My First Cruise!

By: Sandy Parten

It's probably hard to imagine that as a travel planner, I took my very first cruise just one year ago this month!

Like so many people, I always thought cruises were not for me -- too many people, not enough shore time, too much food, etc.  I'll take one when I'm old (lol). Well, last year, my niece planned a family cruise for her husband's 50th birthday. Since I always love spending time with the family, and both my adult sons were coming along, I agreed to try a cruise. I decided to approach this cruise with an open mind to really see if cruising was something I could enjoy.

My niece chose the MSC Seaside for a 7-day Caribbean Cruise.  This is a beautiful new ship, but very large -- 5,000 passengers and 1,500 crew, and the locations we were visiting looked enticing; so far, so good.  

We started in Miami, with stops in Ocho Rios, Jamaica; Georgetown, Grand Cayman; Cozumel, Mexico; and Nassau, in the Bahamas. I booked a room with a balcony and upgraded to a package that included better-positioned staterooms, priority dinner seating, 24-hour room service, and free continental breakfast. It was important to me to spend a little extra to get the experience I wanted.

So, what did I like about our cruise?  

I liked the fact that our entire family was there and we could spend quality time together.  We all had our private rooms, but we could come together and enjoy the activities on the ship during the day and dinner together every night. We also planned our shore excursions together. We spent a lot of time at the pools, and we really enjoyed the time we had on shore. We found some great beaches, rented umbrellas and lounge chairs, went paddleboarding, and did some snorkeling. The water in the Caribbean is spectacular!  Warm and clear, with fantastic blue and green colors. The fish were colorful and abundant. I was really glad we were able to snorkel, and we did it right off the beach in Cozumel.  

 The ship was gorgeous, with crystal stairs, lots to do, nice pools, and fantastic areas for kids area. The kids club was a big bonus. It allowed my niece and her husband some adult time. I opted for a balcony room, which was really nice. I enjoyed sitting out on my balcony watching the ocean, and I had a bird's eye view to experience coming into the ports. I also left my balcony door open at night to enjoy the balmy weather. Despite mostly having a wonderful time, there were some disappointments.  

There were way too many people for my liking. I think a smaller ship would have been better.  When you're walking around the ship you don't really notice all the people, but if you go anywhere popular -- the pools, the main bar, the buffets -- it was always very crowded.  There were lines at the buffets most times of the day, and the pools were always packed. Of course, on days when there were shore days, the ship was much less populated. But those were the times we wanted to be on the shore to experience the beautiful beaches and get a flavor of the culture. Even though we really enjoyed the shore time, it wasn't long enough for me.  We left the ship around 9am and were required to be back on board by 5pm most days (3:30pm one day). I enjoy evenings in warm and tropical climates, so I was disappointed we were not able to take advantage of this at least one time while at a port of call. Additionally, when when we exited the ship, there were a multitude of vendors and taxi drivers/guides vying for our money.  Some of them got a little aggressive with us.

Would I take another cruise? 

If my family said they wanted to do another I would go. I feel it is special to spend time with family, and I do believe a cruise is a good way to do this, especially if there are family members who are less mobile or enjoy the comforts of home. But for me, I think a smaller ship would work better. Cruise lines such as Silver Seas and Atlas Ocean Voyages offer what they call intimate-sized ships, and I know that would be much more suited to my desires. The luxury offered and the unhurried atmosphere is very much worth the extra price because, of course, the smaller ship/luxury cruising has a different price point than a 5,000-passenger cruise line. 

With all that being said, many people LOVE cruising.  It gives them time to relax with all the comforts of home while visiting a number of locations on one trip. While I’m still on the fence, I did enjoy myself, and I’m excited to try a more intimate cruising experience, which of course, I’ll be happy to report upon. 

Safe Travels!

Sandy Parten
International Travel Specialist
Immersion World Travel
info@immersionworldtravel.com
www.immersionworldtravel.com