Bedding varies between cruise lines

We’ve never had a bad bed at sea. (Well, OK, maybe a bunk bed or two on a tiny schooner wasn’t exactly ideal.)

We have, however, had some bad night’s sleeps – usually because our cabin was situated one deck below an all-night pizzeria or too close to the ice-making machines.

For us, it’s the bedding more than the mattress that makes a difference. Some bed sheets feel silky, and slipping between them and the covers is downright delicious. On some ships, though, blankets can feel too heavy or sheets kind of coarse – slightly irritating to the touch.

Of course, for most people, beds and bedding are not make-or-break booking decisions. And we still consider itinerary first, enrichment second, food third and the business of the bed hardly at all – though it doubtless would be nice to know before booking a cruise just what you might expect in your cabin.

For example, does the cruise line offer you a pillow menu? Can you request feather pillows or hypoallergenic ones? Soft or hard? Fluffy or flat?

Can you ask for a firm mattress?

And what about sheets? Do you even have a choice?

Getting this information is not particularly easy, unless you’re willing to make lots of phone calls and rely on answers from those who might have a self-interest in promoting their product.

For an independent overview, we turned to CruiseCritic.com, the popular cruise travel Web site, which has done the research for you.

Here’s what the Web site says about some of the best beds at sea:

•While many lines have gotten the wake-up call on the value of cradling their passengers’ heads at night, “In some cases, bedding strategies were limited to passengers in posh zip codes (upper category staterooms).” On other lines, even steerage passengers get bedding upgrades.

•Oceania Cruises’ “Tranquility Beds” got top marks from CruiseCritic for its custom-made Tempur-Pedic-like beds, designed with pressure-relieving Swedish mattresses that automatically adjust to your exact shape and weight. This line boasts Egyptian cotton bed linens with a 350 thread-count; in addition, passengers enjoy a plush down comforter, a silk-cut duvet cover over the comforter and fluffy down pillows.

Concierge and suite accommodations feature cashmere blankets. The only thing missing here is a pillow menu.

•Holland America Line doesn’t offer a pillow menu, either; but its Mariner Dream Bed is a custom-designed Sealy Posturpedic Euro-top mattress encased in 250-thread-count linens; penthouse and deluxe veranda suites also feature duvets.

•Crystal Cruises’ penthouse passengers luxuriate in 350-thread-count Frette linens; lower cabin categories get sheets with 220-thread counts. Every passenger gets a pick of pillows: hypoallergenic filled with polyfiber; round neck pillows for neck and lumbar support; 95-percent-feather-filled standard-sized pillows; or therapeutic, 100-percent polyester with head and neck indentation. But only penthouse passengers get the 100 percent goose down variety.

If these are not comfort enough, all Crystal featherbeds are a combination of feather and down and piled with duvets, and two king and two standard-size duck- and goose-feather pillows.

•Carnival Cruise Lines’ cabins come outfitted with new, custom-made Carnival Comfort Beds featuring duvets of 100-percent hypoallergenic down, and high-quality cotton-blend sheets and pillowcases. Pillow choices include nonallergenic microfiber and others with feathers and firm latex.

•Princess Cruises’ cabins come with Simmons Beautyrest luxury firm mattresses. Suite- and minisuite passengers get 100-percent Egyptian cotton, high-thread-count bed linens, fluffy duvets instead of blankets, and a menu of feather headrests and therapeutic pillows.

•Seabourn Cruise Line’s mattresses, manufactured in the Netherlands, are swathed in 316-thread-count Egyptian cotton sheets, pillowcases and duvets.

Seabourn replaces 30 percent of its mattresses every year. (In contrast, most luxury hotels turn mattresses around every five years, Cruise Critic points out.)