Eating is a quintessential part of any cruise vacation, from the all-you-can-eat buffet to indulgent three-course meals in the dining room. Because of the variety of dining options, you're unlikely to go hungry while onboard — there will always be something tasty to satisfy your palate!

However, there are a few odd quirks about cruising that someone new to vacations at sea might not expect. For example, eating dinner in a cruise ship dining room is unlike anything you'd experience at a traditional restaurant at home. 

Historically, all you need to board a domestic plane in the United States is a valid photo ID, such as a driver's license. Cruise ships, however, are stricter, and if you fail to provide proper documentation, you will be denied boarding. 

While it's important to budget for cruise add-ons like alcoholic beverages and shore excursions, one key part of cruise planning is transportation.

Living in North Carolina means I'm not a short drive to Fort Lauderdale or Miami. Instead, I must factor in the cost of airfare. 

Welcome guest writer Sarah Cinq-Mars! Sarah's a 5th-grade teacher based in North Carolina. When she isn't teaching or being taught the latest slang by her students, she's catching up on true crime podcasts, playing with her 12-year-old dog, or checking out the area's hottest restaurants.

When I started cruising, I never knew there were ships as big as Royal Caribbean’s Oasis Class.

A Michigan teenager was sentenced to eight months in prison for faking a bomb threat on a Carnival cruise. The 19-year-old was upset that his girlfriend and her family were sailing without him, while he was stuck at home pet-sitting. 

Joshua Darrell Lowe appeared in federal court in Kalamazoo, Michigan, on Monday, April 14, 2025, and was sentenced to prison for calling in a bogus bomb threat in January 2024. The email, which read, "Hey, I think someone might have a bomb on your Sunrise cruise ship," resulted in a full-scale response from the crew and authorities. 

From engineers to cabin stewards, dining staff, and officers, running a cruise ship requires a massive team. Among them are bartenders, who work long shifts shaking cocktails. A good bartender can make any vacation more enjoyable, but have you ever wondered how much pouring drinks on a cruise ship pays?

One cruise line is investing in making its private island even better. 

Norwegian Cruise Line broke ground on its $150 million project at Great Stirrup Cay in the Bahamas. Currently, guests have to tender ashore. However, the new development includes the construction of a pier that will allow two ships to dock. 

Most people have heard of North American-based cruise lines like Royal Caribbean, Carnival, and Norwegian. However, the European line MSC Cruises has a solid plan to infiltrate the global cruise market — and it's working. 

At this year's Seatrade Cruise Global conference in Miami, Florida, MSC Cruises USA Chairman Rick Sasso revealed five key pillars that have propelled MSC to the top of the cruise game. 

One of the most popular cruise lines today, Royal Caribbean International, had a humble beginning when founded in 1968. 

Their first ship, the Song of Norway, was launched two years later in 1970. Though a much more modest vessel compared to today’s cruising standards, it was revolutionary.

Royal Caribbean continued to build and release more ships, but things really started to set off when the cruise line debuted Freedom Class ships, which were the largest cruise ships in the world until 2009 with the introduction of the Oasis Class.