Blogs

A first time visitor to Egypt who wants a classical (pharaonic antiquities) experience would do well to book a Nile cruise. Of course modern airlines shuttle tourists to the southern region of Egypt, but historically the Nile cruise was really the only way to visit the temples and tombs located along this stretch of the river. It is still a popular means of visiting upper Egypt and has many advantages to other means of travel.

First of all, it is very nice to unpack once and have your hotel trave

Apologies to my friends and colleagues in the cruise industry or who are cruise fans, but I’m just not that into cruising –  I’d much rather spend my time and money actually experiencing destinations rather than spending most of my trip on a ship (no matter how tricked out), with just occasional, usually frustratingly fleeting tastes of ports of call. There are, however, some cases where a cruise is clearly the best way to experience the most in the most efficient amount of time (unless you hav

I recently went on my first-ever transatlantic cruise. I've been to Europe more than a handfull of times but I'd always flown there in the past. I learned something about myself on this trip: cruising is much more my style. We were on a Norwegian Cruise Line ship and it was a remarkable way to kick off our YMT vacation in Europe. Two weeks on the high seas in the height of hospitality and luxury!

I can see the appeal of cruising; I've certainly enjoyed the other cruises I've been on. It's a verti

Namur

Namur and Dinant
Namur and Dinant are located on the banks of the Meuse and the Ourthe Rivers in the Wallonia region. The French-speaking “Walloon,”

“God Himself could not sink this ship,” a  crewman of the Titanic said to one Mrs. Albert Campbell, as she boarded the ship in Southampton, England

In May 1911, the RMS Titanic gracefully slid  into  the bustling harbor of  Belfast, Northern Ireland, where she was built by Ireland’s skilled ship builders of the Queen’s Yard of Harland & Wolff
A crowd of some 100,000 people cheered the birth of what was then the largest movable manmade object in the world.

Fast forward to April 14, 1912.

Just four

“Our Team Travels” (OTT) by Voyages Groupe Ideal

On the day we left Venice there were seven cruise ships (7!) docked at the Porto di Venezia, a short walk from the apartment Jerry and I were renting.

The ships had names:

The Happy Dolphin,

Europa Palace,

Crystal Serenity,

Ocean Princess,

names that conspire to transport you away from the reality of being on a boat with thousands, all clamoring to get out and onto the slender, temporal islands of Venice.

The ships are massive: towering white behemoths out of all proportion to the delicate scale of th

La brillante carrera del capitán italiano Francesco Schettino podría tener un final de pesadilla. El que fue hasta hace tres días capitán del lujoso barco Costa Concordia está preso, y su cara reflejando una mezcla de sorpresa, angustia y ¿miedo? me impactó.

Lo conocí mientras hacía una travesía por el Caribe en el Costa Atlántica. Eran sin duda unas condiciones muy distintas a las que vive ahora. Al timón de la nave lucía en control total, y no era solo mi percepción, sino que así se sentía. Seg

Cruize Cast Blog: A Cruise Podcast Full Blog with More Pictures

  When looking at the cost of a cruise in the Mediterranean, one of the largest expenses is shore excursions. Most people assume that since they are in a foreign country, it makes sense to pay the high price for cruise sponsored excursions. While these excursions do provide the traveler the guarantee that the ship will not leave without them as well as a licensed guide, many ports are so easy to tour on your own that the DIY option

Vuelvo a escribir de Britto y no es que nos hayamos hecho amigos luego de que conociera al famoso artista Pop brasileño en Finlandia, en el 2010. En esa ocasión el nombre ni siquiera me era familiar, y que me perdonen los millones de fans que tiene alrededor del mundo.

Pero Romero Britto fue la estrella invitada para compartir con el grupo de periodistas que viajamos hasta ese país para ver el Allure of the Seas de Royal Caribbean. Ese, que es el barco más grande del mundo, es gemelo del Oasis of

Some people like to bring a little comfort from home on vacation – like a pillow.  Others want to know their TV shows will be available for them to watch while on vacation. Still others want to leave home behind altogether to learn all new things and broaden their horizons.  This Wine Diva wants to bring her favorite wines with her on vacation AND  learn about new exciting  food and beverage combinations.  Where did I do that?  On a Holland America cruise to Alaska.  Buckle up babe, this ain’t y

When I first visited Turkey, I did something I won’t be able to do again. I gave the coach driver a 2 million lira tip! Shortly after my visit, the revalued their currency, simply by deleting the word ‘million’. The Turk with the price of a packet of cigarettes in his pocket is no longer a millionaire!

But, we weren’t there to marvel at the currency. Most of the shopkeepers in the resort town of Kusadasi, where our cruise ship called on its tour around the Aegean Sea preferred to take Euros, an