I had concerns before going, as I like port intensive getaways that offer few days at sea as cruising is all about the ports for me.

Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL)

As a mainstream line, Norwegian are best known for their regular 1-2 week round trip adventures around the Med and the Caribbean but they have been growing their fleet over the last decade or so and that has allowed them to use some of their older ships to go places they never used to sail to.

It also allows them to offer longer getaways and whilst these will usually be due to ships needing to be repositioned between different regions of the world, their Extraordinary Journey itineraries offer longer cruises and often at great prices.

One of the great things about doing a longer cruise with NCL is that they have fantastic entertainment and lots included in the cost of your cruise, to the point where if you don’t want to pay extra for anything, you really don’t need to.

Ambassador Cruises

Ambassador Cruises are a small, British cruise line that offer a more traditional cruise experience and that means a slower pace, which can be ideal for long cruises.

Despite only having a limited fleet, the line really does mix up their itineraries to offer a range of everything from overnight getaways to 22+ nights adventures including round trip to the Caribbean from the UK.

By utilising smaller and older ships, offering a limited entertainment service and sailing out of cheaper ports, the line can offer longer getaways for smaller prices.

Princess Cruises

Princess is a more upmarket mainstream line and that premium nature tends to come at a higher cost, which should make them a poor choice for a list such as this one, but it isn’t the case.

In fact, my longest ever cruise was with the line, and it offered great value as whilst perhaps a bit more in terms of the actual costs than other lines, you get lots more included and you also get a much higher standard when it comes to things like the food onboard.

That is a big part of cruising for many and when you are away from home for a long period of time, you really want to be enjoying the food you eat.

What makes the line place so high on this list is the range of longer cruises that they offer a snot only do they make booking back-to-back cruises straightforward but they also have a huge range of longer itineraries in their own right.

Costa Cruises

Costa are an Italian line that are part of the Carnival Corporation who are mostly known for their budget getaways in the Mediterranean, but they do offer sailing around the world and whilst their focus is certainly on the more usual 7-14 night breaks, they do offer some longer cruises.

These are often when ships need to move from one region to another, so not only can you get a great adventure that is often port intensive, but you keep going from new place to new place.

As these types of cruises often are less crowded, you can usually pick up a bargain and make use of everything on their ships without the crowds.

P&O Cruises

P&O are mostly based out of Southampton and offer regular cruises going to popular nearby destinations including the Norwegian Fjords, The Med and the Baltic but they are also known for their World Cruises and longer cruises.

Those are usually on their older ships, such as the Aurora and Arcadia, but that helps to keep the cost down for those on a budget.

You can either choose to do a leg or two of a World Cruise or you can take advantage of their round trip itineraries to places such as the Caribbean, Canada and Southern Africa for journeys to remember on a budget.

MSC Cruises

MSC Cruises tend to offer a different business model than other cruise lines as with them, you pay a low base cost and then have to pay for more things once onboard.

That makes then a great option for those wanting to cruise on a budget, as does the fact that whilst they do offer longer cruises, these tend to be on older ships, which again tend to be the cheaper to cruise on.

On the downside of that is as they are an Italian line, most of these will start or end in the Med, so you will often need a couple of flights to add on, but the saving can make it more than worthwhile.

Cunard

If you have every wanted to try a luxurious cruise whist still been on a large, modern ship- Cunard are the line for you.

Steeped in history and with an air of elegance about them, they are not a line usually associated with been on a budget, but rather for splashing out on.

That does tend to be the usual way of things with the line but as is so often the case with this list, as a line with a global focus nowadays, they find themselves having to reposition ships and that is when long itineraries and bargains can be found.

They also offer World Cruises and whilst the full journey is out of the reach of most and especially for those on a budget, if you can pick up a quite leg of it, again, bargains are there for the taking.

Holland America Line (Hal)

Holland America Line are another premium mainstream line not usually associated with cruising on a budget, but they offer one of the widest ranges of longer cruises of any line on this list.

From round trips to the Arctic to repositioning between Europe and Asia and from Caribbean adventures to South American explorations, Holland America offer the chance to visit most of the globe and when you take into account what they offer and the quality of their service coupled with the lower than usual costs for longer getaways and you have a great value cruise.

A big advantage for those looking to cruise on a budget, is that with the line offering so many of these types of cruises, there are always a couple that struggle to sell out and that means those on a budget can pick up some incredible last-minute bargains.

Celebrity Cruises

I am sure that long term ready of the CruiseHols website, or viewers of the CruiseHols YouTube channel may well be thinking that it is a shock to see Celebrity Cruises feature on a list that I write and yes, there may be an element of bias on my part as the line are my favourite, but they are deservedly on this list and hey, I have placed them in 10th!

As a premium mainstream line, they tend to offer 7-14 night cruises that are not exactly perfect for those on a limited budget, although they do tend to offer great value.

If you have ever wanted to take the step up to a premium line, a longer journey is the ideal time to do it as all of those extra touches the line offer, really do add up across a longer getaway.

So, whilst that does make them a good fit for a choosing them for a longer journey, it doesn’t quite fit with the cruising on a budget line element of this list.

That is covered by the fact that the majority of their longer cruises are when they reposition ships from one region to another, so not only are they at the beginning/end of cruising season in a region but these trips can often see plenty of spare capacity onboard, leading to bargains for those who can book late.

Virgin Voyages

Virgin Voyages will likely be one of the last names that comes to mind for a list such as this one and that is for good reason.

They tend to be much more expensive than similar lines, offer you less for what you get and despite that, the offering onboard feels cheap.

It’s a similar way of doing things to what all Virgin brands are and anybody who has flown with them or used their trains will be able to attest; budget and value are often not two words associated with them.

What they are great at is marketing, so if you want to try the line but have been put off by their pricing, a longer trip may actually work out better.

These tend to few and far between as they aim at the short length/booze cruise market but from time to time they need to reposition their fleet and that is when a longer itinerary can occur at a much better overall value.