Cruising Companions

[repeater]

Who do you think it’s best to travel with? Are you happiest with just your spouse/partner, solo, or with twenty-three of your best friends? What are advantages of traveling with a group, or a couple of generations of family? Is it easier on your own?

 

I think, for a first cruise, you need to go with someone who’s cruised before. There are so many little tips and hints that a first-time cruiser would miss! Plus, it’s fun for the experienced cruiser to see the trip through fresh eyes. I like cruising with others, but I admit it’s much easier with just my husband. We can coordinate with just a sticky note on the mirror (“meet you at 2pm by the dolphin statue”), whereas the times we’ve traveled with a couple dozen people, it’s been like sheep-herding all week long!

 

What advantages and disadvantages do you see in choosing traveling buddies?

[ghgeckos]

When traveling with a group we only group plan one thing a day, usually a meal. Then if we have common events during the day it is by individual choice. This allows for a nice healthy dinner conversation.

[cruiseintoheaven]

Interesting thread/question. We travelled with our kids when they were younger, and that was fun - though we also enjoyed a few cruises just on our own. Nowadays, as empty nesters we've enjoyed cruising as a couple, and cruises with friends we've met through CC. They all have their advantages. I'm pretty self/sufficient and can envision really enjoying a solo cruise somewhere down the road as well.....[emoji4]

[arizonaperson]

I like cruising with My cabin partner only -whether it's my husband or a friend. One other couple is great as well.

One time I cruised with a total of eight of us and it always felt like a few of us were wranglers ,didn't like that feeling at all. We all had a good time ,but it was too much trying to get organized.

Julie

[mmckm]

We did 1 cruise with a few friends. It was a pain. They wanted to do everything together. If we didn't want to join in with them they were like little kids and pouted. Be careful who you travel with make sure they are independent and are willing to do their own thing when your not interested in what they want to do some days. They had ever day planned without asking us what we were interested in.

[shredie]

When traveling with a group we only group plan one thing a day, usually a meal. Then if we have common events during the day it is by individual choice. This allows for a nice healthy dinner conversation.

 

Yes. Too much structure can ruin things, IMO.

[ChiefSealthCruz]

I like cruising with people who enjoy the trinket shops ashore. They keep my wife company and leave me free to go directly to the nearest saloon. :D

[rayness]

We did 1 cruise with a few friends. It was a pain. They wanted to do everything together. If we didn't want to join in with them they were like little kids and pouted. Be careful who you travel with make sure they are independent and are willing to do their own thing when your not interested in what they want to do some days. They had ever day planned without asking us what we were interested in.

 

 

Wow what a pain! That's why I'm starting to cruise solo.

[Bemidji Ty]

We've cruised as a couple, with 1 to 4 other couples, with our kids and grand kids and with a group of 20. When traveling with others, we agree at the start that we'll see you for dinner. We may do some things together or not.

 

Cheers

[kingsgirl]

We did 1 cruise with a few friends. It was a pain. They wanted to do everything together. If we didn't want to join in with them they were like little kids and pouted. Be careful who you travel with make sure they are independent and are willing to do their own thing when your not interested in what they want to do some days. They had ever day planned without asking us what we were interested in.

 

 

This happened to us, too. It was a mother/daughter cruise for me and a friend. My friend and her mom wanted to stay together with us ALL THE TIME. It was really annoying.

 

I really like cruising with my mom. We travel the best together as we don't get tired of each other and rarely quarrel (usually only if we are super tired!). She has been on enough cruises to know her way around and can do things when she's up super early (like go get coffee on her own) which works well for us. We usually do most things together but can be separate, too.

[Go-Bucks!]

I really like cruising with my mom. We travel the best together as we don't get tired of each other and rarely quarrel (usually only if we are super tired!). She has been on enough cruises to know her way around and can do things when she's up super early (like go get coffee on her own) which works well for us. We usually do most things together but can be separate, too.

 

 

This is how it goes when I cruise (or any type of vacation) every year with my best friend. We like doing the same things so find it easy to enjoy whatever we do. But occasionally we go our separate ways and are fine with that too. We also like the same foods so enjoy the same restaurants.

 

Next year, though, I'm taking 3 of my grown daughters on an 8 day cruise. We all get along great but have never vacationed together since they were young. One of them has cruised twice, one went on one cruise, and the other has never cruised. We'll be in a minisuite so I'm hoping that we won't be too cramped up. :)

[OCruisers]

Cruising with others who expect things from us is not what we enjoy while cruising.

[satxdiver]

We have cruised with our two DS and their DW but one at a time. We agreed to have dinner together every night and then if it works out maybe spend time together at other times. We have never gone ashore with them. We have also cruised with a group from our home town and agreed only to share dinner together. We would meet up sometimes when at sea particularly at night when some of us wanted to go to a show etc but that was strictly voluntary on everyone's part. It has worked out well for us.

 

We would never agree to go with anyone who insists on "lock step" events, excursions etc. That sounds dreadful.

[cvpends]

I love my daughters, but my favorite cruises are with just my DH. When it is just the two of us, we can really relax.

 

Sent from my XT1032 using Tapatalk

[Woobstr112G]

DW and I have cruised a number of times with her DS and DS's hubby. We enjoy cruising with them and do many excursions with them. There are times however when we go on separate excursions.....:):):)

 

Bob

Edited March 20, 2016 by Woobstr112G

[smslms]

Who do you think it’s best to travel with? Are you happiest with just your spouse/partner, solo, or with twenty-three of your best friends? What are advantages of traveling with a group, or a couple of generations of family? Is it easier on your own?

 

I think, for a first cruise, you need to go with someone who’s cruised before. There are so many little tips and hints that a first-time cruiser would miss! Plus, it’s fun for the experienced cruiser to see the trip through fresh eyes. I like cruising with others, but I admit it’s much easier with just my husband. We can coordinate with just a sticky note on the mirror (“meet you at 2pm by the dolphin statue”), whereas the times we’ve traveled with a couple dozen people, it’s been like sheep-herding all week long!

 

What advantages and disadvantages do you see in choosing traveling buddies?

 

Just curious how long it took you to think up this question?

[easyboy]

Just me and my DW so we own our time, except on shore excursions.

[Lance1224]

We are very flexible with cruising with others. Over the years we have travelled with one or two CC couples. We do our thing and meet up for dinner. :)

 

Lance1224

[MommaBear55]

When we travel as extended family, we plan ahead of time which excursions we will do. It works out great, because at each port different people want different experiences, so by the end of the cruise we have done an assortment of actvities with an assortment of people. It gives us something to talk about at dinner.

 

Sea days we have a loose framework of activities. It is very unstructured. The earliest risers get a few loungers (usually half the total number of people, no CHOGS here!) and hang out. Those who gym it do that on their own, people eat when they feel like it and people come and go from the pool. The only planned activities are dinner and the show.

 

I would hate to travel as a pack and be on a regimented schedule. I get enough " have to do" in everyday life!

[sunsetbeachgal]

We often travel with family or friends and the key to success is the expectation is that you won't be joined at the hip 24/7. We do however, always eat dinner together, and sometimes need to be flexible with where we eat and what time. Sometimes eating in the buffet makes sense, sometimes eating late or early.

 

It is everyone's vacation and respect for that fact overrides trying to keep everyone together as a pack!

Edited March 20, 2016 by sunsetbeachgal

[Lance1224]

We often travel with family or friends and the key to success is the expectation is that you won't be joined at the hip 24/7. We do however, always eat dinner together, and sometimes need to be flexible with where we eat and what time. Sometimes eating in the buffet makes sense, sometimes eating late or early.

 

It is everyone's vacation and respect for that fact overrides trying to keep everyone together as a pack!

 

Excellent !!!!!

[Cruise Raider]

We like traveling as a couple but find we really like cruising with a group of friends or family the best. Oftentimes, we unexpectedly meet up with couples that we've cruised with before .... sometimes, even across different lines.

 

I usually do all the planning for our group cruises but with the following disclaimer:

 

If you get sea sick, not my fault

If you don't like your room, not my fault

If you heard of someone that got a better price, not my fault

If you don't like the same food as I do, not my fault

I think you see where this is going! I don't do all the planning to be dragged into other's problems. However, I tend to cruise only with people that don't place blame on me if something is not to their liking and those that don't plan out how I need to spend my time on vacation.

 

We make a pact that we are not the kind of travelers that have to be attached at the hip. If we all agree on something to do, whether it be time at the pool, going to a specific show, where and when to eat dinner, going on an excursion ... we are in. I don't set my alarm on a cruise to get up at a set time every day and so rarely make plans to meet for breakfast. If I want to have a mimosa at 9 AM, so be it. Everyone is well aware of the guidelines of traveling with us .... and we respect the guidelines of traveling with them. It doesn't work for everybody, but mostly just more fun, fun, fun from that point on.

[Coveguy4]

Love to cruise with family and or friends. When with a lage group of 14, it makes eating together kinda difficult, but it is doable with split tables. Never insist on everyone doing the same thing, but we often end up on same excursions, but almost never have everyone doing same thing at same time. I guess we/I have been lucky in who we/I cruise with, or maybe in picking our friends.

[repeater]

Just curious how long it took you to think up this question?

 

What? I don't understand...As a general rule, my thought process is pretty quick! I was thinking about the first time we traveled with another couple, and how we weren't sure how we'd get along for 12 days. We agreed to meet up for dinner, but quickly discovered we loved being together, so much that we booked two more with them! Going on a TA in a month with just husband, and wondering if boredom will set in. Just thinkin'.

[Thrak]

My first cruise was planned with my wife and then one of my adult sons asked if he could come along. He's disabled and can't really do things of that sort on his own. Before we could even consider it he sweetened the pot and said, "I will pay for the excursions!" He booked his own HC cabin and wanted an interior so it would be nice and dark for sleeping in late.

 

We sailed on Sea Princess and did the 10-day round trip from SF to Alaska. I was hooked. The same son accompanied us on our second cruise (again in his own cabin) but this time he didn't pay for the excursions. :) That was a 15-day SF to Hawaii cruise. After that I have only sailed with my wife and am quite happy that way.

 

My wife's sisters have made noises about "all of us" (the sisters and their husbands or significant others) cruising somewhere together but I'm not really looking forward to that. We don't really have the same interests and one of the sisters can get to be... um... a little... "trying" might be a nicer kind of way to put it.

 

I'm quite content to cruise with my wife and I believe she feels the same way. W may someday end up with a "family cruise" but will need to keep some distance and do many things on our own rather than trying to be "a group" all the time.