Your Perfect Cruise Day

[UlsterLad]

Just booked my first ever cruise for my honeymoon! So I was wondering what a day on a cruise is actually like, I know this varies wildly depending on the person, ship, location and if it's a port/sea day.

 

So, what does your day look like on a ship? In as much detail as you wish, the more the merrier I say! I'm just intrigued to find out what an "average day" looks like and have some fun seeing what people get up to!

[Darcy15]

For me?

 

A large cappuccino, my Kindle, a teak lounger on the promenade deck

 

....reading, snoozing, watching the ocean and the world go by

 

Bliss :D:D

[Darcy15]

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[wobblybob74]

Hello ulsterman,

 

Firstly, many congratulations on your forthcoming marriage. And well done for choosing a cruise for your honeymoon - it will hopefully be the start of a lifelong love affair with cruising. Which ship are you on, and where are you going?

 

Obviously, I don't know you or your fiancee's tastes or interests, but this is my ideal sea day.

 

Wake early. For some unfathomable reason, I am always awake before 7am on holiday. It used to be annoying, now I just roll with it. I'll take my book down to the atrium and read/watch the heart of the ship wake up with perhaps a walk around deck, depending on the weather. It's lovely to be up early and to feel that you have the ship to yourself. My wife will toddle down to join me at around 8-8.30 and then we go for breakfast in the main dining room. On our first cruise, we had breakfast in the buffet restaurant for the first few mornings but the queues for the food stations and the occasional difficulty finding a table soon drove us to the quiet sanctuary of the MDR where breakfast is served to you by waiters. Far more civilised! Then we'll head up on deck. My wife loves to sunbathe and will happily spend all day on deck during a sea day. I tend to get bored after an hour or so, so I'll wander off in search of something a little more interesting. If you look in the ship's daily newspaper you will find all sorts of stuff going on from lectures to quizzes to recitals to film showings. If one of those appeals then I'll go, if not I'll find somewhere quiet in the shade to carry on reading my book. I know it's your honeymoon, but there's no rule to say that you must spend every moment together. There is plenty of time to, um, connect on a cruise!

 

Around noon, I'll head back to join my wife and maybe indulge in a burger or slice of pizza (what the hell - both!) from the Lido deck for lunch, then toddle off again with my book. It will inevitably occur to me that, somewhere in the world, the sun will have gone down over the yardarm so I will have a beer or manly-looking cocktail. I may go for a snooze in the cabin and perhaps even do some laundry. Don't immediately rule this out as a crazy idea. If you're not keen on sun-bathing and there's nothing in the schedule that appeals then why not? It means that you can wear stuff again (believe me, nobody on a ship that carries 2-3,000 people will notice if you wear the same blouse or shirt twice in a 14 day cruise!) and it also means that you won't have as much boring, depressing laundry to do when you get home.

 

Anyway, around mid-afternoon I'll go and find my wife again and, depending on our mood we may go for afternoon tea in one of the main dining rooms. If the ship you are on offers this, make sure you do it at least once. It's truly lovely to be served a traditional afternoon tea by white-gloved waiters whilst a string quartet plays. We'll then probably go for a little lie-down (ahem) and get ready for dinner - or tea, as us Northerners call it - either in the MDR or one of the speciality restaurants. Then it'll be a sherbet or two and then a show, or perhaps a trivia game in one of the showbars. Then bed, blissfully aware of how lucky we are to be on a cruise.

 

Rinse and repeat :-)

 

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. I'm far from being a cruise veteran but will be pleased to help if I can.

Edited May 27, 2015 by wobblybob74

[cb at sea]

Wake up...not too early...not too late. Head to the dining room for breakfast (we don't like the buffet...we'd rather be served!). Then, I head to the pool, while hubby usually goes back to the cabin for a while (he's not a pool person!)...he'll hit the casino later, while I'm sunning.

 

We'll meet for lunch somewhere, then he'll join me at the pool for a short time, then it's back to the cabin for showers/naps/whatever...

 

Dress for dinner, hit a bar for a couple before dinner drinks...catch a show, have a leisurely meal....and maybe an "after dinner" drink, if I'm not too full!

 

On port days, we don't feel the need to be the 1st off the ship, so it's another nice breakfast, and then we'll head off the ship....find a beach, or shop, or just wander about, depending on the port! We rarely feel the need to stay all day long ashore, but that does depend on what hours the ship is docked! At one port, we were there from 8am, until 2 am...we returned to the ship a couple times, then headed back out......it's a nice, long day when that happens!

Edited May 27, 2015 by cb at sea

[UlsterLad]

Thanks wobblybob,

 

That's a great answer, looking at all the activities I was starting to feel tired thinking about it! We're going on the NCL Jade to the Greek Isles, not until 2016, but just booked, so still very much excited!

 

We tend to be quite chilled out, saying that, last year we went interrailing for three weeks so we do like plenty of activates... Just so long as we can have a cold beer at the end of the day and we're not averse to sneaking in an afternoon nap to recharge the batteries!

 

Breakfast at the main dining room does seem more appealing to me than a packed buffet first thing, but then so does breakfast in bed!

 

Part of me is looking forward to the sea days more, but we'll have a week before the cruise somewhere in Northern Italy which I'm sure will be dedicated to doing absolutely nothing apart from relaxed strolls. So the port calls and activities will be welcome.

 

Cheers for the reply, hope there's lots more since they are fun to read!

 

ps - Darcy, that looks delightful!

Edited May 27, 2015 by UlsterLad

[jocap]

Love Jade....there's a pleasant spot for breakfast outside, aft, on 12, though it's serve yourself.

If she's still sailing from Venice, you'll want to be up on top, watching one of the best sail-aways on the globe! You'll probably be just as happy prowling around the decks, stopping for a drink or snack, that first sea day....and with better weather than we're having right now on either side of the Irish Sea!

Enjoy the build up...and have a great wedding.:)

[UlsterLad]

Thanks for the advice Jocap. The great outdoors is the bit out the back, it does look like a great spot to have breakfast, or any other meal for that matter.

 

Starting in Venice, having been upsold to a balcony (I didn't resist very much) I chose one on the port side as that is supposed to give better views on the way out. And there's not really any other reasons to decide between port/starboard... But I've heard lots about sail-away parties, all seems like good fun!

 

cb at sea, I like the pool, but my fiancée likes it more so I imagine that I will be running round looking for things to do... Having looked at some of the dailies ,basketball/football/table tennis tournaments look fun, although I'll have to find some team mates!

[paul929207]

Welcome and congratulations on your wedding.

 

The port side is the good side sailing from Venice. It is about 90 minutes from pushing off the pier until you leave the lagoon for the Adriatic.

 

You will get a daily schedule listing all the events. Read it over to see what interests you.

[BensonFan711]

I'm a scientist by trade, so pardon me if my cruise day looks very business-like....I hate feeling like I missed something! My cruise days vary based on whether it's a port day or an at sea day, so I'll give you both. Some of these things will be very NCL specific, as I really love their line.

 

At Sea:

Wake up whenever I happen to get up....if there's a window present, usually around 7am. It annoys me to no end, but if I can't sleep, I might as well do something! Review my marked up Freestyle Daily from the night before to make sure I know when and where the stuff I want to do is happening and get myself dressed. This process usually rouses my travel companion, and when we both are "decent," we make our way to the dining room for breakfast. I despise buffets, so on these days, I'll lounge around in the dining hall over breakfast and really enjoy it.

 

After breakfast, there aren't many activities I like (no kids, and not really into bingo...too expensive!!), so I'll either head up to the pool or meander through the gift shop/duty free shop/photo areas. Then I'll pick a deck I haven't explored yet and go wander around...when I get off the ship, I know pretty much every public area on it! When I get hungry, I'll go to lunch, again at a sit down to avoid the buffet. Usually there's an afternoon activity I want to do, so when it's time I'll go do that. Otherwise, I go back to what I did in the morning...only now, I'll throw in a drink or two...or three. It's vacation! Pub trivia at 6:00 (we're addicts), followed by dinner in one of the MDRs....I don't plan, just wherever there's seating or whichever I'm in the mood for at the moment. By now, the Freestyle Daily for the next day has arrived in my stateroom, so I peruse it and mark it up for the next day before I change into swimming attire. Yes, swimming attire. After dinner, I quite enjoy a soak in the hot tub and a shower before I put on my party clothes and hit the nightlife....I love the nightlife! You can find me in a lounge from about 9:00 or 10:00 until I can't keep my eyes open anymore! Then I fall into bed and do the whole thing over again.

 

Port Day

Wake up at whatever time I set my alarm for based on port itinerary (time in port and shore excursions). Get dressed and grab breakfast (or lunch, depending on port time) from the buffet. Yes, I hate buffets, but on port days, I'm far less concerned with the experience and more concerned about getting food in me and off the ship for the day. In port, I go on the booked shore excursions, or if there wasn't anything that appealed to me within budget, I'll wander around, souvenier shop, and perhaps grab a bite to eat. I'm a little obsessed with international American food (best McDonalds I ever had was in Spain), so I get a kick out of eating at a McDonalds or Burger King or whatever, but this could be a good time to check out a local venue. I've found the crew to be very familiar with the ports, so ask a few crew members if there's a local eatery they like to visit...they can give fantastic advice!! And, if you hear the same place multiple times, it's worth trying to get to. I like to get back to the ship about 1 1/2-2 hour prior to departure (you have to be back by an hour before). The NCL crew will have the music on, and you will be welcomed back in style!! After back on board, I enjoy a sit down dinner, and more night life.

 

On the last day, around dinner time, I hang out in the Atrium until the check out times are available. Being there early means you can pick your disembarkation time instead of being stuck with whatever is left.

 

Congratulations on your upcoming wedding, and have a GREAT time on your cruise!!

[UlsterLad]

I'm an engineer so I very much appreciate your scientific approach! Great detail and thanks for the sea/port day contrast!

[BensonFan711]

I'm an engineer so I very much appreciate your scientific approach! Great detail and thanks for the sea/port day contrast!

 

Used to work pharma with mostly scientists, switched to medical devices, and now work with several engineers. We have very similar approaches!

 

One tip for your first cruise. Bring a power strip. Most staterooms have one outlet, and if you have a million gadgets like I do, you will want the extra power points.

[PamJack]

Any day on a cruise is perfect in my book, but I know what you are asking. On a sea day, we sleep until we wake up (we are not early risers). Hubby is a breakfast eater, so I go with him while he eats. Then we go outside and spend some time looking at the ocean. We will have marked our newsletter the night before, so if there is any trivia happening we will play that. By this time, I'm ready for lunch so he sits with me while I eat. I particularly enjoy a burger or hot dog from the grill or maybe a deli sandwich.

 

If there's no event we want to take part in, it's back to one of the decks. We grab a couple of chairs to sit on while we watch the ocean. We might also read or play games on our tablets. At some point during the afternoon we will have a piña colada while we play trivia or watch the ocean. Ice cream is always good too. A round of mini-golf and exploring parts of the ship are also fun for us. I might have a look at the shops.

 

Before we get ready for dinner, we go up high on the back of the ship to watch the wake for a bit. A perfect dinner will be shrimp cocktail, steak and a yummy dessert. At night, we like to see a good show in the theater along with a piña colada.

 

Before bed, we might explore a bit more or visit a lounge. Last thing before going to the room is one more look at the ocean. We never get tired of the marvel of its vastness.

 

In ports, we find a place to eat and walk around the local area. We might shop a bit or visit historical sites. Of course, we delight in the scenery too.

 

I have loved reading everyone's descriptions of their perfect day.

[jocap]

Used to work pharma with mostly scientists, switched to medical devices, and now work with several engineers. We have very similar approaches!

 

One tip for your first cruise. Bring a power strip. Most staterooms have one outlet, and if you have a million gadgets like I do, you will want the extra power points.

 

The outlet will be American, ie 110v, but there will be a European socket somewhere in the cabin, because that's what the ship uses, being most likely built in Europe. We take a world wide adapter, so we can use both.

[NewSalt]

Best wishes for your up-coming marriage. A Greek island cruise is on my bucket list.

 

PPs have mentioned many of the things we enjoy doing, but none have told you about my absolute favorite part of any cruise, which we didn't discover until we three or four cruises behind us.

 

Before you retire for the night, decide how early you want to awake, and then fill out the little order form that you bang out on your doorknob. We order juice, coffee, possibly a croissant. At the time you've chosen, you'll hear a knock on the door and your order will be delivered. (A small tip is customary.) Then sit out on the balcony in your PJ's, drink your coffee and watch the ocean glide by or read.

 

And don't miss having a drink on the balcony before you do go to bed. Without light pollution, the stars will be amazing.

[Putterdude]

My perfect cruise day is a nice warm sea day in the Caribbean, laying on a lounger by the pool, my Boise earphones on playing tunes on my iPod, reading my Kindle and a cool drink beside me. Nap every hour....it just doesn't get any better.:)

[UlsterLad]

Thanks NewSalt, starting and ending the day on the balcony with a drink in hand does seem idyllic! Saw a timelapse video on youtube of carnival preparing pre-ordered breakfast room service and judging by the number of trays it looks like that's how a lot of people start their day.

[Notnic]

Depends on you. Leisurely breakfast, little wander in shops or to see art gallery. Sunbathing on deck or use the spa, go on a trip on land, spot of lunch ... Chill on balcony get ready for evening mayb do quiz in day .. Really depends on u

[Cuizer2]

Just booked my first ever cruise for my honeymoon! So I was wondering what a day on a cruise is actually like, I know this varies wildly depending on the person, ship, location and if it's a port/sea day.

 

So, what does your day look like on a ship? In as much detail as you wish, the more the merrier I say! I'm just intrigued to find out what an "average day" looks like and have some fun seeing what people get up to!

 

You can read some of my recent reviews if you like ...

 

Freedom of the Seas - April 2015 ...

http://http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2203566

 

Explorer of the Seas - November 2014 ...

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2130288

[karen&roy]

I get up earlier than my husband so I usually have coffee delivered from room service and sit out on our balcony and just watch the ocean. I also bring small binoculars to spot other boats, ships and sea life. We then read the daily activites and see what we want to partake in. Then up to breakfast when he wakes up. We usually are dressed in our bathing suits under our clothes so then proceed to the deck..him to sunbath, me to read and take a few dips in the pool. Then its NOON so time for a foofoo drink :p. He tends to like to lay there and Im usually up and touring the ship shops.After dinner we like to hit the casino for awhile also and find the bar we like the best, usually with a piano player. We also catch a show or whatever the ship has going on...then back to the cabin to relax on our balcony for our night caps...dam Im getting excited now!! Will be on board again in Sept!! Happy sailing..you will LOVE it :D

[Hlitner]

My perfect cruise day would be a sea day in seas less then 6 feet with perfect warm weather and not a single PA announcement (from the CD, Captain, etc). On over 3 years of our time on ships we have experienced many great days, but unfortunately have yet to experience a quiet PA system.

 

Hank

[CruiseDiva53]

A walk around the ship's track, hit the gym,shower, Breakfast, sunbathe, have lunch, maybe sunbathe some more, a class, Bingo,( and I hear it's $2,000 Bingo), walk around ship, Shop, Have an iced coffee and or Gelatto, go to cabin for leisurely shower and get ready for dinner, go to dinner, go see show, hit the casino for a little bit,go to a club to dance, maybe take walk outside on the deck, go to one of the late night eateries for a light snack, and back to cabin to catch some Zzzzz's. My idea of a Great day !!!

[CruiseDiva53]

It's Too Bad that there's No LIKE button, like on Facebook, because I like the posts!

[PamJack]

It's Too Bad that there's No LIKE button, like on Facebook, because I like the posts!

 

 

I've thought that more than once!

[DeesEscape]

Many blessings of happiness for your upcoming wedding.

 

For me a cruise is being in a never-ending state of zen. There is a sense of calm and total relaxation (even in the midst of endless activity from morning to night) that I have never experienced out of any of my land based travels. Cruising is marketed as a vacation for the masses yet uniquely tailored to and for every individual. It's a state of mind that can literally have you feeling reborn.

 

My perfect day is waking naturally without the jarring beeping of an alarm clock, giving thanks and then rising to open my balcony curtains and having paradise say good morning. If in port, I love to just drink in my surroundings and breathe in the freshness of the air. I'm an early riser and love seeing the beauty of a tropical sunrise. Lovely.

 

My honey can sleep in more than I so I let him rest and enjoy the "me time" by having some coffee and a pastry from room service snd then going over the daily newsletter to see what fun we can get up too. There are no mistakes in how one decides to cruise only choices. And they are plenty.

 

Once my other half wakes and coffees up it shower, dress and off to breakfast in the MDR. Leisurely eat and then its off to explore until my adventures lead to a deck chair, a cold drink, some music and the beauty of the ocean. If in a port I want to see it's off the boat and on to whatever we have planned. We are easy going and enjoy the moment and mood of our environment and let that instinct carry us to our adventure. Then back to ship for nap and relaxation before dinner. Eat then venture to whatever strikes our fancy. Drinks, dancing, good music, a show, walk on deck, etc. is all heaven. A late night snack/drink then back to cabin to relax and hang on the balcony before turning in. Life at its best.