Thinking about a Cruise?

Have you been dreaming about taking a cruise?  

I have taken a few work cruises but last year when we sailed on RCCL Harmony of the Seas it was very different because I had to figure out a few things and not just go where I was told!
Plus I was traveling with my husband so he expected me to know everything!   I was actually stressed about what to do next. Lucky for me my niece loves to cruise so I asked her a lot of questions. But you might not have anyone to help you, unless you book with a travel consultant, we love to answer your questions!

 I have clients leaving on Sunday for their first cruise so as I was sending them information I thought it would be a great blog idea!  

Let's assume you booked your cruise with a travel consultant which is your first good decision as we can get you the same pricing as you can booking it yourself but now you have a travel assistant to answer your questions, book your air, pre night hotel, and answer all of your questions!

My clients are booked On RCCL, they booked their own air, but I did book their pre night cruise hotel because I do recommend you fly to your port the day before so you avoid any flight issues, and you will be minutes from the port.  I selected a hotel that included a airport shuttle (tip- before you go put the hotel phone number in your phone so you are not searching for the number).
It is very fun to just walk around and if you are from Minnesota you will just love the warm weather.

Some hotels offer a shuttle to the port for a fee, which is what we usually do, but you can take a taxi, Lyft or Uber, I also use SuperShuttle so you have some options.  

When you book a cruise you do your own online check in, which is nice because it is all done when you arrive at port, they also recommend when you should arrive at port so they can hopefully avoid long lines.  You also have your cruise planner which is fun to pick the shows you want to see (included in your cruise).  And you can look at all of the tour options, believe me they have something for everyone.  

When you arrive at port your driver will drop you off at the luggage area, I have to admit this seemed crazy just leaving your bag but you will have a luggage tag so it is a easy process!  Remember carry on your bags that have valuables, medicine, documents just in case!

Once you are on the ship you can go enjoy lunch or a drink until your cabin is ready, and enjoy your home on the water for hopefully a week or more.

When you are considering a cruise there are a lot of things to decide, first you need to decide your budget which will determine your cabin!  What about travel protection, this couple opted for the travel protection which is good because they had to change dates, so as their travel consultant/assistant I filled out the forms for them, and made sure when the voucher came it was applied to the new cruise.  Then do you want to pre pay your tips, I did the first year but this year I am not, you will be charged daily unless you go to the customer care desk to have them removed or changed (this is if you want to tip on your own to your room attendant, servers in dining rooms and bars).  Everyone works so hard on the cruise so we actually pre paid ours last year plus tipped!  Then you can decide on what you want to do when you get to ports, but it is a fun process.  
Of course anyone can book their own cruise, but why when you can have someone that has knowledge and experience help you.  

If you have questions or would like a quote on a cruise or any travel give me a call 763-878-2763 or email me cindy@vacationsrspecialtravel.com.