What have you seen?

[Jimmy Geegitz]

Great thread!

[kjunea]

I'm one of those people with a perpetual 5:30 AM internal alarm clock. Even when I moved to Eastern Time zone for 25 years, it reset to 5:30 AM eastern time. But waking up at 5:30 on a cruise ship is the most wonderful thing. I even lay my clothes out so not to wake up the family. I go up to the Lido, get a cup of Hot tea or Hot Chocolate, and find a good chair. Watching the sun start to inch its way into the sky is just magnificent.

 

And of course, about 7:00, I bring back food to the cabin for everyone else. But that hour and half is all mine!

[jayscore]

I'm one of those people with a perpetual 5:30 AM internal alarm clock. Even when I moved to Eastern Time zone for 25 years, it reset to 5:30 AM eastern time. But waking up at 5:30 on a cruise ship is the most wonderful thing. I even lay my clothes out so not to wake up the family. I go up to the Lido, get a cup of Hot tea or Hot Chocolate, and find a good chair. Watching the sun start to inch its way into the sky is just magnificent.

 

And of course, about 7:00, I bring back food to the cabin for everyone else. But that hour and half is all mine!

 

I get it!;)

[prissihawg]

I am an early riser also and it's my favorite time of the day. I start at the jogging track and work my down to the lido for hot chocolate. It seems that everyone up at that time of the morning is enjoying the peace and quite also. You do see some pretty interesting things though, like people sleeping off their DOD's in the lounge chairs.

[drafterdw]

if you leave out of Baltimore you will go over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge & Tunnel in the middle of the night - the first time we did this no one knew what time but we woke up just in time to see it.....think it was round 3 a.m. Will ask again when we go in 3 weeks and set our alarm if anyone can give us the time....very neat to see!

[jules815]

I'm also an early riser, and love going up to get a cup of tea and walk around the ship early in the morning. Even with being up later on vacation, my internal alarm still goes off at 5am. We do late seating, and most days grab a nap in between pool time and getting ready for dinner.

[Devmegsmum]

Fantastic thread. I am not normally an early riser but these posts have opened my eyes. I will definitely be up at least once to experience this "magical" time. Thanks to all that posted.

 

 

 

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[Silent Penguin]

if you leave out of Baltimore you will go over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge & Tunnel in the middle of the night - the first time we did this no one knew what time but we woke up just in time to see it.....think it was round 3 a.m. Will ask again when we go in 3 weeks and set our alarm if anyone can give us the time....very neat to see!

 

We'll be on the Pride very soon. This might be worth waking up for.

[southernmama]

I just wanted to say that I am VERY excited that you have enjoyed this thread as much as I have. Made my day, Cruise Critic is awesome

[Devmegsmum]

For me, more threads should be like this and not the nastiness you see on some others. Thanks again for posting it.

 

 

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[Arusha]

As an insect fanatic, I get up around sunrise and take my camera around decks, snapping super-close-up photos of butterflies, moths, and other critters attracted to the lights. Even when the ship is miles from land, these creatures are drawn to the lights. Amazingly, my best insect photos in the Western Caribbean have all been on the ships.

 

 

What a great idea! Thanks for the tip!

[ZoeyVictoria]

On our first cruise out of Tampa, we loved going under the Skyway Bridge so much that we got up to see it again when we passed under it at 4:00 a.m. (after getting to bed at 1 a.m. and having to be up for disembarkation at 7 a.m.). Walking up to the deck with nobody else in sight had that hushed quality that makes you want to tiptoe quietly and whisper. It was kind of a warm fuzzy feeling to know that there was somebody on the bridge watching us enjoy slipping quietly under the Skyway Bridge. I hope we can do this again for the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel in a couple of weeks.

[eroberts]

We weren't on a ship at the time but we were down on the Gulf. I woke about 5:30, were early risers too, I could hear thunder in the distance so I got up and went out on the balcony. There was a big thunder storm moving across the Gulf it was getting that eerie blueish time in the morning. I could see the lightening off in the distance and hear the rumbling of the thunder and the crashing of the waves AND NOTHING ELSE.I felt like I was the only person around but I could see a couple of fishing boats heading out into the storm. Usually I don't like storms but that was so amazing I didn't want it to end it was soooo peaceful. Now I make it a point when we go on vacation to get up early at least one or two mornings.

[Qudas]

I am a early riser at home, so it is natural to do so on a cruise. I get up before sunrise, walk for 30-45 minutes, and take pictures of the sunrise as it occurs. It is the best part of the cruise! Then it is time to get coffee in the buffet. Not crowded at all. Most port days you can see the pilot boat come out, the ship sail into port, the deck crew cleaning and setting up the deck. They usually play some upbeat music over the speakers while they are working.

[OKCruiseMan]

Early AM is the best time of the day. Great for a good cup of coffee (yes carnival coffee is just fime for me) and talk with some of the crew. With fewer guests around, they seem to have more time to just chat. It can be very interesting learning about them and their situation.

[jaxfl]

I hate getting up early....I would like to sleep to 10am, but I have to be at work by 6am Monday - Friday and for some reason even on weekends I cannot spleep past 5am. Even taking sleeping bills does not help. So on the cruise I am up on the baclony having coffee a 5 am.... This next cruise I think I will wonder the halls and see what the rest of you folks are doing. :rolleyes:

[Room Service!]

I don't recall seeing anything out of the ordinary late at night, or early in the am, but on a cruise to Bermuda (?) very late we did hear quite a few helicopters. They were flying VERY low with minimal lights. We've always wondered what that was about.

[ComeSailWithME]

On our last cruise (Oasis) we stayed up very late the last night to soak in our last day of vacation. We walked all around the ship, which was virtually empty, since everyone was asleep waiting for their next day of travel. By the time we got back to our rooms (we plates full of food, lol) we sat on the balcony and watched as we made our way into Port Everglades and then saw them docking the boat around 4 am or so. Very cool experience!

[JayByrd]

On our cruise on Conquest in 2010, my wife and I both had trouble sleeping on one particular night (the rich MDR food gave us a touch of reflux...not that anyone asked). We took a stroll around the ship at around 4 am and saw what you'd expect to see...cleaning and maintenance staff, a handful of late night revellers, and quiet. Definitely a side of cruise ship life that's worth seeing at least once.

[mrsdoc3]

Not one a ship, but my husband and I stayed in a cabin in Zion National Park in Utah, and we both woke up about 4:00am. We walked outside, and it was SO dark as there was only one artificial light down in front of the lodge. The lodge is in the canyon (as opposed to on the rim), and the walls are pretty high at that point. All you could see was blackness except for a strip of stars directly overhead.

 

We walked toward the lodge and were going to sit on bench out there until we saw a medium-sized creature lumbering toward the bench. It was about the size of hog, but it appeared to have porcupine-like quills on it. We couldn't really tell with just the one light from the lodge. We stood on the bench for some time -- trying to decide what it was and also waiting for it to finish its trek by the bench.

 

And as for those sleeping on the deck, perhaps they were not sleeping off their DODs, but trying to avoid the sleep-depriving snores of their spouses.

[meggie711]

On our last cruise (Oasis) we stayed up very late the last night to soak in our last day of vacation. We walked all around the ship, which was virtually empty, since everyone was asleep waiting for their next day of travel. By the time we got back to our rooms (we plates full of food, lol) we sat on the balcony and watched as we made our way into Port Everglades and then saw them docking the boat around 4 am or so. Very cool experience!

 

I would love to do that! Maybe earlier into the cruise, as we will have an 8 hour drive back home on our next trip!

[<3 2 Cruise]

This is the neatest thread. I always cherish sleeping late as possible. My DH gets up and goes outside, especially to pull into ports. Look at what I have missed!! I will be getting up and joining you all for the sunrise club! I can sleep when I am dead! Thanks for the wake up call!

[crusinfamof4]

if you leave out of Baltimore you will go over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge & Tunnel in the middle of the night - the first time we did this no one knew what time but we woke up just in time to see it.....think it was round 3 a.m. Will ask again when we go in 3 weeks and set our alarm if anyone can give us the time....very neat to see!

 

While on VA Beach at the beginning of August, I waited and waited one night to see the Pride sail back out to sea. I found a thread that said it passed the bridge about 12:00-1:00 am. At 1:00 still no Pride in sight, so I went to bed. Glad to see it's at 3:00 am and not like 1:15 am!

 

And back to the thread, I am always too tired and dead asleep to wake up in the middle of the night, wish I would though, it seems very peaceful.