Cruising can make for a remarkably easy vacation: Unpack once, settle into your stateroom, and wake up somewhere new every day without having to navigate another stressful airport, confusing train station, or backlogged hotel check-in, dragging your bags behind you. But—as frequent cruisers and industry pros know—making the most of a cruise still requires some strategy.
And with so much happening onboard and at port—restaurants, shows, pools, activities, excursions—it’s surprisingly easy to overlook some of the simplest things that can make a sailing better.
Whether you’re preparing for your first cruise or already have a collection of ship key cards as mementos at home, these are the things experts say you should always do.
Monitor the Price… Even After You Book
Hitting “book” on your cruise doesn’t necessarily mean you should stop paying attention to the fare.
“Most people don’t realize the fare can keep dropping after you’ve booked,” says Eric King, founder of CruiseCaptain, a cruise fare-tracking site. And depending on the cruise line, fare type, and timing, travelers may be able to take advantage of a lower price before final payment by requesting a fare adjustment or other accommodation.
King has seen the strategy pay off personally: He says he saved about $2,000 on an upcoming Disney cruise with his family by continuing to monitor the price.
Cruiseline policies vary, so there’s no guarantee that every price drop will translate to savings. Still, King recommends checking the fare every week or two—or asking your travel advisor to keep an eye on it for you.
Make Your Must-Have Reservations Early
If there’s a specialty restaurant you’re determined to try, a particular excursion you don’t want to miss, or a spa treatment you’ve been dreaming about, don’t wait until you’re standing on the ship to start planning.
Multiple cruise experts recommend downloading your cruise line’s app well before sailing and checking when reservations open for the experiences that matter most to you.
“Some cruise shows now require a reservation,” says Steve Griswold, owner of Pixie Vacations. Dining, excursions, activities, and other experiences may also be available to reserve ahead of time, depending on the cruise line and sailing.
Travel advisor Brian Rooney, founder of GetCruiseInfo.com, follows the same rule. “If there’s a specialty restaurant I really want to try, or a spa treatment my wife and I have talked about, I book it as soon as I can,” he says. “I’ve seen the best times disappear pretty quickly on busy sailings.”
Learn the Ship Before You Settle In
Cruise ships can be enormous, and learning the layout early can save you a lot of confused wandering later.
“The first thing I do is walk around and get my bearings,” Rooney says. He finds the theater, restaurants, pool, gym, and other spaces he expects to use throughout the trip. “Twenty minutes spent doing that saves me from looking at a deck map every time I want to go somewhere.”
Griswold similarly recommends exploring shortly after boarding. It’s also a good opportunity to find places you might otherwise miss amid the embarkation-day excitement.
Once you know roughly where everything is, you can put away the map and get down to the much more important business of being on vacation.
Don’t Head Straight to the Buffet
The buffet might seem like the obvious first stop after boarding, but it can also be one of the busiest places on the ship. Instead, Griswold recommends asking a crew member or your travel advisor what other restaurants are serving lunch on embarkation day. There may be a sit-down option where you can start your vacation with a more relaxed meal away from the biggest boarding-day crowds.
And don’t let the buffet become your default for the rest of the sailing, either. Cruise ships may have a range of included and specialty dining venues worth exploring.
“You will be at the buffet often when you are looking for a quick meal,” Griswold says, so he prefers to seek out something different when he first boards.
Explore the Schedule—But Don’t Try to Do Everything
Cruise ships pack a staggering amount of entertainment into each day, and simply checking the daily schedule can reveal activities you’d never know were happening otherwise.
“It’s where all the good stuff hides: the shows, tastings, trivia, deck parties, the works,” King says. Depending on the cruise line, you’ll typically find the schedule in its app or daily onboard program.
But there’s a flip side to all that choice: You don’t have to do everything. (And trying to do everything can actually take the fun out of it all.)
Rooney says first-time cruisers in particular can feel pressure to squeeze as much as possible into the trip. King agrees that some of the best cruise moments come when you stop scheduling them.
“Grab a good chair, slow down, and leave yourself room to just wander into things or enjoy the sea air,” he says.
In other words, check the schedule so you don’t miss what matters to you—not so you can turn your vacation into a series of back-to-back appointments.
Know When You Need to Be Back Onboard—And Don’t Push It
When you head ashore, there’s one appointment you absolutely cannot afford to miss: all-aboard time.
Jason R. Margulies, a maritime attorney and partner at Lipcon, Margulies & Winkleman, P.A., warns travelers to distinguish between the ship’s departure time and the earlier time by which passengers must be back onboard. Be on board when you’re told to be on board—period.
You should also confirm whether the time being communicated for your sailing and port is ship time or local time rather than making assumptions based on your phone.
Margulies recommends setting an alarm well ahead of the designated all-aboard time. He also suggests taking the port agent’s number and ship contact information with you whenever you go ashore, so you know whom to contact if something goes wrong.
Before leaving the ship, check the cruise line’s app or daily program, or ask a crew member, to confirm exactly when you need to return.
Know What You’re Signing Up For on Each Excursion
That spectacular shore excursion might look irresistible in photos, but read beyond the headline before you book.
“Make sure that you check the description of the shore excursion and any restrictions provided,” Margulies says. Cruise excursions typically indicate their activity or difficulty level, and he recommends making sure it corresponds with your physical abilities as well as your expectations for the day (including your comfort with the climate and other factors).
That can be especially important when traveling with children, older relatives, or a multigenerational group whose abilities and comfort levels vary.
And if you’re venturing out independently, build plenty of time into your plans to return to the ship. Cruiseline excursions may offer additional protections when delays occur, while independent operators have their own policies, so understand the terms before booking either option.
Get Outside
With restaurants, shows, lounges, casinos, spas, and countless other distractions onboard, it’s entirely possible to spend a surprising amount of a cruise indoors. But some experts say their most memorable moments happen when they simply step outside.
“Get outside on deck, even in weather you wouldn’t choose,” says Shannon Kendro, an Adventure Life trip planner specializing in river cruises. Some of her favorite cruise memories include watching castles along the Danube at dawn and seeing the St. Lawrence frozen over in January.
Travel advisor Shannon Jones, founder of family travel brand KeeKee’s Big Adventures, recommends heading to the upper deck after dark, too. Far from the light pollution of cities, stargazing at sea can be spectacular, with opportunities to spot constellations, shooting stars, and, under the right conditions, the Milky Way.
Rooney has his own ritual: finding a comfortable spot with a drink and watching sailaway.
After all, yes, those restaurants, entertainment, and shore excursions are all parts of the fun. But every so often, look up from the itinerary, head outside, and appreciate where you are: at sea.
