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I have spent the last 2 hours this morning watching my neighbours load up their large van and small car for a camping vacation. I have seen tents, sleeping bags, folding chairs, coolers, a small boat, life preservers, sports equipment, duffle bags, toys for their 1 kid, bicycles, and heavens know what else going into their vehicules and they're still not finished! That is not a vacation, that's too much WORK! Pack a suitcase, get on a plane, fly to a cruise port, get on a CRUISE and leave the rest to somebody else to pamper you for a week! I gotta talk to these people!
Do you ever think they say the same about you as they are watching you leave for a cruise !!! (VBG)
Different strokes for different folks !!!
Vacations are something that most parents of our generation (baby boomers) do not have ingrained..and in many cases camping was an outlet that they could afford so that's what we grew up understanding was a form of vacation
flash forward, the children of our generation have been exposed to cruising as a major form of vacation and thus to them that is the "norm"
I hated camping when I was small (can't stand bugs)..however in looking at these $100,000 plus camping mobile vans, I might rethink the prospect when I get burned out on cruising
Our family vacations were dirving for 12 hours, to a place where there was a pool, playground, and restruants. Then we did it the next day till we arrived at a relative to spend the next week cooking, cleaning, picking up after the kids, more cooking, cleaning. then we packed up and dorve home. tired, and sun burnt. Now we pack for a week, drive to the port and cruise for a week. What a great time we have now. different folks like other things, we like cruising to far away ports, seeing the native people and enjoy nice food.
No cooking, cleaning, picking up after others.
Carole 8)
My typical vacation is taking the boat to various locations around the great lakes. Pack up,, cooking, cleaning pick up etc.. The cruise I took was the most relaxing trip I had taken in forever. I'll pick cruising over my own excursions in a heart beat.
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I had friends who had a medium-sized camper. When I saw all the work my friend did getting ready to go on a trip -- hauling out all the clothes, towels, provisions, etc. -- then watched her haul it back out of the camper to the house after the trip, I womdered: WHY????
That's a vacation?
And while they were camping, her husband and the boys fished while my friend cooked breakfast, cleaned up, made lunch, cleaned up, made dinner, cleaned up ...
She was a very happy camper when they sold the camper.
When the girls were growing up we either rented a cottage at the lake (Maine) or went camping (pop out tent trailer). Either way, it was a lot of work and tripping over boxes for a week getting ready. It was a wonderful time and they always brought friends and of course the dog. Now it's cruising time and they all love that too.
People who have never been on a cruise have no idea how great it is. My husband (who had never been on a cruise either) had to talk me into going on our first cruise. I don't know what I was concerned about, because it was definitely the most relaxing and fun vacation I have ever had.
Fruitcake, I remember when their "vacation" panned out as you said. She was very happy when the RV was sold. Never could have talked them into a cruise, though.
My husband keeps threatening to rent an RV for a vacation....my feeling is no way.....unless he hires someone to do all that cooking and cleaning garbage.
Angela Z.
Every once in awhile I think about the RV thing but when I see my friend Richards and the work involved, I get over it!
I've never been big on camping, done it a few times and don't need to again. I do like renting cottages on a lake, which is what we always did for vacations when we were growing up. We lived in Illinois and my mom needed to go back home every summer to see her family in Michigan. I have nothing but wonderful memories of those times, which is why my sister left Illinois moved up to the U.P.
Funny thing about cruising is, I love it, my sisters will probably never ever even try it, no interest whatsoever. I've recommended it to people that love it as much as me and others that took one cruise and would never go again, just not for them.
I like land trips and I will do my fair share of those once I get around to my second retirement, around 65 maybe 62 but probably 65 so I can support my travel habits!!!
Coming home tonight I passed another neighbour out trying to squeeze one last itme into his overstuffed minivan, along with wife, 2 kids and a dog. They were headed to the Jersey shore (look out Doug!) for a camping holiday. All I could think of was, "you could be CRUISING!!"
We just returned from six days of semi-wilderness camping in northern Minnesota. While we did not have a chocolate on our pillow each night we had a fantastic time. We don't take the house with us when we camp. We did have to take some extra things because our granddaughter went with us but everything fit easily in the back of the Suburban without the seats down. That included Kramer.
I did all the cooking and luckily we caught plenty of fish. My granddaughter also proved that you can catch a 22 inch walleye on a Snoopy rod and reel. She won the biggest fish award.
Kramer did his job of keeping raccoons away from camp. Ramie learned that you need: Air, fuel and heat to start a fire, what poison ivy looks like, how to find the North Star and that you can take a bath in a lake if you use special soap and that burnt marshmallows aren't as good as brown ones. All of those things can't be done on a cruise ship and were well worth the extra work.
Betty and I hadn't been camping in over ten years and realized that we really missed a lot of it but also realized that after five nights are old backs just don't handle sleeping on an air mattress as well and we do like a chocolate on the pillow. Regardless; we are going to take Ramie back up before she starts school in September.
Take care,
Mike
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Sorry ... a vacation to me means NO COOKING or anything else that comes close to housework!!!
Even though we live in South Fla. and have a lovely house and pool, I love to get away for the weekend. A 2-night stay in a hotel is like a vacation to me, because the phone isn't ringing, the dust bunnies aren't calling my name, and there are all kinds of restaurants to try and sights to see!
DH tells everyone my idea of camping is staying at a 2* hotel (and he's right)! We have friends whose idea of a romantic vacation is WINTER CAMPING! (shudder).
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My parents never took vacations and that was ingrained into my personality as a young adult. Besides that, I never was afforded a paid vacation early in my working career. Starting in '85, I was allowed a paid vacation and still didi not take advantage of it until later in life. Now, I want to always travel . Cruising is the way to go. No cooking, no having to chose a restaurant, plenty of entertainment that is free, that's for us!!
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We are cruisers who love to camp or campers who love to cruise, either way, we totally enjoy both. Mind you we don't rough it by no means, our camper is basically a condo on wheels. Tenting arrgh not for us, never again. We try to get away to our campsite everyweekend. All that is involved is clothes for the weekend, fresh food veggies, and libations. DH does all the cookking when we are camping. It is very relaxing, a nice get away from the everyday stresses of life.
Mike, you won't be flamed at all. It sounds like a wonderful experience shared with your granddaughter, and as a young mom, I enjoyed doing the same with my kids (except for the fishing part!) However, I think I have been spoiled now by cruising and don't know if I'd ever camp again!
Mike - I too love camping - going to the mountains and sleeping in the outdoors (I am a tent person-flap off-screened in-), cooking over the campfire, love waking up just before dawn, putting on a pot of coffee and watching/listening to the woods wake up around me - it is so peaceful - yes it does require some work - but you decide how much work. My camping gear is packed in two roll-abouts (heck, I think they weigh less than my luggage I take on a cruise) so that when I get the urge - I can be out the door real quick. We have a group of between 10-20 people that will camp and the chores are shared by all.
But after taking my first cruise, I've become addicted to cruising but have not given up on pitching a tent - after all, I live 2 hours inland and it is not as easy to roll out on a whim to take a cruise - or have the money to do so
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She won the biggest fish award.
Starting in '85, I was allowed a paid vacation and still didi not take advantage of it until later in life. Now, I want to always travel 
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