Purchase your excursions onboard – Cruise tip

by Gadling Staff on

When preparing for a cruise, there are a couple of advanced purchasing options that travelers have including ticketing, accommodations (drink tickets, suite size, etc.), and shore excursions.

It may be tempting to pre-purchase shore excursions, but there’s no need to be hasty. Shore excursions are fun, desirable, and an important component in the cruiser’s experience. However, unforeseen circumstances can arise during a cruise (a late night, for instance, or horrid weather), and once purchased, these tickets can be difficult to refund or exchange.

In many cases, excursions can be purchased on board, so waiting until you’re aboard can potentially save time and money.

Related: Research, and get off the beaten (excursion) path – Cruise tip

Meet new people while you dine at formal dinners – Cruise tip

by Gadling Staff on

One of the best parts about cruising are the formal dinners every night. In addition to fabulous food, many cruise lines will seat you at larger tables with other passengers.

Eating with strangers is fun? That’s entirely up to you. What better way to meet new people than to chat up the people that you’ll be sharing a mealtime with for the duration of your trip?

Be engaging. Swap stories of your daily adventures. Share tips on cool things at ports of call you may have visited previously. The options are endless and new friends await.

Counterpoint: Tip the maître d’ upon embarkation – Cruise tip

Pack for a theme party – Cruise tip

by Gadling Staff on

If you really want to get into the spirit of a cruise, you’ll want to participate in any theme parties or special events on board.

Before departing, contact the cruise line to find out what will be offered on your cruise. Toga parties require a gown made of bed sheets, of course, while shamrocks and green hats are appropriate for a St. Patrick’s celebration. Beads, feathers and masks are in order for a Mardi Gras parade, and pirate garb would be appropriate for any pirate-themed celebration.

You can sometimes buy the items aboard ship to make your costume, but why spend the money? Pack your own outfit and save your cash for a Hurricane cocktail.

Related: Choose a themed cruise – Cruise tip

Label your power cords – Hotel tip

by Gadling Staff on

Today’s tech-savvy world requires a lot of equipment to stay “plugged-in.” Cell phones, laptops, and MP3 players all require power cords to recharge. Since these items don’t need to be plugged in all the time, it’s easy to forget your power cords when checking out of a hotel.

Increase your chances of recovery by writing your name and contact information on a piece of masking tape and securing the tape to your power cord. Be sure to write clearly, and use an indelible marker, such as a Sharpie, so the information will not smear or rub off.

Before you check out, simply grab all the cords with your name on them. If you accidentally forget one, you can easily call the hotel and say, “I forgot my cord. Mine is the one with my name and address on it.”

Safeguard the safe – Hotel tip

by Gadling Staff on

If the safe inside your hotel room is electronic, follow these procedures to keep your valuables even safer:

  1. Before and after entering your key code, wipe the touch keys with a damp cloth, then dry the keys.
  2. After the door is locked, firmly press all numbered keys once. This may set off a small alarm, but it will stop quickly.

Why would you do this? There have been reports that in some hotels the hotel staff was placing a powder or oil residue on the touch keys, which when lit, showed them which numbers on the safe were pressed. Wiping the keys clean and pressing them all throws potential thieves off the trail.