Re: Those Were The Days

Yes it was Tiff
The ship was called the Oceania and belonged to the Eporitiki Shipping Line.

Re: Those Were The Days

Cruising is a fantastic way to travel imo. I also was prone to seasickness but it's only an occasional hazard and easily manageable if you know what makes it worse. There are various things you can do to greatly reduce the effects. For the most part the ships are so big that you need quite heavy weather for serious rock and roll, and I've been in some horrendous conditions believe me.

But standing by the rail side watching the vast ocean going by is magnificent. You'll be joined by dolphins and whales very frequently who track the ships hoping for scraps.

It's important to pick the right cruise line as not all cruises are equal. There are cruise lines for all markets from posh-sedate end to pleasantly smart and cultured to anything goes party style cruises with chavs.
Just pick the line that suits you.

The food is fantastic, the service is fantastic, you meet lots of new people and come away with good friends most times many of whom you keep in contact with. You wake up in a different country every day and no matter where you go you always know your air-conditioned 4-5 star floating hotel is waiting for you, so no nasty whitewashed local hotel rooms fighting of the mozzies !

Your holiday starts the moment you drive up to the port. Someone takes your baggage and your car and you generally walk straight onto the ship (passing through a brief check in and security process). No waiting in airports for hours on end, straight into the restaurant for lunch and a glass of champagne!

Many people are initially nervous of going to sea thinking they will be horribly sick and generally being a little apprehensive but once they get there and realise the scale of the ship you soon realise what an amazing way to travel it is. Once they start, many people get addicted quite quickly.

Re: Those Were The Days

Appreciate what you are saying Realist and I can see all the benefits that cruising offers..but...cruises are far to commercial theses days and designed to squeeze every penny possible out of you.

Many would now find the cruises of old boring with little to do but the few organised games and dances in the evenings but they were truly relaxing. You looked forward to dressing for meals which were always top class and docking in to the ports were always thrilling.

It's the huuugeness of these liners that is so off putting

Re: Those Were The Days

Hi Solo

As per previous post everything depends on the specific cruise line you choose.

When I first started cruising I did a fair few activities. I went to quizzes, attended Whist or Bridge sessions, watched presentations and talks, maybe the odd chef demonstration and so on.

Now I simply chill the entire voyage. I go with my kindle packed with books to read, and with my tiny netbook to surf the web, peruse forums like this and so on.

You do as little or as much as you personally like.

There is a full itinerary laid out every day by the cruise staff, printed and delivered to your cabin which you can peruse at your leisure. Mostly I ignore it

My days are very chilled. I get up as late as I like and wander to some place to get a bit of breakfast. If the weather is fine I will probably then rest my brekky off in a steamer chair on the prom deck reading a book with one eye kept out for dolphins. At about 11am I pop to the coffee bar for a morning latte (and maybe a naughty pastry!), usually I pick up the daily crossword and Sudoku left out in reception to complete with my coffee.
After this maybe a trip to the crow's nest to watch the great forward view, have a chat with friends.
1pm off to the restaurant for a light lunch, followed by an hour of very sociable whist drive.

More relaxing reading outside, maybe on the very top deck with a cool beer.

and so it goes on.

We look forward to meeting our table companions every evening at dinner after which we pop off for the more serious team quizzes or go to see a show. There are lots of options to suit every person. Shows, films, quizzes, comedians, casino or just a nice after dinner drink in one of the many bars.

As we retire, if we are in balmy weather I am often inclined to get a couple of proper hot chocolates to go from the coffee bar and drink them on the balcony in the pitch black watching the amazing panorama of stars which look their best when you are at sea. I have never failed to see a "shooting star" / meteorite when I've done this.

So there you go. A totally relaxing (for me) day at sea on a modern cruise line. I choose a smart cruise line where everyone dresses up for dinner and makes an occasion of it.

Note also that every cruise line has a fleet of different sized ships. So you can pick and choose how big or small you want to go. I've been on ships with 1500 passengers and on ships with 3000. Neither have been a problem but our favourite are the 1500 size ships.

I would also say that in terms of expenditures it is very easy to control your spending. Once you know what you are doing you can avoid various charges that you would otherwise incur. For example if you get to know certain ports you know you can get a trip into the local town on a bus/train or monorail etc for very little rather than pay for the transport that the ship puts on.

Really you should give it another go