What was your first cruise?

[UT-Volsfan]

Our first cruise was on the Big Red Boat in Nov. 1999. A very enjoyable cruise.

 

The first cruise my parents took was a last minute cruise on the Diamond Princess to Alaska in June 2004. We booked it two weeks before it sailed and my parents, wife, and our two boys all went together. My parents really enjoyed the cruise and the large family vacation. We also took advantage of having several family portraits made while on board (the first my parents had done in several years). We really appreciate the cruise and all of the great family pictures now because my dad passed away 8 months later unexpectedly.

[hydrodriver831]

Our first cruise was aboard the Stardancer (Sundance Cruise Lines(No longer exists) from L.A. to the Mexican Riviera. Since this was our first ever cruise we were unsure about everything. But, everything worked out great. The thing we were most nervous about was dining. What if we did not get along with our table mates....The first meal was a blast, absolutely no problem. In fact we were having so much fun, 2 cruisers from another table asked if they could join us..Great time!! Have not done a lot of cruising, but have really enjoyed every one of them.

[rumpelstiltskin]

March 2000 aboard RCCL Nordic Empress roundtrip San Juan.

 

We had an inside cabin. Cozy, but have graduated to balcony or mini suites.:D

 

Will sail on PCL for the first time later this month.

North to Alaska!

[Tak8]

My first cruise was on the Dolphin SeaBreeze during the summer of '89. I was in awe of having a window. Now I can't imagine not having a balcony. 10 cruises later, I am still impressed with the Dolphin cruise line experience.

[stepmor99]

Our 1st cruise was in Dec 2000 on Enchantment of the Seas (7 day, Western Caribbean) with 4 of our adult kids and two of their friends. DH and I said - NEVER AGAIN!

 

We soon came to realize that it wasn't the cruise that was unpleasant, it was cruising with the the kids! lol

 

12 cruises later,...... our next one is the Transatlantic on the Carnival Dream (10/27) and another one booked on the Golden, 2/14/2010.

 

Two a year until we can no longer cruise due to old age. It is our guilty pleasure - we are certainly hooked!

[davekathy]

Our first Cruise was January 1991. 7 Night Hawaii Cruise on the SS Constitution.

[AlaskaNewbie]

Our first cruise was our honeymoon aboard the SS Norway in 1982.

Our second cruise was 25 years later on the Sun Princess to Alaska.

Now we are going to Canada and New England and I can't wait!

[Crzn-Life]

Our 1st cruise was in 1988 on Commodore's Caribe. The entertainment was Gary Puckett and the Union Gap. Marla Fant was the Cruise Director. What a wonderful time we had.

 

We cruised 2x more on the Caribe then on the Sky Princess and RCCL's Sun Viking.

 

We then quit cruising for a few years and concentrated on our sailboat. Then in 2000 we decided that sailing our own boat was too much work so we went back to cruise ships. We started with the new and beautiful Sea Princess and since then have made over 60 cruises and have more to go this year and 6 booked so far for 2010. Guess the 2nd time around we really got hooked!!

[toeknee]

Our first cruise was aboard the Odessa sailing into the Caribbean out of New Orleans with an overnight in Havana Cuba. This was in 79 or 80 and due to some political situation, we had 78 passengers aboard a ship that held 500. It was absolutely wonderful and we've been cruising regularly ever since.

 

Our next cruise was aboard Sitmar's Fairwind, we became regulars with Sitmar until Princess purchased them in 1988. since then we have enjoyed Princess- HAL-and Celebrity, cruising to every continent except Antarctica, (so far)

 

Cruising has undergone many changes in 30 years but nothing stays the same, There's nothing better at making disembarkation more bearable for us, than knowing that we already have the next cruise booked. :D

[foxeysandy]

My first cruise was on the SS Florida in 1966 with my parents and older sister, the Alabama Ghost, who started this thread. My father found a picture from this cruise last year and we were able to determine the date because I recognized the hideous outfit I had made in my Home Economics class. Amazing, the trivial things we tend to remember!

 

After many cruises with family and friends, we will celebrate the Alabama Ghost's 60th birthday this October on the Crown Princess. Time flies when you're having fun!

[jackdiamond]

Our first cruise was on the Century in a sky suite in 1998, departing from Ft. Lauderdale. We have cruised about 25 times since, mostly out of Ft. Lauderdale.

[definitelydeb]

My first cruise was on the SS Azure Seas. It was a short 3 day jobber... out of San Pedro, our only stop was Ensenada. I traveled in a group of 11; we were all in our mid - 20s and out to have a good time. My cabin was way down in the bowels of the ship - in fact we could hear the disco music in the bar just upstairs. So, between the music, and the partying, and the sounds of things hitting the side of the ship (I swear we were under sea level!), I got very little sleep.

 

It was fantastic! And I have been cruising ever since.

[SJ Cruisers]

Our first cruise was on the NCL Skyward in October 1986 when my wife and I were both single. We did a long distance relationship, married in 1989 and this year we celebrate out 20th anniversary.

[Zubsin]

Sapphire Princess 7 day one way from Vancouver to Whittier July 2006. I still think the Sapphire is the prettiest! dlz

[ShipShapeinFL]

Ruby Princess 3/09. Wonderful cruise and first experience.

[luv2cruz64]

My first was april-i think- 2004. It was a 7 night on the Dawn Princess out of SJ w/ Barbados, Tortola, St Thomas St Martin and St Lucia as ports of call, Since it was my first I had nothing to compare it to but it was fantastic and im still looking to replicate it.

[toothmaker]

Our first cruise was to the Eastern Caribbean in May 2006. I have to admit it took an executive request from my dear wife. I consented and have two more cruises under our water wings ( Alaska and Mexican Riveria).:):) I had thought that cruising would be too expensive...wrong!

Cruising is the only way to go. Where else can you go sailing to new venues, eat to your hearts delight, have entertainment and meet lots of wonderful new people all in one setting? We talk up the cruise experience to everyone who will listen. Life is too short--go out and have fun.

 

David

[Nunu]

Ours was a late August '04 Eastern Caribbean cruise on the CB that went from a 7 day to a 9 day Western including 48hrs circling Cuba until we could get back into Ft. Lauderdale. We had a blast.

[ssolomon56]

Our first cruise was a ten-day on the Regal Princess, May 2000. We cruised out of Honalulu to five Hawaiian ports of call...and went on to Vancouver to disembark. After that 1st cruise we were hooked...and will be taking our 33rd on the CB in two weeks!

[dfields1814]

My first cruise (if you want to call it that) was in 1971 with a friend of mine. We went from Yokahama, Japan to Nakhodka, Siberia. We were on our way to board the TransSiberian Railroad to Moscow and Leningrad (St Petersburg). I remember seeing laterns in the Sea of Japan at night I guess they were put there by fisherman. The food was terrible. You were pretty much told what to do. When we arrived at the port we were confined to our cabin until escourted off the ship by an armed guard. We were taken to this prison like compound with watchtowers (armed) and kept there for a short time until a bus took us to the train station under armed guard. The best thing about the cruise for us was that there were a lot of Australian and Japanese girls on board. (My friend and I were just 22 and in heaven in that aspect of the cruise and train ride!!) In those days the transSiberian RR was a cheap way to get to Europe - from Australia and Japan. Not anymore. I guess now it is a major, expensive, tourist attraction. Back then it wasn't.

 

When we left the Soviet Union we took the second part of our first cruising experience. We went from Odessa to Istanbul. On that cruise we were able to drink soda. We were in the Soviet Union for 30 days and no soda was sold there back then. My friend and I were in the bar drinking soda when this man come up and asked us if we would keep his daughter and niece company. They were board and we were the only young English speaking guys on board. And they were very, very beautiful!!!! Of course we said yes!!! It turns out this man was the owner of a Greek shipping line - worth zillions of dollars. (Not Ari) He took his daughter to the Soviet Union because she was getting leftist ideas from her university in England. It did the trick. Needless to say we had a great time with the girls and their family on the cruise and in Istanbul. We kept in touch with the daughter for years. My wife and I stayed with her in her London Mayfair apartment. We have since lost touch. How sad.

 

Not counting the Russian cruise, my wife and I had our first cruise after I retired last year We were on the Star to Mexico out of San Francisco for 10 days.. It was good but not as exciting as the Russian cruise!!

[TuxedoMan]

DW forced me into the RCI Enchantment of the Seas 1998 7 days Caribbean (before it was overhauled and made longer). I remember I was a royal grump (DW was so very gracious about it though) Took me 5 years of begging to get her to go again, because of the tough memories of her grumpy hubby. (We think one of the reasons I was grumpy was the motion sickness, which I (tough guy) denied, until cruise was almost over, and finally agreed to take these little pink pills (Bonine) offered for free from the med center.) Turned my last day or two around, but damage was done to DW's vacation.

Finally went again, and have gone 2x a year since.

[unboringuy]

Carnival Fantasy in the '80s. A classic trans-atlantic sailing vessel. The ship was old and tired, but we loved it. Now, some 40 cruises later, we still love cruising!

[DGSFlorida]

My first cruise was in 1968 on the old Greek Line's Olympia, NYC R/T to the Bahamas.

 

Follow this link for an up-to-date photo of this ship last month at the ship breakers in Alang, India.

 

http://cruiseind.wordpress.com/2009/08/04/regal-empress-confirmed-in-alang/

 

We cruised this ship 3 times in 1985, 1989, and 1991 as Commodore Line's MS Caribe. In fact, our last child came around exactly 9 months after the 1985 cruise!

[janetz]

2002 the Celebrity Century from FLL with my DH and DD, before it was redone. We thought the ship was "huge" when we saw it. I was so excited I was almost sick. The taxi driver had a good laugh. First, always the best. :D

[janetz]

I wish the Century did 7+ sailings in the Carribean. We would go again.