Planning a Perfect Cruise to Celebrate Retirement

If you or your loved one is nearing retirement, what better way to celebrate than to take a cruise? The real benefit of taking a cruise after your retirement is that it can be as leisurely as you want it to be – you could even stretch to a round-the-world trip. Read on for tips for the perfect cruise to celebrate retirement.

There have been reports of people even choosing to live on cruise ships permanently rather than living in a retirement home, and some reports have even suggested that the option of living on a cruise ship might be the cheaper one, but if you are not planning on taking to the high seas permanently then you do not need to limit yourself either in where you can go and what duration of time you can spend on it.

When it comes to taking a cruise, considerable planning is essential. You and your travel partner – if you have one – will need to consider where in the world you want to go and what is on top of your to-do and to-see lists. If you choose the round-the-world option, some obvious sights you will want to see include the aurora borealis (or the northern lights); marine mammals, such as dolphins and whales, in their natural habitats; and perhaps even some of the ancient world’s most famous cities – Rome and Athens spring readily to mind.

Once you have planned and booked your cruise, the next step is to decide what to take with you. By their nature, cruises can be subject to considerable changes, especially in their schedules, so you will need to take sufficient clothing and, if applicable, enough medication to get you through the duration of your cruise, with a little for insurance in the event of delays and rescheduling.

Leaving those essentials aside, ensure you take a small backpack or similar with you for carrying around such items as cameras and sunglasses either on board or on trips to dry land. In terms of electronic items, you may well want to bring a laptop or tablet and maybe even your cellphone, but make sure you enquire about internet usage charges before you leave. Books and magazines are other items you might want to consider because your cruise ship may not have a comprehensive selection of either. If you are hoping to spot wildlife, do not leave home without a pair of binoculars.

In terms of clothing, pack a selection of clothes to take account not only of expected weather conditions but also of the on-board dress policies and the types of places you will visit. A pair of flip-flops is fine for visits to beaches but obviously unsuitable for a day’s sightseeing or hiking.

An important tip is to have appropriate ID and documentation relating to the cruise with you as you board and not in your checked luggage.

To get a sense of the types of cruise you can enjoy post-retirement and the many destinations and sights you can take in, have a look at Royal Holiday, a worldwide vacation club offering luxury trips including a selection of Caribbean cruises. Joining a vacation club can be a great way to take the stress out of planning a dream cruise.