The Siberian American: Seven Reasons I Choose to Cruise

Monday, September 29, 2014

Seven Reasons I Choose to Cruise

I tell my husband (often) that I could seriously cruise every single day of my life and be perfectly happy. We have two cruises coming up before the end of the year, and I’m giddy just thinking about them. Here’s what I don’t get: when I tell some of my friends about my cruising adventures, they cringe. I get that everyone’s opinion is different, but these people have never been on a cruise. So I’ve made it my personal mission to convince others to give cruising a try.

Seven Reasons I Choose to Cruise:

1. Unpack once, see multiple destinations: 
When we travel, we prefer to visit more than one place. When we do this on land, this involves packing and unpacking your suitcase every time. I love to travel, but one of my least favorite things in the world is packing. During a cruise, I can get a taste of several destinations and come back to the ship every night. It’s true that there is not always a lot of time spent in each port, but we like to view cruises as sampler platters. If we love a place, we can come back for an extended visit.

2. Sea days give me a chance to relax between ports: 
Although I love seeing new places, sea days are always a favorite part of cruising. I am usually really go, go, go on my vacations, and by the time I get home, I want to sleep for days. Sea days give me a chance for a breather in between spending days running around a port. I can wake up late, read a book on the balcony, and participate in whatever the ship has going on. I love that each itinerary has a sea day so I can relax!

3. There are lots of food and entertainment options:
I really enjoy the activities on board cruises. I have been to cooking classes, ice carving classes, musicals, a diving competition, movies, and more. I have never had trouble finding fun things to do. Then there’s the food. I love trying food I would hesitate to order at a restaurant. If I don’t like it, I can always get something else (and make my husband eat the first thing!).

4. It’s so easy to plan: 
Sometimes I need a vacation where I don’t have to plan every second. All I have to do is figure out what to do each day in port and how to get to the cruise. On other vacations, we usually cram as much as we can into each day, and it takes time to plan each hour, including what to eat and where to stay. Cruise planning is much simpler.

5. Being around water is amazing:
I absolutely love being around water. There is nothing more beautiful than a sunset from a cruise ship, and I love sitting out on a balcony, looking out on the ocean.

6. I get to dress up: 
I enjoy shopping for dress options before each cruise. I love any excuse to dress up, and formal nights are so much fun!

7. I can truly unplug:
This is a big one for me. My work e-mail is on my phone, and on a normal vacation, I am constantly checking it because I hate being behind and coming back to 500 e-mails. That’s not to mention my obsession with keeping up with the news on all forms of social media. If I turn on my phone on a cruise, I would get crazy roaming charges, and Internet fees are expensive. Cruises basically force me to unplug, and it’s glorious.  

18 comments:

  1. Love these reasons! I will be going on my first Cruise in November!

    ~Ashley @ A Cute Angle
    acutelifestyle.blogspot.com

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  2. i really want to go on a cruise one day but i am slightly terrified of ships. but, one day. they just seem like such a great idea! i will definitely be asking you for tips if and when we do.

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  3. Such true reasons. I love cruises but only been on 1 long one which was to Alaska. The rest have quick 3-day trips through the Caribbean. You have me craving another cruise. lol

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  4. I agree with all of these!! Being able to see multiple places in one trip is probably the most exciting part - plus the food - all the good food!!

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  5. I loved being able to unplug on our honeymoon, so that's something I've thought about for future vacations!

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  6. I have never been on a cruise before, but I have to admit, I'm intrigued by the idea! One of my best friends from high school is a manager of child activities on Disney cruises, and it seems like she has a real blast doing it :)

    Cat
    http://oddlylovely.com

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  7. You make me want to go on a cruise... right now. When I graduated from college, I went on a cruise with 4 girls and we had a blast. The hubs isn't quite as fond of the idea of cruising so maybe I'll make him read this and then book one! I mean, I'm not as well-traveled as you are but I agree with all of your reasons 100%. Enjoy your cruises :)

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    1. I love going on cruises with the girls! I hope you can convince your hubby to try it out! As you know, they're so much fun. :)

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  8. I've never been on a cruise. The price always puts me off--my vacation style is more like roadtrips and sleeping in homes belonging to my relatives. :P But those dress up nights sound like so much fun!

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  9. Love this! I've only ever been on one cruise to Sweden and back to Poland. I want to go on a tropical cruise because I feel like I'm one of the last people who's done that!

    www.jerseygirltexanheart.com

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    1. A cruise to Sweden sounds amazing! I haven't been to Sweden since I was really young and would love to go back. :)

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  10. I laughed when you said you view cruises as a sampler platter! I have only been on one cruise and my bf & I said the same thing. If we really like a specific place we can go back and spend more time. We went to the Bahamas and really liked going places that were off the beaten path. Places less well known for tourists but we also realize that cannot be done at all destinations.

    I also like dressing for the formal dinners but I found it was really cold and thankfully my scarf converts into a shawl but it was still cold in the dining room.

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    1. Aww, I'm sorry you were cold! I haven't noticed that during our cruises.

      The Bahamas is super fun. We like to go off the beaten path too, though we usually do a mixture of touristy things and off the beaten path things. :)

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  11. The one cruise I went on I agree it was nice to unwind and my phone was completely not useable which was such a relaxing feeling!

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  12. I totally agree. Cruises are a great way to see a lot in a short amount of time without the stress of moving around. http://eatallovertheworld.weebly.com/

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  13. So I stumbled on this post while I was on your blog :). So my husband and I have considered cruises soooo often but we're kind of afraid of them due to all the horror stories. I'm glad someone has fun stories and not horror stories!

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  14. That sounds so amazing. I have been dying to go on a cruise for YEARS. Maybe it will finally happen in 2015.

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