Want an epic birthday celebration? A birthday cruise is a great way to celebrate your special day.
A birthday, especially a milestone birthday is a great excuse to plan a cruise vacation. Whether you are cruising with your partner, immediate family, extended family, or closest friends, here are 10 tips and ideas to make your birthday cruise extra special.
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Birthday Cruise – 12 Best Ways to Make it Extra Special
Let the cruise line know
Advise the cruise line ahead of time that you or a travel partner is celebrating a birthday on the cruise ship. Often they will acknowledge it at dinner in the main dining room by a special dessert and/or singing happy birthday.
Order a cruise birthday package
Each cruise line offers something a little different. Check out their website, under in-room gifts or something similar. Most packages include cabin decorations along with a cake and/or souvenir.
These packages can be on the pricey side, but are a fun way to celebrate a special occasion, especially if it is a surprise for someone else.
Decorate yourself
An alternative to the pricier cruise birthday packages, you can bring your own decorations.
This is what I did for my daughter’s 18th birthday cruise. I bought decorations from the dollar store and some magnetic hooks.
The walls and ceiling are magnetic, so magnetic hooks are the best way to hang decorations. I waited until she was out of the cabin so that when she returned the decorations were a surprise.
We then just bought a cake from Carnival. It was inexpensive ($10) and so good. It was waiting in our cabin when we arrived.
Birthday cruise door decorations
Magnets are the perfect way to decorate your cruise cabin door as they are magnetic. This applies to most cruise lines, but not Norwegian. NCL has banned stateroom door decorations. Door decorations are popular on Disney Cruise Line, Carnival Cruise Line, and Royal Caribbean Cruises.
A decorated door will put a smile on the face of anyone passing by.
Here are a couple great birthday cruise door decoration options that can be personalized. Check out these cute stateroom door magnets.
A small magnetic whiteboard is another fun cruise door decoration. Since you aren’t having an actual birthday party, this is a fun way for fellow passengers to wish you a wonderful day.
On our cruise last year, our neighbor had a magnetic whiteboard on their cabin door. It was fun to see messages left by the other guests.
This is a great options because it won’t take up much space in your suitcase. Don’t forget to pack the markers.
Upgrade your stateroom
Splurge and book a stateroom you wouldn’t normally book, such as a balcony, suite, or specialty cabin. Some cruise lines have specialty staterooms like spa cabins or exclusive area rooms (ex/ Carnival’s Havana staterooms or NCL’s Haven staterooms).
Breakfast on your balcony is a great way to start off your day.
Birthday dinner at a specialty restaurant
If you don’t care to be sung to in the main dining room on your birthday, consider having your birthday dinner at an alternative restaurant.
Many cruise ship specialty restaurants have an additional charge, but it is your birthday after all.
If you are sailing on a Royal Caribbean ship with Jamie’s Italian (restaurant by celebrity chef Jamie Oliver), you won’t be disappointed eating here.
Get pampered at the spa
Treat yourself or your loved one to one of the several luxurious spa treatments offered in the ship’s spa. Some ships also have spa passes where you can enjoy thermal loungers, saunas, steam rooms and more. The spa facilities vary greatly cruise line to cruise line and even ship to ship.
Many ships offer discounts on spa treatments on port days. Keep your eye out for these.
Order birthday cruise shirts
One of the best ways to add some extra fun to a happy birthday cruise is with birthday cruise shirts. There are so many great designs, many of which can be personalized. 59 Awesome Cruise Shirt Ideas has the best ones. You will have the whole ship wishing you well.
Fun night out
Cruise ships have some amazing evening entertainment options to ensure you have a great time. Take in a Broadway style show, tear up the dance floor, try your luck in the casino, or do it all.
Choose a great shore excursion
Book yourself the shore excursion you have always wanted to do. If you are planning a cruise for someone else’s birthday, let them choose one of the shore excursions.
Birthday cruise coupons
This is a cute way to add a little extra fun to your loved one’s birthday trip. I made these for my daughter’s birthday cruise, they turned out so well I decided to sell them on Etsy.
They are printable coupons, you can use just the ones you’d like or that are applicable. To be honest, it is mostly things I would have bought her anyway, but she thought it was so cute getting a little coupon book and looking through to see what she could redeem.
You can my printable birthday cruise coupons here.
Surprise!
Even better than celebrating your own birthday on a cruise with family or a close friend is to surprise your loved one with a cruise for their birthday. Who wouldn’t love that? Do all of these things but for someone else. This would be a gift they would never forget. The best part – you get to invite yourself.
Stay organized when planning your vacation with our printable Cruise Planner & Journal. You will find different checklists, to do lists, an outfit planner, journal pages and much more. It is a great way to ensure you have packed all the essentials.
A cruise is such a great choice for any vacation. Whether it is the Caribbean, Alaska, Mexico, or Europe, you see several destinations without having to pack and unpack. There is no cooking, cleaning, meal planning, or grocery shopping. The crew members are amazing, they have a way of making you feel so special. This is in addition to the delicious food and drinks, amazing entertainment, and fun activities. No matter what the occasion is you are sure to have a great time.
If you are looking for another great reason to take a family cruise, consider a graduation cruise for your child or grandchild.
The adults in your travel party might be interested in the 12 Best Cruise Drinks
Here are some other posts you might be interested in.
