Help.. first time on a cruise

[Jason R]

Hi I am going on a cruise in January. My fisrt, Can anyone recomend or sugest anything? It is on celebrity cruise line. I am going to St. Martin, San jaun, and nassua. Any helpful hints???

Thanks in advance

J

 

[John Zuber]

Advice #1, know where the lifejackets are, #2, know where the life boats are, #3, take sea sickness pills, #4 expect bad weather, #5 don't gamble, #6 have a good time.

 

[mookie]

There is a lifeboat drill.

The big ships are very stable.

Gambling is part of the fun.



Check the daily newsletter and pick which activities you want to do. Book your off-ship tours early. Be prepared to tip the staff at the end of the cruise (if it is not included; find out). If you don't like the dinner, order another one. Or even if you liked it order another one! The drinks can add up, so watch out (tea is free with dinner).



Enjoy!

 

[Dana OBrien]

Once you get into your first port, buy a couple of bottles of your favorite booze. I found it was relativley cheap. I got a Liter of Crown Royal for like 13 dollars. then I just brought the booze back on the ship and drank that. the mixer pop is usually free. I would just mix up a big sipper of cocktail, and roam the deck, tan or do whatever. I spent next to nothing drinking on the ship.

and Mookie is totally right, order whatever you want at dinner, even if you only want to try a bite of it. you are paying for it in one way or another anyways, so be a pig - its half the fun!

 

[Wes Davis]

I also purchased some very inexpensive liquor but it had to be kept on storage on the ship for the purpose of not drinking it and paying for ship liquor. Take advantage of every main dining room dinner, the food will be excellent. I skipped a few dining room dinners and just had the buffets and stuff but once I went to the dining room I was extremely disappointed that I did not eat all my meals in the main dining room. Just make sure you take some nice dress clothes for the dining room. A jacket is best but very nice golf shirt and slacks are ok. I saw some people wear jeans in the dining room and they were definitely ogled. They will tell you at the orientation that some people go on cruises because of the luxury and dress up and the main dining room is the only area they enforce this. Late night sub, pizza, hamburger, ice cream buffets are incredible all at 5:00am when your done gambling or partying in the clubs. You will have a blast but I can tell you the most important thing is that your second cruise will be absolutely incredible because you will use the first cruise as a learning experience.

 

[Wes Davis]

By the way I went out on Carnival from Miami to the Bahamas. First day out of port the water was very rough and many people became ill. The ship said that was the worst it had been in years. Still everbody had a good time that didn't get sick. Next day and for the rest of the cruise the weather was absolutely amazing.

 

[Exie Ramos]

As "mookie" said there is a mandatory lifeboat drill performed by everyone on the ship just as the ship leaves port. You WILL know where your lifejackets are (somewhere in your cabin) and the station that you will report to. It's actually a good time to meet the other people on the boat while you wait at your station until the "all clear" is sounded. You will eventually get used to the rocking--it's really not that bad unless you are in a Hurricane or something. The big ships deploy stabilizers on the keel to help keep the boat steady during rough seas. It basically feels like you are on a slow elevator in rough seas. If you don't like to gamble, there are plenty of other activities around the different bars, lounges and clubs. Just look at the schedules and listen for the announcements as the start times get near. There are a lot of fun activities and you may even get to get on the shipwide TV channel as they have camera crews roaming around all over the ship to capture these activities daily and then they show the activities from that day on a special channel on TV. You can even buy the video at the end of the cruise as your souvenier and show your friends what a fool you made of your self to over 2000 other people! :lol:. Try to get the early dinner sitting usually around 6pm so you can get back to the fun early. If you like to relax after dinner then definitely take the late seating around 8pm where the ships atmosphere is a little more laid back after dinner. Just remember, you are on vacation. You don't need to do everything the ship has to offer. You don't even have to get off the boat at the ports of call if you don't want to. Heck you can just lounge around the pool/jacuzzi all week if you want--it's all up to you! That's the beauty of the cruise!

 

[TomT]

Remember the Titanic. Only the wealthy people get on the life boats!

 

[Albert Basulto]

I love cruises. Get to your boarding early. If they say 1pm get there at noon. You will board early, while not waiting in line, and that's when you can get your cruise card. It's basically a credit card for the ship. They don't accept anything else onboard. Some cruise lines even allow you to tip out the whole staff through that card, although they prefer cash. You tip at the end of the cruise all at once in clever little envelopes that they will supply to you. I think having a little cash in pocket is always good, as the first couple of hours on board the bars are taking cash.

You can book shore excursions from the company's web site. If you wait it may be sold out.

Don't try to do everything, you'll tire out, I did the first time.

A little dramamine doesn't hurt, follow recommended dosage, and just have fun.

The biggest worry I had was not missing out on something, that's why I keep going.

Best, most consistent vacations I've ever had.



STogie

 

[Kerry Matthews]

I musta missed the lifeboat drill... sleeping through the jet lag! In fact, I almost missed the entire first day of the cruise because I was sleeping. So, get there a day early to 'acclimate' yourself!