Why cruises are changing how Millennials travel

I never thought I’d admit this, but I absolutely love cruises. Just a few years ago, I told my mum I would never, ever join her on one. The thought of low-grade buffet food, packed coach excursions, and being trapped in a space with thousands of, dare I say, ‘basic-interest’ travellers, was my idea of hell. But then the pandemic had other ideas.

Virgin Voyages’ cabins are like boutique hotel rooms

Falling for the high seas

Tired of flight cancellations and Covid-testing requirements, plus all the costs associated with them, I tried Virgin Voyages’ Scarlet Lady in 2021. This was Mr. Branson’s first foray into the cruise market, designed to lure Millennials with sexy cabins, hot ticket shows that you’d actually pay to see, and wellness programmes good enough for J-Lo. But I was still dubious, right up until we stepped on board. Minutes later, I was standing at the ship’s gelato stand ‘Lick Me Till Ice Cream’ literally screaming: OMG! And wait, I don’t have to pay a tenner for this stack of homemade ice cream? What!?!

Diners are Virgin Voyage’s Gunbae Korean Barbecue Restaurant

Diners at Virgin Voyage’s Gunbae Korean Barbecue Restaurant

The next few days were a blur of cocktail classes, immersive theatre, afternoon tea, and randomly, bungee workouts. Not what I had envisioned at all. The clientele was mixed, some traditional, but a significant portion were people my age having a roaring time—on the deck, in the nightclub, and on the beach.

Adventure cruises

In 2023, I desperately wanted to knock safari off my bucket list. CroisiEurope was offering a four-country safari cruise aboard their African Dream. It was the perfect itinerary, stopping in South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe. Completely different from my first giant cruise experience, and much to my delight, we didn’t spend much time on the water at all. The trip blended safari lodges, land expeditions, and local village walks, with overnights on a riverboat that we shared with just five other guests. No crowds, no buffets, no tour buses, and more adventure than I could handle.

CroisiEurope’s river cruises go where the big ships cannot go for a more boutique experience.

The future

My goal is to take more cruises to see Earth’s great wonders, but with exceptions. Not all cruises are as fabulous as Virgin Voyages and CroisiEurope. Some of them don’t quite have the adventure or the food nailed down. Some charge extra for Wi-Fi and hefty service charge fees. I’ve learned to select carefully.

Even Mum’s been impressed with how ships have evolved; she’s been going on the tired oldies for years, but they’ve gotten much better, she says. We did a cruise together this year. We dined and had such a laugh that I wondered why I hadn’t joined her before.

Sitting at an included Korean restaurant one day, Mum looked around and beamed, “New cruises like these make me feel 40 again. This is nothing like the ones I used to go on.” Then it dawned on me: the Millennials aren’t holidaying with retirees anymore; they’re holidaying with us now.

But wait, there’s more…