No more midnight buffets: Seven major changes cruise lines have seen in the last 25 years
This year marks 25 years since I went on my first cruise.
(No, it wasn't the Titanic. I'm not THAT old.)
And I'm lucky enough to have been on almost a dozen more since then, including the first one after COVID, as well as the glamorous launches of new ships Sun Princess and Norwegian Aqua.
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Sarah went on her first cruise 25 years ago in Florida. Supplied
Lots of cruise rituals and sights are similar to that very first time I stepped onboard. But here are seven things which have changed since I first set sail.
1. Cruises have become a lot more accessible
In the suburban UK in the 90s and 2000s, going on a cruise was the pinnacle of sophistication, a bucket list holiday reserved for very few.
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I remember a family friend gushing about her cruise like she'd been to the MOON, and proudly displaying her photos on the mantelpiece.
Now it's a holiday that millions are able to do, and it's only growing in popularity.
2. The ships have got bigger... a lot bigger
My first cruise was on Voyager of the Seas which was the world's biggest ship at the time.
It's around 138,000 gross tonnes, 311 metres long and holds up to 4000 passengers.
The highlights on board were a climbing wall, an ice rink and a 'street' down the middle - all of which were mind-boggling at the time.
Voyager of the Seas was once the world's biggest cruise ship. Supplied
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(She's still sailing, after a few refurbishments, from Brisbane rather than from Miami where I boarded her in 2001.)
Compare that with Icon of the Seas, also from Royal Caribbean, which is now the largest cruise ship in the world.
She's almost double the size at nearly 249,000 gross tonnes, is 365m long, and holds up to 7,600 passengers.
It's impossible to list all the staggering features, but there is the biggest waterpark at sea, a surfing simulator and a 'Central Park' garden, to name a few.
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3. People used to dress up
Cruises definitely felt a lot more formal in those days.
We dressed up for dinner, and wore gowns like something from Downton Abbey for formal nights.
I've seen some chat on cruise groups online lamenting the fact that passengers just don't bother now.
However, you can still don that posh outfit if you want, especially on some cruise lines like Cunard. Probably better to stick to a frock rather than a taffeta ball gown, though.
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4. Midnight buffets
One thing that remains the same is the abundance of eating opportunities
Though back in my early days of sailing, everything was included; unlike now, where some restaurants cost extra.
That includes the midnight buffets.
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The dining room opened at 11.30pm for 'viewing' before everyone was allowed to dive in as the clock struck 12.
I remember lavish sculptures of ice and chocolate and tables groaning with all kinds of foods. Even though we'd only finished dinner a couple of hours before.
As for dinner, well, it was common to be seated with the same group on the same table every night and be served by the same waiter.
Most people opt out of this now, choosing instead to dine when they want.
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Private islands were not as lavish as they have become. Supplied
5. You had to wear your life jacket
These days you'll likely watch a safety video in your cabin before heading to your muster station and tapping your key card to show you've been.
Back then you'd hear the emergency siren shortly after boarding, and head to your muster station IN YOUR LIFE JACKET to hear the emergency procedure with hundreds of others.
Afterwards I remember loads of confused life jacket-clad passengers banging into each other in the corridors trying to find their cabins like some kind of Titanic extras.
7. Private islands were undeveloped
My first cruise stopped at a 'private island' which was part of the Caribbean island of Haiti.
While the waters were tropical, there were no snack bars, buffets or private cabanas.
There was the beach, the sea, tables of sandwiches and buckets of drinks.
These days cruise lines have created lavish island destinations complete with water parks, restaurants, private day villas, and even branches of Starbucks.
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Castaway Cay is Disney's private island paradise in the tropical waters of the Bahamas. Supplied
8. There was no Wi-Fi or mobile phones
While we were on that first cruise, 9/11 happened.
We learned about it via the captain's announcements and rushed to our cabin to watch the events unfold on the small TV.
The internet had been invented (just) but mobiles were new and certainly didn't go online.
We splashed out to send an email from the on-board internet café.
Selfies were also not yet a thing.
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It was 2001 and so internet was via computer and there were no series. Supplied
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If you wanted a photo you had to buy one taken by the ship's photographers and displayed nightly in a big gallery.
Or, you could snap your own on your compact camera and get it developed later.
The ship even produced a VHS video at the end of the cruise showing off the events and destinations.
I persuaded my mum to buy it for us.
You see, I didn't think I'd ever go on a cruise again and I wanted to remember everything...
