It’s the day that you’ve been waiting for, maybe for months or even for more than a year. You’ve planned, plotted and packed with precision. It’s the first day of your cruise.
However, after you’ve waited in that long line to get onto the cruise ship and you’re actually there, what do you do? As the ship leaves port and sets out onto the open ocean, where should you turn your attention first? Here’s how to make your first day on a cruise ship count.
In This Article:
- Attend the Sail Away Party
- Take in the Receding Shoreline from a Different Angle
- Get Your Lay of the Land
- Make Dining Reservations, if Needed
- Dine at One of the Specialty Restaurants
- Get the Party Started with a Vacation-Worthy Drink
- Start Taking Lots of Pictures
- Book your Spa Treatments
- Go to the Pool
- Check out the Kids Club Introductory Activities
- Book or Change Your Excursions
- Get to Know Your Cabin Steward or Butler
- Participate in the Muster Drill
- Pack a Small Bag to Get you Through the First Day
- Make Entertainment Reservations, if you Haven’t Yet
- More than Anything, Have Fun!
Attend the Sail Away Party
Head to the pool deck, which is where many cruise ships host their sail away parties, a celebration to kick off the beginning of a great vacation and that starts as soon as the ship sets sail.
While long-time cruisers may be disenchanted with the classic sail away party, and may prefer to fill their first day of a cruise in another way, newer cruisers won’t want to miss this novel experience.
Carnival Cruise Line is definitely known for throwing some of the best sail away parties in the industry, with lots of music, dancing and drinks.
Read Also: Boarding a Cruise Ship – All You Should Know
However, other cruise lines host notable sail away parties as well, such as the family-friendly sail away party offered by Disney Cruise Line and the Champagne-centric sail away party on Virgin Voyages.
Take in the Receding Shoreline from a Different Angle
If you don’t prefer the loud crowds of the sail away party, you can enjoy a sail away experience of your own creation. Find a quieter spot to watch the shoreline fade into the distance.
Good options for stellar views include the promenade deck, the bow of the ship or the highest public point on your ship (which is sometimes a lounge or bar). If you’re lucky, though, you can watch the ship set sail from the comfort of your very own balcony!
Get Your Lay of the Land
You may have diligently studied your cruise ship’s layout and deck plans online, before your arrival, but it’s entirely different seeing it all in person. So, take a moment to walk around the ship and really get a feel for where everything is and how you need to get around.
Determine need-to-know information such as where the nearest elevator is, relevant to your stateroom (and not just the nearest elevator, but also the most convenient elevator — you may find that it’s worth walking a bit further to get to another elevator with fewer crowds).
Make Dining Reservations, if Needed
Some cruise lines will allow you to make some dining reservations in advance of your cruise, but in other instances, you’ll need to make your dining reservations once you’re aboard the ship. If you really have certain restaurants in mind for your trip, do this ASAP.
As an example, Royal Caribbean will allow you to make reservations for specialty restaurants online, up to two days before your cruise begins.
However, if you have a dining package, with preferred dining times, if you want to make any changes to your reservations or make reservations at specialty restaurants, Royal Caribbean requires you to wait to do so until you’re on the ship.
Dine at One of the Specialty Restaurants
Along these lines, you may want to make plans to dine at one of the ship’s specialty restaurants during the first day of your cruise. This is because there’s one place in particular that everyone seems to want to eat, on Day 1: the buffet.
Yes, there’s a lot to love about a cruise ship buffet. All the options! The casual atmosphere! However, a crowded cruise ship buffet can be on the annoying side. You’ll find yourself waiting in line at the carving station or weaving around groups or kids as you’re just trying to grab another slice of pizza.
So, to avoid the headache, save the buffet for later in your cruise.
Get the Party Started with a Vacation-Worthy Drink
Of course, you have to kick off your vacation with a tropical drink, particularly if you’re sailing to a popular tropical locale. You’ll easily be able to find a drink at the sail away party, but if that’s not your scene, head to one of the bars for your boozy beverage of choice.
Better yet, opt for a bar that offers a great view, so you can watch the water and waves as you sip.
Start Taking Lots of Pictures
You want lots of memories of your vacation, all captured on camera. However, it can be easy during any vacation to take fewer and fewer photos, the longer the trip goes on. You’re too busy enjoying yourself to stop and savor the moment with a snapshot or two.
So, the first day of your cruise, start taking lots of pictures of everything you and your fellow cruisers are doing.
Grab that photo by the deck railing. Grab photos of your suite or stateroom (before it becomes covered in all your stuff). Take photos while you’re out at dinner or having drinks, or by the pool or enjoying one of the cruise ship’s cool features, whether that’s a surfing simulator, a ropes course or a rollercoaster at sea.
Book your Spa Treatments
Just as is the case with restaurant reservations on a cruise ship, spa treatments also book up quickly. You can book spa treatments in advance of your cruise, but if you didn’t, do so on your first day of the cruise.
You can book these appointments through your concierge, if you have one, but you can also just stop by the spa and check it out, along with all the spa’s offerings.
Go to the Pool
While certain areas of a ship are super-busy during the first day of a cruise, like the buffet, there’s one area of the ship that you’d probably expect to be crowded, but that actually isn’t. That place is the main pool.
Everyone’s getting their lay of the land, unpacking, attending the sail away party, etc., and most are probably thinking that everyone else is going to the pool, so no one does.
You, however, can be one of the lucky few to head there first, enjoying the pool and other water attractions before they do truly become crowded, on the second day of the cruise.
Check out the Kids Club Introductory Activities
If you’re traveling with kids in tow, then you should consider visiting the kids clubs on the first day of the cruise. However, do note that not all cruise lines open up their kids clubs on embarkation day, so check your cruise line’s kids clubs’ hours beforehand (for example, Disney Cruise Line kids clubs usually are open, but Carnival’s kids clubs may have limited hours on embarkation day).
The first day is a great time for you all, as a family, to get acquainted with the offerings and Mom and/or Dad can meet the crew working in the kids’ clubs, which can sometimes put their minds at ease.
Some cruise lines, like Disney and Royal Caribbean, also offer special introductory sessions on embarkation day, specifically for this purpose.
Book or Change Your Excursions
If you didn’t book shore excursions before your cruise, then, just as is the case with booking spa treatments and reserving dinner times, the first day of your cruise is the time to do it. Head to your cruise ship’s guest services’ desk and make sure you’re on the list for those in-demand excursions.
Likewise, if you did book excursions in advance, but you now have questions or need to make some changes, you can do that as well.
Get to Know Your Cabin Steward or Butler
If you have a cabin steward or are lucky enough to be staying in a cruise ship suite with butler service, then make a point to get to know that individual on the first day of your cruise. Let them know if you need any special accommodations or if you have any particular requests.
This will help ensure that the rest of your sailing is as smooth as possible, and that you have everything you need for a great time. You don’t want to spend precious vacation hours chasing down your butler for this or that request!
Worth Reading: What a Cruise Ship Cabin Steward Really Does
Participate in the Muster Drill
Before all the fun can go down, though, you do need to make sure that you participate in one mandatory cruise ship Day 1 activity: the muster drill. This is basically a safety briefing, but every cruise passenger must participate in it, before the cruise ship sets sail, by law.
In years past, cruise passengers would have to show up in person to watch a safety demonstration given by the crew members. However, many cruise lines have upgraded the experience to make it more convenient for the huge number of cruisers that they’re accommodating.
For example, if you’re sailing on Royal Caribbean, you can watch a life jacket instruction video and become acquainted with the sound of the ship’s emergency horn either in the cruise line’s app or on your stateroom television.
Then, the only thing you have to do in person is visit your assigned muster station (found in the app and on your Seapass card) to confirm that you’ve done both.
Pack a Small Bag to Get you Through the First Day
Another must that you should keep in mind for your first day at sea, and that’s a little more practical than fun (but still necessary!)? Bring a small bag to get you through your first day.
Unless you have special privileges on the ship, such as a Carnival Faster to the Fun pass, which fast-tracks your luggage to your stateroom, you’ll likely be waiting a while to get your checked luggage.
Similar to airlines, cruise ships check larger luggage at the cruise terminal, and then deliver your bags to you once everyone’s on board and past security. Having a smaller bag with necessary items in it can make your first day easier and fun.
This small bag should contain any “must have” items like medication, but also think of what you want to do during your first day and pack accordingly. Maybe you want a change of clothes before dinner.
Maybe you want your swimsuit and sunscreen so you can hit the pool immediately. Whatever the case may be, pack this bag with everything you’ll need.
You can expect to usually receive your larger luggage within a few hours of boarding.
Make Entertainment Reservations, if you Haven’t Yet
Yes, even more reservations!
If you haven’t made them yet, check out what’s playing in the ship’s theater (or theaters) during your cruise, and see if you can reserve your spot.
While many cruisers do snag their tickets well in advance of the first day of the cruise, you may still be able to get a seat if you address this during your first cruise day.
Otherwise, if you can’t, don’t worry. Not all hope is lost. While it’s not ideal, you can still show up to the shows at show time and wait for any available seats.
It’s very often the case that some cruisers with show tickets simply won’t show up, and those newly free seats go to the waiting cruisers who didn’t book in advance.
More than Anything, Have Fun!
The first day of a cruise can, admittedly, be pretty hectic, especially if you’re a newer cruiser who hasn’t figured out your preferred boarding time or your ideal itinerary for the day.
Read Also: How Early Can You Board a Cruise Ship?
However, once you take care of all the “must haves,” like visiting the muster station and making any last-minute reservations, it’s really just time to have a great time! So, whatever you’re looking most forward to doing during your cruise, do it! There’s no reason to wait for the fun to begin!
