All of your ideas are great.

Some people will never take a cruise no matter what. Some get seasick at the slightest vibration. Many are afraid of getting locked up with 1000 people they may hate for 7 days. How many of you have had table mates you could not stand? You can always leave a resort. Many do not understand that a ship is a floating city with many many activities.
I can do about 7 days.

Many people do not want a regimented time limit in ports. Some want to change itinerary on the spur of the moment

For myself, I would not want to cruise Europe. I like to explore the great cities by myself at my own pace. Finding my own hotel and meals helps me absorb the culture.
Much of Europe that interests me is inland.

The Carribean islands I have little interest in except for the beaches and some natural fauna which can be done in a day or 2. Martinique has a beautiful rainforest, Aruba landscape is surreal. The New England Canadian coast is close enough by car for me on an in-depth tour. However, I enjoy it by ship as well.

My cruise desires are just to enjoy the water and the feel of a classic liner. Sheer, camber and the other quirks put me in a ZEN mode. Nothing like sitting on the foredeck seeing, smelling, and hearing the ocean while de-fragmenting the hard drive in my head. The rocking motions help me sleep. I do not gamble, care little for Elvis impersonators, hate kareoke, and dislike shopping malls-floating or land based.

When visiting LA, I always stay at the Queen Mary. Nothing like ending your day and waking up to the Mahogany, brass and birds-eye maple that adorns the staterooms. She relaxes me-even though she is immobile.

A cruise is appropriate for a certain type of vacation:-turn off the world and not lift a finger. Driving across America in a convertible, or Eurailpassing through Europe is for another type of traveler: the more adventurous kind who does not require luxury for enjoyment and does not get bent out of shape by lack of structure or surprises.

I alternate vacations: Backpack Europe, drive the American West, and cruise a classic liner.

As the most popular destinations such as the Caribbean become overloaded, I think we will see a lot more interesting and adventurous itineraries opening up. For example South America and Asia, to name but a few.

I'd like to see more American's visiting Europe. I'd like to see more cruises combined with hotel stays, tours and train journey. I'd like to see more 2 night stays at ports.

I'd love to try a Far Eastern cruise, with Star cruises. You would get a different cultural experience and some very interesting food!

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Originally posted by desirod6:
When the last classic liner is out of service, I will never cruise again.

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Maybe todays new ships will become classics in time (compared to tomorrows new builds)?

Desirod, a voyage is a voyage? I wouldn't give up cruising because all the old ships have been scraped. Surely you can see some of the great things on the new ships that existed on the old.

1. East Coast US origins. Yes, and even in winter.
2. Apple's Routing of the Crown Dynasty and Didion's of the Rembrandt were good. Baltimore serves Philadelphia, Washington, DC and perhaps Richmond.

3. Run "boat trains" connecting with major sailing ports. Amtrak is big on Charters, for example. A nice diner/loung car, a comfortable coach seat, and connections with the ships are a relatively simple matter, There is nothing like arriving at Cherbourg Maritime and seeing QE2 waiting for you!

4. More sailings to some of the less known parts of the Canadian Maritimes. St. Pierre and Michelon for example; Digby Bay and watch the tides.

5. Great Lakes via the St. Lawrence Seaway. Ports of call from the Canadian Atlantic, Sagunay, Quebec, Montreal, and a string of Great Lakes itineraries. Alternate returns by train if the time is too long.

Do you not think that the expansion of cruising may include people wanting to travel further afield?

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Originally posted by italian cruiser:
Another good choice will be to introduce the concept of the short cruises in Europe.

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Speaking as a Brit, our standard summer holiday would normally be two weeks in duration.

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Originally posted by Ascendancy:
those who think a good time is traveling by automobile.but the old ships are like an outdated kitchen. It maybe clean, but you just are never sure.

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Ascendancy

I have driven accross America in both a new rental car and a mint 1965 Lincoln Convertible. The Lincoln brought a special feel to the trip. The onlookers gave us thumbs up and stares of admiration. It is a sence of the past you just can't recreate in your mind.

The classic ships have the same sort of Ambience. The Big Red boats are gross caricatures of what they once were. The Rembrandterdam, Victoria, QE2 is 'an old kitchen with modern appliances'

The quirks are what give them character, like an old European Inn eg. Amsterdam 'Grand Hotel Karnapolsky' vs. the canned atmosphere of a Marriot or Hilton.

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To all;

One benefit of a trans-atlantic crossing after a European trip, or American trip for Europeans is that instead of jet lag, bad air, and being cooked up in a 17" seat for 8 hrs upon coming home, is that on arrival one is rested, showered and has had a good breakfast when debarking.

Embarkation at U.S. northern ports require higher fuel and labor costs than Florida. If you look at the numbers out of Florida, the vast majority of pax are sailing on cruises of 3, 4 and 7 days. Some of these passengers may come in the fullness of time to enjoy longer cruises but the mainstream lines know what they're doing: building, in the Caribbean at least, repeat passengers; overwhelmingly North American but also attracting more non-Americans than ever.

An end to the US economic embargo on Cuba (thus re-opening Havana to Americans) is the only event I can see changing either the itineraries in, or economies of, the Caribbean absent a major economic slump in the States. If so, it will only solidify South Florida's strategic position as the ports of embarkation for the biggest market in the world.

The older, usually smaller classic ships we enjoy were new once; the ones being built today don't appear to lend themselves to similar roles in middle or old age - they have to be run full, on relatively short hauls to developed ports with lots of passengers spending lots of money onboard above and beyond the fare paid to turn a profit.

So enjoy 'em while you can (I'm w/ you Desirod) but keep in mind that if only 5% of vacationers take cruises, perhaps only 5% of cruisers take cruises such as those we enjoy and write about the most on the increasingly few remaining classic ships.

That said, where they go doesn't matter much to me. I'm on a ship because I want to be on a ship. Where it stops is pretty much, for me, unimportant.

A classic ocean liner with steam turbine engines, and a hull like a REAL SHIP, cruising to some common cruise ports and some uncommon ports, that stays for more than a few hours...like two days. A ship that has an itinerary where guests can decide from several embarkation and disembarkation points, to sort of custom-design there vacation. The ship would be painted white, the interiors bright and cheery but not too bright, with pastels, fine woods, and even some intricate woodwork. Interiors with deep carpets in some lounges and staterooms, and also some rooms with wonderful wood floors. No casino, but a place to get together with fellow passengers to play cards and maybe even gamble a bit fellow passengers. No show lounge like on cruise ships, rather, a room to gather and share stories, a smoke room for cigar smokers, a hugely stocked library, a large ball room for big band orchestras and a huge dance floor for dancers. A high-tech, state-of-the-art movie theater thaqt plays actual 70mm movies with dolby stereo, rather than videos.

Here's the kicker....My fantasy cruise ship and cruise line would be run like an exlusive "Bed and Breakfast". The staterooms would be larger and individually designed so that each stateroom is unique. Dining would be very different...like a Bed and Breakfast...broken down into many smaller dinning rooms with very large tables where the service is top notch and the food is a culinary masterpiece for every meal...an event to remember. Home-cooking but a masterpiece for every meal. No Cruise Director like on cruise ships, rather, several Host Couples who are your hosts for the duration of your stay onboard.

An exquisite spa service. A very knowledgeable travel service onboard that plans special cultural excursions, adventures and tours.

In Britain, in the 1950's so call 'Holiday Camps' became very popular. These camps offered all-inclusive cheap holidays for the masses, with plentiful food in big dinning rooms and evening entertainment. Red Coated staff organised various group activities for the campers every day - such as family games. I believe that the campers were even woken each morning by a PA system!

Several decades later people started to become wealthier sophisticated and started to travel abroad for holidays for the first time? The holiday camps, although still reasonably popular, stated to become a bit of a joke. They were compared to 'Colditz' and were regarded by many as too regimented!

Some cruise ships/lines appear to offer a modern day holiday-camp experience! This may well explain some Brits resistance to the idea of sharing a holiday afloat with 2000 other people? 'Freestyle Cruising' is the cruise lines response to the rigidity of cruising.

No doubt even the new hotels cut the corners that the old ones thought were important. And perhaps that was what happened with the cruise ship. But I don't think style is a substitute for comfort, never, not anymore. We need those extra hot tubs, elevators, pool deck space, glass overlooking the ocean. We need show lounges with cushy chairs, cutting edge workout facilities and centrums that look like malls.
No less....

One eats in a dining room, not a "DINNING" room. Crucify me if you will, but I cannot take this incorrect spelling without taking off into orbit every time I see it.

(Only a little error )

There's one problem - you just have to make a decision - UK or US dictionary!

Living in Canada, I opt for UK - the occasional 'z' does slip in though. To me'recogniSe' is not 'recogniZe'. I have progressed beyond the 'alu-min-ium'/'alum-in-um' - 'tyre'/'tire' stage!

Joe, forgive me, please. Off topic for sure but I'm working on a topic reply!

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Originally posted by Green:
Topgun/Malcolm - I've asked before - ever heard of 'spellcheck'?

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Green, are you a School teacher?

I am the first to admit that I can't spell. I sometimes use word, spellcheck the text, then paste it into the CruiseTalk topic box.

Word does not recognise 'DINNING' as an error!