Vacation Tips {Take a Cruise!}

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I'm guest posting for Mrs Monologues today about one of my favorite subjects -- booze!

{The below post originally appeared on my friend Crystal's blog Thrifty and Frugal Living.}

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I love taking a GOOD cruise. I mean, who doesn't? Luckily I live in Florida -- with a city with a cruise port no less -- so that cruising is not only available all the time... it's quite affordable. My first REAL cruise was $199 a person for 4 days. Seriously? That's $50 a day. This cruise had two stops (Freeport & Nassau in the Bahamas) and it was absolutely wonderful. The price was cheaper since it was December...but the Bahamas were definitely still warm! I still got in the water, tanned, and wore sundresses the entire trip.

My second cruise was double the price for a 3 day trip to Nassau. It was fun but definitely not like my first cruise.

The last cruise I took was for our honeymoon -- a week long excursion to Grand Cayman, Costa Maya, Cozumel, and Roatan. It was obviously the best one but much more costly. Here is a quick run down on my Cruising Advice based on my prior experiences. I'm no expert -- I just like to have a good time and pay as little money as possible. ;)

 1. Cruise during weird seasons. Who would have thought I would be sweating in The Bahamas in December? That price was too low to NOT book and I'm very glad I did.  

Yes, this is Freeport in DECEMBER. Beautiful. 

 2. Book an excursion... or don't. Preferably don't. Depending on what you are interested in doing, we have found that sometimes excursions rule and take you places you wouldn't have had access to go otherwise [For example, we booked an excursion to take the ferry to Tulum so we could see the Mayan Ruins in Mexico], however, if you are on a super budget and just want to explore the city...do it. All the cruise ports that I have been to were in relatively safe cities. In Roatan [Honduras], we simply walked off the boat and KEPT WALKING until we made friends with some nice guy who drove us around the island. This saved us SO MUCH money. Instead of a tour, we got a trip to another beach that had a bar, restaurant, an area to snorkel... it was fabulous.

 

Tulum

  

Our nice tour guide in Honduras who did not murder us. 

3. Allow yourself to be cheesy. Cruises ARE cheesy. There are karaoke nights, midnight buffets, TERRIBLE cover bands. Just go with it. Sometimes you might luck out and get a top notch entertainer for the night but usually not. Have yourself another cocktail and that comedian just might get funnier!

  

Trivia on the boat.

  

Winning a scavenger hunt!

  

Cheesy cruise ship decor 

 4. Just Do It. Senor Frogs that is. Yes, It's a total tourist trap in pretty much all the cruise destinations... but it's fun. Remember that part about saving money? I have found their drinks to be quite loaded with alcohol and ... if you're daring enough ... there is always someone walking around with free shots. Or, there's a game to be played where you chug a beer.... or other tourists on your cruise will buy your drinks. In Costa Maya we literally stayed at Senor Frogs for like FIVE hours. We couldn't help ourselves. We were having too much fun drinking free shots, participating in the games, and being ridiculous. I know the point of a cruise is not to just get drunk... but hey, we were on a week cruise and needed a fun day in the shade.

 

Senor Frogs has activities. Like balloon hats.

  

Free shots! 

  

5. Explore. We walked a million years because we heard something about a garden on Paradise Island in Nassau. Since we had the time to spare -- we found it. It was a beautiful run down garden with no one around. It was a nice treat.

  

The Versailles Gardens in Nassau

  

An abandoned garden... perfect for a drunk photo shoot! ;)

 I know I'm not the typical cruiser. I don't want to snorkel. I'm not going to overeat at the buffet -- though I have. I just like to explore other people's beaches, meet their bartenders, and try their local beer.

  

Beer selection in Honduras 

Happy Cruising!