Planning for your first cruise can be such a confusing experience. You have heard all these stories from your friends as well as the news about all the good and the crazy things, and you are uncertain about… basically everything! What do you take, what should you not take, how long should you go for, an on and on.
We took our first cruise this winter break (7 days), on the Carnival Vista from Galveston, AND… we had a spectacular experience.
Here are some things to consider…
| Booking | Things to take |
| Time of the year Number of days Port Stops Local Excursions Location of your room wrt: activities wrt: food Balcony or no balcony | Formal clothes Travel kit clothes Sweater/sweatshirt Water bottle (Nalgene) Swim clothes Comfortable shoes Sunscreen Bug Spray Charging cables |
Being the first time and me being a bit claustrophobic, we chose a room with a balcony. On our request, they joined the two beds to make it queen size, and on the other side, they pulled down as well as opened the sofa to make it a bunk bed. It was a comfortable sleeping arrangement for the four of us. The room came with a safe, and we stored our cameras and documents there when we were out and about. Carnival also thoughtfully provided us with water bottles, but since we brought our Nalgene’s, we didn’t need to buy water.
The food available on the cruise was outstanding. The food options included buffet, sit down dining, made to order burritos, 24 hour sandwich and pizza, lots of fruit and desserts. On the upper deck there was stations for coffee (regular and decaf), tea, lemonade and of course water and ice. And of course 24 hour frozen yogurt stations!
All in all, there were plenty of choices for all kind of palettes, including vegetarian.
The housekeeping staff was exceptional in keeping our room clean and creative with their towel art!
Day 1-2:We spend the first two days at sea, exploring the various activities on the ship. Some of them are put-put golf, water slides, foosball, swimming pool etc. There were two movie theaters on the ship. One is a dive-in theater, and the other is an Imax. We saw some games and movies on the dive-in, and Aquaman at the IMAX!
Day 3: We stopped at Montego Bay, Jamaica. We booked the extreme zip-line adventure. Our tour guide was a pleasant and funny young man, who keep us entertained while explaining the history of the area as we went to the zipline location from the port. After ziplining, we “had to have” some Jerk Chicken. It was yummy.
Day 4: At Grand Cayman we decided to just walk around the downtown area and check out the stores. They have a pretty down town.
Day 5: In Cozumel, we basically walked out of the port and joined a group of tourists and went to a resort. The kids had an opportunity to snorkel. Since the current was a bit strong, we hired an instructor to guide the kids. The kids had a wonderful time.
Day 6: Back on the ship… last day of exploring. It was bitter sweet, as we started packing up, and tried some of the things we didn’t try earlier.
Day 7: Back at Galveston… Completion of a memorable vacation.
Hope my quick notes help you in your cruise vacation planning. Best wishes…
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