Just booked 1st cruise

[Gdawgs]

My wife and I are celebrating our 10 year anniversary next year, so to celebrate, we decided to take a cruise. We have never been on a cruise before, but it looks great. We booked a 7 night eastern Caribbean on Voyager of the Seas(January 7-14 2006). I have read lots of reviews about different cruise lines and ships, and this one appears to be a good choice. I have also talked to several people that have gone on cruises and many recommended Royal Caribbean. So, after booking, I'm starting to have second thoughts. Did we pick the right line, the right ship, destination, time of year, etc., etc. From what I've read here, it sounds like you guys are the experts, so I thought I'd ask your opinion. Is this a good choice? Just need a little reassurance. Sorry so long. Thanks.:)

[H20 Lover]

Congratulations on 9 years and what an awesome way to spend your 10th!

 

I personally feel you picked a great line, a beautiful destination, and wonderful time of year. As with any location, weather has a mind of it's own, so always just have a Plan B or C. Don't expect that it will be "this or that," just go with the flow, that way you won't have any disappointments.

 

Now welcome to the addicting world of cruising, enjoy this wonderful time of anticipation and here's calm seas to you! Cheers!! :D

[2VaCruzers]

First of all, congratulations on having booked your first cruise. I am by no means an expert, but next week I'll be on my 3rd cruise. Last year we took our first on RCCL (on Navigator) and fell in love with the voyager class ships. Next week, we leave on Explorer. You'll find that the cruise lines, sizes of ships, etc.. are all subjective and subject to individual likes and dislikes. The way I look at it...7 days on a ship beats the heck out of 7 days at work. Any time I don't have to cook or clean, and can wake up in a different place each morning can't be all bad, right? I love seeing the new places and meeting new people. I'm going to bet that once you experience your first cruise, you'll be back for more :D

 

As far as questions...all you have to do on these boards is ask, and someone will have an answer for you. I've learned so so much in the past year.

 

Enjoy!! And don't forget...the year of planning is fun, too!

[trabucocruiser]

Welcome aboard. Yes, you picked the right ship and the right cruise. We were on the Voyager last April and had a blast. You will enjoy it and beware of being addicted to cruising. By the way it was our 25th ann.

[snowman2]

Have a great time.

 

 

 

Good Cruise Line, great time of the year, and most of all great fun and good food.

[2VaCruzers]

Also..I think I remember hearing that the Voyager was going to be refurbished in the fall, so she'll be in great shape for you. :D

[glgolfer]

We took our first cruise in 1987 on RCIs Song of Norway. Since then we've cruised with RCI 17 times and other cruise lines 4 times. Not that we got hooked or anything on that first cruise.

We lived in Ohio then and always got out of town in January or February. Geting out of N. Dakota then should be better. The weather will be warm and sunny in the Caribbean.

We have not been on the Voyager, but have been on the Navigator and the Explorer and are booked on the Mariner for next January (they are all sister ships to the Voyager) We were concerned about the size of these ships as we have always liked smaller ones. But, it was all I could do to get my wife off the Navigator when it came time to disembark from our first cruise on this class. We felt less crowded on these ships than on any others.

 

All that means is you made a good choice as far as the line, ship and time of year for your first cruise.

[eileen226]

You will love Voyager. To date, we have only been on Navigator and Majesty, with Adventure in July, but this will be our FOURTH cruise in two years. We love Royal Caribbean, and having sailed with others who have sailed "better" and "worse", everyone agrees RCCL Voyager class is the BEST! Our 15 yr old sailed with myself, a friend and another first timer 14 yr old, and although my daughter is spoiled by voyager class, she thought the majesty was a wonderful stepping stone to where Royal Caribbean is now., but she truly loves voyager class, and is already planning her sweet sixteen on Freedom. My husband and I plan on celebrating our 25th anniversary and 48th birthdays on Royal's Mediterranean Cruise. Congrats and Have a great cruise!

[teach01]

You will love Voyager. To date, we have only been on Navigator and Majesty, with Adventure in July, but this will be our FOURTH cruise in two years. We love Royal Caribbean, and having sailed with others who have sailed "better" and "worse", everyone agrees RCCL Voyager class is the BEST! Our 15 yr old sailed with myself, a friend and another first timer 14 yr old, and although my daughter is spoiled by voyager class, she thought the majesty was a wonderful stepping stone to where Royal Caribbean is now., but she truly loves voyager class, and is already planning her sweet sixteen on Freedom. My husband and I plan on celebrating our 25th anniversary and 48th birthdays on Royal's Mediterranean Cruise. Congrats and Have a great cruise!

 

Eileen, when are you going on the adventure, we are going July 14th.

[bevo]

One thing for sure....EVERYBODY has an OPINION! And thats good! Just don't be dismayed if you read something negative...it may never even be an issue for you, so don't sweat it. Likewise, when someone raves about something...don't expect it to do the same for you...we are all different and what one person likes, another person hates, and vice versa. No matter what cruise line/ship/destination you are on, you will have fun if you have eyes that see...b/c it is just a beautiful world of water out there...and if you are with someone you love...it will be awesome.

Just "being away from it all" is heaven in itself...the rest is just icing on the cake!

That is MY opinion!! :) :)

[eileen226]

teach01- we're going on the July 10th sailing (aruba route). So looking forward to it! Did a three nighter in February on the Majesty, but we love the voyager class so much more!

I agree, you cannot believe all the good or bad that you read here, they are opinions. We almost cancelled our AOS booking because of what we read about problems with "locals", then realized we are "locals" down the shore, and most people find us offensive when we're at the boardwalk or beach. It's vacation, it's a cruise, enjoy!

[Gdawgs]

Thanks for all the feedback. I feel better now! The only problem, January is a LOOOOONG way off and we are very excited, so it's going to be a long wait. Like you mentioned, January is a great time to go for us, the temperature difference will most likely be a good 80-100° warmer.

 

How about vacation insurance. Sounds like it's probably a good idea to get it. Especially that time of year, you never know when a blizzard may hit and we may not be able to get to the airport. We'll be flying out of Minneapolis which is a 3.5-4 hour drive. Any suggestions on websites to shop around for insurance?

 

Thanks again,

Gary

[aggieastrosfan]

Any suggestions on websites to shop around for insurance?

 

http://www.insuremytrip.com is the best for this!