Onboard Cruise Ships

In this section we cover the basics of what you might find onboard your cruise ship.

The first thing you will come across is your cabin, along with a leaflet of the ships deck plan and daily program. This will help you locate all the restaurants and activities onboard.

What’s in your Cabin?
You cabin will usually contain most of the below:

• Modern ships have twin beds, which can usually be converted into a queen-sized bed
• Older ships may have fixed twin beds, double bed or even upper and lower berths
• Small private bathroom with shower, toilet and sink
• Towels, international shaver socket soap and shampoos are common
• Telephone, radio and TV with satellite or recorded channels
• Desk and chair
• Wardrobe, draws, bedside cabinet/draws.

You cabin might have a:

• Bath, depending on the grade
• Hairdryer
• VCR or DVD player
• Sofa or two chairs and a table.
• Refrigerator/Mini Bar, Personal Safe.
• Balcony

Dining
When onboard your cruise you will find yourself spending more time eating than doing anything else. Cruise lines recognise this as an important aspect of your cruise, therefore making dining an enjoyable experience. All meals will be included in your fare with the opportunities to eat all day; early breakfast, full breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, dinner and midnight buffet. Dining rooms tend to consist of a main dining room with assigned seating, an open seated buffet restaurant and an outdoor grill. However with a recent increase of popularity for flexible dining, this is changing.

Quality
The general rule is you get what you pay for. The quality of food will be reflected in the cruises ratings.  Budget level cruises will mean pre-prepared frozen meals and luxury cruises will offer freshly cooked food. As cruise ships cater for large numbers of people the quality tends to be banquet level and suited for American, British, European taste.

Sports and Leisure activites
Most ships will have at least one pool with deck space for sunbathing. However, for the people who prefer to be more active many cruise ships offer sports facilities, fitness centres and organised outside activities.

Pools
The swimming pool and sunbathing area will be usually be where the majority of your time is spent. Many ships will contain several pools either together or in spate areas. Most ships have their pools located at the top surrounded by protective screens and overlooked by sun decks. Sometimes the pool decks are tiered at the stern. This is usually called the Lido and is where Jacuzzis and water slide can be found.

Sports Facilities
Depending on the size of the ship, sports facilities may include basketball, golf driving nets, jogging or walking track, miniature putting green, shooting, quoits, badminton, shuffleboard, skeet, paddle tennis,  shooting, volleyball and table tennis. On larger ships you may also find an ice skating rink and a rock climbing wall.

Fitness Centre
Most ships now have a Fitness Centre which includes a gym and spa. The gym will offer modern equipment and exercise classes. The spa may consist of massages, sauna, steam room and a beauty salon.

Activites & Entertainment
With so many activities to choose from you are unlikely to get bored on a cruise ship! There is something to do all day whether it is contests, deck games, lectures, casinos or production shows. The cruise will have entertainment staff, normally lead by the cruise director. To get a full idea of what’s happening everyday all the activities will be listed in the Daily Programme.
Below is a list of possible entertainment activities onboard:

• Pool and Deck Games
• Dancing
• Bingo
• Art Auctions
• Lectures
• Cooking Classes
• Wine Tasting
• Casinos
• Production shows
• Specialist Children’s Activities
• Pool Entertainment
• Bands Playing
• Library
• Cards
• Internet
• Shopping
• Quiz’s
• Cinemas
• Discos

Extra Costs
Although your cruise fare will include meals and entertainment, there are many other ways to increase the cost of your holiday. The additional costs usually consist of alcoholic drinks, soft drinks, cabin telephone calls, casino, photographs, gift shops, tips and shore excursions.
Recently cruise pricing has become more competitive therefore the cruise lines have implemented different ways to increase their onboard income. As the ships have increase in size so have the facilities that charge extra money.
Tips on saving money:

• If you are likely to take a lot of shore excursions, maybe consider upgrading to a cruise that includes these outings in the fare.
• Excursions sold on the quayside are often cheap than those sold on board.
• Use emails or phones ashore to stay in touch.
• Look out for special offers at the spa.
• Buy special drink packages. Ex. 1 Bottle of wine every day.

Medical Facilities
Most cruise liners with more than 50 passengers will have medical facilities and a licensed doctor onboard. The onboard Medical Centre should be able to treat, evaluate and provide reasonable emergency medical care for passengers. These are on call 24-hours a day. Procedures are in place If cases are very serious.

Safety Onboard
There are a large number of rules and regulations for passenger and crew safety. Regular inspections are carried out by the ship's country of registration and current operation to make sure they comply with the emergency-response procedures. Cruise ships are built and operate under international rules known as Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS).  This requires the ships to have lifeboats and lifebelts for all passengers and crew and on most cases smoke detectors, sprinklers and low-level emergency lighting for escape routes. Within 24 hours onboard, you will be asked to participate in a safety drill that will involve wearing your assigned life jacket and going to your assigned lifeboat.