Against my wishes, my wife, her twin 22 year olds and I may be going for a cruise in May for 6-8 nights. I "cruised" in the Navy and feel that's enough ocean time. But, as an obedient husband... What cruise lines are good/bad? I've heard about a lot of extra charges- true? How much fun can one have in a port of call? Are they super crowded?....... Any help you can give me would be appreciative.
I'm doing my first cruise too. May 2-9 on Carnival Splendor for the Mexican Rivera. roll with me! http://www.carnival.com/Itinerary.a...ateCode=PCD&sailingID=54787&sailDate=5/2/2010
I assume you're taking this one? http://www.usatoday.com/travel/cruises/item.aspx?type=blog&ak=14737.blog
god,can you imagine if I was on there when the Blazers are playing in the NBA finals this year? FUCK!
If you were leaving just a few days later I might just do that cruise, but the boys are still in college.
I've been talking to people about them: 1. Sometimes you can sneak alcohol on board, sometimes you can't. Its like $10 a drink though. Anything you buy at Duty Free you only get back when you get back to the US. 2. There are "excursions" you pay extra for. They are like jeep driving through jungles, swimming with dolphins and crap like that. I think its about 80-120 bucks each for those...optional side trips.
I don't know how the social lives on these cruises are, hopefully its fun, lots of chicks and drinking. hopefully not a bunch of old, mid-western red-staters!
I hear it's somewhat like a brothel. The women get drunk from one end of the bar to the other and you just meander down and take your pick. The next day you are charged with rape and detained in the belly of the ship. After paying the ship;s captian 'tribute' (which he splits with the lady in question) and being spoil for some of the young lusty island lads, you get released at the end of the trip. So, have fun!
I took a 14 day caribbean cruise two winters ago. It was the Princess cruise line. Huge ship. Lots of old people, but I also met a ton of people my age that were a blast. Sneaking booze back on to the ship is easy. Make sure you take a backpack with you on your port of call. I had two gigantic empty water bottles in my pack. Bought a 5th of vodka (or more) when in port, went to a bathroom and emptied the vodka in to my water bottles. Once on the ship, the crew couldn't give a fuck that I was sitting there at the pool emptying what seemed to be water in to a glass of ice and sprite. They truly didn't care. And yes, they scan your bags, like at an airport, before you board after a day in port. Excursions are what you make of them. If you do your research and plan in advance you won't be forced to do all the touristy crap with all the tourists from the boat (and in some cases BOATS...depends on how big the port is). Just do research about your destination, public transport, interesting locations, less than popular beaches. My favorite excursion was on the island of Bonaire. We rented scooters and tooled around the island for 4 hours. That was ridiculously fun. Zip lining in Antigua was insane as well. Or the catamaran in Barbados. Ultimately, cruising is what you make of it.
Royal Caribbean for sure. I've gone on a couple cruises with the family and they are by far the best, atleast IMO.
A cruise seems like the anti-vacation to me. Held hostage most of the time, unable to visit most of the sights and isolated from the native people wherever you are. There is simply no amount of money that get me to waste a week on a boat. Unless of course it's a fishing boat. But hey, maybe you'll meet these folks! [video=youtube;VQlUd_zuoqs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQlUd_zuoqs[/video]
