Your first cruise ship

[loubetti]

October 1985 aboard the Costa Riviera (the former Guglielmo Marconi). Great cruise, no complaints. Mario Palumbo was captain!

Edited March 1, 2012 by loubetti

[Cupcrazy]

My first cruise was in December of 2006. It was 6 nights on the Carnival Liberty. We left out of Ft. Lauderdale and stopped at Freeport, Grand Cayman and Costa Maya. This trip definitely got me hooked on cruising. I went with some friends and stayed alone in an inside cabin.

[travel girl23]

Our first cruise was aboard the Carnival Celebration out of New Orleans in Sept. 1999. It was a 7-day cruise to Montego Bay, Jamaica; Grand Cayman; and Cozumel.

She is no longer with Carnival but owned by Iberocruceros and is known as the Grand Celebration. Of all our cruises, our first cruise was one of our very favorites.

Edited March 4, 2012 by travel girl23

[BeckyMax]

Carnival Paradise, back when it was non-smoking. Miami, Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Och Rios.

 

Definitely got us hooked. I still remember our waiter, John. Impeccable service, my 5 year old ate from the adult menu all week.

 

NCL Sky 3/19/12

[dmrrn73]

My first cruise was on Carnival Cruise Lines on the S.S. Carnivale.

[N7786W Flyer]

My first was in 1979 on NCL's Sunward II for my (our) honeymoon. 33 years later, we're still married and getting ready to go on our 20th cruise.:):):)

Edited March 6, 2012 by N7786W Flyer

[zcorvette1989]

 

This is a picture of me, standing in the water of Great Guana Cay, the private island for Disney's the Big Red Boat. I was eleven years old. The Star / Ship Majestic is sitting gloriously behind me, waiting for the passengers to return to the ship. This photograph was taken in August, 1991.

 

I remember that we had a package deal, where we stayed at the Contemporary Beach Resort in Disney, and then we had our stateroom on the ship. What a tiny room! I was on the upper bunk, while my parents fought for space on the double bed with the port hole. I think my dad either hit his head on the port hole screw, or on the bunk bed. All I remember is him uttering some words that I wasn't allowed to repeat.

 

I thought our ship was huge! I couldn't find my way around it, but I had a good sense of where I was going as far as my directions were concerned. We had a party on that private island. One evening, the Pirates from Peter Pan were looking for wenches. They picked up the entertainment director, who was sitting one table over from us. She was just sitting down to eat, and was "kidnapped" by the pirates. Then, when we were on the island, celebrating, they "kidnapped" the cruise director.

 

We had chocolate "ship" cookies at the kids' club. They had us playing games, and going on a scavenger hunt. My parents were a little miffed that the ten years and up crowd could do whatever we pleased, and we could check in and out of our activities without a parent. It was a trip that we'll never forget, and I LOVED it!!!

[CruisinS]

Greek Line's Queen Anna Maria, out of Baltimore - 1972.

It's the one that got me started.... still cruising 40 years later.

Lotta changes since those days.

[jakesmom04]

2000 Carnival Imagination....Wish I could go cruising every year and then some. Now that it is down to hubby and myself, maybe we can go more often. lol

[sailawaygirl]

I was a college student off to see the world (aka Europe) and began my ten week trip on the SS France out of New York to Southhampton, England in summer of 1968. All i remember was the food was elegant and superb. Still have a menu from the trip. Slept in bunks with three other college girls in the belly of the ship. It was fabulous!

[spunkyhungry]

Grand Princess, June 2002 - Princess Cays, Grand Cayman, Cozumel, and another stop in Mexico whose name I can't remember. I loved it! I was 17 and sailing with my mom and cousin. We all had a great time!

[spunkyhungry]

Well, I just stumbled across this thread 4 years later and I got enlisted to pick my then girlfriend and her parents up at the pier in New York City from a Bermuda cruise aboard Horizon (Celebrity Cruises). I was the stubborn one who wouldn't cruise, but she married me anyway. A year after we were married, I went on my first cruise aboard Zenith in October of 1998. The same day we booked the cruise my in-laws booked the same cruise separately so we had company and it definitely hooked me. I've done 4 more Bermuda cruises, another on Zenith, one on Horizon, one on Azamara Journey and the most recent on Celebrity Summit as well as 2 cruises on Celebrity Century (E and W Caribbean) and 2 Southern Caribbean cruises one on Adventure of the Seas and one on Celebrity Summit. #10 is this September to Alaska on Celebrity Infinity.

 

Not only am I hooked on cruising, I keep trying to convert the world (at least the piece that I'm in contact with). :D

 

My dad and husband were the same as you; they initially had little interest in cruising. But they finally took a cruise and were so impressed! On my dad's first day onboard, he couldn't stop talking about how beautiful the ship was (Golden Princess). He has since taken 2 more cruises. My husband also enjoyed his cruises a lot, especially all the drinks and food. His first cruise was on the Ruby Princess in January 2011, and he happily agreed to book a second cruise for the summer. We're taking our 3rd cruise together in June. I think almost anyone would enjoy a cruise, unless the person got extremely seasick easily.

[skiracer0112]

My first sailing was on the S.S. Norway as a young child some time in the 1980s, I know that we went to Nassau, St. Johns, and a private island somewhere in the Bahamas. I don't remember too much about the sailing except for the midnight buffet and a vivid memory of jet skiing in St. Johns as I hit a wave wrong and gashed my head open on the handle bars and had it sewn up onboard the ship.

 

The only other cruise I have taken was in 1992 on the S.S. Rotterdam to Alaska stoping in Ketchikan, Sitka, and Juneau.

 

Absolutely loved both ships, especially now being able to better appreciate the history behind both ships.

 

I haven't taken one since but I will be sailing this fall on Carnival but haven't decided on itinerary yet.

[uvakat]

My first cruise was in 2004 with my parents for Mother's Day. We were on the Sovereign of the Seas for a Bahamas cruise. It was a blast since I remember being able to drink wine and beer with dinner (back when RCCL allowed you to drink above 18). I wasn't really hooked until our Halloween cruise on the Carnival Dream in 2011.

[pappagene]

First cruise was on the SS Norway in December, 1995. DW was wanting to go on a cruise, but I was the holdout. I found a "cruise with NASCAR" trip. It took me 1 day to find out about this. I think it took one more day to book the cruise. The Norway was a beautiful ship which floated out of the past and swept me up. I still have her picture hanging in my office. I was hooked afterwards.

[AlwaysThankfulLady]

Our first was on the Nordic Empress for 4 nights to the Bahamas in 1994. We fell in love with cruising and haven't had as much fun in the MDR on our 5 cruises since then.

[Lyndhurst2012]

Our first cruise was on the Independence of the seas in October 2010 (Hurricane over the Bay of Biscay) We were hooked on cruising from the first day!

 

We did our second cruise in March this year on the Indy again, which was perfect in every way.

 

Looking to book another but would like to try a different ship, however we do love the Indy, I suppose it will always be special :)

[Silverheaded skier]

Our first cruise was on Thomson's Topaz, then we only went because we had meet Captain Rentell in a pub and he told my very travel sick husband that he would be fine juist go and see the Doctor on board and get the seasickness injection, so he did and does, and is usually fine. This was back in about 1998, Have only cruised on Thompson since, but this year going on the Island Escape because it is his 70th birthday and also his cousins birthday 6 days later and this is the only cruise which fits both dates and allows a second lot of people to join us for the second birthday.

[Cruisekrazy63]

Our first cruise was on the RCI Viking Serenade. It was in March of 2000.

[PeaceLoveCruise]

My first cruise was on the Zaandam on one of it's first voyages in 2000. Fort Lauderdale, San Juan, St Thomas, Half Moon Cay. I'm as hooked as you can be from Colorado. :D

 

 

PeaceLoveCruise

[LICRUISEAHOLICS]

We cruised to Bermuda on the Holland America SS Volendam July 1982. Trust me, this was well before cruising became so popular. The ship was about 29,000 tons and the decor was.... Well let's just say interesting. :)

We have since been on 17 cruises and looking forward to celebrating our 30th anniversary in Bermuda on the Celebrity Summit. :D

[beshears]

Oh my, this really takes me back.:o

 

It was about 20 years ago, and my friend and I had never cruised before. We belonged to a fan club out of Branson, Missouri with the Foggy River Boys, which performed there for 25 years or more.

 

While attending the fan club meeting, it was mentioned about the entertainers crusing, and wanted to know if any of the fan club members would like to cruise with them. Several of us had never cruised before, but we thought this would be a good opportunity to find out about cruising, which we did. We went on Holland American, I "believe ( ???) Neu Amsterdam. I believe the helpers/servers were from Indonesia, and they were great. Of course we had no clue what to expect on a cruise, but we were HAPPY:)people. We went to the Caribbean, but I don't remember the islands as I got "hooked" on cruising, and have had many more cruises since.:)

[happytam]

Wow I don't know if my brain will take me back that far.

The ship was the Regent Sea and the cruise line was Regency. I believe it was 1992, but don't ask me the month. Pretty sure it was the end of the year (November maybe?). I don't remember the whole itinerary. I do know that we left from Jamaica and had stops in Belize, Honduras and Grand Cayman. I think there was another port but I can't remember which one.

Towards the end of the cruise there was an electrical problem which affected the A/C and I also seem to remember there being a shortage of ice (go figure). As compensation for everyone's trouble, everyone on board was given a voucher for a free cruise! The only problem was that soon after the cruise line was fined by the EPA (I think they were dumping in the ocean) and I think they went bankrupt or shut down or something like that. Anyway, we never got to take our free cruise, lol.

Some years later one of my cruisemates sent me an email with pics of the Regent Sea underwater off the coast of Florida. It had been intentionally sunk (I don't know why). We clicked through the pics and remembered being in all of the rooms that were now underwater and covered with algae.

Even with the issues of this cruise we were all hooked. I'll be taking my eighth cruise later this year and can't wait :D

[netekay]

My first cruise (with my late husband) was on Holland America's Westerdam in November of 2000 out of Ft. Lauderdale. We went to Half Moon Cay and Nassau.

 

We were hooked! I lost my husband in 2008 but we were lucky enough to cruise together once more in 2002. Since then, I've been on 5 cruises with two more upcoming.

 

It really is the best way to vacation!

 

Lynette :D

[Vero Beach Louise]

Our first cruise was on the SS Vera Cruz. Just came across my lighter from that ship while cleaning out some drawers the other day.

 

And YEs! This cruise got us hooked on cruising. I still love the older smaller ships. Unfortunately, there aren't any left out of Florida. Don't know about anywhere else. It seemed the ships that accommodated 900-1200 passengers were the most pleasurable. We've been on about 15 cruises since in betwee time spent in Grand Cayman and other islands diving.