Am I the only one?

[Hawaiidan]

Hmmm! Have to agree 100%.

I only get on the computer to check the stock mkt, look at a little news (mainly sports), and book or confirm fights and other travel plans. I don't want to hear from home, job, etc. unless it is a dire emergency.

 

Don't want to post or look at CC either.:) I enjoy the contact others on the cruise. Personal contact, not internet, iphone, etc.

 

A vacation is to get away.

 

I total agree when I retired I got rid of all cell phones as un necessary. Maybe its me but I see all these electronic diversions and social media as an addiction.

All the stuff thats out there is done not because we need it but because they can do it ! :o Tech driven by competition not our needs:rolleyes:

 

Seeing and hearing about traffic in Bangaledesh or abouts sick pegiunes in the zoo. and what congress is or is not doing is fluff.

 

I came back from a 3 month job where I had no TV radio, cell, internet only VHF radio

When I got back home I found out that the Pope had not called for advice, no had any leaders in other countries, national government or local business.. The stock market did not need my input nor did any court decision.

In short, my ability to effect the world was rather moot. The world got along, as did I without their input

 

Getting hyped and barraged with masses of really useless information only would serve to frustrate me because once I got the info I had no ability to influence it. So why make your life dependent receiving it?

We dont need feel compelled to check our e-mail hourly, blog banalities to techno addicts. texting and playing with their best friend... their closet attachment there elect buddy. Sort of sad

 

We cruise to enjoy the romance of the sea and human.face to face interaction. As I am not brokering a major corporate take over or a mid-eastern peace deal I see no need to be "connected" to any one or thing

[Esprit]

I'm with you.

 

I'm self employed and when I go on a cruise my office shuts and the answer phone message informs anyone calling when my office reopens.

 

I've never owned a cell phone and wont bother with the internet either on board or on shore. In the 14 years I've been on my own I never had a single client complain I don't return calls/emails. Pre planning is the key and informing as many clients as possible beforehand.

 

I sometimes wonder if those who need to keep in touch with their office are a little insecure or believe in their own self importance too much. Just MHO.

[Nova24]

I wish I could avoid e-mails and voice mails during a cruise, but as a small business owner, I just do not have that luxury. On weekends during a cruise, I will usually spend an hour a day working. I try to return all e-mails the same day (although time differences can make that difficult).

 

I am not suggesting anyone else do what I do, but it is my reality.

[Zoey]

Am I the only one that misses the good old days when being on a cruise meant that no one could contact you except in an emergency, and you didn't need to keep on top of who was posting what on your Facebook page, or what specials your favorite store was running that week that they had to send you an email about? You didn't feel the obligation to check in regularly to try to oversee things from afar.

 

I understand sometimes there are work demands, or sick relatives at home or other similar circumstances. Not talking about those situations. And maybe it is just my generation (Baby Boomer) but I consider not being in touch one of the joys of cruising. I don't need to think about Aunt Jane's latest doctor's visit, or Cousin Joe's obnoxious political ad on Facebook, whether it is sunny or rainy back in Chicago, or who is ahead in the polls. And if my kids are old enough to leave home alone, or with relatives, it is a benefit to them to learn to live without me calling and checking in - it builds character. I am on vacation - I want to FORGET about those things for just one week (ok, I don't forget about my kids - adult or otherwise - I just don't think they need me monitoring their every move - if they do I am already doing something wrong unless they have special challenges:)). I leave an emergency number and then tune out for the duration. I am not judging those who feel or do otherwise, but just wondering......Am I the only one?:D:D:D

 

 

I cruise solo and not only could nobody contact me while I'm on a cruise, usually the only person who knows I'm gone is my boss.....not my adult children or my parents. My phone goes off and in the safe as soon as I board and IF I check e-mails it would only be once a week. Like you, I want to get away from EVERYTHING. If I wanted to e-mail, make calls, etc., I would just stay home.

[aimee0803]

I'm 23 and I am addicted to my iPhone. However, as soon as the boat pulls away from port, my phone is off and in the safe. The last few cruises I have used it on airplane mode as an iPod when I go to the gym, but no texts, no Facebook, no phone calls. I love being cut off. It's the only time I have the willpower to do it!

[navyrotorhead]

my phone goes off and in the safe as soon as i board and if i check e-mails it would only be once a week.

 

ditto ! :)

[TroubleT]

When on vacation/cruise - we are completely unplugged!!! The only electronic device we carry with us is a cell phone and it's only because we need to call a taxi from the airport when we return home. We never turn on a TV in our stateroom!!! The first thing I ask our stateroom attendant is to take away a remote control. I want to hear "the voice of the sea" and not a noise from a crazy outside world. The only time we are in contact with the outside world is when we need to check our flight and print out boarding passes.

[jt1120]

Testify, phoenix, testify! ITA with every word you said. I leave my cell phone at home, we bring our iPad for entertainment purposes, and we purchased a world phone last year for our trip to Europe as my mother was ailing at the time and we wanted to keep track of her recovery. Other than that, IT'S A VACATION!!!! Leave the world on shore and have a good time!

[gelo7]

I am with you, I don't think about home until I walk in the door.

[Gracie115]

No offense to anyone who feels differently but when I get away, I wanna get away:)

 

 

yup...that's how I feel....I used to get great joy when the cell phone went "out of service" as we left the embarkation port....now I just turn it off, throw it in the safe and take it out the night before coming home....it is absolutely joyful to not hear a ring from it for a week or two....

 

check in with email once every couple days....if a dire emergency happens I can always be found....if I EVER start looking at Facebook when on a cruise, well I need to stop cruising....cause that HAS To mean I'm bored....(I'm talking about me....not others....FB is- as Betty White said "a massive waste of time" to me)

[RMSeadog]

What better way to say "Eat Your Heart Out" to friends and family than to post to FB pix of your enjoyment while still on the cruise. The pyramids in the background, zip lining in a tropical rain forest, etc. Fantastic way to show off. ~ Ric

[firemanbobswife]

I guess I should add to my post on the first page that I am in my late 30s and my 2 boys travel with with us. So have no need to get in touch with anyone back home.

 

If one of my other family members gets sick or what have you, they know that I am unreachable. Most of my family live close together in the mid-west while I'm in VA so it's not like I'm real useful 1500 miles away normally anyhow. Whatever the crisis is, I will just have to deal with it when I get back. Besides, what good is it going to do me to be in a full fledged panic out in the middle of the ocean being helpless anyway?! If it's that severe of a situation, I might as well enjoy my few days of happiness as opposed to spending the remainder of it feeling depressed and stuck. It is what it is. I don't have the power to change any outcomes whether on land or at sea. You never know when something could happen, so make sure your loved ones know how you feel everyday. Then you can rest knowing you have a clear conscience.

 

I realize that not everyone has the same situation as me and I'm not being heartless towards my family. It's just the way it is for us. I would want the same if it were the other way around and something happened to me too.

 

So we remain for the most part disconnected from the world.

[Hawaiidan]

I live in Hawaii, just off a beach and a stunning coral filled lagoon for snorkeling, and have a nice pool too. Last year we had some house.... guests, with their teen kids... to the beach? exploring, swimming, snorkeling? Heck its all only less than a block down the street!

 

Well, they got up at dawn, went to sit on the deck by the pool, each with their cell phones, gizmos, tunes and gameboys... played with them dawn to dusk every day for a week.

On a trip to Alaska, a lady on the tour sat looking at here phone thingy the entire 6 hours texting and doing stuff.

It is an addiction when you have to do something and become terribly insecure of you cant. Drugs, Booze or I phones,..no difference.

 

Thats the legacy of the electronic addiction.

 

We have now simple house rules...no cell phones or electronic toys allowed in our home and "no", "can I use your computer"...

I have other friends who do the same.

[RMSeadog]

I live in Hawaii, just off a beach and a stunning coral filled lagoon for snorkeling, and have a nice pool too. Last year we had some house.... guests, with their teen kids... to the beach? exploring, swimming, snorkeling? Heck its all only less than a block down the street!

 

Well, they got up at dawn, went to sit on the deck by the pool, each with their cell phones, gizmos, tunes and gameboys... played with them dawn to dusk every day for a week.

On a trip to Alaska, a lady on the tour sat looking at here phone thingy the entire 6 hours texting and doing stuff.

It is an addiction when you have to do something and become terribly insecure of you cant. Drugs, Booze or I phones,..no difference.

 

Thats the legacy of the electronic addiction.

 

We have now simple house rules...no cell phones or electronic toys allowed in our home and "no", "can I use your computer"...

I have other friends who do the same.

 

Drugs are illegal and will kill or maim, booze although legal will do the same if consumed to excess. I can't see the correlation, except texting while driving, which seems to becoming an epidemic. ~ Ric

 

[Gracie115]

What better way to say "Eat Your Heart Out" to friends and family than to post to FB pix of your enjoyment while still on the cruise. The pyramids in the background, zip lining in a tropical rain forest, etc. Fantastic way to show off. ~ Ric

 

 

Don't really care to "show off" or make anyone "eat their heart out" over my vacation....happy to show them whatever pics THEY may WANT to see upon returning.......

[Ships R Great]

We sail on Oct. 6 for two weeks The best thing for me will be to be AWAY FROM ANY POLITICAL NEWS!!!!!!

[C 2 C]

The marvelous thing about the modern age is the choice to do what we wish to do.

 

We do not have a cell phone, chuckle at those whose electronic devices seem to have become an appendage.

However we cruise for extended periods of time and do like to send an occasional email to the kids but have to have a connection to pay our bills and check on finances.

 

The nice thing about people who text is that they are no longer talking loudly to someone on a cell phone as if they were the only ones in a lounge or room...

 

As long as you're not intruding on someone's privacy it's your cruise, enjoy it anyway you wish.

[jaybird from SC]

We cruise with only a cell phone which is locked in the safe while we are cruising...We do make contact with family via email several times but other than that we are electronic free....

[CHEZMARYLOU]

We check email every few days 1) to delete the junk and 2)because we get free internet with Celebrity. We don't have children so there is no worry there. We do have family members with periodic health issues and will check more often if there is a problem. We don't get on facebook, cruise critics, etc. Might check Celebrity for price reductions on future cruises.

 

Mary Lou

[PinotBlanc]

Cellphone? Facebook?

Phone numbers, emergencies, work?

On a cruise?

 

Get the drink package or liberate yourself.

[BlueCat1105]

We sail on Oct. 6 for two weeks The best thing for me will be to be AWAY FROM ANY POLITICAL NEWS!!!!!!

 

Now THAT was good thinking! I wish I had booked a trip that would have removed me for the week or two leading up to the election! Note to self for 2016 - book a late October - early November trip!

[Taxguy77]

No, you're not! But the cruise lines must love the added income from the wi-fi fees from those who don't feel the same as we do.

 

Agree!

[szq5231]

I love the idea of sailing away and being "unplugged". I relish the fact that work can't contact me. I will admit though, that on our last cruise this past summer, my fingers would get a little itchy sitting around the dinner table. (sorry:o) I am very conncted to my work and habits are hard to break.

 

szq

[Gracie115]

We sail on Oct. 6 for two weeks The best thing for me will be to be AWAY FROM ANY POLITICAL NEWS!!!!!!

 

 

Oh my......you are lucky...the nastiness and lies and accusations are horrible.....I should have planned a month long cruise beginning October 1..... :D

[taracruiser]

No you aren't the only one. My upcoming cruise will be my first since getting a smart phone. I don't plan to update Facebook as to my whereabouts because:

 

1. I don't want everyone to know I'm away and be vulnerable to a burglary. I'll post pictures when I get back.

2. It's vacation, dammit! I want to get away from the digital world for a week.

3. I have a life, dammit! No need to check in all the time, geez.