How long could you hold the surprise?

[LMaxwell]

I have booked a cruise for November to take my mom on for her birthday. I booked it a few months ago and my dad knows, but she doesn't. How long would you be able to hold the surprise? I plan on buying insurance at final payment time but seeing if I can make it to about one week out before telling her.

[CirrusPilot]

I have booked a cruise for November to take my mom on for her birthday. I booked it a few months ago and my dad knows, but she doesn't. How long would you be able to hold the surprise? I plan on buying insurance at final payment time but seeing if I can make it to about one week out before telling her.

 

 

 

I once actually held the secret all the way to the port.

It was just a three day cruise so it wasn’t terribly difficult to pack a bag for her. Lol

I had put her bag in the trunk the night before.

The port is in long beach and there are a lot of places to do stuff so she didn’t know what was up until we got in line for the check in.

Rofl.

 

 

 

 

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[sprint180]

Until we get to ship

 

 

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[Drose716]

I made it 18 days which is all I needed to. I booked a cruise on 12/7/15 planning to reveal to my kids Christmas morning that Santa was sending us on a cruise late January. Their first.

 

It was all I could do to make it those 18 days! The reaction & the video I got from them Christmas morning was beyond worth any wait! Stick it out however long- trust me!

[momof4girls]

Considering the May cruise next year is a surprise for my husband, I’ll need to keep it a secret for almost a year. Our actual anniversary is in March, so I’ll tell him then (so he can take the time off of work).

 

That’s a super sweet thing to do for your mom, btw! Does she like surprises? I love to give them but not so much a fan of receiving them!

[naxer]

Until the next time I see or communicate with the person I'm surprising.

[Jandex]

Kept cruise from my 9 year old son a surprise for 12 months until we got to the port. His reaction and the video we took were priceless!

 

 

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[summersigh]

I love surprises .... but .... if I was going to be surprised into going on a cruise I would prefer to know at least a week before so I could do my own packing. As above, a 3 day cruise is one thing but 5+ I want to plan my own "stuff" to pack.

 

Also, for me, the anticipation of the upcoming cruise is half the enjoyment. I'm not trying to convince anyone of when to "tell" but this is just a different take on the surprise side of it.:)

[klfrodo]

4 hours if I was lucky

[serene56]

I have kept a secret 3 times for over a year each time

 

But mine was for a kid-- not a mom

 

I would not wait til you get on the cruise to tell her

I would tell her at final payment so she can buy new stuff and be super excited for those 75 days

 

Allow her to prepare herself. (I would not tell her before that time)

[GAPaige]

We booked a graduation cruise for my daughter last September. She graduates on the 24th (when we will tell her about it) and we leave the 26th. She has NO idea and my other two daughters are so excited to tell her!!!

Edited May 14, 2018 by GAPaige

[Djptcp]

I have kept birthday surprise cruises from DH up until his birthday if the cruises were a few days afterwards. If on his actual birthday, I told him a few days before. I have another one booked for Jan. for his birthday surprise again and the cruise leaves 3 days later, so I'll tell him on his birthday. I try not to do it too often so he won't always expect it, but next. Jan. will be two years in a row. I think he will be surprised to do it two years in a row though.

[AbbyGirl]

Mine surprise wasn't for a cruise but I'd booked a trip to Disney World for my son and I (DH couldn't go) and I didn't tell my DS until I picked him up at school to take him to the airport. He figured it out when I gave him a shirt with Mickey on it! I kept the secret from Feb until the end of April. Good thing he can't spell or pick up on little conversations between my DH and myself. :)

[LuckyStar]

I have kept a secret 3 times for over a year each time

 

But mine was for a kid-- not a mom

 

I would not wait til you get on the cruise to tell her

I would tell her at final payment so she can buy new stuff and be super excited for those 75 days

 

Allow her to prepare herself. (I would not tell her before that time)

 

This. The anticipation, buying new stuff and packing is half the fun to me.

[NoDayButToday]

For our 3rd wedding anniversary (the leather anniversary), I got my husband a leather passport cover, and then booked a Halloween cruise for the next year "so he could use the passport cover". I booked the cruise last February. Our anniversary is in June.

 

I lasted 2 weeks before he knew. I'm terrible at keeping secrets from him. He always knows when something is up and can usually get me to tell him. And then he's just too perfect of a person, because I finally added the booking to his account a couple months ago, and then I started getting "thank you for your payment emails"-he started making payments on his own gift, lol.

[lbosarge]

I was trying to keep our up coming cruise a secret from my wife but couldn't do it. We usually sail in an inside cabin but this time I got us a JR Suite. That is going to be a surprise for her. I hope I can hold out till September.

[poz222]

I would keep a secret for..... oops, I just told someone... so max 20 seconds

[A&Jfamily]

I have only done it as a gift, so it has varied as to how much time I have had to wait to disclose. I think the shortest was a Christmas gift of a short cruise which departed 3 weeks later. I had to tell him to mark his calendar as vacation - but he had no idea what it was.

[firemanbobswife]

I would tell her soon in case she has other plans or so she doesn’t make any and definitely before final payment. You never know, maybe she wouldn’t want to go for some reason and then you would be in penalty phase.

 

A surprise like that would never work for me. I am a control freak when it comes to vacation and I want to be the one to plan it all. Where and when I’m going, my exact cabin, etc. I am way too picky to leave all that stuff up to someone else and wouldn’t be happy if I was told I am going on a trip that I didn’t ask for. Guaranteed there would be something I would find to complain about lol.

 

I know it sounds terrible, but that’s me. I am the planner of the family. Hopefully your mom is easy going and will enjoy the surprise. So if anyone wants to gift me a vacation, just give me gift cards [emoji39]!

[camijo]

I think it would be easier to keep it secret from my kids/mom but I don't know about my husband.

[lgdick54]

Never understood the surprise cruise thing. Part of the fun is the planning and anticipation, I would not be happy to be denied that element of the trip.

 

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[E@syPe@zy]

I would tell her before final payment. Let her be part of the planning. And give her time to shop for her upcoming adventure.

I wouldn't be very happy if someone sprung a trip on me last minute. Sorry, but I want time to get a fresh haircut, nails done, bills paid, and time to research.

Plus she may have something planned for herself during that time. Years ago, I decided to plan my own birthday celebrations. I don't like cheesy parties....I like to travel, so I usually plan a cruise for my birthday and I am never disappointed.