I Suggest You Try Cruising

A cruise is my all time favorite vacation. If there is one thing I love to do above all other things it is nothing. I love having time when I don't have to plan, I don't have to work, and I don't have to figure out what to do next. A cruise provides me with more nothing time that any other vacation. I'm not saying that there is nothing to do on a cruise, quite the contrary I can assure you. It's that what there is to do is right in front of you or just a deck or two away. There is no figuring out how much it's going to cost or how much traffic will have to be dealt with to get there.

I have been on eleven cruises and I've never had a bad one. The toughest time in your entire vacation will be at home making sure you have your passports and filling out all of the pre-boarding information online. If all of your information is in the system the actual embarkation process at the pier is quite smooth considering the number a people that are being processed.

Once you're onboard you are in the lap of luxury. It doesn't matter if you have the smallest inside cabin or the top of the line suite you're treated like royalty. There is food available at all times. The ships have several choices when it comes to dining. The cafeteria always has something available. The food ranges from hand carved roast beef to burgers, hot dogs, and fries. Most ships have a separate pizza counter and some have specialty counters such as a deli or one for Asian food. You are free to make as many trips as you like to any or all available counters. To top it off most ships have ice cream machines available. You can go in for a quick cone anytime of the day or night.

There is more formal dining in the ship's dining area. The dining area is equivalent to a fine restaurant in any city in the world. The menu has a variety of choices for any taste and, once again, there is no limit on quantity. There are few places in the world where a person would get seconds and thirds on lobster tail. I had to do it just to say I did.

You may also choose to dine in your room. There is a full menu of options for in room dining and the staff brings it with smile. Many ships also have a specialty dining area if you want an up scale experience for an occasion. This costs extra and I've never seen that it could be that much better than the menu in the dining room.

I should make a note that alcohol and soft drinks do cost extra and if you're a heavy drinker you can run up a huge bill for booze.

Considering how much time I've spent on food, it's not hard to determine that I like to eat, but there is a lot more to a cruise ship than eating. Every ship has a theater and each night high quality singers, dancers, acrobats, and comedians put on shows worthy of Los Vegas. On the same deck you usually find the casino; I normally make a modest donation to that place on every cruise. Close by you will find the dance clubs, the piano bar, and the karaoke bar, and these are only the beginning. On deck there is normally a big dance party going on in the evening and, if you wander up to the highest deck at night you will find quiet and the beauty of the open sea and the star lit sky.

I have just scratched the surface here. I haven't gotten into the daytime activities or the shore excursions, but this article will get too long and I want to address some of the issues people have with cruising.

The Cost

The cost of a cruise is actually quite reasonable when you consider what you're getting. You get a room like no other. There aren't many rooms that go with you from place to place. Unlike a land tour, you unpack and pack once during your vacation. You have all of your meals included. Figure in how much it would cost to dine on lobster tail and fillet minion every night and have your kids have ice cream anytime they want; what would that cost? How about doing fun stuff; what does that cost? What do tickets to a Los Vegas level show go for these days? How about a piano bar? As long as you can drink juice or punch it will cost you zero on a cruise ship. If you do the math I believe you'll find a cruise to be a pretty good deal.

People Get Sick

This is a common fear. If you haven't been on a ship before it is wise to wear a sea sickness patch or take some pills. It is also wise to choose the right cruise at the right time of the year. I would not advise I first time cruiser to choose a cruise that takes them near the east coast of Mexico in the summer. The constant high humidity in that area makes storms very likely and the waves choppy. Other times of the year are fine but the summer may take some of the pleasure out of your trip. The southern Caribbean is your best for smooth sailing in the summer. It is out of the hurricane area and rarely has storms. Islands like Aruba are actually desert islands.

How about the stories of sickness spread on a cruise ship? Yes it has happened but I believe that you more likely to get sick on an airplane than a cruise ship. The cruise companies know how disastrous a large sickness is to their business and the take every precaution to avoid it. They supply antibacterial hand gels at most embarkation locations.

The Ship Could Be Attacked

I can assure you that the security on and around a cruise ship is very tight. There is a check point on the dock and only people with picture IDs get beyond that point. There is another checkpoint as you enter the ship. This is set up at every point of call without exception. Cruise ships all sail in the same shipping lane and there are several in the lane at one time. Each ship has a full suite of radar and communication equipment. An attacker will not sneak up on a cruise ship and the crew is trained to be ready for anything. I've always felt quite secure on the ship.

We Could Be Caught in a Big Storm

Each ship has its own systems for tracking storms in addition to communication with the authorities. If a storm develops the ship has the ability to change course and avoid it. The worst that would happen is that you may miss one of the scheduled ports of call. Some people saw the movie "The Poseidon Adventure" and wonder what would happen if a cruise ship was hit by a tidal wave in the open ocean. A tidal wave in the middle of the ocean isn't much bigger than any other wave; the shock wave doesn't build the water wave until it hits the continental shelf. In other words; there are no tidal waves in the open ocean.

A cruise is a great vacation and one I believe everyone should consider. It is as reasonable as going to a good beach and far more relaxing. The all inclusive idea is so good that land resorts have copied it. What they don't give you is a new island every day.