Who do you travel with?

[gypsymom3]

I agree with most of the other's advice in go alone and meet others on the ship. If your friends decide to go great (maybe!LOL), but you should have a great time together without them for sure. On my 3 cruises (have an 8 day Eastern Car. coming up too so almost 4!) it's just DH and myself. We don't even invite the kids:eek:!! And we have such a great time together.

Either way I'm sure you'll have a great cruise...I can't imagine having a bad one.

[MamaParrotHead]

Always with atleast one other couple, this next cruise bringing our kids and about 40 other people, LOL. A word of caution, though...we invited a couple we didn't know real well last time, neither who had cruised before, and all they did was complain the entire time while we were gone AND after we got home to all the friends we had in common. It was really annoying and kind of made our casual relationship permanently awkward.

 

If it was a choice between the two of us, or bringing along another couple who could be potential downers (as most people who don't opt to go on cruises of their free will are), I'd totally go just the two of us.

 

Good luck!

[stargate fan]

I agree with most of the other's advice in go alone and meet others on the ship. If your friends decide to go great (maybe!LOL), but you should have a great time together without them for sure. On my 3 cruises (have an 8 day Eastern Car. coming up too so almost 4!) it's just DH and myself. We don't even invite the kids:eek:!! And we have such a great time together.

Either way I'm sure you'll have a great cruise...I can't imagine having a bad one.

 

We didn't invite our boys on this cruise either. They are so spoiled and love cruising so much, they think we are actually going to surprise them and bring them along. That is one reason we booked our cruise for when they are both in college. :p We are looking forward to meeting new people and having a great time alone. We are new to the "empty nest" so we are enjoying getting to know each other all over again as adults and spouses, and not as parents.

[TortieGal]

Three cruises have been with my Mom and one with a friend that I've traveled with before. Two of my upcoming ones will be with a friend I have not traveled with previously and the other will be my mom again.

 

I have yet to cruise solo but am always looking for deal that I can't pass up! I do enjoy traveling solo...I can set my own schedule, don't have to worry about someone else. I've had this discussion with others before and there are some friends that you may love to death but traveling with them is a different story. One of my college friends and I stopped talking for a couple of years after a trip to Florida.

 

Hopefully next month's cruise with my friend goes well since we are scheduled to sail again next April! But, I think we are both of the mindset that we don't need to be together 24/7 and if there is something she wants to do and I don't and vice versa, we're ok going off on our own.

[Wennfred]

We now lug my Mother-in-Law Cathy around with us because she rocks and alot of fun to be with.

 

 

 

Fred

[Poohjo]

Me and my Dh normally cruise alone and that is what we prefer. We have sailed with my sister and her husband, but our experience sailing with others is that it is more time consuming because you have to make sure that everyone wants to do the same things and we prefer just to do what we want, when we want and not really have set plans. We are traveling this summer for the first time with our 15 year old daughter on a cruise (we normally take family vacations in the summer with our children to Washington DC or Tennessee). Taking her on a cruise will be a totally different experience for us.

[Warm Breezes]

Our first 2 cruises were with the kids and another family with kids the same age. Our 3rd cruise was with the kids and my DM and 2 DB. Our 4th and 5th cruises were just us and the kids. We keep trying to work something out with our friends but something always comes up and we end going with just our immediate family. We have a blast anyways. We are trying to plan a 6th cruise and it looks like its just us again.

[WooWooGirl]

My first cruise was my and hubby..we just wanted to test the waters...I fell in love with cruising, he thought it was alright...went on a 3 night to the Bahamas.

 

My second cruise was hubby, me, and both kids (6 & 7)...my kids loved it, again hubby thought it was alright but preferred not taking the kids...went back to the Bahamas on a 4 night cruise.

 

My third cruise was me and my dd, 8 at the time...her and I had a good time, we went to Grand Cayman and Ocho Rios...she loves Camp Carnival and stayed there almost the entire time they were open so I had time for me. I also had signed up on the meet & mingle for my cruise and met some of the people onboard and was seated with them at dinner...had a good time! This was a 5 night cruise.

 

My fourth cruise was me, hubby, and the kids, now 8 & 9, and my mom who sailed on her first cruise. We went to Grand Cayman and Ocho Rios (again for me and my daughter). This was a 5 night cruise and we had a decent time.

 

My fifth cruise, just got back, was just ME, and I had a GREAT time!!! I went to Cozumel and Progresso. I sailed with my friend that I met from the meet & mingle on my third cruise. Her and I had kept in touch and so we decided to sail together again. We joined the meet & mingle for this cruise and got together with the group before and during the cruise and had so much fun I hated to come home. :(

 

Soo...I can sail with just about anyone..lol..I think I could go alone actually and still have fun! I had the most fun on my last cruise where I went alone and was with friends. I had a lot of fun with my daughter too and will prob sail again with her in the next year or so unless my new 'naughty' friends sail, then I will go with them. I will never stop cruising, it is my new OBSESSION!!! LONG LIVE CRUISING!!!

 

I say if you cruise with someone, make sure it is someone that won't get upset if you want to do something different. You do not have to spend all the time together...:)

[cruisingirl75]

on our first cruise we cruised with another couple (friends), it was also their first cruise. It was fun trying something new together. At first we spent a lot of time with them, but after awhile, my DH and I split away from to enjoy the cruise by ourselves. We only met up with them during meals, shows, and excursions. This year we are sailing by ourselves (unless DH's friend decides to join us). So it will be a new experience for us. My sister took her first cruise with just her DH and she thought it would be more fun cruising with other people. Ah, well, everyone has different ideas on vacationing. The only good thing about traveling without other people is meeting lots of other people. I am a social butterfly and will talk to anyone who is willing.

[KULPN]

On our first cruise we went with family members in 4 cabins. We had a wonderful time even though some were a little older than us (Mom, aunts, uncle)

2nd time we went alone & loved it....it was great to not have to meet somewhere at a designated time.

3rd time we went with neighbors....awful....they were so cheap & we went along on cheap excursions that we didn't care for.

4th time went with in-laws (the moaners) It was the pitts. Either they woke us up in the morning or we woke them up...totally off the whole cruise.

Next cruise we are going ALONE!!!! Now, that's relaxing.

[NascarMommy]

We travel with our children (7 and 4) most of the time. We have good friends we have learned are the perfect traveling partners for us. We have taken several short weekend trips with them and one cruise. We are planning our second cruise with them now.

[NascarMommy]

I should have added that in 2001 we went with 5 couples on a cruise. I am the travel planner and love to plan or our family and close friends that travel with us. But, 9 faces looking at me for what to do next on a cruise ship was not very relaxing. Never again will I go with that many people.

[RoadTripFanatic]

Our first 4 cruises I cruised w/ DH (No kids at the time)

The rest of our cruises we have always cruised w/ DD.

We've cruised twice with my parents.

We've cruised once w/ my parents and my brother and his wife.

We've cruised once with my in-laws, bil&Sil & bil &Gf.

We did a Hawaiian cruise w/MIL. MIL and DD shared a room. They had a blast.

Our last cruise was with another family. We had a great time.

[RAVI360]

i found cruising in 2000 on the imagination my BF and I ( for all the edit:confused:)

so i took my DS and 1 friend for his graduation present , since then until 2008 we was traveling with 15 pp strong .....then in 2008 nobody had any money to travel....this year we have only 5......hope fully it will gwt better we had so much fun.........:p

[ellenmb]

We went with my DH family on our first cruise. It was awful, they hated it, couldn't find anything positive and complained the whole time. We loved it, so we decided to bring another couple the next time. They were iffy about going and I was so worried the whole time. Trying to plan everything that they wanted to do. If something didn't go right I felt like it was my fault. lol. So needless to day this upcoming cruise it's just by DH and I :D

 

I'm sure whoever you go with it will be a blast!

you are going to be soooo happy....have a great time!!!

[Tanbella]

well i will be going on my first cruise 01/30/2010. It will be me(22) my dbf(24), my sister (37), my neice(15), my nephew(20), my other nephew(11 months)

[iamgolden]

I've cruised with 50 friends after a wedding, 150 contractors in the building trades, my husband and kids, and my sister and kids, all fun

[dsb9938]

There should be a Roll Call thread for your cruise on here somewhere.

 

Go there and start to make friends. Make plans to meet for drinks, dinner, etc.

 

Discuss activities and perhaps plan an excursion together.

 

For me, cruises are about meeting new people.

 

You don't HAVE to go with people, you can make new friends easily.

 

Dennis

[iancal]

I travel with 'She who must be obeyed"....only the two of us.

[Dori69@msn.com]

my husband and i go on a cruise every year for our anniversary the last week of May. We have gone one our own twice and with another couple twice. I like to rotate every year and be alone, but it is fun with another couple too. when alone you usually meet some great people on excursions, in the bars and at your assigned dining table.

[Grayce]

I have sailed with my sister and BIL, my parents, my children. Only once did I sail with only my DH. It was wonderful. We got a table for 2 in the dining room. We did things at our own pace. Slept in a lot. It was really relaxing.

[TravelingTrio]

I vacation with my best friends (2). We spent three weeks together last year including a cruise and we had a great time. So much so that we're doing it again this year. Trying to set up a tradition hehe.

 

We also go on little trips throughout the year and never has there been a problem. I think it works because we don't expect to do things together at all times. During the cruise, I think we went our seperate ways quite a few times. They even did an excursion while I stayed on the ship relaxing. Make sure you establish that you'll do some things together but that want some alone time from the beginning. If they're having a miserable time, oh well!

[LRene]

In 20 cruises, we've cruised with most everyone we know. LOL :D Now, we cruise a lot with people we met on Cruise Critic through our roll calls.

 

We have 5 on the books this year:

1. Just the two of us

2. Group cruise with a lot of CC friends and their friends and our ds and his g/f

3. Group cruise with a different set of friends we met on CC years ago

4. Family cruise - dad, sisters, DIL, granddaughters - the whole freaking bunch of us plus some friends

5. Another couple we met on CC and cruised with last year and some people we feel like we already know from CC

 

Go...by yourselves....meet people. They could end up being the people you cruise with for the next several years! :)

[mudpievelour]

We cruise with our best friends, but we have a rule. We don't have to do everything together, except we will have dinner together. This gives us a chance to touch base every day even if we have been going opposite directions and talk about what we would like to do tomorrow. Sometimes we do things together and sometimes not, but we always have fun when we are together, because we want to be. It's worked for us through 3 cruises now.

[deeolasingh]

I have never traveled with just me and DH we have always cruised with at least another couple... my last cruise it was 13 of us and it was a blast... during the day everyone did thier own thing and if we were going to the main dinning room (which we only made it 2 cause of the freestyle dinning thing) we had dinner together other than that we hooked up at night for the shows and parties... Its just more fun with more people... and the key thing I have notice is not to book all on the cabins on the same floor..