Budget Travel's Blog


sep 12

Answers from a cruise critic

We recently invited our readers to ask questions of cruise expert Carolyn Spencer Brown, editor of CruiseCritic.com. Here are some of Brown's answers to the most commonly asked questions:

The Caribbean has been hurt by hurricanes. Will this affect my fall cruise? The news is pretty bad we hear, particularly in Grand Turk. At this point, damages to the island and the cruise center are still being assessed. However, my best guess it that upcoming itineraries will indeed be impacted—you can check the cruise line's Web site or news sites like Cruise Critic for the latest information.

Which line and destination have the best singles cruises for women, with ages ranging from 45 to 65. Hi, this is such a broad question—I'll try to get you started and then let's see. In the big ship, mass market end of things I really like NCL's newer ships for women traveling together; they've got great spas, no rigid rules about how you dine, lots of restaurants, and plenty of nightlife.

For a somewhat more sedate experience, I also like the upscale Crystal; there are gentleman hosts to dance with, a great spa, nice alternative restaurants. The line practices a set-seating, set-tablemate evening dining scenario and I've noticed that it takes more care in matching passengers. If you want a singles cruise per se, my suggestion is to book through one of the handful of travel operators that specializes on putting these together.

Best cruise lines for teens? Some examples include NCL' Norwegian Gem, which sails from New York on weeklong Bahamas cruises this fall, features a teens-only club/disco, an arcade, a huge sports court and Nintendo Wii on the big screen. If "teenager" means around14, I'd suggest you look at lines like Royal Caribbean (on its Voyager and Freedom class ships) and Carnival because they do a very good job with that age group—both in their on-board programs and on-shore tour options. As for destinations, I'd definitely try for a Western Caribbean itinerary that calls at places like Belize, Cozumel, Mexico's Riviera Maya and Jamaica; there are so many fun, adventurous tours, from ziplining to scuba.

What are the best cruise lines for kids? We have two girls, ages 4 and 2. I am sure your two girls will love cruising. I'd suggest looking for a cruise line that has children's programs tailored to their age groups. If they'd like to stick together, Carnival places 2- to 5-year-olds together in its Toddlers group for arts and crafts and sing-alongs. Royal Caribbean, on the other hand, has a different break down that would place your children into different groups. 18-36-month-olds fall under Aquatots, where they can participate in sing-alongs and play with age-appropriate toys while your eldest would hook up with the Aquanuts for activities like story time and "toilet paper soccer." Other cruise lines with stellar kid's programs include Disney, Princess, and NCL.


I want to take my 9-year-old nephew on a cruise, but I do not know if he requires a passport or if his birth certificate would suffice. Does he require a passport? At what age is a passport required? Thank you! This is a great question, Cadiz, glad you asked it. If the child is not yours, you must have special documents with you, notarized, that give you permission from the parents to take him out of the country (which all cruises do, even U.S.-based trips). He'll also need his passport but don't forget the first because you will not be permitted onboard otherwise.

My fiancee and I are attempting to plan a honeymoon for April of next year and we were wondering what suggestions you would have for younger (we are in our early thirties) couples. We don't want a circus. If you want to avoid the circus, aim for smaller ships. I'd recommend Windstar (they're sailing ships with cruise ship amenities) and the aforementioned SeaDream, which is also incredibly romantic. Both cruise the Caribbean and both tend to visit some of the lesser known islands so you'll be away from the crowds onboard and in port. Congratulations!

I'm taking an NCL (Norwegian Cruise Lines) cruise soon. The balcony rooms seem to be full. Might there be a way to get upgrade to a balcony room at the last minute? What I'd suggest is that you make sure your travel agent (or NCL if you booked directly) knows that you're interested in upgrading (and paying for it) and then stay on top of the situation, call every week until you leave if you have to. Cruise lines don't hold on to much. [They almost never hold unsold rooms until the last-minute; if they say they're no rooms, it probably means they are no rooms.] Stay on it and good luck.


Alternative remedies include ginger capsules and acupressure wristbands, available at most pharmacies. If all else fails, I find that a nice ginger ale settles my stomach! Wishing you smooth sailing...

What's one of the best, undiscovered values in cruising today? South America as a cruise destination is still (amazingly to me) under the radar. It's just fantastic, you've got cities with European-style cuisine and shopping, like Buenos Aires, gorgeous beaches in Rio and other parts of the Brazilian coast, nature all throughout Argentina (penguins, tundra) and then the incredible Chilean fjords which are like Alaska's but better (and less trafficked).











Which cruise lines allow smoking and which ones have no-smoking policies? Royal Caribbean has banned smoking in cabins. But you can still light up on the balcony.

Celebrity is adopting a no smoking in cabins policy beginning this October. On Oceania Cruises, a mid-size ship line that falls just short of being luxury, smoking is only permitted in two small areas on each of the line's three ships. From October 2008, P&O; Cruises will make three ships in its fleet—Artemis, Oceana and Ventura—completely smoke-free in inside spaces, with lighting up limited to some outside areas and on cabin balconies.



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