Staying in steerage ....

It is a running joke amongst seasoned cruisers who choose or end up with accommodations on the lower decks of cruise ships ... I'm staying in steerage. This comment should ring a bell for anyone who has read about the passenger classes of old, transatlantic voyages ... or has seen the movie Titanic. On these voyages, the price you paid for your ticket dictated the amenities and areas of the ship you had access to. Depending on the ship, first class passengers would receive opulent accommodations, fine dining, and attentive service. Second class passengers could receive respectable and comfortable accommodations. Steerage passengers (or third class) were given a place to sleep, some segregated public rooms, and some places to move about on deck. This level of ticket was a "working man's" way to cross the pond.

Boy, have things changed in the cruise industry since then. On of the major changes, of course, is the idea of roundtrip cruising instead of one-way, get from point A to point B cruising.

Another change, at least in American-based cruise lines, is the removal of class systems on board ships. No longer are most cruise ships segregated. Anyone cruising on Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian or most other well-known line has pretty much the same rights as anyone else ... it doesn't matter if you are staying in the lowest inside room or the largest penthouse suite. Granted, there are small differences based on accommodations on some lines. For example, suite guests may have access to a concierge room inaccessible for other guests, but that is only a small concession.

The class system still exists in some forms, however. On Cunard's Queen Mary 2, which until Royal Caribbean's Freedom of the Seas debuted held the title for the largest cruise ship in the world, dining accommodations are assigned based on the level of room booked. The Brittania Restaurant is the dining room for all non-suite passengers. Lower-category suite guests are assigned to the Princess Grill. Higher category suite guests are assigned do the Queen's Grill. All guests aboard may eat at the alternative establishments, including the famous Todd English restaurant. By the way, Cunard prides itself on its "White Star" service. The Cunard line merged with the White Star line around the 1930s. You may remember White Star ... the line got a Titanic black mark in history on April 14, 1912. Another bit of information ... Cunard is now a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation who ... guess what ... owns other lines such as Carnival, Princess, etc.

While cruisers may joke about their steerage accommodations, the fact is that accommodations on low decks are actually preferred by some cruisers. A cabin on a low deck is less likely to feel ship movement than higher cabins. These cabins are also usually close to the gangway, dining room, and theater. Combine these features with a (usually) lower price than identical rooms on higher decks, and it is no wonder why some cruisers book their "steerage" room with pride.