Should I be concerned?

I have never been on a Cruise before and my husband wants me to plan one for April 2010.

We live in MD. and the Cruise ship leaves out of Baltimore for a 7 day cruise, only.

I really didn't want to do a 7 day cruise, but it will be cheaper to do this cruise than to fly to Miami for a 3 day cruise.

Has anyone cruised for 7 days as their first cruise and how did you like it?Should I be concerned?
My husband and I just returned from our first cruise in early December and it was a 7 day cruise. We flew into Miami (from upstate NY) the day before. We left the cruise wanting more and are looking into our next cruise which we want to be at least 8 days. I think 2 weeks would be my cut off, but 7 days wasn't quite enough for us. We had 4 ports in those 7 days and I'm looking for our next cruise to have more days at sea and maybe only 3 ports. If you want to see a lot of places and do excursions then look for more ports. We would have liked more time to just relax so next time less ports would work for us. Also, it gets more expensive the more ports you visit.

To sum it up, at least from our point of view; 3 days would not be enough and wouldn't be worth the effort to go. 7 days left us wanting more, but we think 8 or 10 days would be perfect.

A couple more tips: book a balcony if you can afford it. We slept every night with our door open and waking up and seeing either the ocean or a new port was amazing. Heed the advice to not over pack. Nice clothes for dinners, especially on the formal nights. I dreaded the formal nights thinking I wouldn't have appropriate clothes, but a shiny jacket or scarf and shiny jewelry will dress up a plain dress or outfit. During the day and even at ports, a couple pairs of shorts a couple bathing suits and a cover up were my uniform! DO NOT break in new shoes or sandals on your cruise. Wear comfortable shoes, or sandals at all times. Having cut up heels is no fun! Use sunscreen like it's your job. If you enjoy coffee bring a travel mug to fill as the mugs are quite small. Coffee is included in the price of most cruises. We bought the pop/soda cards and they really ended up paying for themselves by the 2nd or 3rd day. Bring an extension cord and a 3 prong adapter if you're bringing any hair appliances from home.

Most of all, have a blast! Take tons of pictures and bring an extra memory card for your digital camera if you bring one. Also, set your camera for the smallest picture size to save memory. We ran out of space during our visit to the Belize Zoo. We bought an extra memory card on the ship, but it would have probably been less expensive to pick one up at Walmart.

We were really pleased with the price we got by going between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Look at the website http://www.vacationstogo.com as it was a perfect experience for us. Excellent customer service and great prices. We booked ours in early October and left on November 29th. I can't say enough good things about cruise vacations. It was a little piece of heaven! Have fun!
Dear Queen - You made the right choice. For our first cruise several years ago, we flew from Los Angeles to Florida for a 5 day caribbean cruise. And while it wasn't 7 days, the cruise itself was amazing and we could easily have done another 5 days. We had more fun than we could have imagined. The traveling across the country to make the cruise was a nightmare however. Even though your trip wouldn't be as far, it still would complicate things and add potential breakdowns - especially with the added security at airports. The next time we cruised was a 15 day cruise from LA to Hawaii - the most relaxing and luxurious experience. We hired a car to drive us to the port and pick us up when we got back. No worries, no airports. It was great.



Being on a cruise ship is like being in a hotel - with a little movement. But in just a few short hours, you will get your sea legs and forget all about it - until your first port of call. There you will feel like the ground is moving under you for a while as you get your land legs back again. Overall I have found cruising to be a wonderful way to relax and sightsee. Have a wonderful tripShould I be concerned?
Your going to have a blast with a 7 day cruise because then you have a longer vacation and not a short one. I have been on more than 6 , 7 day cruises and im only 11. They are one the best to go on. I went on one recently and I loved it. By the way I would love to know what cruise line your taking and if you don't know witch one to take then Take Ncl and you'll have a real blast. I hope this really helped and have a Great vacation!!!
The ships that leave from Baltimore are some of the smaller and older ones. One reason is because Baltimore is not a popular port, the other reason is because it has to get under the Bay Bridge leaving. Why is this significant? Well a lot of people have concerns about sea sickness on ships. While all cruise ships have stabilizers that will minimize any sway while cruising, the smaller ones are more affected by currents than bigger ones. The other part is that while the Caribbean seas are generally calmer, the Atlantic may be rougher. I don't want to scare you off because most likely there will be little sway of the ship but bring some Dramamine just in case.



Leaving from Baltimore, you will likely have 2-3 days at sea (days were there are no port of calls). This can be good or bad. There is a newsletter that the cruise will provide you for the next days events the evening prior. On days at sea, there are more activities. As long as you can find somethings to interest you, you'll be fine. If you have trouble occupying yourself, you may find these days at sea a little annoying. A 3 day cruise usually only has 1 of these days at sea. Leaving from the ports further south allow the ship to less traveling distance and as such less days at sea.



Personally I think whether 3 or 7 day, you will either like the cruise or not. If sea sickness is a concern, then a little more money for the 3 day may be worth it just to feel it out. You don't want to drop all this money and spend a week sea sick in your cabin. To minimize sea sickness, pick a cabin as lower and to the middle of the ship as possible. The higher up you are the more feel it.



There are tons of activities on a cruise - pools, games, shopping, gambling, food, etc. Its like being in a floating resort. So of course if you end up liking it, the 7 day is the better value. Obviously you know the reasons, you would enjoy or not enjoy a cruise so take that into consideration when making your choice.
After reading the third answer to your question, all I can say is that I'm glad they didn't have computers when I went on my first cruise. It would have discouraged me unnecessarily. I'm a senior citizen, and I've gone on over 12 cruises. And every one has been a wonderful experience. The shortest I've been on is 7 days. I somehow feel that any less is not worth it. I just returned from my first 12 day cruise. I had wondered whether I'd feel this was too much. It wasn't. I could have stayed longer.

And guess what! I suffer from chronic vertigo. This is a recent occurrence. I was fearful of going on the ship. However, I felt better on the ship, and even did well when we met some turbulent weather.

It is possible you'll get seasick, but the great majority of passengers do not have this problem. To be safe, take along some bonine, or a wrist band, but don't expect to use it. You most likely wont.

My guess is, you'll have a much better time than you ever expected. So go, and enjoy!
I just went on a 8 day cruise and it wasn't long enough. In fact I cried the entire day before knowing that it was my last day. Honestly. I was so-so about taking the cruise at all and I was just slightly excited. I had the best time in my life. In fact, I just booked a 12 day cruise for March.

If you can afford it because its well worth it, get a balcony room. You can't imagine what its like waking up to sun and going out and sitting on the balcony even in the middle of the night. I can't imagine getting a cabin with a window only or worse yet, an inside cabin. I have done that in the past.



Also, and a big one is that you bring a battery operated alarm clock. There is none in the cabins. The reason is that the electrical frequency is erratic and so they can't use plug-in ones. So, you must bring your own if you want to see what time it is. Most cell phones don't work either so you can't depend on that for time.