I guess my question for anti-cruise is, what are you pro? Are you going to do all the work of booking accommodations and 3x restaurants and entertainment for 15+ people?

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think being anti cruise is snobbery. There is simply a lot not to like about them.

1. Excursions are frustrating if you like the destination. It’s a short period of time, you don’t learn your way around, no real chance to wander or be spontaneous, and you have the must get back by X time hanging over your head.

2. You are stuck with cruise food. One of the fun things about travel is the food from sitting in a cafe, to grabbing street food, to finding a restaurant with a view to finding a small restaurant etc.

3. Norovirus, listeria, and other viruses are a thing.

4. Safety- these boats are registered in countries with lower taxes and different laws. If something goes wrong you are screwed.

5. They can be crowded and the entertainment is often meh.

You are only stuck with cruise food on days at sea. All of things you listed are available in ports.

Wash your own hands frequently and you really don't have to worry about norovirus. But airports, the Louvre and sidewalks in Portofino are full of other people too, and you can catch viruses anywhere you go.

Choose your ship well and safety and crowds will not be an issue.

Can't solve the short time in one place problem, because cruises are designed to be the opposite. You get to see many places without committing to them and without the hassle of moving. I think this is great because it helps me identify places that I do and do not want to return to.

Anonymous wrote:Dh's family likes the summer beach house rental and I can't stand it. I honestly don't think I can go again. It's $$$ (they don't pay), boring and I don't even like the dated, small town food. I'm left watching the 3 kids while everyone else gets to do fun things. The beaches are freezing up here too. I think dh's whole family has fond memories of being kids at the beach, but the reality is that it's awful. The 1960s condos are gross too.

On a cruise my 3 kids would enjoy the kids club, great food options (I love the formal dinner at night and I choose cruises with good food), there's constant entertainment and it would be warm. I personally love touring castles in Europe or trekking through Cambodia, but that's more of a couples trip. I have traveled a lot internationally with my kids and it's... an adventure to say the least.

A few people have mentioned the Viking river cruises. I just want to point out that you have to be 18, so make sure no one in the extended family is underaged. DH and I have done them, but the average age is probably 70.

Took our kids 18, 24, 25 on the Viking Danube River Cruise. There were plenty of 50 and 60 somethings, along with a handful of honeymooners. The thing is that we went on the trip to spend time together, so that didn't really matter. And in the port towns, my kids could do whatever they wanted on shore.

Anonymous wrote:I am the anti-cruise, anti-all inclusive in my family while DH LOVES them. I don't like being confined to just a resort/ship. I don't like having to eat at the same place(s) every single day. I prefer vacations where you explore, go to museums, go to different restaurants, see many sites, on my own schedule.

I have to suck it up some times and just go. We got back from a 3 generation all inclusive vacation, I hated it, but kept it to myself and went with the flow. Otherwise I don't know how you make it work.

Where have you cruised? Because when I do, we explore, go to museums, eat at different restaurants and see many sites. Yes, you do have to be back by a certain time, though.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think being anti cruise is snobbery. There is simply a lot not to like about them.

1. Excursions are frustrating if you like the destination. It’s a short period of time, you don’t learn your way around, no real chance to wander or be spontaneous, and you have the must get back by X time hanging over your head.

2. You are stuck with cruise food. One of the fun things about travel is the food from sitting in a cafe, to grabbing street food, to finding a restaurant with a view to finding a small restaurant etc.

3. Norovirus, listeria, and other viruses are a thing.

4. Safety- these boats are registered in countries with lower taxes and different laws. If something goes wrong you are screwed.

5. They can be crowded and the entertainment is often meh.

I absolutely love to travel, but this is the #1 worst part of travel for me. I hate thinking about what to eat, I hate finding a place to eat, service is often poor. I wish more than anything else that I could just hand out "food pills" to my family instead of having to eat. It drives dh crazy too. We're not picky eaters, but I think we just don't enjoy food the way others do.

You're my kind of people. I'm still waiting for Willy Wonka's roast beef dinner in a pill.

Anonymous wrote:OP it’s often hard for multi family groups to enjoy any vacation together. Setting aside all the dysfunction that goes with extended families you still have a big variation in personalities, budgets, and preferences for vacations. We’ve done these trips and some have been enjoyable but they are trips not vacations! We’ve done extended family trips when we were not planning on doing a real vacation.

Also keep in mind that even if everyone wants to go on a cruise or resigns themselves to a cruise , there are very different options. A Viking river European cruise is very different from a Caribbean or Mexican port cruise. The boomers and some GenX in DH’s family love the cheap all you can eat cruises. SIL loves the European river cruises because she wants to check the boxes in seeing countries in Europe but knows nothing about them and doesn’t want to learn anything.

Cruises do not work for people who experience or dread motion sickness, people afraid of the ocean, or germ phobes. They also do not work for people who really value having a good vacation or who like to spend more time at a destination.

And here we have someone who apparently has decided that they are a "non-cruise" family. And one who seems pretty judgmental... about a lot of things.

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think being anti cruise is snobbery. There is simply a lot not to like about them.

1. Excursions are frustrating if you like the destination. It’s a short period of time, you don’t learn your way around, no real chance to wander or be spontaneous, and you have the must get back by X time hanging over your head.

2. You are stuck with cruise food. One of the fun things about travel is the food from sitting in a cafe, to grabbing street food, to finding a restaurant with a view to finding a small restaurant etc.

3. Norovirus, listeria, and other viruses are a thing.

4. Safety- these boats are registered in countries with lower taxes and different laws. If something goes wrong you are screwed.

5. They can be crowded and the entertainment is often meh.

I absolutely love to travel, but this is the #1 worst part of travel for me. I hate thinking about what to eat, I hate finding a place to eat, service is often poor. I wish more than anything else that I could just hand out "food pills" to my family instead of having to eat. It drives dh crazy too. We're not picky eaters, but I think we just don't enjoy food the way others do.

For me, the mom, cruises mean

1. I don't have to plan meals
2. I don't have to cook or order food
3. I don't have to do the dishes
4. I don't have to plan activities
5. I don't have to hear people complain that have to do things they don't want to do
6. There are built in playmates/friends to hang with
7. I don't have to plan evening activities

For me, a cruise is about not having to handle the mental load. I'm just as happy renting a villa in Jamaica with a staff to handle most of these things. But a cruise is cheaper.

I don’t think being anti cruise is snobbery. There is simply a lot not to like about them.

1. Excursions are frustrating if you like the destination. It’s a short period of time, you don’t learn your way around, no real chance to wander or be spontaneous, and you have the must get back by X time hanging over your head.

2. You are stuck with cruise food. One of the fun things about travel is the food from sitting in a cafe, to grabbing street food, to finding a restaurant with a view to finding a small restaurant etc.

3. Norovirus, listeria, and other viruses are a thing.

4. Safety- these boats are registered in countries with lower taxes and different laws. If something goes wrong you are screwed.

5. They can be crowded and the entertainment is often meh.

Depends on what you want to do. My sister prefers cruises for vacations. I've tried it but get claustrophobic on cruise ships. I wish I could like them because they are an easy way to travel. I'm open to trying a river cruise/smaller boat option to see if that is better with my claustrophobia.

She has some mobility challenges so she likes the ease of getting between destinations and ease of having a choice of excursions in most places that work for her. I'm more inclined to pick a location and get an apartment/house/cabin for a week, doing daytrips and more active outings.

We do a family beach week together once a year. And she and I usually do a weekend in NYC a couple times a year (we both like Broadway shows).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DH and I were always anti-cruise and anti-all inclusive until we had kids. I know there are some kids who eat caviar, watch Meet the Press and love to go to art museums, but that’s not my kids. We’re empty nesters now and talking about taking trips on our own, which will be more of what I have in mind for enjoyment. I don’t regret going to Atlantis or the Lindblad cruise with the kids because they were great memories for us.

My father always looked down his nose at cruises and refused to go on one while my mother was alive. Now that she’s gone and he’s socializing with people who go on cruises regularly, he’s been hinting at being interested in going on one. While I love him dearly, there’s no way in hell I’ll take him on a cruise when he denied my mother the opportunity to go on one.

I hate the snobbery of the anti-cruise/anti-all inclusive people.

Would your mom want you to punish your dad?

Actually, I think she would be OK with it. He is pretty selfish in some respects.

That’s a nice way to live

Dh's family likes the summer beach house rental and I can't stand it. I honestly don't think I can go again. It's $$$ (they don't pay), boring and I don't even like the dated, small town food. I'm left watching the 3 kids while everyone else gets to do fun things. The beaches are freezing up here too. I think dh's whole family has fond memories of being kids at the beach, but the reality is that it's awful. The 1960s condos are gross too.

On a cruise my 3 kids would enjoy the kids club, great food options (I love the formal dinner at night and I choose cruises with good food), there's constant entertainment and it would be warm. I personally love touring castles in Europe or trekking through Cambodia, but that's more of a couples trip. I have traveled a lot internationally with my kids and it's... an adventure to say the least.

A few people have mentioned the Viking river cruises. I just want to point out that you have to be 18, so make sure no one in the extended family is underaged. DH and I have done them, but the average age is probably 70.

Separate vacations.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DH and I were always anti-cruise and anti-all inclusive until we had kids. I know there are some kids who eat caviar, watch Meet the Press and love to go to art museums, but that’s not my kids. We’re empty nesters now and talking about taking trips on our own, which will be more of what I have in mind for enjoyment. I don’t regret going to Atlantis or the Lindblad cruise with the kids because they were great memories for us.

My father always looked down his nose at cruises and refused to go on one while my mother was alive. Now that she’s gone and he’s socializing with people who go on cruises regularly, he’s been hinting at being interested in going on one. While I love him dearly, there’s no way in hell I’ll take him on a cruise when he denied my mother the opportunity to go on one.

I hate the snobbery of the anti-cruise/anti-all inclusive people.

Would your mom want you to punish your dad?

Actually, I think she would be OK with it. He is pretty selfish in some respects.

Why can't they alternate years?