The entertainment offered by the line you are sailing with is a huge part of sailing and a great offering can make a holiday, whilst a poor offering can make it a dud.

It is something that the best lines do incredibly well at and their offering can rival any major city or holiday resort on land.

From singers to dancers and from West End shows to in house production shows and so, so much more- a cruise ships offer it all.

Sometimes it can actually be the case that they offer too much and its hard work to enjoy all of what is on offer but there are something that you can do to really make the most of cruise ship entertainment and that is just what I look at in this list.

Our Top 10 Tips for Getting the Most Out of Your Cruise Entertainment

Check The Entertainment Schedule Pre-Cruise

Once onboard, it can still be fun to read through your ship daily schedule to see what to do the next day and sometimes, it is important to do so.

I always recommend however to go through the ships schedules in the days before boarding your ship as they tend to be fully up to date by that point and you can see what time the main things you want to see happen, add them to your schedule and take your time doing so.

If you wait until you are onboard, it is often the case that there is so much happening, and you are enjoying yourself so much that you miss out on something you would normally want to see or do.

Try To Do More On Sea Days/Less On Shore Days

This one may seem like an obvious one, but it is something that I have fallen for time and time again when cruising.

I will see something happening on the ship, put it in my calendar and have ever plan of going to it after a day of exploring.

Seem’s simple enough but what actually tends to happen in those cases is that I do so much when on shore, that I get back onboard, watch the sail away and then just cannot be bothered to do much after that, so miss out on what I had planned.

If there is something you really want experience on your cruise and it happens more than once, try to make sure you plan it for either a sea day or a shore day where you are back on board early.

Turn On Notifications

It depends on the line you are sailing with, but the majority will know allow you to get notification via their app.

It’s usually around 5 minutes before something is set to start but that can prove to be the difference is seeing something you want to or not.

We’ve all been there when you are looking forward to a production show in the theatre but stop off for a drink or a bite to eat beforehand, only to lose track of time and miss the show.

If you had that 5 minute warning, you could make a quick dash and see the show but the same can be said for performance sin the night club, lounges and the atrium.

Arrive Early

Arriving late or just as a show is about to start may mean that you get to see it, but it also means you are probably a bit flustered, you may not get to sit with the whole of your travelling party and even if you manage that, you will likely be in the worst seats available.

This is often the case for performances in lounges and around the atrium, where there is a lack of seating available and if you have a favourite spot, you want to watch from, you will likely not be able to get there.

If a show or a performance starts at 8, aim to get there for 7:30 and you can all but guarantee a seat, grab a drink and relax before enjoying the show.

Don’t Forget The Activities Team

When you think about the entertainment offer on ships, it tends to be shows, guest entertainers and acts around the ship that come to mind and in the main, that does make up the bulk of the entertainment I certainly enjoy on a cruise holiday but there is more to it than that.

Most ships have an activities team that offer, well activities, throughout the day and evening and whilst they tend to be more like fun things to do during the day, on an evening they are often a bit more organised and set up to entertained you.

If you have never joined in with activities on your ship, evening activities are great to start with as they tend to be much more set up around groups doing them including things such as interactive music quizzes, silent discos and DJ sets.

Learn The Ships Rules

This is something that you don’t really have any control over and sometimes it can seem like things have been put in place just to make life hard work but overall, any rules put in place make sense if you think about it.

So, what are these rules I am talking about?

Depending on your ship, you may need to book in for production shows in the theatre, sometimes it is just for West End style shows and sometimes a show may even be pay extra and you need to pay before you board or at the shore excursion desk/reception well in advance.

Extra’s such as ice shows, high diving shows and even guest entertainers in lounges can sometimes need a booking to be able to go to them or at least allow you to see them without having to queue for ages in the hope of grabbing a last-minute spot.

These sorts of rules do tend to happen on larger mega resort style of ships, but by doing a quick check for your next sailing, you can save out on missing a performance or having to spend your holiday waiting and hoping.

Don’t Overdo It

With so many great options for entertainment on ships nowadays, and with somethings only happening once whilst on your cruise, it can be tempting to try and cram in as many things as you can.

It seems the simplest option, and you have worked hard to enjoy your holiday in the first place but oddly, going from show to show and act to act can quickly start to feel like work itself.

You start to feel like you are only there because you should be there and not only do you not get that same excitement you had at your first performance or two, but really just cannot relax and enjoy it as much.

Decide on what performances are most important to you, go see them and if you feel like going to something else, go to but if you don’t, give it a miss.

Work Around Other Plans

Double booking, missing out on one thing to do another or simply trying to do two things two close together can make 1 or more things that should be enjoyable much less so.

For example, if you are set to have a meal in the MDR and only give yourself 45 minutes to have that before you need to be in the theatre for a show, the chances are that you will spend your whole meal rushing and panicking about missing the show you are looking forward to.

You will then not get to enjoy your meal, but you will also be rushed and flustered when arriving at the theatre and therefore not enjoy that show as much as you would normally.

Always try to organise the entertainment you are going to enjoy around other things you have planned so that you can enjoy both.

Visit Lounges On The First Day

If you are sailing on a new ship, or are newish to cruising in general, it surprising just how different entertainment lounges can be.

It’s not just line to line or ship to ship but it often entertainment venue to entertainment venue onboard the same ship that vary wildly.

Sometimes performances will be in an open night club type of spot where you get a good view from everywhere and sometimes, they will be in a compact café with only a few seats having a view.

If you have planned to see a specific show, head to that lounge on the first day to see just how many seats have a good view of the performance area or if you prefer to pick a lounge and see what shows up, you can choose the lounge with the most options for relaxing and enjoying the show.

Keep An Eye On Schedules

The best lines will give you the entertainment schedule in the weeks before you even board your ship, some will do it days before, so it will be the day of, and the worst will make you wait until you are onboard.

No matter how organised your line and ship is, the schedules are always subject to change, so make sure that you keep an eye on the schedules even if you have planned everything in advance.

It isn’t always a negative that things change as on one sailing, we were expecting bad weather on a sea day so the line added an extra performance from a guest entrainer in the afternoon of that day and when I was in India, a local dance group came onboard and gave a performance of a traditional local dance which wasn’t announced until shortly before.

Make sure you don’t miss any positive or negative changes by checking the schedules are still on track at least once a day to avoid any disappointments or missed opportunities.