A suite with a butler? Chilled Chardonnay (complimentary) whenever you please? No lines and no tipping? Say hello to VIP cruises!
These treats are usually associated with small luxury cruises, which deliver a more personalized cruise experience than big ships.
But what if you want the best of both worlds?
You want the deluxe perks associated with small ship cruising. But you don’t want to give up the benefits of big ship cruising – like lots of entertainment and restaurant options.
Say “hello” to the exclusive ship within a ship concept!
You know how you can get VIP treatment at hotels? Many big ships now have VIP sections that give you something similar, but better – that small ship experience on a big ship.
So what’s it like to get unlimited champagne and caviar on Seabourn? Read our Seabourn Odyssey review!
VIP Cruises
Norwegian Cruise Line was one of the first to get into the game.
Stay in The Haven, and you get showered with a host of privileges, like priority disembarkation for excursions, 24-hour butler service, luxurious accommodations and access to a beautiful private sundeck with pool cabanas.
4 More Elite Ship Cruises
Now several more big ship cruise lines also offer an elite ship within a ship experience.
The only problem is they’re a bit like first or business class on an airplane. Once you try these ship within a ship experiences, you won’t want to go back to “regular” cruising.
1) MSC Yacht Club
The cruise line:
MSC Cruises serves up a superior, mega-ship cruise experience with an Italian flair. Expect to practise your French or Italian, as fellow passengers are often mainly European.
Perks:
The MSC Yacht Club is a private enclave at the front of the ship containing the suites, exclusive pool and sundeck, and lounge with panoramic views for complimentary cocktails and afternoon tea. After your butler escorts you to your suite, pop open the chilled Prosecco waiting for you, then check out your balcony, Italian marble bathroom and walk-in closet.
Put your Ray-Bans on! The Swarovski crystal staircase that leads to a 24-hour, concierge-staffed reception glitters brightly.
When you feel like a massage (lounging by the club’s exclusive pool is tiring, after all), a private elevator whisks you discreetly to the spa.
And while the restaurant reserved for club guests is at the other end of the ship, it gets rave reviews for its rich Bolognese. Wine is included, of course.
Ships:
The Yacht Club is available on MSC’s four newest ships, Preziosa, Divina, Splendida and Fantasia (4,300+ passengers).
The line has also signed up for four more extravagant ships to be built with the MSC Cruises’ Yacht Club; the first of these is expected to debut in 2023.
Itineraries: A heavy focus on Caribbean and Mediterranean cruises
To read more about what it’s like to cruise in the “Yacht Club” on MSC Divina, see “Cruising Italian Style on the MSC Yacht Club” by fellow travel writer, Irene Levine.
2) Celebrity Suite Class
The cruise line:
Celebrity Cruises adds an extra touch of class to mainstream cruising with avant-garde art, elegant dining and chilled facecloths when returning from shore excursions.
Perks:
When you book a suite, you can dine in Luminae (reserved exclusively for suite passengers), where the menu features eclectic, local dishes from the ports-of-call visited (with locally-sourced ingredients) – maybe Maine lobster tagliatelle with roasted artichoke or cote de boeuf?
Book a suite, and you can dine in Luminae, featuring special menus not offered to other guests (Credit: Celebrity Cruises)
As well, you get access to a private VIP lounge, Michael’s Club; the concierge can help book your shore excursions. A tuxedo-clad butler will also shine your shoes and bring you afternoon tea.
Other free perks in Celebrity Cruises Suite Class include unlimited Internet and specialty dining, premium alcoholic drinks, laundry service twice per cruise, Frette robes and priority embarkation and disembarkation.
Ships:
The Suite Class experience is available on the line’s big ships (2,000 to 3,000+ passengers), but not its expedition ships.
Itineraries: Alaska, Bermuda, Europe, Caribbean, Asia, Canada/New England, and Hawaii
Celebrity Concierge Class
If you can’t quite justify splurging on a suite, consider Celebrity Cruises Concierge Class.
Perks include a stateroom with sitting area, veranda with lounge seating, welcome sparkling wine, priority check-in, use of a special lounge on embarkation, priority seating at restaurants, daily canapes delivered to your stateroom and other little treats designed to make your cruise that much more comfortable.
3) Disney Cruise for Adults
The cruise line:
Geared to families, Disney Cruise Line offers hugs with Mickey and Cinderella characters, magic shows, and kids and teen activity programs. Entertainment is top-notch.
Perks:
You can still have a “Disney cruise, adults only” experience, however.
A collection of adult-only hideaways – Disney’s concept of a ship within a ship – means you can have fun on these kid-centric ships even if cruising without kids. (We were surprised to learn that Disney Cruise Line is popular with honeymooners!)
Start your day with a specialty coffee in the art-deco Cove Café. Swim in the pool with swim-up bar. Work out in the gym. Indulge in a spa treatment. Take a sommelier-led wine-tasting seminar. Dine on lobster-and-mascarpone ravioli or garlic-roasted rack of lamb in the 270-degree ocean view Palo restaurant (Northern Italian cuisine) or French-inspired Remy (Dream and Fantasy).
Then dance the night away in a nightclub – all in venues just for adults.
On Castaway Cay, Disney’s private island visited on Bahamas and Caribbean cruises, escape for the day to the adult-only beach with morning yoga, couples hammocks and separate barbeque lunch.
Ships:
All four Disney ships have adult-only refuges. The newest, Fantasy (2,500 to 4,000 passengers), has an added splash pool with cascading rain curtain.
Itineraries: Bahamas, Caribbean and Europe (7-night Eastern and Western Caribbean cruises on Fantasy)
4) Cunard Queens Grill
The cruise line:
Cunard’s newly refurbished Queen Mary 2 (2,600+ passengers) and smaller Queen Elizabeth and Queen Victoria recreate the golden age of sea travel with opulent interiors, formal dining and white-glove service.
Perks:
Your Queens Grill suite will have a marble bathroom (or two!), with bespoke perfumer Penhaligon’s toiletries and a complimentary mini-bar stocked with your choice of wines and spirits. Maybe you’ll pick the 2,200+ sq.ft. “grand duplex” on Queen Mary 2? Don’t worry about mundane things like unpacking your suitcase – your butler is happy to do that for you.
You can dine when you want in the Queens Grill restaurant (reserved for Queens Grill passengers); order anything off the menu if you wish.
Priority embarkation, personalized stationery and daily delivery of fresh fruit and flowers to your suite are also included.
Ships:
The Queens Grill experience can be booked on all three ships.
Itineraries: Europe, Asia and around the world; transatlantic crossings (Queen Mary 2)
Check out these cool cruises!
Sailing on a clipper ship? Cruising the Canary Islands? How about an African river safari boat? Take a peek at these and other fabulous cruises in our epic Cruise Travel section.
You’ll find lots of great cruising tips too (like how much to pay in cruise gratuities).
Janice’s story on “Royal Treatment: 3 ship within a ship experiences” (PDF) was published in ISLANDS magazine. The online version was published as “Four Big Caribbean Cruise Ships That Feel Like Small Ships.”
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Jenna Francisco
Sunday 14th of August 2016
Good to know! We actually took a MSC cruise at the beginning of this year and came upon the exclusive area at the front of the ship. I didn't know what it was but asked about it and learned that there was a separate gym and pool area for those guests. Sounds like a nice way to escape some of the more crowded areas that can exist on the rest of the cruise ship!
Janice and George
Monday 15th of August 2016
Yes, many of the big ships are reverting to the old-fashioned class system :-). It gives cruisers more options - and like you say, sometimes you want to retreat from some of the busier spaces...
Jessica @ Independent Travel Cats
Sunday 14th of August 2016
I like that mid-range cruise lines are adding more luxury rooms and areas for those who want to pay for upgraded service. However, I think I'd prefer to just book on a line which had high class standards across the board rather than more stratified service. We were impressed by Cunard's service and just had a Balcony room. We are hoping to get back on the QM2 next year (where we got married almost a year ago now!) - we were hoping to do it this year but have another trip planned. Hopefully!!
Janice and George
Sunday 14th of August 2016
As you discovered, Cunard does a great job across the board - you don't need the Princess Grill or Queens Grill to get good service and have a classy cruise experience :-). We don't doubt you'll be back on the QM2 some time soon - perhaps for an anniversary?
Michelle da Silva Richmond
Wednesday 10th of August 2016
What a great idea for an article! Wish I had thought of it. LOL. Seriously...it was great. Cruising is my favorite mode of travel!
Janice and George
Thursday 11th of August 2016
Thanks! We love cruising too - a very convenient way to see many places without having to unpack and pack up at every spot. And we love quiet moments on our balcony just watching the sea go by too...
Janice and George
Wednesday 10th of August 2016
Thanks! Janice is very happy to be writing for ISLANDS magazine :-).
Irene S. Levine
Monday 8th of August 2016
Thanks for including a link to my article. I love the concept of a ship within a ship!
Janice and George
Tuesday 9th of August 2016
It's a great idea - to get the best of both worlds.