Seven Reasons I Choose to Cruise

I tell my husband (often) that I could seriously cruise every single day of my life and be perfectly happy. We have two cruises coming up before the end of the year, and I’m giddy just thinking about them. Here’s what I don’t get: when I tell some of my friends about my cruising adventures, they cringe. I get that everyone’s opinion is different, but these people have never been on a cruise. So I’ve made it my personal mission to convince others to give cruising a try.

Seven Reasons I Choose to Cruise:

1. Unpack once, see multiple destinations: 
When we travel, we prefer to visit more than one place. When we do this on land, this involves packing and unpacking your suitcase every time. I love to travel, but one of my least favorite things in the world is packing. During a cruise, I can get a taste of several destinations and come back to the ship every night. It’s true that there is not always a lot of time spent in each port, but we like to view cruises as sampler platters. If we love a place, we can come back for an extended visit.

2. Sea days give me a chance to relax between ports: 
Although I love seeing new places, sea days are always a favorite part of cruising. I am usually really go, go, go on my vacations, and by the time I get home, I want to sleep for days. Sea days give me a chance for a breather in between spending days running around a port. I can wake up late, read a book on the balcony, and participate in whatever the ship has going on. I love that each itinerary has a sea day so I can relax!

3. There are lots of food and entertainment options:
I really enjoy the activities on board cruises. I have been to cooking classes, ice carving classes, musicals, a diving competition, movies, and more. I have never had trouble finding fun things to do. Then there’s the food. I love trying food I would hesitate to order at a restaurant. If I don’t like it, I can always get something else (and make my husband eat the first thing!).

4. It’s so easy to plan: 
Sometimes I need a vacation where I don’t have to plan every second. All I have to do is figure out what to do each day in port and how to get to the cruise. On other vacations, we usually cram as much as we can into each day, and it takes time to plan each hour, including what to eat and where to stay. Cruise planning is much simpler.

5. Being around water is amazing:
I absolutely love being around water. There is nothing more beautiful than a sunset from a cruise ship, and I love sitting out on a balcony, looking out on the ocean.

6. I get to dress up: 
I enjoy shopping for dress options before each cruise. I love any excuse to dress up, and formal nights are so much fun!

7. I can truly unplug:
This is a big one for me. My work e-mail is on my phone, and on a normal vacation, I am constantly checking it because I hate being behind and coming back to 500 e-mails. That’s not to mention my obsession with keeping up with the news on all forms of social media. If I turn on my phone on a cruise, I would get crazy roaming charges, and Internet fees are expensive. Cruises basically force me to unplug, and it’s glorious.