We are thinking of booking our first cruise. Any advice on possible problems?

Question

We are thinking of booking our first cruise. Any advice on possible problems?

Answer 1

I  have been on about 20 cruises on 4 different cruise lines and so here's what I say based on my experiences.

First you should know that all of the cruise lines give the best price for early bookings that are a year or more in advance. So its good that you are starting your cruise search process now. Cruise lines also list specials on their web sites so do look for those. The specials can many times save you a couple hundred per person over the price for the exact same cruise on a different date.  Be flexible with your cruise date and you can save some money.

Second you should know that all cruise cabins are sold based on double occupancy and the prices listed will be per person and based on at least two people going on the cruise.

The price you pay for your cruise will depend mostly on the type accommodations that you choose. There are 4 basic types of cabins on ships;

- inside (no window), ..................... (cheapest)

- outside (a window or porthole),

- balcony/veranda, and

- suites. ........................................... expensive)

Royal Caribbean has some inside cabins on its Freedom and Voyager Class of ships that have a window overlooking an inside promenade mall.

The "FROM" prices you see will always be for an inside cabin.

You can reserve a cruise on line, by calling the cruise line, or through a travel agent by paying the minimum deposit which will be between $250 and $350 per person for a 7 day cruise, depending upon the cruise line. The minimum will be more for a longer cruise, for example $450 per person for a 14 day cruise. The balance will be due approximately 60 days before the cruise departure date. But you can make periodic payment on line or with the cruise line.

I have listed below the web sites for the medium priced cruise lines which operate from US ports. These are the cruise lines that most people use. The lines that I have listed below will have cruises starting in the range of $800 to $1,000 per person for a 7 day cruise, again depending upon the date and type cabin you select.

CELEBRITY:

http://www.celebritycruises.com/home .

ROYAL CARIBBEAN:

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/gohome.d.....

NORWEGIAN:

http://www.ncl.com/

PRINCESS:

http://www.princess.com/index.html

CARNIVAL:

http://www.carnivalcruiselines.com/

I have been on Princess, Celebrity, Norwegian, and Royal Caribbean ships and can vouch that they are good cruise lines. However, there are some differences.

Princess, and Celebrity have great ships are more classy and reserved than the other cruise lines. If you want a better cruise experience for your money go on one of these cruise lines. The difference in cost of these two over the others is not that much.

- Holland America has more senior citizens cruising on its ships. It has great ships and service but the majority of the passengers will be seniors.

-Carnival is the budget cruise line that has more first time cruiser and young people (20 to 35 age group) who want to party, party, party. If that is what your parents are looking for then Carnival is the cruise line for you. Carnival is family oriented to an extent and will also have a good number of kids and also some older passengers. They, like the other cruise lines do have kids programs called Camp Carnival.

-Norwegian cruise line is good and I have been on many of their cruises. Its the line that you want to go on if you want to be informal for pretty much your whole cruise. They have formal nights like other cruise lines but they do not stress dressing up; the call it "dress up if you want to" night. In my experience their passengers tend to be a mixture of young and middle aged people. They also have programs for the kids.

-Royal Caribbean caters most to families and has the most and best on-board activities. Many Royal Caribbean ships have things like ice skating, roller blade track, rock climbing wall, mini-golf course, full sized basketball courts, and adults only pool and hot tub area called 'Solarium", the surfing simulator on the Freedom Class ships called the "Flowrider". RC also has kids programs called Adventure Ocean and on many ships a special area on the ship for them, plus a teen disco called Fuel. You cannot go wrong with RC.

Regardless of which cruise line you select, the things that are included are pretty much the same. The price of your cruise includes your cabin, all meals (including breakfast, lunch dinner, snacks and free room service)(you do pay to eat in the specialty restaurants), all shows and entertainment, and free use of all facilities on ship. The things that you will have to pay for are:

GRATUITIES: They will amount to about $10 per person in your cabin per day; about $70 each for a 7 day cruise. When you check in at the pier they will set up an on-board charge account for you to cover any and everything you may buy on ship. They will issue you a "cruise card" which will also serve as your room key and pass to get on and off the ship. At the end of the cruise they will add the gratuity to your tab and you can pay with a credit card or cash, your choice.

ALCOHOLIC DRINKS AND SOFT DRINKS: Coffee, tea, milk, juice, and lemonade and punch will be provided free but you must pay for soft drinks and alcoholic beverages and they will add a 15% gratuity to each drink and soft drink order.

PHOTOGRAPHS: Cruise lines will take plenty of photographs of you all over the ship, in the dining room, and as you exit the ship in ports. These will cost a lot, like $15 to $20 for most.

TOURS/EXCURSIONS: You are not required to book any tours and can get off and on in the ports as much as you want. But the cruise line will offer a lot of tours and these are expensive.

SOUVENIRS: Anything you buy on ship from a gift shop or duty free shop goes on your on board account. Things that you buy on shore you pay cash or credit card for.

CASINO: If you plan to gamble on ship you will need cash for that.

OTHER: most cruise lines have what they call "specialty" restaurants where there is a gratuity/service charge. All other food on board is free and its not really necessary to budget for food; you cannot eat all of the FREE FOOD that will be available.

If you want/need to have your hair done, get a massage or wrap, or any services from the spa, you will have to pay for them. You can use the gym free but the spa stuff cost big bucks.

Ships now have internet cafe and some have WiFi but the there is a fee for internet access and it is very expensive (like about $50 to $60 an hour).

You cabin will likely have a minibar with soft drinks and munchies; you have to pay for them (but there is free room service 24/7).

I have found that the cruise lines web sites give the best information about their cruises and Carnival and Royal Caribbean to me have the best web sites.  These two also have the easiest to find specials or deals.

Answer 2

Well the first advice is to be sure to use serous channels like the cruise lines web page or an serous travel agent. You can search the web for critics on travel agent and cruise companys.

Before you start to look for travells work out things like where and when you would like to travel, how much you can afford on the cruise (and dont forget to estimate how much youll spent on the cruise).

Then begin to search for cruises. I would recomend a mainstream cruise with one of the big seven in areas like mediterannean sea or carebian where the big cruise trades is for your first cruise. Why not a version of either eastern or wester carrebian? I would also recomend a 7 night cruise (even thou both shorter and longer could do).

For a first cruise I would recomend the best cabin you can afford (or at least a standard seaside/balcony cabin. Cruising in a warm sea with your own veranda to sit in on the evening is... undescrible. And on modern ships its alot of balcony cabins so they arent much more expensive than regualar outdoor ones.

I would also recomend that you read the deck plan of your ship and choice a cabin far away from noice sources such as the disko or a night club where the action keeps you waked to the wee hours. This also let you develop a good feel for hows the ship is like.

And remember: There is nothing like the best ship or the best cruise, there in only the best ship and the best cruise for you! Johan.

Answer 3

What type of atmosphere are you looking for? If you don't mind families with children, or a funner atmosphere, a line like Carnival or Royal Caribbean will be your choice. If you want a more adult atmosphere, go for Cunard, Crystal, or even Princess. Don't go on a cruise line that won't suit your tastes.

Price is another consideration. Carnival is on the cheaper end, while Cunard/Crystal are a lot more expensive.

Buy insurance. While the chances of anything happening might not be that great, it's better to play it safe. And be mindful of what exactly you're buying, as not all insurance policies are created equally.

Go in with a positive attitude! Don't let the little things get to you. Like any other vacation, not everything will go as you dream.

Answer 4

It's a pretty simple process. You will need a down payment within about 48 hours of your booking and the travel agent will tell you when you must pay in full. If you do use a travel agent, they will get your documents to you, but if you book it yourself, say online, then they will come to you directly. You should have everything in your hands within a month of your cruise. To book shore excursions, go online to your cruise company. There is also a time frame for you to do this. The best ones sell out before the cruise starts. You can cancel these up to about 48 hours of the tour. Your cruise company will advise you on this. If you have any questions about your cruise, the best source is usually online or with a good travel agent. The hard part is waiting for your cruise day to come.

Answer 5

KNOW WHAT YOU WANT!

If not, you might get dragged into an overpriced scam

Answer 6

You might want to consider going to cruisecritic.com. Joining is free and it has a wealth of information. There are also links to other websites with valuable information.

Cruising is habit forming!!! We just booked our 5th!!