My first cruise vacation was actually my honeymoon. I will never forget that warm sultry evening as my wife and I stood on the deck watching Miami slowly disappear behind us on our voyage across the Caribbean. Special memories and from that moment on, my wife and I were hooked on cruise vacations. Along the way, we have picked up a lot of tips to help enjoy the cruise even more, here are six of the best.

Think Budget

On our honeymoon we decided to make this the vacation of a lifetime and as such we kind of forgot about budgets and all these monetary. It soon became apparent after the cruise was over that we had probably taken this carefree attitude a bit to far. There are a lot of hidden extras to consider like paying tips to your porter on board and maybe the costs of excursions and shopping on board. Also, the ease at which you can get drinks, cocktails e.t.c. on board may be great at the time, but it can very quickly get out of control. Decide on a budget and stick to it.

Orientate Yourself With the Ship

Modern cruise ships are enormous and are almost like floating towns. Just like when you first visit a town it is difficult to navigate your way around. Here the problem is compounded as you have many levels to explore as well. Take a day to just explore the ship and where it's various facilities are and acquaint yourself with the safety aspects on board the ship.

Ensure You Have All the Documents

When you are going through the planning stage of your cruise make sure that you and all of your family have all the correct documentation. What I mean by that is, make sure you have an up to date passport with at least a year left before it needs renewing. Make sure that for all the places that the cruise stops you have correct visas if needed and also take special note of any inoculations you may need as well.

So long as your cruise is planned properly and you know what you need to do to get the best out of your time on board then you will have a great time. I can't wait for my next cruise.

 The author of this article maintains a blog called Cruise Around the Globe at this address: http://www.cruisearoundtheglobe.com