A few years ago,we went on a family reunion cruise to the Carribean. There were 17 people in our group ranging in age from 14 to 82. We all had a really good time…and there really was something for everyone. Ours was also a RCCL trip. The only “must do” we had was that we all had dinner together each night. We chose the earlier seating which gave plenty of time to do other stuff after dinner. We did allow for folks to not be there one night or so, as most of us wanted to have one dinner at a specialty restaurant on the ship.
I think that’s the beauty of a cruise…there is something for everyone (unless you are on one that caters to a specific age group).
And I only put the link to Regent up because the OP said they were looking for a smaller ship for a Mediterranean cruise…and really…those smaller shops often come with a premium price tag.
Is this a ‘family reunion’ or a ’ gotta see it’ type vacation?
If ‘gotta see it’ then Galapagos if that’s where in-laws want to go. They can figure it out if they can take it. Maybe they just have it on their bucket list and it’s now or never. They. just figure “the more the merrier”. Or if they can’t do everything then hearing everybody else’s accounts are enough.
If “family reunion” then the easier cruise options come in or maybe not cruising at all but another land fun spot that everyone can enjoy
We took our kids on RCCL as teenagers and young adults too. Their grandmother came along twice on cruises with them. Everyone enjoyed it. If you do cruise, I would suggest a ship that stops in lots of ports.
I haven’t cruised since a British Isles cruise a couple of years ago. This is making me want to take another cruise! I think I really would like to try Windstar some day, after looking into it more. They have early booking rates for next summer starting at prices of 2500 type + for next summer. So, not as expensive as other luxury lines. 2 of the older ships don’t have elevators though. The 310 person flagship, with sails, Wind Surf, does though , as do a couple of their newer ships. Of course, even at those prices, it is still out of my budget. I like RCCL and Celebrity the best for the bigger lines. I sailed Holland America once , and it was fine, but a little quieter. Carnival is fine too but certainly not luxury. We really enjoyed the one Disney cruise we took when the kids were young. So, many choices. Maybe a good travel agent (or cruise agent if you think you are leaning toward a cruise), could give you some guidance.
My sister has a friend that loves Viking and river cruises. But, I really can’t see most very young adults being thrilled with that option. Not that they would not appreciate it, but the pace would be slow and most of the ships would probably skew on the old side. But, I could be wrong.
I agree with gouf78. If the Galapagos is on the in laws bucket list, I wouldn’t automatically rule it out.
The Windstar line looks promising to me.
My MIL hasn’t got back to me. @gouf78 it is both. A family reunion plus a "want to see " trip. The Galapagos came up as my MIL was speaking to the S of her friend about the Europe cruise they had just returned from and he mentioned his favorite was the trip they took last year to the Galapagos. My In laws and my H and his siblings have been to the San Blas islands on a sailboat many moons ago and MIL and FIL have been to Antartica (I recall it was a Lindblad cruise)so if they pass away without ever seeing the Galapagos they are fine with that. Both MIL and FIL feel like the rent a house and stay in one spot will be for further down the line. They feel they are physically capable of taking a big trip. It isn’t my place to tell them what they can and can’t do. They will fly business for added leg room.I think they can handle a flight to Europe. I think they can handle a cruise even with some stairs. I think FIL would skip many land based activities. These are people who have traveled all over the world. My FIL still owns a boat and runs it on his own. He can get in and out of a zodiac on his own. Heck I have a harder time getting in and out of the dingy. All of us have spent a lot of time on the water so no worries about sea sickness. They have been to Europe many times, FIL was born there. Ecuador and out to the Galapagos I think might be a more strenuous trip but if that is what they pick we will make it work.
Ultimately it will be their decision. I’m just going to be the one to make the logistics run smoothly. @nottelling - I have friends who have gone on trips through our local Natural History Museum where they have naturalist and biologists along. I also have friends who have gone on a river trip with their Chamber of Commerce where there were art historians on board. Both were very happy. Other friends did a trip through an Art Museum not sure which one but it was a multi city trip and they did not care for the tour feeling,
Has anyone booked cruises through the deep discount bucket shops?
I was looking at an Alaskan cruise (ended up not going) and now I get spam with deeply discounted (supposedly 60%, 75%, even 80% off) of luxury cruises, including the super-high end lines. And there are dates offered through next summer. Makes the $15,000 cruises seem affordable (when offered for $3500) but I can’t figure out if it is some kind of a scam.
I’m not sure if they have 15 spaces available at those prices, but if it is legit it might be worth checking out. Does anyone know anything about this?
No, we use a travel agent who specializes in cruises. We book super early and she watches for discounts/cabin credits and applies them if they come up. I do my own vacation planning for everything but cruises-those I leave to the agent because it’s just a lot less stress.
I can see if we lived near a port and just wanted to hop on a ship last minute I would use one of those websites, but the way we cruise now (usually 1x a year over a big holiday) we want the room we want on the boat we want.
Spoke to mil today. The cruise line she is looking at is Windstar. After talking with my SIL we have crossed off the Galapagos and will concentrate on Mediterranean.
Coordinating dates is becoming an issue. One cousin finishes school early June another cousin starts up again 3rd week in August. Two of the family members can’t miss work for 7 weeks right smack in the middle of summer. And that’s before several others have checked work schedules.
Update- inlaws have decided on a river cruise from Prague to Budapest on AMA waterways. When we took into account 8 college and young adults school and work schedules we ended up with a very narrow window of available dates. The narrow dates eliminated many of the Mediterranean cruises.