Cruise Ship Dining
On a recent survey, the first and foremost reason why people return to a cruise holiday is: “Pleasurable Dining Experience”
A perception is that you have pre-paid for three main meals a day and those meals will all be buffet style. Not quite – on most ships today you can dine in the main restaurant, the café, or even alfresco out on deck. Your cruise fare includes more than just your three main meals – in fact you can often eat non-stop 24 hours a day!
Some meal options may differ depending on which cruise line you choose to sail with. More and more often now you will also find alternative restaurants available onboard to dine in, these may require a small surcharge but generally are smaller & more intimate for that special occasion.
For those more calorie-conscious many cruise lines also offer a special low-fat or health & spa menu selections, plus don’t forget the fully equipped gym and exercise classes available onboard.
On a recent survey, the first and foremost reason why people return to a cruise holiday is: “Pleasurable Dining Experience”
A perception is that you have pre-paid for three main meals a day and those meals will all be buffet style. Not quite – on most ships today you can dine in the main restaurant, the café, or even alfresco out on deck. Your cruise fare includes more than just your three main meals – in fact you can often eat non-stop 24 hours a day!
Some meal options may differ depending on which cruise line you choose to sail with. More and more often now you will also find alternative restaurants available onboard to dine in, these may require a small surcharge but generally are smaller & more intimate for that special occasion.
For those more calorie-conscious many cruise lines also offer a special low-fat or health & spa menu selections, plus don’t forget the fully equipped gym and exercise classes available onboard.
Cruise Ship Dining
Day to day shipboard dress is very casual with shorts & T-shirts being the norm.
In the evenings the dress code will vary daily, however the largest proportion of evenings are casual. On ships with both informal & formal nights, you could expect to find approximately one formal night in four.
Casual:
Trousers and sport/polo shirt for men, for women slacks and blouse or sundress.
Informal:
Shirt & jacket with or without tie for men. Dress or pantsuit for women.
Formal:
Dark suit or tuxedo for men. Evening gown or cocktail dress for women.
Most ships today offer alternative dining venues for those who prefer not to dress up.
Cruise ships today are becoming more and more casual. Many ships operating around the world now offer a more casual option of dining in addition to the more traditional cruise dining experience. The requirement of having to dress up is now more in the hands of the passenger. Please check with your Cruise Spirit consultant as to what dress requirements are suitable for your cruise.
Packing
There is little difference in packing for a cruise holiday compared to a resort, hotel or motel style holiday. Casual clothing is the norm for days onboard including swimwear for the pools & exercise gear for the fitness centres.
Please check the temperatures for the destinations you are travelling to, to decide what clothing would be appropriate.
Additional items you should take include sunscreen, sunglasses, comfortable shoes, rain-coat, any prescription medication you may require and of course your camera or video camera – a small pair of binoculars can also be handy especially for destinations where you will be spotting wildlife.
For suitable attire for the evenings please refer to our section on Dress Code.
Tipping
Although tipping is not part of the Australasian culture it has long been recognised as an accepted practice aboard cruise ships (as it is in most service & hospitality industries in the western world)
Each cruise line deals with tipping in their own way – some include it in the fare, some require it to be pre-paid prior to departing from Australia, while others have a no-tipping policy altogether. By far the most common policy now is to charge a set amount (that covers your cabin steward, waiter & wine waiter) to your cabin account. However it is important to note this amount can be altered (down or up) depending on what you want to show for the appreciation of service you have received.
Remember in most cases tipping is still discretionary.
|
