Your very first time

[Sky Sweet]

When you took your first cruise, what aspect of it was different than you expected it to be?

[lionheart]

The food...so much food, and choices. Plus I was surprised to see so much food taken but not eaten. I always grew up under the mantra of cleaning your plate....

 

Plus how relaxing the water can be. Just watching the water and waves and the (usually) gentle rocking to assist in my sleeping...

 

Kurt

[Joanne G.]

Dinner with strangers. I thought the experience would be awkward, uncomfortable, maybe even unpleasant. Turned out to be one of the many delightful surprises of our first cruise. We said goodbye to those "strangers" with hugs and stayed in touch long after the cruise.

[lionheart]

Dinner with strangers. I thought the experience would be awkward, uncomfortable, maybe even unpleasant. Turned out to be one of the many delightful surprises of our first cruise. We said goodbye to those "strangers" with hugs and stayed in touch long after the cruise.

 

Good observation...Awkward at first then the conversation usually flowed while the time slipped quickly away...

[CaliforniaDreamin]

Seemed like I could never do everything I wanted to do. The main things I would do, the secondary ones sometimes not. Time spent eating had something to do with this.

[tg_lindo]

Well, this was 26 years ago and I was a kid, but after watching the Love Boat I was surprised how small the cabin was. In hindsight, it WAS small by today's standards. I was also not expecting such an international staff.

[tserface]

I remember thinking about how incredibly large the ship was (Viking Serenade). Now I think back on that ship and it looks like a tugboat compared with the ones we have now. I also remember how unimpressed I was with Ensenada. We woke up and looked out the window and saw a bunch of guys in overalls smoking hand rolled cigarettes standing by a primer red pick-up right outside our window on the dock. There was what looked like a junkyard off in the distance, but we couldn't see anything else (we were on the wrong side of the ship) I wondered what we were going to do with the other 23 pictures on the role.

 

Fortunately, we have since taken several other cruises and have had wonderful times. It's easily the best vacation ever.

 

Tom

[flashdog_1]

I knew that the ship was the length of 3 football fields, but it didn't feel that long, even walking from the aft eating area to the theater.

 

I did not realize that the buffet serving sections were 4 identical ones, and spent my first time there wandering. My husband had items on his plate that I hadn't noticed, and the same happened when I took my daughter the next year!

 

I did not know that the buffet area would have "sections" with different decor to help you find your table again if you got up to get another drink etc. The sectioning made it feel smaller, cozier.

 

Now that I know my way around Celebrity ships, I'll have the newbie feeling again next week when we go on our first HAL cruise.

[bauerdogs]

First Cruise---1966-On the Cunard Franconia, to Bermuda for 7 days. We had the bottom floor, about 40 of us . Some school booked a group and ask if we wanted to go. The room only had bunk beds and a sink in it. The toilets and showers were at the back of the ship on your floor.( Just like dorms at collage ) But, we were young so what did we care. Now get this--The cost PP $207.00 each and included all taxes :) Taking our 17th cruise in Sept / 2006--it's come a long ways since 1966--LOL Ron

[superjerryw]

I couldn't believe the quantity of food that was available. I could literally eat non-stop from the moment I woke up until the momemt I went to bed.

[tom_uk]

I think the size of the ship. We were actually on quite a medium-sized ship, MSC's Sinfonia, but it was far far bigger than any ferry or anything else we had ever travelled on. And at some level, although you know that ships and planes are completely different, you remember that moment when you walk into a jet which from the outside looks so big yet on the inside is so small and cramped. So just the sheer amount of space and the size of the ship was the biggest surprise.

[Danno]

The level of service and the dream world that was created....the real world seemed SOOOO far away, minimal news, no internet, no cell phones...an oasis.

[motherchic]

...how you could be with a huge group of people or all by yourself. Your choice. I never felt crowded.

All the food

The "dream-like " experience of the entire cruise

Nadine

[theduffys]

The most pleasant surprise was the gentle rocking that had me sleeping better than I had in years.:)

The most hoped for expectation, that was met, was the romance enjoyed by DH and I.;)

The worst surprise was the guy at our table who wore "plumbers B--t" pants and a dirty shirt to dinner every night.:eek:

The next expectation, that was met, was the delightful couple at our table that we still keep in touch with.:)

[Host Anne]

:) For us it was the size of the ship, too. I can still remember walking up to her (Monarch of the Seas in 92) and gawking at her and wondering how on earth did she stay afloat? We laugh now when we think back to how overwhelmed we were at the time when we see the megaships of today. We still perfer ships the size of Monarch. Hope they don't become a thing of the past.

 

Great thread by the way! Great memories are one of the best things about cruising!

[Fredr]

hello,

 

Our first cruise in 1976 was on the Island Princess. I'll never forget walking out on deck that first morning at sea and seeing the sun, the blue sky, and the ocean. To me it is the aesthetics of cruising that you can't duplicate when you go on a land based vacation. And to me the aesthetics are still the most important part of cruising even after 14 cruises and two paid for, for 2006.

 

Fred

[idssms]

It was an old ship with tiny showers with cloth shower curtains and the first time the curtain (via static electricty) stuck to me when I was wet and showering was a shocker,, it wasnt a real clean curtain and the thought of it on my body sickened me.

 

Luckily the showers have gotten larger with the newer ships and this hasnt happened to me in a long time.

 

Don

[dmarch@islc.net]

First Cruise---1966-On the Cunard Franconia, to Bermuda for 7 days. We had the bottom floor, about 40 of us . Some school booked a group and ask if we wanted to go. The room only had bunk beds and a sink in it. The toilets and showers were at the back of the ship on your floor.( Just like dorms at collage ) But, we were young so what did we care. Now get this--The cost PP $207.00 each and included all taxes :) Taking our 17th cruise in Sept / 2006--it's come a long ways since 1966--LOL Ron

I was very, very young at the time and don't remember everything. I don't remember the toilets not being in the room. All I really remember were the teak deck chairs, the waiters (mostly Greek, I think) and the kid's club where I won the guess how many sticks are in this jar contest. LOL Do you have any pictures from that cruise? Would love to see them dmarch0666@charter.net

[Blue46]

The relaxation we felt the whole cruise. It was the first real vacation we had ever taken. :p

[Puffinater]

When you took your first cruise, what aspect of it was different than you expected it to be?

 

I kept looking on the Lido deck for Capt. Stubing, Gopher, Issac and Julie but could never find them. A bit of a disappointment for me.

[ger_77]

I was amazed at how seasick I could be, and how quickly Bonine fixed me up - within 20 minutes, I was up and out of our cabin and never looked back.

 

Smooth Sailing! :) :) :)

[Rebel]

Our first cruise was 3 years ago. We were all suprised by the dining experience. Not just the wonderful variety of terrific food and that you could have anything you wanted (even one of everything on the menu!). I was most suprised by how much we all enjoyed it!

 

Before the cruise I laid down the law with my family: all family members WILL have dinner in the dining room at least once and on a formal night. And we'd have a family portrait taken. I was sure I'd have to drag them kicking and screaming all the way to the dining room.

 

We didn't eat in the dining room on the first night as we were all just too tired. The 2nd night was the first formal night. I decided this night would be the one we'd all have dinner in the dining room and get it out the way. Then everyone could do whatever they wanted during dinnertime the rest of the week.

 

Imagine my suprise when I found I couldn't keep my family out of the dining room the rest of the cruise!!! My kids would remind ME that it time to go get dressed for dinner!

[newmexicoNita]

Golly it was over 20 years ago and the ship was part of a small fleet, the line is kaput now: The two things that stick out in my mind: 1-the unbeleivable service and 2-that anything could be so much fun!!! The one thing that I will never forget (negative for sure) we had taken my MIL with us as well as oud DD and SIL. Sharing a cabin with MIl was an experience but we survived; the part I barely survived was a bus trip to the rain forest in San Juan with her. Prior to sailing it was decided DH would take MIL on a tour of some sort and give me a bit of a break along the way: well, in those days you didn't book your tours until you listened to the port talks the second day of sailing, then you stood in line at the pursers and booked. We listened, DH and SIL got in line: when everything was booked and paid for, DH showed me the tour tickets: He, DD and SIL were going on a city tour and to the Bacardi factory: MIL and I were going to the rain forest. I can't believe our marriage lasted past that day, much less for all these years: close to 48. NMNita

[newmexicoNita]

Golly it was over 20 years ago and the ship was part of a small fleet, the line is kaput now: The two things that stick out in my mind: 1-the unbeleivable service and 2-that anything could be so much fun!!! The one thing that I will never forget (negative for sure) we had taken my MIL with us as well as oud DD and SIL. Sharing a cabin with MIl was an experience but we survived; the part I barely survived was a bus trip to the rain forest in San Juan with her. Prior to sailing it was decided DH would take MIL on a tour of some sort and give me a bit of a break along the way: well, in those days you didn't book your tours until you listened to the port talks the second day of sailing, then you stood in line at the pursers and booked. We listened, DH and SIL got in line: when everything was booked and paid for, DH showed me the tour tickets: He, DD and SIL were going on a city tour and to the Bacardi factory: MIL and I were going to the rain forest. I can't believe our marriage lasted past that day, much less for all these years: close to 48. NMNita

[JimnKaren]

First cruise was out of San Juan on the NCL Skyward in the late 1980s. First port of call was Barbados after a full day at sea. Wow! I was hooked from the minute we sailed out of San Juan harbor that first evening. What a sight! We had a great table of 10, including 2 of the guest perfomers (I don't believe that is allowed anymore). It took a full two hours every night! Our cabin was the size of a postage stamp. But, I have done it again, and again, and again!

 

Jim