I was 21, just married and had never been on an actual vacation before. I knew so little about travel, that I didn’t even know I needed a passport.

I had no clue.

I literally got my passport less than 48 hours before we left for our honeymoon.

We cruised the Caribbean for 7 days on Princess Cruise Lines. It was heavenly. From that moment I was sold on cruises.

Until.

We went to an all-inclusive resort.

I’ve been to 2 resorts and have cruised 7 times. I’m still deciding whether it’s better to cruise or go to a resort. Here are some of my thoughts on cruises and resorts.

Cruises

Internet
Internet hasn’t always been available on cruises. You can now get internet packages on cruises, but they do cost some dollars. I personally like being disconnected from the stresses, but I usually find a café with internet when we get to each port.

Food
There is always an amazing array of food when you cruise. There are always plenty of options and you will never go hungry! My favourite cruise line is Norwegian and it’s partly because of the food.

Excursions
With cruises, you are at different ports throughout your vacation. This gives you opportunity to book the best excursions at the best places. Brian & I like to live life on the edge, so there are some ports that we find locals to bring us on excursions. When we went on our honeymoon, we chartered our own boat (with some locals), went snorkeling and deep-sea fishing for the day for a fraction of the cruise price.

Entertainment
Cruise lines put a great emphasis on entertainment. They have jazz clubs, comedy clubs, nightly shows, movies, games, bingo, etc. There is always something happening somewhere on the ship.

Swimming
I’m not going to lie. I don’t love swimming on cruises. The pools are usually packed and it’s hard to find a chair near the pool. Except the water slides – waiting in line is worth it. There’s also options such as The Haven. They have their own pools, sun decks, etc.
Maybe one day I’ll splurge for the sake of a review. You know, for you.

Spa
The spa is usually my downfall on a cruise. I was introduced to the spa on the cruise we took from New York in the winter. Not only was it freezing most of the time, but I also tore my meniscus right before we boarded the cruise. My hubby offered to get me the spa package to make me feel better. Little did he know that it would be my new expectation for every cruise.
There are only a certain amount of thermal spa packages available. The thermal spa usually includes a variety of whirlpools, heated ceramic loungers, salt rooms, saunas, steam rooms, ice fountains, etc.

Gym
The gym is almost always packed out the first day or two on a cruise – and it’s usually the treadmills. The area with the weights and benches usually only attract the hard-core gym-goers. One cruise, this intoxicated peanut of a man tried to take some weights from another bodybuilder.
Bold move.
I was sure I was going to witness some sort of crime. Just as Mr. Bodybuilder was about to pummel the kid, a sweet, little lady walked between them and softly, but sternly told them to grow up. I kid you not, it was as if it was straight out of a movie!

 

Resorts

Internet
At a resort, you can choose how (dis)connected you want to be. Some resorts have free wi-fi in the lobby for an hour, some have free wi-fi throughout the resort. The thing I love about this is that I can still talk to my kids when I’m away.

Food
I haven’t been to a lot of resorts, but my experience so far hasn’t been amazing. At the resorts I have been to, I usually only eat to live, not live to eat. The last resort that I was at I found a sandwich and fries from the sports bar that was decent. I literally ate that every day for the whole trip. Food is not my favourite part of resorts.

Excursions
Resorts do offer excursions. I haven’t taken one yet, because I’m not entirely confident in them. Plus, there’s only so many excursions you can do when you’re stationed in one place the whole week.

Entertainment
I have split reviews on resort entertainment. Poolside entertainment looked fun, but didn’t pull at my attention. As for the nightly entertainment, it really depends on the resort. One resort had a show one night, but the rest of the week everything closed and everyone went to their rooms by 8pm. Another resort we went to had breathtaking shows every night and they even transformed the courtyard into a local market one night. Amazing.

Swimming
See that line where the sky meets the sea, it calls me. When we went to Puerto Vallarta, you could find us boogie boarding in the ocean non-stop. It wasn’t until the day we were leaving when we found out that the red flag had been up the whole week and the beach had technically been closed. Oops. But the waves were amazing! Although the ocean did steal my favourite pair of Fendi sunglasses. Just be sure to check the resort beach ahead of time as some beaches supersede others.
Now for the poolside. We went into the pool once. We were together. Then Matt came. Who is Matt? I don’t know, but he was single and available. Me? I was taken and happily married (while pointing to Brian). We tend to skip the poolside now at resorts.

Spa
When I’m at a resort, I won’t use the spa unless the weather is horrible. The last resort we went to we booked the thermal spa for 2 days because it rained for 5 out of the 7 days of our vacation. It did not even compare to the thermal suite on a cruise.

Gym
Ok, I’m split on this too. I’m guessing that each resort has different gym qualities. One had only 3 machines in it, one was a full gym. It’s never going to be my home gym, but it’s enough to get by.

In conclusion, I like both. I can’t decide which is better. Maybe you can help me. What do you like better – resorts or cruises? Comment below.