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Are you a hardworking college student? If so, are you looking forward to spring break? Spring break is an extended break that all college students in the United States are granted. Unlike holiday breaks, spring break is often a time to vacation, let loose, and have fun with your friends.

Selecting a bring break destination is a fairly easy process. There are a large number of college students who flock to the most popular spring break destinations. These destinations include Cancun, South Beach, the Bahamas, or Panama City. Each of these destinations is famous for their sunny weather and amazing nightlife. Despite their popularity, these beaches often become overcrowded during spring break. If you are interested in swaying away from the norm, you may want to consider spending your spring break on a cruise.

When it comes to a cruise, many individuals mistakenly believe they are only for family vacations or romantic getaways. The truth is that you can take a cruise at just about any point in your life and go just about anywhere you want. That includes spring break. If you are interested in spending your break partying and enjoying life, you do not have to worry. There are a number of cruise lines that have a cruise just for you.

To find a cruise that allows adventure, partying, and all-around fun, you will need to do a little bit of research. This research involves familiarizing yourself with popular cruise lines and the ships they offer. If you are looking to examine popular cruise lines, you are encouraged to learn more about Celebrity Cruises, Carnival Cruise Lines, Royal Caribbean, or Costa Cruises. In addition to these well-know cruise lines, it is likely that you will come across additional cruise lines offering fun-filled cruises, all around the world.

When you are searching for a cruise that offers excitement and adventure, you are encouraged to stay away from ships that target families. Family cruises are often limited on the amount of gambling or alcohol assumption that goes on. If gambling and alcohol consumption is allowed, excess amounts are often frowned upon. To avoid confrontation, you are encouraged to stay away from these family cruise lines. That is unless you plan on spending your spring break with your family.

In addition to family cruises, you may want to avoid cruises that target couples. These romantic cruises are often geared towards couples that are interested in experiencing a romantic and relaxing cruise. If you are traveling with your partner, a romantic cruise may be acceptable for your needs. Gambling and alcohol consumption is allowed aboard most romantic cruises, but excessive amounts are also often frowned upon.

To find the perfect cruise for your summer vacation, you are encouraged to find a cruise ship that targets those seeking adventures. In addition to offering exciting onboard activities, you are likely to find that the land adventures are just as fun. Many party cruises or adventure cruises dock in well-known ports. These ports may have activities that are just what you are looking for.

Spending your vacation on a cruise is the perfect way to enjoy your break. This unique vacation experience will often eliminate overcrowded beaches and unsafe adventures. On a cruise ship you can safely enjoy your break, while having fun at the same time.

When considering vacationing aboard a cruise ship, there are many individuals who are unaware of what to expect. Individuals that have never been on a cruise ship before are likely to be a little bit confused when it comes to cruise ship destinations and ports of calls. If you are interested in taking a cruise, it is advised that you familiarize yourself with cruise ship destinations and ports of calls.

A port of call is a termed that is used by many cruise lines. It is used to describe stops that a cruise ship will make along the way. If you are interested in booking a vacation aboard a ship that makes multiple port stops, you will want to consider the ports available. Vacationing on a cruise ship is enough to make any vacation perfect, but selecting the right ports of calls will make your vacation even more enjoyable.

When examining the cruise ships offered by multiple cruise lines, you should automatically be provided with cruise ship stops. This information will likely tell you where and when the cruise ship will stop. Information may be available as to how long the cruise ship plans on staying at a particular port. If the stop is long enough, you may be able to view local attractions.

All around the world, there are a number of ports that cruise ships regularly stop at. Many of the most popular ports are found in the Caribbean. If you are searching for a tropical cruise, you may want to consider the climate of each port before making your reservation. Popular ports include, but are not limited to, San Juan, Puerto Rico, and St. Thomas.

Caribbean cruises are often viewed as the most popular types of cruises, but they are not the only ones that are available. Vacation cruises are popular all around the world, including in Europe, Canada, and the Northern United States. The ports of call on these cruises may be not be considered tropical, but they still offer many fun and exciting attractions for cruise ship travelers.

In addition to ports of call, you will also see information on a cruise ship’s final destination. When selecting a cruise ship, the final destination is extremely important. This is because most, but not all cruise ships return to their originally place of departure. For prevent unnecessary travel, it is advised that you search for a cruise ship that returns to its original port of departure.

As previously mentioned, cruises ship vacations are popular all around the world. When selecting a cruise ship to vacation on, you are encouraged to keep this in mind. In addition to the ports of call and onboard activities, you should consider selecting a cruise ship based on its location of departure. If you are interested in vacationing on a cruise, but while on a budget, you may want to select a port of departure that is located close to your home. Doing so will likely prevent unnecessary travel expenses.

Cruise ships depart from ports all around the world. Popular departure locations in the Untied States include, but are not limited to, Texas, New Jersey, Louisiana, Hawaii, and Florida. Overseas cruise ships often depart from England, Italy, Germany, Spain, Norway, and Portugal. Additional departure ports may be available; however, it will all depend on the cruise ship in question.

With all of the available cruise ship destinations and ports of call, selecting a cruise ship to vacation on may seem overwhelming. Despite this overwhelming feeling, you are still encouraged to research all of your available options. Taking the time to research popular cruise ship destinations and ports of call is the best way to make the most out of your cruise ship voyage.

With large workloads, hectic schedules, and children, many couples need a break from their daily routines. This break often comes in the form of a romantic getaway. If you and your partner are searching your next romantic adventure, you may want to examine the possibility of taking a cruise.

When it comes to romantic getaways, there are many who don’t even consider a cruise ship as an option. However, there are others who literally live for cruises. These couples are likely to take two or more cruises each year. Whether you’ve been on a cruise ship before or not, it is possible for you and your partner to have a romantic cruise ship getaway.

Before booking a cruise ship getaway, you are encouraged to consider a number of factors. These factors are important when planning a romantic getaway aboard a cruise ship. There are a number of different cruises ships and cruises lines. You may be unable to enjoy a romantic vacation if you are on a cruise ship that is overrun with children.

If you are interested in having an intimate, relaxing, and romantic cruise, you are encouraged to search for a cruise ship that has an age limit for its passengers. These cruise ships often restrict children from coming aboard. Many times, cruise ships with a passenger age limit target their voyages specifically to couples looking for romance.

While it is possible to find a cruise ship with an age limit for their passengers, you may find it a bit difficult. If you are unable to find one, inquire as to where couples with children will be placed. A number of popular cruise ships work to keep families and individual couples separated. If this policy is in place, a cruise line is likely to state the policy on their website. The same information can be obtained by directly contacting a cruise ship representative.

The size of the cruise ship you are interested in vacationing on is also likely to determine the level of intimacy onboard. If it is intimacy that you want, a smaller cruise ship may be your best bet. Larger cruises ships have more passages and more passengers often make it difficult to have onboard, private moments. A number of romantic cruise lines target their smaller cruise ships to couples looking to vacation alone.

In addition to the size of the ship, the ships style and decor may determine whether or not you can experience romance onboard. As previously mentioned, there are a number of cruise lines that target couples looking to vacation alone. Part of that targeting may include creating a romantic environment. On romance themed cruise ships, you may find romantic cabins, room service, and other similar services.

Vacationing aboard a cruise ship is a great way for you and your partner to spend quality time together. When selecting a cruise ship to vacation on, the intimacy off the ship is just as important as on the ship. Almost all extended cruise ships dock in a port. These ports are often located in another country, but not always. To make the most out of your vacation destination, you will want to consider a cruise line that offers stops in romantic ports. These ports may include, but are not limited to the Bahamas, Hawaii, or the Caribbean.

The Bahamas, Hawaii, and the Caribbean all have a number of cruise ship ports. Additional ports can be found in the Untied States and overseas. What many passengers enjoy about these particular ports is their climate. The climate and the overall weather could have an impact on the romance aboard your ship. Tropical weather tends to add to the romance in the air.

Cruises ships are often viewed as large, oversized vessels. In addition to traditional cruise ships, it is possible for you to take a local cruise. If you are looking for a romantic getaway, but you fear the cost of an expensive cruise, you are encouraged to look into local cruises offered near your home. These cruises often involve dinner, dancing, and sometimes an overnight stay. They most often occur on a large river or a lake.

Now that you know what to look for when booking reservations for a romantic getaway aboard a cruise ship, you can start making preparations. With a small amount of time and research, you could be sailing the seas in luxury, with the one that you love.

By Sarah Nassauer
March 7, 2010

How do you keep more than 6,300 people fed, housed and having the time of their life while floating in the middle of the ocean?

The Oasis of the Seas — the world’s largest cruise ship — aims to accomplish that feat nearly every week. Almost five times as large as the Titanic, it has a population during its seven-day Caribbean sailings that is larger than many American small towns — more than 8,600 when it is fully booked and including staff. The Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. ship, which first set sail last December, is almost as long as five Airbus A380 airplanes, or about four football fields. It has 24 restaurants and its own leafy “Central Park.” During the weeklong sailings, about 700 tons of new supplies are needed, all loaded aboard each Saturday. Guests consume about 20 gallons of maraschino cherries and 80,000 bottles of beer.

Traveler demand for cruises is up this year, and cruise lines are raising prices. That is a big turnaround from last year when the recession hit the industry hard.

Over the past decade, cruise ships have been supersized as operators have tried to cram in ever more lavish features and activities. The Oasis, for example, has two rock climbing walls, a zip line that allows guests to fly through the air, and surf machines so passengers can hang 10 without leaving the boat. Royal Caribbean also has three other ships that can each hold more than 4,000 passengers. “Going to the larger ships just allowed us to offer so many more activities, ” says Richard Fain, the company’s chairman and chief executive. “We thought people would like it and if they liked it they would pay more…and at the same time, it would offer economies of scale,” he says. A one-week Oasis trip in the Caribbean this year costs about $1,458 for an inside cabin and $3,200 for a two story “loft suite” facing the ocean.

The big ship is controversial. Competitor Carnival Corp. is pushing a fleet of relatively smaller ships — its largest max out at about 4,000 — which it says offer a better experience for passengers and ease reaching ports. “I kind of look at her [the Oasis] like the Mall of America. It will also attract millions of people, but it’s not what we do,” says Micky Arison, Carnival chairman and chief executive. “It’s kind of like a train wreck you want to go see.”

Arthur Frommer, founder of Frommer’s Travel Guides, says the Oasis represents “a dumbing down of the travel experience” because it stops only in a handful of ports. The ship is too big to dock in some popular spots such as Venice and Bermuda.

Royal Caribbean says tickets for the Oasis are selling well, and most of its loft suites are reserved for the next two years. “It was amazing,” said Lynn Scott, a 59-year-old sale and marketing specialist from Kingwood, Tex. after a recent cruise. “It was relaxing, it was entertaining, the food was great,” said the first time cruiser who sailed with a group of 30 friends. “We are trying to figure when we can go back.”

Ensuring a floating city the size of the Oasis operates smoothly is challenging. Cleaning the ship, doing laundry, and fixing things are a 24-hour job for crew members. One of the popular acts, an outdoor Aqua Show with divers, gymnasts and synchronized swimmers, gets canceled about once a week because of rough seas. And the task of cleaning salt water off window exteriors is never done.

Dozens of people and 18 robots wash windows each day. “It’s like painting the Golden Gate Bridge. Once you’re finished, you start again,” says Chris van Raalten, ship manager for marine operations, the group of employees that steer the ship and maintain the ship’s exterior and mechanics like the engine. Robots take care of hard to reach places and metal baskets move crew along the upper decks where there are no balconies to support them. Scheduling the cleaning can be tough. The washing can’t be done in every port because of environmental regulations, so it often happens while sailing, Mr. van Raalten says.

In the ship’s belly, the laundry room hums 24-hours a day: 34 crew members, mostly men from Indonesia, wash more than 20,000 pieces of linen such as towels, table cloths, and sheets daily. Table clothes, sheets and napkins are then fed into giant machines that press them. Clothes and towels are all folded or ironed by hand.

There is always something that needs to be fixed. Recently, an engine exhaust temperature problem caused soot to rain down on parts of the ship where guests lounge by pools and sit on their rooms’ balconies. After weeks of study, crew members installed insulation in the upper part of the smokestacks to fix the problem last week, Mr. van Raalten says .

The ship has three doctors on board. It also has its own intensive care unit and can keep one person at a time on life support. Every few weeks a passenger has a heart attack so thrombolytic drugs are kept on-hand, says Chris Taylor, the ship’s senior doctor.

If there’s a serious illness, the ship’s doctors and captain can decide to divert to a port early, but rarely is anyone airlifted back to the U.S., says Dr. Taylor, who has been a doctor on cruise ships for seven years. "Many people have the belief that the U.S. coast guard is always going to come to the rescue if there is any emergency at sea. The actual truth of the matter is that most of the time the ship is well out of range of the coast guard," he says.

The ship’s doctors spend most of their time treating run-of-the-mill health issues such as sore throats, back aches, and sinusitis. During every seven-day sailing, the Oasis medical staff dispenses about 2,000 to 3,000 meclizine, a drug that treats sea sickness.

About 200 crew members are dedicated to entertaining passengers. They include performers, child activity planners, and lighting and sound experts. Passengers can see a production of the musical "Hairspray", the Aqua Show and an ice-skating performance.

Feeding more than 8,000 people takes 26 kitchens — and some complicated logistics. Every Saturday morning, before the sun comes up and while passengers are still asleep, the ship docks in its home port, Port Everglades, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

One recent Saturday, by 6 a.m. semi-trucks had arrived. They would eventually unload about 750 pallets of food, flowers and other supplies. Longshoremen hopped into forklifts and started moving the pallets, buzzing around the ship’s giant hull as the sun rose.

By 7:30 am, the ship’s inventory manager and staff were reviewing the pallets, searching for any rotten fruit and vegetables, and moving the pallets with smaller forklifts into the ship’s food storage areas, each set to a specific temperature. Red wine goes into a warmer room than white wine, beer and champagne, for example. More Corona beer is loaded than any other alcoholic drink, followed by Budweiser and Bud Light. More beef of various types is loaded than any other food.

Supplies fluctuate. When a lot of Germans are on board, extra pork is ordered, says Frank Weber, vice president of food and beverage for Royal Caribbean International. Americans tend to favor chicken and beef. In the summer, if a lot of families are sailing, more ingredients for Caesar salad are needed.

To prevent disease, food storage, food preparation and actual cooking are all done in separate areas. "In our world we cannot afford to have a food-borne illness outbreak," Mr. Weber says.

By 5 p.m. on Saturday, after loading all the necessary supplies and its next group of travelers, the Oasis is usually pulling out of the Port Everglades port and heading for the Caribbean. Even though the ship is very big (with a gross tonnage of 225,282), it is highly maneuverable thanks to the three Azipods — giant propellers that can rotate 360 degrees — under its belly, says Captain Thore Thorolvsen.

The majority of the time the ship is on autopilot, he says, except when the ship is pulling in and out of a port. Then, it will sometimes be steered by hand. “That’s when there are really some tense moments here on the bridge,” said Capt. Thorolvsen, standing in front of a bank of electronic mapping and steering devices in the ship’s central command area.

“She is big, she is wide and she is very very heavy,” he said.