New to CruiseCrazies? Getting Started Guide

[Jason]

Welcome Aboard!

As a CruiseCrazies Member it's very easy to exchange cruise information and meet other cruisers. We've got plenty for new and veteran cruisers alike, and lots to enjoy before your cruise, after your cruise and even if you don't have any upcoming cruises. Here are some ways you can get started....

Your Account:

• Customize your profile, cover photo, settings and notifications:  Update
• Create your Forum signature

Cruising:

• Start a cruise discussion in our most popular forum: Let's Talk Cruise
• Stay up to date: Cruise News, Articles, and Blogs
• Access our free Packing List and Tips
• Submit a cruise review
• Save Money: Preferred Agents
• Upload your cruise Photos

Connect with Others:

• Start a Roll Call for your upcoming cruise
• Create and manage a Group
• Host your own Blog
• Introduce yourself: New Member Introductions
• Join us in Welcoming our Newest Members

Questions?

• Cruise questions, planning, information:  Let's Talk Cruise
• Website questions, issues, feedback:  Contact Us

[elf]

Hello Jason and fellowcruisers,

Thank you for welcoming me to the CruiseCrazies website.

The title alone on your website is a definate me.

Since I started cruising back in 2004 my husband and I look forward to cruising every chance we get..It is so bad that we watch all the cruise ships (when we can) come and go from our port every day wishing we were on it....

elf

Big Red Boat

Carnival Valour 2004

Carnival Jubilee 2005

RCCL Empress of the Seas 2006

RCCL Brilliance of the Seas 2007

RCCL Grandeur of the Seas 2007

RCCL Jewel of the Seas 2008

RCCL Explorer of the Seas 2008

RCCL Explorer of the Seas 2009

RCCL Grandeur of the Seas 2009

[dino1pa]

Hey Jason I like to thank you very much for your help and patience with my photo issues, as a relatively new member to the site I guess I have a lot to learn...

[SCIROCCO]

Welcome aboard My friends Pull up a Deck Chair and sit a spell glad to have you onboard!!

[dino1pa]

Hey Jason i have a question for you, in the Bahamas how do you get from the cruiseship to Atlantis? is there a water taxi ? or an excursion to go there ?

[Brandee1013]

Hello All!

It's great to find a site where I can ask all my redundant cruise virgin questions! My name is Brandee, and my husband John will be taking our first cruise on Halloween 2011 out of Baltimore to Nassau, Freeport, and Port Canaveral on the Carnival Pride (delebrating his 50th bday and our never taken anniversary from three years ago.) We'd love any hints comments, etc. that would make us more prepared and not as stand-outish on our first time. Anything like menu lists, bar costs, what not to miss or what should we skip completely. We are booked at 4211 (number correct?) on Deck 8A (the small deck of course). Depending on this trip willhelp us determine whether we take a family cruise the following summer with (then) 18 y/o daughter for a graduation gift, and John's (then 14 y/o son). We are hoping the rules don't change that we can get away will a birth certicate then (in our catalog, a closed loop cruise only requires ID and birth cert) cause momma won't g with us for passport for child. But that's still long away....any suggestions, comments, etc from the peanut gallery?

[jayray]

Well here I am posting for the first time, although I have been a member since 2007. I don't recall having cabin status based on the number of posts that you make. I'm sure I made a lot of them back then. I guess I just got out of the habit of going to these cruise webs sites. It is nice to be back though. We did our first cruise on the Carnival Cruise Ship MS Celebration in 1992. Since then we have cruised exclusively with RCCI. Our most recent cruise was on the Allure of the Seas in 2012. We are currently booked on the Oasis of the Seas on Nov. 2nd 2013.

I got my first taste of cruising on the aircraft carrier, USS Independence CVA62, 1967-69. The luxury was lacking but I did enjoy being at sea. I finally got my wife to go on a cruise for our 25th anniversary and she has been hooked ever since.

[Sarge6870]

Welcome back Jay!! Hope you'll stick around for awhile this time!!!

[jayray]

Thanks for the warm welcome back Tim. It is nice to be back on Cruise Crazies. I see that your first cruise was on the Carnival Celebration in 1990. We went on our 25th Anniversary Cruise in 1992 on the Celebration with two other couples. We all were celebrating our 25th at the same time. We had a ball and that trip sold my wife on cruising. BTW the Carnival still sails. out of Spain. It's still called the Celebration, I have the name of the cruise line somewhere. Thank God the wife and I got married young, we were just 20 years old. We still are young enough to go cruising and enjoy ourselves.

I see you are giving RCCI a try. I think that you will love the cruise line. It's for a little older crowd in general. Carnival caters to the young set, while RCCI goes more for the 35 and up group. They have young people onboard too, just less of them.

We were on most of the Voyager class (Great ships) also on the Freedom class, once again great ships too. The last cruise we went on was on the Allure of the Seas. The only thing that I can say is this ship was incredible. I have been on big ships before, but this ship was massive. Even though there was over 5000 passengers it never felt crowded, except on sea days around the pools, but that's pretty much the same with all ships on sea days. I keep taking the wife on bigger ships to try and keep her from getting sea sick (never has), but I don't want her too. I don't want her to have a reason not to go cruising.

If you have less than a great experience on the Jewel (Which I absolutely hope you don't) don't give up on RCCI, Try to book the Allure or the Oasis next, we are booked on the sister ship Oasis, Nov 2nd. BTW the Allure is the biggest ship in the world, it's something like one inch longer than the Oasis, lol

[Sarge6870]

Hi Jay!! The Celebration is now called the "Grand Celebration". We decided to try RCCL this time because even though we had looked at RCCL for past cruises, it always seemed there was another cruise line doing an identical itinerary for a bit less. We had always heard how RCCL was a "step-up" from Carnival so we decided to lock in this time. We had originally booked the Brilliance of the Seas for November 2013 (which is still scheduled) but as you will read from posts on this site, I had decided to book the May 2nd cruise on the Jewel for our 23rd anniversary. We have been on larger ships (the last being the Carnival Dream in 2010) but always enjoyed the smaller vessels. They seemed to be more personable to us. Funny you should mention the Oasis & Allure!! My wife wanted to go on either but now that we have moved to the Tampa area, Ft. Lauderdale would be about a 3 1/2 to 4 hour drive. Port of Tampa is about 30 minutes from where we now live!!! The only time my wife had gotten sea sick was on the crossing aboard the Celebrity Meridian to Bermuda from N.Y. in 1992 (or so). She got a shot of something from the onboard doctor, slept for a few hours and she was fine for the rest of the cruise. The Meridian being an older vessel, didn't have stabilizers so the ship did rock and roll a bit. Since then, all the ships we have sailed have had the stabilizers and she hasn't had any problems. Glad to have ya' back Jay!! Just stay onboard or I'll have to track ya' down and make you walk the plank!!! ARGHHH!!!