The first time you boarded a ship.

[kalos]

I was reading on another thread and it seemed to be drifting onto the first time people sailed.

Rather than take over that thread and whilst we cannot cruise it got me thinking ?

What prompted you to start cruising and your memories of your first time stepping onboard ?

My story ...

 

We were on holiday in Matagorda in Lanzarote one evening having a meal on the seafront.

The sun had just set and we were taking in the scenery watching the planes land with their 

lights glinting in the twilight evening sky .

Next time I glanced out to sea I was taken aback by this beautiful pure white cruise ship sailing 

pretty close to the shoreline,she was lit up like a Christmas tree, she looked amazing as she sailed away.

That image stayed with me/us for weeks after our holiday.

We thought about it so much that we booked a few ferries out of Hull to see if we would like it and we 

loved it and booked several more ,just to make sure .

There was no stopping us now ,New Year cruises up the river Seine only to be repeated until one 

fateful day I got an e-mail .."Dear Mr& Mrs Kalos .. The French are on strike and the ship cannot go....

Here is your money back plus £100 each compo "  This was with two weeks to go until Christmas .

The look on Mrs Kalos's face ,I felt her pain . Not being one to give up I surfed the net and came up with 

Thomson Destiny as a replacement ,.When  I told Mrs K what I had done her face looked a picture .

Did we enjoy it ? We were booked back on the ship within a couple of weeks and then onto other 

cruise lines including P&O.From then we have never looked back.

I often wonder ,if we had not seen that ship in Lanzarote gliding by ,would we have ever took up cruising ? 

 

[grapau27]

15 minutes ago, kalos said:

I was reading on another thread and it seemed to be drifting onto the first time people sailed.

Rather than take over that thread and whilst we cannot cruise it got me thinking ?

What prompted you to start cruising and your memories of your first time stepping onboard ?

My story ...

 

We were on holiday in Matagorda in Lanzarote one evening having a meal on the seafront.

The sun had just set and we were taking in the scenery watching the planes land with their 

lights glinting in the twilight evening sky .

Next time I glanced out to sea I was taken aback by this beautiful pure white cruise ship sailing 

pretty close to the shoreline,she was lit up like a Christmas tree, she looked amazing as she sailed away.

That image stayed with me/us for weeks after our holiday.

We thought about it so much that we booked a few ferries out of Hull to see if we would like it and we 

loved it and booked several more ,just to make sure .

There was no stopping us now ,New Year cruises up the river Seine only to be repeated until one 

fateful day I got an e-mail .."Dear Mr& Mrs Kalos .. The French are on strike and the ship cannot go....

Here is your money back plus £100 each compo "  This was with two weeks to go until Christmas .

The look on Mrs Kalos's face ,I felt her pain . Not being one to give up I surfed the net and came up with 

Thomson Destiny as a replacement ,.When  I told Mrs K what I had done her face looked a picture .

Did we enjoy it ? We were booked back on the ship within a couple of weeks and then onto other 

cruise lines including P&O.From then we have never looked back.

I often wonder ,if we had not seen that ship in Lanzarote gliding by ,would we have ever took up cruising ? 

 

As I was prone to motion sickness it wasn't until 2001 when Pauline's mam and dad came with us on a cruise ferry we had seen advertised in the Sunderland Echo.

We did 3 over the next 2 years and I was only seasick twice and the North Sea was very rough.

I picked up a P&O brochure and we liked the look of Aurora so in 2003 we sailed on her and we all loved the experience.

We have had 54 cruises now and I have been seasick once on Oceana in a force 11 gale.

[Angel57]

First time on a ship was a Dover to Calais crossing around 1976 and felt very unwell!

First proper cruise was on Sea Princess (which became Victoria) in 1992.
The height of luxury was two portholes in the cabin and where the steward brought in morning tea and custard creams.  

Lovely ship but she really did pitch and roll in rough weather and I often had to have an injection.

Gravitated to Oriana in 1996 and then Aurora in 2001 (with 2 world cruises in 2012 and 2013).

[majortom10]

Our first cruise was in 1997 to celebrate 15th wedding anniversary. We flew to New York on Concorde and then stayed for 4 nts at Waldorf Astoria and then sailed back TA on QE2 which was 6 nts in those days. We went up Empire State building on the morning of our embarkation on QE2 and saw the ship in her berth at Hudson River and didnt know what to expect or what to look forward too. Must say it turned out to be a fantastic cruise as we were upgraded to Caronia restaurant from Britannia restaurant and was unforgettable.

[Son of Anarchy]

I don't remember my first time on board a ship, as I was just a year old!

 

My Mum is originally from Leningrad.  Every summer we used to get one of the Soviet passenger ships from Tilbury to Leningrad to see Mum's family.  According to Mum, it was 1966 and we sailed on a little old ship called Baltika.  Apparently the ship was in Copenhagen on the day of the world cup final, and as my Dad spoke Russian and had been in the Merchant Navy, some of the crew invited him to their TV room to watch the game.  

 

Up until I was about 16 we went to Leningrad mostly on Baltika, but sometimes we came back on Alexander Pushkin  (now Marco Polo), or Mikhail Lermontov.  Driving into Tilbury you could usually see the hammer & sickle on the funnel, you knew the Soviet Union was in town!  As soon as you stepped on board you knew you were in Soviet Union, the public areas stank of Soviet tobacco smoke, very different to western cigarettes.  No en-suites, usually a four berth cabin just above the waterline, with a porthole you could open.  Still got a faint scar under my lip where I bashed my face falling out of a bunk!

 

Happy memories.

[P&O SUE]

39 minutes ago, Son of Anarchy said:

I don't remember my first time on board a ship, as I was just a year old!

 

My Mum is originally from Leningrad.  Every summer we used to get one of the Soviet passenger ships from Tilbury to Leningrad to see Mum's family.  According to Mum, it was 1966 and we sailed on a little old ship called Baltika.  Apparently the ship was in Copenhagen on the day of the world cup final, and as my Dad spoke Russian and had been in the Merchant Navy, some of the crew invited him to their TV room to watch the game.  

 

Up until I was about 16 we went to Leningrad mostly on Baltika, but sometimes we came back on Alexander Pushkin  (now Marco Polo), or Mikhail Lermontov.  Driving into Tilbury you could usually see the hammer & sickle on the funnel, you knew the Soviet Union was in town!  As soon as you stepped on board you knew you were in Soviet Union, the public areas stank of Soviet tobacco smoke, very different to western cigarettes.  No en-suites, usually a four berth cabin just above the waterline, with a porthole you could open.  Still got a faint scar under my lip where I bashed my face falling out of a bunk!

 

Happy memories.

My friend went on cruises as a child with her parents in the 70’s. She said the first ones were Russian!

As an adult the only time she’s cruised was with me in 2018 as her husband will not set foot on a ship, silly man!

[P&O SUE]

As for my first cruise, like many others is was for a special occasion- our 25th Wedding Anniversary in 2012.

It seemed an impossible dream but looking at a brochure and the website we decided we could afford a 7 night cruise on Azura. I didn’t find cruise critic til the next year but I poured over all the details of the ship I could find online.

Nothing could prepare me for the size of her though when we first saw her! I even saw hubby’s jaw drop. 
I have always loved being by the sea and we just loved everything about it. I couldn’t sleep the night before and I remember worrying if I’d got the right clothes for the evenings! I really nearly cried when we got off. I remember looking out of my windows for days after we got home being upset I wasn’t looking at the sea 😊

[Bloodaxe]

Our first real cruise was in 2006 to Alaska on Celebrity Summit

We had done a few ferry crossings before and a short cruise around the Barrier Reef in Australia.

Our holidays had usually been land tours, we just flew somewhere, hired a car and off we went.

Having traveled extensively in America I wanted to see Alaska and thought a cruise with be the best option.

My Wife took some convincing but eventually agreed, we flew to L.A and cruised up to Alaska, returning from Vancouver, she loved it.

Most of our holidays since then have been cruises, in recent years on Azamara has we are not fans of the huge ships.

Not sure if our cruising days are now over, all depends on how things pan out, far to many things are uncertain.

 

Edited October 20, 2020 by Bloodaxe

[Peanut006]

I could never get my husband interested in cruising until I mentioned a Norwegian Fjords cruise on Oceana. We had an amazing cruise, the scenery was fantastic, the ship was amazing and the food and service excellent. That was back in 2010 and we have cruised every year since and hope fingers crossed we will be cruising again in the future 

 

Michelle 

[ann141]

9 minutes ago, Peanut006 said:

I could never get my husband interested in cruising until I mentioned a Norwegian Fjords cruise on Oceana. We had an amazing cruise, the scenery was fantastic, the ship was amazing and the food and service excellent. That was back in 2010 and we have cruised every year since and hope fingers crossed we will be cruising again in the future 

 

Michelle 

Similar story.It was only when I saw a cruise to Iceland  in June 2011 on Crown Princess that my husband agreed to try a cruise. We were hooked and  now he is  as eager as me to book!

[Gettingwarmer]

Was lucky enough to go on two school cruises on Devonia and Uganda but our first real cruise was for our 25th wedding anniversary in 2000. Didn't like heat then so thought Alaska would be a good idea and the easiest way was by ship. Rockies trip and cruise with Princess was briliant. Thought we would never be able to go again but after one small cruise in the Med and a cruise down Australia way for our 30th anniversay and we were hooked. Mostly on P&O now as we don't like flying so much.  Love cruising and really miss it.

Edited October 20, 2020 by Gettingwarmer

[Dermotsgirl]

35 minutes ago, P&O SUE said:

As for my first cruise, like many others is was for a special occasion- our 25th Wedding Anniversary in 2012.

I remember worrying if I’d got the right clothes for the evenings!

 

The first formal night was a real worry.  I remember looking out of the cabin spyhole at people going past  to see what they were wearing to make sure that we had got it right !

 

As it turned out we had got it right, but there was a lot of angst! 

 

[Dermotsgirl]

We had been wondering about a cruise for a few years, and our 20th Wedding Anniversary was coming up, so we decided the time was right to make a booking.

 

We looked through all the cruise brochures and decided that P&O sounded right, so we booked the 'Images of the Mediterranean Cruise' on Aurora in July 2001. (I liked it when cruises had titles).

 

Just everything about it was exciting.  Prior to the cruise there was all the shopping for clothes, then there was the booking of the excursions ( I'm sure I filled out a form and posted it to them with a cheque), then the tickets arriving in a wallet.

 

I found embarkation to be exciting, then the first step on board was incredible.  We boarded sometime in the mid afternoon and still had to wait for the cabins to be ready so we found a spot overlooking one of the pools and had a glass of Coca Cola.  To this day, every time we go on Aurora we sit in the same place at least once on the cruise, and remember the first time.

 

The whole cruise seemed completely perfect. 

[P&O SUE]

21 minutes ago, Dermotsgirl said:

 

The first formal night was a real worry.  I remember looking out of the cabin spyhole at people going past  to see what they were wearing to make sure that we had got it right !

 

As it turned out we had got it right, but there was a lot of angst! 

 

 

Exactly!! I was so nervous walking out the cabin the first formal night! Then in the lift was someone who was obviously going back to his cabin for a later dinner in his shorts 😂 As soon as we arrived in the Atrium we felt fine! 

[Adawn47]

We never thought of cruising until Frank had a panic attack on the plane coming back from Borneo. He said he would never get on another plane again and I thought our holidays abroad were over. Moaning about this over a coffee with my friend she suggested cruising, and I said that it wouldn't be any use as he wouldn't get on a plane to fly to the ship. When she told me that some sailed a Southampton round trip I perked up. Frank agreed to try, so the following morning I headed off to the TA's. I told the young woman I was interested in a cruise, and then the questions started, and my answer to every one was 'I don't know' I was clueless about cruising. 'Okay' she said 'If I asked what would be your idea of a perfect cuise, what would you say?' My reply was 'Sailing around the Med with Hercule Poirot minus all the bodies' 

'Then you want P&O's Arcadia'

I booked a 12 night Madeira and Canaries cruise and we have never looked back. We were looking over the balcony as we left port and when we heard Arcadia's horn we just looked at each other and smiled. I knew then we'd found our next adventure. Time for us to discover Europe. The whole cruise was amazingly different from anything we've experiencd before. We were totally hooked. All thanks to Frank's  panic attack.

Avril

[Balaena]

First time was on the Balaena, I was 16 at the time and set off for a 6 month expedition to Antarctica. The ship left Southampton on the 8th November 1959 for Curacao, then across to Cape Town before going south to the Antarctic. After 4 months we returned to Cape Town and then disembarked in Liverpool on the 6th May 1960. Having had a taste for cruising the oceans, my wife and I joined the Sea Princess in 1982, latterly the Victoria, on a 3 week roundtrip cruise to the Caribbean and in February of this year we completed our 150th P&O cruise.

[kalos]

13 minutes ago, Balaena said:

in February of this year we completed our 150th P&O cruise.

 

Just wondering ?  Have you got the cruising bug yet ??   

[jeanlyon]

I emigrated to Canada when I was 20 on the Cunard Sylvania, about 14000 tons.  I suppose I wouldn't call it a cruise.  I came back 3 years later on the QEII.  Not sure either of those got me into cruising.

[Balaena]

48 minutes ago, kalos said:

 

Just wondering ?  Have you got the cruising bug yet ??   

Getting there but they keep cancelling them🤣

[Josy1953]

Our first cruise was a 7 day cruise on the Carnival Holiday way back in 1984.  We had decided to go to Florida for 2 weeks and a cruise was something that we thought we would like to try so we booked 3 weeks holiday from work.  It was definitely going to be a one off but 36 years on we still haven't gone off cruising.  The last I heard was that Holiday had become Magellan but with the demise of CMV I'm not sure where she is now.

[P&O SUE]

1 hour ago, Adawn47 said:

 'Okay' she said 'If I asked what would be your idea of a perfect cuise, what would you say?' My reply was 'Sailing around the Med with Hercule Poirot minus all the bodies' 

 

This bit really made me laugh Avril 😂😂😂

[Britboys]

The first time boarding a ship was, like many above, for a special occasion, Tony's 40th birthday in 1995. We had a 'Grand Tour' around the USA, ending in New York, where we boarded the QE2 to Southampton. As Cunard say, it wasn't a cruise but a crossing. We had booked First Class, which really equated to Business Class, with Grill Class being First Class. It really did feel like the Golden Days of cruising to us. Every night was very glamorous and I still have a memory of seeing one 'mature' lady passenger dancing Ballroom in the Queen's Room, wearing a wired ballgown swishing her way around the floor. We got off in Southampton and for several days had problems gaining back our 'land legs' as it continued to feel like the ground under our feet was moving!

We had enjoyed it so much that 2 years later we boarded the beautiful Victoria in Southampton for a two week Med Cruise bearing the name "la Dolce Vita" to Spain, France and Italy. Once again, we had a fabulous time and met some lovely people. One couple I am still in contact with now and we met up for a short break in a Warner Hotel early this year.

We continued to cruise celebrating my 40th and Tony's 50th birthdays on a Princess and Celebrity cruise respectively. We also sailed on Arcadia as a 'honeymoon' cruise in 2006, after our Civil Partnership - which felt a bit odd as we were celebrating 20 years together that year too. By then cruising had become our preferred way to holiday.

I'm so grateful that we had a number of P&O cruises together as it gave me the courage to continue cruising alone after Tony died in 2012.

Edited October 20, 2020 by Britboys

[Adawn47]

7 minutes ago, Britboys said:

The first time boarding a ship was, like many above, for a special occasion, Tony's 40th birthday in 1995. We had a 'Grand Tour' around the USA, ending in New York, where we boarded the QE2 to Southampton. As Cunard say, it wasn't a cruise but a crossing. We had booked First Class, which really equated to Business Class, with Grill Class being First Class. It really did feel like the Golden Days of cruising to us. Every night was very glamorous and I still have a memory of seeing one 'mature' lady passenger dancing Ballroom in the Queen's Room, wearing a wired ballgown swishing her way around the floor. We got off in Southampton and for several days had problems gaining back our 'land legs' as it continued to feel like the ground under our feet was moving!

We had enjoyed it so much that 2 years later we boarded the beautiful Victoria in Southampton for a two week Med Cruise bearing the name "la Dolce Vita" to Spain, France and Italy. Once again, we had a fabulous time and met some lovely people. One couple I am still in contact with now and we met up for a short break in a Warner Hotel early this year.

We continued to cruise celebrating my 40th and Tony's 50th birthdays on a Princess and Celebrity cruise respectively. We also sailed on Arcadia as a 'honeymoon' cruise in 2006, which felt a bit odd as we were celebrating 20 years together that year too. By then cruising had become our preferred way to holiday.

I'm so grateful that we had a number of P&O cruises together as it gave me the courage to continue cruising alone after Tony died in 2012.

I have very much enjoyed reading your recollections of your first cruises together with your partner. The beauty of cruising gives us some wonderful memories and some long lasting friendships.

Avril

[kalos]

25 minutes ago, Britboys said:

We got off in Southampton and for several days had problems gaining back our 'land legs' as it continued to feel like the ground under our feet was moving!

 

I forgot all about that feeling ,it's like a strange phenomenon,never to be repeated on any of our other cruises .

[Britboys]

9 minutes ago, kalos said:

 

I forgot all about that feeling ,it's like a strange phenomenon,never to be repeated on any of our other cruises .

Yes, that's the only time I ever experienced it too.