One of the most appealing things about a cruise out of Singapore is the sheer convenience of it.

On a December sailing, we were in our cosy cabin aboard the 1,800-passenger Legend of the Seas an hour after we left our apartment on Nassim Hill. If we’d been headed to a hotel in Phuket or Bali, we would have still been milling around Changi airport, instead of sipping chardonnay on the deck of a cruise liner and taking in the skyline.

Along with my husband and young sons, I signed up for a three-night cruise to Penang and Port Kelang, near Kuala Lumpur. Having departed one Friday at 4pm, by early next afternoon we were in Penang. We skipped the cultural stuff (see page 224)and hopped into a taxi bound for Ferringhi beach, enjoying the views of pretty colonial homes along the 30-minute drive. We paid RM100 or S$43 for the round-trip, but probably could have bargained harder.

Our boys played in the surf and sand while we relaxed in the sun. Others rode horses along the beach, went parasailing or manoeuvred four-wheelers through the sand – the latter much to our irritation.

Back on the ship at 7pm, we dined later than usual. With Royal Caribbean’s flexible “My Time Dining” reservation system, we could eat at any time between 6.00pm and 9:30pm. The two-deck-high Romeo & Juliet restaurant, one of the most attractive spaces on the ship, has floor-to-ceiling windows, crystal accents, and a pianist to serenade diners. This venue and the ship’s more casual buffet restaurant serve mostly continental cuisine, and offer at least one or two Asian dishes as well.

In Port Kelang the next day, we stayed on board since we had been to KL before. The boys spent a few hours in the Adventure Ocean playroom playing dodgeball and making mini-volcanoes with baking soda and vinegar, while I headed for the coffee shop, gym and spa with the husband. He hit the stair-climber and I had a great spa sampler – a facial with shoulder and scalp massage.

Afterwards, the four of us hit the 9-hole miniature golf course up on deck and scaled the adjacent outdoor rock-climbing wall, both complimentary activities. Our six-year-old sons fearlessly scrambled up the vertical wall as though they had done it before.

Evening entertainment ran the gamut from Vegas-style productions, complete with feather boas and sequinned suits, to singers, pop bands and theme nights. As a US-based company offering a predominantly North American-style cruise experience to its Asian clientele, Royal Caribbean does its part to adapt to the local market, with nightly karaoke, congee at breakfast and electric teapots in the cabins.

Though the fourteen-year-old Legend of the Seas has a somewhat retro look with its décor of brass, mirrors, marble and glass, the vibe is modern and casual. Jackets at dinner were a rarity, Crocs and T-shirts were not. This spacious, unpretentious ship is ideal for families or anyone looking for a laid-back, easy getaway. All you need to do is unpack your bags and leave the driving to the captain and everything else to the crew.

The Legend will return to Asia in November to begin year-round service here, a first for Royal Caribbean. From November 2009 through January 2010, the ship will do short cruises from Singapore to Malaysia and Thailand before moving north to cruise out of Shanghai, Tianjin/ Beijing and Hong Kong, to ports in China, Japan and Korea. For more information, visit www.royalcaribbean.com.

Cruise Tips
Arrive toward the end of the embarkation window for the shortest check-in queues in the terminal. For instance, if you can board between noon and 4pm, board at 3pm.

Pack light and carry your own luggage off the ship, and you’ll be allowed to disembark first at the end of the cruise. Everyone else has to wait as much as an hour or two for the luggage to be offloaded.

Ports
The Legend’s three-to-five-night cruises from Singapore visit some of these ports

Port Kelang (Kuala Lumpur), Malaysia

This drab, industrial port is the access point to the capital, Kuala Lumpur, an hour away by road. Sights include the Petronas Twin Towers, two of the world’s tallest buildings, plus KL’s Chinatown, colonial British architecture and shopping malls. Aside from the ship’s tours, no-frills taxis are lined up at the terminal to take you to KL and to the massive Sultan Salahuddin Mosque (aka Blue Mosque) on the way.

Penang, Malaysia
The country’s oldest British settlement, this charming island offers several nearby historical sites that are worth seeing, including the Khoo Kongsi Chinese clan house, the Penang Museum, and the tiered Kek Lok Si temple set on hills overlooking the island. If you can stand the heat and traffic, a guided tour of the town by trishaw is a fun way to see the sights.

Langkawi, Malaysia
This lush island is all about beaches. Hop in a taxi and spend an hour touring the island before heading to Sailor’s Beach, a wide stretch of silky sand and calm surf that’s perfect for families with young children. The mountainous Langkawi is serene and not over-developed. A cable car station atop Machincang Mountain is a great lookout point.

Phuket, Thailand
Primarily a beach port, Patong beach (where the ship anchors) is the most convenient and offers water sports such as parasailing and jet-skiing. Food and shopping are in abundance. Kata and Nai Harn beaches are also nice and not more than a 30-minute taxi ride away, about the same time it takes to get to the island’s most noteworthy temple, the gilded Wat Chalong monastery.