Increasing numbers of people are being tempted to try the cruise holiday experience and many of them become regular cruisers. It’s not hard to understand why; cruises offer the opportunity to enjoy a fabulous holiday at a great value price.
Why a Cruise Holiday?
Cruise holidays offer the traveller value, convenience, relaxation and exciting new experiences. Cruises are good value because the price you see is the price you pay. In other words, your travel, accommodation, food and entertainment are all covered by a single good value payment.
Cruises offer the convenience of staying in a luxurious floating hotel which takes you from one stunning location to another without the hassle of repacking and rushing for transport connections, thus allowing you to completely unwind and relax. Your cruise holiday also gives you the excitement of meeting new people, enjoying top class on-board entertainment and fine dining and the opportunity to visit a number of enthralling locations.
How to Choose the Right Cruise
When selecting a cruise, ask yourself what you are looking for from your holiday. Is it constant sunshine and a chance to top up you tan, or something a little more temperate? Are you looking for exciting trips ashore and a little shopping, cultural excursions, or just the opportunity to relax on-board your cruise ship and unwind? Whether you are a couple, a senior or someone looking for a family holiday you will find that there is a cruise to meet your particular needs.
Price will inevitably be the main determining factor in choosing the right cruise for your needs. But you should also look at whether you wish to board your ship in this country, or fly to join it elsewhere. The size and type of ship you prefer is also relevant, as is the balance of time at sea a particular cruise offers compared with the time ashore.
Enjoying Your Cruise Experience
As with any good holiday, a little preparation and planning ahead of your cruise will pay off in the long run. Most cruises offer such a wide range of activities, from zumba sessions to wine-tasting, that it makes sense to read the programme before you join your ship so that you can prioritise the things you really want to do. Also, at some of the ports you visit you may only be provided with a few hours ashore, so you need to know before you arrive the things you really want to see and do during your time there.
As soon as you arrive at your cruise terminal your luggage will be taken from you and delivered straight to your cabin. Unfortunately, as everyone arrives at more or less the same time, there may be a slight delay in your cases actually catching up with you. Seasoned cruisers, therefore, think ahead and pack a hand luggage bag to keep with them, perhaps with your costumes to enjoy a dip in the pool and some clothes to dress for dinner. On the subject of clothing, most cruise lines are now much more informal with their dress codes, apart perhaps from certain specified formal occasions.
The key tip to enjoying your first cruise, however, is simply to embrace the whole experience and approach it as if it is going to be the holiday of a lifetime, because there is a very good chance that it will be.
[box]John is a guest blogger from Royal Caribbean Cruises who operate cruises from Southampton to Italy, Portugal & Spain[/box]
