The Dark Knight wrote:You should definitely do a cruise Booney, they make for great family holidays. I would fully recommend going with Carnival even though am Bays had a bad experience, they were great and were the same for people who have cruised with Carnival. My mum raved about Princess Cruises aswell.
If you think motion/sea sickness is going to be a problem then travel sickness tablets should do the trick, they are a god send.
Definitely would agree with encouraging you to do a cruise, Booney. I must admit to being a bit of a cruise addict, having done 9 in the past three years, with another two coming up in January and April. My favourite line is Royal Caribbean as they have a bit more activity, including: Rock Climbing Wall; Dodgem Cars; Ice Skating (and brilliant Ice Skating shows); a Surfing simulator; Skydiving simulator etc. For the kids, they also have Dreamwork characters on board - you run into ones such as Shrek, Puss in Boots etc.
Celebrity are also a great line, not so much activity on board but a bit more luxury. Would suit a slightly older demographic. They really do pamper you though.
Princess are also good but don't quite give as good service as Celebrity and RC. Having said that, they have the best Alaska cruise itinerary.
If you want to go to Hawaii, Holland America have the best itinerary, being the only one that goes to all islands.
Re travel sickness, the larger the ship you are on, the more stable it will be. Also, try to get a mid-ship cabin.
The actual itinerary of the cruise can also have a large bearing on its quality. I try to take cruises that mix it up a bit, with a sea day followed by a port day, then another sea day, port day etc.
For a relaxed cruise, the South Pacific is good. However, if you really want to see scenery, New Zealand (particularly the Sounds down south), Alaska and the Mediterranean cannot be beaten. For culture, cruises through Japan and China are great.
Cheers