Your first time...

[vsp441]

In 1990, DH & I were looking for a quick get-away and our travel agent recommended we book the RCL Nordic Empress. It was her maiden year and she was the biggest, newest great thing! We booked lowest category possible at the last minute & received a TBA room assignment on our tickets. On boarding, we were amazed to find we had highest category ocean view! It hooked both of us, then & there!:D

 

The Nordic Empress then became the Empress of the Seas and has now been sold to another cruise line, was our first cruise 15 years later. We were hooked and were like two kids let loose in Disney World. I really liked the crew, service and food. One of the best time we (DW) have ever had. That ship will always be special to us.

[aricczona]

ROFLMAO!!! This cracked me up.....love your sence of humor! :D

Thanks, I dont want to be labelled a ship Ho, Just new to this and not sure what size ship fits best.

[PunkinsDad]

My first cruise? (excluding the many made during my U.S. Navy career). Well it was quite an interesting story actually.

 

My DW, who already had one cruise under her belt, (Big Red Boat with my MIL) was given a 4-day CCL cruise as a signing bonus for the hospital she worked at. For various reasons, the birth of my daughter chief among them, we kept putting off the cruise. Finally we were faced with either taking the cruise soon, or losing it altogether. So we booked the Jubilee out of Tampa. We paid for an additional day and for an upgrade to an Ocean-view cabin. The date for our cruise was……Sept 13th, 2001. Little did we know what was to come.

 

On Sept 11th, I was sitting in my office, working on something that I still cannot remember when my DW calls me on my cell. She’s at a nail salon (after all we are cruising in two days) and just saw on TV the first plane crash into the World Trade Center. After the call ended, I went to the office next door where there was a TV. I got it tuned in just in time to watch the second plane hit the other tower.

 

Knowing full well now that this was no accident, I immediately called my DW and told her to take the car to a shop and have the oil changed, and all the belts and hoses checked. We had airline tickets to fly to Tampa the following day, but I knew instinctively that no one would be flying for awhile.

 

Many of our friends and family were astonished and concerned that we would still consider taking our cruise, given what had happened. My response was that there was no way in hell that I was going to let those cowardly, slinking, terrorist scum change my behavior or plans. After all, that is what they wanted. Perhaps it’s my military background, but I refused to be scared or intimidated. I had a vacation planned, I was going to take it. Screw them!!!

 

So, we left Kentucky that evening, not certain that the ship would even be sailing. Everything was so chaotic and uncertain. One thing I was certain of……If Jubilee did sail…..we would be onboard.

 

After a 14 hour drive (calling CCL every hour to make sure the ship was still going to sail on schedule) we spent the night in Clearwater, and arrived at the port of Tampa on the 13th.

 

We had a really wonderful cruise, I was amazed and encouraged by the fact that almost everyone that had cabins booked for the cruise made it, despite the fact that all the airlines were grounded. We met people who had traveled from as far away as Canada, by car, just to make the cruise. I don’t know why, but that made me feel really good.

 

We were supposed to stop in Key West on day 2, but a tropical storm prevented that. Cozumel was wonderful (the ship actually filled the few empty cabins with Americans who were stranded in Cozumel due to the airlines not flying).

 

Looking back it was a wonderful cruise, and I’m very glad that we went, despite all the turmoil. It was the beginning of our obsession with cruising.

[Bruins14]

My first cruise was on the Explorer of the seas in 2006. It was a 5 night cruise to bermuda. When we drove up and looked at the ship we could not believe how big it was. We had a great cruise, everyone waiting on us. After that we were hooked. We have our first Carnival cruise booked for April on the Dream.

[cruisetobeaches]

It took my wife YEARS to talk me into a cruise. I just wasn't sure I'd enjoy it. We had a cruise booked out of New Orleans the year Katrina hit, so we ended up going out of Tampa on the Inspiration. First day into the cruise, I was hooked and said that a 5 day just wasn't long enough, so the next year, we did a 7 day. Then I decided that one cruise a year wasn't enough....................The addiction continues!:D

[newlife_2010]

I am actually going on my 1st cruise in January at 27 years old. The idea of a cruise never sounded fun to me. Plus, I had heard so many horror stories about Carnival that I strayed far away from it (it is the only line I can afford). But earlier this year, I began doing my research and slowly began to warm up to the idea. And once I found THIS BOARD, I was done. I booked my cruise within 48 hours of finding this board. I am a combination of scared and happy - only time will tell. I have a feeling though I am going to be addicted. I appreciate everything is included in the fare and you can travel to many places and not stay in hotels and move luggage and bags. I do not have to do the excursions (perse), I think I will enjoy just being on a cruise.

[GayleR]

We went on our first cruise in the early 90's on a small ship out of Miami, the Dolphin. My wife and I loved it and were hooked.

 

The Dolphin was our first cruise way back in May 1989! We loved that little ship.

 

Many of our friends and family were astonished and concerned that we would still consider taking our cruise, given what had happened. My response was that there was no way in hell that I was going to let those cowardly, slinking, terrorist scum change my behavior or plans. After all, that is what they wanted. Perhaps it’s my military background, but I refused to be scared or intimidated. I had a vacation planned, I was going to take it. Screw them!!!

 

Wow! My DH calls our DD Punkin. But besides that, I love your attitude. You were so right to go on your cruise. Do not be intimidated by terrorists!!!!!

[cbsorenson]

My first cruise is actually this coming Sunday on the Splendor. I am so excited I can hardly wait. I am going with my wife and this is her first cruise as well. I have never been so excited about a vacation before in my life. 8 days with my beautiful wife, no kids (at grandma's), how can I not be. I have been trying to talk my wife into going on a cruise every year of our marriage. Now 10 yrs have passed and we are finally going cruising!

[boxerdoglady]

My first cruise was on a French ship of the Paquet Line (can't remember the name now). She was on a transition cruiser from Miami to Alaska for the summer. My wife and I were going to take the 3-day LA to Vancouver leg of the transition. ($199 pp included the flight home from Seattle ! ! )

 

Drove to the port to find nothing there ! ! Travel agent gave us the wrong address.:mad: Thanks to a helpful cab driver we arrived at the correct port, San Pedro. There she was this tiny little "tub of a ship" surrounded with police tape, many LA County Sheriffs cruisers and 2 Sheriff's helicopters overhead. No one was being allowed on or off the ship. It turned out they had found dope on board the ship and consequently arrested the entire band ! ! :rolleyes: Waiting out in the hot sun, finally we were allowed to move into a storage shed nearby and the crew was allowed to bring us finger sandwiches and kool-aid while the Sheriff's Dept continued the search of the ship.

 

Left San Pedro 3 hours late, completely exhausted, and with NO BAND. :rolleyes: Our cabin was an Oceanview (porthole) w/bunks, although quite old, was very well maintained with a "writing" desk included and an "off-the-wall" bathroom, complete with a full size tub, shower, nice vanity and a radiator for drying the towels I guess.

 

The cruise north to Vancouver was punctuated with numerous "breakdowns" along the way, which only delayed us and rough rough water. The only pool off the aft deck was easily 8' X 8'! but had a net over it since the air would only be getting colder.The public rooms of the ship weren't very well maintained with carpets worn through, doors not closing cleanly, stains on the walls, etc. Just in general "shoddy" and incredibly small by today's standards.

 

We arrived in Vancouver 6 hours late, so the FREE tour of the city was out. When I got off the ship, as I promised to my wife, I got down on my hands and knees and KISSED the pier, swearing to never ever cruise again. :rolleyes:We did add-on a hotel stay in Vancouver for one day so we weren't rushed. One of the major attractions of this cruise was a visit to the Bushart Gardens on Vancouver Island, but the cruiseline had failed to pay in advance to reserve the ferry so we had to wait for the next one, thereby limiting the Bushart Gardens visit to 45 minutes ! ! We didn't mind that much, but there were some people that took this cruise explicity for this tour intending to spend an entire day there. They were, of course, heartbroken.

 

The one thing Paquet did right on this cruise as I've mentioned before in other posts, was the delicious cuisine. The ribs, steaks, seafood were beyond reproach. The most exquisite deserts I've ever had on any cruise ship ever. The dining room service was terrific.

 

The stay in Vancouver was great. Beautiful city and one of the cleanest large cities I've ever been in. One of the few highlights of this mostly disastrous cruise.

 

Upon returning to So Cal, my wife asked the travel agent why she would send us on this calamity. She said it was our first cruise, so we would have nothing to compare it to ! ! :eek:

 

My wife fired her on the spot and I've never used a brick and mortar travel agency since. Enjoyed NCL several years later and with a cruise on the Carnival Tropicale a couple years after that, in which we "accidently" got 16 of our friends to go with us, thereby getting a free cruise we weren't even aware of until afterward. I hit the craps table for $800 the final night at sea, and we were stuck on cruising. Just not stuck on each other as it turned out later. :(

 

I don't know whether to laugh or cry. Great story though and by all rights you should have never tried cruising again.

[RMcoolX]

My first cruise was a 4 day with Disney. I didn't really know what to expect other than sea. It took me 3 days before I finally got use to the fact that dining was free, therefore there would be no cashier at the end of the buffet line. Seemed only right that I should be paying SOMEBODY SOMETHING!!! :) It also took awhile for me to get use to someone cleaning the room, which to this day we still clean the room more than I imagine most would before exiting.

 

All it took was that one cruise for me to be hooked ever since. Prior to the first cruise, all we ever did was land-based vacations. Never again!!!

[boxerdoglady]

My first cruise? (excluding the many made during my U.S. Navy career). Well it was quite an interesting story actually.

 

My DW, who already had one cruise under her belt, (Big Red Boat with my MIL) was given a 4-day CCL cruise as a signing bonus for the hospital she worked at. For various reasons, the birth of my daughter chief among them, we kept putting off the cruise. Finally we were faced with either taking the cruise soon, or losing it altogether. So we booked the Jubilee out of Tampa. We paid for an additional day and for an upgrade to an Ocean-view cabin. The date for our cruise was……Sept 13th, 2001. Little did we know what was to come.

 

On Sept 11th, I was sitting in my office, working on something that I still cannot remember when my DW calls me on my cell. She’s at a nail salon (after all we are cruising in two days) and just saw on TV the first plane crash into the World Trade Center. After the call ended, I went to the office next door where there was a TV. I got it tuned in just in time to watch the second plane hit the other tower.

 

Knowing full well now that this was no accident, I immediately called my DW and told her to take the car to a shop and have the oil changed, and all the belts and hoses checked. We had airline tickets to fly to Tampa the following day, but I knew instinctively that no one would be flying for awhile.

 

Many of our friends and family were astonished and concerned that we would still consider taking our cruise, given what had happened. My response was that there was no way in hell that I was going to let those cowardly, slinking, terrorist scum change my behavior or plans. After all, that is what they wanted. Perhaps it’s my military background, but I refused to be scared or intimidated. I had a vacation planned, I was going to take it. Screw them!!!

 

So, we left Kentucky that evening, not certain that the ship would even be sailing. Everything was so chaotic and uncertain. One thing I was certain of……If Jubilee did sail…..we would be onboard.

 

After a 14 hour drive (calling CCL every hour to make sure the ship was still going to sail on schedule) we spent the night in Clearwater, and arrived at the port of Tampa on the 13th.

 

We had a really wonderful cruise, I was amazed and encouraged by the fact that almost everyone that had cabins booked for the cruise made it, despite the fact that all the airlines were grounded. We met people who had traveled from as far away as Canada, by car, just to make the cruise. I don’t know why, but that made me feel really good.

 

We were supposed to stop in Key West on day 2, but a tropical storm prevented that. Cozumel was wonderful (the ship actually filled the few empty cabins with Americans who were stranded in Cozumel due to the airlines not flying).

 

Looking back it was a wonderful cruise, and I’m very glad that we went, despite all the turmoil. It was the beginning of our obsession with cruising.

 

Your story gave me chills. Thank you for sharing.

[boxerdoglady]

I am actually going on my 1st cruise in January at 27 years old. The idea of a cruise never sounded fun to me. Plus, I had heard so many horror stories about Carnival that I strayed far away from it (it is the only line I can afford). But earlier this year, I began doing my research and slowly began to warm up to the idea. And once I found THIS BOARD, I was done. I booked my cruise within 48 hours of finding this board. I am a combination of scared and happy - only time will tell. I have a feeling though I am going to be addicted. I appreciate everything is included in the fare and you can travel to many places and not stay in hotels and move luggage and bags. I do not have to do the excursions (perse), I think I will enjoy just being on a cruise.

 

Just remember to take everything in stride (this is true w/ any vacation). Don't make too stringent a schedule for yourself and don't go in w/ any grandious expectations.

 

I'm sure you'll have a great time!

[Kissyfur19]

My first "official" cruise was on the Carnival Sensation, sailing out of Tampa to the Western Caribbean. There was no doubt in my mind that I would love cruising and the trip (and the ship) lived up to my expectations.

 

I have been fortunate enough to grow up on and around the water and have traveled on my parents small boat (36 ft) from the time I was a child...all through my teens & into my early 20s. Living in NJ, we have traveled, by boat, as far South as Virgina (Chesapeake Bay) and as far North as Montreal, Canada (though the Champlain Canal & locks and Lake Champlain).

 

I knew that when it came to cruising that I would feel right at home. I love the idea of traveling from port to port and seeing many different places in one trip, plus spending some quiet down time on the ship and just relaxin!

[Dubsolute]

My first time...mmmm...her name was Lola, she was a...oh wait we're talking about first time cruising.

 

The wife and I were supposed to go to Hawaii but decided it might be too far to go without our 3 yo DS. So we decided to go somewhere in the Caribbean and take DS. But we couldn't decide which island to go to. Our reasoning was to take a cruise to get a sample of a few islands. We're still sampling. :D

[Winterstale]

First time was on Disney Wonder in September of '04.

 

Second, third, and fourth times were on Windjammer Mandalay - an amazing experience that encouraged me to learn to sail on my own - now we charter and sail ourselves around :D

 

That said...I sailed the Paradise in October of '08, went BACK on the Wonder this past March and I'm going on the Splendor in 26 days but who's counting?

 

Yeah...I guess you could say I'm hooked! Sailing the boat myself is fun....but sometimes you've just GOT to be chillin' by the adult pool with an adult beverage and no responsibility to speak of ;)

[jhale]

It was the Carnival Fantasy in 1995, my mom got the cruise for free for going to a time share seminar. She had been on an RCI ship before and was worried that the Fantasy was going to be small, or just not fun since the trip was free. I'll never forget driving up to the ship and her saying "my gosh it's huge!" I've never been the same since, I'm am truly an addict!

[Celandine]

My first cruise was a 7 day Western Caribbean in August 1999 on the Sensation, I was 15 at the time, and the way it started out was not with love.

 

My mum was stressed at work, and looking to get away somewhere. Previous vacations had been to England to see family, and about 5 trips to Orlando doing the theme park thing. She wanted something a little more relaxing.

 

The TA she spoke to suggested a cruise, the idea of arriving at one destination, unpacking once and yet seeing many things on our floating resort was appealing. So she booked.

 

Our first day was SUPER stressful, our flight was later on and we were one of the last people rushed onto the ship (literally, no lines, but rushed). We found our room and suddenly had to scramble around for muster (had no clue about this, more stress) my mum was hating this so far. It was hot (Miami) and crowded and seemed to last forever. Then we had early dinner, and the Maitre'd sat us at the wrong table, then tried to move us in the middle of the meal (my mum was embarrassed, and said we'd move the next night - since the table was right next to where we were sitting) The next night we noticed a lot of people changed, and we were new to the larger table along with a grandmother and grandaughter, so we felt a lot more comfortable.

 

The cruise got better. We shopped in Cozumel (though I refused to drink anything, because it might have touched the water and I didn't want to get sick, so we went back around lunch) I was too scared to get off on the tender for Grand Cayman (my mum didn't mind, we just relaxed around the ship that day) and we had the most fabulous time in New Orleans, did a city tour (A/C bus was great) Saw the aquarium, and shopped around the mall. It was such a fantastic opportunity to see New Orleans. We also had a later flight out so we did the Miami city tour.

 

I did spend a lot of this cruise feeling the boat moving (once in the dining room I felt it turning) I would stumble in the hallways often, and people looked at me like I was crazy. (I have sensitive equillbrium) We had the best dining staff ever (minus the matire'd) and the assistant (Janos from Hungary) still has not been topped. We would see him every morning in the Lido and every night at dinner. He talked to me and my mum the most (the waiter paid the most attention to everyone else, and barely spoke to us). It was the actually sad saying goodbye to him.

 

Well, sorry this was so long winded, but it was an eventful first cruise. Luckily we turned out to love it. My mum has now been on 6 Carnival cruises, and 2 HAL (she leaves for her third HAL in 25 days).

[JRock59]

My first Cruise was in December 1991 on the Regal Princess. Not only was it my first Cruise but it was the first time I met my future in-laws. Had an amazing Cruise thought the ship was beautiful and big! If I remember right sailed out of Port Everglades did the Western Route, it down right poured all day in GC, was very windy in Cozumel and we tendered. They threw you from the ship to the tender and then back again! Thank goodness for all the guys that work maintience on a ship and have lots of strenght! And Jamacia well....if you think it's bad now you should have seen it then! Rebels in the mountains, got offered drugs all over the island and right out in the open and the taxi driver (who was wearing more gold than I had ever seen) kept calling us "rich" Americans. On the sail back to homeport we hit a storm and I do mean STORM. The Captain announced he could not go around it as it was to big and if we did we would be delayed by 24 hrs or more. So we sailed in 70 mph winds and 30 foot sea swells and the rain was........heavy all the time no drizzle for us. They closed off all open decks but did open the doorways with barracades across them. Had to have some fresh air in the ship as both passangers and crew were sick! This is were I learned that no matter how crappy you feel you have to eat and keep something in your stomach. But the weather didn't matter a bit as I was hooked! :)

First Carnival Cruise was in January 1994 on the Ecstacy out of Miami. Swore I'd "never" sail Carnival again! As she was a party ship to the max! This was back when they played drinking games around the pool and all over the ship and you only had to be 18 to drink at sea. Took me 5 years to try Carnival again but by that time their image had changed the days of Drinking games by the pool were long gone, thankfully! Now she's one of our Favorite Cruise lines and for the value you just can't beat a Cruise!

[SAC69]

My first cruise was a 3 day to Nassau and the Berry Islands on the MS Sunward 2, NCL. Went with 2 college buddies and we all got lucky all three nights with three different girls. Definitely left a positive impression.

[SAC69]

The year was 1978....

[Senoj84]

My first time was in 2007 with my grandmother, aunt & uncle. It was also my first time flying. I had so much fun. It was an 8 day cruise on the Liberty. I've been hooked every since having a yearly cruise. Next year I want to start going on 2 cruises a year.