Cruising Through The Holidays
Cruising Through The Holidays
There is nothing like singing Christmas carols in the Caribbean.
When many think about the winter holiday season, they experience both the joy of the season and wonder how they will accomplish all they need to do for the season. To help keep the joyous aspect of the season and to alleviate any worrisome problems related to the season, make an easy choice. Just remove yourself from home and instead send yourself away to paradise on a holiday cruise. Why cruise for Christmas? Because as it turns out cruising and Christmas go together really well. Cruising through the holidays offers you a chance to relax and at the same time experience a beautifully decorated seasonal location with plenty of holiday themed events and other activities. Cruising offers an easy opportunity to gather your family and friends together, but also allows for each person to have their own personal space and time.
Christmas or Hanukkah cruising not only helps make family and friends gatherings easier; it offers you the choice of being engaged with activities and people or simply relaxing alone choosing to do nothing much at all. The wonderful thing about a cruise ship is there are so many activities to do on a cruise. The ship offers something available to engage everyone, no matter what their ages or interests. A cruise ship also offers plenty of places to be where you can chill out and do what you want to do when you want to do it. Cruising allows each person to be as busy as they wish to be, but still allows for quality family or friends gathering time at dinner in the dining room or a casual restaurant. Most ships are beautifully decorated for Christmas so you are in surroundings that contribute to a festive mood, but you did not have to lift a finger to do any of the decorating. For me, that is part of what I like about cruising - its festive, but it is fairly effortless on my part.
Get off the ship and catch some thrills.
Holiday Cruise - Getting Ready To Go
An important aspect for a successful holiday cruise is to prepare for it. While I know that sounds like you just added a layer of more issues to your season prep, it really does not take that much time and effort to get ready for a cruise. You need to decide on certain aspects of your cruise ahead of time so you can have what you want in place when you get on board. Because it is the holiday season, many others also want to get away on a holiday at the same time so often cabins on a ship sell out completely. Since most schools are out for the holidays there will be many families with children on board; however, don’t fret that will ruin your cruise as most smaller children spend their time with their families or in the kid’s club. I’ve gone on two Christmas cruises and while both ships were full, the children on board were not a problem at all. In addition, the cruise ship even when traveling full of passengers, offers so much to do and see, that it never felt really crowded in any one place. I have spoken with several people on a holiday cruise and each one has stated in their own way what a good idea it was since they had extended family members joining them to celebrate Christmas or Hanukkah. Each said that the a holiday cruise was a great opportunity to gather all family members of any age together in one place for a certain period of time, but without anyone having to serve as the host or coordinator for food or activities. So anyway with that in mind, as you get ready to plan your holiday cruise, be prepared to make some choices about what you want and what your expectations are before you go to actually book your cruise.
Choices you need to make include: where to go; how long a cruise you want; how much you want to spend; and whether you want an inside, oceanview, balcony, or suite type cabin. Remember to consider if one cabin can house the number of people in your immediate party or do you need to book more than one cabin? If you need more than one cabin for your family, you might want to book two cabins that have a connecting door between them or maybe consider paying for a larger cabin or suite. All these factors affect how much you need to spend to get what you want.
Once you have made your choices, then take a look at the different cruise lines that offer a ship going where you would like to go. You can do this yourself on the cruise line’s websites or go through a travel agent, either an online agency or at a travel agency near you. One good way to find out about what is offered by each cruise line is to check out some of the large cruise travel agencies online. Doing so will usually give you a good idea of what is offered for the dates on which you can travel. There are many online travel agencies, but you might try these websites to get an idea of prices and itineraries of holiday cruises:
https://www.expedia.com/Cruises
https://www.cruisecritic.com/cruiseto/
You can also check directly with each of the main cruise lines used by most people in the U.S. to see what they are offering during the holiday season. Try these:
https://www.royalcaribbean.com/
Adventure awaits!
First, decide where you want to go. Somewhere warm is usually the first choice of many holiday cruisers. That generally means somewhere in the sunny Caribbean, but for some it may mean the Mexican Riviera, Hawaii, or even South America or the South Pacific. Decide on how long you want to be gone on your cruise and add in at least one pre-cruise night in the port town your cruise is leaving from. Why add that one extra night? It’s because it is winter in North America and you should arrive a day ahead of your cruise departure to help ensure avoiding any inclement weather related airport or driving delays.
Second, choose how long you want your cruise to last. Most holiday cruises last seven days which gives you a chance to both enjoy many activities, different ports, and relax on board. Taking a shorter or longer cruise affects the cruise price. For most groups of families or friends, a seven day cruise offers the best balance between getting away long enough for a real vacation and getting time off from work and/or school.
Third, decide what ports are important for you to see and experience. Decide if you want more ports - a port intensive cruise or if you want fewer port of calls. More ports means you will most likely find yourself off the ship exploring the sights or experiences daily and then returning to the ship for the later afternoon and evening. Fewer ports of call means you can have more cruising at sea days on board enjoying the ship itself, but you will visit fewer places or islands on your trip.
Fourth, decide what type of cabin room you want. An inside cabin is usually the cheapest, but can be small and offers no window to the outside world. If you are intending to be out and about, only wanting to use your cabin to sleep and shower in, then an inside cabin offers you the best price. An oceanview cabin offers you some type of porthole window so you can see outside and is often also offered at a very good price. A cabin that comes with a balcony where you can open the door and walk out onto your own private space to see and smell the ocean is offered at a higher price than either an inside or oceanview cabin. Some type of suite cabin will give you more cabin space and a larger balcony, but these usually come at a much higher price point. Check the prices, cabin sizes, and number of people a cabin can sleep before making your cabin choice. Make sure it can handle the number of people in your party who will stay in the same cabin with you. I’ve stayed in an oceanview, balcony, and a small suite cabin and have enjoyed them all. I find I like the larger space of a suite cabin and balcony, but when the price really matters I am fine with an oceanview cabin because I do like to at least be able to see directly outside.
Fifth, decide what time you want to dine daily and where you want to dine, at least in general. When you book the cruise you will be usually be asked if you want traditional early (usually 5:30 or 6:00 PM) or late (usually 8:00 or 8:30 PM) dining or anytime/my time dining. If you want to eat at the early time most cruise days, be aware that it is the popular dining time for families with younger children or older adults so sign up for it when booking. If you wait to do so closer to your cruise departure date, this dining time may not be available. The option of anytime or my time dining is also very popular. When you choose this type of dining, you are able to either make daily reservations for your choice of dining time or to go to the dining room to eat without a reserved time and wait until a table is available. It works much like reservations at a restaurant in your hometown does. It means you may have wait for a table to become available and you will often not have the same server or table at every meal. If when you get on board and find that you do not like your table, your seating time, anytime dining or have other dining concerns, be sure to talk to the person at the Food and Beverage Hospitality Desk about it. That person can often make a switch for you between times or tables as needed.
Soak up some vitamin sea.
Boarding Your Ship
Once you have selected your holiday cruise and paid for it, get ready to enjoy the experience. While there may be trouble still out in the greater world and world peace remains elusive, it is with a distinct feeling of seasonal joy that I tramped up the stairs and over the ramp to enter my 2019 Christmas cruise ship. Helping me to feel joyous was the knowledge that I was here in warm San Juan, Puerto Rico, and was about to travel to many other warm and beautiful Caribbean islands. My 2019 Christmas cruise was a port intensive one with stops every day, but one. My family and I went to ports in St. Maarten, St. Kitts, Antigua, St. Lucia, and Barbados. Once on board, the ship’s many holiday decorations set the mood for me and everyone to be in a holiday mood and have a festive cruise experience. The extremely large green Christmas tree on the ship’s main gathering place on Deck Five was large enough to soar up several decks. Surrounding the tree were boughs of greenery on the balconies with wreaths and golden ornaments everywhere. The ship looked like several artists had gotten together and decorated it for the season. It was beautiful and I think these decorations set the tone for our holiday season on board the ship. I thought the decorations on my first holiday cruise in 2018 were beautiful and could not be beat. I was wrong, as on this December 25, 2019 holiday cruise, it was obvious that the ship’s crew was into establishing that more was merrier. Everywhere you looked there was something to remind a cruiser that it was the Christmas and Hanukkah season. Even my fellow passengers got into the decorating act by decorating their cabin doors for the season. Some cabin doors were very well done and artistic, while some were more just plain fun or displayed a child’s seasonal art. Looking at some decorated cabin doors I did wonder if this is a really good way to help a cruiser find their own particular cabin after a few drinks around the ship?
As I traveled around the ship exploring its many bars, lounges, sports facilities, and pools, I noticed that holiday decorations were everywhere, not just in the main public spaces. Even the pool areas sported some type of wreaths, greenery, or ornaments. In the main dining room there was more greenery strung around it and its main stairway linking the three dining room floors together was hung heavily with boughs and ornaments. Up in the casual buffet restaurant visitors were treated to a beautiful and very large seasonal snow village display. The village setting was decked out in red, green, and gold with plenty of ‘snow’ spread throughout it. Also provided was a seasonal welcome aboard really large sheet cake for those who came there for their first cruise chow down (lunch). Even as large as it was, that cake was all gone by dinner time. In addition, the casual dining areas, such as the 24 hour cafe, the pizzeria, and other snack areas, were decked out with ribbons, garlands, and many small trees with tiny lights or globes on them. The great decorating effort by the ship’s staff established a holiday seasonal feeling as did much of the music played in the various venues throughout the ship.
You can take a cupcake decorating class!
Activities On The Ship
Many of the on board activities were linked to the season. Holiday songs were performed in the piano bar, sung in the pub, and played softly in the background in the wine lounge and the dining rooms. On the cruise’s first day, the ship held a tree lighting ceremony at 9:50 PM. The place went dark and then the tree lights popped on. There were so many lights on that tree, that it lit up not just the tree, but the whole area. For those who enjoy playing trivia and games on board, the ship offered, in addition to such usual trivia sessions as true or false trivia or 5 O’clock trivia, several holiday oriented trivia sessions like a Name that Holiday Tune and a Christmas movies visual quiz.
One popular program with the cruisers was the 8:00 PM Christmas Eve Caroling sing a long. Led by the ship’s entertainment staff in front of the ship’s large Christmas tree, many people gathered to sing traditional and contemporary seasonal songs. Song books were handed out so that everyone could know the words and follow the tune. While that may sound boring to some, it actually turned out to be fun and a good reminder that this was a season of good cheer and good will to all. Early on Christmas Day at 7:30 AM, that special holiday fellow Santa, arrived beside the Christmas tree. All children on board were invited to meet with Santa and receive a small gift from him which is, of course, really from the cruise line. For those who were still on board at 1:00 in the afternoon and later again at 5:00 PM, there was a Christmas scavenger hunt that I heard many families participated in. Evening entertainment on Christmas included a Christmas Friendly Feud game show, a family elves disco, a name that Christmas tune trivia game in the piano bar, and a holiday PJ movie night of How the Grinch Stole Christmas out beside the main pool. Proving that you can only get as bored as you want to be, cruise entertainment that evening also offered karaoke, dancing under the stars by the pool after the Christmas movie was over, an excellent and must see ice skating show, a cash prize bingo game, and that cruise traditional but funny program, the Love and Marriage Game Show.
Other activities to consider on board your cruise is seeing the ice skating show and/or diving show if your ship offers them. Both are excellent and it is amazing what can be done by a performer when the ship is moving at sea. Usually there is at least one or two theatre production shows. These can be either good or not so good, but you can leave anytime you find yourself not really enjoying the show. If there is a comedian or a magician, consider seeing those shows as they are usually quite good. Many professional entertainers cycle through cruise ships and their performances are often enjoyable. On this 2019 holiday cruise there was a late night adult comedy performance offered, but I found I was too tired that evening to actually make it to that show. One show I did get to see was by a magician named Jasen Magic. I made it to his performance despite having spent the day on St. Kitts hiking up and down the 3,792 foot tall Mount Liamuiga volcano. Jasen was extremely funny and involved the audience in his magic tricks and humor. His show was fast paced and included improv humor along with mystifying tricks. He was well worth making time to go see. I recommend going to any show you see associated with his name.
The main dining hall is a great option for your holiday meal.
Holiday Dining
On Christmas Day the main dining room menu featured that traditional holiday meal standard - roast turkey with dressing, several different types of potatoes and vegetables, along with pumpkin, pecan, and apple pie a la mode. Also offered was a ham dish along with a vegetarian option.
On this cruise I did not dine in any of the extra charge specialty dining restaurants on board; however, each of those featured a holiday menu based on their specialty food types. On my previous holiday cruise I did dine in the specialty steakhouse restaurant. There the dinner started off with a glass of champagne and proceeded to offer a large variety of entrees and sides. Both years, in the specialty dining restaurant and in the main ship’s dining room, one of the desserts offered to everyone was a tasty traditional French yule log, a Bûche de Noël.
If you are interested in dining in the ship’s extra charge specialty restaurants, then try to make reservations for them prior to getting on board. Doing so helps to ensure you can get the dining restaurant and time you prefer. Go to your cruise line’s website as soon as possible and find where you can look at its cruise planner section. Depending on your cruise line you may need to have your cruise confirmation number and sign in to access it your particular cruise or you may be able to take a general look at the dining offerings without signing in. Once on the site, take a look at the cruise dining venues and the dining packages and places offered. Specialty restaurants do have a per person charge, although they can be somewhat cheaper if you book them in a package such as committing to dining in three of them during your cruise. Be aware that even if you book a specialty dining package for all the evenings of your cruise, that it will not usually include dinner on Christmas Day. If you want to book a Christmas Day meal at a specialty restaurant, then do so prior to your cruise. In my experience, Christmas Day meals are usually sold as separate tickets outside of a package and they do cost more than the regular specialty meal charge. That said, if you board without any specialty restaurant reservations and decide you want to give one a try, you can check at the specialty restaurant itself and make your purchase arrangements then for what is available. You may not get the cheapest price point on it, but you can usually get into the specialty restaurant of your choice. If you decide to not try a specialty restaurant or cannot get a time at the place you want, remember the main dining room is still a very nice place to eat and that there are usually several other non-charge venues to eat at on the ship.
As an aside to the more traditional holiday seasonal dining on board, I believe nothing says Christmas more than learning how to make a good spicy guacamole and a great margarita with alcohol included. This cruise offered a fun class on how to make both of these. It included a complete lunch and drinks. The guacamole was prepared by the participants for their tables. I enjoyed having the ability to make the guacamole as spicy or not spicy as I wanted. A word of warning, if you are going to make it spicy, do a good job of mixing up the guacamole ingredients, so one poor soul doesn’t get hit with all the heat while taking one bite. As for the holiday season since guacamole is based on an avocado, the guacamole was green and my margarita had streaks of red in it. Since these two products contained both red and green colors, I considered these to be part of my seasonal celebration.
Keeping old traditions while starting new ones.
Your Own Cabin
One great way to bring the season closer into your life on board is to decorate your cabin for the holiday. Come prepared to personalize it by jazzing it up for the season. This doesn’t really take much effort, just a bit of prior preparation. On a previous cruise I saw a cabin where someone had wrapped up the cabin’s pictures on the wall in colorful wrapping paper and added ribbons and a bow. It made them into your own personal presents hanging on the cabin wall. If you like that, take it further and consider wrapping your whole cabin door.
I recommend to really personalize the holiday season in your cabin that you find a space somewhere in it and set up a small tree you brought with you. I know cabin space can sometimes be cramped, but there is usually some type of nook or place where you can add a tree. I purchased a small fake green tree and a small light-up plastic tree. I put both these onto a ledge in my cabin. Underneath it, I put out some small wrapped presents brought with me to open up on the actual holiday. If you don’t think you have space in your suitcase to bring gifts with you, see if you can find some type of gifts to purchase at a port of call stop before Christmas. These don’t need to be large or expensive, just some small things that you think your family or cabin mates might like. Then put them underneath your cabin tree. Put some window clings onto the mirror in your cabin or try some magnet decorating on the walls (they are metal). On your cabin door consider decorating it with a Santa figure or some holly with berries or maybe a seasonal card. Before your cruise, you can cut out a Christmas card or scene and paste it onto a flat magnet to arrange for your own personal holiday design you can place on the cabin door. As I noted before, a holiday design of some type on the door does make your cabin distinctive from all the others lining the hallway.
This drawing by a Spanish Captain was made as he was being held at Castillo de San Cristobal on mutiny charges.
Shore Excursions and Activities On Board
Check your cruise line’s shore excursions before you go on the cruise. You can find these listed in the planning section of your cruise line’s website. Check what is available for each stop and think about whether you and any others you are with would enjoy that excursion. Be aware that many cruise line shore excursions can get crowded so think about whether it is the right choice for you. If you are worried about getting back to the ship before the all on board time, then choose a ship shore excursion. If it comes back late, the ship will wait for you. If you want a different or less crowded shore excursion, then you have some other choices to make. You can research a destination and then arrange for another private shore excursion company’s tour, hire a taxi once on the location’s pier to take you on a tour or to a specific destination, or perhaps rent your own car at the destination if car rental is easily available. If you just want to walk around a port or town, you can do that too on your own. Just be sure to have a map with you or your cell phone’s GPS activated so you don’t get too lost. At all times, remember to be back on board by the posted on board time. Always keep your watch or cell phone on ship’s time, not the local destination’s time. You don’t want to miss the sailing or be one of the “pier runners” that everyone watches and hoots at from their balconies or higher public decks.
On Christmas Day, you should consider whether you wish to go ashore or stay on board the ship. Both are good options and offer different ways for you and your family or friends to celebrate the holiday. Depending on where your ship docks on Christmas Day the shore excursions offered by the cruise line will differ; however, most warm weather cruises will have a choice of several beach excursions and several types of land explorations. If you want more variety or fewer people on your shore excursion, consider exploring the options of a private vendor’s tours. Book your chosen shore excursion as far ahead of time as possible to ensure you get what you want. You may also select to go to a public beach and see if you can grab a taxi to and from your selected destination. Another relatively easy option would be to go to a resort for a day, but again I recommend booking your resort day pass before you leave for cruise to ensure your ability to use it as planned on the holiday. Whatever you choose, keep in mind that many destinations often will not offer all the open stores, businesses, restaurants, and government services that you would usually find. Taxis may not be plentiful as usual and public bus transportation may be limited or not offered at all. Factor all this into your decision about what to do for the holiday. This year my family decided to make things easier by booking a ship’s shore excursion for us all to an Antigua beach which included transportation to and from the beach, a full lunch, drinks, and loungers with umbrellas. It was not the greatest shore excursion I have ever been on, but we were at a beach on Christmas with plenty of food, drinks, and someplace to relax without much effort on our part. The reason I say it was not the greatest was that many other cruisers apparently wanted the same easy kind of visit and the beach was way more crowded than I liked. Still, it did make for a warm on the beach day and we were back on the ship later in the day with enough time to enjoy some of the ship’s holiday activities. Another option to consider is to just stay on board for the entire day. Your ship will usually provide an entertaining array of things to do throughout the day. Choices offered on my ship this Christmas Day included: raffles and games in the Casino; spa services with special massages; various bar and trivia games, wine tasting; a cake decorating class; a Jenga competition; two different Christmas scavenger hunts; pool games; table tennis competitions; a Bachata dance class; and various Christmas movies on your cabin TV, on the big pool side screen, and in the theatre. All these were in addition to the more usual cruise ship on board activities like the Belly Flop contest, hot tubs and pools, different venues with live music performers, karaoke, dancing on the deck in the evening, and a Love and Marriage game show in the middle of the evening made for one packed day. Staying on board means you won’t lack for things to do. It also means you can relax by the pool, on the decks feeling the sea breeze, or in your cabin or on your cabin’s balcony if you have one. Whatever you and your family and friends chose to do, it is important to remember it is your day to celebrate the season and be happy for the chance to be together.