'You can decide': Cruise boss busts one of the biggest misconceptions
"I don't want to sit at a dinner table with random strangers," is a phrase you might have heard your non-cruising bestie utter more than once.
Indeed, avid cruisers will tell you, it is a great way to meet new people and sometimes even make friends for life.
But if the thought of making small talk over a bingo card fills you with dread, the good news is you do have a choice.
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Cruises can be a great place to make new friends - if you want to. Getty
Celebrity Cruises President, Laura Hodges Bethge, has shared some insight into what actually goes on behind the scenes when the cruise is being coordinated.
"One of the things that I think cruising does so well is you can be with a lot of folks, but you do not need to all be doing the same thing at the same time," Laura tells nine.com.au.
"There are opportunities for you to come together or to do those separate experiences. And you can decide how together or how separate you want to be."
It turns out, cruise lines will also employ a simple tactic to ensure guests are spending time in the areas and with the people that match their holiday goals.
For example, couples on a romantic escape might not want to find themselves surrounded by young children.
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A lot of thought goes into designing a ship's program. Supplied
"One of the things that we want to always protect is the essence of who we [Celebrity Cruises] are," Laura says.
"And if you're really smart about the way you program your ship, then you're going to pull people to the activities that make the most sense for them.
"One thing that we focus on really well is making sure we have family activities that drive those families together.
"So families are hanging out with families, and couples are hanging out with couples. We work really hard to balance that."
Celebrity Cruises is gearing up to launch a new luxury river cruise line in August 2027, featuring two purpose-built ships, Celebrity Compass and Celebrity Seeker.
These ships will offer 7-night itineraries on the Danube and Rhine rivers.
"I think the Edge series, our ocean ships, in terms of the quality, the architecture and design, they really changed the game for Celebrity in general," Laura says.
"And so we wanted to make sure we pulled that into the river, where we thought there was a massive opportunity to create that beautiful atmosphere that our guests know and love."
Of course, river cruise ships are much smaller than ocean ships.
So again, if doing a river cruise is something you've been um-ing and ah-ing about, Laura has shared some of her advice for first-timers.
Celebrity Cruises will launch a new luxury river cruise line in August 2027. Celebrity
"Don't be afraid, don't be sceptical. Just go book it ... stop overthinking it. Just book it," she says.
Secondly, Laura says choosing a destination is really important as you will be fully immersed on a river cruise.
"When you're thinking about the destinations and where you want to go, just get ready to truly be immersed. You're going to get a different experience if you do that."
Finally, unlike on ocean ships, meeting people is essentially unavoidable.
"I've taken quite a few river cruises myself, and at the end of the day, if I'm the 172nd person, I will know 171 people when I leave," she says.
"That's what's so special about river cruising. On ocean, you meet people if you want to, but on river, it is a smaller, intimate space. You really do get to know people in a very different way, which I think is really special."
