Hello friends! Today we thought we would talk to you about a subject that is near and dear to our hearts.
Friends often ask us what are favorite way to travel is. Our answer is always cruising.
There are so many reasons why and today we thought we would share them with you.
1. It’s economical. When you go on a trip you usually have to pay for airfare, your hotel, all of your meals, and some way of entertaining yourself the whole time you’re there. This can get pricey folks. With a cruise all of that is included. There is constant entertainment, from sun up to sun down, more food than should be allowed, and the most fabulous wait staff that is at your beck and call 24-7.
2. Food, food, and did I mention food? While on a regular vacation, we tend to splurge on food here and there, but we don’t like blowing our entire budget eating. Here is where cruising is spectacular. There is food being served on the ship 24 hours a day.
Not just generic, bland, buffet food. I’m talking delicious 5 star dining!
On the Carnival ships we have sailed on, they have a 24 hour pizza bar that will knock your socks off, and also a 24 hour ice cream bar.
3. You can do as little or as much as you want to. On Carnival ships, they slip a newsletter into your cabin each night with the next day’s itinerary. There are activities literally all day long. We have done everything from Harry Potter Trivia, to watching an Ice sculpture contest, touring the chef’s kitchen, cringing through a hairy chest competition, watching movies under the stars on the deck, etc. You can go from one activity to the next all day, or you can just chill out watching movies in your room while eating room service. Or you can be like us and do a little of both. We usually do several activities, eat a big lunch, got back to the room and take a nap and then get ready for photos and a fancy dinner. We love the freedom that cruising offers you.
4. You get to see cool places. When you cruise you get to travel to several amazing locations all on the same trip! I am a restless traveler, plus I have just about everywhere on my bucket list. While cruising, I get to cross several places off my list each time! For example: on our last cruise we sailed to St. Lucia, St. Maarten, St. Thomas, Barbados, and St. Kitts. I loved each and everyone of those places. If we had just gone to a resort somewhere, we only would have been able to see one.
5. Cruises are great for families. Day to day life is busy. Between jobs and school and a million other things, sometimes I feel like we are often just passing each other in the hallways, let alone connecting. When you are together in a cabin, on excursions, and eating dinners together, you are constantly connecting and making memories.
6. Cruising is great for kids. We started cruising when the unnamed child was 5, and it was perfect for her then since they had so many activities geared toward all ages of children, such as learning to dance with a showgirl, to banana split eating contests, to making their own cakes. They also had a kids’ buffet, where they served chicken nuggets, pizza, and mac and cheese. They also had different activities planned for young children, tweens, and teenagers. Now that she is 18, she hangs with us old folks or goes off to lay out by the pool on her own. The ship also has a wonderful daycare, which is included in your ticket price.
7. It’s like date night every night. Life is busy, and Topher and I don’t often get to have a date night. Plus date nights can get pricey. On the ship we always take advantage for eating in the formal dining room. You get dressed up, go get photos taken, and then have an amazing meal which we don’t have to pay for at the end of the night.
8. The excursions. The ship offers excursion day trips when you get to port where you can do awesome activities you can’t do anywhere else! We swam with dolphins in the Dominican Republic, played with a sea lion in St. Thomas, toured a rain forest in Puerto Rico, snorkeled with sea turtles in Barbados, and swam with stingrays in Antigua just to name a few.
9. It’s a great way to meet new people. On some of our trips we have opted to dine with other families. You sit at the same table every night, with the same people, with the same wait staff. We have met people from all over and get to learn about their lives. To this day we still talk about some of the families we have met in the past and check in with them on FB.
10. The amazing wait staff. As I said above, you have the same waiters/waitresses every day. They are usually from different parts of the world, and we get to know them and learn about their families and their countries. They also learn about you, and it was so nice getting to the table every night and they had lemons waiting for me, a Sprite for the kiddo, and a glass of wine for Topher.
I love this!! I’ve been thinking about a cruise for years but have been nervous to try it. But with six kids with a wide age spread, I think everyone would find something fun to do. And okay, you had me at 24-hour pizza bar.