I went on my first cruise. 15 things surprised me about this type of vacation

Business Insider's reporter's first cruise was a seven-day voyage on board Royal Caribbean's Wonder of the Seas. Joey Hadden/Business Insider I didn't expect my first night on a cruise ship to feel like an emergency. The window in my cabin was much bigger than the ones I'd seen in movies. I definitely didn't think taking the stairs would be quicker than the elevator. I had traveled by car, bus, train, and plane, but the only boat I'd ever been on was a ferry. In fact, I had never seen a cruise ship in real life before April 2022, when I boarded Royal Caribbean's Wonder of the Seas , one of the world's largest cruise ships . During my seven-night Caribbean voyage , the ship sailed round-trip from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to Roatan, Honduras; Cozumel and Costa Maya, Mexico; and Royal Caribbean's private Bahamian island , CocoCay.