Short Cruises: Here’s Why I Love Them, and Also Why I DON’T!

Shorter cruises can sound like a great idea. For passengers, they offer so many benefits: they’re a great way to try a new cruise ship, or a new cruise line for the first time without spending lots of money, and they’re also a really good way to try a cruise in general without committing to a much longer trip.

For the cruise lines, shorter cruises can offer ways to generate revenue during periods where longer cruises might be difficult to sell, and they can also use them to fill scheduling gaps between more awkward lengths of cruises. They can also give cruise lines the chance to reach a slightly different customer - we’ll come back to these points later.

In this article, I’m going to share with you why I love taking shorter cruises, and also some of the reasons why I don’t. Hopefully this will help you to set the correct expectation for your future trips, in order to ensure that you won’t leave disappointed.

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1. LOVE: From an Onboard Experience Point of View, Short Cruises Often Feel Very Similar, if not the Same, as a Longer Cruise.

Before I took my first short cruise, I met so many people who told me that a short cruise felt nothing like a ‘typical’ length of cruise and, to be honest, I completely disagree. As I’ve taken more short cruises, I’ve come to realise that the overall onboard experience between this type of cruise and a longer one is really pretty similar.

Throughout the ship, you’ll find the same venues open, and the same activities and events taking place throughout the ship that you’d expect to find if you were on, for example, a 7-night cruise.

It’s also important to know that, although you’re on the ship for a shorter period of time, it doesn’t mean that all of the other passengers are. An example I’d offer you here is from my recent shorter cruises with Costa Cruises. With this cruise line, passengers are typically able to embark and disembark at most (if not all) of the ports on the itinerary. That means that the ship doesn’t go through the typical ‘7-night loop’ that many others out there will.

The cruise line is able to sell shorter cruises during the periods where the ship is quieter. For example, if a 3 day window is looking quiet from a sales point of view, then a 2 or a 3 night sailing might be offered to the market in order to fill the ship. Think about it - it makes much more sense for a cruise ship to be sailing full than it does to be selling half empty, even if that means bringing passengers on for only a few nights!

I’ve seen this to be most common with Costa Cruises, but the same can apply with MSC Cruises, particularly on cruises in regions like the Mediterranean.

Costa Cruises is one cruise line that often offers shorter cruises in the Mediterranean region, and they can often be used to fill their ships to capacity. © Fraser at Sea.

2. LOVE: A Short Cruise is a Great Way of Trying a New Cruise Line, or a New Cruise Ship, Without Spending Lots of Money!

If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to cruise with a line that you’ve never tried before, but you’re worried about spending lots of money in order to do so, then a short cruise could be worth considering!

An example that I would offer you here is that I hear from people often who are considering cruising with Cunard, which is a very stereotypically ‘British’ cruise line. They’re a little different to many other cruise lines (for reasons that I won’t go in to in this article…), and therefore people can be reluctant to give them a try for a regular length of cruise.

All of the ships in the Cunard fleet offer shorter cruises at various points of the year, offering the ability for people to come onboard to give the experience a try. You’ll find most of these shorter cruises fall during ‘off peak’ periods, rather than at the height of the school holidays, but if you’re flexible then they can be well worth thinking about!

Cruise Lines like Cunard offer lots of shorter cruises - they’re worth thinking about if you want to give a new company a try! © Fraser at Sea

3. LOVE: They’re a Great Way to Cruise while Using Less Annual Leave Days from Your Job!

I used to work in the Corporate world, and my company allowed me to take 25 days of paid leave each year. Most of my cruises would start and finish on a weekend day, allowing me to take five days of paid leave in order to take a cruise.

As I learned more about cruise ship deployment schedules, I realised that I would be able to take far more cruises if I took shorter ones, and I could be clever with what days I’d embark and disembark in order to use even less annual leave. For example, if I took a 3-night cruise that started on a Thursday, I’d only need to take 2 days of annual leave (to cover Thursday and Friday), meaning that I’d have more to use elsewhere.

If you’re of working age but keen to get into cruising, then this could be a great way in which to do it!

Keen to take less annual leave from work per cruise? If so, then you might want to think about shorter cruises! © Fraser at Sea.

4. LOVE: Short Cruises allow New Cruisers to Try a Cruise Without Committing to a Long one!

If you’re new to the cruise world, don’t worry - the nerves and confusion that you’re likely feeling are something that everybody out there has felt at some point. Have you chosen the correct ship, have you opted for the best length of cruise, and what on earth are you going to do onboard for an entire week?! All familiar concerns - don’t worry!

Shorter cruises allow people who aren’t sure if cruising is going to be for them to give it a try with a much lesser commitment, both from a time and also a financial point of view.

I meet some people who take shorter cruises and then leave the ship feeling delighted that they didn’t book a longer one, as they were desperate to get off, but then personally know so many who tried a shorter cruise then wished that they had just booked a 7-nighter to begin with because they loved it so much!

Remember - not everybody is going to love a cruise, and a short cruise can help you figure out whether or not you do…

For so many people, a short cruise allows them to give a new type of vacation a try. If they love it, they can simply book a longer one next time! © Fraser at Sea.

5. LOVE: Shorter Cruises can Prove Excellent Value for Money - Much More So Than the Same Length of Vacation ‘on Land’…

There are so many reasons why taking a shorter cruise can offer much better value than taking a trip on land. Generally speaking, I find that cruising offers far better value than any other vacation type that I’ve tried so far. If I’m looking to get away for a few days, it’s much more expensive for me to book a city break in the U.K., rather than drive to Southampton and take a short cruise.

If I cruise, I know that my travel, entertainment and food is all included, among other things. If I were to book a hotel that had similar facilities to my cruise ship (think a gym, a spa, restaurants and everything else), then I’d typically have to spend a lot more!

Okay, there are some extras that need to be taken into account with a short cruise - think travel insurance and port parking - but generally it’s still a far better value alternative to staying ‘on land’.

This same argument applies in cities like Barcelona or Miami - essentially any cities where the cruise industry is booming. If there are short cruises available, they’ll almost certainly be much better value than booking a hotel in the city would be.

If you’re thinking about a city break, check the pricing for short cruises… You might be surprised by what you find available out there! © Fraser at Sea.

6. LOVE: Short Cruises Can Help You to Progress Through Cruise Line Loyalty Programmes MUCH Faster than Full-Length Cruises!

If you haven’t already figured it out, the cruise industry values loyalty incredibly highly. Every cruise line out there has a bespoke loyalty programme, which they use to entice passengers to stay loyal to their cruise line.

There are so many benefits available to passengers when they achieve the higher levels of these loyalty programmes: free laundry, discounted or free internet access, invites to drinks receptions, and even FREE CRUISES (yes, free cruises!) are up for grabs, in addition to so many other perks. All you need to do is cruise more, and spend more time onboard - sounds good, doesn’t it?!

Some loyalty programmes require you to spend more nights ‘at sea’ in order to progress through the ranks and so shorter cruises aren’t going to help much with these. However, there are others who also offer progression by ‘number of cruises’. Therefore, the more cruises you take (regardless of their length), the faster you’ll shoot through the ranks!

An example I would offer you here is Cunard. At the point of writing this article, in order to achieve ‘Gold’ on the Cunard loyalty scheme you’ll need to complete either 2 cruises, or have spent 20 nights onboard their ships. To reach their ‘Diamond’ tier, you’ll need to either complete 15 cruises, or spend 150 nights onboard their ships. In these examples, you could really push your way through the levels by completing multiple shorter 2 or 3 night cruises - interesting, isn’t it?!

Each cruise line has their own loyalty programme, so be sure to check that you’re signed up before you step onboard your first cruise with them! © Fraser at Sea.

7. LOVE: Dress Codes Will Apply on Shorter Cruises, Exactly as They Would on Longer Cruises!

If you’re considering trying a more formal cruise line for only a few nights in the hope that you won’t need to pack your dinner jacket or formal dresses, then you might want to think again. On a shorter cruise, the standard dress codes will absolutely apply as normal - they aren’t relaxed due to the ship operating a short cruise itinerary.

The reality is often the opposite on this topic - lots of people opt to book these shorter cruises as an opportunity to escape normality and dress up for a few evenings, so you can often find that the ship feels more formal than usual on a shorter cruise.

This isn’t a negative at all - just something to be mindful of if you’re considering trying a more formal line! The example I’d offer you here is Cunard - the ships across the Cunard fleet enforce dress codes each evening, and this is the case regardless of the length of cruise that you’re sailing on.

Planning to cruise with Cunard? Dress codes will be enforced every night, regardless of the length of the cruise. © Fraser at Sea.

8. LOVE: Shorter Cruises can Often be Quieter than Longer Cruises!

Shorter cruises are often used as a clever way to fill scheduling gaps for cruise lines. Most cruise ships out there tend to operate on a 7-night looping schedule. In other words, each cruise will have an embarkation day at the start, a disembarkation day at the end, and they’ll usually be 7 nights long.

Shorter cruises can then be used to fill cruises that aren’t likely to sell a full 7-night itinerary, or during very off-peak periods of the year to tempt people to book a vacation for a few nights in addition to their main trip that year. This could mean that, instead of a cruise ship that operates on a 7-night loop offering the usual week-long cruise, it might offer a 3-nighter followed by a 4-nighter.

Shorter cruises can also be used to follow a cruise of a more ‘awkward’ length, in order to allow the cruise line to get the next embarkation day back to falling on a weekend, which is much easier to sell (for obvious reasons). For example, if a 12-night cruise is offered, a 2-night cruise might then follow at the end in order to get the ship back to the usual schedule or embarkation pattern.

These shorter cruises can often be quieter than typical cruises, as less people are willing to make the journey to the cruise port for a shorter trip, and the trips can be during the less ‘in demand’ points of the year, in the first place. To help manage your expectations - you’re probably not going to get a cruise ship running at 15% occupancy, but you’re likely to find a shorter cruise running with perhaps 80% capacity. In other words, noticeably quieter than usual!

If you’re looking to escape the crowds, then a shorter cruise could be what you’re looking for (if you’re lucky!). © Fraser at Sea.

9. LOVED: Shorter Cruises can be a Great Reason for ‘Splurging Out’ on your trip!

When you cruise, it can be expensive to purchase add-ons, especially when you’re going to be onboard for 7-nights or more. On a shorter cruise, you might be more likely to treat yourself to a drinks package, a dining package, or perhaps even a few spa treatments.

If you’re cruising in colder weather, then perhaps the thermal suite is something that you’ll think about paying to access, because you only need to pay for 3 days of access, instead of the usual 7.

Another way in which you can treat yourself on a shorter cruise is with a cabin or stateroom upgrade. If you’ve always wanted to cruise with your own private balcony, or maybe even in a Suite, then a short cruise could be your best time to try that. This allows you to give it a try, without the huge price tag that can often be associated with the more premium accommodations onboard.

Go on… You deserve it!

Shorter cruises can be the perfect way to experience a more elevated experience without the huge price tags that usually come with them! © Fraser at Sea.

10. LOVE: Shorter Cruises are a FANTASTIC Way to Escape the ‘Real World’ and Get Your ‘Cruise Fix’!

Going back to my earlier points, there are so many reasons why a shorter cruise feels very similar (if not the same) as a longer cruise. Okay, there are clear differences that you need to be aware of (we’ll move on to look at some of these shortly), but if you’re looking to take a break from ‘life’ for a few days, then a short cruise can offer you a brilliant mechanism for doing that.

So that’s 10 things that I love about shorter cruises, but we’re not just talking about the positives today. Let’s now move to look at some of the things that I don’t love about this type of cruise.

1. DON’T LOVE: It’s incredibly difficult to fully experience a cruise ship on a short cruise!

This one isn’t going to apply if you’re cruising on a smaller ship, but some cruise lines are putting some of the largest ships in their fleet on short itineraries. An example I’d offer you here is Royal Caribbean - they offer short cruises from ports like Miami on some of their largest cruise ships, and I don’t think passengers stand any chance at all of having time to fully experience the ship in this example.

I took a cruise onboard an Oasis Class cruise ship from Royal Caribbean in the Mediterranean a few years ago, and I found it really difficult to try everything that the ship had to offer on a 7-night cruise - I can’t even imagine what it must be like to be onboard for half of that time!

This isn’t necessarily a bad thing - it’s just something to be aware of before you step onboard. If you really do want to see and do everything onboard, then you’re going to want to make some sort of plan before embarkation day. I’d recommend you head to YouTube and start watching some ship tours, or some videos where people offer you their top tips of what to do on your chosen cruise ship - you might just be surprised by how useful some of these can be!

It’s important to remember that you’re not going to be able to experience all of a huge cruise ship during a short cruise! © Fraser at Sea.

2. DON’T LOVE: The Demographic of Passenger onboard a Short Cruise can be VERY DIFFERENT to a more typical length of cruise.

Before I took my first short cruise, so many people warned me that the ship was likely to be much more lively than normal, and that the average age of passenger would be much lower. I was warned that these cruises usually attract hen and stag (or bachelorette and bachelor) parties, and that the partying would be going on all day and all night. The latter isn’t what I’ve found to be the reality at all, although I do appreciate that some cruises out there will encounter this.

In my experience, I’ve found that short cruises will attract a younger person to cruise, probably due to the fact that it’s much easier to take time off work for a short cruise. You might also find that people who have never cruised before are more likely to try a shorter one…

Similar to my previous point, this isn’t something to be overly concerned about, but it is worth remembering when it comes to the onboard experience. If it’s different to what you’d expected from your research, then this could be the reason for it!

Short cruises can attract a younger age of passenger than you’ll find on a typical length of cruise! © Fraser at Sea.

3. DON’T LOVE: The Itinerary of a Short Cruise Likely Won’t be Overly Exciting, Unless You’ve Travelled to Reach the Ship!

Due to the short timescale involved, shorter cruises aren’t able to travel as far as a longer cruise. Therefore, you’re probably going to find that the ship you’re cruising on will call to ports that are relatively close to the home port.

In the example of a Southampton departure, you’re probably going to find that a shorter cruise will visit cities in Northern Europe, like Germany, France or maybe Northern Spain. If you’re cruising from somewhere like Fort Lauderdale or Miami, then shorter cruises are likely to call to the Bahamas.

If you’re not local to the area and have travelled to meet the ship, then you might find the prospect of visiting these places really exciting. That said, it’s unlikely that you’ll have travelled a huge distance to take the cruise.

One example I’d offer you here is that I spent some time working in Sydney, Australia. While I was out there, I took a short cruise onboard Coral Princess, which visited the port of Eden. For those who aren’t familiar, you’re able to drive pretty easily from Sydney to Eden in a few hours, but for me (who had never been to Australia before), the prospect of visiting somewhere new was really exciting!

Perhaps this is your sign - if you’re planning to do some travelling and you’re not planning to include a cruise, why not check to see if there are any short cruises that could take you somewhere that you weren’t planning to see on your trip?!

Cruising to Eden allowed me to see some incredible beaches, and I was so much more excited than so many other passengers onboard, who were much more local to the ship’s homeport. © Fraser at Sea.

4. DON’T LOVE: Some Packages Aren’t Available on Short Cruises.

When you take a shorter cruise with some cruise lines, they don’t allow you to purchase things like drinks packages. On some ships, you need to be onboard for a minimum of, for example, 4 nights in order to apply a package to your account.

This isn’t great because, if you’re planning to really relax into the experience and you want to enjoy some drinks while onboard, you’re going to have to pay for each one as they come, and you’ll probably also be expected to pay a service charge, too.

Other packages that sometimes aren’t available on short cruises can include Speciality Dining packages and spa packages - be sure to check for your chosen cruise line before you’re left feeling disappointed when you potentially have to pay as you go!

That’s it - that’s some of the things that I love about short cruises, and also some of the things that I don’t. If you’ve enjoyed this post, then why not join me in another? Below, you’ll find some more articles right here on this website, and also a link to a YouTube video that I think you’ll find enjoyable. While over there, please support my channel by simply subscribing to it. Thank you so much!