How did we manage to cruise when...

[rkacruiser]

Titanic II is coming your way!!

 

Nope. The gentleman who wanted to create it has canceled the project. From what I read, the Chinese shipyard that was to have built the ship "lost interest" in doing so. Hmmm.

[DRS/NC]

For my late DH & I, that first cruise was June 1967 on the Sunward (early NCL?)

 

We were in Miami on business & were staying over the weekend. The cruise line was an audit client, so the Miami office folks said "take the 3-day cruise to Nassau. Book the $89 room & they'll upgrade you." We did & they did -- to a suite! We boarded with no idea about what we were doing, but what the heck -- we were 20 somethings?! [bTW -- the $89 cabin shared a bathroom down the hall!] We were the only people we knew who had cruised!

 

Seven years later, we had a bit of $$$, a 2 yr. old & I wanted a REAL vacation! Our TA (she'd booked land trips for us) suggested Sitmar because they had a children's program. My DD cried & tried to refuse to leave the ship after 10 days!

 

How we loved it! Still do!:)

[NurseDave]

Nope. The gentleman who wanted to create it has canceled the project. From what I read, the Chinese shipyard that was to have built the ship "lost interest" in doing so. Hmmm.

 

http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/11/travel/titanic-ii-feat/

[GUT2407]

Nope. The gentleman who wanted to create it has canceled the project. From what I read, the Chinese shipyard that was to have built the ship "lost interest" in doing so. Hmmm.

 

 

Clive drags it out any time he wants attention.

[Krazy Kruizers]

When we first cruised, we had to use a TA to book the cruise.

First ship was 18,000 tons -- no stabilizers.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner were in the dining room. There weren't any buffets.

No TV's, no internet, no cell phones, no specialty restaurants, one tiny shop, no art auctions.

And people dressed up.

Have sailed on the QE2 and the Norway -- great ships.

Loved those days!!

[sail7seas]

Nope. The gentleman who wanted to create it has canceled the project. From what I read, the Chinese shipyard that was to have built the ship "lost interest" in doing so. Hmmm.

 

It was an awful idea, IMO.

I'm happy to hear that project has been canceled.

 

[ready2cruzagain]

Dh and I was just talking about how in the world would people today be able to handle booking a cruise or even going on one. When we looked around the lido deck almost everyone had their cellphone, tablet out playing with it.

 

No internet, cell phones back in the day.

 

Call the TA, they took care of it all. No watching for price drops, booking your own plane, etc.

[NJ Fred]

Yes, those were the days. Simple and pure.

 

I well-recall the days when you either paid each bar tab, etc. in cash or signed the check and settled your bill before disembarking.

 

Dining was more structured. Formal nights meant - - formal nights. The elegance added to the overall majesty of the voyage.

 

Bouillon, afternoon tea, daily midnight buffets and music from live orchestras/bands; none of the canned stuff. Plus, mainstream comedians, singers that were somewhat accomplished, etc.

 

Madison Avenue sells us "the better way of life." We are classically conditioned to think that buffets and informal dining on food that would have made the chefs at Home Lines, Sitmar, et al., revolt.

 

Of course, there's no going back. Cutbacks abound. But for those who never sailed during the "golden days," it matters not. For-to-them a cruise is one big vociferous ferryboat ride with giant screen movies replacing talented entertainers, cruise directors that are aloof and often invisible, pizza pie that is an insult to tomato sauce and tons more - - or is that tons less???

 

We still sail. Because the one thing they can't change is the sea!

[moniquet]

Great posts, brings back memories. I went on the old QE2 as a teenager, had my arm twisted to keep my Aunt company. Loved it! Everyone made such a fuss of me. Lots of young handsome officers to dance and flirt with. Happy days:)

[lahlah57]

Nope. The gentleman who wanted to create it has canceled the project. From what I read, the Chinese shipyard that was to have built the ship "lost interest" in doing so. Hmmm.

 

Really?! Just saw the bio on the project of Titanic ll. The cost was astronomical for such a venture. Loved the idea but to be able to afford such a voyage....hmmmm :rolleyes:

[John&LaLa]

Guess the position, pre GPS.

[gerif]

Amazing how many were able to cruise when there was NO bottled water.

[Sea Hag]

Amazing how many were able to cruise when there was NO bottled water.

 

And - gasp! - no drinks packages! :eek:

[English Woman Abroad]

What a lovely thread! First time on a cruise ship for me was the old days of ship/jet. One took a ship and then a jet from Australia to London. Patris was the name of the vessel, to Singapore. Fast forward to 1988 and it was 21 days aboard a Commodore vessel, out of LA through Mexico, Panama Canal and Caribbean, ending up in NYC. We ate with the Captain and assorted officers every night, until we said we would like a break. They set up a table for two for us. We ran every morning around the deck with officers, getting in daily exercise. No buffets. No shops. So different to today. Fabulous memories from the posters on this thread. It got me thinking about my own. Unfortunately I have not cruised that often in the modern era, but am happy I have some memories of a time gone by. Cheers and best.

[moniquet]

I have heard stories of people taking long cruises on cargo ships. Has anyone ever done that and do they still have them?

[tip]

When we first cruised, we had to use a TA to book the cruise.

 

Same here. To this day I refer to him as "Mr. Bumble". After several mess-ups on his part, we finally fired him. When the documents for our first cruise arrived, my wife's first name was incorrect. For the second cruise, which was out of Miami, he had us booked on a plane flying into Orlando. Strike three came when he moved his travel agency to another location in town and did not notify UPS. The documents never reached us. He suggested that we just show up at the pier!:eek:

 

Back then you just hoped that your travel agent was getting you the best deal and was looking at more than his commission. You really had no way of knowing.

[GeezerCouple]

I have heard stories of people taking long cruises on cargo ships. Has anyone ever done that and do they still have them?

 

A friend in grad school (mid-70') had parents who regularly took long "cruises" on cargo ships, but I never learned any details.

 

That was also when I took my first cruise, and the inside cabin was tiny and spartan. My memory is that it was just about all simple painted steel, plus a mattress (bunks) and a tiny sofa.

Traveled with parents and children, like this, twice.

Parents had a tiny porthole, which we thought was the neatest thing :)

 

The first time, we were under the lounge = LOUD DRUMS all night. :mad:

To make my own reservations the next time, I had a brochure with full deck plans, and studied them carefully.

Some of the smaller cabins were on short "hallways" that went perpendicular to the side of the ship.

So I found one where 3 cabins opened on to the same tiny "corridor", rather than the main hallway.

And *none* of them were under any public areas.

 

These were truly cheap cruises, but I caught the fever immediately.

 

Unfortunately, one of the children turned out to be very seriously seasick, so future cruises needed to wait a while.

[Kartgv]

Another thing that's changed.....Fairwind St. Thomas, 1986:

 

 

No one cared how much booze you brought onboard, though I have no recollection how we got it home on the plane. We probably just carried it on in the boxes you see and stashed it under the seat.

 

We hosted a cocktail party onboard in a private room for about 20 newfound friends, complete with an open bar and munchies - total cost $24. People have correctly noted that cruising was more expensive then, in today's dollars, but drinks cost $2-3 and you didn't pay for extras except for shore excursions.

 

On the negative side - beds were hard, lumpy, and tiny; walls were paper thin, you really felt the rough seas before stabilizers, you didn't have the number of food choices you have today, balconies were few and limited to the very wealthy.

 

Maybe the biggest advantage to cruising in the early days is that we were so much younger! Climbing those stairs, handling late nights and early next morning tours, shedding those extra pounds gained onboard - all so much easier then.

[marco]

As far as booking anyway, "once upon a time" the brochure rate was the price everyone paid, not matter who you booked the cruise with. Now it seems like the brochure rate is complete fiction and a price NO ONE pays! There were no sales, price drops, specials, regional promotions, etc. and there were no perks they offered, like OBC, pre-paid gratuities, beverage packages, etc etc. to entice you to book with one agency over another.

Edited April 19, 2016 by marco

[benanjerry]

I remember on my first cruise to the Caribbean, shops in the ports delivered your purchases directly to the ship for you - no carrying items all over town. Perfume, artwork, liquor - all were sitting on the bed upon your return. That was along time ago, LOL!

 

Kay

[loubetti]

As far as booking anyway, "once upon a time" the brochure rate was the price everyone paid, not matter who you booked the cruise with. Now it seems like the brochure rate is complete fiction and a price NO ONE pays! There were no sales, price drops, specials, regional promotions, etc. and there were no perks they offered, like OBC, pre-paid gratuities, beverage packages, etc etc. to entice you to book with one agency over another.

 

Indeed, the price you saw was the price you paid! How simple it all was.

 

Also, to add to comments above, some of those smaller ships DID have stabilizers, whether built with them or added, but they were smaller ships, thus...;)

 

Today, it is all "bigger is better", "how fast is the wifi"?, "how casual can I dress on formal night?"

 

Happy to see this thread still alive. Keep the comments coming! :D

[navybankerteacher]

The democratization of cruising: from a fairly formal experience largely limited to upper income people on ships carrying a few hundred passengers to a mass market vacation option on ships carrying thousands - with all sorts of previously unimagined activities, is the story of the emergence of a completely new industry.

[jocap]

I didn't discover cruising until 2006, but I've been on many so-called "mini cruises" on ferries- mainly overnights to Amsterdam, with an excursion during the day and back on board that night. Longer ones were two nights to Sweden, or ferry hopping with a cabin booked on each ship, in Scotland. Bunk beds, no included food and shower rooms down the corridors.

The only two mini cruises I can count as real cruises were in Scotland, where everything, including excursions, was included, with coaches from the train in Glasgow.

OH was raised in Africa, so was used to the less Spartan cabins and long sea journeys on liners, but he was as surprised as I when we first entered the opulent forum on our first real cruise ship, the Sea Princess.

[moniquet]

I remember the excitement in the old days. Waiting for the new brochures to come out and looking at the cabin plans:) although it is great having so much information on the Internet nowadays.

[Haoie]

Like flying with paper tickets! The norm until the late 90s.