Cruising for Seniors
I recently sat down with Madonna Strong from Helloworld Helensvale Plaza (who service clients Australiawide) to talk cruising and what to do to make your cruising experience just as memorable.
In your opinion, what is the best cruise line for people over 65?
That’s a very hard question. The most popular from Australia is Princess Cruises but there are a multitude of cruise companies that cater for that age group. It really depends on the type of cruising they enjoy, big ocean cruising or something more boutique style.
Cruises are notorious for being action packed, what sort of activities are available to older travellers (in body, not mind)?
They have trivial pursuit, ballroom dance classes on board, salsa class (for the more adventurous), suduko groups and games of mahjong, cards, a library on board and of course Bingo which is very popular (and gives you the chance to win some of the cost of the cruise back!). Not to mention world class entertainment, amazing locations to visit and on board casinos.
From your perspective, are cruise booking on the rise or declining for this demographic?
Definitely on the rise, when we first started in travel 25 years ago cruising was about 5% of our business if that, now it is closer to 35%.It has grown massively.
Why do you think that is?
It’s just so convenient. It’s a one stop shop. You unpack once, all your meals are taken care of, the entertainment is taken care of, once you step on board you are care free, all you have to decide on is what time are you going to eat and what activity (if any) are you going to do. Also, depending on the cruise, you can avoid airports and flights.
What about the medical facilities on board?
There is a doctor and nurse on board, the medical teams are fantastic, they do as much as they can on board.If it’s an emergent situation they get into port as quickly as possible or have the rescue helicopters come out. Which is why it’s really important to have the correct travel insurance in place before you cruise. I highly recommend that no one go on a cruise without comprehensive travel insurance and always check that it covers medical evacuation from a ship. Cruising is not always automatically covered on a lot of travel insurance policies so it’s definitely something to talk about with us here at Helloworld.
Are there cruises ONLY for seniors? This is another reason to talk with us here at Helloworld because technically no, they don’t have exclusive cruises for seniors, however with our extensive knowledge and experience of the many cruises on offer, we can guide people into the right cruise for them. We find that while children are never excluded, some cruiselines don’t offer as many activities for children which naturally leads to less on board whereas other cruiselines such as Carnival and P n O are very family orientated and offer many child friendly options including waterslides on deck.
Do you have a particular cruise you recommend to someone who just isn’t sure?
There are just so many choices. I think this is why it’s important to speak with an expert to help narrow down your options with someone who has been selling the product for a long time and knows the cruises inside out. We will ask the right questions to match them with the best cruise for them.
Okay, onto the messy questions. What about sea sickness? Do many people find this a problem? No. What you have to remember is that you are not out in the middle of the ocean in a tinny, these ships are massive. The smallest one out of Brisbane is 70,000 tonnes and they have huge stabilisers. But, if someone is truly concerned about sea sickness then I often tell them to book a 3 or 4 night cruise to try it out and see how they go before embarking on a longer journey.
Do they offer you any sea-sickness solutions on board?
They sure do. They have sea sickness tablets and they do have an injection you can get if it is really bad which works right away.
I’ve heard the story that is floating around that it’s cheaper for a senior citizen to cruise all year long as opposed to pay rent and buy food. Is this true?
(laughs) It’s definitely possible when there are specials. I’ve recently booked a cruise for a client who has paid $990 for 20 nights which is only $50 per day. If you are retired and can secure a last minute special it’s possible to cruise for between $50 and $100 per day.
How does someone go about booking a cruise, the brochures are pretty overwhelming and the website is confusing. What do you recommend for seniors? Out of Australia I would recommend Princess Cruises. They are beautiful and elegant ships, they don’t have a lot of children on board. They have entertainment on board that caters for that age group, older style music, popular entertainers. The food and entertainment is all exceptional.
On average how much would a cruise normally cost? Most cruise lines are on average, approx. $145 per person per day but there are always specials and deals so make sure you talk to someone at Helloworld.
Madonna Strong helloworld Helensvale Plaza T: +61 (07) 5573 5188 E: madonna.helensvaleplaza@helloworld.com.au
