Crossing the Atlantic on a Cruise Ship: What Is It Really Like?
What is it like crossing the Atlantic on a cruise ship? Will you be bored? Will the seas be rough? Is there enough food for vegetarians? Can you still enjoy a cruise if you don't spend an extra penny onboard?
Read below Bunny’s travel diary from her recent Transatlantic cruise from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to Southampton, UK, onboard the Celebrity Silhouette cruise ship.
Please Note
Bunny went on this Transatlantic crossing not because she fancied a holiday but because she needed one-way transportation between the US and Europe. She was carrying quite a bit of luggage but didn’t want to pay exorbitant airline overweight charges. She also had plenty of time, so the length of the cruise was of no concern to her and she very much welcomed any stops along the way.
Bunny wanted the crossing to be comfortable but also affordable. She insisted on having a balcony stateroom and unlimited Wi-Fi, but she was not interested in any of the pricey extras on offer: drinks packages, speciality restaurants, organized shore excursions or spa treatments.
Day 1: Embarkation in Fort Lauderdale
The Bunnies arrived at the ferry terminal in Fort Lauderdale at the very start of the boarding time slot (12 to 3pm) that was assigned to them. They found quite a long, slow-moving line ahead of them. On a brighter note, most of their fellow cruisers were clearly pensioners so Bunny instantly felt like a spring chicken. So not a bad start all in all.
Top Tip
Celebrity Cruises allow you to bring two bottles of wine per stateroom to consume onboard. Make use of this, Bunny says. You are also allowed to board with up to 12 cans of water or soda. Bunny regretted not having made good on this allowance.
Once on the ship, the Bunnies hopped around curiously until their stateroom was ready around 1pm. The Bunnies had opted for a Guaranteed Balcony Stateroom, usually meaning the worst of the bunch, but their room on the 8th deck was quite a nice surprise. It was spacious and light, and the balcony had unobstructed views to the sea.
After the compulsory safety drill (quite nicely executed with a James Bond theme), the Bunnies decided to celebrate the cast off while in a hot tub. They must have been the only ones to think of this as the pools and hot tubs were completely empty at departure. Most people were content on their balconies or waving from common decks. The daytime castoff from Fort Lauderdale was nothing special (in contrast to a nighttime castoff from Miami the Bunnies experienced on their first cruise as part of their month-long honeymoon), so the Bunnies were sure they had made the right decision.
At dinner time, the Bunnies headed to the Grand Cuvee Dining Room and found out that they had been scheduled for the 8:30pm sitting. Not good. After some maneuvering, their time slot was changed to 6pm and the Bunnies could enjoy their first dinner on board.
Luckily, the dinner was excellent! The Bunnies received a separate vegetarian menu (on request) and had a beetroot and feta appetiser with arugula salad, followed by lovely, and surprisingly spicy, vegetable korma with rice and roti as the main course. New York cheesecake with passionfruit topping crowned the delicious dinner. Bunny reckoned she would have a great time if the food onboard was this good. The Bunnies refrained from having any drinks as they wanted to adopt a semi-healthy approach for this cruise.
Afterwards, the Bunnies went to the gym which was nicely kitted out with lots of cardio and strength training equipment alike. It was very quiet there, and a good exercise session was a perfect start to their (kind of) healthy cruise.
Conclusions for the first day: No money spent!
Day 2 - Beaching in the Bahamas
The Bunnies woke up to the ship pulling into the dock at Nassau, Bahamas. They had time to enjoy room service breakfast in bed (no extra charge for room service on Celebrity cruises) before venturing out before 8am.
There was no-one else around! The Bunnies waltzed down the empty pier at the Nassau cruise port and looked for a taxi to take them to Cabbage Beach. The ship was scheduled to stay in Nassau only half a day so there was no time for long shore excursions. But Bunny wanted some beach time before heading back to (presumably cold) Europe.
The beach was also blissfully quiet, and pretty, so the Bunnies enjoyed some splashing around before heading back by taxi to Nassau to stroll around a bit before returning to the ship for lunch.
The port was a madhouse when the Bunnies returned, owing to three other ships that had arrived in the meanwhile. The Bunnies were happy to escape to their ship and grab some quick veggie burgers on the sunny upper deck.
Afterwards, in a sudden desire to socialise (doesn’t happen very often), the Bunnies participated in a countries and capital trivia competition in the ship’s Sky Observation Lounge. They joined a team of friendly Canadians for the quiz and almost won. If only they had done a bit more travelling and expanded their knowledge of other countries…
Dinner at the Grand Cuvee Dining Lounge was nice again, with a mushroom appetiser, tomato and chickpea soup and excellent potato masala as the main course. This time the Bunnies skipped dessert, although Bunny certainly did salivate at the sight of the cheesecake.
Keeping up with their decision of cruising healthily, the Bunnies headed to the gym after dinner. It was now raining outside and Bunny could feel the ship’s motion for the first time.
Despite the light rain, the Bunnies jumped into one of the outdoor jacuzzis after their gym session. No-one else was around! It was too cloudy to see stars but the moon was very prominent and made for a magical moment.
On the way back to the room, they caught a glimpse of the silent disco in the Grand Foyer, with people dancing to different tunes on individualized headphones. Bunny thought it looked kinda fun.
Lesson Learned: Do not grab the water bottles on offer when leaving the ship. The Bunnies were charged an outrageous 8 USD for two small bottles of water they took with them to the beach. Shame on the cruise line for not having a small sign or something indicating these were chargeable. So the Bunnies had already failed to achieve their “no extras” goal but inadvertently so.
Day 3 - Seasickness Hits
Bunny had never experienced seasickness before. She thought she would be immune to it. Apparently not.
On the third day of the cruise, she woke up extremely tired, eating room service breakfast with her eyes shut and barely able to drag herself out of bed afterwards. During the night, the clocks had been moved ahead one hour, so the shorter sleep didn’t help either.
This would be the first full day at sea and Bunny had not planned on doing much. In fact, she ended up just dozing most of the day. She eventually developed a headache and had very little appetite, which is always a sure sign that something is not quite right with her. Thankfully, at least she wasn’t nauseous.
In the Captain’s daily morning announcement, he had described the seas as “moderate”. The waves didn’t seem so big to Bunny, but she could definitely feel the swell of the sea. She just hoped and prayed that her sea sickness would not continue for the remaining 10 days of the cruise…
Luckily her prayers were soon answered and she felt much better by dinner time. This was helped by Mr. Bunny’s decision to open one of the two wine bottles they had brought with them.
It was the first “Evening Chic“ night on the ship, an upgrade from the usual smart casual dress code. The Bunnies dressed accordingly and showed up at dinner with generous amounts of red wine at hand (bringing already poured glasses of wine with you to dinner from your stateroom saves you corkage fees, Mr. Bunny found out). No one bat an eyelid at these antics and the Bunnies were able to enjoy another excellent dinner without paying a penny extra.
Bunny also felt perky enough to go and attend a late-night (adults only) comedy show at the Silhouette Theatre afterwards. The comedian, Miguel Washington, was very funny and suitably outrageous, so the Bunnies ended the day on a much nicer note that it had started.
The day in six words: from sea sickness to evening chic.
Day 4 - Lovely Bermuda
With another room service breakfast as their pleasant wakeup call, Bunny was ready and eager to explore Bermuda for the first time. The ship would only arrive at lunch time though, so there was time for a morning gym session before disembarkation. Even better, there was no hint of sea sickness anymore. Yay!
After the gym, Bunny went on deck, following the ship’s slow arrival in Bermuda. At 11am, a pilot boat joined the ship and the passengers were able to gaze at Bermuda’s beautiful coastline for the next two hours. Bunny loved the differing turquoise shades of the water surrounding Bermuda.
Disembarkation at Kings Wharf was very busy and there were long queues everywhere. Bunny didn’t want to wait and just hopped on the first available minibus to take her to Horseshoe Bay - a pink sand beach she had decided to explore. During the 30-minute bus ride to the beach, Bunny was immediately impressed with Bermuda’s gorgeous looks and clean streets.
And Horseshoe Bay was beautiful! The Bunnies, however, did not stay on the busy main beach but walked eastward, discovering very quiet coves and gorgeous small stretches of sand along with wonderful looking rocks and corals. Swimming was lovely too, which was a nice surprise as Bunny had thought April would be too early for pleasant beach days in Bermuda.
Once the Bunnies had had their share of the beach, they took good ol’ public transportation to the capital Hamilton. Hopping around Hamilton, they admired the pastel coloured houses (Bunny), expensive prices for everything (Mr. Bunny) and well-dressed people (both). Eventually, they caught a ferry back to Kings Wharf, while gawking at a perfect sunset.
Back on the ship this late, the Bunnies had missed their early standing reservation in the main dining room and so headed for a buffet dinner in the Oceanview Cafe. This was a stroke of luck really, as they quickly realised that the buffet was better for vegetarians craving to eat fresh, healthy food during the cruise. The food at Grand Cuvee Dining Room was delicious, for sure, but not exactly what Bunny would call fresh or healthy.
Back in their stateroom, another lovely surprise awaited: on their bed sat an envelope containing a 75 USD onboard credit from their travel agent.
Bunny’s final thought for the day: one can sleep soundly tonight, knowing that the ship would be safely in port until the following day.
Day 5 - Leaving Bermuda Behind
For the first time, the Bunnies ventured out for the buffet breakfast at the Oceanview Cafe, instead of having morning room service. The breakfast was busy, but very good, with plenty of options for everyone - and just enough fuel for the Bunnies to leave the ship to explore the King’s Wharf area that morning.
The dockyard was pleasant enough but not really for the Bunnies as they were not interested in shopping, eating or drinking - the three main activities on offer. They did take a longish walk to Glass Beach which was OK if you are just killing time like the Bunnies were.
Returning to their ship, the Bunnies were welcomed with cold towels and drinks in a cute tent gazebo set up just before the gangplank. This is such a small touch but something that makes Celebrity Cruises that much better than most of the competition.
At the Oceanview Cafe it was falafel day at the buffet. Bunny loved it! There were no fewer than six varieties of falafel on offer. For the first time in her life, Bunny tried “Mexican falafel” which she didn’t even know existed.
Leaving Bermuda, Bunny was able to observe the beautiful scenery directly from her balcony. There were reefs all around the ship and Bunny began to understand where the reputation for the Bermuda Triangle may come from… And Mr. Bunny pointed out some whales! They saw the spouts of a couple of whales and the tail of one as it went down for a deep dive.
Later that day, the Captain announced that the highlight of the trip was just starting: the five-day, non-stop crossing of the Atlantic. Apparently, the weather looked favourable. Bunny was still a bit nervous about what lay ahead but crossed her fingers and went to the gym.
The Bunnies generally were not too keen on the cruise ship entertainment options but that night they went to see a magic show with Matthew McGurk & Katia. There were some very impressive card tricks and it proved to be some pleasant light entertainment for the night.
Thought of the day: Bunny would not want to sail around Bermuda in bad weather.
Day 6 - A Whole Lot of Sea
The next morning, the Bunnies woke up after having lost another hour to the time zone gods.
The actual Transatlantic crossing - what the Captain had called the highlight of the trip - was more of a bore for Bunny. She cruises mainly to explore new places and visit exciting ports, but when you are crossing the Atlantic, there are none to speak of…
The Bunnies knew this in advance, of course, and decided to make the most of the inevitable quiet time by working a lot. This made Mr. Bunny very happy. Needing only a laptop and functioning Wi-Fi to pursue their location independent projects, the ship was as good a place as any for them to work. In fact, the lovely Hideaway on deck 7 was perfect for this purpose. This comfy and quiet indoor haven became the Bunnies’ designated workplace for down days during the cruise. They were certainly happier to work than pass the days drinking or playing cards as many of the passengers had decided to do.
When the Bunnies ventured on outside decks that day, the weather was still beautiful, but a bit nippy. The winds had started to pick up and the indoor pool was closed due to the sloshing water.
The Bunnies had both lunch and dinner at the Oceanview Cafe, where they both thought the Indian food, in particular, was excellent. It probably helped that most of the kitchen chefs seemed to be from that part of the world.
In the evening, the Bunnies caught the ship’s big production show, Pearl, which was pretty flashy if you are into that sort of thing. It was akin to Cirque du Solei lite but still impressive when you consider that the venue is a swaying ship.
In the late evening, they dragged their asses to the gym again and enjoyed a post-workout hot tub on deck. Nobody else was around again, except for the pool attendant, who wore a woolen hat, a sure sign of chills to come. Bunny also tried the Finnish sauna in the spa’s female dressing room and had it completely to herself. What bliss!
During the night, the clocks would be set ahead one hour again. Bunny thought how nice it must be to cross the Atlantic from East to West, gaining time almost every day instead of losing it.
Bunny’s cruise ship tip for the day: use the jacuzzis late at night when no-one else is around.
Day 7 - A Quiet Day
Bunny woke with a sore throat. The aftereffects of enjoying late night jacuzzi in chilly weather…
The good news was that she finally found cinnamon for her breakfast porridge at the buffet. The bad news was the Captain’s announcement that the weather would be a bit rough for the day and night ahead. The waves were expected to be around 10 feet high. Not too bad yet, Bunny thought. On the other hand, there were 1870 miles remaining until Southampton…
Since Bunny wasn’t feeling too great, she napped for hours while Mr. Bunny worked. The ship was rocking quite a bit now and Bunny didn’t even feel like going out for dinner that night. It was another Evening Chic night and she didn’t feel like dressing up. Luckily, there was always free room service and TV (a rare novelty in the Bunnies’ lives) to keep her occupied amidst all the dozing.
The Bunnies really appreciated the room service at Celebrity Silhouette during their trip. They ordered something (breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks etc.) virtually every day and the order was always delivered on time and correctly. While the selection was not huge, it was a definite lifesaver on plenty of days. Plus, it was completely free of charge when delivered between 6am and 11pm.
The good news: it was another day with zero dollars spent onboard!
Day 8 - Easter Sunday
Speaking of room service, Easter Sunday dawned with room service breakfast delivered to the Bunnies stateroom. Bunny had not slept well, as overnight had been quite bumpy, so she appreciated the opportunity to linger in bed that morning.
The Captain announced that he had taken a more northernly course to avoid the worst of the weather. They were now exactly in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Bunny had not seen any land, or even any other ships, for three days. It felt weird and a bit scary.
Later in the day while gazing from their private balcony, Mr. Bunny spotted some whales again. It was so cool to see their spouts and know they were out there. The Bunnies were not so alone after all. Then the Bunnies spotted a cargo ship as well. It was funny how much excitement such sightings could bring on the Atlantic. Things got even better when some sunshine and calmer waters appeared.
Bunny still had a sore throat so the gym was not an option for the day. Instead, Bunny mostly stayed in bed, using Wi-Fi to work. There were supposed to be breaks in the satellite Internet service that day but Bunny didn’t notice any. All in all, the unlimited Wi-Fi package they had arranged before the cruise worked like a dream.
The Oceanview Cafe had a very nice buffet spread for Easter. There were even big ice sculptures and special treats for kids. Bunny had counted about 8 to 10 children in total during the cruise and that was just about the number she could live with on a ship meant for about 3000 passengers.
In the afternoon, the Bunnies went to see a film, Bohemian Rhapsody, in the theatre and loved it. At least one headline movie was shown in the ship’s theatre every day but this was the first one that the Bunnies managed to catch.
Also for the first time, the Bunnies checked out the daily afternoon tea service and absolutely loved the scones with clotted cream and jam. The sandwiches were a bit of a disappointment but afternoon tea now became a fixed feature for the Bunnies for the rest of the cruise. Bye-bye healthy cruising!
Come evening it was time to move clocks forward by an hour yet again. It was becoming a bit tiresome, if you ask Bunny.
Thought of the day: Cruising and afternoon tea with scones is a brilliant combination.
Day 9 - Glimpse of the Azores
Bunny slept late and woke to the Captain’s announcement that they would be experiencing 15-foot waves from early evening onwards. According to the Captain, the weather had been favourable until now. Bunny sighed and braced herself for the inevitable.
After buffet breakfast, the Bunnies went to have a look outside and suddenly: there were the Azores! A gorgeous, volcanic-looking island had appeared right next to the ship. Bunny was ecstatic at seeing land at last and made a mental note to visit the Azores at some point.
Once the Azores faded into the background, the Bunnies returned inside the ship and caught the tail end of a presentation for their destination on Day 11, Lisbon. The weather in Lisbon was expected to be atrocious during their port call, so Bunny hadn’t really planned on doing much else than hopping around the city. At the presentation, Bunny found out that the ship would be docking at the Lisbon Cruise Port, which was only a 20-minute walk to the city centre. Not bad.
In the evening, the Bunnies decided to open the bottle of white wine they had brought onboard and take full glasses with them to dinner. At dinner, they also decided to order the special priced (cheap) bottle of red wine on offer that day. It was horrible but the Bunnies drank it with gusto. After all, they were obliged to put their 75 USD onboard credit to good use. Use it or lose it!
Bunny was still a bit nervous about the forthcoming bad weather so she chatted up two officers at the buffet. They told her that the journey had been very smooth so far. The worst weather was expected on the last day, they said. Really bad weather. This did not make Bunny feel any better.
The Bunnies then wandered around the ship with their glasses of wine in hand (party night by their standards!). They caught the first half of an acrobatics show with Donovan & Rebecca in the theatre before joining a pub quiz at the Quasar nightclub. Unfortunately, the quiz was 70s-themed and Bunny didn’t know much. Mr. Bunny stepped up so they didn’t finish last but it was a close call. That’s what you get from cruising with pensioners.
Note to self: Bunny needs to visit the Azores one day.
Day 10 - Last Day of Atlantic Crossing
The following morning, Bunny felt like she hadn’t slept much. In addition, there was yet another hour lost due to time differences. Thankfully, it was the last time.
The bad news was that the weather would stay bad, with waves ultimately growing to 15 feet once the ship was scheduled to reach the notorious Bay of Biscay in two days’ time.
When the cruise director announced that passengers ending their trip in Lisbon should go to guest relations with their passports for offboarding procedures, Bunny was sorely tempted. It would be so nice to miss the storm on the Bay of Biscay…
Instead, the Bunnies had a late breakfast at the Oceanview Cafe and worked most of the day in the Hideaway. Bunny also napped, as had become her habit on the ship.
Instead of going out for dinner, the Bunnies ordered room service to their stateroom and finished off the rest of the second bottle of wine they had brought with them from Fort Lauderdale. It had been an uneventful day at sea and Bunny was getting a bit tired of the cruising…
Recap of the day: a whole lot of nothing.
Day 11 - Hopping Around Lisbon
Finally, some excitement! The ship was scheduled to arrive in Lisbon, which Bunny hadn’t visited for 15 years, at lunch time for a short port call.
After a leisurely breakfast, the Bunnies moved to the Sky Lounge at the very front of the ship to observe and take pictures of their arrival in Lisbon. The weather was awful at first, but slowly improved the closer the ship got to the city.
By lunch time, the sun was shining and the Bunnies had lunch on the outside deck, with a wonderful view of slowly approaching Lisbon. The ship passed right under the famous 25 de Abril Bridge with great views all the while of the old town to the left (port side, Bunny says in a pirate voice). It was very pleasant after all those days at sea.
Disembarking in Lisbon was slow but once they were out and about, the Bunnies made the most of their half day in town. The weather was capricious but the city charming as ever - and very affordable. The Bunnies took full advantage of this and enjoyed local wine and light snacks in several different wine bars and restaurants they visited. They also tried the famous pastel de nata tarts but Bunny was less impressed with those.
Lisbon was a perfect place to just hop around on your own, there was no need for any tours or organised activities. Bunny loved the slightly dilapidated, but amiable, old quarters, the colourful tiles, the wine bars, the history surrounding them. It was good to be back in Europe!
Returning to the ship in the evening, the Bunnies were surprised when the bottle of wine they bought in town was not scanned and confiscated. Usually, you are not allowed to bring any alcohol to your stateroom from port calls, bottles of which the ship seizes but returns to you at the end of the trip. Perhaps the rules loosen as the cruise approaches its final destination?
Back in the ship, the Bunnies decided to hot tub it outside again. It was brilliant to be in the jacuzzi when Celebrity Silhouette sailed again under the 25 de Abril Bridge and onwards to the open sea. The only other people on the deck were the staff who were busy tying down everything, in anticipation of the bad weather ahead.
Cruise tip of the day: No shore excursions needed in Lisbon. Explore on your own!
Day 12 - Bay of Biscay
Bunny’s day started with the Captain’s announcement at 10am (yes, she slept in late again), repeating warnings about the upcoming weather. Apparently, 13-16 feet waves were to be expected.
Walking to breakfast, the Bunnies noted that all of the ship’s pools and jacuzzis had been emptied and were closed for the day. The waves seemed pretty awesome and there was a lot of swaying but otherwise the weather stayed sunny.
The Bunnies decided to be productive and used most of the day for working. They stayed in the Oceanview Cafe to keep an eye on the sea (as Bunny insisted) while they typed away on their laptops.
Then it was lunch time and delicious Mexican offerings induced the Bunnies to use their remaining onboard credit for the day’s special offer of a bucket of Corona beers. This guaranteed happy times for the rest of the day.
In the end, it was a bit of a bumpy ride that day but since Bunny was mentally prepared for this, she didn’t suffer too badly. The Coronas helped too…
Lesson learned: If you are prepared for the worst (weather), it doesn’t feel too bad after all.
Day 13 - Last Full Sea Day
The Bunnies were up early for their last full day at sea. It had been a very rocky night but the ship was still in one piece and the weather was supposed to slowly start improving.
According to the Captain, the waves were still up to 16 feet high but Bunny must have gotten used to the swaying because she didn’t think it was a big deal. Plus there was a moment when a gorgeous rainbow suddenly appeared at sea.
What she was, however, was really sniffy. It seemed as if her body vehemently resented the bad European weather after the many months she had just spent in the glorious Caribbean climate.
The last sea day for the Bunnies was very much like the previous ones: they worked quite a bit in the Hideaway, enjoyed both of their meals at the buffet, gobbled down some scones at teatime and hopped around the ship a bit.
Bunny was not feeling well enough to go to the gym so they spent the evening in their stateroom, packing up their belongings and watching some TV. No last night parties for this bunch.
The Bunnies also arranged for an early wake-up call, generously tipped their excellent cabin attendant Agnetta and mentally prepared to face cold and rainy England.
Recap of the day: Mentally and physically preparing to walk on solid ground again.
Day 14 - Arrival in Southampton
The Bunnies woke up at 5:30am, anticipating disembarkation around 6:30am. They had opted for unassisted disembarkation, dragging their own suitcases out of the ship, to ensure that they would catch their train to London in time.
Everything worked out quite nicely. About 20 minutes after leaving their stateroom, they were out of the ship, hailing a taxi to the nearby railway station. The cruise was over, they were safely back in Europe with all their belongings and they had spent a whopping 8 USD onboard the ship during the past 13 days. What’s not to love?
Cruising tip of the day – Avoid the crowds and chaos by choosing to disembark on your own accord.
What Would Bunny Do Differently?
Since this was Bunny’s first Transatlantic crossing by ship, she was a bit uncertain about what to expect. Most, if not all, of her fears proved to be unfounded. She loved the cruise and has already reserved another one for a return to the US this autumn.
Now having experienced it firsthand, she knows that the “no extras” route and its associated low cost is the right choice for her. As long as she has a balcony stateroom, functioning Wi-Fi and vegetarian food, she is a happy camper, with interesting port calls being the icing on the cake. Anything else above and beyond that – such as shows, movies, events or other entertainment - she considers a bonus and only if she doesn’t have to pay extra for them.
During her Celebrity Silhouette cruise, Bunny sometimes found herself envying people having fun on drink packages and enjoying the cruise, while she was sipping tea and working, but such is life sometimes. It’s not like Bunny was suffering either…
Bunny’s Conclusions about Celebrity Silhouette
- The ship is beautiful, elegant and very well-designed.
- Vegetarians won’t go hungry, or feel deprived, on this cruise! This was one of Bunny’s main concerns beforehand, but she shouldn’t have worried. The Grand Cuvee Dining Room and the Oceanview Cafe, in particular, were excellent for vegetarians. Bunny didn’t try any of the speciality restaurants (which incurred premium charges).
- Most of the clientele were older, well-travelled, people. There were very few children onboard. Bunny loved the fact that it never felt crowded anywhere. Disembarkation at ports was reasonably well-organised as well.
- The service throughout the cruise was great and consistent. Bunny had absolutely no complaints on that front.
- The constant upselling was a bit of an annoyance, particularly since Bunny found most of the deals poor value. You will have to master the skill of avoidance to escape the pitches by staff. There is absolutely no need to spend extra cash on the cruise to be able to enjoy it, Bunny says.
- Bunny didn’t go on any of Celebrity’s shore excursions because she doesn’t think those are worth the extra money. For some useful tips on this subject, check out Bunny’s blog post on how to organise shore excursions independently.
- If you are afraid of flying (like a certain lil’ Bunny), there will probably be moments during the cruise when you are uncomfortable. The Captain on Bunny’s cruise did a great job avoiding most of the bad weather but it was not always smooth sailing either. Bunny’s balcony always gave her extra peace of mind that she could “get out” in an emergency. The cheaper, interior rooms (no windows or balcony to the outside) would have been a challenge for Bunny.
- Bunny participated in only a fraction of the entertainment, dining and drinking opportunities on offer but she felt like she got her money’s worth with Celebrity Cruises. After having spent approximately 70 USD per person per day on the cruise ticket itself (plus another 14,50 USD per person per day in “suggested gratuities”), she incurred practically zero expenses onboard. All-in-all, excellent value for everything you get to enjoy.
Awesome- It seems like you were eating all the time or thinking about eating.?
That’s what we do best! ?
Thank you for sharing these details! My husband and I will be taking our first transatlantic cruise from Southampton to Ft Lauderdale in a couple of weeks. Your experiences and tips are very helpful!
I am glad it was useful and hope you will have a wonderful journey! I will also be taking another Transatlantic cruise in November, this time in the other direction… ??