Some do's and don'ts for your first cruise.

So the day of your first cruise has arrived and you are excited and anxious to get on board, but you don't know the protocol and what's the best things for you to do or what's a necessity that you have to do on your first day on ship.


Well I thought I'd put you a little list together, to help you.


DO's

• Tour the Ship. You need to do this to get your bearings as ships can be a minefield to navigate around when you have never been on one before! Start at the top and work your way down, this way you won't get lost or miss anything out.
• Make your Speciality Dining reservations as they tend to get booked up quite early. Especially if there is a special occasion you are celebrating during the cruise, so you won't be disappointed. 
• Book your Spa treatments. Again, this is one of the things that gets booked up quickly, especially for sea days. Tip, try to book your treatments on a port day the Spa tends to offer big discounts on treatments on port days, and manage your trips off ship that day to suit the Spa time.
• Buy your Alcohol or Soda packages if you haven't already pre booked. Royal Caribbean and MSC do some fantastic value ones that will save you a small fortune on your spending money.
• Take loads of photo's whilst the ship is fairly empty, as once the activities begin and everyone is on board it will be hard to get a clear picture of the ships fabulous features.
• Visit your cabin and freshen up and say 'Hello' to your cabin attendant, its nice to build a relationship as you may need him to do something for you later in the cruise.
• Go to the muster drill.
• Finally, head up deck for the sailaway. It will really get you in the mood and set you off on an exciting foot for your cruise ahead.

DON'Ts

• Head straight to the Buffet - I know you will be staving by now as breakfast would seem a lifetime ago but everyone tends to head here first and it can be busy and hard to find a table! Often other venues are open for lunch so maybe explore these instead.
• Take the lift if you don't have to! It will be packed and will take you ages just to get anywhere, although the lifts at the front or the back may be quieter. Use the stairs where possible.
• Presume your cabin will be immaculate and in working order. It should be, but on occasion things can be missed by the cabin steward so make sure you are happy with it and the condition it is in when you arrive. 
• Skip the muster drill. It is tempting as you will be off exploring no doubt but this is a vital part of the cruise and you MUST attend! Even for those who have cruised 100 times before.

There are bound to be others that I have missed and if it's not your first cruise then you will probably have your own usual ritual.

But the most important thing is to relax and start to enjoy your holiday from the moment that you get on ship!