Tips & Articles on Traveling, Aviation, Boating and Cruises
Cruises
Spectacular 5 Country Scandinavian Cruise” on Costa’s Atlantica
Jun 14th
Ive cruised dozens of ships on various lines and in my opinion this is as good as it gets on a mega-liner of 2200+ passengers with 920 crew. Costas Atlantica was a floating palace of art deco furnishings, marble inlaid floors and millions of dollars invested in original works of art. It exceeded my expectations. Also I normally loose weight on cruises shunning the ships artificial fare. This time I over indulged on varied menus of fresh food. I ate enough prosciutto and ice cream to last a decade. The Italian accented cuisine was prepared by Euro-chefs and culinary graduates of the world famous Chaine des Rotisseurs.
We had an awesome group of 60 who blended harmoniously. No love connections occurred (that I know of), but friendships developed as we bonded on our AFS private shore excursions and parties onboard. This group was blessed throughout with the best weather the Baltic region could ever provide – 68 daily and no rain. The First Officer said this was the best weather of the summer.
Each country visited was a lesson in culture and history. We saw an eyeful along our 1987 nautical miles. In Copenhagen Denmark – with its Mermaid, Stockholm Sweden the archipelago referred to as Venice of the North, Helsinki Finland so friendly, modern and clean, Grand St. Petersburg Russia where we squeezed in a full power tour of the Hermitage, palaces, onion domed churches, canals and an evening ballet. Our final port was charming Tallinn Estonia where the entire walled Old Town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was like walking through a fairytale.
For our days at sea there was never a dull moment with 3 pools, shops, casino, luxurious spa and contests with the crew. The 2 story gym was so high tech that I didnt know how to turn on the equipment, so the only exercise I got was jumping to conclusions. The midnight buffets were the most magnificent Ive ever witnessed with countless ice sculptures. There was a house baked out of bread and piano shaped from white chocolate.
On our last night we attempted to pack all our trinkets collected: faberge egg, Russian nesting dolls, Swedish crystal, Finish glassware, Nordic pewter, lingonberry jams, amber jewelry, hand knit sweaters and a million T-shirts. Many things such as our fur hats may end up in a garage sale some day, but the bargaining sure was fun.
We tasted just an appetizer of this 5 country smorgasbord but leave perfectly satisfied. As I say Bon Voyage to this unique part of this world, I am able to remiss another journey well done.
Your Own Ship Condo Part Time
Jun 14th
There has been a lot of buzz lately about living on a Cruise Ship full time as an alternative to living in a retirement home.
However, it does not seem very exciting after about 6 months or so.
Ships, even Cruise Ships, are noisy for at least 2 reasons:
1. Engine Noise.
No matter how new the ship, no matter what new turbine engines the ship may have, the 24 hour engine noise may get to people.
2. Parties, bars and restaurants.
There is always a kind of party atmosphere on a Cruise Ship, people eat and drink too much, nobody tells them when to go to bed, they don’t have to get up the next morning, so, parties make noise.
It gets boring staring at the ocean 2 out of 3 days.
Although ship’s activities are very many these days, after a while you’ll get bored with them.
Cabins in general are very small, so after a while you’re going to miss your large living room on the mainland with its 75″ TV.
However, if 6 months are too long, there are other alternatives; Cruise maybe a couple of months a year.
If you follow that action things become interesting.
Here are some options:
The Monthly $18,000 route:
Residensea, the world’s only floating Condo, a 47,000 ton cruise ship which sails the oceans,
reportedly offers staterooms for rent for as low as $18,000 per month.
This Cruise Ship has designer apartments with original art.
I mean, this is luxury personified.
Great if you can get it.
Around the world in 102 Days.
By small Luxury Cruise Ship
In 2005 a trip around the world lasting 110 days could be had for as low as $15,600 per person.
That is $150 per person per day including food and all facilities. That is $9000 per couple per month.
This same couple would spend a minimum of $4000 a month in an old folks home.
So going on this 3 1/2 month World Cruise would cost them $9000 – $4000 = $5000 per month.
Now let me tell you what this $5000 for 2 people gets them:
The Itinerary:
Southampton ,Tenerife – Canary Islands St Vincent – Cape Verde Islands Fortaleza – Brazil Rio de Janeiro – Brazil Montevideo – Uruguay Buenos Aires – Argentina Puerto Madryn – Argentina Port Stanley – Falkland Islands Cruise around Cape Horn Ushuaia – Argentina Transit Beagle Channel Punta Arenas – Chile Chacabuco – Chile Puerto Montt – Chile Santiago – Chile Cruise by Easter Island Cruise by Pitcairn Island Papeete – Tahiti Bora Bora – Society Islands Pago Pago – American Samoa Lautoka – Fiji Islands Noumea – New Caledonia Brisbane – Australia Sydney – Australia Eden – Australia Philip Island – Australia Melbourne – Australia Hobart -Australia Transit Milford Sound Dunedin – New Zealand Christchurch – New Zealand Transit Marlborough Sound Wellington – New Zealand Auckland – New Zealand Nuku ‘Alofa – Tonga Apia – Western Samoa Christmas Island Honolulu – Oahu, Hawaii Kahalui – Maui, Hawaii Los Angeles – USA Acapulco – Mexico Huatulco – Mexico Transit Panama Canal Curacao – Dutch Antilles Margherita Island – Venezuela Barbados Ponta Delgada
The Luxury:
This is on a very luxurious Cruise Ship that has only outside or balcony cabins.
By Freighter
In 2005 a trip around the world lasting 102 days by various freighting companies could be had for $11,750 per person.
That is $117 per person per day including food and all facilities. That is $7000 per couple per month.
This same couple would spend a minimum of $4000 a month in an old folks home.
So going on this 3 1/2 month World Cruise would cost them $7000 – $4000 = $3000 per month.
For this you get a double suite with double occupancy.
Port Times range from 1 to 2 days.
The advantage seems to be that there is lots of space in four double suites.
The double suites all consist of two rooms, a bedroom with twin beds and a living room.
The cabins have showers.
Each cabin also has its own VCR and TV monitor and refrigerator.
On board facilities are a private passenger lounge and the sharing of the officers’ table
There is also an indoor swimming pool.
Cruise Hopping
This is cheaper yet.
There are lots of 7 day cruises for about $100 per day per passenger.
So you could conceivably take 7 day cruises continuously in the same area, say, the Caribbean, on the same ship, or on different ships until you get sick and tired of the area.
You can then do the same thing from the West Coast.
Logistics would be more difficult because you may need a place to stay every 7th night.
Discount Cruising
Effective in 2005 there is now a discount European Cruise Line operating in the Caribbean that charges $46 per person per night but you have to get your own food.
Maximum time they allow you to cruise is 2 weeks.
Still, can’t get any cheaper than this.
So, if you want to live on a Cruise Ship, it can be done in a variety of different ways.
You Too Can Live On A Cruise Ship
Jun 13th
Have you ever dreamt about living on a Cruise Ship forever?
Traveling the world, seeing all kinds of exotic places, cruising forever with not a care in the world.
It is now a reality, and several possibilities exist.
1. The World of ResidenSea was launched in 2002 as a condominium-style residential community contained on a 644-foot cruise ship, complete with restaurants, a spa and fitness center and other amenities similar to what you’d find on a typical mid-size cruise liner.
As with land-based condo resorts, short-term rentals of a week or more may be arranged without committing to ownership, and a wide range of ports is included on The World’s ongoing circumnavigation of the globe.
Residensea has problems.
-disputes between owners of Condos on the ship and tourists.
Owners want to stay in exciting ports for several days, tourists that the ship needs to get full occupancy to cover the cost of unsold suites want to move from port to port every day.
Sales of actual condos on the ship have stalled due to fears of terrorism, uncertainty in financial markets and uncertainty about the future of the ship.
Annual maintenance costs run at $100,000 per suite while an actual suite now costs 1.9 to 4 million dollars. This ad recently appeared on the Internet:
“Rent an outside luxury cabin from $600 a day”
From somebody who owns 2 cabins on the ResidenSea. That runs to $18,000 per month.
2. Join an organization that will buy a used Cruise Ship and convert it to Condos.
This concept has been tried and failed.
The practical problems were just too great.
-Trying to get enough people interested
-Trying to get commitments from people
-Trying to find a ship that was not going to fall apart immediately upon leaving the harbor.
-Trying to get cash from people before a ship was bought.
And these were just problems BEFORE a ship was even bought.
Think about the problems there would be after the ship was bought.
3. Buy regular cruises on an on-going basis.
This seems the only practical way in which you can live permanently on a Cruise Ship.
Here are the estimated costs based on double occupancy starting on the cheap:
Basic Cruise Costs; $100 per day x 2 people = $6000 per month
This includes gratuities, all you can eat and port costs.
Independent costs of living for Seniors seems to be about $2000 per month per person = $4000.
This includes food.
So for $2000 per month extra a couple can live on a Cruise Ship (or ships) forever.
The advantages of this type of living if you have that extra $24,000 per year to spend are these:
-Quality of the meals on a Cruise Ship is probably a lot better than what you would get in an independent living type of situation.
-You can vary cruise lines, use a Caribbean Cruise Line this month, an Alaska Line next month and a European Line for the next 6 months.
-Shows every night.
-Built-in new friends every week or so. Most cruises end within 7 days and a new crop of potential friends arrives for you to interact with.
-An entire Cruise Staff to help you with ANYTHING if you have a problem.
So, if you want to live on a Cruise Ship: $24,000 a year extra is all it takes for 2 people.
Yangtze River Cruise
Jun 12th
Yangtze is a river of epic proportions, stretched across miles over the China mainland from its origin in Qinghai Province to the East China Sea, making it the third longest river in the world behind the Nile and Amazon. A journey along this river provides the most rarest and beautiful views of Mother Nature, exquisite wildlife, scattered industry belts, and some of the biggest cities and towns in the country. If there is a river in China to take a cruise along, this is that river!
Yangtze River Cruises are rated as the best available in China and in world as well and the biggest advantage of choosing to traverse the river in a cruise liner over the conventional modes of transport is that the entire journey is not at all taxing and exhausting. There are no frequent needs for packing and unpacking of the bags nor are there any unending queues in front of verification counters. Once on board, you can place your belongings in your room and focus on enjoying the journey rather than carrying it all along wherever you go. Further, all document related aspects will be handled by the managerial staff of the tour company sponsoring the cruise. The travelers need not have to worry about such technicalities. Also the facilities offered in the cruise liners – such room service, spa service, entertainment, workout facilities, medical facilities and the mouth watering cuisines in the restaurants are simply top class, at par with the standards offered by the five star hotels in Shanghai or Beijing.
In short, a traveler on the cruise can enjoy the journey without any worries, in a leisurely pace, on his/her own terms, without getting bogged down by the thoughts of what next or where on earth I am? After all, we all undertake pleasure trips for sheer pleasure and not to entertain any worries.
For the best Yangtze River cruises, take few minutes to browse the various travel websites and it wont take too long for you to find out a tour schedule that matches your convenience and budget. Select a suitable one and you wont be disappointed at what you see and experience during the days in the cruise liner. Be prepared for the river cruise of your life!
Why Everyone Can Enjoy The Cruise Travel Experience
Jun 12th
Today cruise travel is not just a travel experience for rich people. Cruisers come in all shapes, sizes, and walks of life. And now, with the abundance of Mega-liners there are many berths (cabins) to fill and deals to be had. Because the ships have become so large and plentiful, cruise lines are very affordable. Usually less than the price of a hotel room which does not include:
* Transportation
* Transfers
* Breakfast
* Lunch
* High tea
* Dinner
* 24 hour free room service
* Sports
* Entertainment
* Parties
* Discos
* Nightclub shows
* Airfare
So yes, absolutely cruising is a great vacation value. In some cases it is more inexpensive to take a cruise vacation than to take a land vacation. There are many two-for-one and early bird specials if you take the time to look (or have your Travel Agent do the leg work). And if you book a year in advance the savings can be huge. If your schedule is flexible or you live near a port, last minute deals are available. If the cruise isnt sold out, the cruise line will drastically reduce the rate. You will be a revenue source on board that they would not have had if the cabin remained empty.
Here’s a cruise tip, you can also save by booking back-to-back cruises with up to 50% off the second week. Check to see if the second week itinerary is identical to the first week. Some ships will do the Eastern Caribbean one week and then the Western Caribbean the second week, making a much more interesting voyage for you.
The thing about cruise travel is that it is all inclusive. This includes all meals (and this can go on all day) entertainment, all kinds of lessons-take some dance lessons, theyre fun-, bingo, high tea, sports activities even health and fitness. If you go to a hotel you pay extra for each of these activities and you have to find them and schedule them yourself.
For instance, I just spent a couple of days at a Resort in Boca Raton on business. To use any of the spa facilities you had to pay forty dollars per day and that was just for the steam and sauna rooms. Cruises give you a list of activities each and everyday so you can plan your day in advance. Carry this with you so you know what activities are planned for that day, what time they are scheduled, and where they are located. Be practical; dont try to do them all, youll be exhausted.
There is so much to do there is no time to be bored. And then of course, you always have the option of sitting by one of the many pools and just relaxing. Here is what is not included in your cruise vacation:
* Alcoholic Beverages
* Beverages except coffee and tea
* Beauty Salon and spa packages
* Casino
* Golf Simulator
* Shore Excursions
* Computer services
* Bingo
* Telephone Calls
* Medical services (if not insured)
There are also activities that require a nominal fee such as wine tasting and some crafts. Port Charges and Government fees and some air taxes are not included but should be quoted to you by your travel agent and will be charged to your credit card when paying for the cruise.
To keep track of your spending on the newer ships there is interactive TV and you can keep on top of your ship board expenditures with just a one or two pushes of a button. If the cruise line you chose doesnt have that amenity, you can go to the pursers office and ask to see a copy of the bill to date.
I hope this has given you a glimpse into a cruise vacation. So, call your travel agent and get ready to Set Sail.
Happy Cruising!
Copyright 2006 Mary Hanna All Rights Reserved.
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