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Glossary
 

of some of the terms and classifications used on this site
 Age Profile The age profile of each cruise line is given on the Line Details page.  Certain lines tend to attract or encourage specific age group although this is changing as the average age for cruising falls.  The average age of passengers will also increase depending on the season (eg outside school vacations) and the length of the cruise.  Families with children tend to take 7 day cruises.
Alternative Dates Cruise Selector will find the earliest vacation departure date to your preferences and display this on Cruise Listing.  There may be later dates available and these will be displayed on the Cruise Details page if opened.
Cabins The Ship Details page gives the number of cabins divided into outside cabins with balcony, outside with window or porthole, inside cabins and single cabins.
Children Cruising is becoming increasingly popular with families with children and many operators provide extensive children's facilities and  programmes.  Each line has been rated as follows: Children Welcome / Children Accepted / Unsuitable for Children -  and these ratings are displayed on the Cruise Lines and Ship Details pages. Cruise Selector offers the following options for cruising with children on board:
Yes includes only Lines where children are "welcome" but check the Ship Details and cruise brochures for any further information on children's facilities.
Prefer not includes Lines where the ships are  "unsuitable" or children are only "accepted".  It is possible that children will be on board but not in large numbers.
No preference all Lines are included
Closest Date The Cruise Listing page will display the "Closest Date" if the page has been opened from Cruise Selector or Cruise From.  This date is the earliest vacation departure date to your preferences.  There may be later dates available and these will be displayed on the Cruise Details page if opened.
Cruise Listing (Selected) This page will be based on your selections in Cruise Selector and will display a list of cruises showing the cruise line, ship, name of the cruise, region, closest date to your preferences and duration of the vacation.
Cruise Listing (Standard) This page will be called from  Line Details and Leave From pages.  The listing will normally show the cruise line, ship, name of the cruise, duration and sailing dates.  As many ships operate a schedule of repeat cruises the cruise dates will be shown as the first and last dates of sailing together with the number of cruises in the schedule.
Fly In To / Out From The Cruise Details page shows the international airport that you will fly to before your cruise and the airport you will depart from on returning home.  In some cases this is not the same city as your cruise embarkation point but passenger transfer arrangements are normally included in your cruise package.  
Origin The origin of the Cruise Lines shown on the Line Details page indicates where the line was formed and often still reflects the nationality of the officers and ambience.  In many cases this has changed with ownership and the predominance of the American market.
Ports The number of ports to be visited is shown on Cruise Details. This number does not include the port of embarkation and disembarkation.
Passenger Crew Ratio The Ship Details page provides the number of passengers per crew member as a rough guide to service levels aboard.  This ratio ranges from outstanding service at 1.5 passengers to over 3 passengers per crew member.  The industry average appears to be around 2.5 but this is increasing as larger ships come into service with inevitably higher ratios.
Passenger Mix The passenger mix of each cruise line is given on the Line Details page.  This reflects the nationality of the majority of passengers but you can expect a good mix of other nationalities aboard most cruises.
Passenger Space Ratio Calculated by dividing the ship's gross registered tonnage by the number of passengers to give a tons per passenger figure.  This rather arbitrary ratio is provided on the Ship Details page and can be roughly interpreted as: below 20 poor; 20-30 average; 30-40 good; 40-50 very good; over 50 excellent.
Pre and Post Cruise The Cruise Details page shows the number of nights in hotel accommodation and the location city normally included in the cruise package.
Refit The Ship Details page shows the date of the last known major refit or refurbishment of the ship.
Regions Cruises are available in all parts of the world - sometimes dependent on season.  Cruises in this database are allocated to regions so you can view only cruises for that region or the whole world as you prefer.  Selection by region is available as part of Cruise Selector and on the Lines page.
Ship Itinerary Shows the list of cruises planned for the selected ship including the region, name of the cruise, duration and sailing dates.  As many ships operate a schedule of repeat cruises the cruise dates will be shown as the first and last dates of sailing together with the number of cruises in the schedule.
Ship Size Ships have been sized on the basis of a combination of their tonnage and maximum number of passengers carried as follows:
Very Small Under 10,000 tons
Small Up to 25,000 tons Up to 1000 passengers
Medium Up to 60,000 tons Up to 2000 passengers
Large Over 60,000 tons Over 2000 passengers
Huge Over 100,000 tons Over 3000 passengers
Ship Rating The ratings, which reflect price levels and facilities, could be interpreted as follows:
Budget Older ships providing value for money cruises.
Standard Older ships providing good food and service or fairly new ships with a wider range of facilities.
Superior Predominantly new ships serving what is becoming the mass market.  Reasonably sized accommodation on attractive ships providing good food, service and entertainment.
Premier Classier with more space and better service.
Luxury True luxury, excellent cuisine and personal service in spacious and elegant surroundings.
Tonnage Gross registered tonnage is not the ship's weight but rather the amount of enclosed space within the ship's hull.  One ton equals 100 cubic feet of space.
To Visit The Cruise Details page lists the ports on the cruise itinerary.  Under the heading of "To Visit" it displays for each port some of the places of interest that can be visited and activities available. Space limits what can be shown at this time.
Vacation Days The number of days you can expect to be away.  This will normally include the day of departure and return.
Wheelchair cabins Cabins that have been specially designed or adapted for passengers with wheelchairs.
Wheelchair access Indication of the access available to all the public areas of the ship. Ratings are: Very Good; Good; Acceptable; Unsuitable.
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