Think Cruises Aren’t For You? Let Me Change Your Mind

Cruise vacations can be very controversial. Typically there are two types of people. Those who LOVE cruises and will go on dozens in their lifetime. And then there are those who HATE the thought of feeling "trapped" on a ship and refuse to even try. There is usually no in between. Now, I'm not going to try to convince anyone either way. However, the goal of this post is to debunk any negative thoughts and feelings about a cruise vacation. Because I can honestly say, I would cruise for my vacations for the rest of my life if I could.

So I traveled on board the Celebrity Ascent. Celebrity's parent company is Royal Caribbean. The Ascent is one of their newest ships which just started sailing in the past six months. I actually traveled on its sister ship, the Beyond, last year for my cruise back in March. The Ascent is built almost identically with the same dining options and ship layout. There are 17 decks and staterooms ranging from inside cabins to Aqua Class staterooms with 243 square feet of space and infinite veranda balconies.

The entertainment is top notch. From cirque du soleil style shows, to live bands, to Broadway style and quality shows inside the massive theater, the Ascent has everything. There are multiple shows and activities daily so you can literally NEVER be bored. Our cruise director Luigi and activities director Chelsea kept us informed each day via their daily video that would air in our staterooms.

The food was SPECTACULAR. You can find anything you want to eat at virtually any time of day. They have buffets, main dining rooms and grab and go offerings. They also offer "upscale dining" experiences where you can pay a little extra for five star dining.

On a cruise ship, you feel like you're in a small town, not on a ship. Those of you who are concerned about feeling trapped have nothing to worry about. As far as ship movement, cruise lines will typically route the ship where the waters aren't as rough. This makes for a fun, smooth ride. Now, northern Atlantic cruises from Boston or New Jersey to Bermuda or the Bahamas can typically be a little rougher. But cruise ships are designed to allow for the smoothest ride possible.

Celebrity Ascent docked next to the biggest cruise ship in the world. The Icon of the Seas is Royal Caribbean's newest and biggest ship. It's the biggest cruise ship in the world.

Melissa dining at Fine Cut. This was the last night of the cruise. Fine Cut is the steakhouse specialty dining restaurant. The sun was setting in the backround and was stunning.

Every morning of the cruise, I'd get room service. I'd sit on my balcony with my coffee and watch the sun rise. This room was perfect for me.

Second to last night of the cruise, we ate at one of the main dining restaurants, Normandie. We had one of the best seats in the house. The sunset is just breathtaking.

This is Melissa's infinte veranda room. Only half of it can be seen here. The balcony window comes down. I ate room service every morning while looking out at the ocean.

There were several water sports at 7 mile beach Grand Cayman. Melissa is taking a tube ride. It was only $20 for 10 minutes and SO FUN.

Melissa enjoying her time at 7 Mile Beach. The suit is from Fashion Nova. Yes I was wearing sunscreen but I am fair skinned and burn easily. The water was amazing!

7 mile beach at Grand Cayman. This beach has had many areas wiped out due to bad storms recently. This was one of the areas that was still open. The water is crystal blue.

This Cesar at Fine Cut was delicious. It had the perfect taste and the crouton was amazing. It was one of my favorite salads on the cruise.

Martini Bar on Celebrity Ascent. The bartenders would put on shows daily. They had dozens of specialty martinis. All were delicious.

Take it from me, try the Pickle Martini. It sounds nasty, but it's SO GOOD. If you love pickles, you'll LOVE it.

The Bahamas was fun. We went to the casino resort Baha Mar. We had to take a picture of the Dunkin' on the island. There were Burger Kings and McDonalds as well.

This is one of several desserts on the ship. Carrot cake. It melted in my mouth. Very delicious.

The sun rising over the water. This was outside my cabin. I had room service every morning to this view. It was breathtaking.

The roof deck of the ship. This was the dance class they had every morning at 11. Luigi the cruise director was amazing. Melissa was right in the front row.

Melissa and cruise director Luigi. He was in charge of all of the events on the ship. Most people say he looks like Usher. Do you agree?

Another delicious meal from one of the specialty restaurants. This was the pork chop. It melted in my mouth. Portions are enormous.

One of the shows on board. This was at Eden, one of the restaurants. The entertainment on board was top notch. There was something for everyone.

One of the shows on board. This was at Eden, one of the restaurants. The entertainment on board was top notch. There was something for everyone.

This was a cirque du soleil style show. The dancers showed off amazing athleticism. It was so entertaining. Each show is about 45 minutes long.

Every morning of the cruise, I'd get room service. I'd sit on my balcony with my coffee and watch the sun rise. This room was perfect for me.

This was an apple and brie appetizer at one of the main dining rooms. I wasn't a fan of this appetizer but the presentation was amazing. The good thing is, you can order as many different items as you want.

Shine the Night was a party on board where everyone was encouraged to wear something shiny. A DJ played, there was dancing and we all got glow sticks. It was a fun party held at 11pm at night.

This was the roof deck at night. there were many people dancing to a DJ. It was beautiful to dance under the stars. So much fun!

If you're a fan of cocktails, you must try their drinks. This was a gin botanicals cocktail but they had several different kinds. I'm a martini girl so I drank several.

So much to do in Cozumel. It wasn't my favorite port of the cruise, but it was fun! We ate at Three Amigos where they were handing out shots left and right.