Read the USA Today article.

As you have probably noticed, we tend to be more Celebrity folks than Royal Caribbean folks. For our upcoming trans-Atlantic cruise this fall we had a hard time deciding between a very similar itineraries on the Voyager of the Seas and the Summit. We eventually chose Celebrity and the Summit. One of the major reasons was the size of the ship and accessibility of the ocean.

As Cruise Arizona mentions, my Mother and Sister really like the Mega Ships but enjoyed a recent cruise to Alaska with us on Celebrity. They mention, like you do, no issues with finding their own space.

However, the one thing they don’t find on the larger ships, that we find to be very pleasant on the smaller ships, is the ability to meet folks and see them every day. We still have folks that we keep up with many years after the cruise just because we met them on the cruise and were able to establish a friendship.

But, that’s one of the great aspects of cruising these days. There are enough choices and variations out there today to please just about anyone. To me, everyone needs to just get out there and cruise! They will enjoy it.

btw, nice site you have there yourselves… we should throw a link back at each other (already added one to your site)…

In contrast, one thing I noticed about the Oasis was that it is definitely more open to the sea. The board walk balcony cabins will actually have sea views!!! and they are on the interior of the ship. Amazing design!!!

Still, I guess I’m just old and set in my ways. If I could find a ship with a traditional dress code, cruising the Pacific Coast or Caribbean with around 1000 passengers or less at the same price as what the current mainstream lines are charging, I’d jump at the chance to do the more intimate cruise. My budget has me on the medium to large ships of around 2000-2500 passengers.

I wonder how the whole “Chair Hog” problem will play into this venue? Hopefully RC will have some SOP in place to prevent people from reserving an unoccupied lounge chairs all day long.

I love your articles. You do an excellent job at writing and explaining things thoroughly. We’re looking forward to the Oasis of the Seas, it’s really going to be an interesting experience.
We have cruised Royal Caribbean’s largest ships for many years and I’ve learned that a smaller ship is even more crowded simply because the ship is smaller and the result is you’re always dealing with the whole crowd because there’s no where else for them to go.
On Royal Caribbean’s Voyager class and Freedom class there are so many places for people to go that they’re seldom all in one place. The result is that it feels less crowded!
The larger ships even have more little quiet nooks and corners for when you want peace. When you’re out of your quiet mood and want something to do – there’s always a place on a large ship to find some fun.
You’re gonna love it!
Leland