Cruise vacations often have the cliché: retirees looking for an endless buffet between tourist spots. Today’s cruise-goers dine on celebrity-chef-created meals, learning to cook them too, acquire new skills, and take day trips to pristine locations. Here are seven reasons why you need to ship out, and a few West Coast-originating cruises you need to try:
No Itinerary Stress
Planning a trip is fun, but leaving the details to someone else is even better. Nobody wants to risk having bad intel foul up their hard-earned vacation time.
Try: SilverSea’s Anchorage to Vancouver 10-day cruise
A Digital Detox
Most trips have internet connectivity, but no one will be able to prove otherwise when you come back without checking your work email if you say something about “spotty internet,” or “darned ocean storms.” Think of taking a cruise as a much needed digital detox.
Try: Norwegian Cruise Line’s Mexican Riviera from Los Angeles 7-day cruise
More Activities Than You’d Think
Go deep-sea fishing, diving for sea urchins, or take a sled dog across an icy slope with the kinds of outdoor activities available on a cruise. The vendors are all vetted by the cruise line.
Try: Princess Cruises’ Voyage of the Glaciers 7-day cruise
Get Time Off From the Kids
With activities tailored to please everyone from even the most rambunctious elementary schoolers to sulky teens, cruises give kids their own special areas where they can socialize. A plus: you can have frozen cocktails by the pool.
Try: Carnival Cruises’ Hawaii from Long Beach 14-day cruise
See a Lot in a Little Time
No wasting time worrying about where you’ll dine or how you’ll catch a flight to your next destination. The captain is steering you toward your next stop while you sleep.
Try: Royal Caribbean’s Panama Canal Eastbound 15-night cruise
Social or Not, No One Cares
Travel with your family on popular cruises for family reunions, or book passage on a ship that caters to singles.
Try: Norwegian Cruise Line’s Baja Beach Break from Los Angeles 5-day cruise
The Best of Food
Cruises today have lines employing big names like Nobu Matsuhisa, Thomas Keller, and Curtis Stone to take casual and fancy onboard dining to the next level, with nary an ice sculpture in sight.
Try: Princess Cruises’s Pacific Wine Country 6-day cruise