The best cruise ships are like floating cities, with high-quality entertainment, delicious five-star restaurants, exciting casinos, vibrant dance floors, and refreshing pools. A cruise vacation can be one of the most memorable trips you will ever take. With the variety of cruise ships available, it is imperative to choose the right vessel to maximize your cruising enjoyment. This guide will point you in the right direction, so your next cruise will be remembered forever!
Table of Contents
Disney Fantasy
The Disney Fantasy is the largest cruise ship in Disney’s fleet and is considered one of the best cruise ships out there! It was launched in 2012, and in 2017 the Disney Fantasy introduced new features, like the luxurious Biddi Bobbidi Boutique, Marvel Super Heroes Academy, and a Tiffany & Co. retail store. There are so many perks to taking a Disney Cruise that you don’t even see on the other best cruise ships. For example, you get a visit to Disney’s private island, Castaway Cay. This beautiful island is located in the Caribbean and has snorkeling, submarine rides, parasailing, and epic dance parties with Disney characters.
Interesting Fact: Disney cruises are the only cruise line to perform fireworks in the open sea, right from the ship!
Read More: The Cruise, Packing List You Need For Your Next Sailing
Staterooms are designed with families in mind. Inside staterooms feature different Disney themes and designs of Disney characters, and over 85 percent of the ship’s cabins have a veranda or a beautiful ocean view. All cabins are equipped with flat-screen TVs, minifridges, and iPod/iPhone docking stations. Try the delicious stateroom dining, delivered right to your door and also included in your cruise price. The ship has three main restaurants – Enchanted Garden, Animator’s Palate, and Royal Court. In the seven-day itineraries that Fantasy offers, you’ll go to two restaurants twice and one restaurant three times.
The onboard activities include world-class family entertainment such as Broadway-style plays, including Wishes, Aladdin, and Disney’s Believe. The grand Buena Vista Theater shows a variety of Disney movies, including 3D movies. Disney always shows new blockbuster movies on a seven-day cruise, some of which are still in theatres. Kids have many clubs to join while the parents relax, such as a nursery, the Oceaneer Club, the Oceaneer Lab, and Vibe. While kids can go to these adult-supervised clubs throughout the day, parents can enjoy an adult-specific schedule of activities. Disney cruise ships are known to provide the best childcare on the high seas. Both kids and adults will agree that this is one of the best cruise ships out there!
Europa is an adult area, which is family-friendly during the days. The Clubs and bars inside the ship include The Tube (themed for the London underground), O’Gill’s Pub (the Irish pub), Ooh La La (champagne bar), and the Skyline Lounge. There’s a whole schedule of fun game shows that take place on the Tube, a perfect getaway for the parents. If adults want to relax, Quiet Cove Pool is an ideal pool only accessible to adults.
Insider Tip: Disney Fantasy also offers lots of fun outdoor activities, including the famous AquaDuck.
The ship offers ten themed dining venues, including two adults-only restaurants, three main dining rooms, and a colorful new ice cream shop called Sweet on You (not included in the cruise price). Cruisers have to pay extra for the ice cream at Sweet On You. The Fantasy sails from Port Canaveral (close to Orlando), Florida, to the Bahamas and various ports in the Caribbean and Mexico. Disney Cruises are the best cruise ships for family fun and adventure.
Norwegian Bliss
Norwegian Bliss is a beautiful cruise ship with a refined feel you usually expect to find on such a mega-ship. Its most attractive feature is the 20,000-square-foot Observation Lounge, which dominates the ship’s entire forward section on Deck 15. It is a big ship with 4,004 passengers at double occupancy, with a robust selection of dining venues, top-deck fun, and enjoyable nighttime entertainment. The Beatles cover band in The Cavern and the Broadway hit musical’s full-scale production, the “Jersey Boys,” are among the high-class entertainment, making this one of the best cruise ships available.
Norwegian Bliss features a revolutionary Observation Lounge for you to soak in every stunning moment. The Haven is tucked away at the top of the ship. This ultra-exclusive group of cabins features the most luxurious accommodations, such as a 24-hour butler service. In addition, there is a concierge service, a private sundeck, and an intimate restaurant exclusive to only the Haven patrons. The accommodations offered in the Haven are world-class and will definitely cost a pretty penny.
Read More: Amawaterways: A Guide To European River Cruises
Royal Caribbean Symphony Of The Seas
Symphony of the Seas is one of the biggest and best cruise ships in the world. This massive cruise ship is also the most expensive ship, with a production cost of $1.35 billion. Onboard this gigantic ship is a central park with over 20,700 tropical plants, a royal theater with a capacity of 1,400, a zipline, an ice skating rink, a surf simulator, laser tag, rock climbing, an escape room, arcades, and cupcake baking classes.
The Symphony has unique drink menus and is offered by the ship’s many bars and lounges. There is the Schooner Bar, English Pub, Boleros, and the Diamond Club for Pinnacle Club Crown & Anchor Club members. The ship has many places to sit back and relax while sipping a specialty drink and listening to live music.
Interesting Fact: The Symphony of the Seas has been awarded the Cruisers’ Choice Award as Best Cruise Ships for Entertainment.
Carnival Celebration
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Carnival Celebration is an Excellence-class cruise ship under construction for Carnival Cruise Line, and they are aiming to make one of the best cruise ships available. This will be Carnival’s second vessel of the fleet’s XL class, a subclass of the Excellence class. The Celebration will become the largest ship in Carnival’s fleet upon her delivery. The Celebration will have a maximum passenger capacity of 6,500 passengers with approximately 2,000 crew members.
It will be divided into six zones, incorporating themed elements and spaces that will host activities and events and house various dining and shopping outlets. The Celebration hosts the “Ultimate Playground” zone on the top decks, where the shipboard roller coaster will be located, called “Bolt.” The rides will consist of self-propelled cars that ride on an 800-foot track and travel up to 40 mph (64 km/h). The Celebration will also have an extensive water park and sports center.
Carnival Celebration also marks the return of innovations like Bonsai Teppanyaki™, RedFrog® Tiki Bar, Family Feud™ Live, Havana Bar™, Seuss at Sea™, Playlist Productions™ and more. This will be one of the coolest and best cruise ships that people have ever seen.
Viking Ocean Cruises
Viking brought its Scandinavian style to long-distance cruising. Viking is the longest cruise in the world; it cruises for eight months at sea. In addition, the Viking has the best quality cruise ships built for luxury cruising. Built in 2017, The Viking Sun holds up to 930 guests, making it perfect for excellent service.
The Viking Sun is a stunning piece of art designed to provide excellent service to its guests. The elegance is a blend of modern Scandinavian details and Viking Cruises’ staple design pieces. Since this boat has a capacity of 930, you will surely feel the kindness of all of the staff members. Passengers have a fantastic experience on and off the ship, especially when Viking Sun heads into the ports for amazing destination tours.
All-veranda staterooms are equipped with luxurious amenities to enhance your cruise experience. Feel right at home in an Explorer Suite, furnished with luxury robes, slippers, toiletries, interactive TV and movies-on-demand, Wi-Fi, direct-dial satellite phone, and cell service mini-bar with alcoholic drinks, and a welcome bottle of champagne. The Veranda Suites are no less stunning, so be sure to de-stress and rejuvenate. Viking offers the best cruise ships for luxury travels on the seas.
Insider Tip: Try the onboard spa which includes a snow cave, where you’ll actually have snowflakes fall from the ceiling.
Seabourn Sojourn
Read More: Life Lessons Learned On A Carnival Cruise
Seabourn doesn’t continuously operate a worldwide cruise. It usually prefers to offer a variety of extraordinary voyages instead. When it happens, you know it’s going to be special. Seabourn Sojourn has a capacity of 458 guests who travel the world in style, with an amazing blend of contemporary style and hospitality, making this one of the best cruise ships in the world. This luxurious ship charges a premium, but the cruise package has lots of extras, all of the tips, and most beverages are covered. No extra charge is required for the specialty restaurants, and even the internet rates are affordable compared to other major cruise lines.
There are six cabins available on Seabourn Sojourn, all of which are called suites. Starting at 295 square feet, even the smallest cabins are among the most spacious standard accommodations at sea. Seabourn Cruises are the best cruise ships that money can buy.
Holland America Line
Holland America Line is one of the best cruise ships for trips to Alaska, the Mexican Riviera, and the Panama Canal & Central America. Holland America Line Cruise has won the Critic’s 2019 Cruisers’ Choice Destination Awards for their outstanding ships and customer service.
One of the four Vista-class ships houses a total of 1,848-passengers. The Oosterdam ship and other Holland American ships are often compared to Carnival ships. These ships have touches of bright colors, odd funky pieces of art, and fun furniture. Overall, Holland has the best cruise ships for those looking for a casually elegant and very spacious experience.
Princess
Offering worldwide voyages departing and arriving from North America is Princess, running since 2015. Its 2021 World Cruise will take passengers to 50 destinations in 32 countries and six continents. Passengers are provided two options of embarking or disembarking, either in Florida or in California.
Princess Cruises Royal Princess has a contemporary New World elegance ideal for a couples cruise or a fun and exciting family vacation. Royal Princess is a Royal-class cruise ship that got renovated in December 2018. The Updates included additional children’s activities, spa and fitness amenities, and modernized staterooms with the Princess Luxury Bed. Royal Princess is one of the newest, largest, and best cruise ships in the world.
The ship’s passengers can enjoy an adults-only retreat and pool, which is 20 percent bigger than other cruise ships in the fleet. It’s designed for privacy and intimacy. For example, the adults-only “Sanctuary” features plush lounge chairs, private living room-style cabanas, and secluded villas that are reserved for a couples massage or an alfresco spa treatment. Princess Cruises have the most luxurious and best cruise ships on the ocean for the entire family.
Interesting Fact: The Royal Princess was christened by the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton.
Regent
Read More: 15 Unforgettable Views You Will See On A Regal Princess Cruise
Regent has offered luxury cruises for a long time, ranking among the best cruise ships in the world. The yacht-like cruise ship offers worldwide cruises that start in Miami, then head to the Panama Canal, the Pacific, the Indian Ocean, the Mediterranean, and then return to Miami. In addition, Regent Seven Seas Cruises launched the magnificent Seven Seas Explorer in July 2016. The Explorer exemplifies the hallmarks of exquisite cuisine and the ultra all-inclusiveness for which Regent is renowned.
The Explorer offers a luxury spa onboard that is similar to the famous Canyon Ranch Spa in Arizona. The Canyon Ranch is a hyper-luxury spa and wellness destination where the wealthy and famous go to detox. The onboard facilities include a casino, a club of connoisseurs, a theatre, three exclusive lounges, eight different places to eat, a corporate club, and high-end shopping. The Regent is one of the best cruise ships in the world for adults.
Silversea Cruises
Silversea Cruise has two offerings: a more traditional cruise onboard the Silver Whisper is an active cruise aimed at more adventurous travelers and house up to 388 passengers. The Silver Cloud operates the latter, a small yet strong boat with a 250-passenger capacity. This allows the ship to venture into polar waters off-limits to most other vessels. This is known as one of the best cruise ships for the courageous explorer.
This cruise travels in the Pacific and Indian Oceans to Antarctica to the Arctic Circle. Enjoy the beautiful wildlife, landscapes, and jumping into 35-degree water during a polar plunge with icebergs. The Silversea Cruises are one of the best cruise ships that travel to Antarctica. Silversea Cruises are top-rated cruise lines with other ultra-luxury cruises like Silver Spirit and Silver Explorer.
A cruise vacation never has a dull moment! There is never a shortage of fun activities on the best cruise ships, between Broadway-style stage shows, movies, playing the slots, and eating at fine restaurants. All of the ships in this guide are ideal for the perfect cruising adventure and will keep you returning for more year after year!
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