Captain Sophie — Yes, the bridge has the best views in the house.

I've traveled to around 50 countries, but had never set foot on a cruise ship before — until now.
Despite being a seasoned traveler, a lot about cruise ship life surprised me.
I was shocked to feel the rocking of the waves as much as I did, didn't realize there was such a thing as "ship time," was surprised to find that formal nights are still a thing, and was blown away by the quality of the entertainment.
I was also taken aback by the cost of WiFi, the fact that bottled water was extra, and by the daily gratuity fee added to my bill.
Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

I spent three months living in a tent while driving across Australia, have attempted (with mediocre success) to surf the longest wave in the world in Peru, have biked across Italy, and have skied mountains from the Rockies to the Alps. I've been on planes, trains, buses, and automobiles, but have never once set foot on a cruise ship.

Until now.

In the name of journalism, I spent a week cruising in the Caribbean. And I wasn't on just any cruise ship, I was on the world's largest cruise ship: Royal Caribbean's Symphony of the Seas.

As a seasoned traveler but cruising newbie, a lot surprised me during this week.

Keep scrolling for the things every first-time cruiser should know, but keep in mind that these may have been unique to my cruise ship and personal experience.

You can actually feel the ship rocking.

Despite the enormity of the ship, you could feel the ocean's movements.

For some reason, I was not expecting to feel the ship's movements as much as I did. I assumed that a ship of that size (the world's largest!) would feel stable despite the ocean's waves, but boy was I wrong.

I felt it the most at night when lying in my bed, though the rocking put me right to sleep.

Tip: While Dramamine is sold on the ship, you can get it for free at guest services.

There's something called "ship time."

I messed up despite this helpful note on my bed the night before we docked at St. Maarten.

Turns out, ship time can be different from "time time."

Since traveling across time zones can be tricky, cruise ships tend to stick to the time zone of their port of departure (Miami in my case). I learned this the hard way when I arrived to a 9 a.m. rendezvous at 8 a.m., as my phone and Fitbit watch had both automatically switched to Atlantic Standard Time when we approached St. Maarten, which is an hour off Miami's Eastern Standard Time.

Tip: Bring an analog watch. While you can turn off your phone's automatic time zone updates, it still gets confusing.

The safety screening in the beginning is just a movie.

The safety drill took no more than 15 minutes.

Maybe I have an outdated idea of cruising, but I sort of expected to stand around outside and go through the actual physical process of what to do and where to go in an emergency.

Instead, we were simply ushered into the ship's theater to watch an (admittedly Hollywood-level) short film on the ship's dos and don'ts.

Water stations are few and far between.

You had to use the cups to pour water into your bottle.

As someone who usually hydrates intensely, the water situation on board made me deeply uncomfortable. Water stations were surprisingly few and far between, and health regulations dictated that guests can't fill their water bottles at them (once a bottle has touched a person's lips, it's no longer sterile enough to be refilled from a communal spout).

Furthermore, bottled water was not included in your standard package, nor was it included in the soda package that cost extra.

Tip: A very thirsty night already settled into my room had me Googling whether the ship's tap water is OK to drink: it is, and I drank lots of it.

But hand sanitizer stations and sinks are everywhere.

Frequent handwashing helps prevent the spread of infectious diseases.

You'd run into hand sanitizer stations every few feet on the ship (as well as on CocoCay), as well as free-standing sinks. Sinks were also at the entrance of every buffet.

Since hand hygiene is widely considered the best way to stop the spread of infectious diseases, this makes sense.

There's a Starbucks on the Symphony of the Seas.

The menu is a slightly abridged version of that of a regular Starbucks.

I don't know why seeing a Starbucks had me so shook, but it did.

Despite the world's largest cruise ship having an ice skating rink, a zip line, rock climbing walls, and 23 places to eat, seeing the familiar Starbucks logo in the middle of the ocean surprised me the most.

That said, it didn't stop me from occasionally forgoing the ship's free coffee for a cold brew.

There's no regular cell-phone coverage.

If you don't turn off roaming you'll be charged an exorbitant amount for "Cellular at SEA" coverage in international waters. My friend was charged $100 for a few hours.

Of course, you're in the middle of the ocean, so this makes sense, but as a tech-addicted millennial usually glued to her smartphone it was still a shock to the system to have 0 bars.

Tip: While the WiFi works well, you have to pay for it. Bringing walkie talkies could save you some cash (though may garner you some looks).

You not only have to pay for WiFi, but you also have to pay for it per device.

I kept having to switch between my laptop and my phone being connected to the internet.

Paying for internet access seems incredibly antiquated to me, but I suppose we are on a ship in the middle of the ocean. What truly floored me, however, was the fact that when you purchase WiFi you are purchasing it per device.

Tip: Buying it for just one device doesn't mean it can only be used on that device. It just means that it can only be used on one device at a time, meaning that I could switch between having WiFi on my phone and on my laptop. Save your money and just buy it for one device.

The size of the ship was enormous.

The Symphony of the Seas is 1,188 feet long and 215.5 feet wide.

I know, I know, it's not called the world's largest cruise ship for nothing. But its sheer size still shocked me, and according to my Fitbit I regularly walked ~17,000 steps a day. To me, it truly felt like a floating mall.

The quality of the performances was amazing.

"Flight" is a Royal Caribbean original production.

Aside from the fact that Hall & Oates performed on the last evening of our cruise (I know, what?), the performances I went to — "Hiro" and "Flight — were truly Broadway caliber. I was blown away by the performers' talent, as well as the incredibly intricate set designs.

There's duty-free shopping on board, but it's only available when in international waters.

There were a lot of watch and jewelry stores on board my ship.

There are a ton of duty-free shops onboard as well as in ports peddling the usual watches, jewelry, alcohol, cigarettes, etc., much like at an airport. Duty-free means that you can buy items without paying the local VAT (value added tax), basically, it allows you to circumvent paying local taxes.

What surprised me even more, however, was that the stores are only allowed to open their doors when the ship is in international waters: shops must remain closed when the ship is in territorial waters, aka close to ports.

The diversity of the crew.

There were around 65 different nationalities represented by the crew aboard Symphony of the Seas.

As an international school kid, I felt right at home among the ~65 different nationalities represented by the crew alone.

The diversity of the passengers, for that matter.

There was a very international crowd aboard my cruise.

As a Caribbean cruise that started in Miami, Florida, I expected most passengers to be American, and was surprised by the medley of languages I was hearing.

Seeing familiar faces pop up in different jobs.

Crew members sometimes work different jobs during the same cruise.

Turns out that many crew members work multiple jobs on the ship: one waiter I had at the Wonderland restaurant one night popped up at El Loco Fresh at lunch the next day and handed me a funnel cake at one of the eateries on Perfect Day at CocoCay the day after that.

Because not all restaurants are open all day long, he said that he has three or four different roles on an average cruise.

Formal night is still a thing.

According to a Royal Caribbean representative I spoke to, when they were thinking about abolishing formal night, cruisers rebelled.

I was astounded to find that formal night still existed — that felt very cruise ship of yore to me. In fact, for an average seven-day cruise, there are two formal nights.

The outfits ranged quite a bit: I saw short-sleeved collared shirts and summer dresses, but also Oscars-worthy gold gowns, tuxes, and even bedazzled kilts. People were loving it, and taking prom-like photos at the various professional photography studios that were set up around the ship.

There are a ton of professional photographers onboard.

Formal night on the ship felt a little bit like prom, as dressed up couples and families were taking professional pictures all over the place.

Professional setups with green screens and various backgrounds dotted the ship, and at dinner, ports, or any other event it was hard to avoid the avid photographers trying to get a picture of you (which you'd have to pay $14.99 for if you wanted it).

Turns out you can even hire a photographer for $85 an hour.

People truly fangirl over the captain and his officers.

There was a very long line for photos with the captain.

When the captain stepped out to take photos with passengers on formal night, the line got long. And an officer I walked around with couldn't go two steps without being chatted up or asked for a photo by guests.

You can spend a lot of money if you don't watch out.

Activities like zip lining on CocoCay cost extra.

While your standard cruise ship package includes your room, most activities on board, and plenty of restaurants, I was astounded by the many things that weren't included, and how quickly those costs could add up.

Of course, alcohol and spa services aren't included, but neither is bottled water or soda, and there are 14 specialty restaurants on the Symphony of the Seas that cost extra. Most activities on CocoCay, from access to the waterpark to the zip line and even snorkeling gear, also cost extra. Not to mention the internet and gratuity fee. This can add up fast.

Tip: According to a Royal Caribbean representative, reservations, purchases, and bookings can be made up to six months in advance, and really pay off in terms of discounts and savings.

You are charged a daily gratuity fee … per person.

Gratuity is split up among crew members at the end of a cruise.

While the crew on board could not have been any friendlier or more helpful, a daily $14.50 gratuity fee feels steep. That's an extra $101.50 a week, per person, no matter their age (yes, kids too). It's even more for guests staying in grand suites or above, for whom the fee is $17.50 a day on Royal Caribbean.

Plus, an 18% gratuity is automatically added to all beverages, mini bar items, and spa and salon purchases.

Tip: You can pre-pay your gratuity, that way at least you don't have to be reminded of it every day.

The cost of toiletries and medication is astronomical.

My ship had vending machines filled with medication, sunscreen, and other toiletries.

I guess the fact that these items are sold at a marked up rate is to be expected, but just how high the markup turned out to be was a surprise: my friend spent over $6.25 on a single toothbrush.

Tip: If you can, wait for a port excursion to stock up.

Getting on and off the ship was a breeze.

All I had to do was present my SeaPass, then go through a standard security check.

The boarding process was similar to that at an airport, but easier.

What surprised me was that I really only showed my passport once, when boarding in Miami. After that, my SeaPass became not only my room key, but also my sole ID and my credit card.

Even at ports, all I had to do to get back on the ship was show my SeaPass (albeit at two different stations).

Ships are a cashless society.

The SeaPass was room key, credit card, and ID in one.

My room key doubled as a credit card, which I could tap to pay for anything on board. At the end of the cruise, I was presented with a folio of all the costs I had racked up during my stay.

Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. It indicates a way to close an interaction, or dismiss a notification.

Home

After years of traveling, I went on my very first cruise and found it was a totally different way of seeing the world