Gonna Cruise and Chill...um...ok?

[IMKTDQT810]

Did you ever take a cruise with the goal of NOT doing anything? I have been on 7 cruises and there are certain things I have always done like, shows at night, snorkel tour excursions, eat in the main dining room ALL nights.

This is DH 2nd cruise (1st on on Carnival) and he told me last night that he didn't want to HAVE to DO anything. He said yes, one snorkel excursion is fine since he enjoyed the one we did on our honeymoon and DS (9) will be with us who will also enjoy it. He said OK to "most nights" in main dining room but doesn't want that every night.

SO, I need to hold back my excitement of "let's do this" and "let's do that" so he can enjoy his vacation as well. So what are some "must do's" when the ship is in port, the ship is less crowded and we are still there? He said maybe get off to browse any shops right at the ports but not anything like "shopping tours or island tours".

We will be on the Pride doing E. Caribbean.

[Rena921]

Yes. On our last cruise (B2B on the Freedom) we did not have anything planned. We just played it by ear. It was awesome. No rushing off to excursions, no worrying about a timeline. In fact the majority of the time was spent relaxing in Serenity or on our balcony reading and snoozing. Got off in some ports and just did a self guided walking tour or hung out on the beach. Best 2 week vacation ever.

[xowendyxo]

You husband sounds like me! LOL

 

I am giving cruising a second chance, but the overwhelming feeling of like I had to do EVERYTHING exhausted me on our last cruise! We did a 5 day to the Bahamas last year and I needed a vacation after my vacation. I am the kind of person who likes to relax and "chill" on my vacations. Do dinner when I want, wear what I want, sit on the beach ALL.DAY.LONG. We've done Sandals twice and it's my kind of place. I feel like if I'm not constantly going on a cruise, I'm wasting it...and to have to be up at 6:30 am to be off of the boat and rush back so we don't miss it? UGH!!

 

We're going on a 7 day cruise this time, so I am hoping with the extra two days, we'll have more "down" time to just relax and enjoy ourselves. If not, Sandals, here I come! :p

[kellane]

We are like that as well. Our lives are normally so rushed and scheduled so when we are on vacation, we take it easy. When we are on board, we like to get up when we want, hang out by the pool or hot tub with a good book and take a nap if we feel like it. When we are in port, we normally find a beach and become bums for the day. We do like to catch the comedies after dinner each night, but other than that, we are not in a hurry to get anywhere.

[GottaLuvCruising]

Tomorrow I am sailing the Breeze solo. It's my 37th cruise, 2nd time on the Breeze and 2nd solo cruise.

 

Typically I sail with my husband, sister or friends. We do everything. Never miss a meal, book active excursions, do pools & hot tubs, see every show, enjoy clubs / bands at night.

 

This time I packed 3 books, swimsuit, sunscreen & toothbrush. I am not getting off in any ports. I am going to relax.

 

Will let you know how successful my plan is!

[runner15km]

Excursions, been there done that. We still get off the ship and grab a cab to a beach and just relax.

[cookiejarvis]

I am a planner. I do research, make lists, and pretty much think I know what I am going to do when on vacation. We have done most of the ports in the Caribbean. I have spent countless hours preparing. While most of the trips have gone as planned, I have stressed myself out to no end and was generally exhausted at the end of vacation.

 

I have now subscribed to the "chill pill" and our family goes where the wind may blow. The last two cruises, I planned nothing. We made decisions on the fly. Booked excursions pier side. Hired cab/driver for the day or just one way. No stress. No worries. Best cruises overall. Just got to "let it go."

[5Hawkeyes]

Never, I'd go bonkers sitting around reading books and relaxing. But my wife is completely different, that would be paradise for her. Just too many things to do in such a short amount of time. For instance I've only been to Cozumel twice but I'm pretty sure I haven't seen everything there. There's always so much to do at each port and on the ship. It's my big boy playground:)

[edwardsm]

Never, I'd go bonkers sitting around reading books and relaxing. But my wife is completely different, that would be paradise for her. Just too many things to do in such a short amount of time. For instance I've only been to Cozumel twice but I'm pretty sure I haven't seen everything there. There's always so much to do at each port and on the ship. It's my big boy playground:)

 

 

I agree with you. I feel like I'm missing out if I'm just laying back relaxing all day long. Too much to see, do and explore on the ship and ports. My husband on the other hand did relax the entire cruise on the Freedom. That would drive my crazy!

[Cruzface]

When I get off a cruise I need a vacation!!!!

[nickiefriend]

Our cruise in March is the exact same cruise we took in November 2012. Same boat, same ports. I have every intention of taking only what I KNOW I will wear. No formal clothes AT ALL! While I "kinda" like eating in the main dining room, I do not like knowing that at a certain time I have to "get ready". So, buffet for me!

 

Also, the shows, I could care less other than comedy. That is a must for me! At the ports, we are going to explore around the port area or take in beach days. No excursions for us!

 

I hope to be able to relax, do what I want, when I want and not need a break from my vacation!

[Kimberlyr22]

That is my husband. He loves cruising for the ship, could care less about the ports and has no want to get off the boat and do anything. He is not a traveler, so cruising is our compromise. A one hour drive to Baltimore (anything within a two hour drive is in his comfort zone), we jump on a boat, and he doesn't have to move off that boat for a week. For our next cruise I booked him an aft wrap on the Pride. That way he has his own big balcony (he likes privacy and relaxation) and I figure he won't move from that spot for the exception of most food, a few shows, and a jeep excursion in Freeport that was the only excursion that appealed to him at all. I'll have my 13 year old stepson with us to join me in other excursions and boat activities.

 

 

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[silverpenguin]

My husband and I have both had that attitude for this last cruise & this one upcoming. I don't think it's so much not wanting to do anything, but more or less, not scheduling a whole bunch of activities that we will have to be watching our clocks or waking up early for. We just want to step on the ship and do what we want to do.

 

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[DKane]

Did you ever take a cruise with the goal of NOT doing anything? I have been on 7 cruises and there are certain things I have always done like, shows at night, snorkel tour excursions, eat in the main dining room ALL nights.

This is DH 2nd cruise (1st on on Carnival) and he told me last night that he didn't want to HAVE to DO anything. He said yes, one snorkel excursion is fine since he enjoyed the one we did on our honeymoon and DS (9) will be with us who will also enjoy it. He said OK to "most nights" in main dining room but doesn't want that every night.

SO, I need to hold back my excitement of "let's do this" and "let's do that" so he can enjoy his vacation as well. So what are some "must do's" when the ship is in port, the ship is less crowded and we are still there? He said maybe get off to browse any shops right at the ports but not anything like "shopping tours or island tours".

We will be on the Pride doing E. Caribbean.

 

Just got off the Pride on Sunday and we did what your husband wants to do. Never got off the ship in Port Canaveral, walked to the British Colonial Hilton in Nassau where we spent the day on the beach and just walked around the pier area in Freeport and then a couple of hours in Senor Frogs.

 

All in all it was one of the most "relaxing" cruises we ever had. The Pride is not port intensive and you can't help but to relax.

[asalligo]

My wife often complains that I never sit still during a cruise and she is right. Finding a deck chair and reading a book is not my thing. I want to hit every event in the fun times. That is what I love about cruising.

[cruise_gal21]

Did you ever take a cruise with the goal of NOT doing anything? I have been on 7 cruises and there are certain things I have always done like, shows at night, snorkel tour excursions, eat in the main dining room ALL nights.

This is DH 2nd cruise (1st on on Carnival) and he told me last night that he didn't want to HAVE to DO anything. He said yes, one snorkel excursion is fine since he enjoyed the one we did on our honeymoon and DS (9) will be with us who will also enjoy it. He said OK to "most nights" in main dining room but doesn't want that every night.

SO, I need to hold back my excitement of "let's do this" and "let's do that" so he can enjoy his vacation as well. So what are some "must do's" when the ship is in port, the ship is less crowded and we are still there? He said maybe get off to browse any shops right at the ports but not anything like "shopping tours or island tours".

We will be on the Pride doing E. Caribbean.

 

Correct me if I'm off base here, but to me it sounds like you enjoy staying busy on a cruise, and in port, while DH wants to relax and not have a certain time to be anywhere or do anything, right? I am pretty active t times while my DH is like yours. Our compromise is that when I want to do things in port that I know DD and I will enjoy I do a safe, crowded excursion, like a private beach day pass at a hotel where there is plenty of security, while DH does what he wants. We have certain times to meet up and check-in with one another so as we know we're ok, and then we play it by ear. While on the ship I simply leave DH in the cabin while DD and I go off and do waterworks, tea time, etc. If I want to do an "adult only" activity, like the casino or BINGO, DH watches DD and takes a nap or does waterworks, etc. with her. We all have Breakfast, lunch, and dinner together, as well as do the shows and family comedy together. So we have plenty of time during the day to spend with one another and I don't miss anything I want to do, while DH gets to relax and do nothing if he wishes. Every family is different, and this is what works for us, but maybe by taking a page from our book you'll find that both of you can have the best of both worlds :D

[Andoria]

The only thing I'm planning on is going to the gym. I like to be able to say "Sure I'll have another cookie; I worked out today!"

[CocoaMom]

Did you ever take a cruise with the goal of NOT doing anything? I have been on 7 cruises and there are certain things I have always done like, shows at night, snorkel tour excursions, eat in the main dining room ALL nights.

This is DH 2nd cruise (1st on on Carnival) and he told me last night that he didn't want to HAVE to DO anything. He said yes, one snorkel excursion is fine since he enjoyed the one we did on our honeymoon and DS (9) will be with us who will also enjoy it. He said OK to "most nights" in main dining room but doesn't want that every night.

SO, I need to hold back my excitement of "let's do this" and "let's do that" so he can enjoy his vacation as well. So what are some "must do's" when the ship is in port, the ship is less crowded and we are still there? He said maybe get off to browse any shops right at the ports but not anything like "shopping tours or island tours".

We will be on the Pride doing E. Caribbean.

 

You might want to be on anytime dining. There are spa specials while in port. My DH would rather sit with a book, nap or just relax while in port too ... not me, I'm gone. I want to explore & experience. I can do my relaxing on sea days. And just so you know - one of our largest bills was when he convinced me to "relax" ... well I did, at the spa. I relaxed enjoying just about every treatment they offer.

[BILKAT2355]

My wife often complains that I never sit still during a cruise and she is right. Finding a deck chair and reading a book is not my thing. I want to hit every event in the fun times. That is what I love about cruising.

 

I think you must be related to my husband... LOL :)

[mickiemac]

Our first cruise we booked excursions at every port because we thought we HAD to. It was all good, but felt rushed and missed the relaxing pubs in the port area. Last cruise, I wandered the ship and found stuff I wanted to do and DH just relaxed on the balcony or by the pool on Lido. If he is not interested in getting off at a port, I will wander by myself.

[deltahog]

I think the important thing to remember is that neither type of vacation (or person) is better than the other. Different strokes.

 

If left to her own devices, on vacation my wife would sleep past 10, wander down to find some food, think about what she might want to do later that day, lounge by the pool, and maybe do nothing until dinnertime.

 

Whereas by 7 am I am wide awake and thinking of all the things (either on ship or in port) I could be doing other than lying in my room right now. As each 15 minutes pass, I get MORE and MORE stressed (not more "relaxed") that I am on vacation and in a strange and unique place and am doing nothing other than sitting in my room. So to me doing nothing turns out to be the opposite of relaxing...it's stressful. More than once I have gotten up on my own and gone to take a "town stroll" in port checking out everything, returning to my relaxing wife before 10 am where I can report the lay of the land.

Edited January 31, 2014 by deltahog

[xowendyxo]

I think the important thing to remember is that neither type of vacation (or person) is better than the other. Different strokes.

 

If left to her own devices, on vacation my wife would sleep past 10, wander down to find some food, think about what she might want to do later that day, lounge by the pool, and maybe do nothing until dinnertime.

 

Whereas by 7 am I am wide awake and thinking of all the things (either on ship or in port) I could be doing other than lying in my room right now. As each 15 minutes pass, I get MORE and MORE stressed (not more "relaxed") that I am on vacation and in a strange and unique place and am doing nothing other than sitting in my room. So to me doing nothing turns out to be the opposite of relaxing...it's stressful. More than once I have gotten up on my own and gone to take a "town stroll" in port checking out everything, returning to my relaxing wife before 10 am where I can report the lay of the land.

 

I'm pretty sure my husband has set up a Cruise Critic account! LOL ;)

[Mysticks1]

On our upcoming cruise we will be going to new ports for us so we will be doing something in each of them but other than that I don't plan to do anything but relax. I may or may not go to a show. I might order room service for dinner instead of going to the dining room. I am not going to a show just because it is there, only if I really would like to see it.

[Warm Breezes]

It depends on where we are going and the ship we are on. On our upcoming Princess cruise we have no plans. For us this is a new ship (and line) with old ports. We may or may not get off the ship depending on what we feel like doing. We have been to both Grand Cayman and Cozumel multiple times including both of them last year. We know enough to know you can book multiple excursions right at the pier for Grand Cayman and in Cozumel it is easy to grab a taxi to a beach if we so desired. This is definately one cruise that we are planning on just going with the flow.

 

Other cruises have been different. Our last cruise was our 2nd time on NCL Jewel but 3 new ports, 1 old port and a new embarkation port. We planned dinner on 25th anniversary at Moderno, but that was all the planning we did for the ship. When on board, we did whatever we felt like at that time. But we did book excursions for every port (not through the cruise line). We cancelled our beach break excursion in Costa Maya because it pouring the whole time and just did a little shopping at the port.

 

Some ports we plan excursions, some we leave open to just explore when we get there, and some we plan on staying on the ship. It depends on the port we are at and the ship we are sailing. On the ship we sometimes make reservations (like on Epic for shows or for specialty restaurants on all ships), but most of the time we just play it by ear. If there is something going on we want to do we do it....if not we chill in our room, on our balcony, or on the lido, or go hang out at the casino for a while. Whatever we feel like doing at the time. I find mixing things up between planned and free time keeps everyone happy.

[tdnosnhoj11]

I think the important thing to remember is that neither type of vacation (or person) is better than the other. Different strokes.

 

If left to her own devices, on vacation my wife would sleep past 10, wander down to find some food, think about what she might want to do later that day, lounge by the pool, and maybe do nothing until dinnertime.

 

Whereas by 7 am I am wide awake and thinking of all the things (either on ship or in port) I could be doing other than lying in my room right now. As each 15 minutes pass, I get MORE and MORE stressed (not more "relaxed") that I am on vacation and in a strange and unique place and am doing nothing other than sitting in my room. So to me doing nothing turns out to be the opposite of relaxing...it's stressful. More than once I have gotten up on my own and gone to take a "town stroll" in port checking out everything, returning to my relaxing wife before 10 am where I can report the lay of the land.

 

You just described my husband (your wife) and myself (you) to a "T!" I can't stand to know that everyone else is exploring a port while I'm sitting around waiting for (aka bugging) my husband to get out of bed. I'll go get him breakfast just so he won't take any longer than totally necessary to get up and get ready. I usually wake up with the sun on cruises, so the time between the sunrise and getting off the ship are very, very unrelaxing for me.