The first timers guide to mature age cruising

When Jo Castro went on her very first cruise, she didn’t know what to expect, but after 104 nights aboard the Sea Princess, the Lifestyle Fifty, the art of ageing and living the good life editor is a cruising convert! We chat to Jo about her top tips for cruising when you’re a mature traveller.

When my husband Dave and I first started talking about boarding the Sea Princess for its 28,000-mile World Cruise we had a chat to the kids – YOLO they said! You only live once. And they were right. This type of journey, 25 countries, with stops in 35 different destinations was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Whether you want to hop on a two-day cruise to nowhere, sail to the South Pacific for 12 nights or move in for a few months like we did, cruising is a great way to holiday without the hassle.

Here are my top reasons for cruising when you’re on the more mature side of life:

Hassle free

It sounds clichéd, but when it comes to cruising, this is so true. We unpacked once, and that was that! I didn’t realise how much stress that takes out of travel. And it was so lovely to be able to go out on an excursion and not worry about coming back to check into a new hotel. And not having to find somewhere for dinner when you’ve been out sightseeing is bliss.

Health care

Health care is excellent on most ships, and on the Sea Princess, we heard great feedback about how efficient the staff were, and how concerned they were with getting people better swiftly so they could continue their holiday. Cruise ship medical centres can be expensive, so make sure you have insurance before you sail.

One stop ship

Cruise ships have everything you need. Especially when it comes to entertainment. There were bands, singers, dancers and performances all day and what felt like all night. This is fantastic especially if you’re a more mature person. Back home you might not usually want to do something out in the dark, but on a ship you can go out and have a cocktail by the pool, have a nice glass of wine with your meal, then go see a show, before walking back to your room.

New sights

Cruising often takes you to destinations that are a bit different. You might not necessarily pick them for a holiday, but a day in port is a great way to get a taster to see if you’d like to come back for longer. And gosh it is easy. No long hours travelling overland or flying.

Food, food and more food

The food was incredible aboard the Sea Princess. There was such an amazing variety of restaurants – from the formal dining room and more casual buffet to the pool side pizzeria and deck bar, we tried them all! Not having to cook for yourself, or figure out where a good restaurant is, or even trying to work out how to read menus in a foreign language is a boon.

Convinced? There are hundreds of different cruises to choose from that leave from ports around Australia. Princess Cruises is the only cruise line to offer round trip world voyages from Australia, but also has plenty of shorter trips – especially to the South Pacific and New Zealand.

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