Fancy going on a cruise for your next holiday? Well you have come to the right place.
Cruising is fast becoming one of the best ways to see the world. Where else can you get meals, entertainment, accommodation and discover multiple destinations for less than it would cost to rent a hotel room per day?
From getting the best deal to where to position your room on the ship, we can help you maximise your dollar and let you in on a few secrets that will make your trip more enjoyable and get the most out of your next.
#1 Choosing Your Cruise
With cruise ports in nearly every country around the world you are spoilt for choice when choosing a cruise. If you are a first time cruiser and want to ‘try before you buy’ P&O offer sampler cruises that leave from Melbourne and Sydney that usually got for 3 nights.
If you want to avoid the added cost of a flight, P&O, Carnival and Princess Cruises leave from most capital cities in Australia to destinations like Vanuatu, New Caledonia, Fiji, New Zealand and Asia which gives you a good mix of sea days and days at port.
There are many websites now that can help you find the perfect cruise and can even narrow it down by destination, length and time of year. We like expedia.com.au, cruiseguru.com.au and cruisecritic.com.au.
#2 Choosing Your Cruise Ship
Are you a couple, a family, a party group or even travelling on your own? Each cruise line company is different and often cater more for one type of person than the other.
For example, if you are cruising with a young family then Disney Cruises are you go to, they know how to entertain kids.
On the other side, older groups would be better off on a Princess Cruise that focus more on destinations and activities while the young party crowd would love Celebrity Cruises as they have great nightlife and a lot of bars.
#3 Wait for a Cruise Sale
If you are booking in advance and have a bit of time up your sleeve, most cruise lines will offer some very attractive sale fares and bonuses like in room credit, upgrades to better rooms and drink packages.
Or if you are itching to go and don’t mind packing with only a weeks’ notice, you can get amazing last minute deals with ships wanting to sell off their empty rooms before they sail.
We find that checking directly on the cruise lines official website will get you the best last minute deals, so once you have chosen the cruise or destination that you want to go to, make sure to keep your eyes peeled.
#4 Selecting Your Room
So you’ve decided where you want to go and what ship, now it’s time to pick what sort of room you want. Most rooms will fit up to 4 people with a bit of a squeeze but the more people you can fit in, the less you have to pay, sometimes it can cut your fare by half.
Then you have a choice of an interior room, a window or a balcony. If you don’t plan on being in you room much and don’t mind not having a window, the interior rooms are the best value. However, the rooms with a window are only ever $100 to $200 extra and are worth the money for the view and the sunlight.
Balconies are really only needed if you are sailing somewhere scenic like Alaska, otherwise they are a very expensive luxury, especially when you have oodles of deck space to go on out of your room.
Location is also important to help control movement on the boat as it does get rocky. Choose a low floor, lower the better and try and get as central as you can. Picture a seesaw, a lot of movement up the ends but fairly steady if you were to sit in the middle.
#5 Controlling Seasickness
Some people don’t get it, but a lot of us do, luckily seasickness can be managed with a bit of preparation and timing. First, head down to the pharmacy and get a product called Travel Calm or similar, not the ‘natural’ ginger kind as they do nothing.
At least an hour before the boat leaves you want to take your first dose, now they may make you a bit drowsy, but that is miles better than seasick trust me!
The ship has sailed and you are feeling good, take your next dose before dinner (providing your ship sailed at about 3pm).
The next morning, have one more dose and then you should be right for the rest of the cruise. You would only need to take any more if there is bad weather and ship starts swaying or if your sea legs haven’t quite kicked in yet.
#6 Food and Drinks on-board
The food on board cruise ships is always right up there with good quality restaurant food. With a buffet and a main restaurant on-board every ship there’s really no need to over indulge in the ‘speciality’ restaurants that charge an average of $40 per person, unless of course you are celebrating a special occasion.
Booking a time in the main restaurant for dinner is also a wise move. Every night you will be at the same table and have the same waiters who will get to know you and have a bit of fun with you, plus it gives you a nice break from the queues at the buffet.
Alcohol isn’t included in your fare, but if you think you will drink a lot over your cruise, you can sign up for the drinks package which is usually around $80 per day. Most beer, wine and spirits average out to about $8 per glass, so if you don’t think you can guzzle over 8 glasses a day, maybe stick to paying as you go.
#7 Cruise Shore Tours
If you have ever been on a cruise ship you will have dropped your jaw at the price of some of the shore tours that you can purchase directly from the cruise company.
At most ports you will find a plethora of tours, busses and activities that you can book onshore and save yourself hundreds of dollars.
For example, a city tour by bus booked on-board the ship would cost around $70, but booked on land from a tour company you would be looking at about $15 for the exact same thing.
#8 The Spa
The spa is amazing and offers a multitude of different services like massages, facials, teeth whitening and hairdressing. But, the prices are quite steep compared to a spa you would find on land.
If you must use the spa services, the best time to grab a great deal is on the first day, port days and on the last day where they will offer you great bundle deals and discounts.
Also, if you attend the seminars that the spa holds to showcase their services, they usually have some pretty good deals that they offer the people who attend, so keep an eye on the list of activities for the day.
#9 Choose a Hangout Spot
It may sound silly but choosing a hangout spot early on comes in real handy when travelling with a group or even just a couple.
Remember that on majority of cruises you will have no phones or internet so meeting up can sometimes be a nightmare especially on the large ships.
So on the first day after you have explored the ship and found a comfy couch or a great bar, make that the meeting or hangout spot where you can find your friends and family between your next activity or meal.
#10 Paying your Cruise bill
On a cruise money never changes hands, everything is purchased with a cruise card that gets activated when you check in on the first day.
Most people link a credit card and your total bill at the end of the cruise will be automatically deducted the day you leave, this method is quite handy and makes it very easy to just swipe away your hard earned cash on things you may not need.
We suggest using either cash or debit card where you transfer money onto your cruise card and top it up as you need it. You won’t get any credit card fees at the end of the cruise or be tempted to splurge on art or expensive massages.
