15 Tips For First Time Cruisers

Your first cruise can be an exciting and sometimes stressful adventure. Here are some tips to make sure things go as smooth as the sea.

• Always bring your passport. Sure, closed loop cruises do not require you to have a passport, but what happens when you miss the ship or get injured or into some trouble? How can you prove who you are and make getting home easy? Always bring your passport. It will help things go much smoother and take much less time for you to get home.

• Remember your everyday items. Toothpaste, deodorant etc… these things cost almost triple the amount on a ship. Bring the Dramamine, even if you don’t think you need it, 

• Fly in the night before. Flying in the night before your cruise gives you piece of mind. If your flight is delayed you might just miss your ship. So fly in, get a hotel room, have a nice dinner and get some rest before your vacation. 

• Bring Your own water. Most cruise lines allow you to bring your own water bottles and bottles of wine. This will inevitably save you money. Bottles of water and drinks add up.
• Drink packages. Check them out usually the alcohol packages are only worth it if you consume 8-10 beverages a day. Thinking about ports and time off the ship will help you factor in how many drinks you will actually be consuming. 
• Room Service is free on cruise ships. Take advantage of this and order a bedtime snack or have a private breakfast in your room. Remember gratuities aren’t included.
• The ship will not wait for you. Ship time is ship time, not local time. So no matter what time zone you cross into, the time will always be the same on the ship. Cruise lines are responsible for keeping everyone on schedule and they will leave you if you are late. 
• Try atleast one of the specialty restaurants offered. It’s vacation and we deserve to indulge. You are missing out if you don’t take advantage of the premium food offered.
• Travel Insurance is something everyone takes for granted, but if anything were to happen before or during your vacation this will get you most if not all of your money back.
• Don’t be scared to sit with others during meals!! You may even make lifelong friends. Vacation is a place where people can truly let their hair down and have fun. So talk to everyone, don’t be shy.
• Get to know the staff, specifically your waiters and stateroom attendants. Be nice to them and smile. These staff members are here to make sure you have a great time, so thank them for what they do by being pleasant and polite.
• The earlier you book, the better your price. People think cruising last minute will get you a great deal and sadly, that’s not the case. The best price when booking a cruise is literally the day/week that sailing is announced. 
• Bring a power supply with you. Certain power strips are banned on certain cruise lines but check what’s allowed. Outlets are limited and with phones and everything we have to charge present day, space is limited. Also bring european converters if your ship has european outlets to take advantage of those outlets as well.
• Bring Air Fresheners!! Staying in a small room, especially an interior room where there’s not much ventilation can get , well, a little stinky. Bring something with you to freshen up the room so you can sleep and nap restfully.
• Order both. You are in the restaurant and stuck between two entrees, desserts, apps…order both. You’ve already paid for it and the crew wants you to try things. They will happily bring you out multiple menu items and doubles of anything you would like. There are so many more tips i could include here, but we could be here for years. The biggest thing is to have fun and let all the small stuff go, vacation is for fun and adventure. Go and enjoy!!!

I would love to help you book your next vacation or Cruise. To contact me for your free quote email me at [email protected]