I get bored on cruises (and vacations).. help!

[Taishartrueblood]

Ok, I always enjoy the IDEA of vacationing.. but I get bored pretty quickly. I usually travel alone or with family (no spouse/kids), bring plenty of books, and do all the excursions I can. Even so, I get bored when I get back on the ship pretty quickly no matter the cruise line. I am a workaholic by nature and I like having something to do...

 

Anyone else in the same position as me? Any suggestions?

[Cruseforme]

Try looking at exploration cruises.    They are for the adventurous, and we found them to be exciting!    You can get up close and personal (ie, Galapagos, Antarctica, etc).   We used to take this type of cruise (uncruise), years ago when we were bored!   There is a CC forum you might find more information on:  https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/55-eco-amp-expedition-cruising/

[navybankerteacher]

32 minutes ago, Taishartrueblood said:

Ok, I always enjoy the IDEA of vacationing.. but I get bored pretty quickly. I usually travel alone or with family (no spouse/kids), bring plenty of books, and do all the excursions I can. Even so, I get bored when I get back on the ship pretty quickly no matter the cruise line. I am a workaholic by nature and I like having something to do...

 

Anyone else in the same position as me? Any suggestions?

To put it bluntly: cruising is recreation, it is meant to be enjoyable.  If you do not enjoy it, perhaps you should consider other vacation activity.  And, if you do not like vacationing, do not do it.

[tak81288]

I don't get bored however after our first few cruises we have found that we were not the biggest fan of sea days. As a result, when researching potential cruises, we always look for ones that have minimal sea days and long port days. By the time we get back to the ship, we are pretty exhausted.

 

As for land vacations, we plan things to do and see from the time we wake up until it's time to go back to sleep. We don't have time to be bored since there is never an issue of  filling the days up with things we like to do.

[Taishartrueblood]

thanks :)

[lenquixote66]

I was a workaholic dedicated to my job. I worked Mon to Friday at times from 7AM to 7 PM and many weekends as well. I rarely took personal days .Although I could have taken 5 weeks vacation every year the most I ever took was 10 days.

In all the years I worked I only took 2 cruises.HUGE mistake.

If I could live my life all over again work would be a second option.

 

[Floridiana]

2 hours ago, Taishartrueblood said:

 

Anyone else in the same position as me? Any suggestions?

 

You need an expedition cruise or a land trip with exciting destinations. Organize it yourself, keeps you occupied plenty.

[Cruseforme]

24 minutes ago, lenquixote66 said:

I was a workaholic dedicated to my job. I worked Mon to Friday at times from 7AM to 7 PM and many weekends as well. I rarely took personal days .Although I could have taken 5 weeks vacation every year the most I ever took was 10 days.

In all the years I worked I only took 2 cruises.HUGE mistake.

If I could live my life all over again work would be a second option.

 

we never wanted to say “ I wish I ..Woulda, Shoulda, Coulda..” we lived for our vacations, and went everywhere and did our safari’s, glaciers, exploring and traveling the world early in life. So glad we did, as life is so unpredictable, you never know when or if a situation should occur that renders you limited to travel,  no matter what the age.   It sure made us realize how lucky we were!  So instead of wallowing about what we can’t do, we celebrate in what we did do!   

 

 

 

[ldubs]

3 hours ago, Taishartrueblood said:

Ok, I always enjoy the IDEA of vacationing.. but I get bored pretty quickly. I usually travel alone or with family (no spouse/kids), bring plenty of books, and do all the excursions I can. Even so, I get bored when I get back on the ship pretty quickly no matter the cruise line. I am a workaholic by nature and I like having something to do...

 

Anyone else in the same position as me? Any suggestions?

 

I am not in the same position, but would not look forward to a cruise with a lot of sea days. Too much inactivity for me.  

 

Perhaps limit your cruises to those that have few if any sea days.   

[clo]

1 hour ago, ldubs said:

Perhaps limit your cruises to those that have few if any sea days.   

Totes 🙂  We doing an 11 day Rio to Buenos Aires with one sea day.  And do land travel.

[iancal]

We only want two consecutive sea  days at the most.

 

We took. tA a few years ago and were ready to jump ship on day three.  Never again.

[rugerdog]

6 hours ago, Taishartrueblood said:

I am a workaholic by nature and I like having something to do...

 

You can come to my house.  The entire house could use a good scrubbing top to bottom.  The garage needs cleaned out.  The garden and flower beds all need to be sorted and planters moved to the barn.  

 

I'm lazy by nature . . . so I'll take your vacations and spend them all on TA's!

 

I'm envious of your drive!  

[ilikeanswers]

The expedition cruises are a good suggestion another one might be DIY hoildays. If you organise your own travel including transport you are always doing something. I've done many roadtrips through Europe and I've never found myself with nothing to do. I even download some podcasts and videos in case I am bored and hardly ever use them.

[flowslow]

Maybe you should do a vacation that involves a lot of activities that really interest you. You seem like the type who likes to be always on the go and would not enjoy a chill and relaxing vacation. Doing a jam-packed excursion the whole day would definitely get your tired and you would not have time to get bored as soon as you get back. 

 

But even though you say you are a workaholic, I hope you find some time to slow down and enjoy a relaxing and chill vacation once in a while. Good luck! 

[Taishartrueblood]

Thank you all :) I did want to do a land based, very heavy excursion trip this time... but my brother really needed a relaxing vacation so we are going cruising. It will be a good time... books are great :)

[cb at sea]

Hey..not EVERYONE wants to relax...and that's fine!  I'd say, take shorter vacations, if you're of a mind to vacation....that way, you can get back to your everyday life sooner!

[cruisemom42]

If it's more about occupying your mind than your body, consider looking for an activity that you can combine with your cruising. For example, maybe you would be interested in honing your photography skills -- takes up a fair amount of time between taking photos (in ports and onboard) and then organizing them, reviewing them, editing them afterwards. Or you might be interested in blogging about your trip.

 

Or download some of those podcasts your friends keep recommending but you haven't had time to listen to...

 

Or try learning a foreign language (or brushing up on one you learned a long time ago in school)...

 

 

[bonsai3s]

6 hours ago, Taishartrueblood said:

Thank you all 🙂 I did want to do a land based, very heavy excursion trip this time... but my brother really needed a relaxing vacation so we are going cruising. It will be a good time... books are great 🙂

 

What else do you like to do?

What's your interest?

Other than work, what keeps you busy?

What has been your most favorite vacation to date?

Some love to travel near their home, some only in the country, others internationally...what do you prefer?

Do you travel much for work?

Do you take vacations to get away from work?...or when on vacation, you can't wait to get back to work?

What makes you happy?

[evandbob]

Maybe the OP can use his/her extra energy to meet other people when away on vacation?  Set a goal of talking to 3 new strangers a day about their experiences when traveling?  This might change the focus from inward fidgeting to outward discovery.

 

Since the OP added reading as an interest, maybe start in the ship's library or note what folks are reading on deck if they have physical books with them?  The art of conversation can lead to many unexpected places.

[Billy Baltic]

I’d agree with the previous posters about limiting the sea days. 
Failing that, next time you ring RC to book a vacation give the name Billy Baltic for your ticket 😎

[NantahalaCruiser]

13 hours ago, Taishartrueblood said:

Thank you all 🙂 I did want to do a land based, very heavy excursion trip this time... but my brother really needed a relaxing vacation so we are going cruising. It will be a good time... books are great 🙂

Perhaps you could try expanding your horizons. Give karaoke a try - perhaps after a few drinks! Or maybe a trivia game or pool volleyball - anything new to keep you busy.

[DirtyDawg]

10 hours ago, NantahalaCruiser said:

Perhaps you could try expanding your horizons. Give karaoke a try - perhaps after a few drinks! Or maybe a trivia game or pool volleyball - anything new to keep you busy.

 

Of course, skipping the Karaoke and opting for a few more drinks instead would also reduce the boredom.😉

 

But don't try pool volleyball afterwards, not a good combination!🤪

 

[cruizergal70]

On 10/5/2019 at 7:02 AM, Taishartrueblood said:

Thank you all 🙂 I did want to do a land based, very heavy excursion trip this time... but my brother really needed a relaxing vacation so we are going cruising. It will be a good time... books are great 🙂

OP, you have to learn to entertain yourself. The ship has a lot of activities going on. You are cruising with family and friends. Take games and plan stuff with them. Take books and movies. 

 

You can't expect a cruise to magically entertain you without YOU putting in some effort.

[Hlitner]

Perhaps it is as simple as the OP having a "Type A" or related personality.   We have a few "Type A's" on our longer cruises and most of them were miserable.  Perhaps the OP has to accept that any kind of long vacation or cruise is just not for them.  I think it is very difficult for a true Type A to overcome their internal drives.....and truly relax.

 

Hank

 

[bbwex]

Limiting sea days would be an obvious choice.  I don't know if you have any interest in card games, but you might be able to find people in your roll call who would be interested during sea days or even in evenings of port days.  Ships have small gyms as well, so some exercise might pass some of the time.  Even though it is a vacation, perhaps take something from home like a project or something to keep you busier during the down times.

 

As a friend likes to describe these types of problems -- they are champagne problems.