The image below links to a PDF reprint of a recent AOL.com article titled “10 Types of People Who Shouldn’t Step Foot on a Cruise”. We are definitely Types #2 “People who want an authentic cultural experience in another country” and #4 “People who care more about the destination than the journey”. So why the heck have we booked ourselves on a 24-day cruise to west Africa?
In a nutshell, it’s an efficient way to get a first look at seven African countries that we’ve never visited before, and to get a feeling for ones to which we’d return for a more in depth exploration in the future.
On our 2024 trip “Namibia and Nearby” it took us 18 days of driving over 3,000 km on some of the crappiest roads on earth to see just one country, Namibia. The appeal of a floating hotel that will transport us nearly 10,000 km from the southern tip of Africa (Cape Town) to Lisbon, Portugal while stopping at some fascinating places en route is obvious. And on the 11 sea days between ports, somebody else will do the driving!
Fortunately, we’ll be aboard the Oceania Sirena. “The Sirena is considered a ‘small ship’. Compared to mainstream cruise lines carrying up to 7,000 passengers, Oceania Sirena is home to a maximum of just 670 guests at any one time. This is a significant advantage as small ship cruising allows the exploration of narrower waterways and off-the-beaten-track ports which bigger cruise liners simply cannot access.” (Panache Cruises)
We think that we’ll be able to handle all of the other issues raised in the “10 Types of People…” article. Thank goodness we won’t be aboard the “World’s largest cruise ship unveiled with nine pools and 28 dining spots“!