New Cruisers Tip #1: It’s All Free!

Being a seasoned cruiser, it’s second nature for me to know what’s free and what’s not onboard a cruise. However, when I have discussions with people who have never cruised before, I realize that it’s not so obvious to the first-time cruisers. When I mention “everything” is free on a cruise, one of the most common responses is, “awesome I can drink as much as I want?”. I then have to break the news to them that not everything is free on a cruise. So for those first-time cruisers out there, here’s a list of what’s free on a cruise. Actually, I guess I should be using the word included instead of free, since you’re paying for the cruise. So here’s what’s included in the price of the cruise:

• Buffet food
• Dining room food
• Water and juices
• Access to pools
• Weight room, sauna, steam room, etc.
• Cabin
• Shows
• Contests
• Night clubs
• Going on land at ports
• Limited TV channels
• Other food (grill, pizza, ice cream, fish ‘n chips, etc.)
• Library books and board games
• Decks of cards from the purser’s desk (you can keep these)
• Food and drinks at the cocktail parties
• Getting your photos taken on any night

I think I covered everything. If I missed something, just let me know. Anyway, here is the list of what’s not included:

• Alcohol
  • Includes frozen drinks
  • Includes non-alcoholic versions of the same drinks
• Soda
• Supper clubs and some alternative restaurants
• Casino
• Beach towels (free for use, pay to keep after cruise)
• Tips and gratuities
• Shopping (onboard and offboard)
• Excursions and transportation offboard
• In-cabin movies
• Spa, massages, and all these fancy treatments
• Water bottles in-cabin and when leaving the boat at ports
• Any drinks in the cabin refrigerator/mini-bar
• Wine tastings
• Photos
• Medical treatments at the infirmary
• Anything that is listed at an additional cost
• In addition, taxes, port charges, and fuel supplements are not included in the cost. These are added on to the price of the cruise itself.

My favorite is how first-time cruisers think the drink the servers hand out when you first walk into the deck area on the first day of the cruise is free. A lot of people take them thinking they’re free since they’re being handed out. Some get lucky and realize it’s not free before taking a sip. Others aren’t so lucky. They immediately take a sip, and the server proudly announces it’s not free. “So much for everything being free,” they probably think.

I might not have covered everything. But hopefully this helps sort things out for the first-timers out there.

Oh, the Food!

One of the reasons I love to cruise so much is the food. All day long, there is great food to enjoy. It starts before breakfast… We usually bring danish and coffee back to the room and we’ll enjoy it out on our balcony. This is always something nice to look forward to right after waking up. Sometimes I just want to sleep all morning, but this is something that forces me to get up. If it weren’t for this, I might just sleep right through breakfast!

Next is breakfast. Depending on what we’re feeling that morning, we’ll either go to the buffet or dining room for breakfast. I’d say this is split pretty evenly. Both places have their pros and cons as well. Eating in the dining room is nice because, well, you get served. It’s nice to sit down and enjoy a good breakfast. The bad part is you get a waiter who might not necessarily know you. Either way, it’s still nice to get served. The buffet is nice because I can get what I want, and I can choose how much I want. The second part is the kicker. In the dining room, it’s up the waiter to decide how much I get (unless I specify I want multiple orders). At the buffet, I can get more bacon if I want it, or I get another scoop of eggs if I’m in the mood. It’s all up to me. Of course, the downside is that there aren’t always tables available, and that you have to wait in line. Waiting in line is a pain. I hate it, but sometimes we just have to do it. The lines usually move fairly quickly though.

Next is the pre-lunch snack. This usually consists of an ice cream cone (or just the ice cream), and either fries, a second portion of breakfast, or a slice of pizza. This is nice because it gets you ready for lunch. You know, those two platefuls of breakfast just weren’t enough! I need to have some fries before lunch so I don’t die of starvation. </sarcasm> But seriously, it’s nice to get a little something to eat and watch the buffet to see what’s going to be served for lunch.

Now it’s lunch time. Most of the time we eat lunch at the buffet. I think I’ve eaten lunch in the dining room maybe once or twice out of all the cruises I’ve been on. For some reason I’m just not into it. From what I hear, the food is sometimes better in the dining room. But I’ve just never done it. Anyway, lunch always consists of multiple portions. If I’m at the buffet, my first course consists of a small samples of everything that looks good. The next course is a full portion of what I liked the most. Next I will get full portions of other things I really liked. Finally, I get some dessert. This will usually be a slice of cake, fruit, jello, or any combination of them. Another option for lunch is the deli. I’ll get a Reuben sandwich, that’s my favorite. After that I’ll stop by the buffet for some more food.

After lunch is the post-lunch snack. This is similar to the pre-lunch snack. I’ll either get a slice of pizza, something from the grill (usually a hot dog), or I’ll go back to the buffet for some more food.

The rest of the afternoon consists of fasting. I will not eat anything until dinner. The only time this isn’t the case is when we have late seating dinner (around 8:00). Then I’ll have a snack around 4:00. But when we have main seating dinner (around 6:00), I hold back on all food until dinner.

Dinner is always a great meal. I’ll start out with an appetizer and/or a cold soup. I always get the cold soup of the night, except the cold creamy cucumber soup. Yes, it’s as bad as it sounds. The rest of the cold soups are good. They include gazpacho, strawberry bisque, cream of lychees, and more. For salad, I get the Caesar salad, which is always very good. I always get at least one entree, depending on what’s being served. Sometimes I’ll get more than one if there are a couple things I like. Finally, there is dessert. I’ll usually get one dessert, sometimes two. I get coffee to go with dessert.

After dinner is entertainment time (casino, shows, etc.), so there’s not much eating going on then. But later on in the evening, I’ll get a slice of pizza before heading back to the room for the night.

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The food itself is almost always good. Breakfast is same every day: eggs, sausage, bacon, grits, oatmeal, pancake and/or french toast, condiments, etc.As I mentioned earlier, my favorite at the deli is the reuben sandwich. I enjoy the Chinese food as well for lunch. There is also a “taste of nations” station at the buffet, which changes daily. This gives you a chance to try international cuisine.Dinner gives me the chance to order full course meals, which I normally cannot do. There is also good food at dinner. Obviously, a lot of the food I eat at dinner is food I only get a chance to eat on a cruise. The cold soups, lobster tail, and the exotic foods are some of these.You can’t beat 24-hour pizza. The pizza (at least on Carnival) is very good too. The grill has good hot dogs, burgers, and fries. Also, some grills will also cook up a steak sandwich if you ask. Most people don’t know about this. The soft-serve ice cream is good too. And from what I hear, the frozen yogurt is good as well.Overall, I would say the food is the top reason I love cruising. Good food, at all hours of the day. You can’t beat it!Coming up next time: the wait staff and other cruise ship staff.