A is for Anchorage Port. This is a port in which a ship cannot berth either because there is no quay or the dock is too small to accommodate the ship. Do not worry, passengers will not be expected to swim ashore.The ship will drop anchor and passengers will travel
from ship to shore in a smaller boat called a 'tender.'
A is also for Aft, the rear or stern of the ship.
And A is for Abandon Ship, but we won't talk about that

...
B is for Bow. This is not a decorative piece of knotted ribbon. The bow is the forward-most part of the ship.
B is also for Bridge, the area located high up at the front of the ship from where the officers navigate.

C is for Cashless System. Cash is not normally accepted for purchases on board. Usually all on-board expenses, excluding tips and gambling expenses, are billed to the passenger for payment on the final day of the cruise.
C is also for Convertible Lower Beds. This brochure-talk phrase translates into English as either two lower single beds that convert into a double bed; or a lower bed that converts into a sofa.

D is for Dining. You will not go hungry on a cruise ship. The facts speak for themselves - each week the passengers aboard an Airtours cruise ship consume 805kg of chicken, 109kg of beefburgers, 1,400kg of potatoes and 238kg of cucumbers... Dessert anyone?

E is for Expedition Vessel. This is a small ship used to visit remote parts of the world such as Antarctica. They usually have a reinforced hull for navigation through ice.

F is for Food (please refer to D). But it is also for Fitness. So if you manage to drag yourself away from the Champagne Sorbet, Beef Wellington and Souffle for
long enough, you could work off some of those excesses in the state-of-the-art on board gym.

G is Galley. The galley is the ship's kitchen, where all the aforementioned lovely grub is prepared.
G is also for Gangplank, a time-served favourite of traditional pirates. This is a narrow walkway, generously covered with a non-slip surface by today's thoughtful cruise companies, by which crews and passengers board the ship.
G is also for Gross Registered Ton, a measure of the ship's volume. The measure is equal to one hundred cubic feet of space enclosed.

H is for Hull, the main frame and body of the ship. It is also for Hungry, which you will never be on a cruise ship.

I is for Interactive TV, which allows passengers to order films, buy shore excursions, reserve a table for dinner, write emails, view dinner reservations, check their ship account status and even gamble at the casino from the privacy of their cabin.

J is for Jump Overboard. Please don't.
J is also for Jacuzzi. Please feel free to jump into one.

K is for Knot, the primary unit of speed, equal to one nautical mile or 1.15 land miles per hour.

L is for Love. As in 'Love Boat' or 'Love is in the Air.' What better way to celebrate a marriage than to sail off into the sunset for your honeymoon?

M is for Muster Station. Pay attention, because this is the area on board ship where passengers are instructed to assemble in the event of an emergency. Passengers will be called to the Muster Station as part of an emergency drill within the first few hours
of sailing.

N is for Newbuilds, ships that are either on order or being constructed prior to being launched or named.

O is for Owner's Suite. This is usually the best suite on board and was originally designed for the owner and his or her guests.
O is also for Open Seating, which offers passengers the opportunity to eat when and where they wish, rather than having to choose an early or late dinner. This option is generally found on luxury vessels, but more and more mid-market ships are starting to offer open seating.

P is for Port. Not the sweet-tasting Christmas-time tipple, but the left side of the ship when you are facing forward.
P is also for Post-Panamax, a term which refers to the generation of ships that are too wide to go through the Panama Canal (over 100,000 gross registered ton),
limiting them to the Caribbean, the Atlantic and Europe.
P is also for Private Island, an island bought or leased by a cruise line for the exclusive enjoyment of their passengers.

Q is for Queue. With the number of staff on board falling over each other to cater to your every whim, there will not be much queuing going on.

R is for River Cruise. A popular alternative to the ocean wave, more and more cruisers are heading for rivers like the Nile, the Rhine and the Danube.

S is for Starboard, which is the right side of the ship when you are facing forward.
S is also for Stern. Not the manner of being strict and serious, but the name for the rear of the ship.
S is also for Shiver Me Timbers, which is a really irritating nautical phrase to yell about deck.

T is for Themed Cruise, a cruise where some or all of the on-board activities are intended to attract people with a special interest, such as music, wine tasting,
history, magic tricks - even Coronation Street!
T is also for Titanic. It was a long time ago, and it's best not to think about it...

U is for Unconventional. It's not just about the Caribbean these days, don't you know. As the cruise market continues to grow, so does the choice of unconventional cruise destinations. Cambodia, Dubrovnik, Namibia, India, the Cape Verde Islands,
Beirut, Casablanca, the Ukraine, New Orleans, Latvia, Japan, Reykjavik and Tallinn are now all popular cruise destinations.

V is for Vacuum Toilets. Now, don't let your imagination run wild here. Commonly used on ships, these toilets use vacuum suction when flushed. Passengers must not remain seated when flushing (as if you would) for fear of getting stuck! You have been
warned...

W is for Wedding Bells. Yes, you can even exchange vows at sea with some cruise lines these days.

X is for Xylophone. There may well be one of these played by the band during the after dinner cabaret show...
OK, OK, X is for EXtras. Many cruise companies will send a plethora of gorgeous extras to your cabin if you are celebrating an anniversary or honeymoon on board. Goodies range from a lovely bottle of bubbly to flowers, photographs or chocolate-dipped strawberries.

X is also for Xmas. Cruising over the festive season provides a relaxing escape from the annual turkey-fest. However, do expect, in most cases, to pay an added supplement at this time of year.

Y is for Young at Heart. Cruising now attracts a much younger market than ever before. The old image of passengers sitting in deck chairs wrapped up in tartan blankets no longer applies, and the average first-time cruiser is now in his or her thirties.

Z is for Zzzzzz... On board ship, the term 'berth' means a dock, pier or quay, but it is also quite confusingly means your bed. Therefore, please exercise extreme caution when inviting fellow passengers to the berth...