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Been on more cruises than most…?


VixbCC
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We’re looking for Cruise Critic’s top cruising tips to share with new cruisers. We’d love to hear how many times you’ve cruised, when you learnt your tip, and what your tip is:

 

“I’ve cruised xx times, and on my xx cruise, I learnt __________________!”

 

Thank you!

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My tip....don't try and tell new cruisers everything....it always backfires. It's so much more fun to learn on your own....if you are overly enthusiastic about ANY vacation/destination, it takes away the awe of discovery for the newbie.

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My tips, based on A LOT of travel:

 

#1 Do not overpack and commit to being a carry-on only traveler. You won't have to worry about lost luggage and there is something freeing about being a minimalist traveler.

 

#2 Before you leave home, learn some simple greetings and phrases in the language(s) of where you will visit. Learn about the culture(s) you will visit; music, food, books, history, politics, etc.

 

#3 Get off the beaten path when you safely can. Much wonder is gained by serendipity.

Edited by Bookish Angel
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I've cruised about 160 times not counting one and two night cruises and I agree to not tell people everything as everyone has their own idea of what they wAnt and what they need

 

Other than that best tip is research before you buy or spend and nut out what is important to you before those decisions

 

Plus live life and enjoy it when you can

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

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vixbCC .... Welcome to Cruise Critic! :)

Just like all sorts of travel, sometimes things on cruises don't go exactly as expected so learning to go with the flow and enjoying yourself anyway is important. ;)

LuLu

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Well it seems folks are reluctant, but I'll take a crack it.

 

Arrive at your departing port city at least a day or two before departure to enjoy what that city has to offer, and to not stress over making the ship on time. We have found that enjoying the port city for day can sometimes be so enjoyable that it becomes half the experience of the whole trip.

 

Burt

Edited by Beachdude
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1 cruise so far (12 days) and one cruise next month (13 days)

 

1)Check the deck plans and the facilities!

 

2) Check the ports (which ones are in walking distance and which ones you need to tender to)

 

3) I see you are from my homeland so best tip for UK cruisers is to prepare and inform them of the tipping/grats procedures on most of the bigger lines.

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Having sailed on around 100 at this point over the past 40 or so years, I'd have to say that for the last 10 years or so......most lines share more similarities then differences. Choose your cruise by itinerary, dates, times and price.

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Can I put this in another context. We were first time cruisers this year, and became members of this forum last year to get some info on cruise "etiquette" for want of another word. We had so many questions to ask and got answers to all of them. This even came down to "lace-up or slip-on shoes for formal nights". What I would now say to anyone new to cruising, and we are still very much novices, is if in doubt about ANYTHING, just ask.

 

We found it usefull to get different answers to all sorts of things, and the information on places you will visit are very true and will be more than you would get from a travel agent or cruise rep who is trying to sell you the trip. A good case of this recently is whats going on at the Trevi Fountain and Colliseam in Rome. Hope this helps

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Cruise Critic only represents a small portion of the cruising population at best and more often than people only post a review if something went wrong so you're just best to go with an open mind and check things out for yourself.

 

I gotta admit VixbCC, I wouldn't have expected so many odd replies like this one. I have to say that Cruise Crittic is letting us down today. There can be a lot more to enjoying a cruise than just going with the flow. :confused:

 

For example I think everyone should try a breakfast and dinner roomservice meal on the balcony at least once. You would surprised how relaxing they are.

 

I saw someone else say this somewhere, but instead of standing and waiting in line for dinner, go to a bar or a location to relax to music 30 minutes before dinner and wait until the line has gone. You wouldn' think a few minutes of relaxing before dinner would be a big deal, but I was surprised that even my teenage kids said that it put them in a more relaxed mood.

 

Those are a couple lessons we've learned over the past 15 years of cruising to make our cruise more enjoyable.

 

I will think of more.

 

Burt

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We’re looking for Cruise Critic’s top cruising tips to share with new cruisers. We’d love to hear how many times you’ve cruised, when you learnt your tip, and what your tip is:

 

“I’ve cruised xx times, and on my xx cruise, I learnt __________________!”

 

Thank you!

 

 

 

I'm curious..... :)

 

Who is the 'we' you reference?

Is this some sort of research project?

 

I've cruised about 90+ cruises.

 

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.

Honestly, I don't think you or anyone else cares how many cruises I've been on. I don't care how many other people have been on, and when you start discussing it, to me it can sound like bragging. Sorry, I guess I'm not going to play. :p:D

 

#1 Do not overpack and commit to being a carry-on only traveler. You won't have to worry about lost luggage and there is something freeing about being a minimalist traveler...

 

I appreciate the sentiment but this would only work on shorter vacations, IMO. I know some people may have done so, but we could never manage Europe (land or cruise) or a repositioning cruise with just a carry-on each.

 

.

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We’re looking for Cruise Critic’s top cruising tips to share with new cruisers. We’d love to hear how many times you’ve cruised, when you learnt your tip, and what your tip is:

 

“I’ve cruised xx times, and on my xx cruise, I learnt __________________!”

 

Thank you!

 

I agree with Sail. Who is the we you've referred to?

Tip: Find out what is complimentary on each ship. You might be missing out on something that's free because you thought you had to pay for it.

Edited by JimAOk1945
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I'm curious..... :)

 

Who is the 'we' you reference?

Is this some sort of research project?

 

I've cruised about 90+ cruises.

 

The WE is Cruise Critic UK. The OP is a staffer in the London offices. I'll get her credentials updated under her username.
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Hi VixbCC ~

 

I've cruised 50+ times and early on (sorry I can't recall what number cruise it was) I learned that starting our cruise by touring the ship from top to bottom shortly after we board helps us learn the ship layout and where everything is located.

 

We even do this with ships we've sailed before. We start at the top of the ship and work our way from the front of the ship to the rear. Then we go down one deck and work our way from the rear of the ship to the front. If there are several decks of cabins only, we'll skip those as they all pretty much look alike. The one exception is the Celebrity S class ships which have an area midship on almost all decks that have some type of lounge (one is the library, one is cyber cafe, etc). Look at your ship's deck plan map that they typically give you when you check in to see which decks would be OK to skip.

 

The larger ships today can seem so overwhelming, especially to new cruisers. Taking the time to become familiar with the ship on the first day makes it much easier to get around and start enjoying your cruise sooner!

 

ENJOY!

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One tip I would share after sailing about 90+ cruises is to read materials which are left on counter top or desk by the ship. They will offer information you may not otherwise know.

 

We once met a lovely couple who we chatted with from time to time. He a physician, she a professor. Neither bothered to look at the materials HAL had left in their suite which detailed all the amenities to which they were entitled given their category cabin. When we mentioned to them on our last full day we had a lovely breakfast that morning in the specialty restaurant where only selected cabins are permitted to have breakfast, they wre shocked. They did not know they could have been going there every morning and had 'suffered' Lido. They started to get all angry no one told them until I mentioned the folio and asked if they had glanced at it. The answer was "No" and they were very disappointed with themselves.

 

 

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