Pre-Cruise Prep—What Line Does it Best?

Not that you need any help getting pumped up for your upcoming trip, but the cruise lines do vary quite a bit in what they tell you once you’ve put that deposit down.

 
And of the lines we’ve sailed with most recently—Princess, Royal Caribbean and Celebrity—my first prize for pre-cruise promo goes to Princess.
 
Communication from Celebrity and Royal Caribbean was spotty and all about driving revenue with drink packages and excursions. Celebrity, however, gets kudos for being the only one of the three lines to still offer to send you color adhesive luggage tags. (For RCI and Princess, you have to print up your own and staple or tape them to your bags.)
 
While Princess does its share of tempting you with ways to spend extra dough, it also works hard to inform and excite. Here’s a brief summary of what you can expect before you sail:
 
Princess’ patter begins early. The cruise line begins its email chats with you even before you’ve paid for the whole trip. The captain welcomes you onboard, tells you a bit about himself, and a column appearing in every email going forward gives an update of what you’ve left to do before the trip. Like submit final payment. Make sure your passport is up to date. And check in online.
 
Read, see and hear. About once a month and then sooner as you get closer to the trip, you get a message from a different senior officer. There are links to videos of your ship and the bridge web cam. Overviews of available excursions, which you can filter by price range and activity level. Descriptions of dining options with links to videos about the restaurants.
 
Let them entertain you. One especially useful email spotlights the entertainment—including what movie is actually being shown on your trip for Movies Under the Stars, the featured entertainers and song-and-dance production shows. There’s even a sample issue of Princess Patter, the onboard newsletter.
 
With all the hours we spend these days our eyes glued to a screen, I have to hand it to Princess for making what we spend online with the cruise line more than worth our time. And for giving us yet another reason to feel our vacation dollars are well spent.
 
Musing’s Top Tip: Family or friends curious about cruising but afraid to take the plunge? Consider Princess’ “Bon Voyage Experience.” You can bring your guests onboard on embarkation day and for $30 a person, they’ll get four hours of lunch plus wine, guided tour of the ship and souvenir photo. It might be a great way to get them to “yes” if you want to bring them along the next time you cruise. Reservations for this program are required, so see Princess’ website for more.

Is a Balcony Worth the Extra Cost?

If you’re planning your first cruise, no doubt you’ve pondered this question. The truth is, once you get your first balcony, you’ll never turn back.

Your budget may be tight and a balcony may not be an option. But if it is, consider springing for one.

Here’s why:

No better way to nap. The slap of the water against the ship is a built-in noise machine. Add a glass of wine and you’ve got napping nirvana.

Voilà, a two-room stateroom. Spouse still sleeping? Slip out onto the balcony. He can keep sleeping. And you’ve got your personal space.


Ft. Lauderdale sail-away from the balcony of Celebrity's Constellation

Breakfast and the balcony are made for each other. Slide open the doors, step outside in your robe and breakfast by the sea. A great way to begin the day!

The quiet! Many people get balconies, but hardly anyone uses them. Oh, you’ll see lots of folks on the verandahs on sail-away day. But after that, they’re too busy in the casino, shops and around the pool to hang out on their balconies.

The smoke’s all gone. With most of the cruise lines banning smoking on the balcony, you can now breathe deeply with no ciggie smoke blowing by.

You’ll see things others won’t. The balcony allows you to be at the right place at the right time, camera in hand, fired up and ready to go. We’ve captured some amazing shots, like stupendous sunsets. A rainbow over the Dominica mountains. A schooner checking out St. Lucia’s Petons just as the sky explodes with color. And we didn’t need to jockey for position on a crowded deck to capture it all. 

St. Lucia and the schooner from the balcony of HAL's Noordam

Soak up the sun away from view. While your balcony may not always be on the sunny side of the ship, when it is, you get to bathe in the warmth without being shoulder-to-shoulder with your fellow cruisers.

Get out of the cold. We debated whether to get a balcony on our Alaskan cruise, but were glad we did. In late May, Glacier Bay was a toasty 49 degrees. We took in the glaciers from our verandah, and then bopped back into the room to feel our fingers again.



On the balcony of the Caribbean Princess.

Stargazer’s delight. The night sky, unbroken by trees or power lines, presents a planetarium-worth view of what’s above you.