First time cruise tips please!

[CarryoncruisingJoan]

Hello fellow cruisers!

 

I will be going on my first cruise holiday in January, P and O Azura to the Carribean.

 

Very excited, and now very poor (booked direct, need to get better at deal searching 🙈

 

Would love to hear tips from seasoned cruisers or people familiar with the company, ship, destinations. All help and advice much appreciated. Thank you 😊

[PORT ROYAL]

Hello fellow cruisers!

 

I will be going on my first cruise holiday in January, P and O Azura to the Carribean.

 

Very excited, and now very poor (booked direct, need to get better at deal searching 🙈

 

Would love to hear tips from seasoned cruisers or people familiar with the company, ship, destinations. All help and advice much appreciated. Thank you 😊

 

For this and every future P&O cruise. Embark early, run to the "Retreat" and book for the duration of the cruise. To do otherwise will be considered foolish.,

[ChrisPBacon]

We're doing the Caribbean in Feb, 3rd or 4th time or so.

 

If you haven't got the dining you want, go straight to the restaurant as you board. You should be able to change.

 

We never book the ship's tours. Too expensive and not necessarily better tours or transport. But you know you're insured and won't miss your ship with the official tours. But we use the local drivers.

 

Don't pre book any spa treatments before you go. They are rarely full and there are always deals on.

 

Same with the premium restaurants, unless it's a special occasion and you need a specific date. On a med cruise in September, they were throwing in a bottle of wine free in the first week, and money off on the second.

 

If you fancy a Costa coffee in the atrium, but wonder if it's worth paying for.....your cake will be free.

 

 

 

 

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[the english lady]

Hello fellow cruisers!

 

I will be going on my first cruise holiday in January, P and O Azura to the Carribean.

 

Very excited, and now very poor (booked direct, need to get better at deal searching 🙈

 

Would love to hear tips from seasoned cruisers or people familiar with the company, ship, destinations. All help and advice much appreciated. Thank you 😊

 

Prepare to be poor for the rest of your life. Once you have done one you think..oh well another little one will not hurt..it's a very expensive addiction.

Go with an open mind. There will some people you will meet who will become friends. There will be other people you meet who you decide you will not try and run into them again .

When packing do not equate formal night to uncomfortable. My evening clothes tend to be light floaty chiffony efforts. Also do not weigh much.

You do not need to take lots and lots of shoes. Possibly 2 evening, flip flops for the day and comfy shoes/sandals for walking

Do not discuss what you paid for your cruise. Some will have paid more than you and some less. Happier people all round if you do not have the conversation.

Enjoy the whole experience. Sailaways in the Caribbean are rather nice.

When you return do post and let other people know how you found the cruise life.

[tartanexile81]

You've chosen a great cruise fro your first one. Azura is a lovely ship and visiting the Caribbean when it's cold and wet back home is fantastic in itself.

 

Don't feel you have to do the P&O tours in the Caribbean. The beauty of the Caribbean is the way of life is so relaxing and you can enjoy fabulous beaches by just picking up a taxi at the port with others from the ship. or wandering round places very different to your home town

 

Check if there's a roll call for the cruise and 'chat' to your fellow cruisers before you go. Which date are you going? Cruising is very sociable and you just talk to everybody around the ship. I don't know if you use Faceache but there are pages dedicated to cruising in the Caribbean with P&O.

 

Try out different things around the ship. Each evening your steward will give you a leaflet which tells you what's happening the next day. You should carry it around with you and take ashore with you too. There's loads of entertainment apart from just in the theatre in the evenings. Try The GlassHouse for lunch and The Beach House for an evening meal. There's a small cover charge but it's well worth it.

 

When you check in, you will get a little booklet with deck plans. Carry it around with you. Like all of us you will inevitably get lost at first so it's handy to have it in your pocket to refer to.

 

Lots of us here have visited the Caribbean and if you let us know which ports you're visiting we can tell you what we've done there and what we enjoyed

[Sussexboy]

We have just come back from Azura in the Caribbean. You will have a fantastic time. Top tip from us from our first cruise is this: just remember that doing nothing is just as ok as being busy, just enjoy the moment. As the others have said, be prepared to spend the rest of your days searching out cruise deals.

 

*second top tip - on St. Kitts don't drink the monkey punch while ashore. It is lethal stuff!

[tartanexile81]

Just an extra from me. Take stretchy clothes that will fit you at the beginning and end of the cruise not just clothes that only just fit you when you embark

[Florry]

Take a gang socket as there aren't many plugs in the cabin. Pegs come in handy for swimmies etc (there is a clothes rail in the bathroom). The food in the coffee shop is free. Room service is free. If you ask room service they will bring you a carton of milk for your cabin fridge. You can take alcohol onboard. Will add anything else as I think of it.

 

 

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[danielundecided]

I haven't really much to offer to this thread but it's true - you'll be searching for cruise deals (and trying to make dates for holidays to work even when they shouldn't!) for a long time. It definitely doesn't come cheap!

 

One tip if you choose to cruise again: if you already have the money saved up for the holiday don't pay up front along with the deposit; keep it in a high interest saving account and let the money build up. You'll find it handy ;)

 

Dan

 

 

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Edited December 10, 2016 by danielundecided

[CarryoncruisingJoan]

Thank you all so much for taking the time to reply and offer your advice and tips. Truly appreciated! Ive never been in a position to afford a holiday like this before, for me its a true luxury and I'm grateful for all your help which goes a long way to helping me make the most of it all ❤ x

[eddie11]

Get some giant clothes pegs - Lakeland have them, or look online - to anchor your towel to the sun bed in Caribbean breezes.

 

Have a good read through the daily info sheet - Horizon - so as not to miss anything you might like.

 

Relax and enjoy every minute of your holiday. Do what you want, not what you think other people are telling you to do. Don't be put off by other people's miserable reviews; some seem to only enjoy complaining . Have a great time

[Strawberry field]

I wanted to do a cruise all my life but it wasn't until I retired that I could afford it. We had our first this year on Britannia and loved every single second. Within two months I had booked our second which is next April. We will be looking at 2019 for our 50th anniversary as soon as they come out. The biggest tip I can give you is read all the reviews good and bad then forget them. If I had taken notice of the reviews then I wouldn't have set foot on Britannia and it was the best holiday ever. Yes I was concerned about the bad reviews of her but as soon as we stepped aboard those thoughts disappeared. Don't forget it's your holiday so do what you want to do, it's fine to do everything you can but it's also fine to just grab a coffee and people watch. You will love it but be prepared to be hooked like we are. Enjoy your cruise!

[LondonTowner]

Read up on your Ports of Call on the relevant forums. Lots of useful information about local tour operators. You can book your tour with them online and only need to pay on the day.

 

Some of them, like Cosol's Tours in St Lucia are excellent. Alternatively, you can arrange something at the port. No need at all to book an over priced ship tour.

 

Tripadvisor is also full of lots of good information too.

 

For currency take USD which are accepted everywhere (except the French side of St Maarten where Euros are best). Unfortunately, exchange rate not very good at the moment.

 

Myself and OH don't do beaches, but still love the scenery, people and atmosphere of the Caribbean.

 

You will have a great time.

[eddie11]

Sorry if this is info you have already researched but

 

1. Your main luggage will go direct from the airport to outside your cabin. That's good and bad. You don't have to worry about it from when you hand it over at the UK airport. However, you won't have access to the contents till it turns up, so make sure you have sunglasses, sun protection ( buy a bottle airside) and a simple change of clothes (sarong, flip flops etc) in your hand luggage, to make the most of those glorious 2 or 3 hours of Caribbean sun immediately after boarding.

 

2. You have to put the bulk of your luggage outside your cabin on the eve of departure. Again, good and bad. You won't have to bother about it again - it will be there on the carousel at your UK airport - but you will need to think ahead as to what you will need, for ablutions on the last morning; making the most of those last few hours and keeping warm in the U.K. in January when you land. You will have access to showers in the Spa, so can just be sun worshippers, you could take a taxi and explore Barbados before going to the airport ... it's a shame just to sit around onboard waiting till your airport transportation

[Kittyonions]

Just some ideas that I think make Azura easier to navigate:

1 the deck plans handed out with your ship pass card are a bit confusing. We took the deck plans from the P & O brochure which are a different perspective, and we thought they helped to see exactly where you wanted to go.

2 try to use the same set of lifts, and know if you are midships, fore or aft. This helps to find wherever you need to go ( although there are one or two places that you need to use the right lift e.g. The Planet bar, which you definitely need to find!)

Enjoy your cruise!

[eddie11]

Good navigation tips.

Look at the staircase carpet colour to help with navigation. The colours are different on the 3 staircases. Also, look at the artwork; that will help

Remember when you emerge from 'normal lifts' you will be facing forward.

Remember the 'featre' is forward

[groovechick]

Take 3 or 4 small fridge magnets with you. The cabin walls are metal, so the magnets can be used to pin up the daily Horizon news sheet, tickets and other bits of paper so they're easy to find and quick to refer to.

 

Soap, shower gel, shampoo and body lotion are supplied and are quite a good make (The White Company) and are topped up by your room steward as required, so unless you have a particular reason for wanting your usual brand you don't have to take these items with you. If you've forgotten toiletries or something like paracetamol there is a small shop on board which sells these essentials, although they have limited stocks. Alternatively you can pick them up ashore in the ports.

 

I take miniatures of essentials like toothpaste and deodorant in my hand luggage, along with a pretty, lightweight top that doesn't crease, so if the case hasn't got to the cabin by dinner time I can freshen up a bit after a long day of travelling before dinner.

 

Beware that many of the daytime "talks" on health and beauty topics are poorly disguised hard sales pitches. Also if you decide to treat yourself to a hairdo in the on-board salon, be very sure about the price they quote you and what you will get for it. They have a nasty habit of quoting a "basic" price which is for "shoulder-length hair" say, then once they've done the work stiff you for any extra £20 or whatever because your hair is longer.

 

You don't have to have exactly what is on the dinner menu. If you don't want a main course you can have 2 starters, or not have a starter, or have 2 desserts. The vast majority of the waiters are lovely and will go out of their way to accommodate your wishes.

 

As others have said, it's Ok to do nothing. Avoid the moaners, it's your hard-earned holiday and you don't need their negativity. We read lots of terrible reviews before our second P&O cruise on Azura and I was thinking we'd made a terrible mistake - we had a wonderful time.

 

The cocktail of the day is usually a bit cheaper and is a nice way to try new drinks and flavours.

 

Re eddie11's tip about the colour-coded stair carpets, I think I read somewhere that some of the carpets had changed during recent refurbishments (don't know if this applies to Azura), so might not be a 100% reliable guide.

 

I hope you have a wonderful holiday.

Edited December 12, 2016 by groovechick
addition

[mandylennon]

Don't be afraid to ask. Your cabin steward will (usually) be on hand and happy to assist with any questions you have, they know a lot. If you want more pillows, hangers etc and anything else you might need. Also make time to engage with your steward - it isn't everyones ideal job cleaning up everyones mess.

 

Reception. We have always found them helpful if you add a please or thank you.

 

At dinner, if there is anything not in the menu that you particularly want i.e. extra chips just ask for them, they don't mind. If you are undecided about what to choose beware you may end up with both dishes.

 

Have a great time.

[ChrisPBacon]

A relative of ours often asks for chips on the side and it's never a problem. I once asked for extra meat, after I was given a particularly small portion. "No problem sir". Then he can back with a full dinner. Yes.....I ate it. [emoji3]

 

Re the cabin steward. Never known one that is anything but polite, courteous and hard working. The only thing I'd say is that some are quite shy and are less proactive unless you specifically ask for something, and then give you a short answer. Those are are less shy will ask you if you need anything or how they can help you and suggest options if you are not sure what you want. But they are all very nice.

 

When we have a balcony, as we are on the next cruise, we ask the steward to keep us stocked up with ice and lemon for our drinkies on the said balcony, late afternoon.

 

 

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[cruisefan2012]

Azura is a fantastic ship - I`ve sailed on her 3x - Got soo many stories I could tell you

 

Firstly you MUST have drinks in The Planet Bar, Deck 18 Aft, Fab..u..lous bar !!

 

You dont say if you are in a Single Travellers cabin or not, I`ve sailed in both the insides and outsides and they are both great, Have also sailed on Britannia in a Single balcony cabin, all 3 cabins had single beds with single quilts, everytime you turn in bed the quilt comes with you so I asked my steward if I could have a double quilt, and he came back and sorted it for me, also didnt realise you could also ask for a firmer pillow, but you can...

 

Go to E Deck - walk as far forward as you can and you`ll see a door with a sign on saying "passenger access to the bow" - go through 2 heavy doors and you will be RIGHT at the front of the ship - You could do your very best Kate Winslet / Titanic / "Jack, I`m flying..." impression as I`m sure MANY MANY people have done

 

Most of all have a WONDERFUL time, You have picked a great ship to sail and as others have said, cruising is extremely addictive

[john watson]

If you have decided to do a beach day on the island, take your pool towels from under the sink of wherever they have been stowed with you as you disembark. When you reach the quayside you will be offered taxis by many guys. I should recommend to look around to see if there is a water taxi available to the beaches which are typically the other side of the island. Ships very seldom dock near to beaches as they need a good depth of water. I like to see the craft first to know what it is like. If you end up using a road taxi negotiate a good price in US dollars, have loads of small bills, 1,5, and 10 and ask for return fare but do not pay both ways up front. Water taxis normally charge return up front and give you a lanyard or other trinket as your return ticket and do regular shuttling of passengers for return trip.

 

Regards John