Take a second to look from the outside in

[Vettech30]

This will be our first cruise and we are in our 30s. We have been frugal since we moved out on our own and feel secure enough now to start taking "real" vacations. I feel bad when I tell some of my coworkers about the trip because they make as much as me and cant afford a nice trip. I am extremely fortunate to be able to travel with my mom,dad brother and sister! I am sure we will have lots of special memories:)

[travelntreats]

This will be our first cruise and we are in our 30s. We have been frugal since we moved out on our own and feel secure enough now to start taking "real" vacations. I feel bad when I tell some of my coworkers about the trip because they make as much as me and cant afford a nice trip. I am extremely fortunate to be able to travel with my mom,dad brother and sister! I am sure we will have lots of special memories:)

 

Perhaps their priorities are different than yours.... perhaps they choose to have other things that are more important in their life.....

 

It's all abut what YOU feel is important... I still do not feel I am any more or less fortunate than anyone...it's the destiny I choose to follow and work towards, just as others can do IF they want to.

[debshomespun]

We too, are very fortunate to be able to cruise 2 and 3 times a year. We live very frugal every day, and watch our spending habits. We choose to spend our hard earned money and enjoy life. We chose to do this by cruising. We love to "stop and smell the roses" on each of our cruises. We have our money budgeted for our cruises.

 

This is a great thread. Thanks to all for their great outlook on life and how we enjoy our vacations through cruising!

[nydiana]

I love cruising so much, but my husband got upset at the bills to be paid when we returned from his first cruise. So now I have money taken out of my paycheck and deposited into our "vacation" account. We do not book a vacation unless we have enough saved up. We even roll coins to put extra in the vacation account. We study the cruise catalog to pick the most interesting itinerary. Then we watch for good prices on the cruise, air fare and hotels. I look forward to the next cruise from the minute I book. I love the memories of past cruises. Jon and I come home from our trips and print our photos and put together an album. We enjoy going back through the pictures.

 

I bought shares in RCI back when they went public. I joke it is my insurance policy. If I ever get to poor to take a cruise I can cash in my stock and take one last cruise.

 

Diana

[BecciBoo]

Fortunate doesn't even begin to describe our blessings. We are downright spoiled rotten. Those who live and work and play in the United States of America are in the minority where the world is concerned....consider that as far as Gross National Income per capita, the USA is on the ten wealthiest countries with the wealthiest citizens list. Also on that list are extremely small countries like Luxemburg, no larger nations to compare to the US with its emmince population. 92% of the world is way below our poverty level. We are the most blest nation on earth. We have the opportunity for more leisure than almost anywhere on the planet. So glad we can cruise even once a year. If the economy returns to normal, we can all do our multiples again. But I am so grateful just to be able to cruise at all. So glad to be born here. Thank you God:D.

[vegasgirl702]

You make some great points. We had some family members that used to make comments behind our backs about our travel habits. We generally pay cash for our trips and have had it worked into our budget for years. We plan cruises months ahead so we can pay for them monthly. It generally came down to this, I have one brother who likes toys, he has 4-wheelers, motor home, trucks, horses etc.. and pays alot for hunting trips. That is what he likes so enjoy, have fun do what you like. We like to travel and if we can afford 3 cruises a year along with other vacations then we should be able to enjoy what we like to do. I can see it being a problem if we couldn't afford it, but we own our own businesses and can set our own schedules so thats what we like to do. We are only on this earth for a little while so enjoy the time you have and do what brings you joy.

 

 

Yes, sounds familiar:p. I would say (to family members) you too can cruise if it's a priority. My brother is a doctor & his wife is a nurse but they are house poor and eat out 2-3 times a day. Spending upwards of $1,000 a week on take out.

[matandbri]

This thread is such a joy to read! Thank you KruzeRcI for starting it. We are like so many struggling a bit with two kids in college, but I am so grateful that we can also be planning our 30th anniversary cruise. Cruising is such an awesome experience and it is nice to be able to take a moment and be thankful for the fact that I have been able to cruise. We have had many wonderful memories with our kids and this past December took a cruise to celebrate my parents 60th wedding anniversary. A few less cruises when the kids were younger may have made college a bit easier, but NO WAY would I give up those memories!!

 

Misty Que, I hope the Dr. gives you the ok to finally take that cruise and you sound like a miracle to me!! :)

[firstevercruise]

Thanks to the OP for this thread. I am one of those people who sees a cruise as a once in a life time holiday. We finally booked a cruise on Indy for our 20th Wedding Anniversary. I was thrilled at the thought of this holiday of a lifetime, happy to book an inside cabin as that is as far as the budget can stretch. Unfortunately fate has dealt us a bad hand again, due to Government cuts, I was made redundant from work in November. 4 months later after appying for over 400 jobs, I am still unemployed and with final payment due in 8 weeks, we have spoken to RCI and we are now transferring this cruise to May 2012. Fingers crossed that the extra few months will give me time to get another job.

I have 3 interviews this week so hopefully will have another job soon, but the recession means there are at least 200 applicants for each job.

I am determined to get on that ship at some point!!

 

Vickie

[ZoeyVictoria]

This is a great thread!

 

I try to take a few moments on all of my cruises to sit out on my balcony and thank god that I am able to cruise-both physically and financially. My husband passed away ten years ago at the age of 56 after a 10 month battle with cancer and I am thankful that we started cruising in 1990 and that he got to go several times before his illness. I have been cruising as much as I can since then.

 

I also lost my husband to cancer, when I was 52. We took just one cruise together, in between chemo treatments, and it was the best vacation we ever had. I was lucky enough to find love again and my new DH and I cruise as often as I can get away from work. We appreciate every minute of it and know how fortunate we are to be able to go. Other people question the number of vacations we take, but that is our priority - it is what we do with our hard-earned money.

[not2old]

Yes. Hubby had a health scare some years ago and it made us realize that we must travel now while we can. We love cruising and travelling in general and will contine to do so until we can't. Pretty much end of story. :)

We cruise for the same reason, none of us knows how long we will be on this Earth and as an older couple, we cherish every cruise we can take. We have worked hard all our lives, helped raise children, helped them as adults when they needed it so now it's time for us to enjoy life!

[copnlpn2]

Cruising has been a blessing for me! It started nearly 10 years ago, during a visit from my brother. He and I had grown apart and rarely talked, but when we did, all he talked about was cruising. I thought he was just being a snob. I was just getting through a divorce when he invited me to join him and his wife on a cruise. I accepted his invitiation to take "just one cruise," more or less to shut him up.

 

I fell in love with cruising, but more importantly I spent 7 wonderful days rebonding with my brother and now we're closer than we've been since we were kids. We've sailed together a few times and the only parting of the ways we've had is that I've stayed loyal to Royal, while he's become a dedicated Carnival cruiser.

 

I had to scrimp and save to cruise once a year, and as times got better, twice a year. Now, I'm able to cruise three or four times a year. I was able to take my terminally ill mother on a cruise shortly before she passed away, and now I take my 84-year-old father cruising with me at least once a year.

 

My life's circumstances have changed alot because Dad lives with me now. I take care of senior citizens all day, then come home and take care of Dad. I'm so thankful for those few days every few months when I can get away to have some much needed "my time."

 

Am I blessed? Yes, because I have my brother back; I have the memories of my mother's excitement at being at sea, and I get to share in my father's pleasure as he visits distant ports he never imagined visiting. And I'll always be thankful to RCCL for helping to make all this possible!

[cruisinmamma]

Thank you for such an uplifting thread!

While I love cruising, it is just a small part of the truly blessed life that I am fortunate to have .

You reminded stop and take a moment to count those blessings today.

Thanks again.

[burritto]

I've been online since my dad (now 10 years deceased) came across AOL 2.0 in 1994. This is, without question, the best message board post I've ever read.

 

Thank you :)

[retiredonthesea]

What a great thread!! We are spending our kids inheritance one cruise at a time while taking the grandkids with us!!!;)

[Desert Cruizers]

Very well said, we are a couple who are not able to cruise every year, I personally could, but DH would like a break and RV so we compromised, plus are income doesn't allow us to cruise often with us both retired, so I value the time we can and try and make the most of it by going places we haven't been to. This Oct will probably be the cruise of our life time when we fly to Barcelona for 3 days pre cruise and take a TA back to FT Lauderdale. DH said we might as well see what we can, as we may not make it back again.

We don't worry about all the perks etc, because just getting on board a ship and meeting new friends is our reward along with seeing differant places.

[read52]

I forgot to mention all the nice people that we meet on board. Three and a half years ago, I met two ladies on line that were going to be grandmothers at the same time as me. One lady was not able to go on the cruise because her daughter gave birth to her twins early and then had a health problems. I still talk to them through cruise critic. One day we will all cruise again.

 

My husband has neurological problems from being ill so cruising is great. We can do as much or as little as we want. If he gets tired, we can go to our room and rest. If we can't make it to the dining room, there is room service. A doctor is always on board. We don't have to drive anywhere.

[MAZANDSTEVE]

I agree, we are lucky, we are enjoying ourselves while it lasts. :)

[Ttowntreasures]

In 2007 my sister (who had just turned 50) was killed, along with four other people, by a drunk driver. Her daughter was expecting her first baby when it happened. We had our memorial service for her, and decided to go ahead with our cruise over Thanksgiving. My neice was 8-1/2 mos along and said to me, "Aunt Kathy, I'm waiting for you to get back to have the baby".

We arrived back on November 26 and I called my neice to find out how she was doing. She said "I've been waiting for you". November 27th she had her baby girl. Now I'm "aunt grandma".

So thankful to God that we are blessed and can enjoy the fruits of our labors. Take nothing for granted, life is uncertain, eat dessert first.

[Shooraq]

You make some great points. We had some family members that used to make comments behind our backs about our travel habits. We generally pay cash for our trips and have had it worked into our budget for years. We plan cruises months ahead so we can pay for them monthly. It generally came down to this, I have one brother who likes toys, he has 4-wheelers, motor home, trucks, horses etc.. and pays alot for hunting trips. That is what he likes so enjoy, have fun do what you like. We like to travel and if we can afford 3 cruises a year along with other vacations then we should be able to enjoy what we like to do. I can see it being a problem if we couldn't afford it, but we own our own businesses and can set our own schedules so thats what we like to do. We are only on this earth for a little while so enjoy the time you have and do what brings you joy.

 

It's so true. I have friends tease me all the time about "oh, are you going on a cruise or vacation THIS month too?" What people don't get is that I don't have kids (just 2 cats and they are the ONLY reason I hate leaving my house for a cruise), don't have expensive habits like cars, electronics, etc. My vacations are my means of enjoying life and I plan them out so they are extremely affordable and cost-effective. No one ever takes the time to appreciate, but that's okay, I'm thankful I can do 2-3 trips a year and have those special moments/memories with my husband, my family, or whoever else comes along with me!

[Host Faith]

It's so true. I have friends tease me all the time about "oh, are you going on a cruise or vacation THIS month too?" What people don't get is that I don't have kids (just 2 cats and they are the ONLY reason I hate leaving my house for a cruise), don't have expensive habits like cars, electronics, etc. My vacations are my means of enjoying life and I plan them out so they are extremely affordable and cost-effective. No one ever takes the time to appreciate, but that's okay, I'm thankful I can do 2-3 trips a year and have those special moments/memories with my husband, my family, or whoever else comes along with me!

 

I agree. My husband and I have taken about 2 vacations a year since we've been married, and we take lots of weekend trips as well. People tend to tease us because we travel so much, however we don't have any children yet (and I agree Sooraq since we have a dog and I hate leaving him home while we're cruising!), we don't spend a lot on shopping, and we budget for the things we want to do. I'm a coupon addict, and I buy clothes, etc, on clearance as much as possible. We just don't do a lot of habitual things people my age tend to spend money on. This allows us to budget and pay for our cruises in cash. We pay bit-by-bit each year. It's a matter of priorities. The memories we have from our travels are so precious to me.

 

But I must say, we're extremely fortunate to not only have money to take care of our responsibilities, but also have enough left over to enjoy travel. Especially in this economy. Sadly, many people around the world can't say that. We're blessed.

[celebrity]

In 2007 my sister (who had just turned 50) was killed, along with four other people, by a drunk driver. Her daughter was expecting her first baby when it happened. We had our memorial service for her, and decided to go ahead with our cruise over Thanksgiving. My neice was 8-1/2 mos along and said to me, "Aunt Kathy, I'm waiting for you to get back to have the baby".

We arrived back on November 26 and I called my neice to find out how she was doing. She said "I've been waiting for you". November 27th she had her baby girl. Now I'm "aunt grandma".

So thankful to God that we are blessed and can enjoy the fruits of our labors. Take nothing for granted, life is uncertain, eat dessert first.

So sorry for your loss. Everything you said is so true.

[rncruiser]

I often remind my kids how lucky they are that we can go on cruises. So many of their friends also travel and it is easy to forget that travel is a luxury, not a necessity or an expectation.

[Ttowntreasures]

So sorry for your loss. Everything you said is so true.

 

Thank you.

[Ttowntreasures]

So sorry for your loss. Everything you said is so true.

 

Thank you. The woman is now spending 107 years in prison. Doesn't replace our loss, but justice was done.