Party Planning 102

Welcome to part II of our party planning lesson! Just to recap, last time we went over how important it was to define your event and see if yacht cruises were right for you. It's always important to keep in mind the type of event, what date and time of day you're looking for, and how many guests you will have. We also briefly touched upon how to search for a cruise line and the types of cruises that are offered. Now, we'll be getting into a little more detail on the types of cruises that are suitable for each type of event. We'll start with public cruises.

If you have a very small group of 1 or even 20 guests, a public cruise is good for you. Cruises such as this are likely to be more practical and affordable for your group, especially if you are planning a birthday, a small get-together, or a night out with some friends. Usually, public cruises will have set times and dates, either for daytime (brunch or lunch) or evening (dinner), and a schedule of availability and pricing might even be set up on a company's website. What you want to do is look at this schedule to see if your date is available, and see if you need to book through the website, or call to reserve.

Smaller boats might be flexible with the dates for smaller groups, but bigger boats will most likely only have the dates listed. Even if it is not clearly stated, you should always reserve your event in advance, let's say at least two or three weeks before. A good question to ask for bigger boats is if your group will be seated together. Some may even offer private tables for your group, and let you bring in your own decorations and party favors.

Even if you wouldn't be getting the whole boat, you'd be getting a great cruise and you'd have something all to yourself, all without having to fuss over details and worry about the cost! So, what do you think? Doesn't that sound great? Well, what if you want the whole boat anyway? Then join me next time in part III of the party planning series, where we'll discuss private decks and ship charters.