Let the Experts Switch You To.CRUISE CONTROL; ABOVE PAR: Royal Caribbean's Independence of the Seas, above, Even Has a Miniature Golf Course, While Chef Jacques Thorel, Left, Will Launch a New Menu aboard Silversea's Silver Wind Next Month

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Byline: Roger Bray

SHATTERED illusions are the most common cause of wrecked holidays. You book a cruise hoping for dressy, intimate dinners and quiet, moonlit nights watching the wake unfurl. You get queues at the buffet and noisy children.

Or the reverse happens. Having taken note of cruise-industry claims that the average age of its customers has fallen, you decide a holiday at sea might not be such a bad idea after all. But passengers on the ship you pick are mostly 50-plus.

Choosing the right ship and the right itinerary is crucial - far more important than when booking a land-based break, which offers opportunities for escape.

The average price of a cruise has fallen behind inflation over the past decade. During the same period, the number of Britons cruising, swelled by an army of firsttimers, has more than doubled.

Small wonder then that the number of specialist …