Our First Cruise

July 10, 2015

My husband, Joe, and I went on our first cruise (the to Bahamas) with a group of our good friends to celebrate the birthday of one of my best friends, Amanda (of Hearts and Minds). We had such an amazing time and our experience definitely has us wanting to go on many more! We went on a 3-day cruise which was not nearly long enough, BUT just enough to give us a taste of cruise life and knowledge on how to plan for the next. Also, we were with some of our best friends which made our vacation even better. We cruised with the Royal Caribbean cruise line and our destinations included Saturday at Coco Cay, Bahamas, which is a small island owned by Royal Caribbean and Sunday at Nassau, Bahamas.

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If you are thinking about going on a cruise, here are some tips I can provide from my experience:

Book your cruise through a booking agent. Preferably one that is determined to help you find the best deal possible. We had a few issues with our booking agent. I am very detail oriented and a planner, with our travel agent she wasn’t very clear with details, such as a break down in costs and the itinerary and wasn’t very willing to provide anything that was asked. So, when working with a booking agent for your cruise be sure to get all the details about costs, receipts for payments, itinerary, etc.
Check for group rates which is really awesome if you are looking to travel with a group like family or friends. Be sure to book in advance and ensure that you are able to break up your payments. We had various deadlines for when payments were do. This is very helpful and something of which you should take advantage. Set deadlines with your group to ensure that everyone is on the same page.
Take the smallest bag you possibly can for traveling through airports, riding in cars, etc. The bigger the bag or the more bags you have the more difficult it may be when trying to get on and off the boat. Joe and I each took carry-on size luggage and I had my beach bag which was all easy for us to get around until we got settled on the boat.
Be sure to pack enough clothing for about 2 outfit changes each day (and about 2-3 different bathing suits depending on how long your cruise is). I know that sounds like a lot especially when I just said to take the smallest bag possible, but it actually was pretty easy for me and I usually pack heavy! With it being summer time, shorts, t-shirts, maxi dresses and flip flops don’t take up much room in the luggage so that made it easier to pack multiple outfits for each day.
Wear a protective hairstyle or a style that is easy to manage. With being in and out of water each day it can get pretty frustrating having to manipulate hair. I wore a sew-in which was okay…looking back I wish I had gotten box braids (which was my second choice).
Don’t forget formal/evening wear. Each night is a formal style dinner where guests can dress up. It’s so nice after a long day in the sun. When people hear formal they automatically think ballgowns and tuxes, but that’s not at all what you have to wear. In this case it was attire you would wear on a dinner date night. Simple. I was overthinking it in the beginning and didn’t know what to expect lol.
Take motion sickness meds before you get on the ship. I thought I was going to get sick because I sometimes get car sick, but praise God I didn’t. I took Dramamine the first day, forgot the rest of the days to take it but never got sick. Some in our group wore the motion sickness wrist band which I hear helps as well.
Utilize your on-board credit! Most booking agents offer this when you first book your cruise. It’s a great perk and you can use it on whatever purchases you desire while on the ship. We got a few Pina Coladas which were sooooo good – and I HATE pina coladas because of the coconut, but there was something different about these 🙂
Book at least one excursion – we went snorkeling! It was amazing!!!! We wanted to be able to do at least one thing while in Nassau.

I think that’s it for my tips. I probably will think of more later, but I think this is enough to get you prepared for your next cruise. As I mentioned before we cruised Royal Caribbean and I really liked their cruise line. I don’t have anything to compare it to because this was our first, so I am interested in cruising with another line to see which I like better. As far as RC, the staff was great, the on-board shows weren’t bad. We went to a comedy show, broadway show and did karaoke (which was the best). For Amanda’s birthday we wore all white to dinner and surprised her with a ton of balloons in her room – it was cute. Overall I had a great time and would recommend a cruise to anyone for a vacation. Oh! And I can’t forget the food – it was bomb to me the first day, but as the days went on I was kinda over it. Honestly my favorite was the soft serve ice cream at the pool, the pina coladas and the authentic Bahamian food in Nassau. Great vacay and I’m glad to got to spend time with my hubby and close friends.

What are some of your favorite vacations? If you’ve ever been on a cruise, I’d love to hear about it below!

Until next time…