The passenger who jumped overboard while cruising on Norwegian Epic over Christmas has been identified. 

Dan McGilvray, 51, of Broomfield, Colorado, vanished after climbing over a balcony and leaping off the ship, bouncing off a lifeboat as he plummeted toward the sea. 

I've spent 55 days at sea on five different cruise lines within the past year, including Royal Caribbean, Carnival, and Disney.

My voyages took me everywhere from the Bahamas to Alaska, the Caribbean, and the Greek Isles. Sailing on various lines also meant the onboard experience varied. 

Even as a frequent cruiser, I learned something from each trip. Here's some cruising advice I'm applying to my 2025 travels. 

Cozumel, Mexico, welcomed over 4.6 million cruise passengers in 2024, making it one of the most popular ports of call in the Western Caribbean. Itineraries vary from short 4-night getaways to weeklong cruises that call at other ports in the Western Caribbean like Costa Maya and Roatán, Honduras. 

While cruises can be an affordable way to travel, you don't want to make costly mistakes that could put you over budget. Several common pitfalls can quickly add up, from hidden fees to overlooked expenses. 

It's usually easy to budget for certain extras, such as specialty dining, shore excursions, Wi-Fi, and alcoholic beverages. However, one Royal Caribbean cruiser was hit with an unexpected bill after they forgot to put their phone on airplane mode while on a cruise. 

Unlike weeklong Caribbean cruises, only so many ports can be visited on short Bahamas getaways. For example, a 3-night voyage from Florida likely calls at a cruise line private island, such as Perfect Day at CocoCay or Half Moon Cay, and Nassau.

However, Nassau ranks poorly in customer satisfaction surveys, despite consistently setting one-day passenger records. On Wednesday, Dec. 27, 2023, the Nassau Cruise Port welcomed over 29,000 guests from six ships, breaking the previous record on Feb. 27, 2023. 

Taking your first cruise can be as exciting as it is nerve-wracking. Every aspect of the cruise experience is unchartered territory for first-time cruisers. However, it can unlock a new preferred way to travel.

Nobody wants to sail on a nasty cruise ship, so the CDC routinely inspects ships to ensure a safe, healthy environment for passengers and crew members. Each year, they release their findings, and in 2024, they reported that out of 151 inspected vessels, 29 received a perfect score. 

The CDC's Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP) conducts random inspections to ensure cruise lines meet health standards, rating ships from 0 to 100. Like restaurant and grocery store inspections, the goal is to minimize the risk of illness for passengers and crew. 

Can you smoke on cruise ships? Absolutely. Smoking is permitted onboard cruise ships. However, you cannot light a cigarette just anywhere. There are restrictions as to where you're allowed to smoke. 

You can't, for example, smoke in your cruise ship cabin. However, many mainstream lines permit smoking in their casinos. If not, there's usually a smoking area on the pool deck on either the port or starboard side of the ship. 

Thankfully, you don't have to survive on nicotine patches while onboard. Here's everything to know about smoking on a cruise ship. 

I took a 5-night cruise onboard Carnival Elation, Carnival's smallest ship at sea. 

After cruising on three other classes of ships, I wanted to see what made their Fantasy Class ships so appealing, especially considering they're rather tiny in terms of modern-day cruise ships. Plus, I was interested in sailing out of Jacksonville, as it's just a little over five hours from Charlotte, North Carolina, making it an easy port to access.