Share your top tips for taking a cruise with Royal Caribbean - you could win a £200 Love2Shop voucher NOW CLOSED

[AnnMumsnet]

Following the event day we ran last year on Oasis of the Seas, We have been asked by the team at Royal Caribbean to find out your top tips for cruising - whether this is with the family or without.

So whether you have been on one cruise, or a seasoned cruise lovers - please share your top tips for any MNer who may be contemplating their first family cruise this year.

For example:
~ What appeals to you and your family about a cruise holiday?
~ When's the best time to book?
~ Do you always book the same kind of State Room? What's best for you?
~ What about food and drink? What do you make a beeline for once on board?
~ And entertainment - what's the plan for you and for the DC on a typical day on board?
~ Excursions - do you do your own or go with the ones arranged by the cruise ship? What's the best place you have visited?
~ What is your top tip for cruising?

Please share your tips and thoughts on this thread and you'll be entered into a prize draw where one lucky MNer will win a £200 Love2Shop voucher. Please add your comment by 06-02-2015. Standard Insight T&Cs apply

Thanks and good luck!
MNHQ

you get the least amount of movement in the middle of the ship, and for me a cabin with a window is essential, just for a bit of light - restricted view is fine. I cant get over jet lag otherwise and never know if im coming or going. also if you are prone to sea sickness dont have a bath. you find yourself relaxing in the water one minute only to realise a minute later you are watching the water going up and down, uuuup and dddooowwwnnnn.....

Top tip - take a change of clothing in your hand luggage. You can then change into cooler clothing and not have to wait until your luggage is delivered to the cabin.
Also don't do cruise led excursions - go it alone it's usually cheaper.

I have been on one cruise, around Portugal/Morocco/Canaries.

My top tip is - leave the boat and explore when it stops somewhere!

So many people didn't, just stayed on board sunbathing etc. We always got off and explored, sometimes with the planned excursions, sometimes on our own, and always had an amazing time and saw some wonderful places.

research the places you visit online and often you can find interesting and cheaper excursions yourself by doing your research and booking online before you go

Do not buy any extras unless you know you will actually use it.
Plus make sure you take travel sickness pills. They do really work!

take plenty of reading matter as there's a lot of down time on a cruise (which i love)!

~ What appeals to you and your family about a cruise holiday?

The fact it is all organised for you and you get to see different places, the idea of being 'at sea' is quite romantic.

~ When's the best time to book?

september/october

~ Do you always book the same kind of State Room? What's best for you?

ive only been on one cruise and wish i had of booked a bigger room - ours was a standard room and was quite small.

~ What about food and drink? What do you make a beeline for once on board?

The coffee and big fudgey cookies! the breakfasts are pretty good too with the choices on offer.

~ And entertainment - what's the plan for you and for the DC on a typical day on board?

We just liked entertaining ourselves most of the time with sunbathing. there were shows etc, but nothing seemed that interesting to be honest... watched a few movies in the cinema. loved the evening ball where u get a chance to get all dressed up in a ballgown and suit and got nice pics to take home, that was really special.

~ Excursions - do you do your own or go with the ones arranged by the cruise ship? What's the best place you have visited?
Ocho Rios Jamaica. Mostly went on our own.

~ What is your top tip for cruising?

Save up for the best room available, they are not like hotel rooms! the excursionscan be quite tiring so make sure you know its not going to be a relaxing laze around kind of holiday.

I wish the website had a family section. We cruised before having children but now with 3 children I find it impossible to research prices and which types of cabins we could get. When I get quotes from cruise companies the prices are eye watering so I am confused about how so many people rave about them as family holidays.

I would love to go on a cruise with or without my kids but unfortunately could not afford one at the moment. Will definately look into it when the kids have all grown up and left home. i would plan it well and check to see what is included and would like a nice cabin

Always check out the the 'day stops' before you go, some places are not that safe

We really liked the fact that one boat could provide for different family members' needs and you could go off and do your own thing but also spend lots of time together.

We didn't like the crowded areas of the boat (indoor bars and pool) so sought out the quietest areas of the deck to relax - these places do exist!

There was also a strong focus on families (mainly not British on our boat) eating, playing and dancing together which was lovely to see.

I would choose your cruise based on what food you like as the five course menu on our boat got a bit monotonous after a while and I would have preferred a choice of restaurant!

I would highly recommend a cruise - am always telling people they are great - I am a bit of an addict!!
Research is definitely the key = some cruise company's offer child prices upto 16/18 others stop at 12 - this makes a huge difference.
Excursions - look at what the cruise company are offering and then see if you could do it yourself especially if the ship is docked not far from the main attractions
I found that Norway was a good first cruise - you do not have the 'dreaded' bay of biscay to cope with (I have been through it 8 times and only had bad seas twice) - also in Norway the ship docks right in the towns, so you are just a stroll from the main attractions

I have only been on one cruise, it was a med cruise with Thomson

My top tip would be to choose your excursions and then read the daily on board newsletter as there is so much going on that if you blink you miss something. Also you are never in your cabin what with the excursions and on board activities right up to 1.30 at night so its really not worth upgrading your room.

So many of my friends and family recommended cruising that we finally went on first cruise 4 years ago and are now looking at booking our 3rd! Some cruise operators do not charge for under 18's and this is a huge saving. For us, we are not too worried about the size of the room as we only really sleep and get changed in it. Make sure you check out the daily information sheet as there's always so much to do on board if you choose not to get off at the individual ports. We always go for at least a wander round the area and never go on the organised excursions as they can be so expensive. One other tip, rather than go for buffet breakfast, go down for table service - much more civilized freshly cooked to order. Our kids love cruising and we have all made some really good friends on our travels.

i cant imagine anything worse than being stuck on a ship with other people

please can i have the voucher?

Make sure you take something to entertain yourself. I prefer reading books myself.

I would probably say for me the best time to go was during holiday season as obviously the kids can be looked after by other family members.

I have several tips, but my top one would be to read the terms of the cruise carefully!

Try to use the stairs instead of the lifts whenever possible, with all of that lovely food, it will be difficult not to eat more than you normally do and hence put on weight. At least if you use the stairs , it helps to reduce that guilty feeling.

Many people find booking excursions on board expensive but they do not realise that this is the best way to do it. By booking on board through the ship you will be fully covered on the company insurance if anything goes wrong and will even have the guarantee that the ship will wait for you if the tour is late.....this will not happen if you explore independently and return to the ship late.
Also taking a tour is the best way to get the most your cruise and really experience the different places you are visiting.
I would recommend doing at least 1 or 2 tours to get the best out of yor holiday.

Always book an cabin with a balcony it dispells smells inside rooms can be musty x

I went on a cruise in December last year with my mum.
My top tips are:

1. Use The Baggage Handling Company (google them) to pick your suitcases up from your house and deliver them to your cabin, and at the end of the trip they bring them back to your house too.
2. Pack small amounts of your shampoos, face creams, shower gels, into small plastic bottles. There was a strict 20kg weight restriction on our suitcases.
3. Eat healthy fruit and vegetables at every meal, it's really easy to get 5+ a day. Avoid all the cakes and bread. I ate loads of delicious melon every day, it was heaven.
4. Buy some booze in port and drink it in your cabin as a nightcap, to avoid high bar prices. We bought Port in Portugal and Spanish brandy in Spain.
5. Instead of expensive excursions, we walked into the port town where we were docked. We didn't want to spend hours on a coach to get inland.
6. I loved staying in our cabin because of the balcony - I saw the best sunrises right there, something you won't get if you go for the cheaper inside cabin.
7. Get a good camera. You don't spend long enough in each port to remember it all. My photos are really special and I got some great ones of my mum. She loved the holiday so much she didn't want to go home.

I've never cruised and it's never really appealed, but now I'm wondering whether a cruise is a good option with a 3 year old. Friends have done it with slightly older kids and loved it, but I'm not sure if DD is too small.

My nephew was 3 when we went last year and loved it!

~ What appeals to you and your family about a cruise holiday?
Waking up somewhere different every day, the sheer variety. All the better when it saves the hassle of travelling from place to place with young kids.

~ When's the best time to book?
As far in advance as possible-this is when most freebies tend to be thrown in.

~ Do you always book the same kind of State Room? What's best for you?
A basic interior one is fine if you don't plan to spend much time in the room.

~ What about food and drink? What do you make a beeline for once on board?

Afternoon tea is a real treat-so many types of lovely cake!

~ And entertainment - what's the plan for you and for the DC on a typical day on board?
Kids clubs are great. Plus the pool if not too busy.

~ Excursions - do you do your own or go with the ones arranged by the cruise ship? What's the best place you have visited?
Mixture of both. Bergen in Norway was really interesting and full of character, loved the funicular journey to view the city from up high.

~ What is your top tip for cruising?
Go with the grandparents to share babysitting in the evenings so that everyone gets to see the shows after the kids are in bed.