Insiders of any mode of travel have tips and suggestions to offer based on their intense knowledge that most people don’t share. Climb to the top of Kilimanjaro and simply going through the process of preparation teaches those adventure travelers a lot. Stay in hotels, navigate airports and eat on the road as part of a job and business travelers learn quickly how to make doing so easy. Those who sail on cruise ships frequently also have tips to offer; some learned the hard way, which we can benefit from.
Travel Insurance- At Least Medical Only Is A Must
I’ll just get this out of the way right up front since no one really wants to talk about this topic. Cruise travelers commonly think or say ‘If I skip buying travel insurance on enough cruises I can save enough to pay for one’, and they are absolutely correct. Odds are in the travel insurance company’s favor that we will never use the cancellation element of their product. But the medical coverage, the other important part of what is included in travel insurance, we might very well use. Regardless of age, physical condition of financial status, accidents happen and are often not covered by health care coverage outside of the continental United States.
The medical coverage aspect of travel insurance, though, is cheap and an easy add on that we can get from a number of third-party sources. TravelGuard Insurance, for example, offers a Medical program for as little as $10 per person, per trip. That’s cheap coverage for something that can cost tens of $thousands.
Emergency evacuation coverage can pay to transport you to the hospital of your choice or home, plus cover any qualified accompanying medical expenses you may incur. I learned this one the hard way after a trip to a ship’s medical center resulted in a $1500 bill. Few cruise lines sell travel protection this way so finding a source will take a little work but the benefits are worth the time spent investigating.
Go To School
In numbers that really amaze me, first-timers as well as seasoned cruisers often fail to do some basic homework that would make for a far better travel experience. Simply going through the process of online registration with the cruise line, immediately after booking, can open up a whole new world of information handy to have in advance of boarding.
Check in with most major cruise lines after booking and the benefit train leaves the station. Once registered, booked guests of most major cruise lines can browse and book shore excursions, spa treatments and other activities that may sell out or not be available later. This is a great idea not only for planning purposes, insuring that your bucket list dream of swimming with dolphins, riding a horse on a beach of flightseeing over a mountain in Alaska happen but is a huge factor in defining your travel budget; what is spent while actually traveling.
Studying, if not memorizing, the ship’s deck plans too is probably one of the single most important activities we can do before boarding. Once on the ship, odds are it will still take some time to feel comfortable navigating the ship. Still, those who have studied the deck plans know where features of the ship are in relation to other features. A good idea is to locate your stateroom and know, for example, that you need to take a right turn out of the cabin to reach the pool or a left turn to reach the showroom or other major venues on board.
There are all sorts of list of tips around, some with many bullet point must-do items that we might or might not remember once on the ship. Seriously considering these two tips can add real value to your cruise experience for very little, if any, cost. In fact, either of the above might actually end up saving you $thousands.
You’re welcome!
Photo- Carnival Cruise Lines
