First Day of Your Cruise: What I Would Do
If you are going on a cruise and want to make the most of your first day, you’re in the right place. After going on several cruises the past several years, I have picked up on a few helpful hints to help you have a great first day. I can’t wait to share them with you!
Before you get to the port:
When you pack your carry on bags and your luggage make sure to think about the things you want handy and accessible before your suitcases arrive at your room. This would apply to you If you give a porter your suitcase before boarding the ship (more on that later). On the first day, there are usually times where you have a bit of time to sit and wait. Because of this, I recommend bringing a book or activity to do. You will want them in case you’re waiting in the terminal to board the ship or waiting on the ship itself. Sometimes cruisers also bring or wear their swimsuits so they can swim while waiting for their room to get ready.
On embarkation day, You will also want to arrive at the port earlier than your boarding time so you have time to park (if you drive your own car) and make it through security. If you are getting transportation from another source, extra leeway time is always good in case there is a problem. If a problem does occur, you will have plenty of time to figure out another solution and not miss your trip. If you arrive before your boarding time, there are terminals that you can sit in while you wait. These terminals have bathrooms available and plenty of seating for guests.
When you arrive at the port, you will have the option to give your luggage to a porter before you go through security. This can help lighten the load of what you are carrying. While not required, it is nice to tip the porters who take your luggage. Your luggage will be placed outside your cabin sometime throughout the day. Because it can take several hours after boarding for your luggage to arrive at your room, it is best to pack anything you need before then in your carry on bag.
After boarding the ship:
The first thing I recommend doing when you get on the ship is heading to your muster station. This safety step is required of all passengers before the ship leaves port. Usually this will not take too long and you can then go about your day enjoying the ship.
In addition to finding your muster station, you will want to connect your phone to the ship’s wifi. Before you head out for your cruise, you will want to download the cruise line’s app on your phone to see everything related to your specific trip. Once on the ship you can connect your phone to the ship’s wifi and you will have access to all the information you will need about food and entertainment while on board. This can be very helpful as you plan out your days. I love to plan out my day the night before, but more on that later.
Walking the ship is one of my favorite things to do on the first day. You can do it right when you get on board or anytime throughout the day. My family and I usually do this after our room has opened up and we can set our carry on bags down in our room. This “ship walk” is like a big adventure. You get to see so many new things. We will start on any floor we like and walk each floor one by one checking out all the restaurants and things to do on each deck. Talk about getting your steps in! By walking each deck, it really helps us get a feel for where things are located on the boat. This also helps us make sure we don’t miss anything on our trip. So, if you can, I highly recommend giving this a try.
Because a lot of the guests board the ship before or near lunch time, another thing I recommend is grabbing food at one of the restaurants on board while you are waiting for your room to be ready. While they tend to be busy at this time and you may have to wait a little longer than you would on another day but it is usually worth the wait. There are so many restaurants on board and this is a great time to check one off your list. It also provides you with a place to sit and relax if you want to (and set down the bags you carried on). Thankfully we have never had too big of a problem finding a seat with just a little looking.
When your room is ready:
Yay! Your room is finally ready and you can go put your things away and relax. The first thing I recommend doing is a safety check. Take some time to make sure you know exactly how to get to your muster station from your room in case of an emergency. You will also want to check and see if your room has the correct number of life jackets for those staying in your room as well as that they are the correct size for each person. You can request more if needed.
The next thing I would do is wipe down the room (or at least the high touch areas). I do this on every cruise to help stay healthy and not get sick. We bring disinfectant wipes and wipe down counters, remotes, handles and anything else we think may be touched by guests. The room attendants do a good job of cleaning but I just like the extra level of protection.
After arriving at your room, your room attendant will come by and knock on your door to meet you. This is a great time to let them know if you have any specific preference as well as if you need your room set up a certain way. For example. If three people are staying in your room, you would need the couch made into a bed. Or if you need extra supplies feel free to let them know. My family and I have had great experiences with all the room attendants we have had. They have been so helpful. And who wouldn’t love all those fun towel animals they leave in your room each day! Some of my favorites so far have been a koala and a monkey.
You may also want to take a moment and store any valuables you brought with you in the room safe. A few things I suggest putting in the safe are your passports, keys and any extra money you don’t want to carry around. It can be a convenient place to store things until you are ready for them, such as on port days. You may want to bring your IDs, passports and some extra money with you when you disembark at the ports your ship stops at and then re-store everything in the safe when you get back. One big note here though…DON’T FORGET to check and get everything out of the safe before you leave the ship on your last day!
Once your luggage arrives at your room this can be a good time to get your things settled for the week. While I don’t often use the drawers and dressers in the room, I do take advantage of the wardrobe. If you plan to dress up for the fancy nights in the main dining room and have brought dress clothes with you, you can hang those up to keep them nice, Thankfully these closet spaces are usually big enough to hold all the clothes you brought for your trip. At least it was for my family for our week long cruise.Â
While resting in your room for awhile sounds amazing, you may want to consider going out to one of the decks when it’s time to set sail. This is especially true if you have an interior room or if it is one of your first cruises. It’s a neat experience to watch as you start to sail out into the ocean. Cruise lines also usually have sail away parties you can attend on one of the main decks. I tend to skip the party and instead head to one of the top decks to watch the views as we sail away.Â
A few more ideas and suggestions:
Once you get on board and connect to the ship’s wifi through their app, you will have access to the schedule of the different events happening throughout the trip. Sometime after you board, you will want to take some time and plan out your evening. That way you won’t miss anything you may have wanted to attend. Along with this, one of the things I do each evening is look over the schedule for the next day. I make a plan for the next day of the events I want to attend, what to do in between those events, as well as look over the menus for the dining room. If you have any dietary restrictions, you may also like to take a trip down to the dining room and talk with the staff about modifying food options or other dietary/allergy friendly dishes they have available.Â
If you are a regular cruiser, please share in the comments how you like to spend your first day at sea. And if you’re new to cruising, I can’t wait to hear about your experience! – Pepper and Passports
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If you are cruising with Carnival here are some of the things I did on my first cruise – 14 Things I Did On My First Carnival Cruise
And if you are traveling on the Carnival Jubilee here are the free dining options you can find on board – Free Dining Options on the Carnival Jubilee
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