Proposing To My G/F: Adventure of the Seas 9/24 - 10/1

The g/f and I will be sailing the Southern Caribbean 9/24 - 10/1 (St. Maarten, St. Kitts, Antigua, St. Lucia and Barbados).

I am debating whether or not to propose to her on the ship or to propose to her on one of the islands?

Has anyone proposed to their significant other while on a cruise? If so, how did you plan it?

Thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Thank You

How ever you do it, make sure the answer is yes ahead of time.:cool:

There is a beautiful restaurant in St Kitts called Ottley's plantation. In St Lucia I can recommend Capella at Marigot Bay. Let me know if you need the name of a great private taxi service on either island.

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There are many different ways you can do it. Only you will really know what she will like best.

Also, congratulations :)

I like the idea that you to do the deed onboard the ship-- this will tie the experience to Royal and every time you cruise again in the future you will have a chance to relive the experience.

In addition you have access to the photos and could make an arrangement that you actually do the proposal during a Photography session on a formal night (or whatever night you like) so you get a permanent record of the event and a picture as it happened--just go visit the department secretly and make an arrangement

I did it on RCCL 26 years ago ( 25 wedding anniversary in couple of weeks) did in cabin, bought ring next day in St Thomas, I think late dinner in a specialty restaurant is a good idea.

Posted this on another thread the other day.

FYI

I proposed to my wife on Liberty of the Seas b/c we did our first cruise together on Liberty and had great memories of that trip. I ran down to get her a rose in the Promenade while she was getting ready for the evening and put the ring under the planner. I put the rose on top. When she came out of the bathroom she thought it was unusual. I then asked her to check the planner for something and dropped down on my knee as she saw the ring. She was shaking, crying, and of course smiling all at the same time.

I did this on night 1 and would encourage anyone doing it to do it on day or night one. Too much worrying otherwise. Also, when we met people my wife of course said I just proposed to her and showed her ring, etc.. Everyone loved it and everyone kept buying us drinks so that was a lot of fun. We met so many people and had so much fun because we had the whole trip to enjoy the moment. One couple we met even ended up attending our wedding and we may be cruising with them this summer with our 1 year old daughter and their 2 kids.

Funny thing is I had the ring in my carry on (of course) and they started to really examine my bag which got me so worried that she was going to see the ring. I think I started sweating which probably made me look like I was trying to bring on something illegal.

Best of luck to you. I really don't think you can go wrong popping the question at sea. Can there be a better place than on a ship at sea?

I would think an island setting would be more romantic and memorable for your g/f. Plus the island will still be there in 25 years, who knows where the ship will be?

Okay. Side note. Just make certain WHEREVER you do it, you don't get nervous and just blurt out "will you marry me?". First say some romantic and heartfelt words we love to hear and then ask. She will always remember them - and look her in the eyes for sure. You don't get a do over. Good luck and pre-congratulations. :D

Okay. Side note. Just make certain WHEREVER you do it, you don't get nervous and just blurt out "will you marry me?". First say some romantic and heartfelt words we love to hear and then ask. She will always remember them - and look her in the eyes for sure. You don't get a do over. Good luck and pre-congratulations. :D

There is absolutely nothing wrong with that sort of proposal.

Dh had a whole plan, and then after we looked at rings (bc marriage is just about the biggest decision a person will ever take and from a series of mature conversations we knew where we were headed, and he wanted to know why I liked in terms of rings) while walking to the car, in a parking lot, he said "so, do you want to get married?"

And I said yes just as happily as if it had been on some island.

He felt like you, and tried to do reproposals. One after we got a ring. Then one after we got a new ring because Gordon Jewelers is a big ripoff place and the stone was horrid and not what he paid for (and the "Tiffany" style setting kept catching on things bc I'm a klutz). He was happy to try to make a better story, but for me the story is in the lot behind my VW Beetle.

Do it the first day. Don't ask while naked unless you want that to be in the story, or embarrassingly left out of the story, forever. Do it in a way that works for her, not for your ego. (If dh had proposed on a Jumbotron I would have said NO because obviously he didn't know me)

Only you know her, and therefore only you know what works for her.

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I witnessed a proposal on a Carnival ship a couple of years ago.

It was in the Steakhouse one evening and the maitre d was in on it. The maitre d alerted everyone in the restaurant ahead of time and had placed a page inside the menu from the proposer asking for her hand in marriage. When she started looking at the menu she saw the proposal page and the man got down on his knees and asked her to marry him. She said yes, he put the ring on her finger, they kissed and hugged and everyone in the restaurant applauded. It was very emotional.

There is a beautiful restaurant in St Kitts called Ottley's plantation. In St Lucia I can recommend Capella at Marigot Bay. Let me know if you need the name of a great private taxi service on either island.

 

 

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How close are those restaurants on those island in relation to the ship?

Feel free to provide the info for those cabs, please. Also, if you have links for those restaurants that I can look up that would be great too.

Would those restaurants be able to provide a romantic setting or be able to set anything up ahead of time?

I like the idea that you to do the deed onboard the ship-- this will tie the experience to Royal and every time you cruise again in the future you will have a chance to relive the experience.

 

In addition you have access to the photos and could make an arrangement that you actually do the proposal during a Photography session on a formal night (or whatever night you like) so you get a permanent record of the event and a picture as it happened--just go visit the department secretly and make an arrangement

During the formal night sounds like a great idea! We would both be all dressed up too! Man there is a lot that goes into a proposal. Girls have it so easy lol!

What or how would I be able to get the photographers to play along when doing the proposal? This is going to be tough.....

I did it on a cruise ship. I kind of lucked into the circumstances as I (like you) just did not know how the perfect circumstance or plan would look. I hid the ring in my toiletry bag once on board (it was in my carry-on backpack on the airplane prior to embarkation) so I was always a bit concerned she'd go snooping for a razor or something!

The night I decided to go for it (second night - it was formal) I put the ring box in my jacket breast pocket. Of course, she was cuddly and snuggly that night for some reason and kept coming in for a hug as well as insisting we go slow dance (Stay away from my left side would you?!). I still could not figure out my plan, but knew that was the night. Being in a tux and her in a gown just seemed right. So, after dinner, I suggested a walk out on deck to walk off the meal. She agreed and all of a sudden my plan unfolded before me. Walking around, we found our way up to the old topless deck (this was on an older Carnival ship) that was empty, not a soul to be found and the sun quickly setting. We climbed as high up on the ship as we could go, I started a conversation, said sweet nothings, got on my knee, pulled out the box, asked her to marry me - and then silence....

It was a long delayed response. So much so I eventually had to ask - "umm - is there an answer?" She cried, smiled, laughed, and finally said "of course" (which still was not a yes!).

So - yeah - you can make big plans or sometimes the simplest bit of good fortune may smile upon you. High point on a ship out to sea with a golden sunset bouncing off the blue expanse is kind of hard to flub.

As a guy my advice is this - just do what works for HER...and don't be too married (no pun intended) to the idea of the grand gesture. You have to know women don't REALLY dig the big screen at the ballpark type of proposal! Good luck in deciding.

During the formal night sounds like a great idea! We would both be all dressed up too! Man there is a lot that goes into a proposal. Girls have it so easy lol!

 

What or how would I be able to get the photographers to play along when doing the proposal? This is going to be tough.....

See my response above - formal night worked well for me. No photographers - but I did happen to have MY camera along with us, so I got the "big smile - look at my new ring" pose which turned out pretty awesome as she had long hair the wind whipped up into a pretty attractive wind blown look. Priceless photo and the photography crew did not ruin it.

If you were wanting THE moment photographed, you could work out a deal with one of the photographers in front of the backdrop of your choosing. Have the photographer pose you in a kneeling position then you do your thing and have them snap away. (oops sorry Hotel CA - you kind of suggested exactly the same photo opp).

Again - good luck!

How ever you do it, make sure the answer is yes ahead of time.:cool:

I used to work at a large hotel and we had "honeymoon packages" which were sometimes booked by people wanting to propose. Once a guy booked the most expensive suite we had as a part of the package for a surprise proposal... From the reports from the front desk person who checked him out - alone - it did NOT go well.

That said...

If you want it to be a surprise, make sure that she knows nothing about CC and doesn't read and/or post on here. [emoji23][emoji23]

Good luck!

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During the formal night sounds like a great idea! We would both be all dressed up too! Man there is a lot that goes into a proposal. Girls have it so easy lol!

 

What or how would I be able to get the photographers to play along when doing the proposal? This is going to be tough.....

See my post above. I did this just a few years ago.

Do what fits you best but here is my advice if you want a photographer to record it. While your GF is getting ready make an excuse to go down stairs when it isn't busy yet and pick which photograph background you like the best. Then talk to the photographer and tell them your plan and make sure they understand it is a secret until it is done (they don't all speak English as a first language so make sure it is clear to them as you don't want to risk any lack of communication). Tell them to keep clicking until you leave the photograph area. But do this with several photographers b/c if the one you want is super busy and your GF doesn't want to wait in the line you will have a back up.

My only other advice is do it as early as possible during the cruise. Otherwise it will be a stress that hangs over your head and will distract you until it is over. Also, you will both have so much fun after you propose. Seriously, do it early in the trip! I promise you will be happy you did.

Again, do what works for you and best of luck to you. My wife and I will soon be cruising again with our baby girl. It all began when I proposed on Liberty of the Seas. Enjoy the journey!

I read a reply somewhere that the guy had one of the photographers in on it. The photographer had them pose facing the same direction with the guy behind. Then had her turn back after the guy got down on one knee. The photographers are around every night you can try them first night and pick one you are comfortable with for the formal night proposal.

Please come back and tell us all about it.

I witnessed a proposal on a Carnival ship a couple of years ago.

It was in the Steakhouse one evening and the maitre d was in on it. The maitre d alerted everyone in the restaurant ahead of time and had placed a page inside the menu from the proposer asking for her hand in marriage. When she started looking at the menu she saw the proposal page and the man got down on his knees and asked her to marry him. She said yes, he put the ring on her finger, they kissed and hugged and everyone in the restaurant applauded. It was very emotional.

The story I told, the maitre d was taking pictures the whole time. She was standing slightly behind the bride to be so she couldn't be seen.

I have read all of the suggestions and agree that you need to propose the 1st day- at the set sail;)

Adventures has the most beautiful sail-away at 8:30. I suggest you find the quite corner in the Viking Crown Lounge, order your favorite drink(champagne, etc), and ask your girlfriend to "sail into your next adventure" together - marriage!

This will make the rest of your cruise worry-free and relaxed without the pressure of more planning. I am certain that a photographer would be happy to stand by to snap pictures.

I proposed to my then-girlfriend on Oasis in 2014. I wanted to capture the moment, so I decided to pop the question in front of a photographer on our first formal night.

Here's the actual moment:

Everything worked out great. We were 20 minutes late to our specialty dinner reservation, but that wasn't a big deal... especially when I told them we JUST got engaged.

Two "downsides" to this approach from my own experience. As pointed out, the longer you wait the more anxious you get. Our first day was a sea day. I love sea days on a cruise, but I was too jittery to enjoy it. The other downside was the need to leave the photographer's area once our pictures were taken. It was hard to "take in" the moment when we had to get out of the way. :p

Overall, I personally wouldn't have changed the timing. It was a picture-perfect moment for us, both metaphorically and literally (minus my ugly mug, haha). Oh, and she said "yes" ...well, kinda, she was in a happy-shock state, which I took for a yes.

I proposed to my fiancé last year on adventure. On the way to the cruise I had the box buried in my clothes in the suite case and I kept the actual ringed stuffed in a compartment in my wallet. I waited until night two because we were in St Thomas that day and that's one of our favorite islands. Upon sail away at sunset, she was getting ready for dinner (formal night) and I grabbed the empty box and put the ring back in it, and went to the balcony and once she was all ready, called her out to say come look at the sunset. She was leaning on the rail of our balcony and I got behind her and got down on my knee so when she turned around I was already down. I said my stuff, she said yes, we kissed and took a picture with the sunset and St Thomas in the background and went to dinner and told our table mates. St Thomas was always special to us and now it is even more.

2 cruises ago DW and I went on one by ourselves. Normally we go with family, but I digress. At dinner we sat with a group of strangers on first night. There was this young couple, an older couple and 2 young ladies. The young ppl were bf and gf and it was a surprise for her as she didn't know about the cruise till the week before. The guy was VERY quiet. Didn't talk much during dinner at all, either with his gf or us. He was was nervous. Turns out he was proposing. She was talkative. They eventually left dinner. The next stop was some island and we saw them. He proposed that night and was a cool guy. Do it first day. As my wife can tell when I am hiding something. Lol surprising her is hard.

I'm assuming she doesn't read these boards...

I'm assuming she doesn't read these boards...

Or is a quiet, retiring sort of lady who would hate such a personal moment to be acted out in public!