Best Cruise Lines for Older Adults and Couples
Whether it’s hitting the road with our little trailer or boarding a flight to a new city, I love traveling. One of my very favorite ways to see the world is via a cruise because you only have to unpack once, yet travel to many locations. Cruising is a super popular way to travel, and for understandable reasons. You have all of the amenities of an all-inclusive resort with the added benefit of seeing multiple destinations throughout your cruise itinerary.
My favorite part about a cruise is that you can do as much or as little as you want. If I find myself in the mood for relaxing, I can sign up for a day at the spa, read a book, or gaze off into space and relax. If I want to have a day of fun, cruises are absolutely full of shore excursions and lots of on-board activities, from Bingo to casinos to yoga to comedy shows. Most also have a gym so you can stay on top of your exercise routines.
There are many cruise lines out there, and they range from luxury ships that offer exquisite cuisine and pampering to more affordable trips that are a little easier on the wallet. It can be a little overwhelming when you’re trying to decide which one to book. My husband and I have taken many cruises over the years and have grown quite fond of several cruise lines.
Before we get into discussing our favorite cruise lines, I thought I would share some other cruise posts you might like:
- Essentials to Pack for a Cruise
- Cruise Wear for Women Over 50: What to Pack
- What to Pack for a Riverboat Cruise
Viking
We used this cruise line when we took our riverboat cruise down the Danube in 2019. Since Viking operates both ocean cruises and river cruises, they have over 90 ships in their fleet and offer a wide array of destinations and cruise lengths. This line is perfect for my husband and me since it’s aimed at passengers that are over 50 years. In fact, all Viking ships are adults-only, and nobody under the age of 18 is allowed on board. Viking focuses on cultural enrichment, so passengers get more time to experience the local culture and explore historical sites.
Seabourn
Seabourn is a leader in luxury cruising with destinations around the world. You’ll love their delicious cuisine and wonderful service. They even have a new vessel that is designed for polar areas like Antarctica, which would be such a blast! They offer hand-selected itineraries that take you beyond the reach of larger ships. Seabourn’s intimate ships have a club atmosphere and one of the highest space-per-guest ratios in the industry. I love the idea of that because being crowded together isn’t my idea of fun. There’s also never a tab to pick up because complimentary fine wine and spirits are available on board at all times.
Windstar Cruises
We’ve done several cruises on the Windstar Cruise Line and are huge fans. We like their smaller ships which hold less than 200 passengers. By breakfast the day after boarding, every crew member had memorized our names, so we felt like we were guests on a private sailing yacht!
I love that their smaller ships don’t have food court-type dining. Everything is in a dining room and feels special. You’ll eat like a king (or queen) on board because the onboard menus are designed by Michelin-star chefs and are included in your cruise fare. I can attest that I never arrive home lighter than when I left.
Oceania
These upscale and intimate ships are a little larger than Windstar’s but still small in comparison to some of the larger cruise lines. Although there are only seven ships in their fleet, there is no shortage of amazing destinations. Oceana visits more than 450 ports.
On board, you’ll discover beautiful amenities and a country club-esque ambiance where you can spend your days at sea reading in their gorgeous libraries, doing wine tastings, or taking art workshops or cooking classes. This cruise from Reykjavik to Oslo looks wonderful. They have so many great destinations and itineraries to choose from, including Alaska, Australia, and New Zealand, the Greek Islands, Tahiti and the South Pacific, and the Panama Canal!
Reading about all these amazing destinations has given me serious wanderlust! Do you like cruising? What’s your favorite cruise line and destination? I think our favorite so far has been the Baltic Sea into St Petersburg. I’m so glad we got to experience that while we could.
My husband proposed to me on Cunard’s Queen Mary 2 during our first Transatlantic crossing in 2019. So the QM2 will always be my favorite ship. It’s an ocean liner rather than a cruise ship (the only one in the world now) so it is very stable regardless of the weather. We had a sheltered balcony stateroom and dined in the gorgeous art deco Britannia dining room for all but 2 meals during the 8 day trip from Southampton to New York City. The food was fabulous as was the service from every crew member we encountered on board. Fun Fact: It’s the only ship at sea with kennels for people who are traveling with their dog or cat. There are lots of enrichment activities, daily lectures and presentations by experts in almost any field you can name, art classes, balls in the largest ballroom at sea, and more. We are making the crossing again next June to celebrate the fifth year anniversary of our engagement.
We need to try that ship! It sounds amazing.
You forgot to add the word wealthy to your title.
We’ve done several Viking river cruises & decided to take a Viking Ocean cruise last November. We loved it. Casual atmosphere, great food, beautiful ship. Not always possible to get the shore excursions you want. Highly recommend Viking for both ocean & river cruises.
Thanks for the recommendation. I never thought of them for the ocean cruises.
Upgrade to Uniworld. Boutique travel not the average riverboat cruising. Check it out. Much better than Viking
Great post. We really enjoyed cruising, but now we are unable because my husband’s health keeps us home. However, we have such great memories of the cruises we took
I’m so sorry to hear about your husbands health.
‘we love cruising also, using most of the time Holland America cruise line, which we like very much and have taken 8 cruises. We are booked for our very first Viking river cruise leaving Amsterdam to Budapest in August, cannot wait! Lots of good value in cruising and meeting lots of different people from around our world!
We saw none of that on Windstar.
I would highly recommend Holland America. We took a Thanksgiving cruise to the Caribbean which was on a bigger ship (still not huge, they don’t do the party boats) and there were too many kids. In January, on a smaller ship we went through the Panama Canal and it was wonderful (no kids). A good value, interesting itinerary and really great, personal and kind service. We are not big evening entertainment people either, but loved the early evening theatre shows and the music walk. We had only booked a window cabin in the canal, because we never used our balcony in the Caribbean. The second day there was a drinking water leak on our cabin floor and with no hassle at all, they moved us up to a balcony for the duration of our cruise (about a $5,000 upgrade). They even offered to do our packing! It made me feel very secure that if anything went wrong and we were not happy, it would be taken care of. We have already booked our next cruise to Norway and Iceland with HA.
My husband and I are preparing to take our second cruise. The first on Costa to the Caribbean which we enjoyed; we were in our 30’s and got it free when we opened an account at a local bank. Remember those days? Some 40 years later- This summer we booked on Silversea to Alaska. We are really looking forward to it.
Oh Jennifer, my favorite subject – Cruising! Don’t you just love the tranquility of being on the water. I could talk for hours about my experiences and check itineraries/prices at least 2x per week and my coffee table is littered with cruiseline brochures (they arrive almost daily). I’d literally live aboard a ship given the opportunity and funds. Embarking on my 8th ocean cruise (all in the past 3 years) next month to the Western Caribbean. Living in SE Florida has it’s perks. Drive and Sail. Personally, I like the Retreat experience on Celebrity and won’t book any trips unless at least a Sky Suite is available (prefer the Royal suites on the smaller revolutionized M class ships with the jacuzzi tubs on the balcony but $$$$ are up there now in line with Regent, Seabourne and Oceania’s penthouse suites). Celebrity’s personalized service aboard, exclusive areas for dining, lounging and swimming (Retreat Guests only) and the butlers make for maximum enjoyment while kicking back and relaxing. Is as though it’s a ship within a ship resort experience, even on their 3 floating cities (Edge Class). Retreat staff know your name after day 2 or 3. Still prefer Seabourne though when my budget allows. Those smaller ships, excellent cusine, better ports with longer stays and the outstanding service beats all imho. (Haven’t sailed Regent yet though). I’m scheduled on a Viking river cruise next year – Bucharest to Budapest. 1st time on Viking. Thinking of booking a b2b by flying to Barcelona and cruising the mediterranean while in Europe. Exciting prospects.
I appreciate reading your take on these cruise lines. My husband and I were just talking about booking one again. We had a Viking River cruise booked that was canceled twice due to Covid. One reason we chose Viking was the more casual dress code. What do you know about dress codes on these other lines?
My husband and are cruise lovers, too. We’ve been on 10 cruises with Azamara. It’s an all inclusive line of 4 ships with less than 700 passengers. It’s the staff and itineraries that keep us coming back. It’s like stepping into nice relaxing hotel. We’re taking an Italy intensive cruise in June with friends we met on a Panama cruise in 2018. Can’t wait!!
Have sailed on most major lines. Favorites wer a European cruise on Celebrity (concierge class), and Princess to Tahiti on one their smaller ships they bought from Renaissance Cruises.
Taking Viking Sky from Barcelona to Florence this September. Will be a new experience. Last cruise was on one of the Norwegian mega ships. While it has everything, it also has 5,000 people. Never again!
Good Morning Jennifer,
Like many of your readers, we love cruising too. We have only cruised with Oceania 10 cruises in all. Our last one was in November from Barcelona to Maimi. We had a ball. Still have our CPAP cruise What’s App group. With 5 couples ( at least one in each pair uses a CPAP) LOL. One of the couples even cruised with us 10 years ago! We keep in touch on FB. Such fun to meet so many lovely people. I am also in contact with some of the entertainment crew FB and Instagram. Oceania also makes a point of learning your names and preferences. My stylist swears by Windstar and it sounds fantastic too. I used many of your packing and cruise tips to get ready for my November cruise. Thank you Happy sailing
My husband and I have done two Viking River cruises…the Rhine and the Danube and loved them both. We’re looking forward to doing a Viking ocean cruise.
We have been cruising for decades. We are going on a river cruise here in the USA this month. I’m looking forward to seeing how it differs from ocean cruising. The examples you cite here are all top-end and therefore very expensive. The more mainstream cruise lines can also deliver a great trip. I’ll put in a good word for Holland America Lines.
Jennifer,
You have ignited my wanderlust with this post, along with all the other travel posts that are linked! I think the anticipation of the trip for weeks or months before you go, plus the planning of a travel wardrobe are a big part of the fun. I have mistakenly used my last copy of your very helpful packing list. Would you mind linking it again?
Thank you for all the armchair fun!
~Valla
Our introduction to River cruising was the Viking Grand European tour in July of 2019, Amsterdam to Budapest on the Rhine, Main and Danube. It was a fantastic trip, and we’re so grateful we went when we didn’t have to worry about any virus other than the usual varieties. The ship has to pass through dozens of locks, as you know. Midway through our trip we learned a commercial ship had run into a lock and made it impassable. Because Viking runs tours on each route from both directions, all we had to do was switch ships with passengers on the Budapest to Amsterdam route and continue on our way. Viking paid for everyone’s lunch in that day’s destination while they transferred our bags to the new ship, where we had the same cabin. The worst inconvenience we suffered was having to repack—small potatoes that made a big impression!
That’s amazing! Viking floods that route with ships; it’s such a beautiful place to see.
Hi, Jennifer: Question for you here. Great column and commentary btw. I would love to take a cruise, but am hesitant because of my significant other who is disabled and can only walk short distances without using a transport chair. Are some of the cruise lines more accomodating for disabilities than others? Travel has been a real problem for us in various venues even those that are supposedly “disability-friendly.”
Most of the larger cruise lines are very accessible. Not Viking river cruises. I’d stick with Holland America, Princess, royal Caribbean, or Celebrity. Been on all but HA. I use a travelscoot.
Nan, please don’t hesitate to book a cruise. Most of the cruise lines are ADA passenger friendly and onboard staff are accommodating, respectful and helpful. Windstar may present a challenge due to the very nature of sailing yachts and their closer quarters/narrow hallways. From my personal observation and experiences, Seabourne will go out of their way to make you comfortable and the Celebrity ADA concierge will even locate you a rental scooter and attendant if required. Of course, all cruise lines will allow you to bring your own ADA equipment onboard and all but a handful have accessible cabins with roll in showers. Hope this information helps you.
Most cruise lines will be very accommodating, and you won’t have any problem at all!