Been on a cruise?

[htismaqe]

Originally Posted by KCBOSS1

Just went on my first one this year. Went to Atlantis...incredible but not enough time at Atlantis. It was a 7 day cruise, enjoyed the time at sea, but it got a little long on the specific boat we were on and the other two stops were a little boring. Next cruise, I will do 5 days out of Florida with a 2-day stay at Atlantis where I will rent a room to get full access to the Park for much cheaper than my $700 one day with a family of six. Atlantis is one of the most awesome places on earth, but I would advise going in the winter or offseason, much cheaper, less crowd at the stops. Also, the excursions (Carnival at least) are more expensive than you can work out on your own. Have fun!

I've been thinking about just skipping the cruise and JUST going to Atlantis. It looks like a lot of fun for a family...

[DaKCMan AP]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

I've been thinking about just skipping the cruise and JUST going to Atlantis. It looks like a lot of fun for a family...

You can do better. The Bahamas are pretty lame.

[htismaqe]

Originally Posted by DaKCMan AP

You can do better. The Bahamas are pretty lame.

I have two pre-teen kids. Pretty much every family vacation destination is lame.

The kids want to go to Hawaii, FWIW.

[REDHOTGTO]

went to bahamas on carnival boats, not my idea of fun, only thing to do was gamble no shows except to buy jewlery, aint happening ! food was good, bahamas was just ok, kinda boring, even took a jeep tour kinda lame. best part of trip was going to the kennedy space center in florida, best day of the trip by far.

[DaKCMan AP]

Originally Posted by REDHOTGTO

went to bahamas on carnival boats, not my idea of fun, only thing to do was gamble no shows except to buy jewlery, aint happening ! food was good, bahamas was just ok, kinda boring, even took a jeep tour kinda lame. best part of trip was going to the kennedy space center in florida, best day of the trip by far.

You went on the crappiest kind of cruise: short trip to the Bahamas.

[Old Dog]

As far as them catching it, it's hit and miss, but I suspect more gets through than doesn't.
You figure that from the time a ship pulls into port (8:30 am give or take normally) until they take off again (4pm ish) they have to not only unload thousands of bags, but also scan and load a few thousand more. There's no way in hell they're going to catch it all.

[Rain Man]

This thread has way too much emphasis on sneaking in alcohol and not enough on cruises.

I'm not a drinker, so I have to ask. I thought half the fun of drinking is going down to the bar and hanging out and meeting people and getting in drunken fights where you hit people with chairs and throw them through windows. If you're sneaking liquor on board, don't you miss out on all that fun?

[DaKCMan AP]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

This thread has way too much emphasis on sneaking in alcohol and not enough on cruises.

I'm not a drinker, so I have to ask. I thought half the fun of drinking is going down to the bar and hanging out and meeting people and getting in drunken fights where you hit people with chairs and throw them through windows. If you're sneaking liquor on board, don't you miss out on all that fun?

No. You get happy for less in your stateroom then, already happy, travel to the bar, get happier and meet people.

[uninvited]

I've done everything from the 7-10 day Caribbean trips to the 21 day Mediterranean/Middle East cruises, and the biggest lesson I've learned is to avoid the ship sponsored excursions at all costs. They absolutely bend you over with their pricing. I go out on my own. (this may present some safety issues depending on where you go and how comfortable you are with the idea) Hire local taxis to take you where you want to go. Hire private boats to take you outside the congested reefs that all the ships bring people to. Research ports online at places like cruisecritic .com. You can usually find others on your same cruise looking to hook up with small groups for the tourist spots. The advantages are usually a much more reasonable price, local knowledge and info from your guide and a more relaxed time compared to the ships excursions where they load up 40 or more of you on a bus and haul you around like sheep. It can also greatly open up the opportunities available to you. On one trip to Cozumel, we weren't super excited by the typical local excursions, so we pre-arranged to get a flight at the local airport to take us inland to go to Chichen Itza. Figuring it may be the only time I'd ever be in the area, it was well worth the extra $ and planning to see such an amazing site as opposed to a 4 hour snorkeling trip that pretty much everyone else on our ship did.

Also be prepared to haggle. It's accepted practice to negotiate taxi fares, tourist items at shops etc...

Know what type of vacation cruise you really want. Personally, I hate the days at sea. I'm not much for lounging on my balcony or at the pool for hours or days at a time. I'd prefer my vacation being spent doing something. Others though love the days at sea and the ability to mingle and do nothing. Pick your cruise accordingly.

Time of year, length of trip and the cruise line you choose all impact the type of people you'll find on your ship. A cheaper cruise line such as Carnival will usually give you more of a younger group. Lots of families and that typically means kids running around the ship and being loud. Whereas companys like Princess, Celebrity or Oceania are genarally more expensive and tend to be an older bunch.

Longer cruises also tend to raise the average age. My first cruise was as a 21 yr old with my parents on a 10 day Southern Caribbean on Princess. Most of my shipmates were about 60 plus. While I had an amazing time, I missed having the younger crowd that I was expecting in the night clubs and social events. Typically the shorter cruise length finds more people in the younger age brackets either due to financial means or ability to have time off from jobs or school.

Time of year can have an effect on whether or not kids are out of school, hence more families on board. Also the weather comes into play.

Cruising is a great get away. Just research where you want to go, what you want to do and the type of atmosphere you're looking for. And as others have mentioned, prepare accordingly for all the additional monies you'll spend on top of the cruise price and airfare. To an extent you're nickle an dimed the entire way' but you can have some control over that with proper planning.

[Rain Man]

I'm actually a fan of cruises. I guess you can make what you want out of them, but for me they're a chance to just melt and get away from everything. You don't have to worry about anything. I just wander somewhere and eat, go to the gym and exercise, and then hang out and read or whatever. I actually like the days at sea because then I don't feel pressure to go wander around some city being stressed about when I have to get back to the ship.

I think I'm less common in that attitude. I suspect that most people like the more social aspects of cruises like the shore excursions and the shows and drinking in their stateroom before going to the bar. For me, oddly, a cruise is actually a great place to be solitary, either with my spouse or by myself.

[bevischief]

I would rather do a inclusive vacation or an Alaskan cruise.

[Rausch]

Originally Posted by bevischief

I would rather do a inclusive vacation or an Alaskan cruise.

I'd prefer a high pressure colonoscopy with large grain sea salt and pop rocks in a boiling habanero solution...

[listopencil]

I've been on several cruises. All for free. Ask me how, or go to:

http://www.navy.com/

[Dayze]

Originally Posted by listopencil

I've been on several cruises. All for free. Ask me how, or go to:

http://www.navy.com/

me too.
but the chicks were ugly.

and they would only port every 4 weeks or more lol

[Mr. Flopnuts]

Originally Posted by Dayze

me too.
but the chicks were ugly.

and they would only port every 4 weeks or more lol

Watch your cornhole, bud.