Thrown back in time.....

[Kartgv]

Most of the things we remember have already been mentioned and bring back many great memories. A couple of others that you don't see today:

 

. Ashtrays and smoking everywhere, including cabins and the dining room. We were smokers back in those days, but even to us the staterooms smelled awful.

. Raised rails around the dining room tables so that dishes didn't slide off during high seas.

. "Double" beds that were barely wider than a twin.

. Walls so thin that we once laid in our bed and had a conversation with our friends on the other side of the wall to the cabin next to us. We then started scheduling some 'private time' hours where we or they would vacate the cabin for awhile so we could be sure of not being overheard.

. Buying 4-packs of quart or liter size bottles of rum or other spirits and carrying them on the ship in various Caribbean ports. We'd then also carry them on the planes going home.

 

By the way, we had horse racing just like the old days on the Radiance of the Seas around Australia in Feb/March of 2012. Same bidding to own horses, costuming them and carrying them around the ship, large crowds around the pool for 'race day' - lots of spirited betting and cheering for favorites, great fun.

[sparky-elpaso]

Most of the things we remember have already been mentioned and bring back many great memories. A couple of others that you don't see today:

 

. Ashtrays and smoking everywhere, including cabins and the dining room. We were smokers back in those days, but even to us the staterooms smelled awful.

. Raised rails around the dining room tables so that dishes didn't slide off during high seas.

. "Double" beds that were barely wider than a twin.

. Walls so thin that we once laid in our bed and had a conversation with our friends on the other side of the wall to the cabin next to us. We then started scheduling some 'private time' hours where we or they would vacate the cabin for awhile so we could be sure of not being overheard.

. Buying 4-packs of quart or liter size bottles of rum or other spirits and carrying them on the ship in various Caribbean ports. We'd then also carry them on the planes going home.

 

By the way, we had horse racing just like the old days on the Radiance of the Seas around Australia in Feb/March of 2012. Same bidding to own horses, costuming them and carrying them around the ship, large crowds around the pool for 'race day' - lots of spirited betting and cheering for favorites, great fun.

 

We were on that cruise. We may have seen each other around the ship and not known we were Cruise Critic "mates".

[jmf123]

Today it's wave runners, skating rinks, current pools, climbing walls and I'm just waiting for the first roller coaster! Cruise ships todat resemble amusement parks rather than traditional ocean liners of the past for the most part. Cunard gets the exception.

 

Regarding waiting for the first roller coaster, the Disney Dream has come close with their AquaDuck. And I love the idea of splashing into a lazy river at the end! :D From the Disney website:

 

AquaDuck is an exciting "water coaster" located on Deck 12, Aft aboard the Disney Dream. Developed by Disney Imagineers, this elevated water coaster is the first of its kind at sea.

 

During the ride, you will:

 

Travel 765 feet through an acrylic tube

Go on a thrilling journey up, down, around and off the side of the ship, through the Forward Funnel—down a span of 4 decks!

Enjoy breathtaking views of the ocean and ship below—assuming you're brave enough to keep your eyes open during the ride

Get a bird's-eye view of the new pools available to family, kids and adults aboard the Disney Fantasy

Splash into a lazy river at the end of the plunge

[JimAOk1945]

I love reading these stories of days gone by! There is so much great writing talent that I almost feel like I cruised along with you. Please keep the stories coming. I'm looking forward to reading more.

Edited October 31, 2013 by JimAOk1945

[Lionesss]

Sailing out of SanJuan on a Cunard ship for Southern Carribean cruise (in the mid 80's).

About 3 nights into the journey entering the Masquarade contest.

You had to make a costume by only using anything found on board.

My room-mate and I grabbed all the clean trash bags lining the trash cans. I put on my bikini (Hey then I could wear one and looked great:D). ripping all the bags and tying them all over me, my wrists, waist neck feet. Put on a ton of green makeup. And downed at least a half bottle of rum:eek: before I walked (tripped) out in front of everyone.

 

I went as Miss Seaweed.

When they announced me I was Ms Marina Plankta.

 

I came in second place ( I should have won).

Got a bottle of champagne, ship plaque and a certificate for my free picture.

Ahhhh Memories.

Sea Ya

Sea Ya

[sail7seas]

Dining Stewards passed silver sectioned trays of fresh vegetables each night at dinner and we would choose from selection of 4 or 5 different or have some of each. They also had a tray of French pastries every dessert in addition to the menu. Eclairs, Napoleans,,,,,, wonderful! Flaming dessert made tableside every night. Crepes suzette, cherries jubilee, bananas foster. Delicious and now Gone!

 

[Warm Breezes]

These stories make me appreciate what is available to me today for my cruising vacations.....

[Taxguy77]

I can remember driving golf balls off the fantail, and shooting skeet!! I also remember the Baked Alaska. Thanks people for reminding me. I had almost forgotten them....

 

Both of those, and the horse races. DW bought a horse and several of our new friends enjoyed hours of fun decorating horse and rider.

She won, and we won enough money to have a nice party.

Last few cruises, nothing exciting going on, glad we sailed years ago when it was fun and there were only one or two small (now!) ships in port.

[Alybaby77]

I miss the steel drum band playing music during embarkation, the Broadway style shows EVERY night after dinner and I vaguely remember being about to have access to food (other than pizza or room service) 24 hours per day. I remember a "buffet" of sorts that only had fresh fruit laid out and grabbing an apple as I walked by in the middle of the night.

[buzzytoes]

Wait they don't have steel drum music anymore?? That's what I was looking most forward to!

First time I cruised was about 1990 and it was the days of flaming Baked Alaska/Bananas Foster and waiters dancing through the dining room. Same people sat at your dinner table all week. Last time was 1997 and it was pretty much the same.

Guess I might be in for some surprises when we cruise next month!

[cruzeluver]

Wait they don't have steel drum music anymore?? That's what I was looking most forward to!

First time I cruised was about 1990 and it was the days of flaming Baked Alaska/Bananas Foster and waiters dancing through the dining room. Same people sat at your dinner table all week. Last time was 1997 and it was pretty much the same.

Guess I might be in for some surprises when we cruise next month!

 

What cruise line and ship will you be on? Some still have live steel drum music, some think a DJ playing hip-hop and rap-crap is preferable.:rolleyes:

[happy cruzin]

Wait they don't have steel drum music anymore?? That's what I was looking most forward to!

First time I cruised was about 1990 and it was the days of flaming Baked Alaska/Bananas Foster and waiters dancing through the dining room. Same people sat at your dinner table all week. Last time was 1997 and it was pretty much the same.

Guess I might be in for some surprises when we cruise next month!

 

Heads up....there are still dancing waiters - just not what you're thinking!!

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

[buzzytoes]

Royal Caribbean Freedom of the Seas - the Western Caribbean out of Port Canaveral. I think I will be in for a shock at the size of the ship. Last time I was on RC was in 1997 right after Rhapsody of the Seas had her maiden voyage. We were on the third trip I think.

[bob brown]

I remember when proper ships were powered by steam engines.....:)

[chloemonkey]

When docked at Nassau, the little kids would shinny up the bow ropes from ashore, and dive back into the water, from the bow of the ships, to retrieve coins thrown into the water by the cruise passengers! Yep, that's how much smaller the ships were then. (We thought they were HUGE at the time!) :eek:

 

"SKY"

 

In Acapulco also young boys would swim out alongside the ship as we departed in order to retrieve money that the passengers would throw overboard. I had forgotten that!

 

Also "secret" owner'ssuites that were not listed on ship's brochures....you had to "know" to ask about booking them.....wonderful table side prep of a different pasta course each night in ADDITiON to your regular menu choices.....tons of flaming desserts also served tableside each night.....

 

Actual sommeliers to help choose fine wines each evening.....being invited to dine with the captain....lobster available many nights....

 

Hosting sail away parties where you could invite friends and family onboard! And then throwing confetti and streamers to those same people once they had to go ashore and your ship set sail! Having to plan for numerous formal nights and actually enjoying getting dressed up!

 

NO cell phone service.....MORE lectures, classes and demonstrations....lots of things to do all the while TRULY feeling as though you were "away" from it all!

 

Loved the "good old days" but also still LOVE the cruising life!

[BuzzBuzzen]

Thanks for starting this happy cruzin , I have really enjoyed reading everyones memories. Our first cruise was in 1983 out of Sydney Australia on the P&O ship Oriana. I remember our friends coming on board for a look see before departure. They commented on our tiny porthole twin bed cabin, " it's not like on tv is it?" . We could only have one friend come in and look at the cabin at a time it was so small. Then throwing streamers from the Overseas Passenger Terminal at Circular Quay , which is across from the Opera House. I thought the Oriana sailed at a greater speed than today's cruise ships do, or maybe I had no idea.I also remember the ship had its own cranes on the bow deck and loaded supplies via this method. Fixed time dining , required to dress for dinner , many theme nights , photos meeting the Captain , photos when very sunburnt after a shore tour to Beachcomber Island in Fiji. So it looks like the ships photographers were very active even in this days ! I also have hard cardboard- like menus and ships log as well as the paper daily newsletters. Once again thank you for reminding me of this great time in our lives , regards, Buzz :)

[vacation luvver]

When I started cruising in 1976, you had to book your cruise with a bricks and mortar TA. You would select a cabin category, but you couldn't select your cabin. You would be notified of your cabin number when you received your documents approx. six weeks before the sailing date.

 

There weren't any surcharge restaurants. For breakfast and lunch, you could eat in the MDR or at the buffet, but dinner was in the MDR only. Ten or fifteen minutes after dinner started, they locked the doors. If you were late, you had to order room service.

 

IIRC the first surcharge restaurant appeared on NCL in the 1990s and cost $5.00 (the mandatory suggested tip). The surcharge restaurant wasn't about getting something a cut above what you would get in the MDR. It was about being away from all the hustle and bustle of the MDR and was suggested for people celebrating an anniversary.

 

Everyone had either early or late seating. There wasn't anything like Select or As You Wish dining. There were two shows each night, and you went to the show after you had dinner (unlike Celebrity nowadays, where if you have late seating for dinner, you see the show before dinner).

 

There weren't any autograts. If you didn't get good service, you didn't have to fill out a form explaining why you felt you didn't get good service.

That's probably why autograts are so prevalent nowadays - the crew got tired of being stiffed.

 

I went on a number of cruiselines more than once, and it was interesting to see how their cocktail parties for returning cruisers differed. On my second Holland America cruise, I went to the party, and everyone who was a returning cruiser was either a solitary woman (widowed, divorced, or never married) or part of a married couple. There were no solitary men. And both members of each married couple had always taken the same number of cruises. It seemed that it never happened that a woman went on a cruise before she met her future husband and then suggested to her husband that they cruise together, so that they wouldn't have had the same number of cruises. I found this very depressing, and I never sailed on Holland America for a third time.

[browneyedwoman]

YES...the Gala Midnight Buffets were amazing! Such beautiful and unusual work from the ice carvings to the cakes, pastries, sugar work and vegetable "flower" arrangements.

 

I know why they were discontinued - alot of food was wasted, I'm sure. :o But it was a great thing to see and you could tell that there was competition between the chefs to produce something more beautiful or unique than last week to have the bragging rites until the next week! ;)

 

Here is a link I found through google with awesome photos of one from 2002. http://trips.donretzlaff.com/2002Cruise/GalaBuffet/GalaBuffet01.html

 

 

Thanks for the link. I wasn't able to cruise back then. The hors duerve and the desserts look great. I can see how the food would be wasted at midnight. They should bring the tradition back for sail away day at lunch.

[BlueRiband]

I miss the dishes that were prepared table side. I remember on Princess there were pasta dishes and the sauces made table side; flaming baked Alaska paraded around and deserts made table side. This I really only saw on my first 2 - 3 cruises. By my fifth cruise in 2001 most of it had disappeared.

 

A lot of those things disappeared as passengers made demands for a more casual and relaxed atmosphere. Formal night was once happily anticipated as special shipboard experience where everybody looked great. Now it's seen as an inconvenient imposition to be avoided.

[sag1804]

I miss the steel drum band playing music during embarkation, the Broadway style shows EVERY night after dinner and I vaguely remember being about to have access to food (other than pizza or room service) 24 hours per day. I remember a "buffet" of sorts that only had fresh fruit laid out and grabbing an apple as I walked by in the middle of the night.

 

HI ALYBABY! Seeing you are still cruising. Get up with me on my roll call or I will find yours so we can finally get the face books linked!!! cheers.

[NMLady]

As recently as 2004 I remember white-gloved stewards who took your carryons as you boarded and escorted you to your cabin. Now we have to find our own way.

[YubaSutter]

Remember skeet shooting and streamers at sail away.

[Jackytar]

I remember when proper ships were powered by steam engines.....:)

 

Heh. Having sailed the Grey Funnel Line for quite a few years and experienced the tail end of the 'steamers' era, I don't miss 'em in the least. Never had to punch fires but steam-driven turboalternators were a pain to work on. Give me diesel or gas any day of the week :)

 

Formal night was once happily anticipated as special shipboard experience where everybody looked great. Now it's seen as an inconvenient imposition to be avoided.

 

From what I've read here on the forums it seems to be about 50-50. That said, I'm old school, even if this will be my first crossing as cargo instead of crew, and I will be pulling out all the stops (a boiler-room reference for you) on formal nights.

Edited February 7, 2014 by Jackytar

[navybankerteacher]

Before cruising on my "uncle's" grey ships (not all that glamorous), I had one sailing from New York to Bermuda - after friends had to go ashore following the bon voyage party (too bad now a thing of the past), we lined the rail and, as we slowly backed into the Hudson, threw paper streamers towards the crowds on the pier waving us off. Passing the New York skyline remains magical - too bad so few lines sail from Manhattan these days.

 

The bunks were not that great, the entertainment not as flashy, but the food and service was over the top.