First decide what part of the world you want to see. Then narrow it further by deciding how long you want to cruise, 3, 4, 7 or more days. Next step, decide if you want to pack in as many ports as possible, or if you want more days at seas. Then read up on various ships. This forum is a great resource for Disney cruises, and Google is a great resource to link you to information on other ships and forums specific to other cruise lines.
Decide if you a casual experience , or a formal experience. The spectrum runs from HAL, (Holland America) which is a more formal cruise, to NCL Freestyle is probably one of the most informal. Disney can be very casual, for example if you prefer to eat only at the buffet..to middle of the road, with eating in the dining rooms with a little more formal experience ..to the very formal, if you want to eat at Palo.
Any special themes? Disney of course, offers the Disney experience. Other cruise lines do offer special cruises, usually limited to a specific week....themes like wine, gourmet food, NASCAR, art,music, gay, cigars, collectable cars, singles, polka and about every other kind of dance you can think of, murder mystery, film, any sport you can think of, and even cruises hosted by locally or nationally known celebrities. (google "theme cruises", you'll be shocked at the options)
And then, try and decide how much you want to spend. You literally can find 7 day cruises for $299 a person, all the way to $10,000 a person and more. Expect to pay less if you can travel in the off season, which generally is anytime kids are NOT on break from school, and more during peak times, with Easter week, Thanksgiving week, Christmas Week and New Years week being among the most expensive.
I would talk to your friends who have cruised, find out what they liked and didn't like and why, and also ask who they booked through. A good
travel agent can be worth their weight in gold.
