The 11 Best Luxury Cruise Lines, According to T+L's Experts
Table Of Content
Cruise Critic just announced its annual list of the Best Cruise Lines of The Year. This is the 15th iteration of the list compiled by the online cruise community’s international team of cruise experts. These are the best cruise lines in the world, according to the 2023 Readers' Choice Awards. "With world class entertainment, fabulous food and amazing service, we will be cruising again with Celebrity in the future."
Cruisers' Choice Awards
Viking Cruises is a river and ocean cruise line that recently added expedition sailings and the Great Lakes trips to its repertoire. "T+L readers rave about the consistency of Viking's vessels and their Scandinavian design," cruise expert Fran Golden reported when Viking once again topped T+L's World's Best Awards last year. Viking came in at No. 1 in T+L's best mid-size ship category and river cruise category. Golden said the WBA Hall of Fame honoree's 50 river "longships" are "light-filled floating boutique hotels."
Best Service
Seabourn cruises to all seven continents, and most recently launched Seabourn Venture, "marking the first time the Carnival Corporation–owned luxury cruise line will offer adventurous sailings on an expedition ship built for extreme environments," Brady reported. “For the most part, luxury cruises appeal to a segment of travelers looking for similar experiences on land – more luxurious offerings, fewer crowds, and phenomenal activities. Luxury cruises tend to be longer than other cruises, so they appeal to guests who have ample time for vacation,” she adds. Paul Gauguin Cruises operates just one ship, but it is exquisite, hosting 330 guests and sailing only in the South Pacific to destinations like Tahiti, Fiji, Tonga, and the Cook Islands.
Expedition Awards
Meena Thiruvengadam is a lifelong traveler and veteran journalist who has visited more than 50 countries across six continents. Her writing has appeared in The Wall Street Journal, Departures, TripSavvy, and other publications. “And if someone has cruised before–or considers themselves an avid cruiser–we hope this list helps introduce them to new options, whether an entirely new line or new possibilities offered by some of their favorites. Silversea Cruises topped the list as Best Luxury Cruise Line for the second year in a row.
Windstar Cruises
“There’s also a greater space ratio onboard, allowing for less crowding and more space for guests to spread out and enjoy,” she says. The line’s newest ship, Silver Nova, which holds 728 passengers was ranked as the Best New Luxury Ship. This environmentally-friendly ship, which began its inaugural cruise in August, 2023 is the industry’s first hybrid luxury cruise ship.
Celebrity's signature Iconic Suites on board the Celebrity Edge and Apex offer panoramic views from above the ship's bridge; each suite boasts more than 2,500 square feet of space, including expansive 690-square-foot terraces, and comes with two bedrooms and two bathrooms. Celebrity Beyond, which debuted in 2022, accommodates 3,260 guests has 32 bars and restaurants, like Le Voyage by chef Daniel Boulud, and two-story villas on board. Cruises are booming right now, buoyed partly by the popularity of domestic seacations that hauled in first-time sailors.
How travelers can use the list
So much so that Regent Seven Seas Cruises’ 34,000-mile world trip for 2024 sold out in just over two hours, while the adults-only Virgin Voyages, which aims to throw cruise stereotypes overboard, rose to first place in Large Ships. And we’ve brought back last year's new category showcasing the expedition cruises – small, often sustainable vessels with a shoal of scientific experts onboard – that follow in the wake of adventurers such as Sir Ernest Shackleton. See the lines and ships that best represent excellence in ocean and luxury cruising, chosen by Cruise Critic's international team of editors. McDaniel notes other ways in which ship size affects the cruising experience.
Oceania Cruises
Oceania Cruises has just seven ships, but the debut of the brand-new Oceania Vista catapults this cruise line into the luxury division. The cruise line's relatively new Go Local shore excursions for small groups bring travelers to under-the-radar destinations, T+L contributing editor and long-time cruiser Sarah Greaves-Gabbadon reported recently. Her 2022 cruise on Riviera included 70 excursions "from canoeing Croatia’s Cetina River to cooking classes in Athens." If you've ever dreamed of having your own butler, Silversea is the luxury cruise line for you.
French luxury cruise line Ponant aims to make passengers feel as if they're traveling on their own private yachts. Guests enjoy Ladurée macarons, Veuve Clicquot Champagne, and luxurious Hermès bath products on board. Each of the company's ships features an onboard spa with massage cabins and either a Turkish bath or sauna. Ponant's luxurious small ships sail to remote destinations like Antarctica, incorporating once-in-a-lifetime experiences such as eclipse spotting from the edge of the earth.
On board, you'll find fine dining, expansive spas and fitness facilities, and butler service. Windstar Cruises' luxury small ships call on 150 ports throughout Europe, Central America, the Caribbean, and the South Pacific, and there's no way you'll go hungry on the journey. Exquisite onboard menus have been designed by acclaimed chefs from Michelin-starred restaurants.
In fact, Silversea's butlers take white-glove service to a whole new level — they'll handle your laundry with more care than you do, scour port towns to find your favorite tastes of home, and even help you pack and unpack your suitcase. Further, Silversea's new culinary program, nicknamed S.A.L.T. (for Sea and Land Taste), brings the taste of destinations on board through cooking classes. Of course, there's no need to cook for yourself aboard a Silversea ship, as each one features several restaurants with multi-course menus to whet your appetite every night. By definition, small ships hold fewer than 1200 passengers, usually making the cruise experience more intimate with more individualized service.
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The ship is small enough to access private ports at remote beaches and take travelers well off the beaten path. Named the best small-ship ocean cruise line in T+L's 2022 World's Best Awards, Golden said the line is known for Tahitian-inspired massage techniques in the onboard spa and noted that cruisers particularly love the wonderful staff. Everything from shore excursions, Wi-Fi, and laundry to gratuities, top-shelf liquor, and business-class international flights are included with Regent Seven Seas Cruises' fares. While each luxurious suite features ocean views, nothing beats the view from the epic 4,000-square-foot, two-bedroom Regent Suite, which has two wraparound balconies, three walk-in closets, two Picasso lithographs, and a grand piano. Whether it's a river or an ocean you want to cruise, Scenic can take you there in style. The luxury cruise line operates river cruises in Europe and Asia, while ocean cruises on Scenic Eclipse (and the forthcoming Scenic Eclipse II) can take guests to Antarctica, the Arctic, Australia, South America, and Greenland, among other coveted destinations.
Get to know the best cruise lines in a variety of categories, based on member review ratings for cruises taken in the last year. Cruise Critic is an online cruise community with more than 650,000 ship reviews of 700 ships from experts and cruise aficionados. Emerald Yacht Cruises, a line best known for its river ships, launched its first ocean-going vessel, Emerald Azzura, in 2022 followed by an identical sister ship, Emerald Sakara, in 2023. "The cruise itself was absolutely perfect. Nice weather, great excursions, beautiful scenery, nice ship and excellent staff." For the best in-suite views, book a room at the back of the ship, Kelly Cochrane, executive chef of Regent Seven Seas Cruises tells T+L.
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