The pros and cons of South Pacific cruises

South Pacific cruises take in South Sea islands including Fiji, Tahiti and the Cooke Islands. They usually visit Papua New Guinea, Samoa and Tonga and a few travel as far south as the cities of Auckland and Napier, New Zealand. Several large cruise lines provide South Pacific cruises, but there are positives and negatives points to this specific travel experience.

Why choose a South Pacific cruise?

Overview
Modern cruise liners are the largest and most luxurious ever built.
They are like floating cities, offering a wide range of accommodation, and eating, socialising and shopping opportunities.
On board facilities include sports and swimming, with some special courses offered.
You may often find a lecture programme and a library.
This said to be the ultimate holiday experience.
Islands
The South Sea islands visited are often equated with paradise.
This is illustrated by the fact that the much promoted "wild beauty" of Papua New Guinea includes its population of over thirty species of birds of paradise.
Samoa is where storyteller Robert Louis Stevenson spent his last years and the South Seas gave him the idea for that best of all pirate stories, Treasure Island. New Zealand trips will include the Bay of Islands to Auckland and then cruise to the New Zealand's city of Napier, where over seventy cruise ships are expected to call in 2012. Best time to visit
The beautiful weather in December, January and February when travellers from the northern hemisphere choose to go on these cruises is an important factor in choosing this holiday.

Points against choosing a South Pacific cruise

Cons
The categorisation of these cruises by the shipping lines usually does not include Australasia.
Therefore, you would necessitate taking a different cruise to experience Australia and cruise Sydney Harbour.
Other points against the South Pacific cruise experience
(1) this cruise option is very expensive
(2) the cruise covers such an extensive area that it usually lasts several weeks
(3) these cruises are so popular that they are fully booked years in advance
(4) many find the lack of quiet and solitude difficult to cope with
(5) the stopovers in idyllic places are far too short
Final word
However, as large modern cruise liners are, the novelty eventually wears off, and they become confining.
Constant socialising is tiring, especially for people who normally live alone.