Mini Cruises – are they worth it?

Random question, but a question worth answering.  And I am sure everyone has their opinions about mini cruises, the main one being that they are just party cruises and not ideal for first-timers.

As you are all aware (if you read my blog), I was on the Ventura for the first time back in October 2017.  And I’ll be honest, I had my apprehensions, as this was, in fact, my first cruise (that left a port, had done several ship visits).  So what would I think of it?  Would it be the party cruise everybody told me about, or would I hate it and never cruise again.  Well, I’m here to tell you my opinion on them.

Firstly, let’s compare a mini cruise to a hotel break.  Cruises, you have all your food included (except specialty dinings), and the staff are always attentive, yes you have to pay for drinks, but on certain cruise lines, are very reasonable.   You also have amazing shows on each night, plus a Casino (subject to ship), kids club (if you want to escape for a break), plus easy access to pools and spa facilities.

Now, Hotel breaks, usually only include Breakfast – if that, and you have to go out and source your own food, and entertainment can be a hit or miss, plus you sometimes have to walk miles before you find anywhere decent to sit and watch, and then you have to get back to your hotel, so can sometimes mean walking around in the cold.

Secondly, my personal experience was a good one on Ventura, yes, there were hen parties etc onboard, however, since my Ventura trip, P&O have limited the alcohol that you can take onboard and also banned any fancy dress.  I enjoyed the being waited on in the bars and restaurants, and no matter where you looked, there was always smiling staff.

Mini Cruises are a great way to dip your toes in the water (excuse the pun), and whether it is a 2/3/4/5 night mini cruise across the Sea, definitely worth it.  So much so that I have “caught the cruising bug” (even though I sell them, I always have the bug), and as soon as I got back, I booked myself and my wife (her first EVER experience on a cruise ship) for December this year onboard Oceana to Bruges for a spot of Xmas shopping, and then come 31st October 2018, I will be booking us on our first long haul cruise together and booking Marella in the Caribbean for 2020 (few land holidays planned for 2019), so yes the mini cruises are worth it, just to get the experience.  And to be hoenst, I would prefer mini cruise to a hotel break any day of the week.

Check out our current promotion on Mini Cruises – with onboard credit (have a drink or 2 on us), plus with every mini cruise, we send you a £100 off voucher for a future cruise (7 nights or longer) – how’s that for a deal.

Until next time.