Opinion of cruises for a vacation?

[angus]

Never been on one.  I'm sort of down on them because I spend a great deal of my free time on Caribbean Islands, and nothing is worse than being in town when the cruise ships show up.  The cruise ship crowd really has a way of cramping every one else's style.  Erstwhile fishing villages are developed far beyond capacity in a futile chase for the yankee dollar.  Nevermind the ecological devastation wrought on the reefs and other marine ecosystems when they dredge and build the gargantuan ports of call.  What really frustrates is the fact that the little pipes below the little huts and other island infrastructure are so strained.  Toilets that can barely choke down shit are inundated with 20 or more squares of tissue with every flush.  Wooden bridges creak as oversized, belching yankees bound across them in flipflops and extra-large floral camisoles.  Tiny markets are stripped of supplies by sheltered retirees with more money than sense.  Of course the whole arrangement provides cash for a select few, but that cash rarely makes it into the hands of those who need it most.  It's a loud, obnoxious time when the cruise ships come, and the ports of call are best avoided during those times.  As for the reefs, I'm sure they'll rebound in another 30 years, assuming the sea doesn't warm up so much that they all become bleached
 
Having said all that, I'll admit that I'd probably go for it if one were offered for free.  Say, if I won a cruise around the lesser Antilles I'd probably accept it.  Voted for option 3.

[angus]

you're a regular smartass.  

You thinking of taking the old lady on a cruise?  Don't worry about bumping into me.  We're actually going to drive down to Florida this summer.  The boy has been bothering me to take him to Disney World for years, and now he's tall enough to ride all the rides, so I've told him we'll go.  He finally outgrew Dutch Wonderland so last year I had to take him to Hershey Park.  My wife's not much for the gut-busting, headache, high-acceleration rides, so I was the one who had to do all the roller coasters with him.  Man, every year it takes me a few minutes longer to recover from each one.  I've recently learned that Disney World ain't cheap.  We could do a month on Saint Martin for the price of a week in Orlando.  Oh, well, you're only young once.

Enjoy your cruise.  

[angus]

Last night while I was at the club I got into a conversation with a guy in the hot tub and somehow it came up that he had been on three cruises.  All in France.  All on riverboats.  He went with a company called Viking and he recommended it.  He fit the stereotype I have perfectly of those who go on cruises:  over fifty, overweight, and highly opinionated.  He went on and on about the food and beverage service and how delectable it all was.  Best of all, said he, was that everyone on the ship was either American, English, or Australian, so he didn't have to put up with any foreigners.  He enjoyed immensely France and French food but without having to speak or listen to the French language.  No foreigners on that boat, he said. 

Actually, he's a fairly interesting dude, but the exchange made me think of this thread.