It's interesting that many SFers are so strongly cruise-averse.
When DH & I cruise, the lion's share of our sea time is spent on our balcony and other quiet ocean view spots. Watching ocean waves calms my soul like nothing else can.
For meals we choose tables for two in a main dining room or a buffet dining room. Not much different from dining out on dry land. Having had some past (very) bizarre tablemates who were assigned to our table for the full cruise, we choose "my time" dining with fresh reservations each night.
We drink very little alcohol, don't gorge on food or eat more frequently than we do at home. We rarely indulge in their beautiful, but largely tasteless, desserts. All are lessons learned over the years, beginning with our first cruise about 35 years ago. (The fresh baked cookies tend to be the best of their desserts.
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We wander by various tucked away areas where live music is being played and often stop to enjoy the talents of many highly accomplished musicians. Shows are held in beautiful, comfortable performance theaters. We attend when and if a show or presentation interests us. Again, not much different from going to a show, lecture or concert on dry land (except it's included in the cruise fare with no advance reservations required).
With a pool in our backyard, swimming among strangers in cold, ocean-water pools holds zero appeal, nor does the poolside's excessively loud music and overly exuberant entertainment staff. Voting on which guy has the best beer belly or hairiest legs doesn't interest me, but some enjoy it. To each their own.
We spend almost no time in the casinos, and when walking through one we tend to watch others play the machines rather than doing so ourselves. If we want to gamble, Las Vegas is a 5-6 hour drive from us, is more fun and offers better odds.
Shore excursions give snapshots into the people, history and geography of various port cities. We rarely book excursions sold by the cruise lines because private tour guides have more interesting, less expensive, less crowded tours. A little advance research is well rewarded.
We don't do:
Photo ops (including the classic bore of "meeting the captain")
Dressing to the nines on formal night (not our thing)
Impulse purchases on board or at ports of call
On most lines, crew members are good to excellent. Friendly, helpful, and invested in guests enjoying themselves. I don't do budget cruise lines or 3 day cruises because they attract a high percentage of rowdy groups on three day drunks (picture bachelorette parties).
Could we contract noro, Covid or other viruses on a cruise? Sure, but we haven't yet. Contracting viruses is a risk whenever people are in contact with outsiders or leave our homes. Bottles of hand sanitizer are ubiquitous on cruise ships and cruisers/staff are strongly encouraged to use them often and to thoroughly wash our hands frequently.
That's how I do cruises. Most experienced cruisers find their own comfort zones.
