Cruise Passengers Rate the Very Best of Ships

LONDON, February 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

- International Wins for British Thomson Dream Seabourn Odyssey and Celebrity Equinox -- UK's Favourite Little & Large

The influential cruise news and reviews Web site Cruise Critic® (http://www.cruisecritic.co.uk), today announced the winners of its annual Cruisers' Choice Awards, based exclusively on ratings and reviews submitted by passengers.  

British tour operator Thomson Cruises' Thomson Dream took international and U.K. passenger honours. The 1,506-passenger vessel was awarded first place internationally in the Best Overall Mid-Sized Ship class and was rated top in the Best Entertainment and Best Service categories. British cruisers also awarded the ship first place in the Best Overall Mid-Sized Ship class and top for Cabins, Entertainment, Service and Shore Excursions. 

Cruise Critic boasts the world's largest online cruise community with 800,000 members and more than 90,000 cruise reviews. Each month, nearly 2 million people visit the site to read cruise reviews, find information on planning cruises, and access forums where they swap advice and stories with other cruisers.

Talking about the awards, Cruise Critic Editor in Chief Carolyn Spencer Brown said, "Unlike other awards, our Cruisers' Choice awards are based exclusively on ratings provided by cruisers -- the people whose opinions matter the most. The awards honour the ships rated the highest by cruisers in terms of service, value, facilities and accommodation."

The Cruise Critic Cruisers' Choice Awards are divided into three ship classes according to passenger capacity -- large, mid-sized and small. Awards are presented to the top five ships in each class and also to ships in special categories, which include: Cabins, Dining, Embarkation, Entertainment, Fitness, Public Rooms, Service, Shore Excursions and Value for Money.

British Passenger Ratings

As well as the international awards, which are based on passenger ratings worldwide, Cruise Critic also presented awards based exclusively on ratings from U.K. cruisers -- the only country to have its own separate awards.  

Celebrity Equinox dominated the awards for British passengers in the large-ship class, winning best overall and all but one of the other categories -- Cabins -- in which it was runner-up to sister ship Celebrity Eclipse. As well as winning in the mid-sized class, Thomson Dream was rated highest by British passengers in four other categories -- Cabins, Entertainment, Service and Shore Excursions. Similarly, Seabourn Odyssey was rated best overall by British passengers in the small-ship class and four other categories -- Cabins, Fitness, Public Rooms and Service.

This year, Cruise Critic introduced awards in destination categories to recognise the highest-rated ships sailing to the most popular destinations, as well as those sailing from some of the busiest cruise regions. This included Best Cruises from the U.K., with the top five as rated by British passengers being Celebrity Eclipse, Queen Mary 2, Eurodam, Independence of the Seas and Ventura. Said Spencer Brown, "U.K. ports are gaining in popularity as British cruisers opt for ex-U.K. sailings to avoid the cost and hassle of flying to their embarkation port. The number of cruises sailing from U.K. ports has grown substantially in recent years, offering a much better choice of ships and destinations."

For the complete list of 2012 Cruisers' Choice Awards winners in all categories, please visit http://www.cruisecritic.co.uk/memberreviews/cruiserschoice_index.cfm.

About Cruise Critic

Cruise Critic® is an online cruise guide, offering a comprehensive resource for cruise travellers, from first-time cruisers to avid cruise enthusiasts. The site features more than 90,000 cruise reviews and hosts the world's largest online cruise community where travellers share experiences and opinions with fellow cruisers. Cruise Critic was the first consumer cruise site on the Internet, launched in October 1995 by The Independent Traveler, Inc., a subsidiary of TripAdvisor, Inc.

TripAdvisor, Inc. (NASDAQ: TRIP) manages and operates Web sites under 18 other travel media brands, and together the sites attract more than 65 million unique monthly visitors*. TripAdvisor's travel media brands include: http://www.tripadvisor.com, http://www.airfarewatchdog.com, http://www.bookingbuddy.com, http://www.cruisecritic.com, http://www.flipkey.com, http://www.holidaylettings.co.uk, http://www.travelpod.com, http://www.onetime.com, http://www.seatguru.com, http://www.sniqueaway.com, http://www.smartertravel.com, http://www.virtualtourist.com, and http://www.kuxun.cn

Cruise Critic and The Independent Traveler are either trademarks or registered trademarks of TripAdvisor, Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.  All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Contact details:

MEDIA CONTACTS:  For more information please contact Ian Rumgay on +44-(0)1732-760451, or Jane Owen on +44-(0)7747036050, jane@saxondene.com.

SOURCE Cruise Critic