When is a Ship too Big?

Posted by Anne Campbell
Posted in Carnival

A few years ago, I never thought any ship would surpass Royal Caribbean’s 3,500-passenger Voyager-class ships in size. Cunard Line’s 148,528-ton Queen Mary 2 was even larger (in size, not passenger count), although she was built for transatlantic crossings and longer voyages. Then, in June, 2006, Royal Caribbean’s Freedom of the Seas, 158,000 tons and a maximum capacity of 4,200 passengers, entered the fray.

And then RCI announced it is building a 220,000-ton, 5,400-passenger “Genesis-class” vessel scheduled to enter service in 2009.

Every cruise line contracts larger and larger ships. This year Celebrity Cruises’ first “Solstice Class” ship debuts at 118,000-ton with a 2,850-passenger capacity. This cruise line prides itself on outstanding food and service. Can anyone maintain high levels on a huge ship?

Do you draw the line in terms of size of ship? At what point is a ship simply too large?

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05 May

This entry was posted on Monday, May 5th, 2008 at 7:25 am and is filed under Carnival. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

2 Comments When is a Ship too Big?

Michael Herman

October 14th, 2009 at 3:22 pm
1

A ship is too large when the difference between cruising and a land vacation is marginalised. It is necessary to understand that the benefit in a huge ship accrues to the cruise line and not to the passenger. Adding features not found on smaller ships or being spectacular in some way will help attract passengers, especially the inexperienced or first-timers, however, these ships are lacking. Give me the personal, comfortable, warm ships of Princess where I can go late night, enjoy a buffet, have a hot drink and a chat at a cosy table rather than needing to walk along a street to an overcrowded and noisy cafe. No thanks. The noise, lack of comfort, and cold impersonality might suit some, not me.
Anne Campbell

October 15th, 2009 at 5:37 am
2

I agaree 100%. I love Coral and Island Princess which feel cozy even though their fairly large. My favorite ship in the world is Star Clippers, authentic clipper ships carrying 150 passengers max