Onboard, families can be together, yet apart. Older passengers tend to worry about too many young people and vice versa, but there are sophisticated learning programmes and entertainment for the adults, while the kiddies can enjoy junior programmes that involve activities such as cookie baking, bridge visits with the Captain, interactive backstage costume events or nature excursions. Gran can join the afternoon bridge class while Mom relaxes at the sauna and Dad spends time on the putting green. Programmes allow for total participation or none at all.

There is also a surge in interest for cruises to the Far East and from December this year, for the first time since 2001, Royal Caribbean — popular with families — will see the debut of Rhapsody of the Seas in Singapore offering a series of short sailings that will call on Malaysia and Thailand. From there the ship continues on to Hong Kong, arriving in time for the Chinese New Year holiday celebrations and offering a series of itineraries that visit ports in Taiwan, Japan and Sanya (Hainan Island), Korea and Shanghai. Cruises range from three to 12 nights through to April 2008 with the added bonus that many combinations will provide a varying array of enticing back-to-back options for guests.

Options are certainly something you get with cruising, but just ensure you choose a line and ship that matches your requirements. One misperception is that "I’ll be trapped on a ship with a group of people I don’t like" — let’s face it, cruising is a sociable way to travel. But remember, you’re in port almost every day and by dealing with a travel consultant knowledgeable about cruising, you can select a ship that will present you with a group of fellow passengers who share your interests and enthusiasms.

Ships are floating resorts — getting bigger and better — and an effortless way to reach many destinations without the hassles of travel schedules, hotel stays or issues of where to eat or what time to pack. Fares are all-inclusive — cruising offers superior value for your travel rand, no matter which category you choose, especially considering the endless choice of accommodation (newer ships have more private balconies and increased deck space), activities, amenities and 24-hour entertainment from which to select — not to mention all that food!

Today guests don’t necessarily want their lifestyles to change when they climb aboard. Therefore it’s not beyond the scope of ships such as Royal Caribbean’s Freedom of the Seas to offer boxing rings, an ice-skating rink or basketball courts.

Seabourn has had success with its Mediterranean cruises that are offered as one-week cruises, but can be combined for up to five weeks with different port content. This seems to please both those looking for shorter cruises and those who love to just keep sailing.

Fine dining or fast food?

The line has also found that cruisers, even repeat visitors, may choose cruises for different reasons at different times, similarly to the way people choose restaurants. Sometimes you’re in the mood for a fine-dining experience with multiple courses and rare ingredients. Other times a greasy pizza will do the trick. Likewise there are times guests opt for a cruise filled with exotic ports or cultural content, yet on other occasions they prefer to veg in sunny climes.

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Published courtesy of travelideas.

For something different, how about considering a trip on the last working Royal Mail Ship (RMS) to the island of St Helena? The cargo-passenger ship, the RMS St Helena, calls at St Helena, Ascension Island, Walvis Bay, Cape Town and returns to the UK twice a year. In addition to carrying passengers in well-fed comfort, she is almost the sole source of supply of goods for her island namesake. Packages can be adapted from three to 34 days and there’s even the opportunity to take a 4x4 vehicle with you to/from Namibia.

While on a six-week Mediterranean cruise, George Bernard Shaw once wrote that life onboard a pleasure steamer violated "every moral and physical condition of healthy life except fresh air… It is a guzzling, lounging, gambling, dog’s life. The only alternative to excitement is irritability."

It’s probably safe to say that things have certainly changed…