Holiday shopping stress can drain the fun from the process of getting a gift for that die-hard cruiser on your list. Tension grows as the looming gift-buying deadline approaches, and sometimes it's easier to re-gift the plastic fondue set you got last year than waste your energies at the shopping centre. Or, instead of braving cold winds and even colder salespeople, maybe you've been reduced to attempts at piecing together makeshift crafts out of twigs and glue (a la Martha Stewart). But when your poorly constructed homemade pinecone wreaths and recycled presents ("Didn't I give this to you last year?") have begun to offend your friends and family, perhaps it's time for a change.
We think you can do better! Gifts are best when they reveal an appreciation for your recipient's hobbies and interests, so give your cruising comrades something that relates to their love of sailing ... and be prepared for an onslaught of gratitude. From a silly "Cruise Cash" jar, to stately ship paintings and even a few commodities for the kids, we've gathered a list of our favourite holiday cruise gift items. We're continuously adding to our list of seasonal gift options, so be sure to check back for new items as your shopping list grows!
Memorabilia/Travel Gear
The Lifetimer I Want One of Those
(£14.99)
We all know how much cruise passengers -- and Cruise Critic members in particular -- like to count down the months, minutes and hours until their next foray at sea. The Lifetimer countdown clock is a perfect gift for the cruise aficionado on your list because it calculates the time left until that next sailing holiday. It also includes a stopwatch function, and lets you programme in birthdays, coffee breaks and anything else. So that's six months, four days, 28 minutes and 12 seconds until that Mediterranean cruise....
Scrapbooking, whatever your age, can become an addictive hobby, and Brits are just beginning to catch on to the phenomenon that has taken hold in the U.S. Think beyond a book full of newspaper cuttings of the kid's football results or Christmas play photographs, and chronicle your last cruise holiday. Many art and craft companies have a fantastic selection of scrapbooking items, such as these nautical-themed papers and stickers. Recounting your trip may be just as fun as the cruise itself.
-- by Kelly Ranson, U.K. Editor
Cruise Art Snowbow Productions
(From £59.50)
If you're looking for a classic gift for an art-loving cruiser, we recommend Snowbow production's nautical art and bric-a-brac. From tasteful ship paintings to enchanting videos with archival footage of historic trans-Atlantic sailings, you're sure to find something to give on Snowbow's Web site. Our favourites are the cruise ship teapots, whimsical pots in the shape of cruise vessels, including the Titanic and Queen Mary -- a nostalgic way to make the perfect pot of tea! Prepare to spend a reasonable amount, and make sure your gifting to a true cruise fanatic. While teapots in the shape of ships will excite most sailing fans, a typical land-lubber could find these knickknacks kitschy.
--by Caroline Costello, Editorial Assistant
"Cruise Cash" Jar Cruise Gifts
(£10.95)
Celebrate the obsession of the cruise aficionado in your life with a witty "Cruise Cash" jar. The "Cruise Cash" jar reminds its owner that there's always a potential vacation on the horizon and prompts him or her to save up. However, the jar may not be as large as we would like -- cruises cost a bit more than the change that you find on the floor of your car. So until we find a store that sells a "Cruise Cash" barrel, this cute (albeit small) token of the good times to come will have to do.
--by Caroline Costello, Editorial Assistant
Christmas Cruise Apron Cruise Gift Store
(£21.95)
Love cooking? Love cruising? This Christmas cruise-themed apron is great fun! With the logo "I wanted a cruise for Christmas. All I got was this lousy apron!", it's sure to be a hit!
--by Kelly Ranson, U.K. Editor
The Golden Age of Cruise Liners Memorabilia Gift Pack Getting Personal
(From £5.95)
This creative gift, which features lunch menus, cruise arrangements, tickets and other memorabilia from the golden age of cruising, will evoke the days of elegant trans-Atlantic ocean crossings and luxurious formal dinners aboard legendary ships. Your favorite aficionado/history buff will be delighted when you stuff this clever treat in his or her stocking or slide it under the tree. The Golden Age of Cruise Liners Memorabilia Gift Pack sells for just £4.95 and is a great gift for faraway cruising friends. Slip the pack in a brown envelope with a holiday card, and you've got instant long-distance holiday joy.
--by Caroline Costello, Editorial Assistant
Countdown Keyring Cruise Gift Store
(£7.95)
Another item for the cruise countdown fan -- with this cruise countdown keyring however you can check exactly how many days or hours it is until that next trip wherever you are -- check it when you are opening the door after a long day at work or when you are starting up the car in the morning. With an image of the ship's trail, it's a great gift for anyone who loves to holiday at sea!
--by Kelly Ranson, U.K. Editor
Treasure Seeker's Shoes I Want One of Those
(£39.99)
Do you like to go in search of hidden treasure and artifacts when you get off your ship in port, but worry you look a bit of a geek? Worry no more, as these Treasure Seeker shoes have the appearance of regular beach flip flops, but have a nifty pack that straps to your leg and beeps every time your feet pass over a priceless Roman coin. There are three detectors on the unit - green for normal, yellow if there is something that might be worth digging for, and red -- which means start digging. Now. When you've had enough of this, you can unplug the detector pack and use them as normal sandals to wander around port.
-- by Kelly Ranson, U.K. Editor
Cruise Cookie Cutter Cruise Gift Store
(£2.95)
If you are looking for a stocking filler for someone who has everything, take a look at this fab cruise cookie cutter. A recipe and instruction for Ship's Biscuits or Hard Tack is also included. Get baking!
--Kelly Ranson, U.K. Editor
Blow Up Hangers Stanfords
(£6.99)
Cruise ship cabin wardrobes sometimes fall short in the clothes hanger department -- particularly if you are on for a long voyage. Well, this pack of two blow up hanger could be the answer to your problem! Simply inflate the handy hangers when you need to!
--by Kelly Ranson, U.K. Editor
Cruise-Themed Murder Mystery Game Cruise Gift Store
(From £12.45)
The year is 1935 and you are onboard the RMS Olympic bound for New York and a murder has taken place at sea! Well not quite, but you and your friends can play detective in this cruise-themed murder mystery game and sleuth out the truth and who committed the crime!
--by Kelly Ranson, U.K. Editor
Children's Items
Trunki Trunki.co.uk
(From £29.35)
Picking out a gift for a cruising family or even one of your own children? This brilliant invention makes travel with the kids a lot more fun. Trunki claims to be the "world's first ride-on kid's suitcase". It is basically a nifty case that youngsters can sit on while the parents pull it along -- a great contraption to use when travelling to and from a cruise port. Trunki comes in various designs, including a cow!
--by Kelly Ranson, U.K. Editor
Brainbox - All Around the World game Green Board Games
(£9.57)
A great Christmas present for all the family -- and it's educational as well! Do you know the flag of Portugal or can you name towns in Australia? BrainBox - All Around the World is an ideal game for sea days -- it passes time and it teaches players about the ports they'll be visiting. It is recommended for children over eight.
--by Kelly Ranson, U.K. Editor
Beach Heads Kit2Fit
(£7.95)
Sometimes you need to have a few tricks up your sleeves when your child is tired of playing in the surf and collecting shells. Our advice ... be prepared! This holiday, give your child Beach Heads: silly facial pieces that turn a lump of sand into your child's funny friend. Look forward to a few more minutes of uninterrupted beach serenity as your little ones format and fix the features of their sand heads in dozens of ways. When travelling with beach heads, be sure to keep the pieces in a Ziploc bag. We think these toys might lose their incredible ability to placate your kids when missing pieces become the focus of childhood tantrums.
--by Caroline Costello, Editorial Assistant
Scrunch-Bucket Kit2Fit
(From £7.50)
All you need is a Scrunch-Bucket, some sand, creativity and a little elbow grease, and you have the components for one of the quintessential beach activities -- building a sand castle! Just because you're trading in old-fashioned trips to Brighton beach for cruising, onboard childcare and exotic Mediterranean or Caribbean ports, you don't have to forgo traditional fun in the sun. Scrunch-buckets, which are soft, washable buckets that fold and fit easily into your suitcase, are a fantastic gift for cruising kids or sea-going Moms and Dads. If you're giving this gift to a child, we suggest throwing a few extra toys in the box -- the convenience of a foldable bucket is sometimes lost on children and your present may not be as appreciated as you would like.
--by Caroline Costello, Editorial Assistant
Monkey Travel Pillow Getting Personal
(From £9.95)
Are you a parent looking for an idea for when you take the kids away? This cute monkey doubles up as soft toy and a furry pillow! It's a great Christmas gift, and a perfect travel accessory for your children as you head off on your next cruise.
--by Kelly Ranson, U.K. Editor
Books
QE2: Forty Years Famous by Carol Thatcher
(From £17.50)
In November 2008, the infamous Queen Elizabeth 2 sailed its final journey, It's now preparing for life as a floating hotel. This has got to be the number one gift for book-reading cruise fans. QE2: Forty Years Famous by Carol Thatcher (daughter of the former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher) takes a look back at the 40 year history of the ship -- from construction to collisions and stowaways to storms. It's well worth a read.
--by Kelly Ranson, U.K. Editor
Queen Mary 2: Birth of a Legend by Philip Plisson
(£20.97)
Queen Mary 2: Birth of a Legend is the quintessential holiday gift book for anyone interested not only in Cunard's Queen Mary 2 but also in the photographic trail of the shipbuilding process. At this point, it's almost hard to remember a time when QM2 barely existed; Plisson's coffee table book, loaded with great photographs, will bring you back to that time. Plisson notes here that he is "following in the footsteps" of a ship that was called a legend before it was even built, noting that for 23 months he spent photographing and observing "a colossal puzzle made up of more than 100 blocks, some weighing more than 600 tonnes [sic]."
So the ship's been around for awhile now. So what? Plisson will tell you what's important, which is that the legend-before-its-time has matured into an iconic symbol of today's era of cruising. And as such, this book serves to commemorate the birth of a legend.
Aside from the celebration of Queen Mary 2 in particular, the photographic blow-by-blow of the shipbuilding process, perhaps the only thing not totally unique to this incredible ship, will be of interest to anyone curious about the process of shipbuilding.
--by Carolyn Spencer Brown, Editor in Chief
Skinny Dip By Carl Hiaasen (£5.99)
The perfect novel for a beach or by-the-pool cruise vacation read, Skinny Dip follows the travails of a hapless couple aboard the M.V. Sun Duchess. Though the trip included visits to Puerto Rico, Nassau "and a private Bahamian island that the cruise lines had purchased (rumor has it) from the widow of a dismembered heroin trafficker," the real action focuses on the hubby's (and we'll avoid the "DH" moniker in this case) effort to throw his wife overboard. Whether he did -- or didn't -- succeed we'll leave for you to find out. But we'll offer this bit of advice: On a cruise ship, you never know who might be watching.
--by Carolyn Spencer Brown, Editor in Chief
Cruise Confidential A Hit Below the Waterline: Where the Crew Lives, Eats, Wars, and Parties One Crazy Year Working on Cruise Ships by Brian David Bruns (£6.99)
If you've ever wondered what it's like to work below decks on a cruise ship, Brian David Bruns' Cruise Confidential: A Hit Below the Waterline offers a riveting look at his life as a waiter onboard a series of Carnival cruise ships. His experience is clearly not all pretty -- 80-plus hour work weeks; wild crew parties; mental breakdowns; and having to protect his dining room cutlery from packs of waiter-robbers. But the tales are fascinating, his experiences colored by the melting pot world of mega-ships, a multi-cultural mix of crew and officers. For his part, Bruns is the only American waiter onboard -- and he claims the only American to finish a contract in Carnival's restaurants. This is a backstairs scene that passengers never really see.
Cruise Confidential reads more like a novel than a tell-all and along the way you'll find yourself rooting for Bruns' real-life characters, from his Romanian girlfriend Bianca to his work station partner Ramona, and even for the author himself. But if you've ever hankered a notion for tossing land-lubbing life away for a romantic seabound career, Cruise Confidential will make you think thrice.
Holiday shopping stress can drain the fun from the process of getting a gift for that die-hard cruiser on your list. Tension grows as the looming gift-buying deadline approaches, and sometimes it's easier to re-gift the plastic fondue set you got last year than waste your energies at the shopping centre. Or, instead of braving cold winds and even colder salespeople, maybe you've been reduced to attempts at piecing together makeshift crafts out of twigs and glue (a la Martha Stewart). But when your poorly constructed homemade pinecone wreaths and recycled presents ("Didn't I give this to you last year?") have begun to offend your friends and family, perhaps it's time for a change.
