Wolfgang18

Thankyou to everyone that replied to my thread, and pardon the pun, but I've taken onboard what each person wrote.

I'm curious if you used a travel agent or just picked a ship on your own. If you used a TA, they should have asked you all kinds of questions about what you like to do on vacation and pointed you in the right direction.

I did use a TA. I went in because the deal Cunard were having seemed quite good. The trip from Sydney to Japan was AU$3,500. The only comment the TA made to me was that I've started with the best and everything else would be a let down. They never really asked any questions.

BTW, you don't say how old you are. That would make a difference too as what ship might be better for you. For you, perhaps one of the very large RCI ships which are loaded with activities.

I'm 53 and like to think still very active.

I like to go on destination ships with all the bells and whistles like the new NCL ships. During sea days I spend it walking around I spend time on the rope corse, Pools & slides. I read a bit do the quizzes and take the dance classes. I love cruises.

Unfortunately, the ship had no rope course or slides. I attended a trivia night and teamed up with an old Dutch couple. The questions were very religious based, which I have no knowledge in, plus the old couple couldn't speak fluent English. We then had to give our answers to the next table, and because we did poorly, we were made to feel like idiots. We all sneaked out of the pub, feeling miserable and vowing never to do that again.

There's nothing exciting about lying around and reading books. For me, that's kind of the point......I don't go on a cruise for excitement. For me, a cruise is about being calm and relaxed, not being excited and stressed (excitement is a type of stress, but a good type).

The problem is I felt more stressed being on the ship because I couldn't work out why I wasn't enjoying it. One person onboard did say to me, if you don't enjoy the first few hours on the ship, you never will. I'm afraid I fell into that category. I just can't bring myself to just sit around. I like to get up early and be active. I found I was up on the Lido deck hours before anyone else.

There are tons of things for people to do on a ship if you just spend some time looking.

Believe me I looked. The biggest disappointment was that everyone says that cruising is great because it is all inclusive. I'm sorry, but that's a huge lie, and in this modern day, we had to pay $75 for an hour of WiFi.

In all honesty, it sounds like you didn't do your homework.

Cruise ship cultures vary significantly from wannabe amusement parks to sophisticated living/learning environments.

I'm not a drinker, and definitely not a party goer, and the thought of being in a lecture would be like sitting in a meeting at work. I know I sound like a party pooper, and I don't know what I expected, but I thought there would be more than what was on offer. An example is, we were at sea at approx. 9.30pm and going near Papua New Guinea. It was a hot night so I thought I would head over to the pool in the midship to see what was happening. NOTHING. I did not see one person that night. A ship of 2000 people and nothing. I thought we must have entered the Bermuda Triangle.

I amused myself daily by running from the bottom deck to the top deck several times and by running around and around the ship. On the bright side, I left the ship 2kg lighter.

As others have stated, cruising isn't for everyone, and it's definitely not for me.

I can understand some people that like to sit around and relax, but I feel like I'm wasting time and money by sitting around and doing nothing. Why would you want to pay to sit around and do nothing?

That's the point. I didn't know what to expect, but everyone was talking up cruising so much and kept telling me how exciting it is. I just can't work out what is so exciting. If I wanted to sit around the pool and sunbake or read a book, I could have done that at home.

The problem is, I like the driving part. You get to see so much more. On the ship I saw...water.

I went on The Queen Elizabeth from Sydney to Japan. There was no drink packages for this cruise.

Generally on holidays my wife and I would go overseas and hire a car and travel from town to town, but would only stay 1 night in each place.

I also love camping, but I know what to expect when I'm out in the bush. I think that everyone spoke so highly of cruising, I was expecting more.

I've been wanting to go on a cruise for as long as I can remember. I finally got the opportunity and booked a 15 night cruise. I booked 8 months in advance and was super excited and couldn't wait to go. Everyone around me told me how great my holiday would be. Embarkation went smoothly and I had a great cabin with balcony, but that's where my excitement ended.

I can't understand what people find so great about cruising. I know people will tell me that I'm boring, but, it was BORING. What is so exciting about lying around in the sun and reading books. I don't drink and gamble, and even if I did, I couldn't afford to drink on board, and the activities during the day were pathetic. I ended up watching TV in my cabin most days. If I could have afforded it, I would have left the ship at the first port and taken a plane to the final destination.

This was my first cruise, and I would say, will be my last.