If you’ve arrived at this page, it’s likely that you’ve
reached here because you’re researching for an up and coming trip and also because
it’s your first time Cruising and you need some tips. Because that’s exactly
what I did after we booked our trip, I had so many questions but didn’t really
find the information I was looking for. So I hope that this Blog entry can help
you in some way in planning your vacation J
- Aside from the clothes you wear, don’t forget to pack a formal wear for the formal night. There are a lot of people that didn’t dress up, so if you really are against getting all dressy then by all means wear whatever is comfortable, but you might feel a bit weird being the only few who are casual on the formal night. The formal night only happens one night on the cruise ship and it’s a night to welcome the captain. It’s a pretty special occasion where you get to drink free bubbly J and see the Captain introduce himself and the important people on the cruise.
- There is no need to bring your own towels, as it’s provided for in the room and at the swimming pool. But please do bring your own toiletries and toothbrush. Apart from a bar soap and shampoo (really bad one) from a dispenser, there is nothing else provided in the bathroom.
- And don’t forget your sunscreen! There are no amenities shop as such on board, there is a mini gift shop that has a very small shelf of things that you might’ve forgotten to bring, but of course be prepared to pay a premium.
- Bring a Lanyard or an ID Holder! You'll be needing your Sea Pass card for everything as it is a cashless system onboard. And you need your Sea Pass Card for some show seatings, activities, picking your kids up from the kids club, getting on and off the ship etc. So it can get annoying just taking your Sea Pass Card in and out all the time from your wallet, bag, or pocket. This is one tip I wish someone would've told us!
- Board the Ship earlier. For our particular cruise, the ship departed at 5pm. But you can start boarding at 11.30 eventhough on the email you receive for the pre-departure info it will tell you the time you should board for your deck. For example, our Deck is 2, so the letter stated to board the ship at 3pm. Well we arrived at 11.30am at the cruise terminal without any problem and managed to get on board by about 12.30 – 1pm. So you can get on board earlier to explore, have the buffet lunch and even swim if you want. If you want to swim, make sure you carry on your bathing suits in a hand carry as your luggage may not arrive in your room until late afternoon or early evening.
- 5.30pm or 8pm Dining Time. We were assigned the 8pm time because apparently the 5.30pm was full. I was fine with that because 5.30 is too early for us. But keep in mind this timing is just for the Main Dining Room where you get served a 3 course meal fine dining style. The Buffet at the other restaurant is open from 6.30pm and you're free to come and go there anytime within the opening hours. I personally don't have dinner early, so 8pm timing is fine for me. The only problem with this timing is when there's a show in the theater at 9.30pm, sometimes your dinner needs to be rushed.
- Regarding Shore Excursions. Shore excursions are not compulsory, you can choose to stay onboard if you wish. Or you can choose to get off the ship and just go around on your own. There are pros and cons to each. Going on your own or organising your own tour is cheaper. However if you go with a tour organised by the cruise you have the safety of getting back on the cruise on time or if that tour is late the cruise will wait for you. Supposedly the cruise will not wait for you if you come back late. (But I have my own theories on this). And also remember that even if you decide to, say take a taxi into town when you're in one of the ports such as Langkawi or Port Klang, there might actually not be any taxis available for you to take for a very long time thus wasting precious exploring time.
- Bring a drink bottle that you can fill up with water on board. There are no free water in the room, but you're free to fill up your own drink bottles from the many water dispensers scattered around the ship. Just remember to use a cup to fill up the bottle and not fill it directly under the dispenser.
- There are drink packages that you can buy, ranging from USD$8 to $60+ per day. It will entitle you to have unlimited sodas, or cocktails or whatever depending on the package. But if you don't sign up, never fear, there is plenty of iced or warm water for free as well as tea (not sure about coffee as I'm not a coffee drinker), and in the buffet restaurant there is free lemonade, ice tea and strawberry and kiwi juice during the meal times.
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