Advice for new cruisers?

[Lordwanswell]

My wife and I are booked on P&O's Oceana for a Med cruise in September, from Genoa, via Venice and back. We have a balcony cabin booked and freedom dining. This is our first sea cruise and we would be grateful for any advice anyone may have to make sure we get the most from it. Thanks.

[cb at sea]

Research your ports...it's always best to know something about where you're going!

 

Then, just relax! A cruise is a holiday...not a marathon! There is no "right or wrong" way to vacation!

[NMLady]

Read some of the posts on the P&O forum on CC to get good information.

[rakuroda]

My wife and I are booked on P&O's Oceana for a Med cruise in September, from Genoa, via Venice and back. We have a balcony cabin booked and freedom dining. This is our first sea cruise and we would be grateful for any advice anyone may have to make sure we get the most from it. Thanks.

Aloha Lordwanswell :D

 

First go to P&O's Oceana Roll Calls page and introduce yourselves to others on the same cruise http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=382 and read & ask questions there. There should be those that have done this itin before that will share info with you.

 

Research the Ports of Call for the port stops on your cruise.

 

Then:

 

Originally Posted by charmed101 After several cruises I feel that there are a couple of must have's and things to leave at home.

 

- Be sure to pack lots of smiles, (because your going to have such a good time) and share them throughout your cruise day, (the next person you smile at could become your new best friend,,,, or at least for the rest of your cruise )

Also, pack an extra bit of patience for your cruise, unfortunately nothing goes perfect, so a little bit of patience comes in handy, (you have paid to much money to let little things ruin your cruise)

 

- A must for some people is to not pack extra "attitude". Its not needed and I can't thing of one situation that it would come in handy (avoid and ignore the ones that forget to leave this at home.)

WELL SAID! It's kind of like watching prople playing blackjack, the ones that always seem to be having fun are the ones that always seem to win money, the ones that sit there grumpy all the time always seem to lose. Attitude seems to play a major role in lots of stuff!

 

Always smile & be nice, it doesn't cost you anything and it might just reward you.

 

Aloha :D

[paul929207]

I agree research the ports. I am not familiar with your itinerary, but many Med ports can be done on your own saving the cost of a tour

[Sixtytwo]

Welcome aboard Cruise Critic! Congrats on booking that first cruise, too! :D Just one tip for you - keep your watch set to "ship's time" and be sure you know what time the ship sails from each port! Do not depend on a cell phone for keeping up with ship time as it will change to whichever timezone you are sailing in!! :eek:

[Keith1010]

Read all of the information provided by the cruise line on line and in their written documentation. And do the research up front for the ports you will be visiting.

 

Keith

[John Bull]

You're probably aware of restrictions on taking aboard your own alcohol, most cruise lines restrict passengers to taking aboard one bottle of wine each to drink in their cabins. :(

No such rule on P&O. :)

You can take aboard your favourite tipple, including wine, beer, spirits, at embarkation or at any port-of-call.

So take aboard enough for evening drinks before or mebbe after dinner & sea days. We always take a bottle of Pimms & some lemonade, add some fresh fruit & greenery from the buffet (though I've never seen any mint) & anytime is Pimms o'clock on the balcony.

 

A couple of years back, P&O introduced "auto-tips", the same routine as on US and Italian ships - tips for your waiters & cabin steward are charged to your on-board account. On P&O they're about £4 per passenger per day. You can ask for them to be removed & tip staff individually at your discretion, but simplest to leave them in place - especially since you're on anytime dining so you'll have different waiters each time.

 

There's usually a queue for dinner at the dining room door - probably a long & slow queue on the first evening while everyone gets used to the routine, but tends to be first night only. The queue moves slowly if you insist on your own table-for-two, much more quickly if you're willing to share.

You're likely to be sharing with folk immediately ahead / behind you in the queue. So if you don't like the look of them ;), step to one side & intensely study the menu near the door, then re-join the queue a bit further back.

If you get on really well with folk you share with, suggest that you go to dinner as a foursome next evening. On several cruises we've ended up as a table of eight, booked a table for a set time and effectively ended up as traditional dining but with folk guaranteed to get along together.

 

Get your euros before you go, from the usual suspects like M&S, Sainsbury, Post Office, or on-line. Or use your debit card in ATMs in the ports.

Exchange rates given by the ship (all cruise lines) are very poor.

Don't forget to tell your card suppliers that you'll be spending abroad.

 

Plenty of your fellow cruisers will be old hands, & can help out with any queries.

 

All first cruises are great, have a good one

 

JB :)

Edited July 19, 2015 by John Bull

[dlg64]

Wow what a great response and i am also going to take that advise on board for my first cruise... at least I am leaving the teens at home so that will greatly limit any attitude I might have !! ........8 weeks and counting down !!

I am already smiling a lot more as each week another Monday arrives and passes by bringing me closer to departure day !!

I only hope I am not building up my hopes to much but I do get as much pleasure from planning as the holiday itself and there seems to be a lot more planning you need to do for a cruise. If I am land based I tend to take each day as it comes but on the ship you only get the one day in port so its not like you can dilly dally about and ponder your day (well so I am told) so there has been several hours on internet trawling !!:D

Roll on RCL from Singapore....:)

[4x4bob]

Most ports in the Med are full of History. This will require a lot of walking and climbing stairs, etc.

 

So, you will need really good shoes that are comfortable for a lot of walking.

 

I have seen people try this in flip flop sandals and by the end of the day they were limping.

 

Bob

[Sea Green]

Without wanting to repeat anything anyones already told you, or teach my grandmother to suck eggs :) ....

 

1) Cabin walls are metal. Pack some fridge magnets and use them to keep your paperwork to hand but out of the way, like -

 

2) The ships paper, Horizon, is put in your cabin every night and has the info about whats happening aboard the next day, and some info on the ports. (Theres usually an actual 'news' newspaper around reception too)

 

3) Theres a small washing line hidden in the bathtub (swimsuit drying / hand laundry)

 

4) Dont be confused by the fact theres more than one Main Dining Room(s), its just for organisation, they all have the same menu.

 

5) Breakfast in the MDR is usually both quicker and more leisurely than fighting your way through the buffet.

 

6) Your MDR allocation (there will be a card in your cabin telling you which restaurant to go to) is for dinner *only*. You can go to any of the MDRs which are open for breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea, its all open seating during the day. If you decide you want to go to the buffet or booking one of the fee paying restaurants for dinner for a change, just dont show up to the MDR. (If you were on fixed dining not freedom, it would be polite to let your waiter or tablemates know so they dont wait for you).

 

7) Its P&O. We are British. There will be a kettle and tea tray in your cabin!

 

8) If you miss any port talks or lectures, they are normally shown on the TV later.

 

9) As everyone says, research the ports before you go. A little effort before hand will help you get maximum enjoyment and relaxation on your trip.

 

10) Have fun! :D

[Lordwanswell]

What a helpful bunch of cruisers! Thanks for all your well considered replies.

[jocap]

Welcome! :)

There's thousands of cruisers who've done this itinerary with P&O, from Genoa/Venice, either this year on Oceana, or last year when the ship was Ventura....if you've found the P&O page, there will be cruisers who can tell you about your ports.

One great thing about a fly/cruise is that you don't have to get off the ship first thing on the last day- you stay on board and use the facilities until the coaches come for you.

[Misself]

Hi. I did the Genoa / Venice cruise on Oceana in June and loved it. Oceana is a lovely ship, very friendly and not too big.

[Misself]

My tip. On the sail in to Venice get up on deck before everyone else and grab a good spot at the front of the ship to enjoy the views. It will get busy as the ship nears Venice.

[AstyPasty]

You can take aboard your favourite tipple, including wine, beer, spirits, at embarkation or at any port-of-call.

So take aboard enough for evening drinks before or mebbe after dinner & sea days. We always take a bottle of Pimms & some lemonade, add some fresh fruit & greenery from the buffet (though I've never seen any mint) & anytime is Pimms o'clock on the balcony.

JB :)

 

I love this tip! I have added 'bottle of Pimms' to my to pack list - thank you :)