Waiting too long before cruising.

[Speedy2]

We took our first cruise back in October.. what a terrific experience.

One thing that stayed with me though is the realization that one should enjoy things like this before getting too old.

I saw a lot of "3 generation" parties onboard having a wonderful time. But I also saw some people over 80 years old and their physical limitations hampered their enjoyment of the cruise.

Did you know that DCL averages ONE DEATH per cruise? On our 2nd day of the cruise two passengers had already passed away. They unloaded the bodies at Nassau to fly them back home. What a horrible thing for those families.

 

[christinou]

Speedy, are you sure about those statistics, that seems really high, where did you get them from.

 

[dwkwootton]

Don't know the stats on Disney, but I do know some of the "grand" ocean liners like the QE2 actually have a morgue on board the ship for this very reason.

Speedy, your philosophy sounds good to me. I would extend that philosophy to putting household chores second to a good time with family and friends. My house isn't ready to be photographed for Home & Garden Magazine but to me, seeing my kids' shoes, jackets, snack plates, and books all over my living room brings me the joy of knowing they chose to come home for the weekend and that they might be up in time for lunch.

 

[tecdavidt]

All cruise ships are set up to handle deaths. On our Dec. 28th cruise there was a death. The cast member who told us said it was a passenger and it was natural causes. We were lucky to get a tour of the Medical area on the Celebrity ship Galaxy. (We were friends with the family of the ship's doctor.) That was when we learned about the mini morgues on ships. Kathy

 

[SeaSpray]

My mother passed away in October of 2003 at the age of 84. My father has been telling anyone who'll listen how important it is to do things in life while you're still relatively YOUNG. Sadly, some people don't realize things like that until it's too late. He and my mom did take a couple of trips, but not many, and now he wishes he'd spent a lot more time with her, and with us.

Anyway... I feel the same way. I want to experience certain things in life before the years slip away and I find myself unable to do so. Things happen; accidents happen; no one is guaranteed that something drastic won't happen to them tomorrow.

While I agree that taking care of your home, paying your bills, and taking care of the financial needs of your family is extremely important, I also feel that taking family vacations is equally important. I'm not saying you should go into debt for a vacation. There are many, many inexpensive ways to spend time with your family, but we like cruising and that's why my husband and I have a separate savings account specifically for vacations. We look of it as a bill and make "payments" to it each month.

 

[ltviolets]

I am so sorry that I read this. We are cruising with a party of 15. Four generations. I have been so excited Now I'm down...

 

[mmouse37]

Don't be down...death is a fact of life....

I would also like to know where those stats come from....I do know death happens on cruise ships...but 1 per week does seem high on one or two ships.

Most every ship has morgues and coffins available if necessary.

I found this site to be very interesting...lists most the things that happen on a cruise ship...at least the ones reported!!

http://www.cruisejunkie.com/events.html

MJ

 

[ChrizJen]

I agree with previous posters. You have to enjoy life while you have it. And for the poster who said they wish they hadn't read this, don't let it get you down. Be glad that you are taking time out of your busy life to enjoy this time with your extended family.

My grandfather would have loved DCL. He and I shared a love for all things Disney. But sadly, he passed away before I ever had a chance to share a Disney cruise with him. Please just be thankful that you still have the chance to get the generations together. And make every second count. Make memories for yourself and your children! That's what life is all about!

I have friends and co-workers who seem almost resentful that I take vacations like DCL cruises. "How can you afford to do things like that?" "Don't you have more important things to be saving your money for?" "I'd never be able to do anything like that!"

My philosophy is that it's kinda like having children. If you wait until you're "ready" or "financially able" to have children, you probably never will. You just have to do it, and then make it work. (not that taking a cruise is as big a commitment as having a child, but if you wait until you can "afford" it, you may never do it) So you save, and you make a few sacrifices, and you go while you're able to enjoy it! Life's too short! LIVE IT!!!!

 

[ivanova]

....how important it is to do things in life while you're still relatively YOUNG. Sadly, some people don't realize things like that until it's too late.

I have friends and co-workers who seem almost resentful that I take vacations like DCL cruises. "How can you afford to do things like that?" "Don't you have more important things to be saving your money for?" "I'd never be able to do anything like that!"

I agree whole heartedly. My dad is 72. He's in fairly decent health, but due to degenerative back problems he'll never get to do the one thing he's wanted to do since childhood: Carlsbad Caverns (he refuses to use a wheelchair).

I'd rather enjoy life now instead of hoping to start doing so after I retire (at age 65 or 70). I would much rather work all my life, skipping retirement per se, and enjoy life all the time, not just the last few years of it (and not everyone makes it to retirement, fact of life).

 

[jrabbit]

I have friends and co-workers who seem almost resentful that I take vacations like DCL cruises. "How can you afford to do things like that?" "Don't you have more important things to be saving your money for?" "I'd never be able to do anything like that!"

Our friends and neighborhood wonder the same thing. They don't wonder why we don't go out to dinner and shows. Run off to the coast for a weekend on a whim, why we drive cars that are over 7 and 18 years old, why we don't buy $150 in fireworks every 4th of July, why we drive to Disneyland and not fly, etc, etc, etc AND why they can't afford the nice two week vacation like we do (check the short list above ).

They might have more "quickie" fun times, but life is already so scattered and we all live MTV lives (you know scurrying from one "must do" activitiy to another without spending any real quality time with anything). We choose to spend some quality and meaningful time together as a family and that's how we can afford to take a two week (sometimes longer) vacation every year. It's a priority. And its not to say that we don't do any of the shorter family activities. We're just careful with the $$$ so we can do the vacation.

Like someone else said - for us vacation is just another monthly bill that "must be paid each month" -- well it goes into the savings account as a designated fund.

 

[mmouse37]

I took my 84 year old aunt on a Disney Cruise back in 2003 and she absolutely loved it...so glad I able to take her then as she is now in a nursing home and not quite so with it!!! Here she is enjoying her Mickey waffles!!!

http://community.webshots.com/photo/92712226/93387885CVutHB


MJ

 

[DisneyElf]

My sister & I follow the same ideas. Our parents used to say they would travel more -"once the kids are out of the house" - We did take family vacations to Canada & Cape Cod yearly -- but they never did travel. My mother passed away at age 39, my father at age 49.

So... when we have a chance -- we go. In Sept. of 99 we bought a house together and were told by family & friends -- there is the end of your vacations! Needless to say - we didn't stop. We manage to to squeeze in a week at WDW & sometimes a DCL cruise too!

Since I have good friends (also Disneyholics) -- 4 people in a CAT 6 in Sept. for a week of Magic can average $1000 pp (if we are lucky enough to get a deal).

One time my sister turned to me and said - your always saying you have no money -- how can we afford a trip in Sept. for a week at WDW. My response - well it's an extra paycheck month - all my bills are paid -- and I would rather blow the money at WDW - then spending doing other things!

Can't wait for our latest trip coming up in August!

 

[ladytampa]

Mmouse37,

Good for you! Your grandma looks like she's having a great time. What a smile! Go grandma!

 

[Speedy2]

The "average of one death per cruise" was a statement from a crew member. He stated that the two deaths on our cruise were from natural causes.

Please don't take my comments wrong; I think it's great to see multiple-generation groups! I just hope the oldest generation members are healthy enough to enjoy their trip.

I think once you hit your 70's you should abandon the "saving for old age" mentality.

 

[RickW]

Speedy, are you sure about those statistics, that seems really high, where did you get them from.

It's not really that high when you think about it. There are 52 weeks in a year. I don't remember what the average life expectancy is off-hand, but let's say it's 75. This would mean that the average person lives 3900 weeks. So, if you had a group of 3900 people, and their ages were evenly distributed, you would expect that on average one person would die a week. At any given time, DCL probably has about 5000-7000 passengers & crew aboard one of their ships (including both the Magic and the Wonder). So, if the age distribution was even, you would expect 1-2 deaths per week on DCL. Now that is a bit lower than 1 per cruise (which would be 3 per week), but I would venture that DCL's age distrubution would tend to be clumped around kids, "parent aged" adults, and "grandparent aged" adults, so 3 a week may not be unreasonable.

It's the same way with birthdays, on average, with about 2600 passengers a week on the Magic, you would expect there to be at least 50 people on board each week celebrating a birthday. Of course, people would tend to be a bit more likely to cruise around birthdays to celebrate, so it would be even higher.