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Here are the top cruise tips and tricks to help you either save money or make your money go farther – brought to you by the Crafting Chicks, who were recently sponsored by Del Sol on a Royal Caribbean Oasis of the Seas ‘CLICK Retreat’ cruise.
1. Research Your Ship
The Oasis of the Seas was an amazing and very large ship. I’ve cruised before and never had a problem with my sense of direction. On this ship, however, I could never get my bearings. They had amazing resources to help you find where you were, like large touch screen-TVs near every elevator so you could find a place to eat or to show you your location. And, large models of the ship to help you, too. Of course, I had my trusty roommates, Amy from Super Healthy Kids, and Stacy from Kid Stuff World, who made sure I was going the right direction. They had a better sense of where things were.
2. Research Port Excursions in Advance
Make sure you plan your excursions in advance. There’s nothing worse then walking off the ship and not knowing what to do. You don’t have to plan the excursions on the ship or do any excursions at all if you want. But, just make a plan before hand. On my last cruise to Alaska, we missed out on a few things because we were too slow in planning. You don’t want to miss out, believe me.
We were lucky to have Royal Caribbean offer the CLICK Retreat attendees some amazing excursions. You could attend these excursions if you wanted, or find something else you’d like to do. I opted to stay with the group and see the amazing places Royal Caribbean had set up for us.
3. Take Advantage of On-Board Activities
Cruise ships have a little of something for everyone. Research before you go and see what there is to do. You’ll also get the daily schedule showing what is happening on the ship that day. From Karaoke to games, there’s bound to be something for everyone. Have fun and join in.
We were lucky enough to have had Sabra sponsor some yoga classes, and me personally with some Cariloha Bamboo Fit wear. I’ll let you guess how hard yoga can be on a swaying cruise ship. But it was tons of fun. There are also a lot of quiet places where you can relax if you aren’t into all the socializing. If you make yourself acquainted with your ship earlier on, you’ll be able to find these great spots to return to often.
4. Eating on the Ship
So, cruise ship food is suppose to be top notch. Eating as much as you can in the main dining room is my best advice. Breakfast and lunch are served there, not just dinner. If something doesn’t taste like you wished, order something else. They’re always happy to give you what you want. If you have food restrictions, make sure you let your server know from the start. Stacy was waited on hand and foot by the awesome staff because of her gluten allergy. They brought her all sorts of specialties because she let them know and was so sweet to them.
Don’t be afraid to spend a little money on the specialty dining as well. For a cover charge, you can get an exclusive environment to eat in. We were treated to a couple specialty restaurants, and the food was amazing. I would rather skip the beverage package and eat at one of these dining areas instead.
5. Don’t Fall in the Souvenir Trap
Yes, this is a real thing. You want to take something back to your family and friends, so you buy them some magnet or spoon because it shows where you’ve been. If that’s your thing, great, but I was so tired of looking at the same thing in every store, and it all seemed like junk that would be tossed out in no time.
That’s until we walked into the Del Sol store. This place was a goldmine. I knew right off my girls would LOVE it. Everything changes color in the sun. There are Disney and Marvel superhero shirts, nail polish, frisbees and the list goes on. I got a shirt for each girl and some finger nail polish. I really love the polish myself.