First time cruisers

[Kingos]

Hi

 

We are first time cruisers and taking our very first on Voyager of the Seas ,14 day trip to NZ. leaving Sydney 23rd Nov 2013.

 

I think I have the clothes issue sorted but are there other items that may come in handy beside the usual stuff we all need.

 

Quite excited about the whole thing as we havent been outside Australia for 14 yrs. My husband has limited walking capacity as he has a dicky knee so we have put ourselves near an elevator and have a balcony suite.

 

Would love to hear of hints and tips from people who have done this before, I have been reading lots of articles on the cruise line but it helps to hear from real people who have done this.

 

thanks, Kingos

[mr walker]

Hi Kingos, welcome to cc and to the wonderful world of cruising. We were all newbies at one time, for us just 2 years (& 4 cruises) ago.

Half the fun is finding things out :D

 

With RC you have chosen a great cruise line & from what I am told a great ship. We will find out for sure as we are on Voyager OTS 1 month before you.

 

You will love the NZ trip. A few sea days to get into holiday mode, wonderful ports and sights to see, and a few days at sea on the way back.

 

Some hints:

- don't stress

- take half as much luggage and twice as much money:D

- make sure you have your passports & medications

- enjoy

 

Happy cruising

[gaechann]

As you are on the Voyager be sure to find the Peek-a-boo deck which allows you to look down into the Bridge to watch the Captain & other officers going about their duties.

Sometimes they have the blinds drawn when they are especially busy so come back and try another time!

[markarmel]

Firstly, you have chosen a great cruiseline. We have been lucky to have been on Radiance of the seas back in 2007 and Voyager of the seas last November when we did a 14 day NZ cruise. Royal Carribean is definitely the cruiseline with the WOW factor. DO NOT miss the ice skating show it is amazing,you have to see it but they only have 2 shows so make sure you get there. Johnny Rockets is worth paying the $4-5 PP but don't go to close to your next meal because you will come out of there pretty full.You may be given a boarding time but I suggest you go down and drop your bags off early and see how long the lines oare. We were given a 2.30 boarding time but we were on the ship by 11.45 as the lines were not that long. We ate in the main dining room on every night except for 1 and the meals were excellent. In the Casual Buffet side of things meals were good also. They had a Asian area which cooked up a brilliant stirfry while you waited. The specialty restaurant whose name I cant remember at the moment we found to be a bit disappointing. One really good thing about Royal Carribean is that they have lots of chairs on the ship decks.On Holland America ships we have found that there is never enough. The café on the Promanade deck is good value for some food and coffee,no charge here unless you want a more upmarket coffee.Party wise there was a 70s disco night,a white party and one other as well as the Disney type parade through the promenade.We were also allowed to bring on 1 bottle of wine each last November but if you take any carry it with you when you board the ship. You wont believe the size of VOS especially as you walk up to the dock and as soon as you walk on your in another world. Enjoy your trip,nothing beats cruising. I bet you will be on another in no time.(if you do another have a look at Radiance of the seas it's a beautiful ship)

[MicCanberra]

Welcome to CC, Good stuff but be warned, cruising is very addictive. Enjoy.:D

[joybook]

Yep I agree - cruising is addictive having cruised with both Princess and Royal Carribbean. Check out what power outlet configuration you have as you may need an adaptor to fit your Australian plugs. You will probably find that you have far too few power outlets in your cabin and we have always found it very beneficial to also take a small power board (say 3 or 4 outlets) to cope with all those messy things that always need charging up. Have a great cruise and welcome to CC. You will find CC one of the most useful and helpful websites around.:)

[chester32]

You will love cruising NZ we did a 17 night xmas cruise there in 09 which was are first cruise

We now cruise at least once a year now luv it

I assume you will be cruising into Milford sound just make sure you have some warm clothing it can be a bit cool there

Have a great time;)

[Kingos]

Thank you for all the comments and help.

 

We heard it may be chilly in the Sounds so will pack a jacket . Gosh didnt think of not enough power outlets, so that hint has been taken on board .

 

Is there enough room in the shower to hang a small umbrella type clothes dryer for the undies? .

 

Kingos

[The_Big_M]

Yes. There's also a mini pull out clothes line in there so you can use that, or hang off it.

[MicCanberra]

I normally take a elastic type twisted line (no need for pegs) for the smalls.:D

[gaechann]

Thank you for all the comments and help.

 

We heard it may be chilly in the Sounds so will pack a jacket . Gosh didnt think of not enough power outlets, so that hint has been taken on board .

 

Is there enough room in the shower to hang a small umbrella type clothes dryer for the undies? .

 

Kingos

 

You'll need a power adaptor as well - Big W have them for not too much!

 

Also, be aware that you can have every meal in the Main Dining Room (no lunch there on Port days) and / or in the Windjammer buffet. There's also the option of dining for either lunch or dinner in the Specialty Restaurant Portofino's which we loved so much we went twice - there is a small charge for it. Just go there during the day to make a reservation or call from your room.

 

There's also room-service which you order the night before for breakfast. Nice if you can't be bothered getting up early.

 

BTW have you joined your Roll Call for your cruise and registered for the Meet & Mingle there? If not, here is the link: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1770545

 

From the Roll Call you'll get to meet others going on your cruise and get some ideas and tips from them as well.

 

 

Gae

[MicCanberra]

You'll need a power adaptor as well - Big W have them for not too much!

 

Also, be aware that you can have every meal in the Main Dining Room (no lunch there on Port days) and / or in the Windjammer buffet. There's also the option of dining for either lunch or dinner in the Specialty Restaurant Portofino's which we loved so much we went twice - there is a small charge for it. Just go there during the day to make a reservation or call from your room.

 

There's also room-service which you order the night before for breakfast. Nice if you can't be bothered getting up early.

 

BTW have you joined your Roll Call for your cruise and registered for the Meet & Mingle there? If not, here is the link: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1770545

Gae

Great advice, I remember someone telling me that a friend cruised and only found out on the third last day (12 day cruise) that the MDR was included and did not have a cover charge, up until then they were eating in the Buffet.:eek:

[gaechann]

Great advice, I remember someone telling me that a friend cruised and only found out on the third last day (12 day cruise) that the MDR was included and did not have a cover charge, up until then they were eating in the Buffet.:eek:

 

Yes, we also met a party of 6 new cruisers on Rhapsody of the Seas that were eating in the Buffet because they thought they had to pay for the Main Dining Room. This was also about Day 3 or perhaps 4 as they'd been suffering sea-sickness for the first "motion in the ocean" days!

 

Of course, IF it's your first cruise and no-one has explained it to you and you're NOT a contributor to Cruise Critic, I guess it might be something that you just don't know.

 

Our first cruise we were complete novices! We only found Cruise Critic before our second cruise but by then we knew a thing or two about cruising but I've found so much information here that I wonder how anyone manages without it. :confused:

[MicCanberra]

Yes, we also met a party of 6 new cruisers on Rhapsody of the Seas that were eating in the Buffet because they thought they had to pay for the Main Dining Room. This was also about Day 3 or perhaps 4 as they'd been suffering sea-sickness for the first "motion in the ocean" days!

 

Of course, IF it's your first cruise and no-one has explained it to you and you're NOT a contributor to Cruise Critic, I guess it might be something that you just don't know.

 

Our first cruise we were complete novices! We only found Cruise Critic before our second cruise but by then we knew a thing or two about cruising but I've found so much information here that I wonder how anyone manages without it. :confused:

Yes, CC is so helpful, we found it in 2009 so relatively late. My wife and I used it for a few years before she kicked me off, so I had to have my own CC name and account.:D

[Kingos]

Wow so many replies and lots of help. Thank you all.

 

We have registered for Meet andMingle and now looking forward to meeting new friends. We are Grey Nomads who have travelled around Australia extensively so we enjoy meeting new people.

 

Cruising is somewhat a mystery to us but we are looking forward to it. It's our 45th wedding anniversary present to ourselves.

 

Now to think about shore excursions. Travel insurance is done, clothes thought about and yet to have the shopping spree...yippee.

[MicCanberra]

Wow so many replies and lots of help. Thank you all.

 

We have registered for Meet andMingle and now looking forward to meeting new friends. We are Grey Nomads who have travelled around Australia extensively so we enjoy meeting new people.

 

Cruising is somewhat a mystery to us but we are looking forward to it. It's our 45th wedding anniversary present to ourselves.

 

Now to think about shore excursions. Travel insurance is done, clothes thought about and yet to have the shopping spree...yippee.

The roll call for your cruise is a separate thread here on CC which will help you meet (online) many other CC members prior to the Meet and Mingle party. Here is a link http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1770545 as gaechann posted earlier, good luck:D

[Gerko]

If hubby has limited walking ability then why choose the largest ship sailing out of this area? She is longer, wider and has more decks than any other ship out here. I would have though something around the 60-70,000 tone mid-size would help hime more, particularly one of the Holland America ship as they have an extra bank of elevators over other ships of that size.

 

Having said that, any cruise is a good cruise, and the staff are very helpful towards people who may need a little assistance. My suggestion is to go online and book and drink packages, specialty restaurants, spa treatments etc that you may want as that saves you missing out when everyone tries to book them on the first day on board.

[The_Big_M]

My suggestion is to go online and book and drink packages, specialty restaurants, spa treatments etc that you may want as that saves you missing out when everyone tries to book them on the first day on board.

 

The trade-off with booking in advance with RCL (not all cruise lines do this) is that you are charged at the time of booking. This means if you change plans/cancel, or just want the funds for longer you don't have them.

 

Of course, given the trend of the AUD (since you're paying in USD), or for your own budget purposes, you may prefer to pay in advance.

[MicCanberra]

The trade-off with booking in advance with RCL (not all cruise lines do this) is that you are charged at the time of booking. This means if you change plans/cancel, or just want the funds for longer you don't have them.

 

Of course, given the trend of the AUD (since you're paying in USD), or for your own budget purposes, you may prefer to pay in advance.

 

Given the indications paying for anything in $USD is probably better now than next year.:D

[Kingos]

The trade-off with booking in advance with RCL (not all cruise lines do this) is that you are charged at the time of booking. This means if you change plans/cancel, or just want the funds for longer you don't have them.

 

Of course, given the trend of the AUD (since you're paying in USD), or for your own budget purposes, you may prefer to pay in advance.

 

Hi we have booked a couple of shore excursions through a private operator and now in the process of making up our minds as to what restaurant and entertainment.

 

The drinks thingo has us wondering what to do as we only have a glass of wine occasionally and it's only one. I don't drink soft drinks (soda) , though Barry does , mostly water for me. I know we sound awfully boring but really were not!!

 

So do we just buy as we go or buy a soda pkg that maybe we won't use that much. Any ideas please.

 

Gerko,, we have a cabin in the mid section near an elevator so the walking wont be too bad, Barry can then just find a seat to have a rest every so often. As its our first cruise we thought bigger so the rocking may not be as bad ha ha . No Barry and I both wanted to do this ship. We will cope as always.

Pamela

[gaechann]

Hi we have booked a couple of shore excursions through a private operator and now in the process of making up our minds as to what restaurant and entertainment.

 

The drinks thingo has us wondering what to do as we only have a glass of wine occasionally and it's only one. I don't drink soft drinks (soda) , though Barry does , mostly water for me. I know we sound awfully boring but really were not!!

 

So do we just buy as we go or buy a soda pkg that maybe we won't use that much. Any ideas please.

 

Gerko,, we have a cabin in the mid section near an elevator so the walking wont be too bad, Barry can then just find a seat to have a rest every so often. As its our first cruise we thought bigger so the rocking may not be as bad ha ha . No Barry and I both wanted to do this ship. We will cope as always.

Pamela

 

I took my 87-year old Mother who had never cruised before! She was worried about being seasick and warned me that I was out of the will if she was! There was no sign of it though there was a little 'motion in the ocean' especially across the Tasman Sea.

 

I wouldn't worry about pre-purchasing any drinks packages UNLESS you were big drinkers. The mixed drinks are very strong as they free-pour the alcohol and really they aren't all that expensive. I think we spent less than $200 for our 14-days on drinks - that was how much on-board credit we had so all was well.

 

The people on your Roll Call who have cruised before will help you with lots of questions as this is your first cruise. Just remember, it's YOUR cruise and others will give you their opinion which will vary from person to person.

 

My Mum had 3 favourite places to hang out on Voyager - in the Library on Deck 7 which gave her a view right down the Promenade especially during the parades, the Cafe Promenade on Deck 5 for a snack and people watching and the Viking Crown Lounge on Deck 13 which gave her shelter from the wind with a panoramic view over the ship and outside to the views!

 

Enjoy! - Gae

[MicCanberra]

I agree, just have the drinks - Pay as you go. If you think it is racking up a big bill then look at the packages on the second or third day to compare.:D

[Kingos]

Thanks everyone. I am so glad I found CC. A mine of information for 2novices.

[The_Big_M]

The drinks thingo has us wondering what to do as we only have a glass of wine occasionally and it's only one. I don't drink soft drinks (soda) , though Barry does , mostly water for me. I know we sound awfully boring but really were not!!

 

The drinks packages were only offered by the lines after, and they want to make sure they make money out of it, so are only break even if you buy a lot of drinks.

 

Some people of course then drink more because they have the package, but there's no benefit to buying them aside from the pure value thing - and they in fact limit choice in some ways as they don't cover everything!

 

So in your case, I'd suggest sticking with just buying drinks as you feel like. You should still be ahead, whichever way the dollar goes. :D

[MicCanberra]

Thanks everyone. I am so glad I found CC. A mine of information for 2novices.

 

Yes, ask something on CC and someone always knows the answer.:D