Cruisers recall shared cabins and shipboard customs of the 1970s and 1980s

Gail Dodds recalled that cruises in the 1970s could involve sharing a four-berth cabin with strangers. Cruise lines placed women with women and men with men, she said, but four occupants still shared a small bathroom and cabins often had no porthole.

Dodds also remembered buying a carving in Bali from local vendors who paddled to the ship with kayaks filled with their wares. According to her account, passengers raised carvings in a net, negotiated prices and returned payment to the vendors.

Kerry Lee said her first cruise was aboard Sitmar’s Fairstar in 1987. She shared with three strangers and recalled that the least expensive cabins did not have ensuite facilities, leaving passengers to use communal bathrooms nearby.

Barbara Briguglio remembered duty-free drinks during her 1970s cruises and said cabins with private bathrooms, toilets or portholes were costly. She also recalled boarding Fairstar as a visitor in the mid-1980s to have drinks with departing relatives before the ship sailed.

Glenda Williams said she took an 18-night Shota Rustaveli cruise in 1976 with her two children, aged six and nine. She recalled 760 passengers, basic but enjoyable meals, a children’s club and staff-provided evening babysitting.