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Go on a cruise

We never imagined we would go on a cruise - the restriction on where you could visit and for how long, being expected to join in all those group activities, set eating times, the prospect of being surrounded by screaming kids or drunk twenty-somethings - it just wasn't us. Then we went on one - and loved the experience! It turned out to be the most relaxing holiday we had ever had, and was exactly what we needed at the time.

There were people of all ages on the ship, but no one was pressured into doing anything they did not want to do. We mostly mooched around the various decks, read books in different quiet nooks, people-watched, sometimes napped in our Stateroom, ate where, what and when we liked, alone or with others, and enjoyed walking around the various ports the ship docked at, rather than going on any of the organised tours.

Our cruise was on the Carnival Spirit which sailed from Melbourne across to Burnie, Port Arthur and Hobart in Tasmania, and then on to Sydney. It isn't the largest cruise ship on the planet but has 12 decks and we booked a balcony room on deck 6. I think because it was our first trip with this line, they gave us a complimentary upgrade to a suite on the same deck, which put us pretty much in the middle of the ship. Although we had a 5 metre swell crossing Bass Strait, I did not get sea sick, which was another pleasant surprise, as I had experienced this on ferries. Perhaps size really does matter!

Sometimes you need a holiday where no major decisions need to be made, and no effort expended on getting from a to b. If that is where you are at, consider a cruise. If cruising is still not for you, but you do want to try some sea travel, don't forget you can always catch a ferry!

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