You want to go on a cruise! When should you start planning?
12-18 months until departure
Choosing your cruise
Choose your destination and cruise line. You can cruise to every continent in the world in one way or another. You can see the world from the deck of a full service ship and the comfort of your cabin. There are literally thousands of itineraries to choose from, and Cruise Planners can help you narrow down your ideal trip. Once you choose your itinerary, you can put down a deposit on the stateroom of your choice. Rather than watching and waiting, hoping to book at exactly the right time, when you book with Cruise Planners, we watch the fares for you, always dropping your price if your cruise pricing drops significantly. This way you are guaranteed to get the best price possible on your adventure.
6-9 months until departure
Choosing your shore excursions
Choose your shore excursions. Both the cruise line and our preferred partners offer dozens of amazing opportunities for adventure on your cruise. Because of our extensive cruising experience and resources, we can advise you on which ports are good for just wandering and which ports are better enjoyed with an excursion. Excursions are not required, but they do enhance the enjoyment of your adventure.
Check your passport
Apply for your passport well in advance. While some itineraries and cruise lines do not require passports, the US State Department and Cruise Planners strongly recommend them. You never know when your ship may have to visit an unexpected port in an emergency, or if you will miss the ship after visiting a port and get stranded. You will need to have a passport to return to the country. New passports take about 4 months to receive and renewals take about 2 months. Your passport cannot expire within 6 months of your travel dates, so make sure you are covered. This is also the time to apply for any visas or other travel permissions you may need.
3-4 months until departure
Finalize details – payment, airfare, hotels
At this time you will need to provide final payment for your cruise. This is also the time to find your airfare and hotel reservations. Most cruise lines will offer an air program that includes competitive rates and guarantees that you will make it to the ship on time. If you have to fly the day of your sailing, we definitely suggest using this service. It will typically include a transfer from the airport to the cruise port and back again at the end of your cruise, as well as coverage if you are delayed. We suggest flying in the night before, and staying at a hotel near the port or with a shuttle to the port. We can help you find this reservation and arrange transfer from the airport to the hotel and back to the airport (although frequently it’s just as easy to take a rideshare or a taxi).
90 days until departure
Time to check in!
Check in for your cruise. While we don’t suggest printing any paperwork this early, we do suggest logging in and checking in so that if there are any problems with your reservation we have time to correct them. Double check your names, dates of birth and other relevant information is correct.
30 days until departure
Tell people you’re traveling – but only the important ones!
Register with the US State Department if you are traveling to one of the countries that are classified as level 3 or 4 on the Travel Advisory List. This notifies them that you may need evacuating if there are issues. Call your credit card companies and let them know you will be traveling. Nothing ruins a souvenir shopping trip like a declined credit card. Refill all of your prescriptions to ensure you have enough to take with you. Frequently pharmacies can get you an extra week or two if you explain you are going out of the country. Schedule a stop on your mail so it’s not building up in your box. Let a trusted neighbor know you’re going out of town so they can pull any flyers or papers off of your porch.
1 week until departure
Print and collect important documents
Print your travel documents and put them somewhere safe. Copy your credit cards, passports, identifications and other pertinent documentation and leave them with a family member or trusted friend. You will need to print enough luggage tags for all of your bags (we suggest printing a few extra in case one gets torn off or lost). DO NOT attach the cruise tags to the luggage before you fly.
Time to pack!
Pack for your trip! Make sure you know the carryon and checked guidelines for your airline so you don’t get any surprises at the airport. Pack all medicines in your carryon with original prescription information attached. We travel with a lot of meds for our kids, so I like to put an additional label on each package describing what I need it for (i.e. daily asthma medication, emergency glucose for low blood sugar, etc.). See our what to pack blogs for more tips. Review the prohibited items list for your cruise line. Some no longer allow water or other drinks, some allow you to bring your own sodas. You can always ask us if you have questions about something.
There’s an app for that…
Download your cruise line’s app. Many cruise lines have developed apps that you can use to find activities, look up where you are and even chat features with your family (usually for a small fee). Once you get on board it will load with all the information they provide.
Day of departure
What will happen when you get there?
When you arrive at the port you will give your luggage to porters who will take it to be loaded in the appropriate area of the ship. Make sure you have switched your bag tags from the airline tags to the cruise line tags. Keep your carry on with any medications with you. Anything that needs to stay cool will need to stay with you as well. You will go through the check in process. This can be confusing as 5,000 people all need to be verified and issued key cards. Stay calm and patient and ask questions if you need to. They do this every day, they have it down to a science. You will need to pass through some kind of security, depending on the port and line. You will then board the ship. Some cabins may be ready right away, most will still be in the cleaning process. Take it slow, enjoy the free drinks and snacks and grab a planner to find the sail away party.
Final night of the cruise
Time to get ready to go home
While we highly suggest finding a way to stay organized throughout your trip, you will probably still have to spend some time on the last day packing up and getting ready to go home. If you are taking your bags with you off the ship (for people with early flights or who just don’t want to give up the last minute party) you can keep them in your stateroom. For the majority of people, bags must be packed and outside your stateroom door the night before (typically between 11 pm and 3 am). Porters come and take the bags down for sorting. Also during this evening you will have to choose your time for disembarkation. Be aware, that if you need to depart first thing, get your disembarkation tags early.
Disembarkation morning
Heading home!
You will need to be up bright and early, so don’t overindulge too much the night before. Most cruise lines want guests to leave their cabins by 8 am, so they can get started cleaning and flipping. The ship will provide limited breakfast options and give you locations where you can wait for your turn to disembark. Listen to the announcements and follow the instructions and you’ll have no problem. You will have to pass through US Customs, where they will look at your passports, ask you about what you bought overseas and assess any duties as necessary.
When you get home
Tell your friends!
When you get home, that’s the time to post your photos, tell everyone about your amazing trip and send an email to your travel advisor to let them know how it went. Feedback right away allows your advisor get to know your likes and dislikes so your next trip can be even better.