Ideas on Surprises?

For those of you who surprised someone with a cruise, could you share how you orchestrated the surprise?

For example, have any of you waited until you got to the port to break the news?

On our first cruise we met a couple. He surprised her, by buying her some luggage for Xmas, (cruise started on January 2nd), and putting her cruise documents in it. Personally I get too excited to keep it a surprise. I'd be a basket case trying to keep it inside.

We surprised our kids by packing after they went to bed and then taking a "long cut" to school. They didn't know a thing about it. They had no idea we were going on a trip at all. We were about 10 minutes out of town when they started guessing. They were so thrilled when we go to the pier.

For another cruise we wanted to surprise my MIL and FIL. We had to let my MIL in on the surprise, so she could arrange for their time off work. After she had everything taken care of, we presented a card with cuise documents to my FIL for his birthday. The look on his face was unforgettable! I will treasure that forever! It was their first cuise and I am so glad we were able to go together.

Have Fun!

Starr

At Christmas I went and found a toy boat (I had to assemble a LEGO boat) and wrapped it in Gold foil and put a red bow on it....

Since our cruise was just a week away, she already knew we were going, but we kept seeing those commercials, so I had to attempt to do something

and...then...

last night I booked our return on the Celebration and let her find out when she looked on the CC Board and saw we suddenly had TWO countdowns.

New Years on a Cruise ship....

You should try it too!!

JB

I booked a cruise in Dec. the week before Xmas returning Xmas Eve with monies that I got unexpectedly. So before I took and spent it on paying bills and other things, I took it and bought a cruise! I booked about 6 wks. out but still got stuck purchasing 2 cabins bc they were trying to limit the number of kids on our sailing!

So I booked myself and DD18 in one cabin and in the adjoining other was DS13 adn DD8. I obviously had to tell my DD18 so she could pack what she needed but the other 2 were not told at all. I packed both of them while they were at school and loaded the SUV while they were sleeping the night before!

When they awoke departure morning, they were told to shower and get dressed that we were going to the Sea Aquarium that just happens to be next door to the Port of Tampa!!! So we pull up to the port terminal and a worker ask me if we were leaving today on the Legend of the Seas and I shoke my head yes and then asked me if we were going valet parking and again I shoke my head. When I pulled up to the curb and we both turn around and tell the two little ones that we are getting on the ship today, RIGHT NOW!!!! They were so excited and surprised! As we are going thru all the different lines to check-in, DD8 turns to me and says, "You mean we aren't going to the Aquarium?" LOL I guess her mind was still on what she wasn't going to do then on what she was about to DO! LOL

It was my DS13th birthday the day before so I had their stateroom decorated for the occassion with streamers, a cake and door decoration! So the surprises for them just kept on coming that day! I have a picture of him standing in front of the stateroom door before we even entered.

We had a great time and I intend to do it again sometime soon, maybe for the Freedom of the Seas cruise. I guess I better get booking!?

Have fun with this one, we did and the possibilities are endless!!!

I'm planning on surprising my husband with a cruise for his 40th birthday next year with all our friends and family. I'm hoping to be able to get a group rate and then pretent to make arrangements for the two of us to take a holiday. The plan is to get him to think I'm taking him away for his birthday alone, then we'll show up at the ship and everyone will be there! :D

I was going to surprise my wife for our 10th aniversery. A Carnival rep was nice enough to call my wife and tell her.:mad: My fault for giving them my home phone #.:rolleyes:

Last year I planned a surprise party for my DH (60th bd)& a cruise. I booked the caterer & cruise in February, for a Sept. 18 party & Sept. 24 cruise out of NJ to Bermuda. My DH loves Bermuda. I can't believe I kept my mouth shut for that long. Of course, the CC boards were a big help. I could talk all I wanted here. After the initial shock of the party, DH got on the microphone & said, "Boy, I am going to have to take Pat on a cruise now". I then handed him the cruise tickets & told him we leave next week. He was totally shocked & everybody was cheering. It was a lot of fun.

We booked a cruise that just happened to include my birthday. When we were packing I noticed my husband had a can of salted nuts!! I said, "What is wrong with you bringing nuts on a cruise they give you more to eat than a body can hold." He said it was just in case he felt like something in the cabin. I never gave it any more thought but on the night of my birthday, at the dining table when I returned from the ladies' room, there was the can of nuts and a very small military can opener. He said, "Happy Birthday" and when I opened the can it didn't have nuts in it at all. He had gotten me a diamond ring and had it canned at a shopping mall. The can he choose was the size of a nut can. He bought a can of nuts, carefully took the label off and glued it to the gift can. Now that was a surprise folks:cool:

We (brother, sister & I and our spouses) gave our parents their 1st Cruise. At Dad’s retirement party we wrapped a present. Inside were a bottle of water, sun screen, extension cord, box of Bonine and another smaller box w/ a tab that said “pull here”. That unrolled the cash ($5’s, 10’s, 20’ & 50’s) taped end to end = $$ to pay for their cruise. That way they could pick which one they wanted to go on. At the very bottom of the box were cruise brochures. Mom cried and Dad was speechless. It was awesome!

We are sooooo looking forward to our next cruise . . .

Constellation Oct. ’06 – 11 Western Caribbean

Brilliance of the Seas April ’06 – 10 Panama Canal

Jewel of the Seas Oct. ’05 – 10 Bermuda and Caribbean

Dawn Princess March '05 – 10 Western Caribbean

Caribbean Princess '04 (C752 Cabin off back of ship) – 7 Eastern Caribbean

Island Princess '03 – 10 Panama Canal

Star Princess '03 – 7 Mexican Riveria

Grand Princess '02 - 7 Western Caribbean

Enchantment of the Seas '98 - 7 Eastern Caribbean

I booked my DH a cruise for his 40th birthday . I called his work and scheduled him off for the week and managed to keep it a secret from May until this weekend. I had a shirt printed up that said "It is my 40th birthday and all I got was this tshirt" on the front and the back reads "...and a 6 day carribean cruise." Well to say the least when he opened the present he was none to thrilled with the tshirt and thought it was a big joke. It is still sinking in today that he is going on March 12.

This all goes back to the fall of 2004. I was a grad student and was scheduled to spend a month studying in Ireland, and my wife couldn't join me. I felt really bad and decided in October '04 that I would surprise her with something big: a cruise. I booked a September '05 cruise out of Galveston that October and paid the downpayment with some extra money I had stashed away for my trip to Ireland and just decided to skip a few meals here and there while I was overseas.

For months and months, I would save here and skrimp there to help pay off the cruise. Come spring, I told her that I was planning a little getaway. I told her the dates (so she could take off from work) and just told her that I would give her more information as to what kinds of things to pack when we got closer to the date. The date was getting closer and closer and I was getting more and more excited. For her birthday in August, I purchased a formal dress for my wife for the cruise - (of course, I made NO indication that the gift was a clue.)

I booked some romantic shore excursions, and the date was getting closer.

The week before the cruise, Hurricane Rita appeared, and as much as I prayed, it kept heading right toward Galveston. Two days before we were scheduled to leave, I had to call Royal Caribbean and cancel the cruise due to the weather and traffic problems around the Galveston area - I told my wife that evening what I had planned and cried when I had to tell her that it was cancelled.

Surprising my DD with a crusie over Spring Break. She thinks we are driving to the beach for some "mom and me" time. She is 13...so I *know* how much she is looking forward to THAT (LOL)

I have been planning for a year and she has no idea. We are sailing from San Diego altho we live in NC. So, I booked our airplane tickets and upgraded to 1st class!

Every time she asks what time we are leaving and where we are going...I say " do you REALLY wan to know?" and she smiles and says "no"

I'll let you know how it turns out!

Deb

Mom turns 75 in May - we are going on the Spirit April 9 - 16 ...he rfirst cruise - she knows about the cruise - I booked in in September - and she loves to look forward to things ...

she does not know, however, about the 10 passanger limo coming to pick us up that will have a 15' red carper, ballons, a red rose, champane on ice and lotto tickets for luck ... part of me is looking forward to the limo more than the cruise - who am i kidding - I am looking forward to both :D

We gave my mom a cruise for her 60th Birthday. We got her a huge card and put a printed out the itinerary & put the cruise brochure inside. Then we all came in the room with a huge oaktag cruise ship that we made and decorated hung over our shoulders. It took awhile for the whole idea that we all were going to go on a cruise to sink in because she was very shocked and suprised (and happy).

I am so excited that I am ready to cry. I have always promised my mother a trip to Hawaii (she has never been there) and I just made reservations.

So to inform her about the trip, I am making her a book/card for Mother's Day that is going to be a story about us going to Hawaii, then a few day later going on the cruise. The cruise is this fall, so she will have lots of time to bask in the glory of planning, buying clothes and just talking and talking about it.

She is going to really lose it when she finds out. She has been on several cruises, but this is going to be the best one yet. Now if I can just keep my mouth shut until she is suppose to know about it. :eek:

I would love to surprise my husband with a cruise but I don't think it will ever happen:

1) it would be too hard to arrange his vacation for him - he would get suspicious

2) I wouldn't be able to hold it in.

I think it is a wonderful idea though.

A friend of mine surprised her DD with a cruise out of Galveston. She had booked the trip about 4 months in advance. I don't know how she kept it a secret (I couldn't). Her DH and DS were off doing the Boy Scout thing and she thought it would be nice to spend some time with her daugther who was about 13 at the time. They had cruised before so it wasn't going to be her first experience but a surprise none the less. She told her daughter they were going to go to Galveston to spend a few days on the beach - so she told her to pack up some shorts, swimsuits, etc... then the night before she packed the other items she would need (clothes for dining room, etc.) in her own suitcase. She put the documents in her day timer (that she carries ALL THE TIME). As they got close to the pier she said - Hey - the Jubilee in port today - let's swing by there and see the ship. As they pulled up to the parking area she told her daughter to pull out her day timer and look inside. It took her a few seconds before it hit her. They had a GREAT time.

Hope this give others ideas.

For my wife's 60th, I purchased a cruise for her, me, and our two sons (19 & 24). I gave it to her for Christmas and we leave in March. I wrapped four boxes for her to open X-Mas morning. Box one had a novel in it with a note "a book to read". Box two had a summer hat and the note read, "a hat to wear". Box three had the itinerary and the note read, "a place to go". Box four had a paper with me and my son's names on it and the note read, "and with whom to share". The hardest part of the surprise was the financing. We're old school and all funds are in one pot. I had to call Amex and tell them not to be alarmed when they saw the expense otherwise they'd call. Christmas came before the Amex bill. This will be a great cruise.....the four of us in St Thomas, March 8th, celebrating Kath's birthday!!!!!

barryod

LOVE cruise surprises. And you guys have such great ideas. I've surprised kids before when they were younger and just did again this Christmas for daughters and the others in their lives now. A new son-in-law included.

I designed a puzzle, had it made from photoworks, then seperated pieces and gave each one a small box with the pieces. They figured out that their few pieces didn't go together so they'd have to combine them to complete the puzzle. When they did they read the details - Surprise, you're going on a cruise, etc.

Booking our next cruise on the Valor was very last minute for us - we only booked it a couple of weeks ago. My inlaws were already going - and we decided that we're going to surprise his wife. I think the plan is that we are going to call my f-i-l and let him know when we get to the pier. He is going to arrive with his wife after us, and is hoping the conversation will go something like:

"Those people up there look just like Mona & Adam..."

"What... are you nuts? Mona & Adam aren't going on the cruise..."

And then totally surprise her from there. ;)

My dream vacation has ALWAYS been a cruise to Alaska

This past Christmas I received that dream vacation:

ON Christmas morning everyone was opening presents but ME:( .

After about an hour of this I went to make coffee and when I returned there was a present in my chair and all eyes were on me.

I opened the box and inside was a note that I was to open in sequential order.

Wrapped Box #1: The box itself had something electronic written on it.

(I was gonna kill him I DO NOT DO ANYTHING ELECTRONIC)

When I opened the box ... there was two action figures inside

One was "Papa"(Batman) The other was "GiGi: (Batgirl)

My next thought was "kinky" Not in front of the kids!!!

Wrapped box #2: A van with the logo Route 66.. Oh getting better we love to travel and find all the Route 66 areas.

Wrapped Box #3: A toy airplane.... hmmmm where are we going??!!

Wrapped Box #4: A toy boat.... a cruise? mexico? caribean? ok this could be good

Wrapped Box #5: Map of ALASKA and a dollar amount circled on our saving account

OHMY GOD!!!!!!!!! NO IT CAN't BE!!!! YOU ARE JOKING????!!! YOU ARE SERIOUS???!!!!!!!!!! :eek: :eek: :eek:

After about ten minutes of crying and still not believing, my grandaughter"say's it's ok GiGi you can have some of my presetns!!!

I am now planning that trip and will be going May 5th to Alaska.

My DD said that DH had been planning this April.

Surprises are great, but we are going to take an Alaskan cruise for my 50th birthday in August, and I am having the BEST time cruising these boards and planning excursions and deciding what to wear......to me that part is almost as good as the cruise! It would have been awful to have missed out on these (long) months of planning and excitment!

Maybe that's just a woman's point of view............

My DH was going to to do all the planning for my Christmas surprise then he realized that it was MY PRESENT and just told me where we were going and the rest was up to me.... I got to plan the whole thing and it is so much fun.. When I talk to him about the different excursions and which one sounds good to him... his reply is "whichever one you are on!" :o AWWWW.

So yes I have to agree planning YOUR present is the best. Especially if it is someplace you have always dreamed of going.

My wife and I got an incredible deal on a cruise in June during the Christmas Holidays...$256 each for a five day cruise.

However....I have a required weeklong workshop I have to go on..so...we were about to cancel...

Then..I got the idea...last year her daughter was married, and we are very happy about how well they are doing, yet they never had a honeymoon.

So, two weeks ago we were up, and offered to give them the cruise...so long as they went alone. DW will take care of the Grandkids...while I am about 40 miles away at the workshop, so I can come over in the evenings.

Now they are all about getting ready for the cruise, and it is so much fun to hear them as they are planning. I would love to be on the trip...but watching them get ready for some time together is ALMOST as much fun.