Does Santa come on Christmas Day?

[Balloon Man]

We will be on Golden for Christmas this year and have no idea what to expect.

 

I'm particularly interested to know what happens on Christmas Day. We will be in port but can't imagine much will be available ashore.

 

Will the ship be decorated? Are there special Christmas meals / events?

 

Does the captain don a white beard and red cloak (only joking)?

[Pam in CA]

Yes, the ship will be decorated and yes, there will be a special dinner.

 

The Captain will announce that Santa has been sighted and that he's arriving on the ship. "Santa" will come down the glass elevators to Plaza deck and the Atrium. He will distribute little toys to all the kids. It's really fun, even for adults.

[paul929207]

The ship will be decorated in the next week or so

[Shogun]

Hi There

 

Santa always visits on Christmas day, depending on what island you are on

Christmas can be interesting seeing how others mark the day.

 

Yours shogun

 

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Forums mobile app

[LoveThisCruisingThing]

We will be on Golden for Christmas this year and have no idea what to expect.

 

I'm particularly interested to know what happens on Christmas Day. We will be in port but can't imagine much will be available ashore.

 

Will the ship be decorated? Are there special Christmas meals / events?

 

Does the captain don a white beard and red cloak (only joking)?

 

Yes the ship will be beautifully decorated and Santa will be there. It is so much fun to watch the Santa visit. Pelican Pete was there one time. He snuck up behind me and put his hand on my shoulder. I thought it was my mom so I was surprised to find it was him.

 

There will also be a gingerbread house display.

 

Christmas is a great time to be on a ship.

[GUT2407]

What I don't get is why they plan to be in port on Christmas Day and/or New Years Day?

 

Why not make those days sea days.

[cruiseryyc]

I always thought that Santa came on Christmas Eve - not Christmas Day :-)

[GUT2407]

I always thought that Santa came on Christmas Eve - not Christmas Day :-)

 

 

OMG please don't start that argument, why can't people just accept that different people have different customs about these things, like what day does the Easter Bunny come, Good Friday or Easter Day, people do things differently, if we recognised that simple fact 99% of arguments on CC would disappear.

 

Vive la difference.

 

Isn't that why we travel in the first place?

[Cruisin' Chick]

What I don't get is why they plan to be in port on Christmas Day and/or New Years Day?

 

Why not make those days sea days.

 

Doesn't always work out that way. It depends on the itinerary. If all ships headed for a specific port all tried to be there on, say, December 23, instead of December 25, there wouldn't be room for all of those ships, would there?

 

Our last three cruises were the Hawaiian RTs out of LA on Princess. Two of the times the sailing date was on December 22, so we were at sea for 12/25. On the last one, we left three days earlier and would be getting to Hawaii between 12/24 (1st port) and 12/27 (fourth stop). On most of the sailings, Honolulu was the Tuesday stop and Lahaina the Thursday stop, but because of the holidays, those two ports were switched (I'm guessing so that anyone wanting to go to Pearl Harbor or other major attractions would get to go).

 

So knowing that we would be on Maui on Christmas Day, I did some research. One place I haven't been to on past trips there was Whalers Village. The website didn't have holiday hours listed at the time i was researching so I asked on its Facebook page and was told that yes, it would be open. Most of the stores, one of the restaurants and a couple of places in the small food court were open. The museum there was closed (but I knew that). The beach right there was, of course, open so that would have an alternative thing to do.

 

After we returned to the ship and were watching the whales swimming near us, my hubby noticed that a man in a red suit and beard could be seen boarding a tender. So Santa was through with giving out toys to the kids on board (and maybe throwing back an egg nog with the captain) and was returning to Lahaina.

 

Yes, the ship was decorated and yes, there was a special menu (it was a formal night, too).

[GUT2407]

I have no doubts that settling itineraries must be a complicated procedure, but sometimes I just scratch my head, in the example you give of your Hawaii cruises it seems that they could make it work so you'd be at sea on 2 of them, why not the third.

 

Next month Celebrity have two ships in Sydney on one day that have to use the same terminal, that only holds one ship [neither can fit under the bridge] one is overnighting so it has to move to the middle of the harbour and tender people back and forth, I am just constantly puzzled, Christmas Day falls into the same basket, but as I say it is probably hard work.

[Cruisin' Chick]

I have no doubts that settling itineraries must be a complicated procedure, but sometimes I just scratch my head, in the example you give of your Hawaii cruises it seems that they could make it work so you'd be at sea on 2 of them, why not the third.

 

Next month Celebrity have two ships in Sydney on one day that have to use the same terminal, that only holds one ship [neither can fit under the bridge] one is overnighting so it has to move to the middle of the harbour and tender people back and forth, I am just constantly puzzled, Christmas Day falls into the same basket, but as I say it is probably hard work.

 

It's not puzzling at all. After leaving LA, we have sea four days, then four port days in a row, then four sea days, then the day in Ensenada (which was New Years Day on our last cruise) -- but many on that itinerary consider that day to be a stationary day at sea, then the return to LA in the morning. Unless the cruise is extended a day to avoid being in port on the holiday, there's no getting around being in one port on Christmas Day unless the ship leaves a few days before (which means the cruise doesn't last through the New Years) or leaves around the 22nd.

 

Someone booking a holiday time cruise, I hope, would know that you could be in port on a holiday. It's not like the cruise line is hiding this info from you. So if it's a big deal having many stores or attractions open on the day you're going to be in port, a little research will help you make the decision whether to do that cruise or not. For some people, it's not big deal (or they're happy about it) and they go to the beach.

 

On one of our Hawaiian cruises, my daughter wanted to go to a couple of places in Hilo that turned out to be closed on the port day. Because they're always closed on Mondays, no matter what time of year. So we came up with other places to go. Same thing for one place I suggested for Honolulu, which turned out to be closed on Tuesdays.

 

It's not going to be something that's going to ruin my cruise.

[GUT2407]

Nothing's gong to ruin my cruise either, and often don't get off in port just don't understand why they don't leave a day or two later and make those days sea days so those who want to enjoy a port can, ut as I've now said three times there are probably issues that I don't understand.

[BEAV]

I always thought that Santa came on Christmas Eve - not Christmas Day :-)

 

OMG please don't start that argument, why can't people just accept that different people have different customs about these things, like what day does the Easter Bunny come, Good Friday or Easter Day, people do things differently, if we recognised that simple fact 99% of arguments on CC would disappear.

 

Vive la difference.

 

Isn't that why we travel in the first place?

 

I think by the smiley face at the end of cruiseryyc's post that he/she was joking/teasing. Don't take the comment too seriously, I know I got a chuckle out of it myself. Now go pour yourself a stiff gin & tonic and enjoy surfing Cruise Critic! :-)

[GUT2407]

I think by the smiley face at the end of cruiseryyc's post that he/she was joking/teasing. Don't take the comment too seriously, I know I got a chuckle out of it myself. Now go pour yourself a stiff gin & tonic and enjoy surfing Cruise Critic! :-)

 

 

and clearly you don't get sarcasm, vive la difference.

[BEAV]

and clearly you don't get sarcasm, vive la difference.

 

LOL - My better half swears I wrote the book on sarcasm! :D

Edited November 25, 2014 by BEAV

[caribill]

Xmas on Princess shown below in photos.

[caribill]

And some more

[pablo222]

LOL - My better half swears I wrote the book on sarcasm! :D

 

Nah, sarcasm would have been advising Mr. Balloon Man

that is it not necessary to extend a gratuity to Santa,

nor any elves or reindeer.

[looneyric]

Nah, sarcasm would have been advising Mr. Balloon Man

that is it not necessary to extend a gratuity to Santa,

nor any elves or reindeer.

 

Please advise: Am I supposed to tip Santa separately or is he included in the "behind the scenes personnel in the auto tip"? Thanks.

[CruisinFinsUp]

We were on Emerald for Christmas 2010 - they had "snow" falling in the piazza (scheduled times check your patter!) - it was wonderful! Our daughter still talks about how much she loved it! Santa gave all the kids a wrapped present - Princess teddy bears. From when we got on, the ship was decorated all over with Christmas decorations. There were gingerbread house making workshops and displays, Christmas music, Carolers in the piazza, staff wearing Santa hats. Very festive!

 

We brought a very small tree (18 inches tall) in our luggage with tiny decorations on it (bought it at a crafts store), plus battery operated mini lights and magnet hooks - I strung the lights around the cabin and it was very festive! The kids loved it. We also packed some small gifts for the kids to receive on board.

 

I think we were in St. Lucia Christmas Day - yes most activities were closed, but given it was Christmas we were happy to relax on board ship. (Too cold for a beach day - unfortunately it was that year where it was very cold everywhere so the weather was not great - we got back to Ft. Lauderdale, headed up to Orlando and it was their coldest week - lows were 30 Fahrenheit )

 

Best of all - I didn't have to cook Christmas dinner! :D

[JimmyVWine]

Please advise: Am I supposed to tip Santa separately or is he included in the "behind the scenes personnel in the auto tip"? Thanks.

Santa is union, so he is part of the overall tip pool. The reindeer, however, are outside, independent contractors, so they should be tipped separately. There will be envelopes at the Passenger Services Desk and carrots available in the Horizon Court.

[pablo222]

And, I certainly don't mean to start a debate about whether

a santa "suit" is appropriate for formal night, or if santa

should limit himself to lido / specialty resturants.

[hawkeyetlse]

The reindeer, however, are outside, independent contractors, so they should be tipped separately. There will be envelopes at the Passenger Services Desk and carrots available in the Horizon Court.

The reindeer already get free food every day. They have very little storage space where they live, and most of them are trying to make as much money as possible during their short working season to send back home. Does your job pay you a salary or carrots? Plus how do you know that the reindeer on your cruise like carrots? They might be allergic to carrots or avoid them for religious/cultural reasons.

 

Please don't overthink this and forget the trinkets and edible presents. Everyone you see on the ship, and/or hovering magically above the ship, wants CASH. Also, if any particular reindeer goes out of their way to make your holiday cruise extra special, consider filling out a comment card and mentioning them by name.

[Lessa123]

I thought Santa was paid in milk or cocoa and cookies?! :eek:

[hawkeyetlse]

I thought Santa was paid in milk or cocoa and cookies?! :eek:

True, but as the employer please, please be sure to file the appropriate tax forms. In recent years law enforcement have warned of an alarming rise in the amount of undeclared milk and cookies, and they suspect that one or more Santa impersonators may be targeting unsuspecting victims. So far they have no proof, but if you see anything suspicious in the next few weeks, please contact the North Pole anti-fraud division who have put in place emergency procedures for getting these individuals fast-tracked for addition to the "naughty" list.