A Beginners Guide to Cruising
Embarking on your first cruise is an exhilarating adventure filled with endless possibilities. With so many cruise lines, ships, and destinations to choose from, it’s natural to feel a bit overwhelmed. This guide will help you navigate the essentials of cruising—from dining and entertainment to selecting the right ship and shore excursions—focusing on major cruise lines like Royal Caribbean, Carnival Cruise Line, and Virgin Voyages. Let’s set sail on your journey to becoming a savvy cruiser!
Cruising offers a diverse range of food and dining experiences and can vary across the cruise lines.
A few examples of the types of food you can expect on board are:
Main Cruise Lines:
Included: Elegant multi course meals in the main dining room, buffets, smaller quick serve restaurants.
Specialty Restaurants: Includes gourmet restaurants with unique experiences, for an additional fee.
Virgin Voyages
All-Inclusive Dining: Features over 20 eateries included in the fare, eliminating traditional buffets.
**Some restaurants have specialty options for an additional fee but for the most part all of your food is included
Drink and beverage packages can also vary between the cruise lines - do you need one?
The need for a beverage package really depends on a few things:
Will you be purchasing alcoholic beverages?
Do you drink soda?
Will you be purchasing specialty coffees like lattes?
If you answered “yes” to any of these - a drink package might be a good idea.
One other thing to consider when weighing your options is what is included in your cruise fare which will also depend on the cruise line. For example, Virgin Voyages includes all essential drinks (drip coffee, tea, juice, water, soda) in the cruise fare. Any alcoholic beverages and specialty coffees would be purchased out of pocket. Unlike the main cruise lines, Virgin Voyages does not offer a drink package. Instead, you would be pre-purchasing a bar tab ahead of your cruise
For the main cruise lines, you will want to think about how much alcohol/soda/or non-included drinks you plan on consuming. Many sailors admit that they tend to drink more on a cruise because they can. For example, Carnival charges about $70 + tax/gratuities per day for their drink package. This includes up to 15 alcoholic drinks per day and unlimited soda/specialty coffee/milkshakes, etc. With a drink averaging around $13-14 each, you would easily break even having 4-5 cocktails a day. Now, if you are a beer drinker - the amount will go up as beer is significantly cheaper than cocktails on board, but if you combine that with soda and coffee it may be worth it. Not an alcohol drinker? Not to worry, you can also purchase non-alcoholic packages so that you can have all the soda you want!
Why Travel Protection and Insurance is so Important
I highly recommend to all my clients that they purchase travel insurance. I have heard so many horror stories of people that had a medical emergency on board and not having coverage and coming home with a hefty bill. Think of it like going to a hospital without medical insurance - need an Advil? That could cost you $100. It is better to have the piece of mind that travel insurance provides to avoid any of those situations happening. Some insurances also cover your trip in general as well - so if your cruise, flight or hotel is cancelled for any reason - it may be covered. Be sure to read all your documents about what is and is not covered before purchasing.
What kind of entertainment can I expect?
There are so many activities to do no matter what cruise line you are sailing on - there is something for everyone. During the day, you can expect trivia, games, and musicians throughout the ship as well. Just looking to spend some time at the pool relaxing? You can do that too! The possibilities are endless. Traveling with the whole family? Many of the cruise lines have areas of the ship specifically for sailors under 17 to hang out with video games and other planned activities.
At night, you can expect broadway style shows, concerts, Ice skating performances, and more!
Looking for a shore excursion while you are in port? Book with your cruise line!
I always recommend booking your shore excursions with the cruise line itself. There are many benefits to this, but the main one is that if your tour or activity is running behind the ship is required to wait for you to return. When you book outside of the cruise line, although you may be saving some money - it is important to make sure you are back on the ship with plenty of time to spare. You don’t want to be a pier runner, or possibly miss the boat.
In many of the ports, you may find locals waiting outside the port gates offering rides or tours. Be aware of your surroundings and make sure you are vetting them out before paying them.
How do you know which itinerary or ship is the best?
If you are working with a travel agent, they will discuss with you your travel style, and types of locations you are wanting to visit (relaxing on the beach, more adventurous, etc.) and be able to recommend itineraries. Make sure that you are working with someone that cruises a lot, and has sailed on multiple lines so that they are educated on each cruise lines offerings.
If you are booking on your own - check out Youtube vlogs of the different itineraries to see what you can expect at each port stop. Check out reviews online as well - Cruise Critic is a great resource for ship reviews, but there are specific sites for many of the cruise lines as well.
Worried about Sea Sickness? Here are my tips!
Opt for a standard rate room. This will allow you to choose your cabin location. I always recommend staying in the middle on the lower decks for the most stability. Unless you are sailing during hurricane season - you generally will not feel anything on the upper decks. I like to aim for anywhere from 10-13 for ease of accessibility to the lido deck, and activities.
Always make sure to bring some Dramamine (the non-drowsy kind) or motion sickness patches so you do not have to try and buy on board. Prices are extremely marked up in the shops! Sea-Bands are another good alternative.
What are the benefits of planning your cruise with a travel agent?
Travel Agents are your one source for everything you need to do to plan your cruise vacation. The best part is that most of our services are free! I love introducing new cruisers to the world of cruising - it can be overwhelming figuring out where to start, and that is where I come in. Choosing a travel advisor is a personal experience - so definitely make sure to do your research on their offerings and cruising experience.
For my clients, I am able to book their pre-cruise hotel, flights, the cruise itself and help with excursion selection. My specialty is adults only travel, but I also do family vacations. Different cruise lines also offer different perks through Travel Agents that you cannot get booking direct. For example with Virgin Voyages, I am able to add on board credit and priority boarding to most standard Sea Terrace bookings, as well as help with your dining reservations. This gives you the opportunity to use the on board credit as a bonus bar tab, or to spend in the shops or on excursions you book on board. The possibilities are endless!
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