7 Cruise Ship Features That Changed the Way We Cruise.

I can remember when the Dining room was the only place you could eat on the ship , way back in the day

I too miss the elegance of years prior, but I do not miss the fare, which was about twice what it is now!

For one thing, we will all be wearing those Ocean Medallion around our necks or wrists instead of room cards. Perhaps they will using fingerprint or irises to get on and off the ship or to open our stateroom door. Hopefully, Wii-Fi will be in our our cabins, too. Maybe we will be paying for all our meals and there may not be MDRs anymore. Time will tell. For sure, ships will continue to be huge. Perhaps I'll pose this question on the Forum? quote=GIL155]

I said this in a different post, but these seven features we take granted today where nowhere to be found 20-years ago. Just wonder what the next 20-years will look like for the cruising industry.

Can you say "Warp Factor 4, Mr. Sulu".

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The old days when a 7 night cruise had 2 full on formal nights, 3 semi formal and 2 resort casual nights. Back in those days jeans were never allowed in the MDR at dinner and frowned on in the lido at dinner time or at night. I even remember a notice in the daily paper that "if you choose not to partake of formal night please refrain from the MDR, theater and clubs so others can enjoy the formal atmosphere".

It is an American thing to dress down. A few years ago on a Greek Islands cruise our cabin neighbor was Middle Eastern and European. The first few days of the trip she saw me in Jeans and a nice shirt for dinner. We ran into her on formal night and she did a double take "wow, you really can clean up well for an American" (I was decked in a full on Tux with vest and tie set, studs and matching cuff links and a good watch). I also was told bu the European ladies at the MDR table how nice I looked dressed up.

I do miss some of the Elegance of the old days. I have thought of taking a Cunard cruise just for the elegance of it, but I think I'd be to young for that until I hit 70.

As a cruise assistant, my sister had to have at least 14 long dresses to wear . She was not allowed to wear the same thing twice during a 2 week cruise. When she became an officer, she had her dress uniform to wear in the evenings, and she was expected to be visiting with the passengers.

Sometimes I do too.

I miss it.

The old days of cruising were different then today. 20 and 30 years ago cruising was a high end vacation with very few kids on ships and a more old world formal experience then what it is today. Just as back in the 50's and 60's people dressed up to go on a flight in the 70's and 80 people dressed up at night on a ship, there was glamour back then to cruising.

That's cool. I had no idea something so common as balcony cabins or the specialty restaurants were none existent back in the day. Some of the new features coming out soon might be common place in 20 years. One example is the moving restaurant that will be on Celebrity Edge or that under water lounge with viewing windows that was mentioned earlier.

Hope I'm still cruising then and will be able to find out!