Why Cruises Have Become So Popular for Family Reunions
Published Tuesday, May 17th 2016 - Updated Monday, April 13th 2020
Categories
If you have ever been a part of, or even better, planned a family reunion on land, you probably don’t need me to tell you why so many people are turning to cruises for reunions. There are so many details to it with lodging, what are you doing, what you are eating, who’s cooking, who is paying for it, who is traveling, and who isn’t. And I won’t even get into the drama that starts happening because someone is staying closer to this person than that person, or because Aunt Mary is mad at Aunt Jane and on and on… It very quickly all becomes exhausting before it even begins.
Cruises however offer a very convenient package. This is hands down the biggest reason for booking a reunion on a cruise. It’s a nicely wrapped package with a bow on it. The entertainment, food, parties and lodging are all taken care of with one booking. If you have a large enough group, the cruise line will even allow you to reserve public rooms to have a private function or celebration at no extra cost.
The value of a cruise becomes the next biggest factor. It would be extremely difficult to provide even the lodging and food for the cost of the cruise, not to mention the entertainment and destinations everyone gets to vacation at. Plus, unlike a land reunion, it allows for different economical situations and preferences. If someone doesn’t want to spend a lot on their cabin, they don’t have to. At the same time, if someone wants to splurge and enjoy some extra amenities or comforts, they can have that too.
The variety of it all is my favorite reason for booking reunions on a cruise. You may find yourself out at the pool with your brothers and sisters in the afternoon, and a couple hours later you are at one of the bars with your cousins competing against the other passengers at trivia, and an hour later playing bingo with your mom and all of your aunts, only to find yourself rock climbing an hour later with your nephews and then meeting up with everyone for dinner and see the show in the theater that night. Yes, you have the big get togethers with everyone but you also have all of these little moments in between. And those little moments are when the bonding really happens. My nephew and my dad sat in the atrium bar for a couple hours on one of our sea days. It was amazing the bond that they developed just sitting there talking. My dad has since passed, but I guarantee you, my nephew will never forget those hours he sat on that ship, in that bar, with his grandfather… and just talked. That was worth the entire cost of the vacation right there.
A cruise is attractive to all ages. The overwhelming majority of people either enjoy cruising or would like to experience it, regardless of their age. There is something for every age and every interest on a cruise. And being in a group magnifies that exponentially. Have you ever seen an unhappy group on a cruise? Because I haven’t, and I have been on a lot of cruises. I will say, the one exception to that is when they are disembarking. No one is happy then though.
Lastly, a cruise reunion doesn’t burden any one person. They just need to bring the people to the table. A travel agent can research, organize and book everyone individually. They handle all of the details and booking. Everyone else just gets to visit and have fun.
This is a pretty big topic, so I am going to make this a series of posts. Up next is "Tips for Planning a Family Reunion Cruise". And as always, if I can help you make your family reunion a reality, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me.
Cruises however offer a very convenient package. This is hands down the biggest reason for booking a reunion on a cruise. It’s a nicely wrapped package with a bow on it. The entertainment, food, parties and lodging are all taken care of with one booking. If you have a large enough group, the cruise line will even allow you to reserve public rooms to have a private function or celebration at no extra cost.
The value of a cruise becomes the next biggest factor. It would be extremely difficult to provide even the lodging and food for the cost of the cruise, not to mention the entertainment and destinations everyone gets to vacation at. Plus, unlike a land reunion, it allows for different economical situations and preferences. If someone doesn’t want to spend a lot on their cabin, they don’t have to. At the same time, if someone wants to splurge and enjoy some extra amenities or comforts, they can have that too.
The variety of it all is my favorite reason for booking reunions on a cruise. You may find yourself out at the pool with your brothers and sisters in the afternoon, and a couple hours later you are at one of the bars with your cousins competing against the other passengers at trivia, and an hour later playing bingo with your mom and all of your aunts, only to find yourself rock climbing an hour later with your nephews and then meeting up with everyone for dinner and see the show in the theater that night. Yes, you have the big get togethers with everyone but you also have all of these little moments in between. And those little moments are when the bonding really happens. My nephew and my dad sat in the atrium bar for a couple hours on one of our sea days. It was amazing the bond that they developed just sitting there talking. My dad has since passed, but I guarantee you, my nephew will never forget those hours he sat on that ship, in that bar, with his grandfather… and just talked. That was worth the entire cost of the vacation right there.
A cruise is attractive to all ages. The overwhelming majority of people either enjoy cruising or would like to experience it, regardless of their age. There is something for every age and every interest on a cruise. And being in a group magnifies that exponentially. Have you ever seen an unhappy group on a cruise? Because I haven’t, and I have been on a lot of cruises. I will say, the one exception to that is when they are disembarking. No one is happy then though.
Lastly, a cruise reunion doesn’t burden any one person. They just need to bring the people to the table. A travel agent can research, organize and book everyone individually. They handle all of the details and booking. Everyone else just gets to visit and have fun.
This is a pretty big topic, so I am going to make this a series of posts. Up next is "Tips for Planning a Family Reunion Cruise". And as always, if I can help you make your family reunion a reality, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me.
Leave a Reply
indicates a required field
