|
British Mensa Travel Special Interest Group |
|
Home Copyright
© |
How
to enjoy cruises Often the journey is merely a way of getting from home to your holiday destination. But nowadays cruising is an ever-growing sector of the travel market where the journey is an important part of the holiday. Cruising is no longer only for 'posh' people. Today there is a vast array of cruise options with informal 24 hour buffet style dining overtaking dressing for dinner at set times in the popularity stakes. Choose from the larger liners catering for over 2,000 passengers or more intimate vessels catering for only a couple of hundred. Bear in mind that the actual capacity of the ship could be nearly double the passenger count as you add cabin stewards, waiters, bar staff, entertainment teams, pursers, maintenance crew as well as officers. There is an awful lot goes on behind the scenes! Some cruise lines cater very well for families and run their own programme of activities for children. For me, cruising is the perfect holiday as you wake up each morning in a new destination without having to keep unpacking, and you get waited on, hand and foot, in between! Firstly, let's dispel some myths... As already
stated, cruising is no longer for the rich or famous. Shop around and
you can find a 7 night cruise around the Med for as little as £399
in low season. Bearing in mind the price includes accommodation, all meals
and entertainment this is a real bargain! Do you get seasick on the Channel ferry? Don’t let this put you off a cruising holiday! Modern ships have excellent stabilisers and you will often only experience a slight sway even in rough sea conditions. In fact, book a cabin low down in the centre of the ship - actually the cheapest option - and the gentle rocking and engine vibration will quickly send you to sleep! If you do suffer from seasickness an injection or tablets are readily available onboard. Whether you enjoy active breaks or just lazing in the sun, then cruising is for you. Days at sea can be spent on a deck lounger with drinks being brought to you so you don't even have to get up apart from to take a cooling dip in the pool! Alternatively you can stay indoors dashing from one event to the next. These include such activities as keep fit classes, dance tuition, craft lessons, port lectures, demonstrations of ice carving, quizzes, bridge visits, films in the cinema, duty free shopping and much more. So you’ve booked your cruise. What happens next? Upon arrival at the dock and before embarkation you will be issued with an onboard card. This is credit card size and must be guarded with your life as it will be used in lieu of passports when disembarking at each port! Scanning your card each time you get off and on the ship ensures that the captain is aware of any missing passengers before setting sail. Sometimes the card will include your photograph that has been taken at check-in. I’m sure there are many bleary-eyed photos after long-haul flights! Your onboard card will also be presented when ordering drinks or buying in the ship shop. Ships operate a cashless system. Guests show their card, sign a receipt (one copy for the ship and one for you to keep) and receive a bill on the last day of the cruise which can be settled by cash or by pre-registering a credit card at the start of the cruise. Easy! Shore excursions can be added to your onboard account though, to be honest, it is often much cheaper and more fun to explore on your own. The exception is probably St Petersburg where taking an official tour saves the hassle and expense of obtaining your own Russian visa. Shore excursions are covered by a group visa. It’s best to read up on ports of call in advance, so you know where you want to visit and can make the most of your time ashore. Typically that’s 8 or 9am until 5 or 6pm. At smaller ports you may have to ‘tender’. This involves anchoring out to sea, then transferring to a smaller boat for the ride to shore. Often the ship’s lifeboats are used; it’s an interesting if slow procedure. Priority is given to passengers who have booked shore excursions so that coaches can depart on time. Thereafter independent travellers are issued with a coloured tender ticket and called when their boat is ready. Lifeboat drill is mandatory for all passengers and this has to be carried out within the first 24 hours of the cruise. On hearing 7 blows of the ship’s whistle, return to your cabin to collect your personal lifejacket stowed in the wardrobe and go to the muster point clearly shown on a sign in your cabin. Once there, you will be ticked off a list and shown how to don the lifejacket correctly by one of the crew. Hopefully you won’t need to wear your lifejacket again after that! On most cruises - even the casual ones - there is one gala night where smart clothes are encouraged and photographers will be there to capture the moment you meet the captain at his pre-dinner cocktail party. Champagne flows, the band plays and the officers welcome you. On this evening there tends to be two sittings around 6pm and 8pm. Personally I prefer the later one, especially if you’ve been ashore so you don't miss valuable sightseeing time by having to return early to dress for dinner. The last evening usually has a casual dress code. The dress code is stated in the newsletter delivered to your cabin each day though is only a guide i.e. casual, informal, formal, black tie. I have even known themed evenings. Not so good without prior warning and you have to make do with whatever is in your case! Suitcases need to be packed and placed outside your cabin door before you go to sleep on the final night to allow them to be collected and sorted ready for unloading as soon as you dock. For this reason be sure to take a small holdall in which to carry any overnight items. It is a military operation to disembark all passengers and prepare the ship ready for the next cruise departing only hours later. Imagine all the food and drink required for a 14 night cruise when there are up to seven meals per day plus amazing displays of midnight buffets! Having taken
eight cruises ranging from Airtours to the Cunard QE2, I can thoroughly
recommend them all. Two trips were with a group of Mensa friends and huge
fun. I’m sure there will be more in the future. Watch this space. First published in VISA issue 69 (Oct 2006) |