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Cruise wreckers can jeopardize your entire trip. Don’t let that happen. There are numerous things you should know before you cruise, and I have written about many tips and tricks. But cruise wreckers can make or break a cruise for you.
For instance, if you do this one thing wrong then you might miss your sailing entirely and that would be the worst possible way to begin a vacation. Start your cruise in a relaxed and prepared manner and your time aboard ship is likely to be so much more enjoyable.
Table of Contents
SIX CRUISE WRECKERS – DON’T Jeopardize Your Cruise
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GET THERE EARLY
– Oh it’s tempting to travel the same day to the port in California, New York or Florida. It saves money after all, right? WRONG.
What if your flight from Detroit, Calgary, or Toronto is delayed due to weather? What if they are stuck deicing a plane for hours? It’s pretty easy, especially in the winter months to miss your sailing time entirely due to flights. And also you really don’t want to miss something this important and expensive.
Biggest cruise wreckers – missed the sailing time due to flight issues. GET there the day before. Get your bearings. Relax, make sure your suitcases arrive with you. On our first cruise, we were very grateful for advice to get there early because our suitcases did not arrive with us in Tampa. In fact, they arrived at about 3 a.m. the day we were set to sail.
[tweetthis]Get there early. Never take chances with your cruise sailing #TTOT [/tweetthis]
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BOARD EARLY IN THE DAY
– Get to the Port early. Not at 9 a.m. or anything but if the ship sails at 4 and boarding time is 1 p.m. then be ready to board at 1 p.m. or 1:30 p.m. TRUST me on this. Although your stateroom is not likely to be ready that early, you will be able to relax, have food, check out the ship, swim or drink or explore. You will beat the big rush and the lineups. Plus you can EAT and play right away. Sometimes the cruise personnel will get started signing kids up for kids clubs and youth programs, and you might also be able to check out the schedule and signup for excursions. Get that technical stuff out of the way early.
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PACK SWIMSUITS AND MEDICATION or Other ESSENTIALS in a carry on
– When you get in, your luggage will be delayed a bit so, carry with you what you need so that you can enjoy the first few hours of your cruise before departure time. See point 2 – you can have fun as soon as you board but you might still have to wait to get into your room, so be prepared. Pack your swimsuits to dive in immediately. And always keep your medication organized and nearby.
PORT ETIQUETTE
– Do not lose track of time. The ship will leave without you. It’s tempting to think the ship will wait when you are having a blast at Atlantis and racing down the waterslides. BUT it will not wait. I have seen personnel stressing out over people who don’t make it back in time and I have also seen people running to get back on board seconds before the ship is slated to pull away. DON’T BE THAT PERSON!
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COPY Your Passport and Identification
– keep a photocopy with you when you leave ship. You are always best to have your passport with you, but I have learned to travel with a photocopy of everything on me, and also leave a copy at home (if you are traveling with someone else outside your family group.) Once I was with a person whose passport got retained accidentally at a bank in Africa. That was a brutal and stressful last few hours for her. Be prepared. Have photocopies of all documents. Have phone numbers of your travel agent, your embassy in a couple of different countries you are visiting and also your emergency contact at home should you require any help. Keep a phone charged and ready when you travel, period. There are days when you are AT SEA and you should be able to disconnect entirely. But if you are on an excursion and anything happens to you, or your companions, you need to be able to contact your emergency person. If you lose your passport click here for what to do. [tweetthis]Copy vital identifying information before you leave home #travel #IFWTWA[/tweetthis]
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Check Your Insurance BEFORE
– No Insurance can be one of the worst possible cruise wreckers. There are one million different types of insurance and you need to check what you have when you travel. I learned the importance of this when traveling to Zambia. Think about this – if you are suddenly incapacitated in any way and your family has to fly you home and you have NO COVERAGE for that, then that’s cruise wreckers at its worst.
Cruises are fantastic opportunities to see bits of the world in bite sized pieces. We are big fans of cruise travel and have taken one every year with the kids since 2014. There is no shortage of things to do on the boat ever. AND, the food is pretty much always GREAT. Don’t let cruise wreckers spoil the voyage.
