If you’re going on a cruise there are a few things to bear in mind to make sure your holiday is as enjoyable as possible.
Shop around
Before you even leave on your holiday, make sure you look around for deals at Virgin Holidays Cruises and even some of the travel comparison sites. Virgin has done a lot of promotion for their sale, and it’s been extended well into February, but if you look around for your holiday you’ll often find that you can get it cheaper than at the first place you look. If you book it this way, you won’t get chatting to someone on your shop and have your holiday ruined for you by someone who paid half the price you did!
Keep clean
In confined spaces germs can spread quickly. A virus such as flu could be barely detectable when the contagious individual boards the ship, but by the end of the holiday the illness has worked its way around the whole ship. Not an ideal way to spend your holiday.
Remember to always wash your hands before eating; although most cruise ships keep cleanliness standards high, with so many people all using the same areas you could still have germs on your hands if you don’t keep them clean.
Also, it’s a good idea to avoid uncooked foods that others also have access to, such as nuts, carrot sticks and fruit. Germs love to live on these types of surfaces and can become breeding grounds very quickly.
Remember social graces
This doesn’t just mean to be polite to staff and other holiday makers, which is of course useful. Toasts can be common place upon cruise ships and it can help to know how to make one without a social faux pas.
Begin with a ship/country appropriate toast like “the Queen” in the UK. To which someone should respond with “absent friends” or “sweethearts and wives” depending on the day of the week.