Cruise Critic Names 2011 Best Cruise Ships, Lines & Ports

This year's award for "Best New Ship" went to Disney Cruise Line for its innovative new-build, Disney Dream, which also carried off the award for "Best Inside Cabins." The line also received the "Best Standard Cabins" award. Carnival Cruise Lines was awarded "Best Value for Money" for its commitment to keeping onboard costs down, and received "Best Cruise Ship Bar" for its popular new venue, the Red Frog Pub. Royal Caribbean was confirmed as the family favorite, receiving the "Best for Families" award for the fourth consecutive year.

Celebrity Cruises received the most accolades with four awards, honoring its outstanding food and drink offerings, as well as its dedication to health-conscious options. The line was awarded "Best for Dining," "Best Alternative Restaurant" (for Qsine), "Best for Wine-Lovers" and "Best for Healthy Cruising."

New Orleans was honored with "Best U.S. Port of Call" for its vibrant atmosphere, easy access to the city and full range of activities, including family-friendly attractions, world-class museums, distinctive restaurants and fabulous nightlife.

Cruise Critic editors evaluated lines and ships in 25 categories by comparing like-for-like, taking into account the audience to which each line markets, in order to highlight the very best cruise lines and their particular strengths. The annual Cruise Critic Editors' Picks Awards complement the Cruisers' Choice Awards, which are announced in the spring and highlight the cruise ships which receive the highest ratings from reviews posted on Cruise Critic.

"Cruise lines offer exceptional hospitality and some of the best vacation experiences in the world, so to choose just a handful of ships and lines to honor is really tough," said Carolyn Spencer Brown, editor-in-chief of Cruise Critic. "We aim to highlight those lines that deserve credit in specific areas -- where we believe they truly excel -- such as dining, accommodations or onboard activities. Some of the categories are chosen easily, and others are selected after much debate and consideration, but all are very well-deserved. Congratulations to all of this year's winners."

For more information on this year's winners, as well as information on why each award was given to a particular line or ship, please go to: https://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=4659

2011 Cruise Critic Editors' Picks Awards

Best for Luxury: Seabourn Cruise Line (pictured above)
Best New Ship: Disney Cruise Line's 'Disney Dream'
Best New River Ship: Uniworld Boutique River Cruises 'River Antoinette'
Best for First-Timers: Princess Cruises
Best for Families: Royal Caribbean
Best Itineraries: Azamara
Best for Adventure: Lindblad
Best River Cruise Line: Viking River Cruises
Best Value for Money: Carnival Cruise Lines
Best for Dining: Celebrity Cruises
Best Alternative Restaurant: Celebrity Cruises 'Qsine Restaurant'
Best Buffet: Norwegian Cruise Line
Best for Entertainment: Royal Caribbean 'Allure and Oasis'
Best for Healthy Cruising: Celebrity Cruises
Best for Spa-Lovers: Seabourn 'Sojourn and Quest'
Best for Solos: Norwegian Cruise Line
Best Suites: Oceania 'Marina'
Best Inside Cabins: Disney Cruise Line 'Disney Dream'
Best Standard Cabins: Disney Cruise Line
Best Shore Excursions: Holland America
Best for Enrichment: Crystal Cruises
Best for Honeymoons: Princess Cruises
Best for Wine-Lovers: Celebrity Cruises 'Solstice-Class Ships'
Best Cruise Ship Bar: Carnival Cruise Lines 'Red Frog Pub'
Best U.S. Port: New Orleans