Last Night of Cruise Traditions

[weltek]

I have had a few memorable last nights in the bar, but mostly there's nothing "special" that makes the last night more palatable. Anything special you do to close out your cruise?

[rkacruiser]

Before I retire for the night, I find as secluded of a spot, along a rail, overlooking the ocean as I can find.  (Having a veranda stateroom helps greatly to achieve that goal, but, for many years, I did not have such a stateroom.)  A clear night sky adds to my experience.

 

I thank God for the opportunity to once again have a travel experience.  I thank God for a Mother (who once was able to sail with me) who introduced my Brother and me to a wider world than our home town.  I thank God for having the financial resources to be able to have experienced that cruise (and others).  I pray that more such journeys will be ahead of me.  

[310Loves2Cruise]

On 2/7/2022 at 7:53 PM, rkacruiser said:

Before I retire for the night, I find as secluded of a spot, along a rail, overlooking the ocean as I can find.  (Having a veranda stateroom helps greatly to achieve that goal, but, for many years, I did not have such a stateroom.)  A clear night sky adds to my experience.

 

I thank God for the opportunity to once again have a travel experience.  I thank God for a Mother (who once was able to sail with me) who introduced my Brother and me to a wider world than our home town.  I thank God for having the financial resources to be able to have experienced that cruise (and others).  I pray that more such journeys will be ahead of me.  

 

[310Loves2Cruise]

Such a beautiful post, and marvelous idea to have gratitude well up in body and soul! Thank you!

[honeychile]

I love the post above about taking time to thank God for another great adventure.  My last night ritual is a little more prosaic.  Okay, a lot more.  I find the self-serve laundry (if there is one on the ship) and do our laundry so I go home with clean clothes. We pack light, so it's usually just 2 loads. I bring my own detergent (pods) and dryer sheets, and those little sample fragrance bead packs.  I usually can't sleep well that last night anyway, and the humdrum, auto-pilot chore gives me time to think over the week, smile about things that happened, and do something useful as I wind down. I've got a cruise coming up soon. This time between loads I'm going to take advice from rkacruiser as part of my last-night-ritual.

[LandlockedCruiser01]

My last-night traditions usually involve my new cruise friends.  Whether it's hanging out in the hot tub until the crew kicks us out, tearing up the dance floor until the ugly lights come on, or relaxing on the deck until we're almost falling asleep, we all enjoy the last blast of each other's company.  Then we exchange contact information, and retire to our respective cabins.  After which, I fall into a semi-restful sleep, having 5 hours at most until the bow thrusters wake me up.  (I usually book cheap forward cabins, and those things are LOUD.)

Edited April 1, 2022 by LandlockedCruiser01

[rkacruiser]

On 3/31/2022 at 10:39 PM, LandlockedCruiser01 said:

Then we exchange contact information,

 

For those with whom one becomes "cruise buddies" during the cruise, this is so important.  Thankfully, for many of these "cruise buddies" that I had, they have become good friends.  Some of whom I have sailed with again.  Even if I have not sailed with them again, most continue to do so and it is fun to exchange our experiences on different cruises.