Why I Like Cruising

People often ask me why I like cruising. Well I can only tell you why it has worked out well for me. I have been cruising since 1996 and have taken 16 cruises in many locations and on several cruise lines. I've cruised with just my husband, and with my daughters (from since one of them was in the womb to now when my eldest is a teenager). I've also cruised with other family and friends. For many of the cruises I've taken, I also had the benefit of having my parents on board.

I enjoy planning for the cruise almost as much as the cruise itself!

Here are some of the main reasons I like cruising:

• It's a resort, not a boat. Most ships have lots of restaurants, bars, amenities, etc onboard. You get to experience these during the cruise without having to go too far. Many people, who have never cruised, think of a cruise ship as a functional ship to get them from place to place. However, some people cruise and never leave the ship! There is so much to do onboard.
• Your ports of call come to you! You only have to unpack once, and yet can experience many different countries. There is nothing more wonderful than waking up in the morning and opening the curtains or going out onto your balcony to see the new port or country.
• Different strokes for different folks. You and the other members of your party can do different things thoughout the day and meet up for lunch, a drink, an event or dinner later. This way, everyone gets to do the things they like and still be together at various times throughout the day.
• Kid's clubs. When my daughters were young, they always enjoyed the kids clubs and it has been a great things for us adults too. The clubs are very well organized and cater well to kids of all ages. As they grew, they moved through the stages up to the teens club. They always made great friends very quickly and typically there would be tears on the last day as they said farewell to them.
• Safety. I've always felt very safe travelling on a cruise ship. It is an enclosed environment with generally no need to keep a constant vigilent eye on your personal belongings (although an odd eye cast in their direction is no harm!) It very quickly becomes a community where you begin after a few days to see familiar faces as you go about your day around the ship.
• Meeting new friends. Because you can meet up with the same folks at dinner and at some events, you find that you forge new friendships. It is always interesting to meet new people and hear their stories.
• A great night's sleep. With the gentle (most of the time) rocking and rolling, you are lulled gently off the sleep, and the sea air helps out in this regard also.
• Great service. I've always found the service on board cruise ships to be excellent. Staff members are always very pleasant and eager to please.
• Getting away from it all. I don't bring a laptop, phone or PDA, and I avoid using onboard internet cafes, thus I find I can really get away from it all completely. (One of my favorite places onboard is right at the aft of the ship on the promenade deck, looking out over the ship's wake.)