Nervous about Your Next Cruise? Cruising is Still One of the Safest Ways to Travel
Book your cruise with confidence, even if you’ve never traveled on a cruise boat before, knowing that it’s more than safe than ever to travel by sea. The numbers don’t lie, given the amount of cruise boats and cruisers every year, the negative experiences on a cruise vacation is extremely rare. Even with this, there are people that still take those negative experiences of the few and let it prevent them from going on a cruise.
Cruises are an affordable option for many people looking to travel to multiple, exotic destinations in one vacation. Cruises are an average of 7 – 10 days in length and typically travel from 2 to 4 countries in just that week’s time. And, to boot, they are quite affordable. Why wouldn’t everyone want to go on a trip like this? The fears often associated with boat travel are what creep into people’s minds. It’s similar to the same reason people are afraid to fly. They think of those few and far between happenings that in all likeness will never happen to them or anyone they know. However, just like flying, cruises are an extremely safe way to vacation.
Given I’ve only been on a couple of cruises myself, my experiences can’t represent those of all that have gone on a cruise. Overall, my cruises have been amazingly enjoyable. The things that most worry about when booking a cruise didn’t affect our time: seasickness, bad weather causing a rough sea, or any issues with food, engine fires or disease. Though, it did of course cross my mind when I booked the cruise that these horror story scenarios were possible because I had seen similar things on the news. Though little did I know until I started researching it, the odds of these things happening to me while on my cruise were near impossible.
There are 230+ boats at sea every day traveling between destinations and carrying thousands of passengers each. And before the 2012 European Cruise disaster there had been only 14 fatalities at sea after 2005, this is among millions that had traveled between those years. It’s also important to note that most cruise passengers are repeat cruisers meaning they are satisfied past customers of this type of vacation.
Keep in mind, there are some disclaimers that could be considered before booking your cruise. You are traveling on international waters and are protected as a traveler as such. Also, a majority of cruise boats are registered in the Bahamas with an island being their hub which means these are the laws they will be abiding by. The U.S. coast guard will always come to the rescue for a boat that left port from America, which is a plus.
This also doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take certain precautions before embarking on your journey. In case of seasickness, which is possible for new boat travelers, you should bring medicine with you as a precautionary. There are several kinds of treatments for seasickness from pills to pressure point bracelets. Also, sometimes new, unfamiliar foods can cause some stomach issues when traveling. This is particularly true for cruises where you are eating cooked food on the boat while eating food from sometimes multiple countries or cultures. A good bottle of Tums should fix that. Lastly, you must pay attention to the safety announcements they have before you embark on your cruise. Be familiar with where you may need to go in case of an emergency, where life jackets are, etc. Yes, an emergency is extremely rare but it's no excuse for being irresponsible when it comes to your and your families safety.
Now, why are cruises the best deal in travel? There’s no flight, no taxis to different destinations… your vacation starts the minute you walk on the boat. The all-inclusive experience is worry-free and most 7 day or longer cruises travel to 3 or more different countries in one vacation trip. For the cost, you wouldn’t be able to do this type of traveling in any other way. Plus, there’s no traveling in-between. You can go from climbing temples in Mexico to lounging by a pool already on the way to your next destination in a matter of minutes.
It’s important to not let a few negative news stories discourage you from booking a vacation that’s, affordable, fun, adventurous and relaxing all in one. It doesn’t mean that some planning can’t happen or to always expect the unexpected, but there is always risk when traveling anywhere. It shouldn’t keep us from exploring, traveling and discovering new places and new cultures.
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