Too big?

[FManke]

With the move to bigger and bigger ships. Will there come a point when they get to be too big?

It seems like the bigger ships are concentrating on moving inward, leaving less and less outdoor space.

Does anyone see a point in the future, when you can take an entire cruise and never set foot outside?

I guess you can do that now if you wanted. But I mean, have no reason to go outside. Everything you need is indoors.

A time when ships that are no longer ships, just barges with hotels built on top.

[pamw]

We started with smaller ships and in RC the legend was our first, when we tried the Navigator I found it ok but stated that was as big as I wanted to go - since then we have been on the Indy several times --- ok ok I'm a woman and we can change our minds can't we  ;)

 

I have to admit though I am really not interested in the much larger cruise ships which are now being launched, I suppose I'm a bit of an old fashioned cruiser in that respect and do like to be outside as much as possible when cruising.

Lets face it the air is much fresher out on the sea - it helps my Asthma so much !

[androckb]

In a lot of ways the industry has gone in that direction - the concept of a hotel/resort that floats. 

 

As for a limit to size - there are certainly engineering limits, as well as limits by ports the ships would visit not being able to handle their size/length/depth. Not every new ship is bigger than the last, though. The Quantum class (albeit still large ships) are smaller than the previously introduced Oasis class on Royal Caribbean. And there are still specialty/luxury lines that are building small and medium size ships instead of mega ships. 

 

I also see in most new ships there are a lot more balcony cabins; an outward view is very accessible. I'm sailing Allure of the Seas later this year, and I'm interested to see from the public spaces if it feels like you're disconnected from the sea as much as I've seen some reviews talk about it. I'm sure part of it is just the sheer size - less motion, so you aren't constantly reminded you're out in the water I think is at least part of it. 

[JLMoran]

My biggest complaint about the largest ships (Oasis class), bearing in mind I haven't actually been on any of them yet, is that their sheer size limits what ports they can go to. When my family and I were searching for our first cruise, I was beyond frustrated that Oasis ships are all stuck with 7-night itineraries, typically visiting only three ports; I hadn't realized at the time, but the reason is that those are the only ports with harbors large and deep enough to accommodate these massive ships. If part of the point of cruising is to go to places you normally couldn't, and be able to change out those places from cruise to cruise, why would I want to artificially limit myself because the ship is too damn big?

 

That said, the Anthem with its 12-night southern Caribbean itinerary is a notable exception, actually hitting 50/50 between sea and port days and giving a nice set  of ports. Maybe RCI realized that while the Oasis class was an engineering marvel, it's ended up limiting the kind of cruisers they can draw? Maybe that's why the Quantum class ended up being smaller and closer in size to Freedom class. Part of why I'm planning to book that 5-night Bermuda trip is to have a chance to try out Quantum class before making a longer booking on it; I'm hoping I'll find I like it.

[Pamela27]

We like Voyager class, just the right size. Not interested in the bigger ships. Bigger is not always better.  I  can't judge cause I never been on them, one day maybe....

[DocLC]

I think the industry is starting to bounce back. If you look at some of NCL's new ships, they have a lot more outdoor space. In addition, MSC's Seaside is making a very big deal if all the outdoor space they will have.

[JLMoran]

I think the industry is starting to bounce back. If you look at some of NCL's new ships, they have a lot more outdoor space. In addition, MSC's Seaside is making a very big deal if all the outdoor space they will have.

 

More outdoor space and fresh / sea air is definitely a good thing (see: central park on Oasis class). But if the ship is still so big that it can't make it into all the ports, then no bueno.

 

Of course, there are destinations like Alaska or Norway where they have to keep smaller ships handy in order to navigate the fjords and other tricky spots where the best scenery is hiding. So I would really hope that as ships like the Voyager or Radiance class age out and have to be retired, that the cruise lines would be smart enough to make modern replacements at the same size as those, rather than replacing them with something bigger that can't (fully) reach those destinations any more.

 

Then again, given that Royal has Celebrity and Azamara as it's mid-level and up-market alternatives, we could be seeing the start of a trend: The lower-end lines in each conglomerate make only mega-ships with limited destinations that cater to families and younger people, and seeing more "exotic" locales that require smaller ships means moving to the mid-level or luxury line in the group.

 

[edited to fix my grammatical redundancies :P ]

[Gears]

If there's one thing we've learned about cruising...try everything.

 

That said, we haven't been on an Oasis class ship (yet). Only because, as someone else mentioned, 7 night itineraries with limited ports and tend to be more expensive on a per night basis for similar class staterooms.

[murphmatic]

Will be on the Symphony in the Med in 2018 so we'll get to see how disconnected the public areas are from the sea. We have a balcony stateroom booked so if we need our ocean fix we'll have it.

Just saw the intro for Celebrity Edge. It seemed like they went out of their way to give you views of the sea from just about every public space on the ship.

Here's hoping that trend carries forward with RCL's new ships after the Oasis class.

[whenismynextcruise]

I have sailed Anthem twice and I am booked for Thanksgiving to the Bahamas (3rd year in a row) and I have also noted the lack of outdoor space. Sailing from New Jersey in November its cold for at east 3 days of the trip so its not really a big problem then. I do find the ship a little large for me but I cannot beat the convenience of a 3.5 hour drive to Bayonne from Boston for the price of a tank of gas. Flights from Boston to Florida have become so price prohibitive, an additional $1000 dollars added to the trip price. There is a long thread here on a Freedom class ships coming to New Jersey but that didn't really pan out. So, for now, Anthem it is and it is a lovely ship. I wish RC would consider moving other ships to the Northeast with more itineraries.  A lot of folks in the Northeast will do anything to get out of the cold and with few choices in ports in the area that sail in the winter (New York and Cape Liberty) I am assuming they dont feel the need because Anthem is quite popular by default.

[JLMoran]

I have sailed Anthem twice and I am booked for Thanksgiving to the Bahamas (3rd year in a row) and I have also noted the lack of outdoor space. Sailing from New Jersey in November its cold for at east 3 days of the trip so its not really a big problem then. I do find the ship a little large for me but I cannot beat the convenience of a 3.5 hour drive to Bayonne from Boston for the price of a tank of gas. Flights from Boston to Florida have become so price prohibitive, an additional $1000 dollars added to the trip price. There is a long thread here on a Freedom class ships coming to New Jersey but that didn't really pan out. So, for now, Anthem it is and it is a lovely ship. I wish RC would consider moving other ships to the Northeast with more itineraries. A lot of folks in the Northeast will do anything to get out of the cold and with few choices in ports in the area that sail in the winter (New York and Cape Liberty) I am assuming they dont feel the need because Anthem is quite popular by default.

I live in NJ and Bayonne is 45 minutes from my house, so it's the ultimate in convenience even though the itineraries for Royal are pretty limited.

 

I was looking at the deck plans for Anthem since I'm planning to book a Bermuda trip for 2018 when those come out March 30. Only outside space is from deck 14 on up, everything else is indoor only. Makes me think I definitely want a balcony room for the trip so I can get fresh air whenever I want, especially when it's only a couple hundred more than the interior with virtual balcony.

 

It does make me wonder if I want to take that ship for the 12-night Southern Caribbean offering they have in December, January (birthday trip!) and April. Not sure how well I'd do on a ship where the only outdoor space is basically the one deck with the pools, rock wall, etc. guess I'll have to read you live blog if you have one, and Matt's when he posts!

[DocLC]

All Royal cruises require me to fly, so it really now comes down to itinerary and where I might want to spend some time before or after. If course, that could change if Royal ever decides to return to California.

[michelle]

if you want to see the new future of crazy cruise ships go watch the video of

the new Celebrity EDGE coming in 2018.  Now that is going to be a ship.

[bcarney]

We did Oasis once, that was enough for me.  It was the cruise where we discovered we cruise for the itinerary and not necessarily the ship.  Any 7 day itinerary has to have a minimum of 4 port days otherwise I'm not interested anymore (thought I'd be willing to fudge that for sailings out of, say, Baltimore, due to geography).  I love the Voyager class ships (haven't been on Freedom or Quantum class yet), but in the end, it's the islands that is the draw for us.  

[JLMoran]

if you want to see the new future of crazy cruise ships go watch the video of

the new Celebrity EDGE coming in 2018.  Now that is going to be a ship.

 

I watched it, and it was pretty darned amazing to see (albeit in rendered 3D glory instead of reality glory). The "magic carpet" section off the side of the ship was especially impressive, just for the engineering and tech that probably had to go into it to even make it possible.

 

My only concern seeing this ship, is that it makes me think that Celebrity is starting to turn into Azamara, as this appears to be a genuine luxury liner and not a "regular" cruise ship. Certainly the pricing seems to buck the trend of other Celebrity ships, at least for the limited itineraries currently on offer. Hopefully when it gets a "regular" cruise year, the prices will become more in line with the other ships in Celebrity's fleet (of a comparable class).

[DocLC]

We did Oasis once, that was enough for me. It was the cruise where we discovered we cruise for the itinerary and not necessarily the ship. Any 7 day itinerary has to have a minimum of 4 port days otherwise I'm not interested anymore (thought I'd be willing to fudge that for sailings out of, say, Baltimore, due to geography). I love the Voyager class ships (haven't been on Freedom or Quantum class yet), but in the end, it's the islands that is the draw for us.

The more we cruise, the more we realize this. Our favorite cruises have always been on smaller ships as they had more unique and varied itineraries.

 

We did the Liberty and Allure for the ship, and while we enjoyed both ships, we wouldn't rush back unless it was a new itinerary. We're saying the MSC Seaside in December, but again it's for the ship.

[Skid]

My biggest complaint about the largest ships (Oasis class), bearing in mind I haven't actually been on any of them yet, is that their sheer size limits what ports they can go to. When my family and I were searching for our first cruise, I was beyond frustrated that Oasis ships are all stuck with 7-night itineraries, typically visiting only three ports; I hadn't realized at the time, but the reason is that those are the only ports with harbors large and deep enough to accommodate these massive ships. If part of the point of cruising is to go to places you normally couldn't, and be able to change out those places from cruise to cruise, why would I want to artificially limit myself because the ship is too damn big?

 

That said, the Anthem with its 12-night southern Caribbean itinerary is a notable exception, actually hitting 50/50 between sea and port days and giving a nice set of ports. Maybe RCI realized that while the Oasis class was an engineering marvel, it's ended up limiting the kind of cruisers they can draw? Maybe that's why the Quantum class ended up being smaller and closer in size to Freedom class. Part of why I'm planning to book that 5-night Bermuda trip is to have a chance to try out Quantum class before making a longer booking on it; I'm hoping I'll find I like it.

We did the 12 night Anthem Caribbean cruise last March (2016) and enjoyed it immensely.Best cruise director ever in Abe Hughes, who has since moved to the Harmony. However, we remembered liking Explorer better and are looking forward to being back in the Voyager class in May on Adventure.

[whenismynextcruise]

I agree Joe....I think that 3d video is about as close to that ship as I am ever going to get price wise! One can have dreams though....

[constable145]

Love the big ships. The difference is I need to book a balcony ( or a suite) on the Oasis class as I feel there is a disconnect with the ocean. 

 

On the smaller classes I've been on  ( Freedom and Radiance) there is the outdoor promenade deck and the helipad. 

 

No such luck on the big ladies. But I love the amenities. I felt much more crowded on the Radiance then I did on either the Oasis or the Allure.