Planning a vacation for a group of friends can be incredibly tricky. Depending on the crew, you’ll need enough flexibility to please participants of every age, while also eliminating the stress of committing to pre-booked activities for the whole group. There’s also the matter of accommodating dozens of dietary restrictions, and, well, making sure everyone ends up in the same place, all in one piece.

I never thought that cruises would be an attractive solution. I remember going on several as a kid and loving it back then, but when I moved to New York City as a young adult, I got the idea that cruises were expensive, and worse, un-cool—something like giant floating theme parks with overly sweet cocktails and people with bad taste.

As it turns out, cruises offer a wide range of experiences, from family-oriented to more of a party atmosphere, and can also include good food, real cultural immersion, and a super easygoing vibe for a big group. And cost-wise, you could actually save a ton of money and time while visiting more destinations in one week than you ever could on land.

Kate Love, a 28-year-old data analyst in Houston, Texas, has planned high headcount cruises with her parents, friends, and their parents in the Caribbean—with a group as large as 35. Her favorite part? Being able to visit several places in just a few days, without having to book flights and worry about packing, unpacking, and moving to different hotels.

Cruises give you the chance to see far more places in a short amount of time than you would on land, such as island-hopping in the Caribbean. Oliver Vegas/Courtesy Royal Caribbean International

“We've done multiple cruise itineraries out of San Juan, Puerto Rico, and have always found those itineraries to be the best bang for your buck—you hit an island almost every day and just when you think it couldn't get better, the next island does,” Love says. “Royal Caribbean in particular has always been overly accommodating to our large groups. We're talking 12 to 15 rooms all in the same corner of one hallway.”

For groups of a larger size, Leona Bowman—the 34-year-old, Amsterdam-based mom and travel blogger behind Wandermust Family—says cruises are especially ideal because no one has to commit to the full itinerary. Part of your group can opt for an excursion while the other chooses to explore independently.

“I think the key to a great cruise holiday with a group is to not schedule every minute of every day,” Bowman says. “We like to use the rule of thumb that for every hectic all-in group day, we have a day where members can plan their own thing. Plan the big things you want to do as a group early, but also remember to savor the catching up when you’ve all had day of individual exploring.” Love agrees: “Our only rule was: show up to dinner, which was non-negotiable.”