Saturday, October 19, 2013

To cruise or Not to cruise?

There seem to be two groups of people in the travel world, those who have cruised and those who haven't. While I can't speak for all prior cruisers, having been on seven myself, I would like to give you some thoughts for anyone considering cruising.

Swimming with Stingrays on a
Caribbean Cruise was amazing,
and something unplanned! 
Limited Planning - With the hectic schedules everyone has today, a benefit to a cruise vacation is the limited amount of time that goes into planning. Just book your cruise and airfare, and every night on the ship you'll get information on the next day's port-of-call and suggestions on what to do. 

Cost-to-country benefit - What I mean by this is that cruising is very cost-effective (lodging, food and transportation included) for anyone wanting to visit multiple locations on one vacation. I personally also enjoy spending the days on land at a new location (often a full 8-10 hours), while we travel between ports at night. Seems like a good use of time!

Endless Entertainment - Comedy shows, audience participation games, dancing, singing, movies under the stars, golf, karaoke, and the list goes on.

Glassblowing demo on a cruise.
Pampering - Million dollar treatment for a lot less zeros! It's nice to have the waiters know your name, full spa services, the room cleaned everyday and bartenders offering you cool drinks as you sit by the pool.  Can't beat that!

Family Friendly - Cruising has something for people of all ages (and separate areas/pools for adult-only quiet time). Children's camps, pools, waterslides, and entertainment designed especially for kids helps keep everyone happy!

On the flip side of the coin, what about the most common concern people have, sea-sickness? If you've never been on a cruiseship before, imagine a floating city.  Complete with shopping, multiple pools, outdoor space and typically 12-15 floors tall. Unless you're in really rough waters, it's hard to even notice you're moving a lot of the time.  For concerned first-timers, maybe try a prescription scopolamine patches behind your ear, just to be safe. Honestly though, you're more likely to get sick from drinking too many daiquiris by the pool or not using enough sunscreen than from motion issues.

Cruise ships are so large today, motion sickness shouldn't be a major concern!

Every cruised before or thinking about trying it out?  Leave your comments and suggestions below!  

3 comments:

  1. I've been on four cruises and was only sea-sick one day. I'd recommend half of a dramamine. If you take too much, you'll sleep the whole day.
    Also, remember that the stewards depend on those tips--be nice!

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  2. Take half a Dramamine--if there's a problem--and you'll be fine!!

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