Very first cruise...gulp!

[JohnB118]

Hi All

 

Myself and my wife are booked onto our very first cruise on P and O Ventura for 3 nights at the end of June and CAN'T WAIT!! - leaving the children with grandparents :)

 

We thought we would start off with a little short break to make sure we enjoy a cruise before we go onto something a little longer.

 

I have been trying to read lots of advice on what to expect and do but I am wondering it anyone has hints or tips for a newbie.

 

Thanks for reading.

John

[Essiesmom]

Welcome to Cruise Critic. there are boards here for each of the Cruise Lines, and you might get some helpful hints on the P&O-UK board, located under Cruise Lines P_Z. EM

[t_car]

Looks like a nice short cruise out of Southampton.

 

Pack half the clothes you think you need, and take twice the money.

Bring along some ginger tablets, or eat green apples. It helps for motion sickness if the Seas are a little rough.

Wear comfortable shoes.

Join the roll call for your cruise, make new friends.

 

Enjoy your first cruise. Be careful, it's very addictive. :D

[Sixtytwo]

Relax and enjoy the ride! Cruise addiction is a highly contagious thing so be prepared! [emoji2]

[Scrapnana]

Don't try to do everything. What you don't do this time you can do on the next cruise, or the next, or the next.... (You have been warned that cruising is addictive:D)

[cb at sea]

Definitely research your ports, to get the most of your time ashore. Google is ok, but a guidebook is better! You don't HAVE to pay the ship to show you a good time...most things are easy to do on your own!

[jocap]

We left Ventura last week, for the fourth time, and we're missing her already...:(

She'll be busy everywhere that first day, as people try to find their way around, and work out which activity suits them. The formal night is very formal, but if you really don't want to go along with it, you can eat in the buffet or a speciality restaurant.

There's a free bottle of water each in the fridge, and a very pleasant tea tray with tea, coffee, biscuits and sweets. There's also a silly flower in a vase which has been known to shoot across the cabin in the BOB....:eek: The water is pure, so you can drink it ( I don't mean the flower vase! :rolleyes:)

If you're on a tour, you meet on the quay side at the time on the ticket, and also listed in the Horizon daily paper.

Have fun finding your way around....she's a very big ship, so you'll get lost....keep the map given to you at check in.

Enjoy! :)

[EdmPair]

Firstly, have fun.

 

Secondly, cruise arrival and departure is like air flights. Everybody does it at once and the cattle have to form a herd to get this to happen. Granted it does not consume all of the first and last day but a big percentage. So my advice is that if you enjoy yourselves, try for a longer stay next time to dilute the time needed in the transistions.

 

Thirdly, have fun.

[JohnB118]

Hi All

 

Thanks for all your kind words. I am very excited and am hoping that I catch the cruise bug :)

 

Already seen that Independence of the Seas is sailing out of Southampton next year ;)

 

I'll let you know how we get on!

 

Thanks

John

[Sixtytwo]

One last thing to remember. When you board the ship, set your watch to ship's time and leave it! When you go ashore, be sure you plan to be back at the ship at least half an hour before sail time. The ship will not wait for stragglers and waving bye bye from some port would not be good!

[Krazy Kruizers]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

Hope you write a review when you get back.

[cruiserking]

Welcome to Cruise Cruise Critic John and to the wonderful world of cruising.

 

A nice little itinerary with stops in Bruges, Belgium and St. Peter Port. Bruges has the most delicious chocolates on the planet and there are stores on every block. You can read up on Bruges at the Port of Call section at Cruise Critic here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=233

 

Usually the cruise line will provide passengers with a free shuttle bus the local train station which offers transportation directly to the town of Brugges, about a twenty minute ride.

 

It's a very easy ride by train and much cheaper than taking a cab.

 

Don't miss the canal boat ride in Bruges, it is just magical. Here is a blurb from Cruise Critic discussing it:

 

Sailing the Canals: Think Venice but with a Gothic feel (and, alas, no gondoliers or singing tenors). Numerous motorboat operators ply Brugge's waters; you can board these tour boats at a myriad of very obvious landings throughout the city (we boarded at Katelijnestraat 4, another option is the Rozenhoedkaai); cost is 5.20 euros for an approximately 30-minute ride.

 

Great Cruise Critic thread with information on Bruges:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=729070&highlight=bruges

 

We always try and book at table on the ship with a minimum of 8 people. You make the most wonderful friendships aboard ships and it's always great fun to see everyone each night and discuss your adventures.

 

Have a wonderful cruise.

 

Jonathan

Edited June 1, 2015 by cruiserking

[Chunder Worthy]

Welcome John, I'm going on only my second cruise (but a biggie - 14-day Med) next month. Still, even from remembering the first, I would say a few things would enhance your trip tremendously:

 

1. Go in with a good attitude -- and you seem to already have that.

2. Participate in the overall life of the cruise (talk to people, be part of festivities), explore and experiment by making the most and taking advantage of everything available to you - no sense holding back on this special trip;

3. Expect and roll with the occasional glitch, stuff happens -- but you're only going for a few days so less a chance of small mishaps; and lastly,

4. (and you should already know this with kids) Alcohol is your friend. :p

[Notnic]

We are just back from our first cruise on Azura, 3 nights to Guernsey and Belgium. Had a balcony cabin, loads of room. Read up on the restaurants, we did freedom dining. Remember u can hv silver service breakfast in your dining room, u don't hv to do buffet. Sindhu and epicurean r worth paying the extra for. We did our own thing in Guernsey was only off ship two hours, dud the Ypres tour in Belgium. Don't forget what you precook u pay for rather than getting on board and hvg to pay then so plan n spread the cost.

[wassup4565]

Enjoy the ports, but also, enjoy the ship. You will be staying in a huge floating, very nice hotel. There will be shows and entertainments, large and small. There will be on-board activities in many venues, all day and all through the evening. You'll have more choices of where and what to eat than you can even explore in such short cruise - try out as many as you can.

 

Finally, cruise ships are businesses. They will try to sell you all kinds of things you never even thought of. Don't get caught up in the hype. You'll have a great time even if you don't buy one extra thing or service, so why would you?