Top 10 Hints/Tips for Your Upcoming Cruise!

Top 10 Hint/Tips for Your Upcoming Cruise

Brought to you by NavigateVacations.com

www.avoyatravel.com/IA/TinaOlson

If you haven't been on a cruise before, or if you haven't been on one on a while, make sure you read through these tips in order to get the most enjoyment out of your trip.

List of things to bring:

1. Plenty of swimsuits! Most ships have multiple pools and hot tubs, as well as water slides. Don't forget your sunscreen either! If you are worried about getting it through airport security, you can always put it in a checked bag. If you don't care to do that, you can most likely purchase some ahead of time to be delivered to your room when you arrive, but you will pay more. We recently paid $6.99 for a 4oz bottle on Carnival Mardi Gras.

2.Bring a waterproof phone case if you plan to bring your phone along for pictures etc. to the pool, to the beach, or on excursions. Trust me, better to be safe than sorry. Imagine the nightmare of trying to get back to the airport without the use of your phone!

3. Bring your own ID lanyard with you, unless you wish to purchase a souvenir one from the ship. These range from $7.99 to $11.99 and that can add up if you have multiple people in your party. You are required to carry your ship ID card at all time, and the lanyard makes it much easier, especially if you are wearing swimwear or other clothes without pockets.

4. Bring a portable drink container with a straw to use, or a metal reusable straw. Many cruise lines are not carrying plastic or cardboard straws anymore. Carnival Mardi Gras did have "edible straws" made of some type of candy, but we found that they dissolve quickly and can make your cocktail taste funny.

5. Bring hydration packets! There are several of them out there such as Liquid IV. If you can find these on the ship, they will be expensive. With all of your fun in the sun and cocktails, you will need to be able to re-hydrate quickly.

6. Bring every-day over the counter medicines with you. Think about what you could possibly need: ibuprofen, aspirin, nausea meds, Tums, antacids, etc. These can be difficult to find on the ship and they will be expensive if you can find them. Also consider getting a motion-sickness patch (they have one that goes behind your ear and is good for a week) if you are prone to motion sickness. The first 5 days of our most recent cruise was calm, but the last 2 days got pretty rough, as we were trying to stay ahead of a tropical depression as we headed back North to Port Canaveral.

7. Be sure to remember all of your power cords! I forgot the power cord for my portable shaver and had to pay $39.99 onboard for a new one. Be sure to bring the power bricks as well, in case your ship does not have USB style power ports.

8. Bring door decorations! Most ship doors are metal, so you can put anything magnetic on your door. This can be especially helpful in remembering what state room door is yours, since they all look the same. This can be especially important if you have pre-teens with you and allow them to explore on their own.

9. Bring towel clips for your lounge chairs. Finding a chair by the pool can be tough enough, and even harder to "keep reserved", especially if your towel blows away. Also, cruise ships can be heavily fined for allowing objects to fly overboard, so if your towel looks as though it is going to blow away should you leave for a potty break or another cocktail, the staff may remove your towel.

10. NEVER book excursions outside ofyour cruise ships reservation page. We heard several nightmare stories of people who waited too long to book their excursions, so they just bought a un-sanctioned excursion or tour from someone on the pier. Just recently, two young ladies purchases a island tour from a "local" and they man only charged them $20... until they got clear to the other side of the island, and then told them it would cost $100 to get back. When they could not produce the money, he left them stranded. Imagine the panic! Fortunately, these smart girls had taken a photo of the ship's emergency number, and the ship staff were able to arrange transportation back to the ship.

This is a lot of information. Let us know in the comments if you have any questions. Or you can e-mail us at navigatevacations@gmail.com

Thank you and happy Cruising!

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