Our first 10 day cruise!

[satchiesmom]

We just booked the Maasdam S. Caribbean for January 24 and this will be our first cruise longer than 10 days. Needless to say, we are very excited. We have only been on the Westerdam, so we are looking forward to being on one of the older smaller ships. I have heard good things about the Maasdam and hope they are true.

[LuAnn]

You will love having the extra days...in fact, you probably won't want to go back to 7 days! LuAnn

[sail7seas]

Sure hope you love Maasdam as much as we do. :)

 

Congratulations on a fun booking.

[NoNoNanette]

I don't know about your particular ship (other than it's GOT TO BE DELIGHTFUL!), but I can tell you that a "longer" cruise is fabulous. You'll wake up on that 7th day, yawn, stretch, then SMILE....knowing you still have more fun ahead! :)

[doone]

What I found after I took my first 10-day cruise is that 7 days were never ever going to be enough. Enjoy, your going to love the extra days onboard.

[Randyk47]

We've taken 1 12-day, 3 10-day, and 1 7-day cruises. Unless we have no other choice we'll not be taking any more 7-day cruises....too short!!! Our next is 14-days on the Veendam....and not a back-to-back! :D

[diboja]

Hi Satchiesmom....

We have booked the same 10 day S. Caribbean for Jan 24th as well. This will be our first 10 dayer and look forward to the extra time on board....

 

We have sailed on the Maasdam before and were delighted - hopefully with the upgrades they have done, the experience will be even better......

[jhannah]

Doone is so right! Once we took a 10-day, we just felt a week cruise was too short. (We've taken 4-day coastals, but we didn't have to go far to do it.) We've had 13- and 14-day sailings, and those are nice. But ten days is just about right for us. Enjoy!

[RevNeal]

Doone -- I, agree! 7-day cruises simply are insufficient for me to get relaxed and to enjoy the ship and the time away. 10 days is JUST ENOUGH for me to get the fully-relaxed feeling. 12 or 14 days are better, and 21 days is JUST LONG ENOUGH for me to start looking forward to going home. :)

 

Next year, with 31 days on the Statendam crossing the Pacific from Hong Kong and Osaka, I'm sure I'll be looking forward to getting home ... I'll be coming home, probably, to move, and that means much work and much excitement. :D It also means saying goodbye to a church I have come to dearly love, and for that I will mourn. :( But ... all good things must come to an end. And the same is true with cruises. On 7-day cruises you're already preparing to disembark the day you unpack! On 10-day or longer cruises you actually get some time in there to not have to think or worry about it.

[satchiesmom]

Thanks all for getting me even more excited about this cruise. As most of you picked up on, I meant in my first post that this is our first cruise longer than 7 days. And I will get to shop for another formal outfit. I love formal nights and now I understand there will be 3 instead of 2. I am so looking forward to being on the Maasdam. Now all we have to do is the hardest part - wait!

[jhannah]

On 7-day cruises you're already preparing to disembark the day you unpack!

How true! Finding the disembarkation form in your cabin on your first full day onboard just rubs it in! ;)

[Brown Eyed Gurl]

I have only taken a 10-day cruise and will never plan any shorter! Somehow even 10 days seemed too short.

In fact we are looking into something longer than 14 days now. :)

[Randyk47]

I should have added to my earlier posting that a big consideration for us is that we like the Caribbean and we like to cruise during the January to March time frame. That means, with a few exceptions, that the majority of cruises are out of Florida. Since we live in Texas that means a flight and flying has gotten more and more expensive, especially lately. Since we fly in the day before we also have at least one night's accommodations and food on top of the flight costs. Those costs would be the same for any length cruise so why not make it worthwhile. Since we both still work, and will for several more years, I don't see us cruising more than once a year. The end result is that we've decided anything shorter than 10 days is way down our priority list. Once you get used to the longer cruises it's hard to go back....our one and only 7 day seemed way, way too short.

[satchiesmom]

diboja,

Nice to know that someone else is on this cruise. There is a posting for it on the Roll Call board, I was the only one that answered the post and there hasn't been any other activity on it.

Any info about the Maasdam you would like to share would be appreciated, and Sail, I know you have some wisdom to impart from reading your posts. :)

Gosh, I hate this waiting, but then if I could cruise constantly I suppose it wouldn't be so special.

 

Susan

[michmike]

hey s'mom.. a lakewood alum here.. have to agree with the others that once you've taken a 10 day you are spoiled. Our last 2 have been 10s and we'd be reluctant to do anything less. As Randy said, when you consider the expense of just getting to Ft lauderdale and overnighting, why not maximize the experience and go for 10 days or longer.

 

We were on the Maasdam 3 yrs ago and thought it was a great ship, but then we're partial to the S and R class ships anyway.

 

Noticed your concern in another post about being on main deck and want to reassure you as others have, shouldn't be a problem. We generally get outside cabins on Main, Dolphin or A and wouldn't have traded any of them for the best hotel room in Ft Lauderdale. You're on the ship and you're headed south.. life is good.

[LHC]

DD and I booked a 10 day cruise for Christmas and NYE at SEA in 2006. My last and first cruise was for 7 days, so we are excited about the extra time plus we have added time both pre and post cruise....Today is 6 months from cruising...ahhhhhhh.

Linda

[airlink diva]

I'm going on the 10 day cruise prior to your trip!! I'm going to be the one holding on to the doorway begging "please let me stay!!:D :D

Quite a few of my co-workers and friends can't understand why I want to take a 10 day cruise. I agree with Rev Neal and the rest, by the time you hit the 5th day of the 7 day cruise and get your cruise vibe, it's winding down!! Also 7 days go by so fast.

I'm looking forward to the ports and the sea days, the only change in the trip is I want to visit HMC first instead of last. But you can't have it all!!

[kiberkid]

I love formal nights and now I understand there will be 3 instead of 2. I am so looking forward to being on the Maasdam. Now all we have to do is the hardest part - wait!

 

3 formal nights... oh dear... hubby is not going to be amused.. he wears a shirt a time every day & looks forward to several casual days on holidays... hee hee hee... I don't think I will tell him he has to wear a tie 3 times.. hee hee hee.. that will be my secret...

[scopewest]

We did 10 days, and 7 days have been (enjoyable) agony ever since! 10 days really gives you a chance to forget what day it is so that you NEED those day of the week carpets in the elevators!

[satchiesmom]

Mike, Lakewood huh? That's unfamiliar territory for those of us in the Heights!:D Actually I have only lived here for almost 5 years, hubby and I have been nomads all of our 40 years together. I was born and raised in MI, in Auburn Hills. Small world.

Kiber, I have already warned my DH so that the whole ship won't hear the explosion that would happen if I took him by surprise. Just kidding. Although he hates wearing a tie and grouses about it, he didn't make a peep. He's so excited to be away from the office for 10 days somewhere where no one can reach him on his cell that I do believe I could even get him into a tux!

[kiberkid]

Satchiesmom.

 

My hubby used to have to wear tuxes to meetings. Over the years he actually wore out 2 of them. He will be just fine.. but I am going to enjoy the "shock".... We actually enjoy dressing up once in a while, but 3 times in 10 days :eek: ... oh dear... hee hee hee.... :p

 

Sandy