Advice for going on a cruise????

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TINKERTOY ..... the 1 & only

I have been on about 20 cruises and thus share this advice. Some you may know already, but some is just tips to make for a better cruise.

The price of your cruise includes your cabin, all meals (except the specialty restaurants), all shows and entertainment, and use of all facilities on ship. The things that you will have to pay for are:

GRATUITIES: They will amount to about $10 per person in your cabin per day; about $70 each for a 7 day cruise. When you check in at the pier they will set up an on-board charge account for you to cover any and everything you may buy on ship. They will issue you a "cruise card" which will also serve as your room key and pass to get on and off the ship. At the end of the cruise they will add the gratuity to your tab and you can pay with a credit card or cash, your choice.

ALCOHOLIC DRINKS AND SOFT DRINKS: Coffee, tea, milk, juice, and lemonade and punch will be provided free but you must pay for drinks (alcoholic beverages) and they will add a 15% gratuity to each drink of soft drink order. You can save a couple dollars per drink of you oder it in a plain glass rather than the fancy souvenir glasses they generally serve them in.

PHOTOGRAPHS: Cruise lines will take plenty of photographs of you all over the ship, in the dining room, and as you exit the ship in ports. These will cost a lot, like $15 to $20 for most. Skip them and save yourself a lot of money. Take your own camera and have the other passengers photograph you on and off the ship.

TOURS/EXCURSIONS: These are listed on your cruise line web site and you can reserve them well before the cruise and pay for them also. If you wait until you are on ship to book tours they will be charged to your on board account (then you can pay cash to settle your account on the last day). Once you book your cruise the cruise line will send you a booklet listing all of the tours. If you are going to the Caribbean, most places you can get a tour or taxi on the pier for a much lower price than on the ship.

SOUVENIRS: Anything you buy on ship from a gift shop or duty free shop goes on your on board account. Things that you buy on shore you pay cash or credit card for.

CASINO: If you plan to gamble on ship you will need cash for that.

OTHER: most cruise lines have what they call "specialty" restaurants where there is a gratuity/service charge. All other food on board is free and its not really necessary to budget for food; you cannot eat all of the FREE FOOD that will be available.

If you want/need to have your hair done, get a massage or wrap, or any services from the spa, you will have to pay for them. You can use the gym free but the spa stuff cost big bucks.

Ships now have internet cafe and some have WiFi but the there is a fee for internet access and it is very expensive (like about $50 to $60 an hour). Skip the ship's internet service and just look for an internet cafe in your port stops. You can usually get internet service in the ports for $5 to $7 an hour.

You cabin will likely have a minibar with soft drinks and munchies; you have to pay for them (but there is free room service 24/7).

The dress on ship is casual all day until 6:00PM. So take: -swim wear (at least 2),
-shorts,
-sandals,
-beach shoes,
-your snorkel equipment if you have it,
-sun glasses and sun screen,
-lotions,
-a cap or big hat for the sun,
-a book if you are a reader, -
-your music player,
-sneakers and clothes to workout in if you like to use the gym, -good walking shoes,
-your camera, and
-other personal toiletries.

Your cabin will have towels and soap provided, including pool and beach towels. It will also have a generic hair shampoo so you do not need to bring that unless you like a specific brand. They do not provide tooth paste, mouth wash or lotions. They DO provide a hair dryer.

After 6:00 PM they request that you wear "sports or resort casual" attire. That's attire that you would expect a person to wear in a business office, (like a bank employee), shirt with a collar, slacks, skirt, blouse, etc. You can still wear shorts and swim wear in the pools and spas but not in public areas like dining rooms and restaurants, show rooms, etc. You don't need to take a lot of regular clothes because you will spend most of your time in shorts and swim wear. A couple sets will do.

Most cruises have a formal night when you can wear your best stuff and get pictures taken, and maybe meet the shipâ€™s Captain. The formal nights are REQUESTED not required attire. But most people do dress up. You can wear what you would wear to church and you'll be fine. You will not be denied access to the dining room or anything else if you choose not to dress up.

- Its best to pack using soft-sided luggage because with space limited in your cabin it fits under the beds better if its not hard sided luggage.

-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 your clothes that you sleep in.

- If you can take a six-pack of bottled water and soft drinks in your carry-on for your cabin. You will have to pay for both on the ship and its nice to have those handy in the cabin.

- If you are taking your cell phone, MP3 player or other item that needs to be plugged in take an extension cord as the plugs in the cabin are generally not in the best places and there are usually only one or two.

- Take a small bottle of hand sanitizer. There are generally sanitizer dispensers at the entrances of restaurants, the buffets and dining room, but some times the are not there or not working. The sanitizer helps prevent the spread of the Norwalk Virus that sometimes occur on cruise ships.

-If you plan to get into the pools or hot tub as soon as you get on ship, bring those clothes in your carry on bag; you other luggage may not get to your cabin until much later in the afternoon.

flying time

A valuable website to use is www.cruisecritic.com. You can ask questions about your cruise, ship and ports of call.

sandand_surf

Something to think about regarding drinks, which can get pricey.

If you like iced tea, that is usually free all day at the lido deck. Bring your own travel mug so you can fill it and it will help keep it cool. Some lines have soda cards, which give you 10 or 20 "pours" of soda and may end up being cheaper per drink. Note - this may only mean the cup with ice, not the whole can of soda.

Alcoholic drinks. I got a wine card that gave me 20 pours of the house wines for less than $4.00 a glass. that's pretty cheap no matter where you are. Don't get the cocktail card until you investigate a bit (try cruisecritic.com message boards). On Holland America, the "drink of the day" was cheaaper than using the cocktail card, even though the card got you drinks at a reduced price.

CAROLE R

Tinkertoy has given you loads of advice. I went on the Thomson Emerald last summer as a novice like you. We were all inclusive but looking at the prices for drinks they weren`t an awful lot different to here UK.Check the Internet before you go because some places are better to go on trips and some you can do yourself. as for clothes, depending on how long you are going for, we went for 2 weeks so we had two Captains nights but you don`t need to go to both,but we took 2 dressy outfits and the rest were smart casual. depending on what cruise line you are with and where you are going determines your day wear. I can honestly say you will enjoy it though. have a good trip

rick d

Besides what the others have mentioned is bring your common sense with you. If you who not do something stupid at home DO NOT DO IT ON THE CRUISE. A cruise is the best way to take a vacation. They feed you, give you a nice place to sleep and do all the driving and all you have to do is relax and enjoy the sights. Before you buy any souveniers on the ship check the shops in port you can save alot.
Enjoy.

randall_nd

A very good source of valuable information can be found at cruisecritic.com
I have compiled a list of cruising do's and don't's. Run a search on Yahoo Answers for cruising do's and don't's.

annabel m

do some research and choose the type of cruise, and type of ship carefully. There is everything from huge floating shopping mall *** hotels with every kind of entertainment going, to smaller ships with less facilities but more of an intimate feel. If you go to small places on a huge ship it may well anchor off and you wait to go ashore by small launch (and the quaint small island you are visiting gets flooded with several hundred or people at once.....) Depends what you are looking for. On most ships there is at least one night when you need to dress quite smart for dinner. Enjoy!

Time travler

First pack light. They do have laundry rooms on board. Be prepared to gain weight, especially if you eat at the buffet. The temptations are everywhere. Call your credit card company and bank before you go so that they know it is you who is doing unusual charges on your card in foreign countries. Don't bring much cash. You don't need it. It is safer to use a credit card, and everything you charge on the ship will be put on your credit card. Try not to drink too much. There drinks are pricey. Bring sunscreen unless you are going to Alaska. Most of all, don't worry, there will be people at the cruise terminal to help you with any questions you may have. The number one thing is to Enjoy yourself, for you will be so spoiled on a ship, you will think you are the king or queen for the whole cruise. Have fun.

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