skeptics - noun - persons inclined to question or doubt accepted opinions (Oxford Languages)
No matter how valid the supportive evidence, there will always be skeptics as people tend to hold onto opinions that make them feel secure in their own psychic or environmental spaces. It does not help that stereotyping can leak into their subjectivity as well. Which is all okay. To each his or her own choice. As for me, I try to be fair, look at the big picture, and base my conclusions on facts rather than on opinions. When it comes to either liking or disliking cruises as a means of exploring the world or just escaping your own for seven to over a hundred days at a time, cruises are a pleasurable, entertaining, and an affordable option that most, no matter what their age, should welcome.
Achtung, Skeptics! Here are all of the reasons (I can think of) why you should change your mind about getting on a ship:
1. Value: Cruising is still cheaper than traveling via air, staying in hotels, and or air b n b's, especially when you consider the number of ports (countries visited), and the quality of the onboard food and entertainment. Based on what the regulars tell me, enticing deals can be brokered to save the cruiser even more money. Addictive indeed.
2. Practicality: Certainly, only unpacking once and easing through embarkation (if you don't have to fly to and/or from the port city) are luring. When was the last time you did not have to go through intensive security at some point during your vacation? Since I had checked in for my world cruise before embarking, all I did was walk through one metal detector and was able to go directly to my stateroom. Ahhh. It was SO easy.
3. Adventure : When on a cruise, you can go to a number of different countries within days. Although this does not work for those who enjoy spending a week or more in one country, I personally prefer seeing as much of the world as possible to get a feel for its contents, cultures, and size. (I am also running out of time chronologically. If I wanted to fly to fifty countries and stay a week in each, I might run out of cash and time.)
4. Service : There is nothing like being treated like a princess or prince. On every cruise, there are numerous services that spoil you rotten, such as no-extra-charge room service pretty much whenever you want it and maid service (bed make up and turn down). With the right package deal, if you are anywhere on the ship, you can get a drink and snack delivered (for an extra charge). Your personal server will find you via technology. What I like is the crew members who know your name. I haven't enjoyed this level of sucking up to since I used to go to my father's country club with him. His club dues for one year were about the same price as my 114-day Pacific cruise and that was fifteen years ago. Also, if you don't like tipping, you can pre-arrange to have all of your favorite servers tipped in advance. If you have not accumulated 150 days on Princess, you have to do your own laundry, but there are facilities on each deck. I wash all of my clothes by hand and hang them up to dry in my room. Which is not as bad as it sounds as I do a little at a time.
5. Social life: You meet interesting people from all over the world, celebrating life together on one vessel. And you learn that we are all the same (humans) and should theoretically get along. Additionally, I like that the ship expects passengers to dress up evenings. Formal nights are common, making cruises the last bastion of elegance.
6. Entertainment: If you adore all kinds of shows that are included in the price of your ticket, you will love cruise ships. Samples of entertainment include Broadway show excerpts, vocalists, instrumentalists, dancers, show bands, big bands, movies, Cirque du Soleil-esque performers – just about everything you can think of. No matter where you are on the ship, you can usually find live music played until 11 p.m. each night.
7. Casino: Although small, the casino is usually located mid-ship and has everything you would find in a Vegas hotel. And I am told that the gamblers generally win.
9. Variety of ages: Assuming that cruises just attract people over 65 is a stereotype that is only partially true. The seniors who cruise tend to be young at heart because there is nothing to be unhappy about. Plus, they are usually in good shape as the itineraries can be arduous. On this particular world cruise, I have seen children, teens, young adults, parents and couples. The parents are home-schooling their children right onboard the ship. Even though these folks are in the minority on this voyage, Caribbean cruises tend to attract mainly young families. Disney usually attracts primarily families.
10. Education: If you think your brain will rot if you spend more than two days out at sea, there are plenty of educational options onboard, such as lectures given by experts in their fields. And again, all of the seminars are included in the price.
11. Games: For those who like to play, there are plenty of opportunities onboard a ship. For example, you can play trivia, various card games, pickle ball, shuffle board, etc., etc. There are even game rooms on the ship for the kids. Yet for the sophisticated few who like to read, there is a complete library onboard.
12. Health: Everyone needs a good night's sleep to remain healthy. Admittedly, I do not sleep all that well on dry land, but when I am on a ship, I snooze like a baby as when the ship is moving, there is sufficient cradling so that I am rocked to sleep, something I have not experienced since I was, well, an infant. A generalization that is often associated with cruising is that there are so many in one place that everyone winds up getting sick. After having spent 63 days on six different cruises so far, I have not seen much in the way of illness as the staff is constantly vigilant, reminding passengers to wash and sanitize their hands. If you do get sick, there is a hospital onboard. There are not too many hotels that have hospitals.
So there you have it. I am probably forgetting to include a few more pluses, but twelve reasons are probably sufficient for now. If I still have not convinced you to take a risk on cruising, so be it.
#reasons to cruise, #cruise ships, #travel, #blog, #blogger, #personal essay
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