Your cruise experience varies greatly based on the size of your ship. That's obvious when someone considers a small luxury yacht versus a traditional cruise ship, but the difference between ships that can accommodate 2,000-3,000 passengers and ones that serve closer to 6,000 are significant.
Some cruise lines operate in both the mega-ship (more than 4,000 passengers) and large ships 2,500-4,000 passengers. Both Royal Caribbean and Carnival Cruise Line have ships in both sizes under their namesake brands, but the results do show that passengers may see both those cruise lines as favoring their newer, larger ships.
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Conde Nast Traveller collected over 575,048 votes cast in its 37th annual Readers’ Choice Awards survey. The cruise line results were somewhat surprising, especially in the mega-ship category.
Image source: Daniel Kline/ComeCruiseWith.com
Cruise line passengers pick their favorites
The Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards' results were from hundreds of thousands of respondents who submitted ratings during the period of April 1 through June 30, 2024.
"The questionnaire contained lists of candidates in various categories (Cities, Hotels, etc.). Candidates must receive a required minimum number of responses and a minimum overall rating to be eligible for a Readers’ Choice Award. Candidates are judged on a set of criteria relevant to their category, based on a standard five-point scale converted to a percentage: excellent, very good, good, fair, and poor. The average of these ratings determines the final score based on four decimal points, with two decimal points being published," the publication shared.
Mega-ships (more than 4,000 passengers)
6. Norwegian Cruise Line 80.33
5. P&O Cruises 81
4. Carnival Cruise Line 82.46
3. MSC Cruises 85.88
2. Royal Caribbean International 87.21
1. Princess Cruises 92.22
It's possible that Princess won because it's actually a new player in the mega-ship space.
"The new Sun Princess is the cruise line's largest ship to date, carrying up to 4,300 passengers. Princess Cruises has come a long way since its Love Boat days; the TV show was filmed on its former ship, Pacific Princess, which only carried up to 626 passengers. Sun Princess will receive a sister ship in the Sphere class, Star Princess, as soon as next year," the magazine shared.
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Large ships (2,500-4,000 passengers)
13. MSC Cruises 75.2
12. Carnival Cruise Line 76.83
11. Margaritaville at Sea 78.8
10. Royal Caribbean International 83.88
9. Norwegian Cruise Line 84.23
8. P&O Cruises 84.67
7. Holland America Line 84.67
6. Cunard 84.92
5. Princess Cruises 85.96
4. Celebrity Cruises 85.72
3. Costa Cruises 90.58
2. Disney Cruise Line 91.99
1. Virgin Voyages 92.36
Virgin taking the top spot is less of a surprise because the cruise line was built to fix what its founders saw as the problems of the cruise industry.
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"Richard Branson's Virgin Voyages made its long-awaited debut in October 2021 with the "Mermaiden" voyage of Scarlet Lady out of Miami. The 2,770-passenger ship is adults-only, and it promotes a sexy, party-hard atmosphere between its glitzy nightclub, risque live performances, and unusual amenities like a tattoo parlor. But it's also a standout for its unique dining options," Conde Nast Traveller wrote.
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