5 Things You Won't Be Able To Do On Cruises This Year! 

A warning with the beverage package. I was on a recent HAL cruise and had the drinks package. I drink bourbon on the rocks. The first night I asked for a drink in the bar and the bartender asked if I wanted a double? I said sure. Then I checked my bill. I was charged $9 + gratuity for the drink. I informed them that I had the drinks package and was told that my "double" exceeded the $11 per drink limit. So I could have ordered two separate drinks and had both for free on the package, but the same two drinks in one glass cost me extra.

The crazy high demand is I suppose the reason why they are building so many new ships. I hope they have a backup plan for when the inevitable downturn eventually happens. It is sad to find a wonder like the Suez Canal blocked. Safety first though. Thank you for the video.

I’m so happy to have had my cruise experiences in the last century and early this century. Holland America, Oceania. Highlights? Inside passage. Panama canal. Relocation Barcelona to Miami. Those times and lines pretty much covered everything, including tips (though we added tips anyway). The ships were old but beautiful. Nobody much thought about the internet - which wasn’t even a thing at the beginning. Times were slow and gracious. Books were still a thing! It was a magical time out from the ‘real world,’ though now, in my memory and looking around myself as a 71 year old widow and bereft mother, Was the real world.

I’m glad I finally did a Panama Canal transit. We went to St Petersburg on a Baltic cruise in 2015. Options are shrinking😢. Do not delay fulfilling your dreams😊

Thank you for your insights, Gary. "Pay more to get less" seems to be a thread running through whether we look at a cruise or a land based holiday. Itinerary changes whatever the reasons are bound to disappoint, especially if a bucket list destination is cut. Last year an oft made suggestion was 'make sure you pack plenty of patience during 2023' it looks like patience will be needed in abundance in 2024 too ----

Having to plan so many activities before you go, keeping a daily structured itinerary to meet meal reservations and missing out once onboard will deter 1st time cruisers, I think. I've read so many comments on various cruising channels that what was supposed to be a fun carefree vacation has turned into micro-managing every minute like Disney World.

Excellent video, Gary, thank you. Our favourite cruise line is Silversea. I am surprised and disappointed that the cruise line is no longer prepared to accommodate those passengers who are left out of the most popular shore excursions. I recall that an extra guide and transportation would be available to take the overflow. No one was left behind. Isn’t that what “luxury cruising” is supposed to be about?

I was in Israel on October 7th on the Nieuw Statendam. Sadly we had just arrived that morning. We were to have 3 days there. Overnight in Haifa & a day in Ashdod. I personally had 1 hour in Nazareth before being turned around and taken back to the ship. Many with later tour times didn’t even get off the ship. It may be a long time before it’s safe to return. Praying for all caught in this conflict 🙏

I have recently sailed Oceania and I too could not prebook specialty dining but fear not once you are on board you will be able to get reservations, we enjoyed 3 dinings and the food was exceptional.

Our November 2024 NCL cruise from Dubai to Port Louis, Mauritius was cancelled last week but I noticed that Royal Caribbean still has a Suez Canal trip in November on their website. Kudos to NCL….we were refunded everything (deposit, excursions) in less than a week.

Hi Gary. As an agent selling lots of cruises on meny different cruise lines - I also noticed all of these points that you have mentioned. My best ever fare saving was in Nov 2023 - where using the Black Friday sale I saved my clients a whooping CAD 2800 of their NCL Viva European cruise in May. They are in the Heaven section, but other than that - I haven't seen many huge savings. Clients were so happy that I received a bottle of a very good champagne 😊

Hi Gary, Good WiFi or not, there's no excuse for an employer contacting you on holidays if you are on paid leave!

I am very envious of all these trips you manage to do. Another excellent video.

I’m so thankful to have cruised both Israel and the Suez Canal last year - two experiences that aren’t going to be possible for quite some time…!

People will also complain this year that quality has gone down. This always happens when demand is higher than the supply. Why will the food and service quality go down? Because they can. Why go out of the way to make a guest happy when that unhappy guest is so easily replaced?

This is the information that makes you a leader in Cruise Tubers. Excellent video. And I cannot help gush how great you and Mark ( sp?) look perfect for each other. Such a lovely partnership. ❤

Good to see Norway making the right choice.

Ty for these updates. Wd love to cruise again but the nitpicking with cruise lines is sad. Glad I cruised early 2000s to South Pacific, Mediterranean, Greece at a fraction of cost and airfare included. The food was awesome. HAL and lobster nite was my fav.

I have a P&O cruise booked Nov ‘25 and one of the stops is Jamaica and know I will not be getting off the ship. It has been unsafe for over 10 years, it’s not going to change by 2025. Shame about the Suez Canal. Our Mediterranean cruise this May had a change of itinerary with Dubrovnik and Hvar being replaced - they are also cutting down on the number of cruise ships coming into port.

I don't have to give excuses as to why I'm not available. I'm on vacation, so my time is my own and no one else's.

You will def be able to get reserv at the Oceania specialty restaurants...I sail them a lot and can tell you many people book ahead and ultimately change plans once on board. You will have no problem. Talk with the dining reserv rep as soon as on board and throughout your trip.

Hi Gary! As cruisers who live in Yorktown, VA, we were excited when we were announced as an upcoming port of call and disappointed with the volume of resistance from a small minority. We were also surprised to see the controversy pop up here, one of our favorite RU-vid channels. My wife suggested that we needed to make clear that you and our fellow subscribers are always welcome.

Haven't cruised since 2019 and won't be bothering again. We only like the smaller ships and cruise for the itinerary and relaxation. Fortunately did the Baltic in 2012 - fabulous. Also east and western Mediterranean plus Portugal, Madeira and the Canary Islands. Never had any desire to visit the Caribbean, plenty of beautiful beaches, palm trees and exotic plants where we live. Need more vlogs on river cruises - Rhine, Danube, Duero etc., though these are less likely to appeal to your American audience, they do appeal to al lot of Europeans.

Great video Gary, thank you, very timely. You are like the Apple computer of cruising, giving us what we want/need before we know we want it!

Mark looks like a lot of fun. Glad you two can cruise together from time to time.

Well, talking about Bucket List. For us it was the Baltic Sea. We live in Europe and therefore saw very early, many years ago what was going to happen and still is happening in the big country in the North East. We always wanted to do a Baltic cruise, but for no money in the world doing a stop in St. Petersburg. No doubt, a beautiful and historic place, worth more than one visit. But - in the wrong country! We always said that we will never ever bring one single Euro/Dollar there! Even if you stayed on board you had to pay Port fees and Visa... An absolute no no for us and there was no cruise line that was NOT doing a stop in St. Petersburg. As sad as it is - it is only possible now that this city is not on the itinerary of any cruise line any more. Last year we celebrated our 40th wedding Anniversary on a cruise to the Baltic Sea, enjoying all the beautiful places! We have done a full Transit of the Panama Canal a few years ago and have booked another b2b from Florida to Seattle in the spring of 2025! I am fascinated by the technique and can't stop watching everything... While hubby is enjoying drinks and taking it easy... Another thing on our Bucket List was Australia and New Zealand. We have done "Australia over the top" from Sydney to Perth, and vice versa several times. We combined it with a visit to our son who at that time had a scholarship from the University of Melbourne while studying Space and Aeronautics. One thing we still want to do is an Asian cruise, maybe Japan. We'll see. It is not a must, but it would be nice... Life is short. Don't wait too long.

Hi Gary would you be kind enough to comment on the treatment that Ben and David received on their recent MSC cruise? They, like you, offer brilliant reviews of cruise ships and I know that you film in exactly the same way that they do. Thank you

Thank you, Gary for another fine video. As a long time cruiser, almost 4 decades, we certainly see, and understand, the thinning of cruise benefits. You have confirmed that all cruises seem to be sailing at full capacity, hence the long line complaints everywhere. Travel on all venues is going up, so there is not much to be done about it. Looking at my own budget, we may be travelling a little less in the next year. On the other hand, we're not complaining, we certainly can sympathize with the reasoning behind more cost and fewer benefits. Thanks again, Gary, great video! Regards to Mark as well, he looks like a fun sort of guy.

Great video Gary. Thank you

As always such sensible and relevant advice - thank you.

Thank you again for valuable information!

Very helpful, many thanks.

An awesome and very important video. Thank you for sharing 😊

Thanks, Gary! On trend / ahead of trend, as usual!

Great information!!

I have one caveat to your comment about the quality of wifi on board cruise ships: I have been on Norwegian ships twice in the last year (last one was just a few weeks ago) and the wifi was so terrible I had to complain and received a partial refund.

I'm fairly new to cruising but I love it - I was disappointed not to be able to go this year but from all that I've heard, it will be a good year to skip. Keep up the good work.

Good video Gary! I have been trying to book a last minute cruise for 3 months and been coming up with minimal, pricey options. Good to know it's not just me!

Great video. Hopefully prices will reduce again in the future.

We were lucky enough to transit the Suez and Red Sea on the Queen Elizabeth last November just as hostilities were cranking up. The USS Carney had just demolished its first drone and we followed through hard on the heels of the USS Eisenhower. Exciting times I guess.

Great video, Gary. I wonder what a good West Africa itinerary would look like?

Useful info thank you. Would you mind sharing the 3 sites that you use to track the price of cruises please?

I agree with Mark. Disconnecting is important. His cameo stole the video. 😊. Thanks for the valuable into too.

I have never understood why they ever fair matched. If you book early you get choice of rooms, and guarantee you get on the boat. If they lower it later because only undesirable rooms are left, I don't feel entitled to a discount

By not being able to cruise through the Suez Canal messes my trips up. All I needed was to go from Rome through the Suez Canal to Singapore or Thailand and I would have made the Around the World cruising my late wife and I were planning.

It’s not just cruise ships most commercial shipping is avoiding the Suez Canal.

Travellers are being asked to respect locals and take into account local, regional, and world events. If one feels “screwed over” by being asked to be a responsible traveller who respects local situations and doesn’t want to tax already-stretched resources, introspection may be required. Travel will always need to evolve and some practices are harmful and need to be changed.

Great video Gary! I just got off Virgin Scarlet Lady, which was not quite full and I was able to secure another cabin after finding out I was directly under the free weights section of the gym and the men there kept dropping their weights on the ground and eventually giving me a terrible headache. However, I understand from people I met who cruise more that this ship was not nearly as crowded as others they had been on. Virgin remains amazing though and I have no complaints about how I cruise with them!

I was on the Marella Discovery 2 last November through the Suez Canal they replaced Israel and Aqaba in Jordan with Sokhna for Cairo and Sharm el Sheik then round to Oman , that was the last Cruise ship to make that trip .

Hey Gary I had the privilege of transiting the Suez Canal on the hospital ships USNS comfort when I was inthe Navy, AMAZING experience! As far as limiting ships, they’re too big! I don’t blame Barcelona. I’m switching to Azamara, Seaborn, & Silversea. I’m not sure I agree with the comment regarding prices……I just got a $2,000 discount on Silversea voyage to New Zealand & Australia January 2025.

Hello Gary, Simonne and & will be on the Vista this coming December 17. If this is the same time as you, we will look for you during the cruise.🙂

Re wifi, at those prices, granted I'm retired but if my work wanted me to have wifi they can pay for it themselves. $56 per day for 2 devices (phone & laptop or tablet) is a lot of money.

Avoiding the Red Sea is not new. In the 1960’s liners went round Africa to Australia for a long period due to yet another war back then.

Thanks for the heads up on booking excursions and restaurants as soon as they open up. Sailing on Oceania Istanbul to Athens in October. BTW the fare went up $300pp on March 1. Just missed the lower fare by 2 days. Rats.

Thanks, Gary - another really interesting video. Disappointing that you weren't able to book the speciality restaurants on Vista. is this something that you may be able to resolve once on board?

Try an Emerald yacht cruise for the Suez Canal this year. The itinerary goes from the med to the red sea, a few days around the top of the red sea, and back to the med. That does not go anywhere near Yemen so it is possible Emerald are still running it. It's expensive though.

Skipping YORKTOWN, VA!! Wow! That's too bad, not much shopping to do, but the historical aspect is amazing. I went to Coast Guard Officer Training there and remember long runs along the battle fields. It was great! The Yorktown Pub is great.

Great video. We watch you and la lido loca. What kind of camera are you using when it seems like you are holding a remote in your hand. Can’t be a drone is it?

I did the Vista in February and it was lovely. Don't get the drink package, and I didn't get an internet package, and it only took me a few days to get used to not being connected. 😂

You’ll be in my home town during your cruise in Canada (Quebec city)! I hope you’ll enjoy your time here. 💙

I was on the Silver Spirit and one of my segments was Mahe to Dubai and it was cancelled. I was notified two hours before I left for the airport.

So passengers are getting screwed over by the cruise lines whether the cruise line's fault or not. As the old saying goes, "Thanks for coming".

Oh I wondered why my oct cruise was cancelled, rebooked for april , but its the 3rd time ive had a cancellation in a row with P &O

I will be going on Holland America cruise autumn this year. I was kinda intrigued to find that all inclusive drinks package has a limit of 15 drinks per day. While I am pretty sure it will be enough for me, this was a new thing I've never seen before.

Do you think that maybe the ports are just sick of those giant cruise ships that dump tons of people disrupting regular tourists and residents? Really not an advantage for the ports imo.

Can’t get back to your video on Silver Nova. But wanted to comment on it. You mentioned the cost to go to La Dame and Kaiseki. $80 and $40. We did the Rio to Barbados leg of the 71 day World Cruise Rio to Barbados. Prices were exactly double. For $160 La Dame wasn’t worth the price. The Japanese for lunch was included but dinner $80. Want was the difference? Portion size. Didn’t notice much change between lunch and dinner. The bath products in the cabin were inferior in our opinion from past experience. We asked if they still had the better products and they did. We forgot about the caviar service until another passenger mentioned it, so we took advantage of it a couple days. No beach bag or binoculars in the cabin anymore. We could have used the binoculars on the Amazon. Speaking with another passenger who was a travel agent and she commented we were on a small Royal Caribbean ship. We expected some cutbacks and noticed them. Many we spoke to were planning to explore the other luxury lines as they were disenchanted with the new SilverSea. RC paid a lot to jump into the luxury market. They shouldn’t try and destroy its reputation so quickly.

You'd think Cruise Lines would learn the lesson from Hawaii tourism. They pushed the prices of hotels so high that the public started resisting and now their visitor numbers have plummeted. I think the same thing will happen with cruising in 2025. Customers remember being priced gouged. Cruise Lines will ultimately pay the price.

Finding out what various drinks cost on specific ships is very hard to do sometimes . After viewing many videos and reading lots of comments, I expected Soda to cost $4.00 - $7.00 a can. So I purchased a soda package. Wrong move. Turns out they were only $2.00 - $2.50. The package was a waste of money. We couldn't drink enough to come close to breaking even. Won't do that again.

Gary - coming up I’very booked 3 silversea at 90% rack rate - airline employee discount - March 18 Bali to Japan Silver Muse I booked SEABOURN Pursuit (SCUBA!) GUAM- TAHITI $7K PP 20 nites The discounts are still there ❤

Was due to sail from Dubai through the Suez canal in April, but it was cancelled. I had booked an incredible package deal, with flights, hotels and cruise, I kept the flights and hotels and the agent added in connecting flights and two 7 day cruises around the Mediterranean , still very happy with that even though I had to pay considerably more, it was still a good price. Very disappointed not to be able to do the Suez canal though, maybe one day it will happen.

Yeah for my 40th birthday I wanted to do an Avalon river cruise. Was monitoring prices and within a few months they doubled. A 4-6k cruise for two is now over 10k I still have another year but idk for that big of a jump But the starlink was welcome for us. We are big techies lol

Saw a 10 day carnival cruise for $319 plus $240 taxes and port fees. I take it they are not selling their Bahamas bound trips very well

I got a fantastic cheap inside cabin on Cunard Elizabeth Alaska, a few weeks later when I was paying the air flights went up over 2,00 pp to Vancouver from Australia, the over priced flight was to Canada only no cheap flights or run around the world held up in China were over $2,300 I can fly to UK Athens Turkey for under $2,000 , luck I only paid a deposit for the 4 of us. Heading Europe 20 night Princess cruise if I can find someone to share the cost of the cabin with. Thank you for the great info, God bless safe cruising.

You are always so helpful, Gary. Thanks for mentioning the possibility of protestors in Norway. We're going there. I hate that your 62 day cruise was cut short. Ugh!

I am from New Zealand and l love your videos. I can’t afford luxury cruises but I do travel with P&O Australia dot would like to see a video on that please

What was the site that you recommended for tracking a cruise price? I have Cruise Critic but I'm unable to track the repositioning cruise that we are booked on in May of 2025.

Oh, yes, you CAN tell your boss you have no wi-fi - you just lie to them. Any boss who makes you answer emails on vacation deserves it. (Alas, I am my boss, so I do answer emails on vacation - but I wouldn't ask an employee to do so!)

Cruiselines used to offer included credit and in past coukd even be $400 usd per cabin. Now its rarely more than $100

We are doing a 2 night cruise on Princess in 2026, it'll be our first princess cruise ❤❤ we have purchased the Princess premier package, it seems amazing ❤❤ pretty much makes the entire cruise inclusive of everything. We're so excited to have it 🎉🎉

Virgin are first to cancel repositioning and world cruises via the red sea. All australian virgin cruises were cancelled in march 24 for future season/s. Other cruiselines from europe are expected to follow. Pacific routes are unaffected and some are altering routes to pass via panama and pacific. Pacific repositioning has long sea days

I've already booked for Jan 2026 with a good fare price and good room credits. It seems, according to my agent, that the cruise prices increase as the demand is high and the best prices are at the initial offer of the ship and its itinerary. Very different to the past when the last minute deals were available to fill the ship.

What's going on with the carpet by the bed at 4:23? Did somebody die there?

Hi Gary, Curious when your Group Cruise dates are, from Boston to Quebec, stopping in Halifax/Sydney/Charlottetown?!

If the fare goes down and they won't give you the cheaper deal and you are outside the final pay window, just cancel and rebook right away. Unless your cruise is already booked up (which would not be the case if they dropped fares), you should be able to just rebook at the lower fare.

When we sailed into Bordeaux last year 2023 on the Marina we were greeted by one the local young woman with "F off, we don't want you here" right on the quay side. For a French woman she knew all the English swear words. Agincourt wasn't wasted then.

I've been trying to book a cruise through the Suez canal since the pandemic started and it's always something :(

Oceana Marina was sailing through the Suez Canal in April 2024 cancelled at the very last moment.

Thankfully we’ve already done Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam this year on the Diamond Princess. We’ve heard that’s a route that’s never going to happen again…

My email says, I am at sea contact the amin office. I absolutely refuse to connect on board.

Not record breaking bookings on Uniworld in Venice. Lat minute deal with ROL £1999.00 for 7 days in May.

We are cruising the beginning of may and not heard anything about booking excursions yet is this normal?

Helpful hints Gary and we've noticed them all over the past 2 cruises this year!! So....What's the ship where you walked the promenade behind the deck chairs (at 3.29) Gary? Regarding missing out on specialty dining bookings, we've just finished Queen Elizabeth South Pacific cruise and her specialty dining restaurant, The Verandah was empty most nights, we chose to eat there on 4 occasions and only once bothered to book. On the previous cruise, Royal Princess, I notice that sauvignon blanc is now only available in the premier drinks package, in the Princess Plus one has to settle for Semillon sauv blanc, now that's a genuine price gouge. (no one with taste buds drinks the latter - it's a product in Australia where NSW grape growers can get rid of their semillon by blending with the hugely popular Sauv Blanc)

For me, Starlink has not been noticeable better than before.

I am still Lucky and Disney Shipped have no wifi really lol so I am not available

6:22 Charging each guest $220 for a week of internet is bordering on theft. Starlink costs the ship $60k *per year*!

Hi Gary, Can you please tell me when your Canadian cruise is that you are hosting? Which cruise line?

Cruise deals definitely disappeared this year. I've noticed on NCL the closer to departure as the ship fills up the price increases which is very similar to airlines pricing model.

It feels like cruising is getting worse overall. Inflation, more crowding, and cutbacks.

From an Australian perspective, I've noticed there seem to be fewer NZ cruises. I believe this might be due to the new biosecurity laws for entering NZ waters, and the cost to cruise lines for the hull cleaning, therefore fewer cruises to NZ. I'd like to hear from a travel agent, or from another professional, if it's just me, or there are in fact fewer NZ cruises.

Also no Russia cruises for a while...