Gary Bembridge author of "The Cruise Traveler's Handbook" provides another 60-Second Cruise Tip. For more visit http://www.60secondcruisetips.com and http://www.tipsfortravellers.com/cruise-travelers-handbook

A common thing to do when cruising is to go through the excursion list and book one for each port stop. However, staying on board while in some ports is a much underused option by most cruisers. The ship is usually empty and quiet when in port as most passengers will get off for some or all of the day on an excursion or to self explore. A lot of the crew will also get off to go shopping, find free Wi-Fi and to have a break from their confined living space on-board. It means the pools, spas and other activities are less crowded and busy. The cruise line will run special offers and promotions for services on port days for this reason, making it cheaper and easier to get a reservation than on sea days when there is more demand. You are unlikely to want to stay on board every port as you miss seeing new places, but if you have a hectic port every day cruise I recommend building in some days to stay on board to take advantage of all the ship has to offer.