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6 Responses to “cruise tips?”
well I heard it was good a friend of mine went on it and she said it was great.
One tip, the water in your room will be expensive. (and for some reason, we were thirsty.) Luckily, we had taken a case of water out of the case and into the suitcase… (you can’t just bring aboard the case of water.) We went through every bottle we had stashed inside….So, something you might want to consider.
Also, if you want to leave the last day before everyone else, don’t set your suitcases out the night before. –assuming you plan to carry it all out yourself (We learned this from the park n ride where we parked the car.) All the other people had to be called according to their section and they kept them on the ship for hours. We were the first ones off.
Have fun whatever you decide to do. You will have a lot of choices available to you. We were on the Royal Carribbean and had a great time.
Just enjoy. They are all great.
I have been on many cruises and about half have been on Royal Caribbean. It is my favorite line. We went on the New Freedom of the Seas last year and also the Jewel of the Seas. I prefer RC to all of the other cruise lines because of service, great food, and I love their cabins and decor. I have another RC cruise booked already for next year and plan on booking a second RC cruise for next year.
Tips:
- If you can plan to fly to the departure port a day early so that you do not have to worry about missed flights and connections. If you are changing time zones it will give your body time to adjust and you time to rest from the long trip.
-If your cruise included many connections, flying, train and bus, buy travel insurance and get it from an independent supplier, not the cruise line.
-Join the cruise club so that the cruise line will send you their specials and so that you can get discounts on future cruises with them. The discount will typically be $50 to $100 per person. If you will be celebrating a honeymoon, anniversary, or birthday during the cruise, be sure to tell them, they will do special stuff for that.
- Cruise lines charge a lot for the photos they take so take your own photos around the ship when you get the chance, especially on the formal nights. Ask other passengers to take photos for you, they generally are very willing.
-Review the listing of tours offered on your cruise and decide whether you want to pay for a tour or go on your own. On most Caribbean islands you can get a taxi or tour in port for much less than the cruise ship tours. HOWEVER, the one big advantage of going on ship sponsored tours is THE SHIP WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU if your ship sponsored tour is late getting back to the ship. If you will be in a port for 12 to 16 hours you are probably safe to go on your own for most anything. But if you are only there for six to eight hours you may want to stay close to the ship or go on the ship tours.
- Take a 6-pack of water and/or soft drinks in your carry on for your cabin. Do NOT try to take alcoholic on board, especially in your carry on; they will confiscate it.
- take a thermal cup or mug with a lid for cold drinks when you are around the pool, most plastic glasses on cruise ships are small.
-always take soft sided luggage as it stores better under the beds.
- Take a small carry-on bag for the last night of the cruise. On the last evening you will be required to put your luggage outside your cabin by about 2:00 AM so that they can start taking it down to the lower deck for offloading the next morning. So you will need a small bag for your toiletries and and your clothes that you sleep in.
- There is generally a room service menu that you can order from 24/7 and that food is free but you should tip the delivery person a couple dollars.
- The hidden costs on a cruise are your tab after the cruise for drinks (alcoholic and sodas), tours, and gratuities. Many ships now add the recommended gratuity to your on board tab. The gratuity is about $10 to $12 per day per person. You can give more if you want. Tours can add hundreds to your final bill, depending upon how many stop the ship makes and what you want to do. So study the tours carefully; some places you may want to just go on your own. and be aware that the drinks can add up.
- One way to save money on drinks is to order them in a plain glass rather than the souvenir ones; they cost about $1.00 to $1.50 more in the souvenir glass.
there are no bad cruise ships, have fun
Cruised on Royal Caribbean last year on Majesty of the Seas. Had the time of my life. I’m sure you will too.