On-board Experience

 Dining 
During a Yangtze River cruise tour, meals are provided free by the cruise company. There is usually a buffet breakfast with Chinese and western style dishes, and Chinese style lunch and dinner with after-dinner desserts and fruits. On some ships, a buffet is available for three meals a day. Lunch time is 12:00 noon, and dinner time is around 19:00 or later. The mealtime for a buffet meal is 1 to 2 hours while that for a traditional round-table one is 30 minutes to 1 hour. 

You may communicate with your travel agency or the cruise company if you have any special requests for meals, if you are a vegetarian, a Muslim, or you are on a diet as examples. The cruise company also offers room service if you prefer dining alone in your room (need to reserve this 1 day in advance). 

Drinks: Milk and coffee served with breakfast are free of charge, and soft drinks and light beers are provided for free during meals, but if you want to have some alcoholic drinks, you need to pay for them.

 Entertainment 
On the first day of a cruise tour, the captain holds a welcome party for all the passengers. All visitors are invited and you can enjoy various drinks and the delicious snacks. The captain will also introduce the ship and the cruise tour during the party. A dinner party will also be held on the last night of the cruise tour, during which you can see many excellent shows performed by the crew. You may also see famous singers or professional shows on some luxury ships. 

Every morning, a doctor or guide will teach passengers to play shadow boxing (practice Tai Chi) for 30 minutes. You are also welcomed to take part in lectures, Chinese Kong Fu shows, Chinese calligraphy appreciation and shows, and quiz and contests with prizes. There is also a library on most ships and you can read the books free of charge.

 Services 
The cruise company also offers many charged services, including laundry, morning call, cleaning shoes, massage, hair salon, supermarket, professional photographer, post card, telephone, and fax. There are meeting rooms on most cruise ships for you to hold business conferences or personal parties (need to reserve). As for room service, your room will be cleaned twice a day at breakfast and dinner time; the cleaners will not change the sheet and quilt everyday in consideration of environmental protection if there is no special request, and the used towels will be changed.

You will be issued a boarding card (room card) which can be used to make credit purchasing on the ship and pay the bill with cash or credit card before disembarking. 

 Structure of a Cruise Ship 
There are usually five floors in a luxury cruise ship:
The First Floor: rooms for the crew of the ship and operating rooms
The Second Floor: main deck floor. The front part is for guest rooms, the middle section the lobby, and the rear part the dining hall.
The Third Floor: the third floor is occupied by guest rooms. There are also bars, library, ballroom, and recreational sections on this floor.
The Fourth Floor: the luxury rooms and fitness center of a ship are usually located on the fourth floor.
The Fifth Floor: this is the recreational deck floor on a ship. There are café, chess and poker room, swimming pool, and sauna room.

The room on a cruise ship is usually the standard room for two people. Single room, family room (a standard room with a small bed for kids), deluxe suite, and presidential suit are also available if you have any special requests. Some luxury ships also provide room for people with leg problems.