1) Take a sit in an armchair or cabin
Take your seat and check that the same or the cabin booked are to your liking, it is the first move to make when you get on the ferry, after eventually parking the vehicle. Moving directly to the second point could make us lose the seats in the best position or delay the rearranging, sometimes necessary, the cabin booked by the staff in charge. Once located, get adequate information on the procedures and behaviors to be adopted for safe navigation. You can find leaflets on the seats and maps for orientation posted in the corridors and common areas.
2) Explore the ship
A nice round of supervision at the beginning of the trip can be useful to understand where are located those services that we may need at a later time, such as the toilets, the bar, the TV room, the power sockets. Depending on the particular needs, in the case of an armchair, you can opt to position yourself more or less distant from these comforts. The electrical outlet can be very useful in case you need to recharge your smartphone or other devices. If you are travelling for a few hours, only the above-mentioned services will be available, while for long-distance routes, the Mediterranean shipping companies can also offer other services, such as the restaurant, the swimming pool, the gym, the disco, the cinema.
3) Relax
During the crossing, often, you are not really in the most suitable place to give yourself to unrestrained movement, so the advice is to try to relax, maybe after a good herbal tea at the bar, just by sitting comfortably and closing your eyes or admiring the sea if possible. In case of favorable weather and sea conditions, it can be very pleasant to do it on the external decks or other areas that ferries are usually equipped with ferries, taking into account all the safety warnings and especially taking care not to lean out (in case you are traveling with children, always pay close attention and especially in the open areas of the ship). But even in rough seas, sufferers can benefit greatly from the fresh air and the view of the horizon on which they must fix their gaze.
4) Make conversation
The journey is a great opportunity to converse with fellow travelers of the first or last hour. To consider that probably there will be an audience of listeners not always willing to participate actively in the discussion. But it can happen, especially when the seats are arranged in a certain way, that the initial discussion group grows progressively also depending on the topics covered. Taking a seat close to those who are considered ideally similar could be a good idea for those who love to chat and make new friends.
5) Watch a movie
The on-board television is never missing, in fact we often find more than one in the passenger areas but in this case, the channel is often chosen by the captain and it is not possible to change it, unless an authorized sailor responds positively to the request. Sometimes there is also the TV room, where unlike the previous situation, only films are broadcast and not other types of shows or news programs. Currently you can easily opt for online streaming but it should be considered that the telephone signal, at a certain distance from the coast, may not work properly or be completely absent. The same goes for the on-board Wi-Fi on which it is not always possible to count at 100% and which can be free but also for a fee. The advice is therefore to download, before the trip, movies or cartoons (the most popular streaming services offer this possibility) so that you can also watch them offline. It is important not to forget the earphones to watch movies from your device.
6) Read
Before boarding, it may be useful to buy newspapers, comics, magazines or books, for more or less demanding reading. Something like this will not always be available on board, but surely you will find brochures, guides, posters that are spread, concerning the safety of navigation (interpretation of maritime sound signals, operation of life jackets and lifeboats, etc.) and whose study is recommended as a priority over other activities.
7) Listen to music
An evergreen pastime is music! When the sea is not calm and reading or watching videos is annoying, it is the best option. At the bar there may be a background music from a radio station or a personalized compilation that can be heard in sharing with other passengers while sipping a drink or eating a snack. The alternative is to have a device and a pair of headphones to enjoy your favorite symphonies at the right volume. It is preferable to download the tracks in advance if you do not want to run into connection problems or, as for videos, take advantage of special subscriptions that allow you to listen to it even offline.
8) Play
Card games are the most popular when you navigating, but you can also equip previously with other board games and company games. Sometimes on board there are also video games and slot machines. For children there could be special spaces for playing and entertaining them, perhaps with stalls for drawing and broadcasting cartoons.
9) Take the sun
When it is there and it is not too strong, also considering that in the middle of the sea the reflections are amplified, it is always good, with the appropriate precautions, to take some sun, sitting or maybe lying down, not only with the objective of tan, but also to stimulate a healthy self-production by the body of vitamin D. The sound of the sea will intensify the feeling of well-being. After all, the sunny day can happen in any season.
10) Sleep
If the trip is planned entirely in an armchair and you want to sleep to spend time and / or arrive at your destination rested, it is a good idea to bring a good travel pillow for the neck, earplugs and an eye mask. With the right equipment you can easily indulge, if possible, in the most comfortable of the alternatives. Of course, the cabin remains the ideal place to sleep. In case of rough sea or if you suffer from seasickness, to sleep but also to not be too uncomfortable, it is preferable to choose a place in the center (or almost). This position will reduces the effects of both the roll and pitch of the boat.
