Tips for a first time cruiser

I just went on my first cruise in July to Alaska. The one tip we did that worked great, was to bring an over-the-door shoe organizer and hang it on the OUTSIDE door of the bathroom. That way if you needed something, you weren’t having to constantly go into the bathroom itself (in case someone was in there) to grab it.

Take less clothes and more money.

plan to wear stuff 2-3 times, have a way to wash out something small in sink, roll your clothes when you travel.. take less.....

I wish I would have done more room service.

I didn't need as many clothes as I brought. I do like to send post cards so bring stamps if you like that type thing.

Which cruise line are you going? We really liked decorating our Disney doors and then we could find our door among the sea of doors down the hallway. Sometimes people would leave us notes or little trinkets.

The number one thing is to have a great time and come report back!

Go to cruise critic dot com and you'll find all kinds of forums... for RCCL, for each port of call, for roll calls, and many other things you may find interesting. Plenty of questions asked and answered. They just did an entire site upgrade, so you'll see questions/comments about that too. 
Watch out.. cruising can be addictive. We're going again at the end of the month - cruise #23 for me. Enjoy!

It's a magic type of holiday! Don't over plan it and don't bother with over door the innings, magnets etc. There's plenty of storage.
After many cruises my best tip, apart from always buying the drinks package, is always go to the main dining room on embarkstion day for lunch. The buffet is a scrum!

DD (19) and I went on a cruise for the first time last year for her spring break (along with 2 of her sorority sisters and another mom). I'm totally blanking on what we thought was helpful and will think about that, but the big mistake we made was not asking to be seated at dinner with the other mom/daughter -we just had not focused on the assigned dinner seating. It ended up working out because a group of 3 ladies assigned to our table asked to move, so they were able to join us (wonder what we did to make them leave?

We loved the movie nights - sitting on the top deck outside was fun

We didn't book excursions until we got onto the boat; that worked out ok, but it would have been easier if we had looked through all the options before getting on the cruise; we were all just slammed before the cruise and didn't get around to it.

Where are you going? We went to the Western Caribbean, so if that is where you are headed, I can tell you the excursions we liked.

Duct tape- things rip, zippers break (suitcases). Take a crossbody purse- easier to deal with, take a bag for any beach excursions, Royal Caribbean is one of our favorite lines- make sure you get back to the ship in time to go up top and watch the dock runners! (People who wait until the very last minute to return- sometimes the ship leaves without them- which is sad).
Don’t worry about the internet package unless you HAVE to have it. It’s overpriced and slow. There will be many locations in port where you can use the internet for free.
Most of all- relax and have fun!!!!

Order lanyards on amazon and ask to have your sea pass punched when they hand it to you. Then you can wear your sea pass around your neck and you don't have to worry about where you put it.

Take a reusable water bottle. There are lots of places to refill it, but they only leave little plastic cups by the water stations.

Take snacks that travel well for excursions. There isn't always something to grab on your way off the boat and you might not know when you'll be able to get something until you get back on the boat.

See all of the headliner shows.  Royal has great entertainment.  

Pack a sweater.  The dining room and theater are often chilly and it's often chilly (and windy) walking the deck at night.

Take clothespins or something to hold your towel on your deck chair.  It is always windy on the deck.

Do not be in any hurry to get off the boat.  For as great as cruises are, cruise lines still haven't perfected the debarkation process even with their staggered times.  It's a zoo and people are rude.  It can totally undo all of the relaxation you just experienced.

Take a carry-on for the first day with what you'll need until your suitcases arrive at your room.  I usually pack my swimsuit in that bag along with a few things to freshen up.  You can get into your room as early as 1:00 but you may not get your bags until well after dinner.

I'm sure I'll think of more and will add if I do.

Bring lanyards and have them punch the room keys at the front desk. Bring Oust and Downey Wrinkle Release. Also, bring some sea sickness pills just in case. We brought a charging strip for all our devices and decorated our doors which made our rooms much easier to spot.

This is great advice. We have our first cruise booked for December. 7 day Mexican Riviera on Princess Cruise Line.

Limit your luggage. There is no where NO WHERE to keep suitcases in the room once you unpack and no where to keep suitcases if you don’t want to unpack. Squishing under the bed is an option but then it’s not easy to access.

Are you all 4 in one room? Dh sometimes showers in the health club if he can’t get into the bathroom between me and our 2 girls. Our next cruise over New Years has family suits so we have 2 bathrooms.

Do the later seating for dinner. Dinner at 6 for the early seating is too early.

If you forget stuff like toothpaste you can buy it onboard for way too much money, but the ship will likely have it. Make thorough lists. Don't worry about anything. RCCL is a great cruise line. The food is excellent and there is always something to do that everyone will enjoy. Just plan to have fun. There is laundry on board, if necessary. So, if you think you won't bring enough clothing don't worry.

I second going to cruisecritic.com. You can view reviews on your particular ship and itinerary. You'll get great info.

Just have fun. I've noticed that people overthink planning for a cruise. Just prepare to relax and have fun. That's what it's all about.

Those are some of my favorite ports. Labadee is their private island. It is a relaxing stop. If you drink, have a Labadoozee (or multiple). St Marteen and San Juan were both hit by the hurricane last year, so I am not sure what is opened yet. St Marteen has 2 sides, Dutch and French. The ship docks on the Dutch side. I have a friend that actually goes to St Marteen often (they fly in). She said that the last time they were there, the French side was still closed to tourist. There is a beach you can go to and the planes come in right over you. Not my thing but many do it and get a kick out of it.

RCCL is a great cruiseline. We took our kids on one about 2.5 years ago. DS turned 14 on Day 2 and DD was 1 month from turning 12. They hung out a lot in the teen center. My daughter is still friends with 4 others to this day. They chat online all the time.

You can put a daily limit on their cards so they don't get crazy. Everything is attached to their room card. So anything they purchase (arcade included) will be added to your balance. Most things are included but there are some specialty restaurants and such that are not included (Johnny Rockets, Ben & Jerry, etc). I went on a trip onetime and a friend that was traveling in our group had her teen son with us. She got quite a shock on the last night when she got her bill. He had racked up some major charges in the arcade.

On the last night, they will do something called Quest. It's an adult scavenger hunt of sorts. They split up teams and will ask for some crazy things. You never leave the room. It's all things you will have to find in the room (typically it's done in Studio B). By the end of the game, there is one guy on each team pretty much in his undies and a bra . That's why I say it's an adult scavenger hunt. But tons of fun.

If you and your kids have connecting rooms and are balcony rooms, you can have the divider opened. This allows you to move from room to room w/o having to go out into the hallway. On that note, you can also have their room added to your card so you have access to their room. Technically, they aren't supposed to be in a room by themselves, an adult is supposed to be in there. We were able to do it though.

I agree with packing so you can carry your luggage off when you disembark. Otherwise, you will leave your bags outside your room by I think 11pm the night before. They will come and get them and you'll go find them the next morning in the holding area. You will be given colored tags for them. Actually, you'll have them to be able to print off before you get there as well. You'll drop your luggage with the porter at the port and this is how they get to your room.

Don't worry about bringing beach towels. There are towels down at the pool that you'll check out. You are able to take them off the ship with you if you are going to a beach location (Labadee for instance). You turn them in at the pool as well. You can turn them in and get fresh ones each time.

There is always something going on. It's a little more quite while in port but while at sea it's always bustling. You'll receive a cruise compass each night with the next days activities and going ons. There will also be daily specials (drink of the day as well as spa specials for instance). I always look forward to one they do where I can get 3 services (typically a head, neck, and foot massage) for like $99. Last cruise we went on, they did a photo scavenger hunt. They gave you a list of things to find and you had to get a photo and come back and show the person in charge. That was fun. My family were party poopers and choose not to participate. So I was on my own for that one.

Have breakfast and lunch in the dining room at least once. We do enjoy the Windjammer (some don't but we do) but it's also nice to go to the dining room.

At dinner in the dining room, there is a different menu each day (there's always a theme). However, there is always some things you can get any night. You can get as many appetizers, entrees, deserts as you'd like. You'll order your apps and entree at the same time. If you want more than one, order it then. It makes it easier on your server when they put the orders in. Surf & turf night, I always order an extra lobster tail.

You will probably have formal night twice on a cruise of that length. The first is typically the 2nd night and then the other is like night 6 or so. It's fun to get all dressed up.

You don't mention the ages of the teens. When we were in St Marteen, DH went to one of the beachside bars to get a beer. DS was on a jet ski and we were waiting for him. When we walked up to DH when he was done, the lady asked if DS wanted a beer. We were like Uh no, he's 14. They didn't really care there. So there's that.

I personally have never had an issue with storage or room in the cabins. I expect them to be limited. But I've always had enough room for my stuff. On RCCL, there is enough room under the bed for your luggage. I always put under there. I put my dirty clothes in there at the end of each day. Works for us.

Oh, be sure to read what you can and can't bring on board. Like no irons. They will take them. You get them back when you leave but it's a pain.

That's all I can think of off the top of my head.

If she's sailing on an Oasis class ship (which I suspect based on itinerary) then they actually don't have a laundry area, only laundry service. It's like $5 for pants. I want to say we paid $15 for his suit to be pressed.

I agree with don't overplan. We did on our first cruise, and it was largely unnecessary. Like the shoe holder for example. It really depends on your room size I guess. We've always been fine with storage provided.

As for alcohol, on the second or third day on the Oasis they offered a drink card that was good for 10 drinks? for $99? We aren't big drinkers, so splitting that, the wine that was given to us in our room, and the two bottles we brought was plenty for us, and we had enough to share.

Assuming you're on an Oasis ship, if you eat at one of the upcharge restaurants, I highly recommend Chops Grille. The mushroom soup with truffle oil was amazing. Giovanni's Table was only okay imo.