The active person’s guide to cruises and what they have to offer

There are quite a few well known operators in the market today, all with a fleet of modern, well-equipped ships, sailing to hundreds of locations around the world. As the vessels have become larger and larger over the years, some of them now have facilities that we would never have thought could be offered on a boat. The places they visit can make for some really exciting breaks like Cunard cruises to the Caribbean and Atlantic. Each company offers a selection of land trips on their routes. You can do things as diverse as canoeing down a river in the Amazon basin to discovering the wildlife of Canada. The length of time you have free will affect the journeys you can go on but if you combine a sea trip with flights then you can still enjoy life at sea anywhere you like for as little as three days. MSC cruises offer a nice blend of modern ships with traditionally friendly Italian service, to many destinations. There is always entertainment laid on in the evenings and it is not just bingo and ballroom dancing! If you have a look around the various websites you can check on what each ship has to offer in the way of live entertainment for each season. NCL cruises have a ship that features a two storey Nintendo Wii screen so you can play your favourite skateboard game in extra large size. If you are heading to warmer climes then your skate t-shirts will come in handy for sure.

Christmas display aboard

"Way way above our expectations, we had a disabled cabin with a full sized bath and shower, really great both in size and amenities." - Cleminson, Farnham on 23rd Apr 2008 (Oceania Cruises)

Looking good

Family trips at sea are usually a very relaxed affair on most ships, with little or no schedule to follow, as far as life onboard goes. There are many things to keep you occupied while at sea though. You can join in a game of basketball on a full-size court or play nine holes of miniature golf on Royal Caribbean cruises. That is not to mention the ice skating rink and climbing wall on their largest vessel. Talking of ice, if you end up on a journey to Alaska or Northern Europe you can keep warm and look good with a fashionable beanie that comes free with larger orders of t-shirts. There are plenty of great designs to choose from for t-shirts and a cool range of colours. They will look good at the local park and when you are relaxing on a beach in the sun. Brands like Technics and Element have some good designs out now. P&O cruises to Sydney, Australia are a good time to enjoy the fine weather and wear your favourite skate shirt out and about. If you are in the wholesale market for skate clothes then you will be able to negotiate a good price with online suppliers for bulk orders. Payment is usually painless with all major credit and debit cards taken, using secure socket layers and encryption to protect your data. When you are done, you can really get away from business and daily life on the Princess cruises with small ships.

Compass Rose Restaurant

"In general we enjoyed the Princess Singers and Dancers but the two shows given by singer Eve Sherratt were excellent." - Townley-Malyon, Newton Stewart on 23rd Apr 2008 (Princess Cruises)

Eating out

Whatever your preferences, dining out on a sea voyage is always a good experience. The larger boats have a great selection of restaurants and bars, serving everything from pub grub to haute cuisine. You will have the opportunity to eat at a set time in formal attire, such as the captain’s cocktail party on Celebrity cruises, and slouch around taking advantage of room service when you want a more relaxed experience. Aside from the onboard cuisine, you will of course have the chance to sample the local delights when you are in port at various places during your trip. In fact, discovering new dishes can be one of the most enjoyable parts of a holiday. Fiery curries from India might be your thing perhaps, or maybe you would like to experience a good old fashioned Australian barbeque with fresh shrimps from that morning’s catch in the bay. If you enjoy seafood Caribbean cruises offer you the opportunity to taste some of the freshest and best produce available. You can get up close to the more exotic looking fish by scuba diving around the coral reefs and lagoons. A voyage around the Mediterranean can give you a completely different taste, with great Italian food in Venice and delicious Greek food in Athens, among other places. Heart fare can be had on Alaskan and Canadian trips, as well as those in the Baltic and Northern Europe. You can work off any excess calories in the ship’s gym afterwards.

Conference room aboard

"Our cabin steward extremely helpful kept room clean and tidy. Other crew members we came into contact with were all very friendly." - Brown, Newton Abbot on 23rd Apr 2008 (Island Cruises)

Setting off

Where you set off from on your journey depends on several things. The time of year, your chosen destination and which ship you want to travel on are all things to be taken into consideration. Some people may be interested in learning more about a specific subject while on holiday and for this, Fred Olsen cruises have a number of different themes. You can attend lectures on art or join in a music theme with performances of classical music as well as talks on the subject. If you are looking for this type of holiday then where you leave from will probably only be of secondary importance to you. Where you want to go and how long you have for your break may conflict with each other. In this case you can choose to fly to a local port to meet up with part of a ship’s journey and then fly back later from a different country. This allows you to experience travelling by sea in some far flung places even when you only have a week or two to spare. For people living in the UK there are many cruises from Southampton as well as other local ports. If you do leave from Southampton then you should check out the skate park there if you have time before departure. Situated at the Veracity recreation ground it was built as part of a facelift to a derelict area of the grounds. It has GBH ramps with a gapped wallride and a quarterpipe.

Dinner time on board

"I would not hesitate in going on another Thomson Cruise, it was superb." - Brighton, Ilkeston on 22nd Apr 2008 (Thomson Cruises)