Should I Go on a Cruise? The Pros and Cons of Cruising

Tate looks out over the ocean with binoculars — I tried to encourage Tate to take his heavy binoculars out of his backpack before we left for the cruise; I’m so glad he insisted

I’ve always wanted to go on a cruise. When I was in high school, I was all set to go on my first cruise with my whole family—a gift from my grandparents to celebrate my graduation. By a twist of fate, I ended up winning a trip to England through Parade, thereby missing the cruise (and prom).

After the big family cruise I missed in high school, my family continued going on cruises every couple of years—always over Thanksgiving Break. By that time, I had established an annual ritual with my best friend at the time. We always spent Thanksgiving together (such as traveling to Costa Rica or the Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health).

Over the years, I became more aware of the ethical and environmental concerns of cruises, so they never rose to the top of our immediate family’s vacation planning. However, when my grandparents offered to take our whole family on a cruise to celebrate their 90th birthdays, I jumped at the chance to finally be included in a family cruise.

When our family received the invitation from my grandparents, I was increasingly excited to try cruising. I was particularly excited that the cruise line we chose (Royal Caribbean: Rhapsody of the Seas) was going to make a stop in Belize. Belize has always been on my Bucket List!

In the weeks leading up to the cruise, I spent time planning little day trips for our family. We chose local companies not associated with the cruise line.

First Stop: Orlando

My family and I flew into Orlando, since flight options into the port city of Tampa were too expensive. I made the mistake of flying us into the Sanford airport versus Orlando but made the most of it by swinging by my old college, Stetson University, for a quick trip down memory lane.

My family and I walk around the Stetson University courtyard the day before we left for the cruise

That night, my brother and his fiancé Mandy, who just welcomed their first baby, invited us to stay with them.

My brother holds his newborn baby the night before we left for the cruise

Second Stop: Tampa

The next day, we drove to Tampa and boarded the ship. I’ll be honest and say that the first day was a little rough. I’m an introvert and don’t enjoy crowds/lines/waiting in crowded lines/crowding around with crowds, and that’s what Day 1 felt like. More than 2,000 people were trying to board the ship around the same time. We decided (just like everyone else) to board around 12pm and get lunch.

Cons of Cruising

That experience encapsulated many of the CONS of cruising, in my opinion:

There are several times during the cruise when you need to stand in line, feel crowded, etc. You stand in long queues to board the ship, and then queue each time you want to get on and off the ship at each of the destinations (we stopped in four places during our 7-day cruise). You also have to do a safety drill on Day 1, where you literally stand in hot lines while you wait for every person on the ship to listen to the directions and get down to the deck drill.
The food is not high quality. Yes, you can eat all you want and they work hard to have variety at all the meals, but it honestly didn’t taste that good to me (and I am not a foodie).
The pool is really small. Yes, it’s a boat so I’m not sure what I was expecting, but a 7-day cruise for more than 2,000 people around a tiny pool isn’t that fun.
You are constantly faced with the ethics of cruise companies. The workers reported that they do not get any days off for seven months. Many of them are away from their families and their home countries because this job is their best opportunity. But it’s sad.

Despite those cons, I did have a great time with my family.

Third Stop: Key West, Florida

We docked first in Key West, Florida. The boys and I rented a bike with a cart on the front, while Matt fit in a run alongside us. We biked around the whole island through quiet neighborhoods, popping into an Open House (way out of our price range), and finding a random parrot rescue in a woman’s backyard, called Nancy Forrester’s Secret Garden. We also tried to get as close as possible to the Southernmost Point of the continental U.S. (without standing in line).

I bike the boys around Key West in a cart on an excursion off the cruise boat

Tate meets a macaw at Nancy Forrester's Secret Garden during an excursion off the cruise boat

My family and I pose at the southernmost part of the continental United States that we could get to without waiting in a long line

That night, Tate woke up in the middle of the night and threw up all over his bed. That event was the start of a multi-hour experience through the night. He made it to the toilet or the trash can several times, but we had to call housekeeping to change his bed twice. It took about 45 minutes to an hour each time. The last time he threw up, Tate exclaimed, “That was the last bit of it. I’m ready to play now!”

Fortunately, we got him back to bed. As I was laying my head on my pillow at the end of several hours with Tate, I watched Henry (on the bunk bed caddy-corner to mine) rise to a sitting position and throw up all over his bed. Needless to say, it was a long night for Matt and me!

The next day, we were on medical lockdown and stayed in our room all day. The boys were feeling much better by then, so we mainly just watched a lot of TV. I was feeling sick so I spent the day sleeping. Matt was feeling fine so we sent him out to bring back food and drinks for us.

Fourth Stop: Cozumel, Mexico

The next morning, we were eating breakfast and getting ready to get off the ship in Cozumel when we heard our names over the ship-wide intercom: “Sara Cotner and Matt Bradford, please report to the infirmary.” At the infirmary, the nurse informed us that we were still on medical lockdown and were not allowed to leave the ship until it had been 24 hours since our first incident.

My extended family exited the ship in Cozumel and worked to delay our snorkeling trip. Matt, the boys, and I were able to disembark a few hours later and meet up with everyone else for a snorkeling trip with a local operator. We had a lot of fun snorkeling, riding around in the boat, and eating homemade guacamole and pico in knee-deep water.

Henry on a boat during our snorkeling trip in Cozumel on an excursion off the cruise boat

Fifth Stop: Belize City, Belize

The next day we landed in Belize. Some of our family went snorkeling again, while the rest of us went cave tubing. We rode on a charter bus for about 45 minutes into the center of Belize. Then we hiked for about 45 minutes into the forest. Then we came to a beautiful, crystal-clear river and got into our tubes. There was a group of 10 of us tied together, and we floated along the river into caves that the Mayans went into long ago. The floating trip was about another 45 minutes. We ended the trip with delicious food provided by the company.

My family and I preparing to get in tubes for cave-tubing during an excursion off the cruise boat

Sixth Stop: Costa Maya, Mexico

The next day was Costa Maya, Mexico. My cousin and I brought our families to a Beach Club (basically a restaurant on the beach with swimming access). It was really relaxing and fun.

An overhead shot of the beach club we went to in Costa Maya during an excursion off the cruise boat

Henry drinking one of many coconuts during our trip

The boys found big sticks to play with in Costa Maya

The last day was a day at sea, and my whole family just hung out around the pool. I watched Saving Mr. Banks on the screen by the pool, which I really enjoyed.

Each day we ate breakfast and lunch in the cafeteria and dinner in the more formal dining room. That brings me to all the PROS of a cruise:

Pros of Cruising

All of your meals are already paid for by the time you board the ship. It’s so relaxing to be able to let go of your “budget brain” and let your kids eat whatever they want. The boys LOVED eating in the cafeteria. Henry repeatedly asked, “You’re going to give this place a 5-star review, right?” In the dining room each night, they provide you with different options for appetizers, main courses, and desserts. I quickly learned that you are allowed to order more than one appetizer, more than one main course, and more than one dessert. It was nice to be able to order soup and salad for an appetizer, and sometimes I just had to try more than one dessert (yes, I will be writing a post soon about how I need to lose weight). I was always the girl who loved eating in the dining hall in college, so this aspect was nice.
It’s cool to go to sleep and wake up the next morning in a new country. I enjoyed spending a day in Cozumel, Belize, Costa Maya, and Key West.
There is a lot of convenient, built-in entertainment. You can watch movies from the hot tub, play game shows, watch others play game shows, listen to singing, etc. My immediate family didn’t really take advantage of too many of these opportunities because our kids go to bed early (and don’t sleep in if we let them stay up late), but I can see how it would be appealing to have built-in entertainment.
My children loved everything about the cruise. They were so happy the whole time. They swam in the pool, climbed up the rock wall, watched TV in the room, and enjoyed our excursions each day.

Henry climbs the rock wall on the cruise ship

Tate enjoys milk in the cruise ship's cafeteria

Tate enjoys ice-cream from the machine on the cruise ship

Verdict

My overall verdict is that I’m not really a cruise person, but I’m glad I got to experience it at least once in my life! Our boys had a great time, it was fun to be with my extended family, and we had a ton of quality time together. I’m grateful for the opportunity!