When it comes to planning an event aboard ship, it’s quite different from land-based
programs. Here’s a “heads up” on a few of the key things to know:

What’s Included

The cost of a cruise program includes many more meals, services, entertainment, activities and choices than a land-based program.

Click here to see a comparison chart of how cruises and resorts differ.

How Meetings Differ

24 Hour Hold

With a cruise, there’s no such thing as a “24-hour hold on the ballroom” for your meeting because, instead of various behind-the-scenes function rooms, cruise ships offer a variety of dramatically decorated public rooms which passengers use almost around the clock. These public rooms can be reserved on selected days at specific times for private functions — pre-planning with the cruise line is the key to success.

Arrival/Departure Patterns

When one cruise ends, another begins the same day. Turn-around time for ships in port is often only 8 hours or less, so meeting planners usually can access their ship only a couple of hours ahead of their attendees instead of a couple of days as with a resort. In fact, everyone generally embarks within a 4-hour window of time. This means you really have to be ready to hit the ground running….

Read more about how cruises and meetings differ