In many areas of the world, including the United States, we often view senior citizens as having limits. While health issues may plague some senior citizens, most individuals are healthy and happy. In fact, many consider their senior years to be the prime of their live. If you are one of those individuals, you could experience fun and excitement aboard a cruise ship. One of the most common concerns aboard a cruise is safety. Many senior citizens and their family members are concerned with the health risks of taking a cruise. If you or your family has fears associated with extended cruises, you may want to seek guidance from your family physician. With a simple visit, your physician may easily be able to determine whether or not you are up for the voyage. If and when you receive the okay from your doctor, you can begin to further examine vacationing aboard a cruise ship. When examining cruise ships, you are encouraged to examine a number of cruise lines and each of the ships that they have available. To get started on your search, it is advised that you examine Royal Caribbean Cruises, Celebrity Cruises, Carnival Cruise Lines, and Princess Cruises. The foresaid cruise lines are just a few of the many that service travelers; however, they are often considered the most popular. When examining a particular cruise ship, you are encouraged to search for activities and services that you are attracted to. These services are important because they are often the only way for seniors to find the perfect cruise ship. At the current time, there is not a large, well-known cruise ship company that offers cruises specifically for senior citizens. That does not mean that you shouldnt take a cruise. It does; however, mean that you may need to spend more time researching your available options. You can and should search for cruise ship activities based on your own preferences. Many seniors prefer cruise ships that offer elegant dinning facilities and activities geared towards mature crowds. If safety is a concern, you may wish to vacation aboard a family fun cruise. These cruises are geared towards individuals and families of all ages. Many times, a family fun cruise has a more appropriate environment. Seniors, including yourself, may find this environment warm and welcoming. Once you have made the decision to take a cruise ship vacation, you may be excited to book your reservations. Senior citizens are urged to refrain from purchasing tickets and making travel accommodations on a whim. This is because many seniors qualify for cruise ship and other travel discounts. Many of these discounts are offered by AARP, Triple A, and other membership clubs. Even if you may not qualify for travel deals and discounts, you should still see if they exist. Until you look, you never know if you can book a cruise at a discounted price. Cruise ship travel is a fun, exciting, and rewarding experience, no matter what your age. All most all cruise ships are safe enough that you can even vacation alone. If you are concerned with your safety while traveling alone, you may want to invite along family or your senior friends. With a large number of discounts, it is quite possible that you can all enjoy a vacation aboard a cruise ship, without having to go broke. PPPPP Word Count 557

When it comes to vacationing aboard a cruise ship, many individuals consider preparation to be the luggage that they plan to bring with them. Packing for your cruise ship vacation is important; however, it is not the only preparation that should occur. Preparation shouldnt wait until the week before your trip. Rather, it should begin as soon as you book your cruise ship reservation. The type of cruise that you will be taking is vital to preparation. A large number of cruise ships travel on international waters. In addition to being on international waters, many dock at international ports. Before begin able to board your ship, you may have to show proper identification. With international cruises, this identification often includes a drivers licenses and a passport. Unfortunately, when it comes to obtaining a passport, there are many individuals who wait until the last minute. Last minute passports can be obtained in the event of an emergency, but most require at least a week or more to process. You will not be automatically granted a passport; instead you are required to apply for one. Almost all individuals that apply for a passport are granted one, but planning ahead is the best option. If error is made on the information you supplied, you will have enough time to fix it before your cruise ship departs. The proper identification is needed to board a cruise ship. Your passport and your drivers license are not the only forms of documentation that you should bring onboard. If you are covered under a health insurance plan, you are encouraged to bring your health insurance cards. In the event you fall ill while on vacation, your insurance cards will allow you to obtain the needed medical attention. In addition to your medical insurance cards, it is advised that you bring along all of your needed medications. You may even want to consider brining along extra medication. Many physicians will write extra prescriptions for their patients that are traveling on a cruise ship. Should your medication become lost or misplaced, the extra prescriptions can be used until you return home. While requesting extra medication from your healthcare provider, you may want to question them on safety precautions aboard a cruise ship. To pay for onboard and port activities, you will need to bring along extra money. Vacationing aboard a cruise ship is similar to vacationing anywhere else in the world. You are encouraged not to carry large sums of cash with you. If you must bring cash along, you are encouraged to divide your money up and place it in safe locations. Almost all cruise ships and popular cruise ship ports accept credit cards, cashiers checks, money orders, or travelers checks. These forms of payments are great alternatives to carrying cash. When traveling aboard a cruise ship, you are urged to give a copy of the cruise ships itinerary to multiple friends and family members. This will make it possible for you to be contacted in the event of an emergency. When registering for a cruise ship, you may also be required to give the contact information of someone that should be contacted in an emergency. Your first thought may be to give the contact information of your spouse, children, or a close friend. When doing so, it is important to make sure that they will be on land and accessible. Once you have made the above mentioned preparations, you can begin focusing on other preparations, such as packing your luggage. When packing, you are urged to keep the climate of your cruise in mind. At the same time, you should be prepared for unexpected weather. Making the proper cruise ship preparations will ensure that your vacation will be a success. PPPPP Word Count 623

When it comes to taking a family vacation, it is often hard to find a vacation destination that targets the whole family. This becomes even more difficult when teenagers are involved. If you and your family are interested in having a relaxing, yet exciting vacation, you are encouraged to consider vacationing aboard a cruise ship. Cruise ships are not what they were in the past. They have evolved in something spectacular. Aboard a cruise ship, you are granted access to a number of services, facilities, and activities. If you are the parent of a teenager, you may be wondering what cruise ship activities will peak their internet. The activities found aboard a cruise ship will all depend on the cruise line and ship in question. Despite the fact that cruise ship activities vary, there are number of common activities that are targeted towards teenagers. Children of all ages, especially teenagers, enjoy swimming and relaxing by the side of a pool. All vacation cruise ships come equipped with a pool. These onboard pools are ideal for teenagers. With a lifeguard on duty, you can feel comfortable allowing your teenager to swim unattended while you enjoy other onboard activities. Most cruise ships have a standard adult size swimming pool, but additional pool styles may be available. A limited number of cruise ships have onboard lap pools or wave pools. Arcade rooms can also be found aboard many cruise ships. Many arcade rooms are targeted towards younger children, but not all are. On a number of cruise ships, you may be able to find numerous arcade games that have a focus on teenagers. These games may include, but are not limited to fighting games, air hockey, and other interactive sports games. Most games found inside a cruise ship arcade require coins or tokens. If you plan on leaving your teenager unattended, be sure that they have enough money to play the games of their choice. In addition to a swimming pool and an arcade room, most popular cruise lines have an onboard movie theater. At any given point throughout the day, a popular movie could be playing. Most of the movies shown onboard a cruise ship are designed for adults and teenagers. If you do not have a restriction on the types of movies that your teenager can watch, they can have fun watching a movie in state-of-the-art movie theatres. Arcade rooms, movie theatres, and swimming pools are facilities found on most cruise lines. Additional teen activities may be found aboard particular ships. These activities may include surfing, rock climbing, or ice skating. To determine whether these additional activities can be found aboard a cruise ship, you are encouraged to examine the cruise ships layout. All facilities and onboard activities should be explained in a diagram or in a printed explanation. One of the few cruise lines that currently offers onboard ice skating is Royal Caribbean International. Royal Caribbeans ship, Adventure of the Seas, has one of the most well-known onboard ice skating rinks. In addition to enjoying open skating, ice skating shows are offered on a regular basis. These shows can come in the form of a competition or an ice capades show that is geared towards the whole family. The popularity of rock climbing walls has increased overtime. Onboard rock climbing walls are fun for teenagers. Similar activities are often explored in high school gym classes. For a small fee, your teenager could spend the day climbing high in the air. In addition to the excitement of climbing itself, extra excitement and thrills are added when you realize exactly how high you are above the sea. A recent development in cruise ship activities has caused excitement among many teenager travelers. This activity is known as onboard surfing. Royal Caribbean recently developed the Flowrider, aboard their cruise ship, Freedom of the Seas. The Flowrider, simulates surfing waves in a safe and fun environment. This onboard activity is something that many teenagers would enjoy doing, time and time again. The foresaid activities are just a few of the many that target teenagers. If you want to take a cruise, but are worried that your child will be bored, do not worry. It is easy to see that most cruise ships have a large number of fun and exciting activities that are geared towards teenagers, just like your own. PPPPP Word Count 725