1st time cruising RC AoS advice

[Karl turner, Somerset]

Hi all. Great to see there is a forum for cruising. We are going on our very first cruise on 21st July Adventures of the seas 14 night med cruise sailing from Southampton. Any tips as in excursions will b great. Also tipping any tips on this. Also for the formal nights can I hire a suit on the ship? Not forgetting the girls 8 and 6 yrs old anything they can do and what to do when we get to our destinations. Look forward in your replies.

Karl

[Wilba]

Hi, Your gratuities will be added to your onboard account, which yo can adjust at the Guest Relations Desk as you wish. I say that because my own feelings on charging the full amount to 8 & 6 year olds is a step too far.

DJ Hire: Personally with the amount they charge you can purchase cheaper at stores such as Matalan, Asda, etc. and they are then readily available for future cruising.

I can't help with excursions as I prefer to do my own.........Wilba

[Karl turner, Somerset]

Wow thanks for such a quick response. I'm not happy being told to tip all the time I would want to tip when I feel like its deserved. I would prefer to do my own excursions as it will b cheaper and done in my own time. Any tips in doing my own excursions?

[marianne, coventry]

Hi and welcome... You will have a fantastic cruise on the A of T S. We went on it a couple of years back. We took our 6 children and 12 grandchildren to celebrate my husband retiring. All ages had a great time with plenty to occupy every age group, from 1 year old to 21 year old. As Wilba said, if you go to the main desk as soon after you board as possible you can actually get all gratuities removed, then pay as much and to whoever you wish, with all the children we took it would have been a ridiculous amount for us to pay so we did this. You will find that to arrange your own excursions will be better if you feel able to, Ship excursions can be pricey and you have more freedom if you do it yourself, I find it difficult to keep up on some of the tours. We generally get on a stop and ride bus and see the sites this way, some destinations have a little train that goes round.. your children would enjoy this. Marks and Spensers also sell the Tux's at a very good price, cheaper than hiring actually.

[Karl turner, Somerset]

Wow brilliant advice there. I will have a look in M&S. Did u arrange excursions before u went? Or just off the cuff? And wow 6 children and 12 grandchildren I must congratulate u on that alone.

[carol, welwyn garden city]

If you google the ports you are going to, you should be able to find out whats near enough for you to do, in whatever time you have.
Not long to wait now, have a fantastic time.............................................. ............Carol

[littlerich, cleckheaton]

Hi Karl I got My tuxedo at Greenwoods cost £99 and included dress shirt bow tie and shoes cost to hire I think is around $85 so better to buy as when you have cruised once you will want to go again. We have done the hop on hop off city tours in a lot of places and in Barcelona there are four different tours including one on the old trams, most places it is pretty easy to do your own thing

[Malcolm, Essex]

It is possible to buy a Tux for around £30-£40 in Asada and Matalan etc. Even M&S do one for about £50 I recall.

The cheaper ones tend to be lighter than the more expensive ones which I find an advantage, if the ships dining room is warm, which sometimes happens for no apparent reason!

You need to research your ports of call and plan what you want to see and how to get there. You can save a small fortune using foot, bus, cab and train. Check out where the tours go to get an idea of the main tourist sites.

Don't miss the big production shows (song and dance) and the 'Ice Show' on-board the ship. They are free, but the ice show can require a ticket to be collected on-board.

[Solent Richard, Lee on the Solent]

Hi all. Great to see there is a forum for cruising. We are going on our very first cruise on 21st July Adventures of the seas 14 night med cruise sailing from Southampton. Any tips as in excursions will b great. Also tipping any tips on this. Also for the formal nights can I hire a suit on the ship? Not forgetting the girls 8 and 6 yrs old anything they can do and what to do when we get to our destinations. Look forward in your replies.

Karl

Good morning Karl.

Though I haven't sailed on her I did take a picture of her sailing from Southampton on Sunday...



and if you like, the port side taken a few weeks before...



They certainly show areas to get the best view of your sailaway.