A sea cruise is the perfect opportunity to visit and see many countries at once. As we set sail, our ship calls at ports, opening the doors of world capitals, ancient cities and mysterious islands.

Sea cruise is a vacation consisting of many factors, so the choice of a cruise must be approached seriously and from different angles. Determine which parameter is the most important for you and use it as a guide in making your decision.

Cruise length: The length of your cruise depends on the time and funds available to you. The variety of cruises ranges from two-day holidays to semi-annual round-the-world trips. The most popular are 7, 10 and 12 nights, with 14-16 nights in exotic regions. If you are choosing your first ever cruise, it is wise to opt for the shorter version.

Cruise start date: The cruise schedule is structured so that each region has cruises in the most favorable season. If no space is available on the date you are interested in, be prepared to consider cruises on similar dates. In any case, the earlier you book, the more likely you are to hit the spot.

Price: The price of a cruise can often (though not always) give you a rough idea of what type of passengers will make up the majority of the cruise, how “luxurious” the ship will be, and what level of food and service will be provided. The amount you are willing to spend will determine the size, location and type of your stateroom. Here it is important to find a compromise: if comfort is more important to you.

The size of the liner: Cruise liners are divided into three sizes:

• small from 2 to 25 thousand tons
• medium from 25 to 50 thousand tons
• large over 50 thousand tons

Regardless of size, all cruise ships provide all basic cruise services: accommodations, plentiful meals, excursions to ports of call, and onboard entertainment. However, some do it much better than others (but also charge more). That said, each of these three categories has its fans.

Spaciousness of the liner: An idea of the spaciousness of the ship can be obtained by dividing its tonnage by the number of passengers. If the resulting ratio is less than 10, you will find a very cramped liner; 10 to 20 – the liner will be moderately spacious; 20 to 30 – quite spacious; 30 to 50 – very spacious; over 50 – you will find yourself in the most spacious environment.

Service standards: Service standards on board can be judged by the ratio of passenger capacity to crew size. The best service is on ships with no more than 2 passengers per crew member.

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Clear observance of instructions

When traveling by any water transport, you must clearly follow the prescribed instructions on the rules of being on board, carefully study the ways of evacuation in case of emergency. If you do not find the required instructions, be sure to ask the staff for them.

Check for the presence or absence of life jackets and swim rings.
If no lifejackets are available, do not hesitate to request them from the crew before the boat leaves the shore. Especially remember to do so if one of your company members cannot swim.

Keep your composure at all times

Even if there was an accident, emergency, force majeure, always (!) keep self-control. Calm down, breathe evenly and do not panic. Remember rule number one: follow the instructions exactly. They are prescribed in advance all the actions of passengers and staff in such situations. Be sure to listen to the instructions of the evacuation personnel.

Rules of being on the arranged beach

It is imperative that you follow these rules of stay. Do not litter, do not swim beyond the red buoys and do not come close to a water vehicle that is on the move. Always enter the water slowly, taking your time, carefully groping the bottom. This is especially important on wild beaches where the bottom is unexplored.

Never swim after a meal and when you are tired

After a long stay in the sun and in a state of intoxication too. All of the above conditions of the person at bathing practically guarantee a tragedy.

Never leave children without adult supervision. Not even for a minute.
If you like jumping into the water, then do it in a specially allocated place. If you have any doubts about your abilities, be sure to take a couple of lessons from a diving instructor.

Soberly assess your abilities

If you’re not sure about something – don’t do it. Water does not forgive mistakes. Don’t go out for a water ride in bad weather, don’t overload the boat, don’t get in the boat while intoxicated.

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Water transport is a type of transport that is used for cargo and passenger transportation by waterways. These can be either natural (rivers, lakes, seas and oceans) or artificial (canals, reservoirs) waterways. The main means of transport is the ship.

The history of water transport begins in ancient Egypt. Until the second half of the 19th century, when transcontinental railroads were created, the most important mode of transport was water (both river and sea). Even today this type of transport plays an important role: from 60% to 67% of world freight turnover is accounted for by river and sea ships.

Design of the Ship

The classic concept of water transport is a ship, a boat, a yacht. But kayaks, inflatable boats, barges, catamarans, hovercrafts, as well as drilling rigs, screen-planes, screen-jets, seaplanes also belong to the category of vessels.

Most sea- and river-going ships have a number of design elements in common:

• Hull
• Superstructures, deckhouses
• Ship power plant
• Shipboard machinery
• Ship systems and pipelines
• Equipment and electrical facilities

But there are distinctive features for some ship categories, such as a screen-plane and a seaplane. For the most part, they are airplanes, but their hull is designed on the boat principle.

A ship’s hull is a watertight shell which makes the vessel float on water. The end of the hull is fitted with beams called stays. A stem is a beam that is installed at the bow of the ship’s hull. As well as the bow ends, they can be equipped with vertical end walls for tug or pusher ships. Vessel hull is usually made of steel.

Passenger ships have decks, while river and mixed-sea vessels have one deck – the main one. Marine passenger ships have several decks – upper (main), middle, lower. Large passenger ships navigating lakes have two decks.

To make the ship unsinkable, its hull is divided by inner watertight transverse bulkheads. This creates several rooms – compartments.

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Features of design and maintenance

A jet ski is no less complex technical device than a motorcycle or a snowmobile. In fact, it is a watercraft with a hull made of fiberglass, equipped with a two- or four-stroke internal combustion engine, which provides self-propelled transport. The jet ski was invented as a sports vehicle, but over time it has become very popular among fans of outdoor activities.

There are two types of jet ski design:

• Standing – sport aquabikes: lightweight, maneuverable, reaching speeds of up to 120 km/h. Almost any modern sport jet ski is equipped with the ability to adjust the angle of the water jet nozzle (water pump to create jet thrust). This allows freestylers to perform complicated maneuvers, such as jumping over water.
• Seating – recreational jet skis. They are most often two- and three-seaters, less maneuverable and faster than standing ones, but more stable and safer. They are ideal for walking. Also, the engine power of such jet skis may be enough to tow a water skier or parasailer.

Jet skis, like any other equipment, have their own peculiarities of maintenance, operation and transportation. Firstly, it is a “seasonal” vehicle, so to store it in winter you need to allocate space in a garage or a special box, and buy a cover. Secondly, for the transportation of aquabike to the place of direct use you need a trailer. Thirdly, immediately when buying a jet ski, life jackets should be purchased for each passenger and for the driver.

It must be remembered that a jet ski, seated or standing, is a small vessel and therefore it must be registered with the inspectorate within ten days of purchase and pay annual transport tax.

Although the aquabike design has a low draft, it cannot be used in shallow bodies of water, or in rivers with fast currents.

Choosing a jet ski, you must first of all, based on the purpose of its use: whether it is a sports jet ski for freestyle and professional training tricks on the water or a car for recreational boating with the whole family.

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