Cruising
When it comes to cruise ships, does size matter?
Earlier this year Royal Caribbean announced that its third Oasis class ship, Harmony of the Seas, will be the biggest cruise vessel in the world when it launches in 2016. At 227,000 tonnes it just edges out sister ship Allure of the Seas, currently the largest on the ocean, and has a maximum capacity of 6,360 guests. Add another few thousand crew and you have a fairly substantial floating city. But is bigger always better?
Pros
- You will never (ever) be bored on one of these floating skyscrapers. Ice skating, dodgem cars, indoor sky diving, surf simulators, waterslides, full Broadway productions, designer shops, up to 10 swimming pools and just about anything else you can think of will keep everyone entertained.
- Hungry? You’ll be spoilt for choice. Allure and Oasis of the Seas have 25 dining options onboard so you could feasibly make it through a one week cruise and never eat at the same place twice.
- You’re less likely to feel the movement of the ocean in a large ship and they remain more stable in rough seas. A godsend for those prone to seasickness.
- It sounds counterintuitive, but huge ships often provide more quiet areas to escape to. They are so large that passengers are spread out and you can usually find a hidden spot that no one else knows about. Head to the higher decks and hunt for secluded lounges or sundecks at either end.
- With so many cabins you can often get a great deal for a larger ship, especially close to the departure date. The ship has to sail with those cabins whether they are full or empty, so the line will often discount at the last minute to get more passengers onboard.
Cons
- Many ports simply can’t cope with the sheer scale of the new breed of megaliners. To dock they require deep water and a long wharf, which means they are restricted to certain itineraries that have appropriate infrastructure or they are required to dock at secondary ports.
- Some destinations (particularly in the South Pacific) are only accessible by tender, so every passenger must be transported from ship to shore in a smaller boat. The logistics of trying to get more than 6,000 people ashore in only a few hours is mind-boggling. If you’re docking at a tender port then you could be in for a (very) long wait.
- You can get lost in the crowd of thousands on these ships and lose the personal touch that so many people love about cruising. It becomes very hard for your cabin attendant, waiter or favourite bartender to remember your name when they are responsible for serving thousands of people every day.
- There’s so much to do on these huge ships that you can forget you are even at sea. But… doesn’t that defeat the purpose of a cruise?