Every day thousands of first time cruisers embark on what will be a vacation of a lifetime. They’ll tweet about it, post a ton of photos on Facebook and Instagram them. One thing they might not know is they’re about to show everyone just how much of a cruise rookie they are. The following observations come from rookie experiences on my last cruise.
Here are 7 rookie cruise mistakes:
1. Everything is free. There’s nothing more embarrassing than walking on the Lido Deck during sail away and the server comes up and hands you a drink. Not having any clue you take the drunk and instantly the bar server asks for your sign and sail card. I see it happen every cruise. The cruise lines are in the business to make money – it’s very rare they’ll hand out free drinks.
ThristyFrog Red beer aboard Carnival Liberty.
2. Stashing in carry-on. Be careful what you try to bring on the ship. I saw this the other day when I was disembarking the cruise ship in Port Canaveral. A gentleman had a backpack with a bottle to Tequila, mixer and salt – ready to start his party – until it went through the x-ray machine and the port agents confiscated it.
Don’t put booze in your carry-on.
3. Only buffet is free. The main dining room and the buffets are both free. I was talking to a first time cruiser who told me they loved their experience but wish there was more places to eat. I asked them to explain further, they told me that they have been eating in the buffet for all meals. I told them the main dining room meals are also included in their cruise fare. The looked at me like I had seven heads and told me they wish they were told that sooner!
Main dining room aboard a cruise ship.
4. Travel insurance. This can go one of two ways, but if it goes the other way, you’ll be wishing you had travel insurance. I get listener email after email telling me how travel insurance saved them a lot of money. My last cruise, a lady flew into Orlando day-of the cruise and was delayed by three hours – she didn’t make the ship. She had to pick the ship up in Nassau, Bahamas the next day. She told me she had travel insurance or she would’ve been on the next flight to Dallas or had second thoughts about trying to make it to the ship in the first place. You can read more about cruise travel insurance here (I am a firm believer in it).
5. Cell phones. Do yourself a favor, unless you know what in the heck you’re doing – keep your cell phone off or in airplane mode while you’re at sea. When you’re texting your friends from the ship, you’re operating on the ship’s network, costing fifty cents per text, $1.30 for a picture text, $2.50 per minute for a voice call and data, well data is $19.97 per megabyte. You’re cheaper buying a ship internet plan or keeping your phone off! Actual costs may vary by provider.
Keep the cell on airplane mode or off!
6. Shore Excursions. Everyone books their shore excursions straight from the cruise line because they put the fear of God in you that you will get left if you don’t book directly through them. There are however, third-party excursion companies like Shore Excursions Group that have programs that take the worry about of booking your next shore excursion byy giving you a money-back guarantee and carry the same promises as the cruise line. Go beyond the cruise line website for your next cruise ship excursion.
You have options, for instance, in Cozumel you can go to an all-inclusive resort for $40 at the El Cid Resort. It’s a 10-minute walk form the cruise ship (depending on the pier) and unless you drink until you pass out, it’s impossible to be left.
Stateroom towel animal fun!
7. I’ll never be in my room. Everyone says it, “I’ll only shower and sleep in my room.” The truth is, you’re in your room a lot more than to sleep and to shower. You can only play so much trivia, drink and sit in the sun all day. Heavily research all the stateroom and categories options before you default to that next interior cabin. Unless it’s strictly a booze cruise, you may want to venture outside of the interior cabin.
Bonus Tip
* Use a travel agent. The best way to avoid the rookie mistakes is to use a certified travel agent who specializes in cruise vacations. It’s a travel agent’s job to hold your hand and to make sure you know all the tricks in the book.
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