Rich_by_the_Bay
Moderator Emeritus
I'll admit it. After decades of professing to hate cruises (we've taken maybe 6), they have grown on me. Aside from some occasion-specific family trips, we have mostly done 5 to 7 day Caribbean and Latin America itineraries.
The destinations are almost irrelevant to us, and with infrequent exceptions, you can have the t-shirt shops and faux jewelers. We either do nature stuff or often stay on the ship.
But we've learned to settle into a mindless daily routine, eat ad lib but watch our portions, work out every day. We usually request a dinner seating late, and hope for 2 or 3 other couples. Over the years we've made friends on cruises that we still see once in a while. Recently, the day might go something like this: wake up, breakfast, find a deck chair and read for an hour. Nap (I am a power napper). Then lunch. Visit with strangers. Work out on a treadmill overlooking the open seas. Shower, dinner with lots of laughs if we were lucky at our table assignment. Then a cheesey show or maybe a few bucks at the casino. Glass of brandy, then sleep. Repeat.
It's pleasantly numbing and relaxing. I may not enjoy it so much after I FIRE, but for a working stiff, it's pretty darn nice.
End of March we have our first 10 day outing -- Panama Canal, and we can drive to and from the cruise terminals, which helps. Pretty cheap this year for some reason.
This feels like a very counter-cultural, non-LBYM post. Anyone else care to admit that they've actually taken a cruise?
The destinations are almost irrelevant to us, and with infrequent exceptions, you can have the t-shirt shops and faux jewelers. We either do nature stuff or often stay on the ship.
But we've learned to settle into a mindless daily routine, eat ad lib but watch our portions, work out every day. We usually request a dinner seating late, and hope for 2 or 3 other couples. Over the years we've made friends on cruises that we still see once in a while. Recently, the day might go something like this: wake up, breakfast, find a deck chair and read for an hour. Nap (I am a power napper). Then lunch. Visit with strangers. Work out on a treadmill overlooking the open seas. Shower, dinner with lots of laughs if we were lucky at our table assignment. Then a cheesey show or maybe a few bucks at the casino. Glass of brandy, then sleep. Repeat.
It's pleasantly numbing and relaxing. I may not enjoy it so much after I FIRE, but for a working stiff, it's pretty darn nice.
End of March we have our first 10 day outing -- Panama Canal, and we can drive to and from the cruise terminals, which helps. Pretty cheap this year for some reason.
This feels like a very counter-cultural, non-LBYM post. Anyone else care to admit that they've actually taken a cruise?