Why are cruises trashy?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My Dad thinks cruises are for the masses and only takes Windstar, Crystal, or private yachts like the one he took to the Galapagos with only 8 couples aboard, a world-renown chef, and a personal assistant per couple.

Wow. Any other pearls of wisdom from Dad to share?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My Dad thinks cruises are for the masses and only takes Windstar, Crystal, or private yachts like the one he took to the Galapagos with only 8 couples aboard, a world-renown chef, and a personal assistant per couple.

Wow. Any other pearls of wisdom from Dad to share?

Yeah, big news, if you spend craploads of money you get nice stuff. Lot to learn from dad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My Dad thinks cruises are for the masses and only takes Windstar, Crystal, or private yachts like the one he took to the Galapagos with only 8 couples aboard, a world-renown chef, and a personal assistant per couple.

Wow. Any other pearls of wisdom from Dad to share?

He’s not wrong.

[Anonymous]

I love cruises. But, I am not high maintenance.

[Anonymous]

I love cruises and I’m not a judgmental snob.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I love cruises and I’m not a judgmental snob.

This!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I grew up similarly and with the same perception.

I think upper crust WASPs like to think of themselves as ultra-refined and more knowledgeable about most things than mostly everyone else. Whether or not this is true is another conversation. Cruises aren’t “true” travel but are packaged experiences on a sort of floating Las Vegas, which is why the WASP community might see them as gauche/crass. They kind of scream “new money.” I’m not saying this is an accurate perception, but I think this is the perception.

It’s hard for me to unlearn this. My husband, from a LMC background, loves cruises shamelessly and urges me to give them a try. I just have no interest due to my snobby upbringing!

I grew up in this type of environment. The snooty “this is how it’s done” extended to everything from insisting on SLACs, to which cocktails to drink, to which cars to drive (and not drive). And just like I have grown to be my own person with regard to many things, I have also learned that I love to cruise. I do other kinds of travel too but cruises can be a great getaway for certain places and with certain groups of people.

[Anonymous]

There is waspy and there is rich; don’t mix up the two. There can be overlap between the two but not all wasps are extremely wealthy and not all wealthy people are wasps.

Wasps don’t like cruises. They are viewed as lowbrow like Vegas or huge resorts. Some non- wasps would agree.

Some rich people do like cruises. As do some MC and poor people. And expensive does not equal tasteful.

Personally, I don’t see the appeal but I’m also not a fan of Vegas or all inclusive Cancun resorts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I grew up similarly and with the same perception.

I think upper crust WASPs like to think of themselves as ultra-refined and more knowledgeable about most things than mostly everyone else. Whether or not this is true is another conversation. Cruises aren’t “true” travel but are packaged experiences on a sort of floating Las Vegas, which is why the WASP community might see them as gauche/crass. They kind of scream “new money.” I’m not saying this is an accurate perception, but I think this is the perception.

It’s hard for me to unlearn this. My husband, from a LMC background, loves cruises shamelessly and urges me to give them a try. I just have no interest due to my snobby upbringing!

I grew up in this type of environment. The snooty “this is how it’s done” extended to everything from insisting on SLACs, to which cocktails to drink, to which cars to drive (and not drive). And just like I have grown to be my own person with regard to many things, I have also learned that I love to cruise. I do other kinds of travel too but cruises can be a great getaway for certain places and with certain groups of people.

Gin and tonics with only the “right” gin and tonic in my family. Modest but well kept and reliable cars. Even home aesthetics. It’s definitely a thing I can relate to, too!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:WASPs enjoy not eating, quiet, reading books, vigorous activity, expensive wine or gin, and traveling away from the riffraff. Cruises aren’t good for this.

who the f**k cares what "WASPs" enjoy? are there really people who think like this?

There's a strange reverence on the part of some DCUM people when it comes to WASPs. Which is weird, because the WASP lifestyle is rigid and boring as hell. Not sure why anyone would want to emulate people like that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I grew up similarly and with the same perception.

I think upper crust WASPs like to think of themselves as ultra-refined and more knowledgeable about most things than mostly everyone else. Whether or not this is true is another conversation. Cruises aren’t “true” travel but are packaged experiences on a sort of floating Las Vegas, which is why the WASP community might see them as gauche/crass. They kind of scream “new money.” I’m not saying this is an accurate perception, but I think this is the perception.

It’s hard for me to unlearn this. My husband, from a LMC background, loves cruises shamelessly and urges me to give them a try. I just have no interest due to my snobby upbringing!

I grew up in this type of environment. The snooty “this is how it’s done” extended to everything from insisting on SLACs, to which cocktails to drink, to which cars to drive (and not drive). And just like I have grown to be my own person with regard to many things, I have also learned that I love to cruise. I do other kinds of travel too but cruises can be a great getaway for certain places and with certain groups of people.

Yup!
My dad would have rather died than take a cruise.
He also instilled in us that you never order chicken at a restaurant.

Lo and behold, I grew up and really enjoy cruises and have ordered chicken many times in restaurants! Live and learn, I guess.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is trashy because for the most part it is lazy people who want to experience something new with no effort and no real interest in engaging with the place in any meaningful way. They want to pull up in their ports in an ugly boat, descend on some place, scoop the cream off the top and go back to their boat where they can drink too much and eat too much. They get to feel like they are someone special, all the while willfully ignoring the fact that they are polluting the air and the water of the “paradise” they are visiting and the fact that they are waited on hard working people who have no other option but to leave their families and their homes for months at a time for crap wages because it is their best option - and for those crap wages they get to make some schmo from the US feel like somebody. They get to tolerate drunks, aggressive passengers and unruly children, all with a smile on their face. In short it isn’t the mode of travel that makes it trashy it is the ignorance and indifference multiplied by hundreds that makes it trashy.

What are the meaningful ways classy people engage with the locals on their vacations to the Hamptons or Kiawah?

I think you’re confusing people wanting to go on an adventure vs relax without feeling like cattle. Those are two different trips.

The old money people I know don’t even do “adventure vacations” except maybe in college/early 20’s. They want to be surrounded by people like them and good help and that’s all.

Yes, in fact, some of the most moneyed people are also the most insular.

That's one of the best things about being rich. Most people would be insular if they could afford it.

This may be accurate, but it’s also quite sad.

Sorry the truth is sad.

It is true- very few of us on vacation are truly interested in any kind of “authentic” interaction with the locals beyond surface niceties. It takes a special kind of blind entitlement to not see how entirely transactional and false these interactions are. Just smile, tip and keep it moving.

Yes. The people you encounter on your "authentic" trip aren't meeting you because they are fascinated to meet a well-off American. They're doing it because they want to sell you a good or service. Which is fine, but I'm not sure why it's somehow more "authentic" to spend money in Peru or wherever versus Universal in Orlando or on a cruise.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I grew up similarly and with the same perception.

I think upper crust WASPs like to think of themselves as ultra-refined and more knowledgeable about most things than mostly everyone else. Whether or not this is true is another conversation. Cruises aren’t “true” travel but are packaged experiences on a sort of floating Las Vegas, which is why the WASP community might see them as gauche/crass. They kind of scream “new money.” I’m not saying this is an accurate perception, but I think this is the perception.

It’s hard for me to unlearn this. My husband, from a LMC background, loves cruises shamelessly and urges me to give them a try. I just have no interest due to my snobby upbringing!

I grew up in this type of environment. The snooty “this is how it’s done” extended to everything from insisting on SLACs, to which cocktails to drink, to which cars to drive (and not drive). And just like I have grown to be my own person with regard to many things, I have also learned that I love to cruise. I do other kinds of travel too but cruises can be a great getaway for certain places and with certain groups of people.

Yup!
My dad would have rather died than take a cruise.
He also instilled in us that you never order chicken at a restaurant.

Lo and behold, I grew up and really enjoy cruises and have ordered chicken many times in restaurants! Live and learn, I guess.

What's up with this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I grew up similarly and with the same perception.

I think upper crust WASPs like to think of themselves as ultra-refined and more knowledgeable about most things than mostly everyone else. Whether or not this is true is another conversation. Cruises aren’t “true” travel but are packaged experiences on a sort of floating Las Vegas, which is why the WASP community might see them as gauche/crass. They kind of scream “new money.” I’m not saying this is an accurate perception, but I think this is the perception.

It’s hard for me to unlearn this. My husband, from a LMC background, loves cruises shamelessly and urges me to give them a try. I just have no interest due to my snobby upbringing!

I grew up in this type of environment. The snooty “this is how it’s done” extended to everything from insisting on SLACs, to which cocktails to drink, to which cars to drive (and not drive). And just like I have grown to be my own person with regard to many things, I have also learned that I love to cruise. I do other kinds of travel too but cruises can be a great getaway for certain places and with certain groups of people.

Yup!
My dad would have rather died than take a cruise.
He also instilled in us that you never order chicken at a restaurant.

Lo and behold, I grew up and really enjoy cruises and have ordered chicken many times in restaurants! Live and learn, I guess.

What's up with this?

I truly have no idea. I think his thought process was that chicken is boring and relatively cheap, so you should get something more "special" at a restaurant. Or something like that. He was a wonderful and loving dad, but had his quirks! (That's part of growing up, right? Figuring out which ideas your parents raised you with were right and which ones were their own peculiar quirks.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I grew up similarly and with the same perception.

I think upper crust WASPs like to think of themselves as ultra-refined and more knowledgeable about most things than mostly everyone else. Whether or not this is true is another conversation. Cruises aren’t “true” travel but are packaged experiences on a sort of floating Las Vegas, which is why the WASP community might see them as gauche/crass. They kind of scream “new money.” I’m not saying this is an accurate perception, but I think this is the perception.

It’s hard for me to unlearn this. My husband, from a LMC background, loves cruises shamelessly and urges me to give them a try. I just have no interest due to my snobby upbringing!

I grew up in this type of environment. The snooty “this is how it’s done” extended to everything from insisting on SLACs, to which cocktails to drink, to which cars to drive (and not drive). And just like I have grown to be my own person with regard to many things, I have also learned that I love to cruise. I do other kinds of travel too but cruises can be a great getaway for certain places and with certain groups of people.

Yup!
My dad would have rather died than take a cruise.
He also instilled in us that you never order chicken at a restaurant.

Lo and behold, I grew up and really enjoy cruises and have ordered chicken many times in restaurants! Live and learn, I guess.

What's up with this?

I truly have no idea. I think his thought process was that chicken is boring and relatively cheap, so you should get something more "special" at a restaurant. Or something like that. He was a wonderful and loving dad, but had his quirks! (That's part of growing up, right? Figuring out which ideas your parents raised you with were right and which ones were their own peculiar quirks.)

No kidding.

I look back at some things my parents disapproved of, such as my dad's fear of tattoos and my mom's absolute insistence that not wearing pantyhose would turn a woman into a prostitute, and I just have to shake my head.