Saturday, January 9, 2010

To Cruise or Not to Cruise?

To cruise or not to cruise, that is the question. Yes, you should cruise at least once in your life! I think it's a great experience. Here's why:

1) You get to stop and explore (in this case) 5 different parts of the world.
2) The scenery is beautiful. It's crazy being on a boat in the middle of the ocean and all you can see is water.
3) You can relax as much or as little as you want and take horrid self-portraits :)
4) The food is amazing. Anything you could ever want, from ice cream to sushi to Indian food. Here's our typical dinner, minus dessert:
Amuse Bouche: champagne poached oyster
M's Appetizer: hickory smoked salmon
My Appetizer: wild mushroom vol-au-vent
Salad: arugula with smoked breast of quail
Entree: lobster melange
5) The service is impeccable. You are treated like royalty.

M and I also thought there were a few things that could have been improved:

1) The entertainment was just terrible. Think not so great singers trying to sing Celine Dion songs every single night. Now, I must say there was a jazz band that played each night and they were fantastic (and from Toronto), but the nightly shows were not. Oh, and these scarf acrobat people were crazy good, but performed for about two minutes in total!
2) The boat moved a lot more than I expected! Most people told me I wouldn't even feel the boat moving, but this was not true about our ship. Walking in a straight line down the hallway could sometimes be a challenge! I took a gravol every night before we set sail, just to be safe, and had zero problems. I am glad I brought that gravol though! A couple I talked to explained that Celebrity cruises like you to feel as though you're on a boat, so they put the stabilizers on only halfway. I have no idea if this is true.

And finally, advice for first time cruisers:
1) Our ticket said we couldn't board the boat until 7pm on the first night, but in reality you can start boarding at noon and spend the whole day on the boat.
2) We had an interior room and this was completely fine. I would either go with an interior room (so nice and dark for sleeping) or splurge for a room with a balcony, but I see no point in getting a room with a window.
3) Book the late dinner seating. This will allow you time to relax and shower without rushing.
4) We learned (too late) that you can ask for an "on-board credit" and get about $100 put on your card to buy alcohol. This would have been nice to know!

Would I go on another cruise? Definitely, but not for a long while, because there are so many other things to do. I am a backpacker at heart!

4 comments:

  1. You posted some good comments about cruising. I'm not sure what you mean by a $100 on board credit. What's that all about? I can't wait to go another cruise.....

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  2. Yeah, we spoke with a couple who frequently go on cruises and they showed us their bill at the end, and the cruise line owed them money! Can you believe that??

    First, they noticed the entire price of the cruise had reduced, so they got a refund for that. Then, they ask for an "on-board credit" and get money to spend on drinks, excursions, etc. They said it's about $100 for a 7-day cruise and up to $300 for a 14-day. You should try it next time and see if it works!

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  3. I fully endorse the contents of this post.

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  4. I can't say I would never go on a cruise. Maybe, someday, but as you say, there are so many other places I want to go first before I do. It does look relaxing though...

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