If Your Luggage Doesn’t Board the Ship With You

After you spend time carefully packing for a cruise, it’s distressing if your luggage goes astray somewhere between your home and your cruise ship cabin. While we hope this never happens to you, you should know what to expect and what to do in this unfortunate situation.

To help avoid a lost luggage event, use at least one way to track your luggage. For example, download your airline’s mobile app and use its luggage-tracking feature. Many travelers also place small tracking devices in their luggage – these devices can share their exact location with your mobile device. And even when you use these precautions, be sure to pack an extra outfit – plus essential paperwork and prescription medication – in a carry-on bag that will stay with you.

After you fly to your departure city, If your luggage doesn’t appear on the baggage claim carousel, look around; airport staff may have set it aside. If not, go to the baggage service desk for the airline you arrived on and show your luggage claim tickets. If you put tracking devices in your luggage, open the tracking app and share that information with the baggage service representative, too.

If your luggage is on a different flight and will arrive before you board the ship, give the baggage service representative details on where to deliver it.

If your luggage won’t arrive before the ship departs, provide details about the cruise itinerary; hopefully, the airline can deliver your luggage to a port of call. Then, when you board the ship, visit the guest services desk and let the staff know you’re expecting your luggage to be delivered to the ship. Ask them if they can connect with the airline’s baggage service to keep tabs on the situation for you.

It doesn’t happen often, but if your luggage comes to the dock with you yet doesn’t show up in your cabin, visit guest services. If your luggage isn’t found onboard, ask for assistance such as free laundry services, complimentary t-shirts and toiletries, and discounts at onboard or onshore shops.

Sailing without your luggage is not ideal, but the airline, cruise line, or your travel insurance provider may cover at least some of the related costs. Be careful to keep any paperwork, emails, and texts you receive, as well as receipts for anything you buy to replace what was in your luggage. And, check in with Anita, your professional travel advisor for additional advice.

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Navigating Your Cruise Ship

Some cruise ships are as large and as populous as a small city, so knowing how to find your way around is important. Even on a smaller ship, the number of decks, elevators, and hallways can make things a little confusing. Fortunately, there are a variety of resources to help you get to where you want to be.

You can start by becoming familiar with the ship before you cruise. Most cruise lines provide online deck plans for their ships; if you prefer paper, your professional travel advisor can provide a deck plan brochure or printout. Use the deck plan to locate your cabin and see how you can get to the closest elevators, the pool, the dining room and buffet, the show lounge, etc. If the cruise line’s website includes photos of the ship, take a look at them so things will seem at least a little familiar when you get on board.

Once on the ship, take a little time to orient yourself and develop a sense of forward (toward the front of the ship) and aft (toward the back of the ship). If you have a keen sense of direction this may be easy, but don’t be surprised if it takes a little time.

Deck plans are often posted in cabins and near elevators and stairs. This signage is usually quite detailed, including cabin numbers and the names of restaurants, theaters, and other common spaces. There may be deck plans inside the elevators, too, to help you know which way to turn when the doors open.

You can also call up deck plans using the cruise line’s app on your mobile device; downloading and using the app will put lots of additional information about the ship, itinerary, and daily schedule at your fingertips, too.

Your ship may have wayfinding kiosks with screens that display deck plans and other maps (very helpful if you want to see the deck plans on a larger screen). If the kiosks are interactive, you can simply touch the venue you want to find or enter its name to make directions appear on the screen.

There’s one more reliable way to get just about anywhere on board – ask a member of the crew. They live on the ship for weeks or months at a time, are familiar with every inch of it, and will gladly direct you.

For more onboard navigation tips, talk with Anita, your professional travel advisor.

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Port Calls of the Caribbean

The Caribbean is balmy all year long, the water is beautifully blue, and the beaches are legendary. For these reasons, it’s one of the world’s most popular cruise destinations. If you haven’t already sailed there, here’s a quick introduction to the region and the places cruise ships call on.

The Caribbean Sea is defined by the Greater Antilles islands on the north, the Lesser Antilles islands on the East, the northern edge of South America on the south, and Central America – plus Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula – on the west.

Cruise destinations in the Greater Antilles include Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic (which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti), Jamaica, and the Cayman Islands. The Greater Antilles, made mostly of continental rock, are known for mountainous beauty. Popular ports include San Juan, Puerto Rico (the departure port for some Caribbean cruises); Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; Ocho Rios, Jamaica; and Georgetown, Grand Cayman.

The Lesser Antilles is an arc of small islands that stretches from the U.S. Virgin Islands (at the northern end) to Trinidad and Tobago (at the southern end). Some are low-lying atolls, edged by coral reefs; and some are volcanic, with lovely peaks and valleys. Islands of the Lesser Antilles that are beloved by cruisers include St. Thomas, St. Maarten/St. Martin, St. Kitts, Dominica, Martinique, and St. Lucia.

Southern Caribbean cruise itineraries may call on some of the Lesser Antilles but often focus on one or more of the ABC islands – Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao. While the ABCs are not far from the coast of Venezuela and South America, they are part of the Netherlands. Cruises that call on the ABCs often visit Barbados, which lies just outside the Caribbean.

Cruises of the Western Caribbean often call on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, where popular ports include Cancun, Cozumel, and Costa Maya. Some itineraries also visit islands off the coast of Belize and Honduras, including Ambergris Caye and Roatan, a popular destination for snorkeling and diving. Depending on the port of departure, Western Caribbean cruises may call on Jamaica and Grand Cayman, too.

We haven’t mentioned The Bahamas or the Turks and Caicos islands because they are geographically in the Atlantic, rather than the Caribbean; but, you’ll find these pretty islands on quite a few Caribbean itineraries, too.

For much more information about the many options for Caribbean cruising, talk with Anita, your professional travel advisor.

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