Short and sweet is tough to beat
Cruises that last five days or less are both enjoyable and affordable
If I had my choice — and money and time were both no object — I’d probably set sail on a world cruise. Not just the regular 90day world cruise, either. I’d set out on one of Oceania Cruises’ 180-day around-the-world behemoths that sell out every year. It’s tough to beat six consecutive months on a ship, circumnavigating the globe in comfort.
Unfortunately, time and money are both objects that stand in the way of my world cruise ambitions — and that’s why I’m a big fan of short, enjoyable and affordable cruises.
I’d consider a short cruise to be anything five days and under. Six days is just long enough to kid yourself that you’ve been away for a full week, and in many cases, by the time you’ve flown to your port of embarkation and spent a night, you’re away for a week anyhow. But cruises that are five days and under can be an excellent way to get that cruise and vacation fix without breaking the bank or leaving you pleading with the boss for more time off.
The popular mainstream lines like Carnival, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises and Royal Caribbean offer the most diverse selection of sailings under five days. Most of these depart from the East Coast, on quick runs to the Bahamas and the Caribbean. West Coast cruisers aren’t left out, though: Pacific Coastal repositioning cruises depart each April and May on northbound runs, and each September and October (and sometimes even later) on southbound voyages.
In the past, these quickie cruises used to be operated on the oldest, most rundown ships in the fleet. Not anymore. The short-cruise market is booming to the point where ships, even if they are older, are meticulously maintained and, in some cases, newer and splashier vessels are pressed into service.
Case in point: Royal Caribbean is investing heavily in a huge makeover for Mariner of the Seas, which returns to the U.S. this year after a number of seasons in Southeast Asia. You can catch it out of Miami on jaunts to the Caribbean and Bahamas.
Disney Cruise Line offers a great number of quick sailings to the Caribbean, making these the perfect chance to check out all that the family-friendly line has to offer. What’s more, Disney deploys the simply gorgeous Disney Dream — one of the newest ships in the fleet — on these quick runs from Port Canaveral, Fla., near Orlando. A four-night voyage typically includes a stop at Disney’s private island, Castaway Cay, along with a visit to Nassau, Bahamas, and a full day at sea.
Carnival is one of my favourite lines for a short cruise. The line is refitting its older Fantasy Class Fun Ships, first with Carnival Elation and now with Carnival Paradise, which has just emerged from a similar stem-to-stern refit and has resumed its schedule of Caribbean and Cuban voyages departing from Tampa. But even the line’s pre-refit ships offer plenty of cruising value.
On the West Coast, it’s tough to beat the three- and four-day jaunts from Long Beach, Calif., down to Ensenada, Mexico, and California’s Catalina Island.
Both Carnival Imagination and sister Carnival Inspiration operate these popular runs.
Obviously, short cruises aren’t for everyone.
Shorter sailings aren’t always a good indication of what a particular cruise line is like on a longer voyage (a memorable one-night jaunt from Vancouver to Seattle years ago was the very definition of a booze cruise), but that doesn’t mean they should be discounted altogether.
The other added benefit of these fast-and-cheap cruises is getting the choice to hop on board for next to nothing in an inside cabin, or splurging on that suite you’ve always had your eye on. I managed to snag a top-of-the-line suite on Holland America’s Veendam a decade ago on a two-day repositioning voyage from Seattle to Vancouver, and I haven’t been in one since. But during those two days ... wow!
If you’ve never done one of these quick-and-inexpensive voyages, give one a try.
You might be surprised at how rewarding even a few days on the ocean, away from the office, can be.
Happy cruising.
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