Do you know your roll from your wake? Just like every other industry on the planet, the cruise business uses a few words and terms that may, at first glance, leave you scratching your head. For first-timers, here’s a quick reference cheat sheet that lists the most important lingo to know before your book your first cruise. We’ll talk about booking and cabin terms as well as crew and ship-specific lingo. Let’s dig in:
BOOKING TERMS
Cabin category: Every cruise ship offers accommodations in different categories, ranging from inside staterooms (no windows) to ocean view (with a porthole or panoramic windows) to balcony/veranda rooms to full-blown, multi-room suites. The higher the cabin category, the more you can expect to pay for those accommodations.
Charter: Any group of individuals—a company, church group, or family members—can charter all or part of a cruise ship. It’s a good idea to ask if there are any partial charters booked on any sailing you’re interested in taking. Sometimes large partial-ship charters book entire restaurants for certain nights of the cruise or can be disruptive to other passengers.
Crossing: If you book a “crossing,” that means your itinerary crosses the Atlantic or Pacific oceans.
Cruise contract: The cruise ticket contract lists the terms and conditions passengers agree to when they book a sailing. It lists all types of things, like what you can expect if your cruise is canceled or what happens if you miss embarkation due to travel delays. This document is filled with legalese but you should try to read through it before booking your voyage since you will be signing away some of your rights as soon as you make a payment.
Cruise fare: The cruise fare outlines how much each person will pay for the voyage and stipulates exactly what is included in that fare.
Deck plan: You can’t easily learn your way around a ship without first reviewing the deck plan. These illustrations show what type of staterooms are located on each deck along with the location of elevators, laundry rooms, restaurants, theaters, and shops.
Double occupancy: Most cruise fares are based on double occupancy. That means two people sharing one cabin.
Guarantee: Also known as “run of ship,” a guarantee is a type of cruise fare. You book a particular cabin category but are not assigned a cabin number. Instead, the cruise ship keeps selling that cabin category. If it sells out, you might be bumped up to a better stateroom category. If you’re not, you’re guaranteed a spot in the category you originally booked.
Itinerary: The itinerary lists the voyage’s schedule day by day, noting both ports of call and sea days.
Port expenses: Wherever you sail, each port of call will levy a charge based on local taxes and fees. That fee is charged to the cruise company, which then in turn charges it back to you. Cruise fares generally don’t include port expenses and other taxes and fees.
