Short Cruises – The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

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  Over the years I have been on many cruises varying in lengths of 2 – 30 nights.   Each cruise is unique even when you are going to the same ports.  I was just on a 4 night Royal Caribbean cruise and it inspired me to write this blog about the good, bad, and, ugly of a short cruise.   These might not hold true for every short cruise but I think it is good to be prepared.  

The Good 
  – If you cannot take a lot of time off of work or school a short cruise can be a great way to just get away for a few days.  
 – Since they are shorter they do tend to have a smaller price tag than a longer cruise.  
 – If you have never cruised before and are a bit worried about how you might feel on a cruise a short cruise can be a good way to test the waters so to speak.
 – Some cruise line rewards programs count the number of cruises you do not the number of days so for those a couple short cruises could bump you up a level to get better perks on your next cruise.

The Bad
 – You won’t have a lot of time to visit many ports so you could possibly have just 1 stop on a short cruise.
 – You also won’t have much time on the ship either so by the time you finally figure out where everything is it will be time to get off.
 – You may not get to really relax as much on a short cruise.
 – Shorter cruises just cannot offer the same experience as a longer cruise.  If you are taking a short cruise for your first cruise you may decide cruising isn’t for you but a longer cruise can be very different.

The Ugly
 – Cruise lines know with the short cruises the ship will get a lot more wear and tear so they tend to use the older ships.   If you have seen the ads for the fancy new ships with all the crazy extras don’t expect to find that on your short cruise.  
 – Since they are older ships the decor may seem very outdated and just plain ugly.
 – Many times on short cruises you get a bit more of a rowdy crowd looking to blow off steam and party hardy in a short time so it could get ugly.

​The Exception
Disney Cruise Line is one of the exceptions to the rule as they started using a brand new ship for 3 and 4 night cruises from the beginning.    Disney Cruise Line is also the only premium cruise line to offer short cruises year round.