Planning your Cruise

How do I choose my first cruise?

I know, there are so many cruise lines and so many itineraries, and picking one out can seem very overwhelming, especially for those booking cruise first time. First, you need to decide what kind of vacation you would want? If you are into sandy beaches, you should pick a Caribbean cruise. If you are more into nature and want to explore Alaska, an Alaska cruise might be the right answer for you. If you love Europe and exploring cities, a Mediterranean cruise may be a great fit. Looking for a very slow-paced cruise with fewer people on board, a river cruise would be a great option.

If this is your first time cruising, I would recommend a 7 day Caribbean cruise to start your cruising adventure(for US citizens). The simple reason for that is you will be going out of the port in United States. If you have never traveled outside of United States before, this may be the easiest way to introduce yourself to international travel. Remember all of the cruises departing from U.S. port will be visiting other countries, so make sure you have a passport (you can sail with other documents, but that may be a bit more complicated).

Second, pick a cruise line. If you are traveling with kids, my 4 top choices would be Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, Disney Cruise Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, or Carnival Cruise Line. Those are great for a family cruise. Many cruise lines that cater to families often have a kids club that has a lot of activities for kids during the day.

Royal Caribbean is my favorite cruise company, they offer a great variety of ships and sailings. They are geared toward family cruising and have many activities for families, kids, and adults. They tend to be more expensive than Carnival and cheaper than Disney. If you are on a budget I would recommend the Carnival cruise line as they tend to be a bit cheaper. They do have many things for families to do as well. I’ve sailed with them in the past (my first cruise ever) and really enjoyed the experience. Finally, Disney is a great choice if you have a bigger budget, as they tend to be the most expensive out of the three. This cruise line has an amazing reputation and caters to families with kids. Well, who doesn’t love Disney? If you are looking for a cruise with less kids on board, luxury lines (Princess cruise, Celebrity, Crystal, and Cunard) tend to have less families on board as they are way more expensive. On many higher-priced cruises drink package is often included in your cruise fare. I am sure whichever cruise company you choose, you will definitely enjoy the cruise, as all the cruise companies, work very hard to make your cruise vacation amazing.

Third, pick ports of call you are interested in and the ship you want to cruise on. We will discuss those two topics next.

We do have a full article about picking your first cruise

What size of the cruise ship is best for first time cruise?

Every cruise line typically has a lot of ships to choose from. Often the larger and newer the ship is, the more expensive it will be to book. However, larger cruise ships do have more amenities and entertainment options. I loved sailing on Oasis-class ships (Oasis of the Seas, Allure of the Seas, Symphony of the Seas, and Harmony of the Seas); there are tons of things to do. Those ships have zip lines, an aqua theater in the back of the cruise ships for water shows, an ice-skating rink, and few other things not usually found on smaller ships. I love Oasis class, but they can seem overwhelming. One drawback of Oasis ships is they cannot visit ports that require tendering (not docking in the port but getting passengers to the port by boat).

For the Royal Caribbean cruise line, my favorite cruise ship size is the Freedom-class ships (Freedom of the Seas, Independence of the Seas, Liberty of the Seas). These ships are large enough to have many activities (including an ice skating rink and Broadway shows) but not so huge where you start getting lost. They also tend to be a bit cheaper.

Smaller ships tend to have fewer activities onboard. If you are looking for a 3 or 4-day cruise, usually those are done on the smaller cruise ships.

My advice is, start with your budget first. Choose an itinerary that you like, and lastly, pick the largest cruise ship that fits within your budget.

Planning excursions – what to do in the ports of call?

So you booked your cruise, now let’s talk about what to do in the ports of call. And no, I am not talking about cruise line shore excursion. If you want to have a great vacation, the best thing is to plan your port visit before you board the ship. You can look at the shore excursions your cruise line is offering, however, you might get a better deal booking the tour outside of the cruise line for your port day. Many ports in the Caribbean do have free beaches near the port. There are always taxis lined up right outside the port to take you wherever you want to go. I do suggest that you research ports of call to make sure you get the most out of your day. I do have a separate article about planning your port excursions and suggestions for some of the ports.

Before and/or after cruise accommodations

It’s time to look at the hotel or other accommodations. If you arrive a day or a few days before your cruise, you will need a place to stay. When choosing your hotel or accommodation, try to get something not too far from the port. If you are staying after the cruise, look for something that has on-site laundry.

Getting Ready

Checking into the cruise

Two or three months before your cruise, you will need to check-in with your cruise line. Typically checking in consists of providing a cruise line with your passport numbers, credit card information for your onboard spending account, and designate spending privileges (to make sure kids don’t go on a spending spree). Providing needing information will speed up your check-in process at the port. You will also be asked to pick check-in time. If you arrive a day before, my suggestion is to choose the earliest check in time so you can enjoy ship for most of the day. If you flying in on the day cruise, pick the earliest time you will be able to make it to the ship.

Few things you should consider packing

We have a separate article about this. However, here are 9 things you may consider packing:

• Outlet adapter – Cruise lines are notorious for having only very few outlets in a cruise cabin. This cheap accessory can save you a lot of headaches. We tend to travel with a laptop, camera, couple of phones, and couple of tablets. Being able to extend the number of outlets is a big help for us.
• Travel wipes– Having disinfecting wipes helps make sure we stay safe. Especially on the plane, wiping down your seat and anything you or your kids will touch. You can also use those to wipe down surfaces in your cabin
• Wine bottle protector – Cruises do allow you to bring wine onboard. I do recommend arriving a day early and getting wine before boarding a ship. However, you may be the kind of person that really loves the particular wine that you want to bring along in your luggage. Also, you can save a lot of money getting liquor bottles on the ship during sailing to bring home (if you do, make sure you know you are not allowed to bring liquids in the carry-on bag). In either case, you may want to invest in wine bags to make sure your bottles arrive safely, and if they don’t at least your clothing won’t be soaked in wine.
• Poo-Pourri – Let’s talk about an awkward topic. Bathrooms on the cruise ship don’t have great ventilation. Poo-Pourri can help mask bathroom odors and save your marriage. This is not a spray that mixes into the smell; you spray this into the toilet before going. It creates a seal, so odors don’t get out.
• Over the door organizer – No, this is not for your shoes. Cruise cabins are relatively small. You can hang this on the bathroom door to keep all the small accessories you have and keep your room organized. We usually put sunscreen bottles, deodorants, lotions, hair products, makeup, and other small things. Well and obviously shoes, this is a shoe organizer after all.
• Charge Station– Do you have a ton of devices you need to charge (if you have kids you for sure do). Having a charging station is the most effective way to charge all your phones and tablets at the same time, just make sure you have enough charging cables. Charging many modern devices have either USB-C, Micro USB or Apple lighting type connection.
• Luggage tags and ID holders – You should consider getting luggage tags and ID holders. While the printed luggage tags can usually be stapled around your luggage, they tend to get lost at times, resulting in your luggage not being delivered. Each line has different luggage tags, so make sure you get the correct ones. You can check out tags for Royal Caribbean and Celebrity or Carnival
• Waterproof cell phone pouch – If you are going on a Caribbean cruise, you will be visiting many beaches. Consider buying a waterproof case for your cell phone to keep water and sand away from your cell phone.
• Water shoes – One of my favorite purchases was water shoes. When you go into the water, you can encounter sharp rocks and pebbles. It’s a lot easier walking in water shoes. Plus, they dry very quickly after you leave the ocean.

We do have more articles about cool things to take you’re your cruise, don’t forget to check them out.

Print and collect all the documents

It’s time to print and collect all the documents. I know that you can pull a lot of documents on the phone, however, I prefer to at least print boarding docs to make it easier to get through the port security. Make sure you don’t forget passports either. I do prefer to have everything in one place and always use a travel document organizer.  

Traveling to destination port and boarding your cruise ship

Boarding and setting sail

After you finally arrive at the port, it’s now time to board your cruise ship. You want to make sure you check your bag with a cruise line.  Typically when you arrive a porter is waiting to take your bag.  Tipping a porter is optional, while some recommend tipping $1 or $2 a bag, typically all they do is just load your bag inside a metal cage.  So, for me I usually would rather spend that money tipping my room steward.  When departing a ship, they will do a lot more work, so if you choose to use a porter upon departure, a tip is warranted. You have to take your bag to a specific door in some ports if you don’t want a porter’s assistance (and don’t want to tip).  Just remember, even if you are traveling with only carry-on bags, you still should check them in as you won’t have access to your cruise cabin until later that day.  It would be a pain to carry those bags around.  Make sure that luggage tags are attached to the bag to ensure it is delivered to your stateroom.   Also, make sure all your valuables, electronics, and documents are in a separate bag. After taking care of the luggage, you will typically be greeted by security at the door and go through TSA style security check.  After that, it’s time to check-in. Ensure you are in the correct line as cruise lines have separate lines for new cruisers, loyalty program members, and suite guests. After checking in, you will visit the picture-taking station and will be able to board your ship. 

Most people will head to the buffet (typically located on each ship’s pool deck). Depending on when you check-in, it may be hard to find a place to sit.  I suggest you arrive early so you can enjoy the buffet before most of the others come.  After lunch, take time to walk around the ship—Check-in with the head waiter to get a table assigned (if you need it).  If you are planning on cruising again, this is an excellent time to visit the cruise sales desk as many cruise ships have specials on the first day of the cruise (for example, many give free champaign bottle if you book the next cruise on the first day).  Grab a daily planner (provided by the cruise line) to check out all that is happening on the first day.  Keep in mind that many events/seminars on a cruise ship are sales presentations.  Usually, on the first day, you will have a port shopping show.  You can skip that. However, this is an opportunity to win some prizes as well.

After everyone is on board, the cruise ship will have a muster drill to ensure everyone knows what to do in case of emergency.  They do take attendance at those drills, so make sure you check-in.

Cruise ships usually have a sail away party on the top deck. However, suppose you are not into loud music and dancing. In that case, you may enjoy watching cruise ship sail either from another deck or from your own balcony.

Tips for the first day onboard

Here are few things to remember on your first day on board:

• Look at the cruise ship's daily schedule newsletter – Each cruise line has a different name for it (Carnival calls it “Carnival Fun Times” and Royal Caribbean calls it “Cruise Compass). Regardless of the name, this paper contains everything that is going on during the ship on the day. Make sure you note things you want to attend before and after the muster drill
• Book dining – Looking for a specific dining time or table for 2 or 4? A great time to check in with a restaurant is on the first day of your cruise. On the first-day restaurant, the crew is still finalizing everything, so It is a lot easier to grant your special request. During my travel, we always try to book our travel party together at one table and book that table for the same time for the duration of the cruise?
• Book daycare and babysitting service- If you have toddlers or babies another stop you should make is at the daycare center. If you plan on using their service, keep in mind that spots for daycare care fill up fast and the sooner you come and book the easier it will be to get your desired time.
• Visit daycare/teen center– The day camp program is usually included in the cost of the cruise. You may want to visit it with your kids. See where it is located and get wristbands for your kids (that have your muster station in case of emergency).
• Make sure you visit the show on the first day – On one of the cruises we met a family during an excursion. What shocked me is they didn't know that there was a nightly show.