Back in 1995, about 4.5 million Americans took cruise-ship vacations. Today that number has doubled—and is still rising—with the majority of bookings coming from families. It seems that everybody and their brother (and their sister and parents and grandkids) is clamoring to climb aboard and set sail. As more and more families choose to cruise, more and more ships are launching with bigger and better facilities to meet demand all over the world.
Cruises used to be vacations that you could book at a reasonable price in the Caribbean or for a few dollars more if you wanted to see the Mediterranean. Not anymore! Those traditional cruising grounds are still there, of course, but they have expanded widely during the past decade. Ships that carry anywhere from 300 to 3,000 passengers now ply the waters of Northern Europe, the South Pacific, the African Coast, the Far East, Antarctica, and more. They charge anywhere from a couple hundred dollars for a few days aboard to nearly $200,000 for a four-month worldwide voyage in a penthouse suite. And they offer all kinds of excursions, land tours, travel insurance, and airfare options that can add to your experience along the way.
Now, when a vacation promises to “add to your experience,” your first thought is likely to be, “Okay, how much is it going to add to my bill? Will it really be worth my hard-earned vacation dollars? And my family's time? Am I making the right choices when it comes to our ship, our itinerary, and our activities?”
You should be able to answer those questions definitively and book your vacation with confidence after you read The Everything® Family Guide to Cruise Vacations. It explains the worldwide cruise-ship marketplace, which brands of ship offer which amenities and facilities, what price ranges you can expect to pay for specific cruises with each company, and what extras you may end up wanting to add to your list. You'll learn which cruise lines cater to young children and which to teenagers, parents, and grandparents; which cruise ships travel to the places your family wants to see; and which excursions you might enjoy the most once you get there. You'll be able to book everything from a babysitter to a seat at an art auction by the time you reach the last page.
In short, this book helps you figure out exactly which cruise is right for you—and then shows you how to make your vacation vision a reality. You'll even find indexes that include contact information for all the major cruise companies, along with independent Web sites where you can go to do further research on your own, work with airlines directly, and more.
Whether you're a first-time cruiser or part of a family that wants to head off the beaten path for a change of pace, The Everything® Family Guide to Cruise Vacations can help. Put on your Hawaiian shirt and Bermuda shorts, kick back in your favorite La-Z-Boy recliner, and turn to the next page. Your family vacation of a lifetime is about to begin.