Far too many people make the same mistake when it comes to booking their first cruise, according to Virgin Cruises expert Lucy Southerton. Lucy, 28, explains on her Cruising as Crew YouTube channel that first-time cruisers tend to make the same mistakes – “some obvious, some not” – when booking an ocean holiday.

The biggest, and most common, of Lucy’s list of cruising no-nos is picking out the right cruise to start with. Until you try it, you can’t be certain how much you will actually enjoy the experience, she says, and so you shouldn’t book a cruise with too many sea days.

“Ideally you want two sea days max, and ideally not consecutive,” Lucy explains. “The reason for this is that this is your first cruise. You don’t know if you like it yet. I can almost guarantee that if you go on a ship and you spend two to three to four days at sea, you’re probably not going to like it. “

Lucy adds that one of the best things about a cruise holiday is being able to get off the ship and explore a variety of ports, and you should factor that in when selecting your holiday.

A long ocean voyage isn’t for everyone, Lucy says: “There are those people who want to spend 15 days at sea, reading their book, having no internet access, and there are some people who will say ‘I can’t think of anything worse than that’.”

Among the other rookie errors first-time cruisers can make is not paying enough attention to their travel insurance. While flight delays can be inconvenient if you’re booking a resort holiday, you can be assured that sooner or later you will get to your hotel – if a little late.

By contrast, if the flight to the port where your cruise begins is delayed, the result can be a total disaster – you could potentially miss the boat and lose your entire holiday. For that reason, Lucy says, “travel insurance is a nonnegotiable in my opinion when it comes to booking a cruise.”

She says also, that while there are some incredible cruises that will take you to beautiful, unspoiled locations it’s better to stay on the beaten track for your first cruise adventure.

“I would urge you to stick to the Mediterranean, the Caribbean and Alaska,” she says. “These are well-trodden routes. All of the towns and cities that your cruise ship will be stopping at are geared up for cruises… the tour guides in those cities are used to taking cruise passengers on tour. They know the drill. This means you can just relax into it a little bit more.”

With many more useful tips – including which cruise lines to pick, and how to select the ideal cabin, Lucy’s channel is an essential first stop for anyone considering their first cruise holiday.