Vacation on Cruise...questions, tips, & suggestions

[mooncake and leaves]

^^ ang alam ko kasi if you're not a US citizen or permanent resident, kelangan ng visa to enter bahamas.

[jenny_syngkit]

got a reply na from the Bahamian embassy:

You no longer require a visa to enter The Bahamas on a cruise provided you depart on the same cruise and that you hold a valid US visa.
 
Regards
 
Mrs. R. Smith
Visa Section

[mooncake and leaves]

^ ah that's good. did you specify what kind of visa you have?

[sweety_paige]

How much kaya ang Disney Cruise?  I wanna try this sana =D  Anyone na naka try na? Feedback?  Thanks

[jenny_syngkit]

^^ yup, i mentioned we are Philippine passport holders and have multiple entry US visa. What I was actually asking in my email was how long would they process a visa from their Miami office. Then this reply that we don't need a visa anymore.

[mooncake and leaves]

^ that's very good. mahal din ang visa nila eh. have fun!

[whatagirlwants]

I agree! Super great deal. t's unbelievably at 50% off!

P11,237 per person for 4 days and 3 nights Malaysia and Thailand cruise AND an overnight
cruise for P2,559 per person in Hong Kong. Both are already inclusive of twin-sharing cabin, full board meals, daily and nightly entertainment with access to the gym, pool, restos and casino via Star Cruises.

Visit the website of Pakyaw because they are selling it on a limited time lang. Payments they accept are Gcash, Bank Deposits, Credit Cards, Wester Union, etc.

Enjoy! 

[eischied_21]

I saw this ad too. Interested on buying the HK overnight cruise.

[kisses1417]

Yehey we bought the HK overnight cruise. Para ka lang nagpabook ng hotel overnight stay in HK. ang mura!!!! Super advance bday gift sakin! haha planning to use it December para malamig sa HK

[Water and Wine]

We've tried an Asian cruise, two European cruises, and a Mexican Cruise.  Here are some of our thoughts:

1.  Asian cruises are usually more expensive.  A 7 day cruise in Asia usually starts at 900usd while 7-day mediterranean cruises can start for as low as 500usd.
2.  Asians don't really follow the dresscode.  Don't be surprised if during the formal gala, you'd see Chinese wearing shorts and slippers.
3.  Americans are always well-dressed on formal galas, they even pay for hair and make-up.
4.  The crowd is a great factor when joining cruises.  The passengers on the Asian cruise we joined are mostly Chinese from the mainland since the embarkation port is Shanghai... not generalizing or sterotyping but honestly, they are very rowdy during buffets, and a lot of them are "salaula" like they spit on a carpeted floor/ leave banana peels on the floor.  We joined the same cruise line in Europe and it's much more relaxing.
5.  Cruise lines have different strategies.  Costa cruises, for example, are very cheap compared to other cruise lines but their port excursions and on-board drinks are expensive.  Other cruise lines cost more but on-board expenses would be minimal.
6.  Seating arrangements during formal dinners are different for every cruise line.  In our case, we are two single girl friends.  Carnival cruise seated us with two more groups, both groups are also single, also friends, and in our age group.  Costa cruise on the other hand will alot a table just for your group even if there's just 2 of you.

[honeybunny]

wow! been wanting to try this since i watched yung movie nila aga and kristine hehe more feedbacks please.. want to know more about this

[lemonade]

honeybunny, i hope this will inspire you to take that cruise: 

http://joycruzonline.com/journey-on-the-high-seas/

[chinita8]

^^honeybunny, i say - JUST GO AHEAD AND TRY IT !!! You will have NO REGRETS, JUST FOND MEMORIES that will last you a LIFETIME !!!


I still remember the first time I went on a cruise. That was in 2003, a MEDITERRANEAN cruise, that brought us around the Key cities in Europe. Took Princess Cruise then, the LOVE boat so to speak. Visited countries from Italy, France, Spain, Greece, Turkey, etc. The second one I took is a SCANDINAVIAN cruise via Royal Caribbean. Visited Norway, Sweden, Finland, Estonia, and took us all the way to RUSSIA. The most recent one I took is an ASIAN cruise, via Royal C again, embarked in Shanghai and took us all over Japan this time.


There are several tips and also lessons that I want to share from my cruising diary:

- BOOK EARLY! Although the cruising dates available for a year is fixed and available for booking a year prior, it still can be fully-booked right away. It's sorta like booking for a wedding talaga, I do it 1-year in advance. Why? Ang kalaban mo sa bookings ay buong mundo. Cruising as it may not be so popular in the Philippines yet, is widely preferred by Americans, Europeans, Australians, South Africans, Chinese, etc. Furthermore, I learned that if you book early, you can actually choose the stateroom you wish for, front-back or mid-ship. I always prefer the mid-ship staterooms.

- How to CHOOSE what cruise to take? I love going through their CATALOGUE. They have it on-line now or go to their booking agents here in Manila and request for one. Ang sarap basahin, mapapa-book ka talaga. In the catalogues, you can see the sailing dates na and for some companies, they indicate the rates already, in USD.

- Everytime you cruise, you will be offered a list of LAND EXCURSIONS. Eto yung time na pag nag-dock yung ship mo sa isang port, the cruise will be offering land tours to the city where you are docked. Let's say nag-dock yung ship sa Venice, there are scheduled land tours where tour buses will take cruise passengers around Piazza San Marco, for a gondola ride, etc. These LAND EXCURSIONS are extras. This is not included in what you pay for your cruise when you book one. Although now, some cruise lines accept pre-bookings na ata. So my tip, you don't have to join every LAND TOUR the cruise offers. Pili lang kayo. Tutal if the others are out during the day for their Land Tours, you can just simply stay in the ship and have some R&R yourself, mag swim ka o mag jacuzzi, magpamasahe, kumain ng kumain - 24hrs may kakainan ka, etc.

- MINGLE !!! It's your chance to have new friends, from other countries pa. Mababait ang mga passengers. It's something like since magkakasama kayo in high seas, for say 14 days, talagang you will all be familiar with each other na. You will start saying hi to them, sa elavator, sa banquet hall, sa casino, sa movie theater, sa concert hall, sa library, sa gym, etc. I have found new friends there and have kept tab with them thru email til now.

- JOIN the ACTIVITIES ON-BOARD! Everyday, may ipapadala sa room mo na Daily Guide as to what is happening around the cruise for that day. Nakalagay doon lahat ng activities, from dance class, to yoga class, to crafts and cooking demos, to sports activities skeds, kids activities, teen activities, poker skeds, shows for the night, auction and shopping bargain hours. Yes may shopping arcade sa loob ng ship! TAX-FREE yun ha! Coz when you are in international waters, DUTY FREE na!

- Remember that when you PAY for your CRUISE trip - included na ang 24-hour FOOD sa casual dining area and banquet hall. Sa casual dining, bukas siya 24/7 - buffet style! Pwede ka pumunta doon in your most casual attire! On the other hand, if you want to be served by your own table waiters, sa banquet hall dining ka kumain. There are 2 skeds that you choose from, 6pm and 8pm usually. You have to dress up for this, semi-casual to semi-formal. Mind you, merong FORMAL nights sa cruise, usually umpisa and towards the end of your cruise yun. Men are in coats and suits while women are in cocktail dresses/gowns pa minsan. Ang saya, kasi parang feeling mo you're in  Hollywood! Alam mo naman ang mga Americans and Europeans, ang gagaling magbihis ng formal. Siyempre ang mga Filipinos on board hindi nagpapatalo! Hehe!   

- What's not included in what you pay for your cruise when you book a trip are the FF:
    - Plane fares
    - Land Excursions
    - Tips and Gratuities (this is required)
    - Food bill when dining in their special restaurants (Jap resto, Wine Bar)
    - Pang-shopping and pang-casino (hehe!)

- Wag niyong kalimutan sisses ... TALK to our Kababayans on-board. Super daming Filipinos na nagtatrabaho sa cruise. Siguradong waiter niyo, hairdresser nyo, masahista, bartender, casino dealer, lounge singers, kids' day care/baby sitters, room attendants nyo - may PILIPINO sa kanila. Natutuwa sila pag bigla kang mag Tagalog sa kanila. They sometimes feel kasi mga laking America na 'to na hindi marunong mag Tagalog. Tapos bigla kang magsabi ng SALAMAT HA !!! You will immediately see that familiar spark in their eyes. May extrang baso ng Coke ka na nyan! They are so nice! During our last night sa Banquet Hall, our table manager happened to be a PINOY and guess what he asked us, GUSTO NYO NA SINANGAG at ADOBO??!!    And we were cruising RUSSIA nun! Sabi namin, OF COURSE!!! We super missed Pinoy food after how many days on-board! And they served us really good adobo ha!!! Siyempre, PINOY kasi ang CHEF !!! haha! Just a tip! I bring my own Knorr seasoning bottle during dining! Medyo bland kasi minsan and wala silang seasoning! So I learned my lesson and made sure to bring my own bottle! Tapos after the cruise, binibigay ko na lang yung bottle sa mga Pinoy waiters or room attendant ko. Naku, tuwang-tuwa!!!


CRUISING i may say is the most worthwhile vacation/R&R that a person, couple, a group of friends  or a family could ever have! The memories are simply priceless! So if you happen to have a chance to try it - don't pass it up! Add it to your Bucket list !!!   


 

[honeybunny]

^thanks for sharing sis, atleast may i know na what to expect pag nagcruise kame, sama ko si SO heheh

i've been researching about this, and is it true na mas mura pag nagpabuy ng tickets sa US? say may kamag anak abroad?

[portugalbear]

sis honeybunny - in our case yes.  my bro who's in the US did all the booking for us.  binabantayan niya yun sale season and that's when he booked our trip.  pero minsan it might still be cheaper locally.  ang maganda lang sa US kung magbook, they charge 50% to their credit card and no issue to refund the 50% if you decide to cancel.  here kasi sa atin, if you decide to cancel, pahirapan pa para mabawi yun pera mo.  kaya we decided to use my bro's US credit card in all our pre-payments if any, para mabilis mabawi yun bayad if we decided to cancel

if i may add to what sis chinita8 said, i

- Do your Laundry Early on Board
if your cruise is more than a week and you don't want to bring a lot of clothes, maglaba na kayo sa ship.  daming tao naglalaba others mag-to-tour pa.  Bring your own detergent and bring a lot of US quarters.  their washing and drying machines only accept US quarters.  may changing machine naman sa laundry room pero baka maubusan kayo, and do it mga 2 days before disembarkation kasi everyone has the same idea kaya agawan ang mga washing machine and dryer.  d ko alam to kaya more than USD10 ata naubos sa detergent pa lang ata yun.  buti na lang may dala sister ko. 

- check the weather
We did our mediterranean cruise in May and malamig pa sa europe.  sarap mag snuggle sa kumot or sa thick coat habang nanood ng movie under the stars

- if you're a group of 6 or more, get a private tour for each port
We were 12 when we travelled. mahal kung sasama kami sa tour ng cruise ship kaya research galore ako sa mga gumagawa ng private tour.  sa cruise critics ko hinanap kung sino matinong gumawa ng tour per port.  suggest don't go with the tour guide na nag re-require ng down payment kasi pag na cancel yun port, sayang pero mo.  like in our case, yun port ng greece was cancelled because of the rally.  buti na lang di naman nag require ng down payment yun kausap ko. so i just called him to say di kami dadaan ng greece.  the tour in Venice was the only one that required a 50% down payment.  no choice ako kasi walang gusto mag handle ng group namin without the down payment.  buti naman legit siya and she arranged our tour.  note that our group has 4 senior citizen and 3 children ages 11, 10 and 7. 

Tip our kababayan very well
- tama sabi ni Sis Chinita8, 80% of the cruise staff are Filipinos.  sobrang galing ang service if they find out you're from the Phils.  May coffee card ako and minsan di nila i-cha-charge yun coffee ko sa card.  libre daw nila husband ko din, yun softdrink (which may bayad), minsan libre na ng waiter.   on our last day, yun chef mabait, nag luto pa ng special food for the kids kasi sawa na yun kids sa food sa cruise.  siyempre let's be greatful and tip them well.  if you listen to their  stories, dami sa kanila gusto na umuwi maskina ang ganda ng trabaho nila.  kasi daw halaos walang break sila sa service.  since they live on the ship, it's so easy for the boss to just call them to work extra hours.

Bottomline - sobrang sulit yun cruise na yan.  Gusto ko gawin yun Scandinavian cruise or alaskan cruise next time.

[sachism]

ideally how old na dapat ang mga kids before we can bring them on a cruise na hindi naman masyadong hassle for the parents?

[portugalbear]

for me para masulit yun bayad and maremember niya yun experience at least 7.

My son was 7 when we went on the cruise,  he may not remember the stories and significance of some of the places, but he remembers the waters of Venice, Bridge of Sigh, the food and all the sites and wonders.   note that there's a lot of walking duirng the tours.  sayang naman if you will just stay in the ship while naka dock. 

i always tell my children take in as much as you can because we don't know when we will again be in this part of the world.

[sachism]

thanks sis.. matagal tagal pa pala aantayin ko.. may time pako pagipunan

[sweetie28]

hi sisses meron bang cruise na dito lang manila mangagaling at dito din ang balik para di na gastos airfare

[bonzo_08]

sis chinita 8, pwede po bang pa PM kung ano yung travel agency nyo? I am currently abroad pero uuwi ako sa Pilipinas before out target cruise date.  Nahihirapan kasi akong mkahanap ng travel agency dito na included yan sa service nila. Also, my nakikita naman ako online pero ang problem lang is wala kaming US credit card. Thanks