Have any of you ever gone on a tropical cruise? advice you give to someone considering a cruise?

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Lizzy P

Just a few general things:

1. Incorporate your tips into your travel plans. Find out if the cruiseline includes that in your final price or not. Some do, some don't.

2. Be conscious of hurricane season. It's cheapest to cruise during this season but also the most risky for missing ports.

3. Almost everything is included on your trip. Your meals are all paid for (unless it's a specialty restaurant, or coffee shop for ex.). Alcohol is not included.

4. If you have sea days (non-port day) it is really great to have a balcony so you can sit out and enjoy watching the scenery go by, or simply scope out a beach chair early morning!

5. There are chair hogs by the pools. Get there early to ensure you get one!

6. Fly in a day early to your departure city. So often people miss the ship because of flight delays and your travel insurance might not refund your whole vacation because of a flight delay.

7. Buy travel insurance!

I would suggest Royal Caribbean for cruises. They are priced well and have good itineraries.

However, I find it's best to be well informed about other lines to make sure you're getting what you really want. Check out these websites. I swear they are the best sites for cruising anywhere. Lots of people with first hand experience on the boards (which are super active) to help you out with literally all the questions you have (and more, hee hee).

http://www.cruisecritic.com
http://boards.cruisecritic.com

Julie T

Crusing is our family vacation of choice. There is something for everyone. All of the planning is done for you. You never have to worry about looking for a place to have dinner or see a show.

For your consideration-
- The demographics of the cruise line. Carnival will have more young adults and families on-board. Royal Caribbean is a bit more laid back.
- Other cruise line like Holland America are popular with older Americans and tourists.
- Regardless of the cruiseline you chose, there are always a ton of people around. Cruising is not for those looking for a private vacation.
- Your cruise experience is a combination of the on-board events and shore excursions. The cost of shore excursions are not included in your cruise package. You can always just shop or take a taxi to the local beach instead of a shore excursion.

Other costs not included the price:
- port fees and taxes. Be sure your travel agent includes them in any quote they give you.
- tips to service staff. Usually $10 per day per guest.
- Bar drinks. $4-12 each plus 15% gratuity
- Soda. $1.75 by can or about $40 for unlimited by glass.
- Photos. $20-25 per sheet.
- Bingo cards. $5
- Spa services. $50-200 per service.
- Shore excursions. $50-200 per person per excursion.
- Taxis while in port.
- Parking at the port.

You can spend as much or as little as you want. My sister always uses a cash deposit insead of a credit card for her on-board account so she does not get sticker shock at her expenses at the end of a cruise. I should take a lesson from her.

If your planning a cruise in 2008 and don't have your passport, apply for it now.

Carnival is a good line to book to see if you like the experience. It is economical and it is a fun vacation.

Good luck.

sweetbby931

I went on a Carnival cruise to the Bahamas this past year, and it was fantastic! There was so much to do, lots of shopping, snorkeling, we even went parasailing in the ocean! I would recommend not booking your excursions on the islands or wherever you go until you get to your destination. We were going to book parasailing in Freeport in the Bahamas before we left, but our travel agent told us to wait. I'm so happy we did because it rained the whole time we were there, so we took our parasailing trip on our next stop which was Nassau. Also the alcoholic drinks can get real expensive, so we brought our own in Coke bottles and packed it in our luggage. Saved us a ton of money! :)

eei59aasd

Don't book first one for more than 5 days.
Figure out how you like it. 14 days is way too long.
Pick out the things you want to do in Port before the trip. Don't drink a;cohol a lot. it will run your bill up and avoid too much gambling.
Get a cabin with a view if you are not sea sick.

chad s

I would definitely go, Royal Caribbean is a good line. Look online for last minute deals, you should be able to save a little that way.If you drive to board your ship, find a hotel that allows you to park while you're gone. Also try to get somewhat of a tan before you leave. Make sure you take along a friend when you stop at you ports of call.We went to Jamaica, Grand Cayman Island and Cozumel. Have fun!

beatjugglez

this site has good info on cruises:
http://allcruiselines.info

radio80flyer

I went on a Barefoot WindJammer cruise through the Bahamas. It was fantastic. This was a sailing vessel not a cruise ship. I would recommend it to anyone. There was plenty of good food, activities and relaxation. The only thing I can remember that was not so good, it seemed like you couldn't get a real cold drink even if it had ice in it. But other than that, I'd go today if the opportunity presented itself to me.

MomSezNo

Wow - there's way too much to know about cruising to answer here.

Go to the library and get some books about cruising [there's even a "Dummies" book on cruising]. Do lots of reading, because there are all kinds of things to consider before you choose a cruise.

Having said that, Carnival is a good line to start with - relatively inexpensive, lots of activities and fun, good ports. Other things that matter are size/age of ship, itinerary, length of cruise, cabin selection - each cruise line is "known" for different atmosphere, service, etc.

For all the information you could possibly want about cruising, go to CruiseCritic.com; click on "Boards" at the top of the page and browse away - you'd be especially interested in "First Time Cruisers", "Ask a Cruise Question", etc. Also, click on "Reviews" and get assessments from both pros and past passengers.

[BTW - I've read that Windjammer is out of business. You wouldn't want that for a first cruise anyway, but someone suggested it....]

When you're ready to make a decision, go to a travel agent, preferably one who specializes in cruises, and take a list of cruises you think you're interested in and take it from there. You may not want to use cruise line air arrangements, unless you can save A LOT of money that way, because they give you the worst flights possible and don't let you fly in a day ahead of time. [That would be one of my biggest suggestions, if you're not driving to the port - go the day before your cruise, especially if you're going in winter.]

Good luck!

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