particular restaurant that you really wish to try. The free food is so good and the speciality dining is more expensive on Royal Caribbean ships than with some other cruise lines.
The dining packages don’t give a big discount compared to booking speciality dining restaurants individually.
Dining packages don’t include premium dining experiences like Chef’s Table, Wine Pairing Dinners, Taste of Royal and Mystery Dinner Theatre. Izumi Hibachi has a $10 surcharge with a dining package.
The only mobile phone reception at sea comes from maritime networks, which should be avoided at all costs as they are crazily expensive. If you want to stay connected, you might want to get a WiFi package.
WiFi is not generally included on Royal Caribbean cruises, although WiFi packages are sometimes given as a free perk when booking during a promotional period.
Don’t miss the latest Royal Caribbean offers…
There are three ways that you may be able to get WiFi for free during your cruise: How to get free WiFi on Royal Caribbean cruises.
Royal Caribbean WiFi costs from $20 per day for a single device.
There used to be several packages, including a cheaper one that started at around $10 per day, but that’s changed now that the faster Starlink internet has been installed across the fleet.
You also have alternatives, such as buying an esim.
On your cruise, rather than tipping cash to individual staff members, guests are charged a set fee per day, which Royal Caribbean distributes evenly to its employees.
Royal Caribbean gratuities (also known as tips) cost $18 per person, per day for guests staying in Junior Suites and below and $20.50 per person, per day for guests in Grand Suites and above. This applies to guests of all ages, including children and babies.
You can choose to pre-pay your gratuities before your cruise or have them added to your onboard account to pay at the end.
No further tipping is required or expected on board, although some people (mostly US guests) do sometimes give cash tips as well to recognise exceptional service.
Suggested read: 56 amazing examples of Royal Caribbean customer service
If you have any questions about Royal Caribbean gratuities, you’ll find those answered here: Royal Caribbean gratuities.
Royal Caribbean ships have so much to do that it’s impossible to be bored. The great news is that almost everything is included for free.
Most activities on most Royal Caribbean ships are included in your cruise fare. So you won’t need to pay any extra for things like the FlowRider, climbing wall, zip line, ice skating, laser tag, mini-golf, water slides, shows or to use the gym.
However, on cruises departing from the UK, China and Singapore there may be a fee to use the iFly and the North Star observation pod.
The price varies depending on your cruise. While these activities used to be free, the introduction of an extra charge means that each ride lasts longer and you can avoid any queues. For more info, see this video by Cruise With Ben & David.
There are a few more things that cost extra on Royal Caribbean cruises. The prices vary depending on the ship and may go up and down according to demand, but here are some ballpark figures…
Prices of extra activities on Royal Caribbean ships:
Visits to the adults-only Solarium (pictured at the very top of this post) are included on most Royal Caribbean cruises. However, on cruises from China, this area is only available for guests staying in Gold or Silver suites or Crown & Anchor Diamond members and above.
Suggested read: Royal Caribbean Suite Perks
One of the biggest perks of cruising for parents is that the kids’ clubs are the best in the world. Some parents barely see their kids all week because the kids want to spend all of their time having fun with their new friends in the kids’ club.
Until 2018, Royal Caribbean used to offer babysitting in your stateroom but this service has been discontinued.
However, for kids aged 3 to 11, the Adventure Ocean kids’ club is open until 10pm for free, or 2am for an extra fee. Under 3s can attend the Royal Babies and Royal Tots clubs until midnight.
This table shows the charges for childcare on Royal Caribbean cruises:
| Age | Time | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 0 to 3 | 9am to 6pm | $6 per hour |
| 0 to 3 | 6pm to 12am | $8 per hour |
| 3 to 11 | 9am to 5pm | FREE |
| 3 to 11 | 7pm to 10pm | FREE |
| 3 to 11 | 10pm to 2am | $10 per hour |
| 12 to 14 | 8pm to 1am | FREE |
| 15 to 17 | 9pm to 1am | FREE |
Under 3s are looked after in the Royal Babies & Tots Nursery. This isn’t available on every ship. You can see a list of ships that have it here: The best Royal Caribbean ships for kids.
Royal Caribbean cruises don’t include shore excursions in the cost. You can see a brochure of shore excursions customised to your cruise and book excursions on your Royal Caribbean Cruise Planner.
Official Royal Caribbean cruise excursions can be very pricey, so you may want to look for cheaper alternatives on reputable websites like Viator or via the Shore Excursions Group. Alternatively, you can just get off the ship and do your own thing.
If your cruise includes a visit to Royal Caribbean’s private Bahamian island, Perfect Day at CocoCay, then many of the activities are free of charge, but some have an extra fee.
This table shows the prices of activities on Perfect Day at Cococay:
| Experience | Price |
|---|---|
| Thrill Waterpark | Age 4+: $44-$99 per person Age 0-3: Free |
| Zip Line | $79-$139 per person |
| Up, Up and Away helium balloon | Age 13+: $39-$99 per person Age 4-12: $24-$64 Age 0-3: Free |
| Coco Beach Club | Age 13+: $54-$99 per person Age 4-12: $34-$69 Age 0-3: Free |
| Kayaks, snorkels, beach mats etc | Various |
You’ll find a list of everything that you can do for free here: CocoCay free activities
Royal Caribbean offers ‘The Key’ – a program that gives premier access to exclusive experiences during your cruise.
The Key includes:
The cost for The Key varies depending on your cruise, but it will be somewhere between $26 and $40 per person, per day. If one person wants The Key, then everyone in the cabin aged six and over must also buy it.
Personally, I don’t think that the Royal Caribbean Key is worth it.
However, if you plan to purchase WiFi anyway, like to be first off the ship in each port and like the idea of having set times for the rock climbing and FlowRider when you don’t have to queue, then it could be worth it for you.
Don’t miss the latest Royal Caribbean offers…
If, like me, you’re cruising on a budget, then you don’t really have to pay anything extra at all for your Royal Caribbean cruise!
The only extra that you must pay for is gratuities. However, if you book your cruise during a promotional period then you may be able to get free gratuities included, or maybe some free on-board credit that you can use to pay for your gratuities.
With so many extras available, it’s easy to spend double your cruise fare or more on board the ship, particularly if you spend a lot of time in the spa or the casino!
When budget cruisers like myself book the cheapest inside cabins and don’t spend anything extra on board, cruise lines don’t make much of a profit at all and may even make a loss.
However, that’s okay because they make the money back with the people who do spend a lot onboard. Those that spend a lot in the casino even get free cruises because Royal Caribbean loves to have them on board spending money!
Jenni Fielding is the founder of Cruise Mummy. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 30 cruises. Now, she helps over 1 million people per month to plan their perfect cruise holidays.
Have you found yourself with some Royal Caribbean onboard credit and want to know how you can spend it?
There are plenty of things that Royal Caribbean onboard credit can be used for, as well as some that it can’t, and planning ahead (just a little) can make your $ go a lot further.
While onboard credit may seem like free money, you’ll get a lot more out of it if you spend it wisely…
On a Royal Caribbean cruise, your cashless onboard expenses account is also known as your SeaPass account.
When you make purchases on the ship, these will be charged to your account. At the end of your cruise, you can settle your account with cash, by credit or debit card or with onboard credit.
When you receive onboard credit, this is credited to your SeaPass account. It will offset any purchases that you make on the ship.
There are many ways that you can get Royal Caribbean onboard credit. These include:
If your Royal Caribbean cruise is cancelled, you may receive a Future Cruise Credit (FCC) that you can use to pay for another cruise ticket. This is different from Onboard Credit (OBC) which can only be used for onboard purchases.
You cannot convert Future Cruise Credit into Onboard Credit. So if the value of your FCC is higher than the cost of your next cruise, a new voucher will be issued for the remaining FCC.
Royal Caribbean onboard credit can be used to purchase most things onboard the ship. It can’t be used for medical expenses, taxes and port fees.
It used to be the case that you could only spend Royal Caribbean on board credit once you boarded your ship.
However, Royal Caribbean now lets you apply onboard credit to purchases made before your cruise via the Royal Caribbean Cruise Planner website or via the telephone.
However, this only applies to certain types of onboard credit. If you purchase the onboard credit as a gift card, for example, you’ll probably have to wait until you board the ship to use it.
If you don’t use your onboard credit during your cruise, you’ll lose it. So you must spend it all before the end of the last night of your cruise to avoid wasting it.
When it comes to deciding what to spend your Royal Caribbean onboard credit on, some purchases are much smarter than others.
It’s a good idea to prioritise the things that you would purchase regardless of whether you have onboard credit or not. For example, everyone must pay gratuities, so budget to use your OBC on those first.
Some things you can buy on Royal Caribbean cruise ships are almost always a waste of money, even if you consider that money to be free!
So, here’s a list of how to use onboard credit on Royal Caribbean cruises, including all the best ways to make it work in your favour.
The best way to spend any onboard credit that you have is on gratuities. On a Royal Caribbean cruise, gratuities cost $18 per person, per day for most guests and $20.50 per person, per day for those staying in suites.
Gratuities are mandatory, and they go towards paying the crew members who work so hard to look after us. As this is something that we all need to pay anyway, it makes sense to spend your onboard credit on gratuities first, then see how much you have left for the fun stuff.
Here’s how much gratuities cost per day on a Royal Caribbean cruise, for each person including kids and babies.
| Cruise Duration | Standard Staterooms | Suites |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | $36.00 | $41.00 |
| 3 | $54.00 | $61.50 |
| 4 | $72.00 | $82.00 |
| 5 | $90.00 | $102.50 |
| 6 | $108.00 | $123.00 |
| 7 | $126.00 | $143.50 |
| 8 | $144.00 | $164.00 |
| 9 | $162.00 | $184.50 |
| 10 | $180.00 | $205.00 |
| 11 | $198.00 | $225.50 |
| 12 | $216.00 | $246.00 |
| 13 | $234.00 | $266.50 |
| 14 | $252.00 | $287.00 |
At the end of your cruise, any leftover onboard credit will be automatically offset against any gratuities owed on your final bill.
So you don’t need to do anything, just check the bill at the end of the cruise, and if you’ve calculated correctly, they should cancel each other out, and you’ll be left with a zero balance.
You can get more info about Royal Caribbean gratuities here.
Don’t miss the latest Royal Caribbean offers…
Most activities on board Royal Caribbean ships are included in your cruise fare, but there are some things that you have to pay extra for.
Royal Caribbean includes less and less for free these days, as some activities like the North Star observation pod and the iFly skydiving simulator on Quantum-class ships are now chargeable.
Here are the approximate prices of extra activities on Royal Caribbean ships.
Note that these may vary by sailing and are subject to change.
You probably won’t want to do all of these extra activities as there are so many things that you can do on board for free.
But if there are any that you definitely want to tick off, then these would be a great way to spend any onboard credit that you have left over after paying for gratuities.
Royal Caribbean cruises do include some free drinks like water, tea, coffee, flavoured water and milk. For all other drinks, you can either add them to your onboard account individually or buy a drink package before your cruise.
There are several drinks packages to choose from and the prices vary depending on your cruise and when you buy it.
To work out whether you should buy a drink package or pay for your drinks individually, read my guide to Royal Caribbean drink packages. Or, if you’re short on time, you can use my Royal Caribbean drink package calculator that will work it out for you based on what you usually drink.
Whether you add your drinks to your onboard account or get a drink package, you can use your onboard credit to cover some or all of the cost.
Suggested read: When Is The Best Time to Buy A Royal Caribbean Drink Package?
Treating yourself to a special meal in one of Royal Caribbean’s upscale restaurants could be a great way to spend any onboard credit you’ve accumulated.
Like most things with Royal Caribbean, the cost varies depending on the ship and the sailing, but you can expect to pay anywhere from $25 per head for lunch at Chop’s Grille or Jamie’s Italian to $100 for dinner at the Chef’s Table.
If you really enjoy speciality dining, you can buy dining packages that let you eat in a certain number of restaurants or upgrade to enjoy unlimited speciality dining throughout your cruise.
Spa services can be pricy on a cruise. But, if you rarely ever visit the spa then perhaps now’s the time to treat yourself using your onboard credit. After all, if you think of it as free money then surely you can justify the price?
While some of Royal Caribbean spa treatments can cost upwards of $2000, you can just buy a day pass to use the spa facilities like the sauna and steam room for as little as $30, depending on your ship.
Or, for a similar price, you could treat yourself to a wash and blow-dry in the hair salon so that you’re looking your best for the formal night.
Childcare in Royal Caribbean’s Adventure Ocean kid clubs is generally free of charge. But, there is a fee if your child is under three or if you want them to stay past 10 pm.
At between $6 and $8 per hour, the group babysitting option is cheaper than getting a sitter at home would be, so why not make the most of your time away and treat yourself to some adults-only time in the theatre, casino or nightclub?
This table shows the charges for childcare on Royal Caribbean cruises:
| Age | Time | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 0 to 3 | 9am to 6pm | $6 per hour |
| 0 to 3 | 6pm to 12am | $8 per hour |
| 3 to 11 | 9am to 5pm | FREE |
| 3 to 11 | 7pm to 10pm | FREE |
| 3 to 11 | 10pm to 2am | $10 per hour |
| 12 to 14 | 8pm to 1am | FREE |
| 15 to 17 | 9pm to 1am | FREE |
You might think that the souvenirs on Royal Caribbean’s cruise ships would be ridiculously expensive. But actually, there are some great deals to be had, particularly if you’re shopping with your free onboard credit!
While you’ll find plenty of designer bags, watches and jewellery costing thousands of dollars a piece, there are some affordable souvenirs too.
On my last cruise, I treated myself to some Royal Caribbean t-shirts which were two for $20. Bargain!
Your Royal Caribbean onboard credit doesn’t just have to be spent on things you find on the ship – you can also use it to purchase official shore excursions.
Shore excursions can be pricey, so it’s good to think about how much it would cost to organise a DIY version. But if you don’t have the time or want to avoid the hassle, then taking Royal Caribbean’s official excursions is the easiest way to explore ashore.
You can also use your onboard credit to pay for activities on Royal Caribbean’s island, Perfect Day at CocoCay. While there are lots of things to do on CocoCay for free, activities like the Thrill Waterpark and the Up, Up & Away balloon ride are chargeable.
If you need to stay connected at sea, Royal Caribbean offers WiFi packages that start at around $20 per day.
While you may be able to get WiFi for free on a Royal Caribbean cruise, this isn’t always reliable. So, if you need to use your phone to keep in touch with work or family members who need you, then it makes sense to buy a WiFi package and cover the costs with your onboard credit.
Cruise ship photographers take some excellent photos, so why not take this opportunity to purchase some images that will give you everlasting memories of your Royal Caribbean cruise?
You usually don’t have to pay anything for the photoshoot, and then you can choose as few or as many photos as you like and take them home either digitally or in print.
When you visit the photo shop, just charge everything to your onboard account and it will be offset with any onboard credit you have left at the end of your cruise.
If you still can’t decide what to spend your onboard credit on, then Royal Caribbean’s The Key program gives you a little bit of everything…
The Key includes:
The cost for The Key varies depending on your cruise, but it will be somewhere between $26 and $40 per person, per day. If one person wants The Key, then everyone in the cabin aged six and over must also buy it.
Personally, I don’t think that the Royal Caribbean Key is worth it.
However, if you plan to purchase WiFi, like to be first off the ship in each port and like the idea of having set times for the rock climbing and FlowRider when you don’t have to queue, then it could be a good way to use up your onboard credit.
To buy The Key, you’ll need to access Royal Caribbean’s cruise planner online before you set sail.
Read more: Royal Caribbean Key Program – Worth It Or Not?
Royal Caribbean cruise ships don’t have any self-service launderettes, so if you run out of clean clothes then you can either clean them yourself in the sink or pay for them to be washed or dry cleaned and pressed.
Personally, I like to use a Scrubba wash bag to wash my clothes for free on a cruise ship. But if you don’t have one, you can pay $2 to $15 per item for professional cleaning.
It may be possible to cash out your Royal Caribbean onboard credit in the casino, but this isn’t something that Royal Caribbean really want you to do.
Some cruisers have reported in forums that they’ve had some success with putting their Seapass cruise card into a slot machine and transferring money from their onboard account to the machine.
After spinning the wheels a couple of times, they press cash out and receive a ticket. You can take that ticket to the cashier’s window and receive real cash.
To use this method, it’s best to use a slot machine as if you do it at a table you will be charged an extra 5% to convert your onboard credit into chips.
Plus, there are reports of an unwritten rule that you gamble with some of the money before cashing out. According to one cashier, at least 10% seems to be an acceptable amount.
Buying bingo tickets is one possible way to spend Royal Caribbean onboard credit. There are some big prizes to be won and you could even win a free cruise.
However, there are some pretty small prizes too, so even if you win it might cost you more to enter than the value of the prize!
Royal Caribbean bingo tickets start from $49 for 24 chances to win, although if you spend $69 you get 48 chances, so it doesn’t make much sense to go for the cheaper ticket packages.
On the whole, the returns aren’t great. So if you love bingo, this might be for you. But for most people, you’ll do better in the casino.
Cruise ship art auctions can be fun to watch and you’ll usually get a free glass of fizz. But that’s probably where you should leave it.
These art auctions use all kinds of tricks to get you to buy. One of which is putting very small paintings inside huge frames, you can see!
Serious art investors would never buy art on a cruise ship as the paintings are known to be ridiculously overpriced. If you do some research, you’ll be able to find the exact same prints for a fraction of the price elsewhere.
And that’s exactly what you’ll be getting anyway, as the art that gets delivered to your home doesn’t come from the ship, it comes from a warehouse on land.
That said, I did buy some art at a Royal Caribbean art auction with my onboard credit. The picture was only $60 and I really liked it. I did turn down the offer of a $450 frame though and opted to get my print framed in a local shop for £49.
So, yes, you can use your onboard credit to pay for art from the art auction. But honestly, you’d do better to enjoy the free drinks, take note of the prices and buy elsewhere (unless its a painting that you really do love).
If you’ve taken a Carnival cruise in the past, you may know that people have been able to use their Carnival cruise onboard credit to purchase a Carnival gift card from the store on board as a way of extending their credit so that they can carry it over to their next cruise.
This trick won’t work on Royal Caribbean because, unlike Carnival gift cards, Royal Caribbean gift cards can only be used towards cruise fare, not onboard purchases and shipboard charges.
Royal Caribbean onboard credit expires at the end of your cruise, so be sure to use it before you lose it.
If you have some Royal Caribbean onboard credit to spend, then the smartest thing to do would be to first put it towards gratuities, provided that you haven’t already pre-paid those.
Work out how much you expect to pay in gratuities based on the number of guests in your room, your stateroom type and the duration of your cruise. Then, subtract this amount from the amount of onboard credit you have.
This will leave you with an amount of onboard credit to spend on treating yourself. The best uses for any leftover onboard credit are drinks, speciality dining, spa treatments and souvenirs.
Don’t miss the latest Royal Caribbean offers…
Jenni Fielding is the founder of Cruise Mummy. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 30 cruises. Now, she helps over 1 million people per month to plan their perfect cruise holidays.
Holland America’s MS Nieuw Amsterdam has been a fan favourite since 2010.
She’s a Signature-class ship, meaning she offers slightly more space and accommodation options than the Vista-class ships she expanded on. But not all of her cabins are created equal.
Whether you’re cruising on a budget or looking to upgrade, this guide breaks down the best and worst staterooms on board. With real passenger reviews and insider tips from the ship’s deck plans, you can be confident about choosing the perfect spot.
There are four main cabin types you can choose from on MS Nieuw Amsterdam. These each have subtypes of cabins within them…
Let’s take more of a look at each of these cabin types, so you can get an idea of which one is the best for you…
MS Nieuw Amsterdam has three different types of Inside cabins that you can book:
| Room | Sleeps | Size |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | 2 people | 141-284 sq. ft. |
| Large | 2-4 people | 169-267 sq. ft. |
| Spa | 2 people | 141-284 sq. ft. |
As they are with any cruise ship, Interior cabins are always going to be the cheapest option. They’re great if you’re on a budget and plan on spending most of your time outside of your cabin, exploring everything that MS Nieuw Amsterdam has to offer.
There are three different types on MS Nieuw Amsterdam, including Standard and Large. Both of these have two twin beds, which are convertible into a single Queen bed if preferred – you just need to let your cabin attendant know.
Some of the Large Interior Staterooms sleep 3 or 4 guests. There’ll always be a sofa-bed, and those quad rooms will have an additional upper bed for a fourth guest.
I often like to cruise in the cheapest inside stateroom with my children, so these would be the rooms to go for on this ship. But honestly, if you’re looking for the cheapest family cruise, Holland America probably isn’t the cruise line for you. It’s a more premium option.
The third type of Interior Stateroom is a Spa Interior Stateroom – more on those in a little bit.
There are three types of Ocean View Stateroom available for guests to book on MS Nieuw Amsterdam. These are:
| Room | Sleeps | Size |
|---|---|---|
| Large | 2-4 people | 169-267 sq. ft. |
| Large Obstructed | 2-3 people | 169-267 sq. ft. |
| Large Spa | 2 people | 169-267 sq. ft. |
The next step up from an Interior Stateroom, Ocean View Staterooms have a window that lets you see out over the ocean. The window is nice and big, and lets a lot of bright, natural light into the room.
It’s also handy if you just want to check what you should be wearing before you head out of your cabin for the day – it’s more reliable to look out the window than check any weather app you might have on your phone, after all!
As all of the Ocean View Staterooms on Nieuw Amsterdam are considered ‘large’, they are considerably larger than the Inside Staterooms.
Some of the Ocean View staterooms – those on Deck 4 – have an obstructed view. This is because the lifeboats are stored directly outside the room. Some are classified as fully obstructed, while others are partially obstructed.
They’re cheaper, as you’d hope, and they’re a good choice if you don’t care about the view but just want the natural light.
Again, there are Spa versions of Ocean View staterooms, and there are also some that suit families with options for 3 or 4 guests. And again, those for 4 people have a sofa bed and a Pullman bed.
Here are the three types of Verandah Stateroom on MS Nieuw Amsterdam:
| Room | Sleeps | Size |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | 2-4 people | 213-379 sq. ft. |
| Aft-View | 2 people | 213-379 sq. ft. |
| Spa | 2 people | 213-379 sq. ft |
Verandah Staterooms are always some of the most popular on a cruise ship. You don’t just get a view, but you get your own private balcony where you can sit and soak up the fresh sea breeze, and hopefully some of the warm sun too.
Verandah Staterooms are an ideal choice if you like to spend more time in your stateroom. It’s always refreshing to sit on your balcony on a pleasant day, drink in one hand, book in another.
There are three types of Verandah Stateroom, and the room sizes above include the balcony floor space too.
Of the Standard Verandah Staterooms, some are suitable for 3 or 4 guests. So your kids can enjoy the view with you, although you will only get two chairs on the balcony.
Aft-View Verandah Staterooms often book up first. They have what many consider to be the best views of the ship, overlooking the wake as you sail. Plus, you tend to be more shielded from the wind. You will pay a little more for the privilege, though.
Finally, there are also Spa Verandah Staterooms that you can book. (More on those below).
The different types of Suite on MS Nieuw Amsterdam are:
| Room | Sleeps | Size |
|---|---|---|
| Signature Suite | 2-3 people | 273–456 sq. ft. |
| Neptune Suite | 2-4 people | 506–590 sq. ft. |
| Spa Neptune Suite | 2-4 people | 506–590 sq. ft. |
| Pinnacle Suite | 2-4 people | 1,357 sq. ft. |
There are three main types of suites on MS Nieuw Amsterdam. She doesn’t have any Vista Suites like you’ll find on some other ships in the Holland America fleet, but considering how Vista Suites aren’t much better than a Verandah Stateroom, that’s no big loss.
Signature Suites are really the start of the real suite class for Holland America ships, with a much more spacious room and a longer list of perks that you get, although it’s still not super-lengthy.
You get a queen-size bed (worth noting, as some Signature Suites on other ships get you a king-sized one) and a sofa bed for a third guest.
Neptune Suites are larger again, and they have a lot more additional benefits. Just a heads up if you were checking the deck plans yourself – Neptune Suites are marked as sleeping up to three guests, but their sofa beds are bigger and can accommodate two smaller guests. So you can comfortably fit four people in one.
Pinnacle Suites are the very best rooms on Nieuw Amsterdam. They’re extremely spacious with a Verandah that’s bigger than most of the actual staterooms on the ship!
There’s a whirlpool on the balcony and an oversized whirlpool bath in the bathroom as well. Again, a sofa bed large enough for two guests is included if you want to enjoy this suite with your family.
If you like the idea of a suite but aren’t sure which to choose, then you should be sure to compare the different perks that you get with each. Take a look at my Holland America Line Suite Benefits Guide to find out more.
Beyond the standard selection of staterooms on MS Nieuw Amsterdam, there are a few more choices you can make.
A popular choice for guests who like to pamper themselves, MS Nieuw Amsterdam has a selection of Spa Suites and Staterooms to choose from, across the Interior, Ocean View, Verandah and Neptune Suite categories.
These staterooms and suites are no bigger than their non-spa counterparts, but what sets them apart is their location and the facilities you’ll find in the room.
These accommodations are all situated close to the Greenhouse Spa & Salon, so you never have far to travel if you want to enjoy a relaxing massage or beauty treatment.
Inside the rooms, you’ll also find a selection of spa-themed amenities, including organic bathrobes and slippers, upgraded toiletries, and a loofah mitt with bath salts.
You’ll also get yoga mats and pedometers to help you stay active during your cruise, while the room has a countertop water feature so that you can set the perfect relaxing ambience.
If you’re someone who likes visiting the ship’s spa during your cruise, then these rooms are absolutely worth checking out. Otherwise, the additional cost means they probably aren’t worth it for you.
Almost all cruise ships have accessible stateroom and suite options – designed for guests with additional accessibility needs. And MS Nieuw Amsterdam is no different.
On MS Nieuw Amsterdam, the accessible rooms are split into two categories – Ambulatory Accessible and Fully Accessible.
Ambulatory Accessible rooms are those which aren’t designed for wheelchair users, but have small modifications to handle other accessibility needs for guests. On MS Nieuw Amsterdam, these rooms include:
Fully Accessible rooms are suitable for wheelchair users, with widened doorways and a roll-in shower. These include:
While there are some staterooms on MS Nieuw Amsterdam that are suitable for 3 or 4 guests, the additional beds aren’t the biggest. They’re fine if you’re travelling with younger children, but for teenagers or other adults, they will be a little cramped.
But there is another option – there are connecting cabins that guests can book if they want two staterooms side-by-side. These have a doorway between them, which is normally locked. If your party has booked both rooms, you can ask for the door to be unlocked, giving all guests access to both rooms.
Connecting rooms are available for Interior, Ocean View and Verandah Staterooms, and if you request a connecting Verandah, then the balconies can also be connected, opening up that space more too.
You can even book a Neptune Suite and a Verandah Stateroom with connecting doors if you want to really maximise your space.
There are a lot of different decisions that factor into picking the best cabin for your cruise, and as you can tell, there are many different stateroom options on MS Nieuw Amsterdam to choose from too!
To help you out, I’ve created a checklist that you can work from, which will tell you what you should be looking for when you decide to book a cruise.
All you need to do is pop your email address below and it’ll be sent straight to your inbox.
When choosing the best room on Nieuw Amsterdam, one thing that you’ll need to get your head around is the cabin grades.
Every cruise ship labels rooms with a cabin grade – this is usually one or two letters at the start of the room number, which tell you what kind of room it is.
Different cruise lines have systems that vary slightly, but with Holland America, you just need to know what the letters stand for – that tells you the type of room. Then the digits afterwards will tell you what deck you are on, and specifically which room you’re in.
If your cabin has a four-digit number, then it’s on the first 9 public decks, from the Main Deck (staterooms 1001-1130) right up to the Navigation Deck (staterooms 8001-8175). There are no staterooms on the ninth deck, which is the Lido Deck.
If your cabin has a five-digit number, it means you’re either on the tenth deck, which is the Panorama Deck (staterooms 10001-10046) or the Observation Deck (staterooms 11001-11010).
Here’s a rundown of the different grades of cabins on MS Nieuw Amsterdam:
| Cabin Grade | Type |
|---|---|
| PS | Pinnacle Suite |
| SQ | Spa Neptune Suite |
| SA, SB, SC | Neptune Suite |
| SS, SY, SZ | Signature Suite |
| VQ | Spa Verandah Stateroom |
| V, VA, VB, VC, VD, VE, VF, VH | Verandah Stateroom |
| CQ | Spa Ocean View Stateroom |
| C, D, DD, E, F | Ocean View Stateroom |
| G | Ocean View Stateroom – Partially Obstructed View |
| H, HH | Ocean View Stateroom – Fully Obstructed View |
| IQ | Spa Interior Stateroom |
| I, J, K, L, M, MM, N | Interior Stateroom |
Now, before we get to the best cabins on this ship, let’s take a look at some rooms that you may wish to avoid.
It’s not that these are always bad, but depending on your circumstances, you may wish to steer clear of these rooms…
8118 to 8175, 10001 to 10046, 11001 to 11010
Some people are more prone to getting seasick than others, and most cruise passengers never need to worry about it. However, if you are one of the unlucky ones who suffers, there are certain staterooms you should avoid that can make things worse.
Those are mainly the staterooms and suites on Decks 10 and 11, at the very front of the ship. This is where you’ll feel the most motion.
It’s not a terrible problem on MS Nieuw Amsterdam – the ship is medium-sized in terms of cruise ships, which helps (the bigger the ship, the less you feel the movement). And it has modern stabilisers.
Some cabins at the aft of the ship can feel the effects too, particularly nearer the top, so consider avoiding the rear cabins on Deck 8. This isn’t helped thanks to the sponson, which is the ducktail of the ship that extends from the stern – this can cause the occasional shudder on the aft-facing cabins, which isn’t pleasant if your stomach is churning.
If you do suffer from seasickness, choose a mid-ship cabin on a lower deck.
Cabin grades SQ, VQ, CQ and IQ
The option of booking a Spa stateroom or suite on MS Nieuw Amsterdam is good if you’re someone who is really into their spa treatments and lifestyle. The fact that you’re so close to the spa is convenient, and the additional touches in your room can make it feel much nicer.
But they are just little touches – so think about whether you’ll really use the yoga mats and the pedometer, or if you’d want to have the countertop water feature running.
If you’re not sure, then is it worth paying the premium for one of these staterooms, especially if you plan on spending most of your time elsewhere on the ship? The answer’s probably no.
Depending on your sailing, a spa stateroom might not cost much more than its equivalent standard room in the same category, so it’s up to you – but if the costs are substantially different, really weigh up if it’s worth the extra.
You can always take your own yoga mat.
Various
On any cruise ship, connecting staterooms are handy for families and larger groups. Even more so on MS Nieuw Amsterdam, where there aren’t as many standard staterooms that sleep more than two guests.
But that’s not the reason to avoid booking them if you don’t need them. True, someone else might make better use of them, but there’s an even more practical reason why you should avoid them if you won’t be booking the adjacent room too.
Cruise ship staterooms are made from a metal frame, which offers a decent level of soundproofing. Cut a door into it – even a closed one – and that soundproofing is partially compromised.
The door may stay locked, but you’ll likely hear your neighbours, especially if they’re loud. Which also means they may hear you.
If you value your privacy, book a non-connecting room instead.
4055 to 4130
This really depends on whether the view is important to you or if you just like the idea of having some natural light.
Obstructed Ocean View Staterooms are situated on Deck 4 and are facing the lifeboats, so your view is going to be at least partially blocked – how much so depends on the individual stateroom.
If you don’t care about the view, then these are a good option since they’re cheaper.
And if the view does matter to you, then you won’t want it spoiled by a reminder of the emergency boats attached to the ship.
4001 to 4042
Some Verandah Staterooms also offer a limited view, except that this is a little different.
These staterooms are situated at the front of the ship, where the wind is at its strongest. As such, the plexiglass that would normally be used for a railing isn’t strong enough, meaning they’re made from solid steel, which you can’t see through.
This isn’t ever a problem if you’re standing up, but if you like to sit on your balcony, your view is definitely going to be impacted. The sky will look pretty at least!
The worst part is that these aren’t considered Obstructed View, so they don’t get the same discounts – after all, your view is completely uninterrupted if you don’t mind standing at the railing.
While these balconies are larger than average, they will be less comfortable due to the wind, so you may wish to look elsewhere.
4001 to 4050
The Mainstage is a fantastic theatre on the ship, taking up the height of two decks on the Lower Promenade Deck (Deck 2) and the Promenade Deck (Deck 3).
Because it’s so impressive, and it hosts amazing live performances, they have quite a sound system in order to fill the room. And if you’ve booked a cabin on the Upper Promenade Deck directly above (Deck 4), then that sound may well carry through the floor.
The live entertainment shows don’t run too late, but if you’re someone who likes to be up early and then get an early night ahead of the next day, you might be disturbed.
Thankfully, the bars that are open later into the evening are situated above staterooms on Deck 1, and the sound tends to travel upwards, so it’s not too bad late into the night. It’s just those evening hours when music and theatre performances at the World Stage may cause you problems if your room is close by.
8027 to 8077
If you’ve just read the section above and thought that the sound of the World Stage wouldn’t concern you, as you like to stay up at night, then definitely avoid the rooms directly below the Sea View and Lido pools.
You won’t hear the noise at night here, because it just disperses into the open air. But what you may well hear is the sound of people grabbing a lounger first thing in the morning or of tables and chairs being put out.
And not just reserving a lounger, but dragging it along the decked floor – and that is a sound that will carry right through your ceiling.
If you appreciate a good lie-in, and you don’t want early risers on the pool deck waking you up, book a room elsewhere on the ship.
C1081, C1082, H4089, H4092, G4091, G4094, SS5093, SS5098, V5095, V59100, SS6082, SS6084, SS6087, SS6089, SS7057, SS7058, SS7059, SS7060, VA8074, VA8076, VA8077, VA8079
On most decks of MS Nieuw Amsterdam, there are 14 elevators/lifts to help passengers get from floor to floor. Four of these are nearer the front of the ship and four are towards the aft, but the more problematic ones are right in the middle of the ship.
Because there are six elevators here, most passengers tend to come here because there’s a greater chance of them getting a ride. But they are adjacent to rooms on most floors, too.
So if you get a stateroom or suite alongside this area, you might hear a lot of noise, not so much from the elevators themselves but from the congregating passengers.
So those are the worst cabins you could book on MS Nieuw Amsterdam – depending on you and your travelling party. What about the best? Which are the real gems of the ship that are always worth your consideration? Let’s take a look…
4166, 4168
There are two staterooms on Nieuw Amsterdam that come with huge balconies, for no extra cost. In fact, these are four times as big as a standard balcony – a huge 205 square feet! They also come with four lounge chairs rather than the standard two.
The reason that these exist is that there is a crew stairwell next door. That means that these rooms get the balcony from what would be the next-door cabin in addition to their own. So they’re double-width.
And because these cabins are at the aft of Deck 4, they’re double depth as well. Bonus!
These rooms will likely sell out quite quickly, but it’s certainly worth checking to see if they are available on your cruise.
There are other rooms with larger balconies too, where the ship draws inwards at the middle of the ship, but these tend to cost more than the equivalent rooms in the same category.
4178, 4180, 4182, 4185, 4187, 4189, 5188, 5189, 5190, 5191, 5192, 5193, 6166, 6168, 6170, 6177, 6179, 6181, 7134, 7136, 7138, 7139, 7141, 7143, 8164, 8166, 8168, 8171, 8173, 8175
The most sought-after views on most cruise ships are those over the wake at the aft of the ship. As you’re sailing, you get to see the churning waters you leave behind, and you have the benefit of shelter as the ship moves in the opposite direction.
There are Neptune Suites with an aft-view as well, but these are a lot more expensive. So while they are great choices, you do have to pay that premium to get the view.
PS7031, PS7036
No list of the best accommodations on the Nieuw Amsterdam cruise ship would be complete without a mention of the Pinnacle Suites, the largest suites on the ship by a significant distance.
As a guide, you could fit as many as six Interior Staterooms inside the Pinnacle Suite, and that’s just the indoor space – the balcony is also twice the size of the smaller Interior Staterooms, too.
It’s not just about space, though – the amenities and the perks you get for booking this suite are what really make it special. Relax in a whirlpool bath, enjoy a complimentary Mimosa each morning in your suite with breakfast, and skip past lines almost everywhere on the ship – you’ll really get the VIP treatment.
Read more: Holland America Line Suite Benefits Explained
It is, of course, extremely expensive compared to other staterooms and suites, so it’s not for everyone. But if you have the budget available and want to treat yourself, it’s a fine choice.
8118 to 8175
On most cruise ships these days, you are very limited in where you can smoke. It’s banned in your stateroom (including on the balcony) and in most public areas of the ship. On the Nieuw Amsterdam ship, there are two smoking areas – the casino, if you’re playing, and the Sea View Bar on Deck 9.
If you’re a smoker (which includes e-cigs), it can be inconvenient to trek halfway across the ship when you want to smoke. But there are some staterooms situated just one deck below the Sea View Bar, so it’s only a short walk to the staircase or the elevator and you’re in a comfortable, sheltered smoking space.
Don’t worry if you’re a non-smoker and you book one of these rooms – it doesn’t tend to drift down, since it is an open-air bar – the wind will carry the smoke away. That makes these rooms a good choice for smokers, but not a bad choice for non-smokers.
Unless you get seasick, as these are some of the cabins I’d suggest avoiding for that reason, too.
The best decks on MS Nieuw Amsterdam are the Verandah Deck (Deck 5), the Upper Verandah Deck (Deck 6) and the Rotterdam Deck (Deck 7). These decks are surrounded by staterooms above and below, and so are best shielded from noise.
But really, most people across any deck won’t have many problems at all with sound coming through the floor or ceiling, so they are likely to be fine.
The best deck could instead come down to whether you’re prone to seasickness (aim for a lower deck) or you want to be nearer the pool (aim for a higher deck).
Don’t miss the latest Holland America Line offers…
Despite not being the newest ship in the Holland America fleet, MS Nieuw Amsterdam is still a great choice for your cruise. She is well-maintained, and her accommodation options are excellent, so choosing between them can sometimes be tricky.
But with this guide, you should find it much easier to narrow down your options and find the one that best works for you. And remember, while I’ve called out the ‘worst’ staterooms on the ship, that doesn’t mean they are ‘bad’.
When researching this guide, I used the Holland America deck plans as well as these other resources:
If you still have any questions about the accommodation on the Holland America Nieuw Amsterdam, then those would be excellent places to ask. There aren’t any ship-specific Facebook groups for Nieuw Amsterdam, but the main Holland America one should be able to help.
Don’t miss the latest Holland America Line offers…
Jenni Fielding is the founder of Cruise Mummy. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 30 cruises. Now, she helps over 1 million people per month to plan their perfect cruise holidays.
If you’re booking a cruise with Cunard, it’s important to know how onboard tipping works. Daily gratuities are automatically added to each guest’s account, along with extra charges on drinks and spa treatments – and the costs can add up fast.
This info isn’t always easy to find, so I’ve put together a quick guide to help you understand exactly what you’ll pay. That way, there are no surprises when your final bill arrives!
Gratuities (also known as tips) are service charges that are added to your onboard account when sailing with Cunard. When guests pay gratuities, it enables the service staff, including waiters and stateroom stewards, to be rewarded for the work they do, in addition to their wages.
Gratuities are the same price for all four of Cunard’s ships – Queen Mary 2, Queen Victoria, Queen Elizabeth and Queen Anne. However, there is a difference in price depending on your accommodation category. This is outlined in more detail below.
There are two types of gratuities on Cunard cruises:
It’s worth noting that casino staff do not receive any automatic gratuities, as not all passengers use their services. The tips are shared amongst the hotel, restaurant, bar and salon staff, including those who work behind the scenes.
Every dollar of the gratuity charges goes directly to the crew in these areas and there is no administrative fee.
Gratuities are typically paid off at the end of your cruise, the night before you disembark. You can check your onboard spend using the Cunard free WiFi to log in to your account.
In 2025, Cunard’s daily gratuities are $16 per person, per night for guests staying in Britannia Staterooms and $18 per person, per night for guests staying in Grill Suites. The charge is the same for adults and children.
On Cunard cruise ships, all bar, wine and salon services have an additional 15% charge for each purchase made. This is in addition to the daily gratuities.
If you buy a Cunard drinks package, you don’t have to pay the 15% gratuity – it’s included in the price of the package.
The gratuities on Cunard are pretty reasonable, and as fellow travel blogger Karen said in her review of Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth, the gratuities are “the lowest in the industry”.
On a Cunard cruise, the gratuities added to each drink and spa service are compulsory. The daily gratuities for hotel and dining services are recommended but can be removed. You can also tip above and beyond the recommended amounts if you wish.
Cunard gratuities for bar, wine and spa services are added to your onboard account automatically along with each purchase. The hotel and dining service charge will appear on your onboard account as a daily charge.
On a Cunard cruise, you can opt to remove or adjust the daily gratuities (hotel and dining service charge). This can be done at the Guest Services desk once you’re on board the ship.
While some people like to remove daily gratuities and instead tip cash to certain crew members, this isn’t recommended. As well as waiters and staterooms stewards, there are many crew members who offer support behind the scenes, working in the kitchens, laundry rooms and other areas.
If you remove gratuities from your onboard account, the people who work hard that you may never see will lose out financially.
If you have had a bad experience with the service on your cruise and wish to remove the gratuities, you should speak to the staff at Guest Services, who will be able to remove them from your account.
You cannot prepay for your Cunard gratuities before your cruise. However, you can pre-purchase onboard spending money, which can be used against your hotel and dining service charges, as well as bar, wine and salon service charges.
Log onto your My Cunard account to manage your cruise before you sail.
Whether to tip extra on top of the standard gratuities on your Cunard cruise is entirely down to personal preference. If you feel there is a member of the crew who has gone above and beyond what is expected to make your time on board memorable, you are welcome to reward them individually for doing so.
Each Cunard stateroom has its own steward assigned to it – usually, you will see them making up rooms up and down the ship throughout your sailing. The same steward will make up your stateroom and will likely introduce themselves on your first day of embarkation.
Many people tip their cabin stewards personally, leaving money in an envelope for them in their room on the morning of disembarkation or tipping them personally on their last day. The guest services desk will supply envelopes to those who ask for them.
Other members of staff you will see around the ship on a regular basis include your dining team. When visiting the main dining room, in particular, you will notice the same faces sitting and serving you. Many people will also be assigned an area or specific table throughout the cruise, so you will see familiar faces as the cruise continues.
These are also members of staff who people like to personally tip due to them being seen regularly and shown to make their cruise experience special.
For those sailing on Cunard world cruises, promotions are sometimes available, which include complimentary hotel and dining service charges. Look out for these, as they can save you a lot of money.
In some promotions, Cunard offers free onboard spending money. You can use this free spending money to pay for some or all of the gratuities incurred on your cruise, depending on the amount of free credit and the gratuity charge.
Don’t miss the latest Cunard offers…
People often have differing opinions towards paying gratuities. While paying tips comes naturally to Americans, Brits and Australians aren’t used to paying a lot for tips. And the daily gratuities on a cruise can certainly add up to a hefty sum.
Some cruisers like to tip on their own terms and will remove all gratuities to award individual members of staff. Others remove them to save on costs as soon as they step aboard. However, most people will be glad to pay the daily gratuity charge to ensure that every member of staff is rewarded fairly for their hard work.
It’s important to know which you prefer, so you can factor in the cost before you set sail and know where your onboard account will end up at the end of your sailing.
Jenni Fielding is the founder of Cruise Mummy. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 30 cruises. Now, she helps over 1 million people per month to plan their perfect cruise holidays.
Disney’s private island is pure paradise – think soft white sand, crystal-clear water, and surprise visits from your favourite characters. But if you want to make the most of your day, there are a few things you need to know first…
I’ve rounded up 34 insider tips that’ll help you skip the queues, save money, and unlock hidden gems on the island. Trust me – you’ll thank yourself later!
Castaway Cay is a Disney private island. It’s not technically owned by the cruise line, but it is leased exclusively to Disney for the long term, so for now, it’s a Disney island. The only way to visit Castaway Cay is to take a Disney cruise. Not all Disney cruise itineraries call at Castaway Cay, so look out for one that does if you have your heart set on visiting this paradise island.
Castaway Cay is located in the Bahamas, near Great Abaco Island. It’s 73 miles north of Nassau and 248 miles east of Port Canaveral, Florida.
Many people wonder how much it costs to visit Disney Castaway Cay. The truth is that admission to the island doesn’t cost anything extra. Once you’ve paid for your cruise, you can visit Castaway Cay at no additional cost and there are lots of included attractions to enjoy on the island.
However, if you want to take part in an excursion on the island, such as a snorkelling trip, a glass bottom boat ride or a walking tour, then you can do those for an extra cost.
Suggested read: Here’s What’s Included With A Disney Cruise
Meals and ice cream are free on Castaway Cay for Disney cruise guests. A buffet-style lunch is served between 11.30 am and 2 pm, so you can help yourself to barbecue food like burgers, hot dogs, ribs, salad, fruit and cookies.
Places you can grab food include Cookie’s BBQ, Cookies Too BBQ and Serenity Bay BBQ. They all serve pretty much the same dishes, but be sure to arrive before 2 pm. After that, your only option to eat on Castaway Cay will be to grab snacks from the bar.
The Flying Dutchman ghost ship from the movie Pirate of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest was displayed at Castaway Cay between June 2006 and November 2010. This movie prop was a spectacular sight to behold until it was removed due to its deterioration.
While the pirate ship was certainly impressive, with its intricate details, it was only meant to be a movie prop and not to withstand the weather for years on end. So, in 2012, the Flying Dutchman was taken to another location on Castaway Cay, where it was dismantled.
Around 100 Disney Cast Members live on Castaway Cay all year round, while more commute by boat from the nearby island of Abaco. Cast Members who live on the island include landscapers and maintenance workers.
The people who live on Castaway Cay live in prefabricated dormitory-style houses. They have their own crew beach, a football pitch, a gym and an indoor recreation area.
The sea temperature at Castaway Cay ranges from 70°F (21°C) in January to 88°F (31°C) in July and August. Even in the winter, the sea is warm enough to swim and in the height of summer, the shallow waters will feel very warm indeed.
I visited in July and the sea was a little too warm to provide much respite from the sweltering heat. In this situation, the best option is to get wet and then relax in the shade!
It’s not possible to stay overnight on Castaway Cay. Your ship will dock at the island at around 9 am and leave at around 4 pm. So the longest you can stay on the island is around seven hours.
Listen out for the ship’s horn in the afternoon. That will signal the last tram back to the dock. If you miss that, you’d better run back to the ship quickly to avoid being stranded on the island!
If one day just isn’t enough for you, there are some cruises that call at Castaway Cay twice. So, look out for those activities for maximum island time.
As you get off the ship at Castaway Cay, you’ll be handed towels to use on the island. The towels are large beach towels, so they’re big enough to lie on. You’re welcome to take two per person, so you have one to sit on and one to dry off with.
If you forget to grab towels as you leave the ship, don’t worry. There are towel stations across the island where you can collect some or exchange your wet ones for dry ones.
When you head back to the ship, there will be a bin to throw your used towels in. Nobody checks to make sure that you returned your towels, but it’s polite to do so and not leave them on the island.
Castaway Cay is 1,000 acres in size, but only 55 acres of the island are developed. Although the island is 3.1 miles long and 2.2 miles wide, 95% of the island is untouched. It’s mostly made up of lush, natural forests.
Each morning, there’s a 5K race on Castaway Cay. It’s free to enter and all participants receive a medal. You don’t need to run to enter; you can walk if you prefer. As well as seeing some interesting parts of the island that most people miss, if you take part in the Castaway Cay 5K, you’re guaranteed to be one of the first people off the ship in the morning.
You can register for the Castaway Cay 5K by signing up on the Disney Cruise Line Navigator app or at guest services once on board. It is weather permitting, though, so there’s a chance that it may be cancelled if the weather is bad.
When looking at Castaway Cay excursions, you’ll see several options for snorkelling for an additional fee. However, you can snorkel for free at Castaway Cay if you bring your own snorkelling gear.
The Snorkelling Lagoon has two snorkelling trails – one for beginners and one for more experienced snorkelers. You can rent snorkels, masks and flippers if you don’t have your own. But life vests are complimentary for everyone and really help you to float, so I’d recommend that you grab one.
Castaway Cay has shark nets around the family beach and snorkelling area, but none at the adults’ beach, Serenity Bay. If you swim at Serenity Bay, you may sometimes see sharks up to six feet in length. You don’t need to worry, though, because the sharks at Castaway Cay are nurse sharks that are harmless to humans.
You can swim with nurse sharks without any problems. They will only bite if you step on them or otherwise provoke them. While they do have thousands of teeth, nobody has ever died from a bite from a nurse shark, and any injuries have been minor and very rare. There are no reports of shark attacks at Castaway Cay.
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Other dangerous creatures to be on the lookout for include jellyfish, barracuda, sea lice, stingrays, sea urchins, anemones and fire coral. There are also lots of harmless and pretty sea creatures like starfish and all kinds of pretty tropical fish.
Castaway Cay cabanas cost between $399 and $949 to rent for the day. But despite the large price tag, they are always in demand and so it can be virtually impossible to reserve one, unless you’re a Concierge or Platinum guest. This is because there are only 24 cabanas on Castaway Cay and thousands of guests on the ship.
During my visit, I was lucky enough to snag a Castaway Cay cabana in the Serenity Bay area. Check out my guide to Castaway Cay cabanas for details of how to get your hands on one and what to expect when you do.
To reserve a Castaway Cay cabana, you’ll want to book it on the Port Adventures section of the Disney Cruise Line website as soon as bookings open. Guests staying in Concierge-level staterooms and suites can book 125 days ahead and guests with Platinum Castaway Club Member status can book 120 days ahead.
After that, guests with Gold or Silver Castaway Club Member status can book cabanas 90 days before the cruise sets sail. If you’ve never cruised with Disney before, you’re very unlikely to be able to book a cabana. But, people do cancel sometimes, so if you keep checking online every day, then you might get lucky.
Failing that, you can check with guest services as soon as you board the ship, in case anyone with a cabana has cancelled their cruise at the very last minute. This is rare, but it does happen sometimes.
Castaway Cay is actually pronounced as ‘key’. The word ‘cay’ comes from the Spanish word ‘cayo’, which means ‘key’ – a small, low island. Although the correct way to pronounce Cay is ‘key’, many people do pronounce it as ‘kay’ and it’s okay to do so if you wish.
Wedding ceremonies at Castaway Cay are available with up to 100 guests. The price starts at $4,500 for 16 guests, with extra guests costing $20 each. As well as a morning ceremony on the beach with live music, you’ll enjoy an intimate celebration back on the ship afterwards.
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Despite being owned by Disney, there are no rides on Disney’s private island in the Bahamas. Popular activities in this idyllic location include snorkelling, cycling, relaxing on the beach, basketball, ping pong and dance parties. There are waterslides for kids at the Pelican Plunge area, but no rides as such.
The waterslides are great, though. The one on the left is really fast, but I preferred the slide on the right, which is much more relaxing. The landing area is too deep to stand, but don’t worry if you’re not a strong swimmer, life jackets are available for you to use.
Many areas of Castaway Cay don’t have wifi, but you can access it in some of the bars, particularly the ones closest to the ship. However, the island does have a cell tower so you can use your mobile phone data. Roaming charges are the same as anywhere else in the Bahamas.
Suggested read: How to Avoid Roaming Charges on a Cruise
It’s something of a hidden gem, but Castaway Cay has a 40-foot-high observation tower where you can enjoy stunning views over the island. To get there, take the tram to Serenity Bay, then follow the cycle path to it. You’ll also pass it if you do the Castaway Cay 5K, so be sure to take a few minutes to stop to climb it.
Disney cruise ships typically back into the port when they dock at Castaway Cay, so if you choose a room with a balcony on the starboard side of the ship, you’ll have great views of the island from your stateroom.
We watched the early-morning arrival into Castaway Cay from our balcony on the starboard side of the Disney Wish.
While Disney Cruise Line’s Dining Room breakfasts are incredible, I would advise eating in the buffet on the morning of your day ashore at Castaway Cay. Not only is this much quicker, so you’ll have more time to explore the island, but you’ll also enjoy the best views of the island.
Most ships have an outdoor area at the back of the buffet. Head here and you can enjoy spectacular views of Castaway Cay while you eat.
If you’re vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free or have another dietary requirement, then pre-ordering your food is a must. You can do this with your waiter in the main dining room on the evening before your visit.
There is a choice of vegan options, including the Impossible burger and plant-based chicken tenders. You can also get fries, which aren’t available to everyone else.
Pre-ordered food will be delivered to Cookies BBQ, so you’ll need to head there to collect it, rather than to Cookies Too or the Serenity Bay BBQ. When you arrive, there’s a special counter to the left of the buffet. Let them know when you. arrive and they’ll cook the food especially for you.
If you haven’t pre-ordered, then the special options may still be available, but you might have a long wait if the crew need to head back to the ship to collect the ingredients!
Suggested read: How to Order Vegan Food on a Disney Cruise
Parents who want to enjoy some relaxing time in the adults-only area can drop their kids off at Scuttle’s Cove, Castaway Cay’s kids’ club. Here, youngsters will enjoy all kinds of activities such as scavenger hunts, volleyball and sandcastle competitions.
At Monstro Point, kids can become palaeontologists for the day and dig for fossils and dinosaur bones in the sand. If you prefer to stay with your children, you can do, and enjoy the dinosaur dig as a family.
You never need to worry about getting a sunbed on Castaway Cay, as there are thousands of them across the various beaches. Sun loungers and umbrellas are all available free of charge and there’s no shortage, no matter how busy the ship is.
It’s truly impossible to be bored on Castaway Cay. When you’ve had enough of the beach, head to the shaded games area where you can play all kinds of games, including ping pong, table football, basketball shooting, pool, and giant versions of Connect Four, chess and checkers.
Located off the shore of the family beach, there’s a structure that older kids and teenagers will love. It has ropes to swing from and platforms where you can throw yourself into the sea. It’s closed at low tide, though, so you’ll want to time your visit well to take advantage of the fun that this platform offers.
Disney Cruise Line always puts safety as its number one priority, so on Castaway Cay, there are so many lifeguards that you’d never be able to count them all. Many of the lifeguard stations are located very far out to sea, so you can be sure that you’re safe, even if you go for a swim in the ocean.
Castaway Cay is pretty big, and so one of the best ways to explore is on a bicycle. You can follow the 5K race route, or just use your bike to get from A to B instead of the tram. Bike hire is free for cabana guests, but for everyone else, it costs $13 per hour.
There are lots of different sizes of bikes and helmets to choose from. There are adult bikes with child seats on the back, and small kids’ bikes for those as young as five. So the whole family can cycle together, no matter the age of your kids.
Kids too hot? Then don’t miss the Spring-A-Leak water play area. It has jets of water that shoot up from the ground – the perfect place for kids of all ages to run around while cooling down. Tots in swim diapers are allowed, so even the youngest of babies can cool down in the shade in this fun, family area.
If you order a drink from any of the bars on Castaway Cay you’ll be charged. However, you can enjoy soft drinks and iced water for free at any of the three barbecue areas, even when the food service is closed.
The free drinks include water, Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Coke Zero, Sprite, Minute Maid Lemonade, Blue Powerade, Ginger Ale and Vitamin Water. Paper cups are provided, but I recommend bringing your own refillable drinks bottle so you can stay hydrated on the move.
You can also refill your water bottle at water fountains that are located outside of most of the restrooms. There are also stations where you can help yourself to lemon-infused ice water at most of the bars, so you really don’t need to waste money by ordering bottled water.
If you want to try a little bit of everything, you can book the Castaway Cay Getaway Package for discounted rentals. It includes all-day rental of snorkel gear and floats for the ocean, as well as one hour of bike rental.
It’s a good way to enjoy lots of experiences while keeping costs down.
For the best snorkelling experience on Castaway Cay, head over to Castaway Ray’s stingray adventure. This activity costs $56 for adults and $45 for kids, but you’ll get to see stingrays up close and even touch these friendly creatures.
Snorkels, masks and lifejackets are provided and you’re given a training session on how to interact with these friendly creatures without upsetting them.
On Castaway Cay, you can enjoy free ice cream from self-service machines that are located at the three barbecue buffet areas. It’s available all day long and comes with a choice of different flavours.
If you’re lucky, you may spot Disney characters Mickey and Minnie during your visit to Castaway Cay. The delightful duo wear special beachwear when they step off the ship and visit the island.
This isn’t the most pleasant one to talk about, but some people have reported being stung by sea lice while on Castaway Cay in the past. It’s very rare, and most people say that they’ve visited countless times without any problems, but it’s good to be aware just in case.
Sea lice aren’t actually lice, but they do give some nasty stings if you get caught by them in the water. It’s treatable with lotion, which you should be able to buy in the stores, or use the freshwater showers to rinse the area.
Again, you don’t need to worry about it, but on the rare chance you are stung, then you can at least deal with it while on the island.
Castaway Cay is such a wonderful private island that’s loved by everyone, whether you want to relax on the adults-only beach with a cocktail, snorkel in the sea or do something more energetic like go cycling or running.
I hope that this guide has helped you to plan your trip, but if you have anything else to add, please do so in the comments below.
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Jenni Fielding is the founder of Cruise Mummy. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 30 cruises. Now, she helps over 1 million people per month to plan their perfect cruise holidays.
