Here are five things you may miss on a cruise ship unless you actually look for them.

1. THE HORIZON

You may think you know the horizon but it is different at sea. Far out on the ocean, from the top of a cruise ship, you can see a 360-degree horizon.

You need to make the effort to see this as it is both exhilarating and just a little frightening. It gives you perspective on how big the world is, and how small you are. It makes you feel like a genuine seafarer (maybe not Cook or Columbus, whose ships did not have pools, but you get the idea). It makes you understand why our forebears thought you could sail off the edge of the world.

An uninterrupted 360-degree view of the horizon is a sight to behold, but even more thought-provoking is when you see, at the very edge of the world, a tiny speck that must be another ship. In bygone days the thought must have been “friend or foe?”

2. CLOUDS

Yes, you can see them on land, but it is different at sea. The formations seem different, more dramatic. The effect of the ocean can create some amazing forms and, as the ship is moving, the formations change. In some places you go from sunshine, through quick squalls, then out the other side. Again, you’ll feel like a true seafarer, assessing the weather. You’ll see cool shapes and odd patterns. But, like the horizon, you have to be outside – this time looking up, not out.

media_cameraESCAPE - travel - Royal Caribbean International cruise ship Legend of the Seas, King Neptune and assistant prepare a ritual crossing the Equator to turn first-timers 'polliwogs' into ' shellbacks.' Pic Brad Crouch

3. POLLIWOGS

They appear on select cruises, and only once, so check your daily program and listen for announcements so you don’t miss this hilarious rite of passage. Ships that cross the equator inevitably have ceremonies to mark the important event.

It is hot, so festivities are done by the pool, where slimy Polliwogs – those who have never crossed the equator – are converted to trusty Shellbacks. King Neptune and various assistants in fancy dress preside as charges are read against the Polliwogs (lousy karaoke, hogging the buffet etc). Rituals include kissing a fish and being covered in flour and water as part of their baptism to enter the Kingdom of Neptune, much to the amusement of the assorted fellow passengers who often wisely decline to admit they are Polliwogs.

It is all great fun and, even if you don’t participate, there will probably be a certificate from King Neptune in your stateroom to acknowledge you have crossed the equator. Just don’t miss the ceremony – the ship won’t turn around for a repeat performance.

4. SPACE

Not just man’s final frontier, it is all around you while inside your cruise ship. Ships are measured in gross tonnes, which, contrary to some beliefs, is not the weight (displacement) that would register if you placed the ship on the bathroom scales. It is a measure of the ship’s volume and originated as a ship’s cargo-carrying capacity. It can also be a measure of the premium versus budget ships.

Loads of space in public areas, larger staterooms, expansive dining areas – it all adds up. The world’s biggest cruise ship, Harmony of the Seas, which launched this year, is a mind-boggling 226,000 gross tons, compared with theTitanic’s 46,329. So look up and around when inside your ship to check out the gross tonnage.

media_cameraSanctuary, Regal Princess cruise ship Image supplied by Princess Cruises

5. SECRET SPOT

It is easy to find a favourite spot on a cruise ship, but unless you take the time to explore your ship from aft to bow, on every deck that’s accessible by passengers, you may miss a nook. It might be a hidden sun trap, it might be a cosy small lounge, it might be the gym. I’ve known passengers to disembark large ships only to learn from fellow departing guests that there was a small adults-only pool/oasis tucked away that they never discovered. So by all means find your favourite spot, but make sure you walk the decks so you know all the ship’s secrets.