6 Reasons why a cruise is such a fine budget vacation
A cruise ship provides a great, one price, vacation, and one of the main attractions to booking a cruise ship is that just about everything is included in the price.
When many people think about a budget vacation, they picture an intrepid traveler in a roach infested hotel room eating stale sandwiches and riding around on the city bus.
However, one of the best ways to save money on a vacation is also one of the most luxurious and most thrilling ??" the cruise vacation.
Cheap Accommodation
In addition to a cheap place to stay, a cruise also offers unlimited food, including many amazing buffets that are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
In addition, the food on cruise vacation ships are often better-quality to those in all but the best land locked restaurants, and once again, the food is included in the price.
Traveling Off-season
Of course, it is possible to save money by traveling in the off-season, and this can often be a great plan. For instance, even though it is the middle of the winter and most people are not thinking about vacations where you are, it may be warm and tempting in many tropical cruise ship destinations.
It is important, however to check out the local weather, and to avoid the rainy season in the destinations you are considering. Steering clear of hurricanes, tropical downpours and other weather problems can help you get the most out of your cruise ship.
Cabins
If you have never taken a cruise ship before, it is a good idea to get advice from those who have experienced cruising.
These people can give valuable insight on the best balance of cost and comfort for your first cruise ship experience.
The location of the cabin is another important consideration when booking a cruise ship. The interior cabins on the lower parts of the ship are generally the least costly, while the higher, larger cabins with ocean views are the most expensive.
Discounts and Cheap Cruise ship Deals
It is not always necessary to shop early, of course. Cruise ship lines have been known to offer some fantastic discounts at the last minute in order to move unsold cabins or avoid leaving with a less than full passenger load.
There are many last minute travel newsletters that provide details on these types of cruise ship deals, and these last minute travel deals are a big hit with retirees and others with the time to see the world.
Food and Gym
After eating all that food, you will probably feel the need to work out, and the cost of the cruise vacation also typically includes unlimited use of the gym, the weight room and the sports locations. While many hotels tack on a surcharge for the use of the hotel gym, with a cruise vacation it is generally included.
Shipboard Entertainment
The cost of a cruise vacation also includes all shipboard entertainment and classes. The entertainment options of a cruise vacation are often one of the best parts of the experience, and many cruises offer such things as movie nights, theatres, spas, nightclubs, discos, and even casinos.
There are also some great classes offered by cruise lines, in everything from origami to bridge to ballroom dancing.
And again, these classes and entertainment options are included in the price you pay for the cruise.
Among the only things that are not included in the typical cruise vacation are alcoholic beverages and shore excursions. Many of the higher priced cruises even include these extras. If the shore excursions and drinks are not included, be sure to get a price list for shore excursions and drinks.
It is often possible to save money on shore excursions while on a cruise vacation by booking the tours locally at portside instead of going with the cruise line. Just be sure, however that the book it yourself excursion will get you back to the ship on time.
For all these reasons, cruise vacation can be among the best, and most economical, of all vacation opportunities. The ability to enjoy a week or two week cruise vacation at one low price is one more reason to love cruising.
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Cruise Sailings for the Holidays Discounted by 85%
eCruises.com, a leading online cruise broker, is offering savings of up to 85% off on all Carnival and Norwegian cruises through December 31, 2004.Because of their special standing with nearly all major cruise lines, eCruises.com is able to offer the lowest prices on the Internet for the end-of-the-year cruise sailings for 2004.
All of the discounted cruise listings for the Carnival and Norwegian cruises can be searched using the real-time pricing engine at eCruises.com.Carnival, the largest and most popular line of cruise line Norwegian are the only two Cruise Sailings for the Holidays Discounted by 85% 
Cruise > Cruise Sailings for the Holidays Discounted by 85%
Oceania Cruise Line
When trying to find the best Oceania Cruise Line, make sure you do a good research, because there are so many choices to make, and whatever cruise line you choose to use, will make your vacation a truly dream vacation or a nightmare.There are a few steps you can take make the right choice:
1) Start by doing a search in google, msn or yahoo for the destination you want to go to, find out if it is the best time of the years to visit, are there any oceania cruise lines available during the time that you want to visit? can you afford it?
2) Find out what are the best prices for the different oceania cruise lines you researched above, do they have special prices? When? Sometimes waiting an extra week, or moving your vacation time a few days ahead will save you a lot of money, be flexible if you can and you will be able to save money on almost any oceania cruise lines you research.
3) Do a search on the internet about oceania cruise lines reviews,...
Cruise > Oceania Cruise Line
Cruise Critic Offering Up-to-the-Minute Info on Hurricane Frances-Related Cruise Developments
Cruise Critic, the leading cruise travel information web site for consumers, is offering up-to-the-minute coverage of cruise developments related to Hurricane Frances.
The category four hurricane, which is heading toward South Florida one of the busiest regional embarkation ports in the world is already resulting in itinerary changes and outright cancellations. Cruise Critics news team will continue to provide the latest information as long as the hurricane is impacting Cruise Critic Offering Up-to-the-Minute Info on Hurricane Frances-Related Cruise Developments
Cruise > Cruise Critic Offering Up-to-the-Minute Info on Hurricane Frances-Related Cruise Developments
Cruise Sailings for the Holidays Discounted by 85%
eCruises.com, a leading online cruise broker, is offering savings of up to 85% off on all Carnival and Norwegian cruises through December 31, 2004.Because of their special standing with nearly all major cruise lines, eCruises.com is able to offer the lowest prices on the Internet for the end-of-the-year cruise sailings for 2004.
All of the discounted cruise listings for the Carnival and Norwegian cruises can be searched using the real-time pricing engine at eCruises.com.Carnival, the largest and most popular line of cruise line Norwegian are the only two Cruise Sailings for the Holidays Discounted by 85%
Cruise > Cruise Sailings for the Holidays Discounted by 85%
Cruise Network.com Offers Special Gift to Bermuda Bound Royal Caribbean Cruise Passengers
The Voyager of the Seas, one of the largest cruise ships at sea today, was scheduled to depart Cape Liberty Cruise Port in Bayonne, NJ on Sunday July 24 for a 5-night Bermuda Cruise.
Royal Caribbean Cruise Line was forced to alter the route of the Voyager at the last minute due to the pending threat of severe weather from tropical storm Franklin, which had been churning just off the southwestern coast of Bermuda for several days.
Royal Caribbean says that it had no choice but to modify the Voyager's itinerary to ensure the safety of the more than 4,000 cruise passengers and crew that would be aboard the ship.
The problem was, most passengers...
Cruise > Cruise Network.com Offers Special Gift to Bermuda Bound Royal Caribbean Cruise Passengers
Small Cruise Ships
When you think of cruise ships, you usually think of a huge ship that holds hundreds of passengers and a large crew to cater to their needs. It's true that most travel agencies push cruises on large, luxurious ships that travel to famous ports in places like Bermuda and the Bahamas. Hospitality and ambience rate high on these cruises and are a big selling point for a once in a lifetime experience.
Often times, cruise ship travelers are attracted to packages that head to popular destinations on their list of "places to see". However, there are those who prefer three day or weekend get-aways to unknown destinations on smaller ships.
These trips are short and economical, making them ideal for those who wish to take a shorter cruise for an affordable price. These cruises provide all the basic amenities as that of a standard cruise, but the size of the ship, number of passengers and crew are much smaller. A small crew and fewer passengers tend to make a trip more relaxing...
Small Cruise Ships
Cruise > Small Cruise Ships