What to Expect on a Cruise: Visiting Cruise Ports

Table Of Content

• Research Cruise Line Drink Packages and Buy Before You Set Sail
• Ships can sail at over 100% occupancy
• Taking the Stairs Is Faster If Traveling Only a Few Decks
• Easy Ways to Get From the Airport to the Miami Cruise Port
• Do I have to get off the cruise ship when it calls on a port?
• Creepy? Larger ships will have a morgue

So if you have a stomachache in the middle of the night or a headache, you don’t want to have to wait… or pay tons of money. Cruise lines put out a calendar each day -- either a paper that's left in your cabin in the evening or electronically via their app (or both). This is your all-important guide on how to spend your day. Daily planners are loaded with onboard activities and things to keep you busy, from dance classes to trivia and theater shows. Book your boarding time online as soon as you’re able to before your cruise.

Research Cruise Line Drink Packages and Buy Before You Set Sail

Should you need to book an unexpected flight home during your cruise, it will be much easier to do so if you have a passport. To ensure a smooth boarding day, we issue baggage tags and instructions electronically ahead of your sailing through The Royal Guest eDocs. They are ship- specific and include your sailing date, stateroom and deck number. To expedite your check-in at the port, we recommend securing your luggage tags before you leave your house. If you have misplaced your tags, Royal Caribbean Porters at the pier have additional generic tags available for your convenience.

Ships can sail at over 100% occupancy

That’s not really a thing these days on cruises from the United States. Are you the type or person that likes to get on and off the ship first? With thousands of people trying to do the same thing, there are massive traffic jams for people waiting to either embark or disembark. If you can, look for a cabin that sits on the upper decks of the ship. No, it’s not because higher decks offer great views (although that’s a great perk!). When it comes to having a fling on the ship, your eyes might be tempted by the crew.

Taking the Stairs Is Faster If Traveling Only a Few Decks

Texas mom left young kids, 6 and 8, home alone for nearly a week while she vacationed on a cruise: cops - New York Post

Texas mom left young kids, 6 and 8, home alone for nearly a week while she vacationed on a cruise: cops.

Posted: Mon, 15 Apr 2024 01:12:00 GMT [source]

All the Sales Pitches You’ll SeeIf you think that you’re done spending money once you buy your ticket to cruise, think again. Cruise lines depend on the money that passengers spend on the ship, and they have lots of pitches throughout the cruise. How You Can Get “Lost” On the ShipCruise ships are big, and the first couple of days you’ll likely be turned around trying to navigate the ship.

Easy Ways to Get From the Airport to the Miami Cruise Port

Cruise ships offer shore excursions, essentially tours that take place in each port. Today’s ships carry more than 4,000 passengers at a time. That means there are usually lines for everything, especially right when they open like when it’s time to board the ship. We’d suggest simply taking your time and don’t worry about being anywhere right when it opens.

See our list of hotels in every port with cruise shuttles, including Miami hotels with shuttles to the cruise port. To make things easy, we’ve broken our 107 tips down into separate sections, including tips for saving money, packing, staying healthy, and more. If you schedule for noon, there’s always the chance you may arrive earlier, but it’s not worth the risk. Having some extra time will make debarking the ship much less stressful instead of having to constantly check your watch.

Your best way to get some free stuff on the cruise also involves a lot of fun. In the game shows (including the always popular “newlywed” game), some audience participation is required. Not everyone can join in, but if you get selected then you almost always get some sort of prize at the end. So if you did something like sneak on alcohol or bring a special outfit to spice things up on vacation, be sure to put them away.

After meeting with the check-in agent, you’re ready to head to the ship as long as the staff is ready to start boarding. If you arrive early, you might have to wait in the terminal until the ship is ready. When you enter the port terminal, the first thing you’ll do is enter and show your boarding pass and ID. Cruise ship security is similar to going through an airport, but not as invasive.

This way you always have a few singles with you to tip with instead of having an awkward “I’ll tip you later” conversation. You might also see a strange shape that almost looks like the outline of a key, with a larger square and then a rectangle jutting out (see the image above). These stabilizers jut out under the waterline like fins and help to reduce the rocking of the ocean. Keeping things a little quiet can make sure that your fun doesn’t mess with anyone else’s vacation. To find a quieter cabin spot, look toward the ends of the ship.

Know the Ins and Outs of Drink Packages Before BuyingAlcohol is big business on a cruise, and it’s not unusual to spend hundreds on it during the course of a sailing. To help you budget, cruise lines offer “all you can drink” packages. With these deals, you pay one set amount each day and then get to have (almost) whatever you want from the bar.

Now that you’re all packed, you probably have some questions about what to do with your luggage. Not all itineraries require that you travel with a U.S. passport. However, for added security we recommend that you carry a valid passport with you. If you're taking the whole family on a Bahamas vacation, we've got some travel hacks for families to make your kid-friendly trip easier. Here are some Rome vacation must-sees and tips on how to navigate travel when arriving or departing via cruise through Civitavecchia. Plan the ultimate swimming with dolphin experience in Jamaica as you make the most of your Caribbean vacation travels.

It may take a few minutes to get your pie made, so be a little patient. Before a cruise, we never would have thought twice about towel clips. You never really think about how breezy it gets on the ship.

At the end of the cruise, I was presented with a folio of all the costs I had racked up during my stay. I was astounded to find that formal night still existed — that felt very cruise ship of yore to me. In fact, for an average seven-day cruise, there are two formal nights. We highly recommend that all guests travel with a passport valid for at least six months beyond the completion of your travel.