My dear cruise-a-holics, I am afraid I have fallen madly in love. Her ships are sleek, stylish, and I suspect, hand-crafted by God himself. Her name you ask? Norwegian Cruise Lines. You see, a few weeks ago we were privileged to travel to Miami and tour the brand spanking new Norwegian Epic and her elder, but equally beautiful friend the Pearl. None of us have been the same since. But for those of you who have neglected to expand your cruising horizons, allow me to introduce you to the greatness that is Norwegian in terms you will understand. Norwegian has the fun and spirit of Carnival but the class and aesthetics of Royal Caribbean all with a few drops of hot sauce for a bit of a kick.

 It would be grave injustice to discuss Norwegian without mentioning their most notable feature which they have ever so cleverly and appropriately dubbed “freestyle” cruising. Now you may have been cruelly misled by other cruise lines to believe that freestyle is simply the choice of attending early or late dining but this is nothing short of a bad joke. I will now open your eyes to true freedom: the Pearl offers fifteen, I repeat FIFTEEN, different dining options and I don’t mean the standard buffets and little snack centers sprinkled about here and there. I mean Hibachi grills, Sport Bar classics, Pan Asian deliciousness, sushi, Italian, two main dining rooms, and the list goes on. Sailing aboard the Epic? Add to that a churrascaria and the Spiegel Tent featuring Cirque Dreams for your dining entertainment because Norwegian can’t just stop at fabulous food. Oh and about those awkward silent moments when you realized you had nothing in common with your table mates, don’t sweat that. You choose your own table on Norwegian. All this whenever you want, so don’t worry about trying to round up the kids before your 6:15 dinner appointment, just relax… dinner is on your time.

                  

Dinner takes up all of two hours of your daily cruise schedule, so I must now educate you on your options for the other 12 or so hours you will find yourself wandering about the ship. Of course there is the standard casino, day spa, boutiques, blah, blah, blah. On to the good stuff that truly defines the cruise experience, bowling anyone? Ok, so maybe that won’t define your experience but no other line offers bowling at sea so we have to give them some credit for ingenuity. More importantly the Epic features Fat Cat’s Jazz and Blues Club and the Headliner’s Comedy club in addition to the Epic Theater that hosts the remarkable Blue Man Group. For all you greedy people that still aren’t satisfied, you can also enjoy Legends in Concert every night in the Manhattan Room conveniently equipped with a dance floor for when you hear your favorite old tune. The kiddies are also well taken care of in the Aqua Park complete 3 slides and the 200 foot Epic Plunge as well as a number of scheduled activities to keep them out of your hair. If you think I’m done, how very wrong you are because I could not forget to mention my most very favorite place: Bliss Lounge. Bliss it is with its sultry purple hues and mesmerizing golds. Add to this finger-snapping tunes, over-sized couches suggestively stuffed into every dark corner, and a few mind altering drinks and you’ve got a good time on your hands, friend. They have even fitted the place with a few cages for your dancing convenience, tee hee. For the tamer at heart, I recommend Spice H2O, a strictly 21 and up, outside, two level beach club. It’s like a little piece of Miami for all (adults at least) to enjoy.  

I could go on for days but I hope this has been enough to show you the light when it comes to the cruising experience. There are alternatives to what is commonly believed to be the “standard” in cruising. So, I invite you to have your cake and eat it too aboard Norwegian where you can have everything that Carnival and Royal Caribbean offer and more. 

According to the FCCA’s 2010 Cruise Industry Overview, the Caribbean plays host to almost 5 million cruise passengers a year, making this tropical oasis the number one cruise destination. While I don’t down play the beauty that is the crystal blue waters and white, powdered sands of Grand Cayman, St. Maarten, or pretty much any Caribbean destination, don’t you think it’s about time we expand our horizons? The cruising industry has so much more to offer than this one, small handful of islands. We’ve got 221,208 total miles of coast line here people, so let’s start exploring!

Today, I take you to Africa. For those of you with any amount of geographical knowledge, you know Africa takes up a significant amount of space on a map. In fact, the entire continental U.S. could fit into the Sahara Desert alone! What this means for you is variety; big places tend to have a lot to offer and Africa is no exception. For the sake of organization, we’ll start this educational journey in the north and work our way south.

Italian born Costa Cruise Lines offers a 7 day itinerary through Egypt and the Red Sea. While Egypt evokes images of deserts, pharaohs, and pyramids, Costa introduces passengers to a wetter side of things. Sharm El Sheikh is the first port of call on this voyage and traces of it’s beginnings as a small fishing village are now hidden treasures in what has become one of the main international centers on the Red Sea. While fishing may no longer sustain this large city, the Red Sea remains a key to its economic success. With almost 38 miles of coastline featuring toasted almond sands and the russet ridges of the Sinai mountain range as a backdrop, you can imagine that this port has quite a draw. I must be sure to note that the this draw does not end at the shoreline with over 30 dives sites including what divers consider some of the best diving regions in the world and four coral reefs. But for land lovers, although a cruise might not be the vacation of choice for you, the conventional spas, golf courses and casinos can be enjoyed alongside more unique attractions as Mt. Sinai, the Coloured Canyon, and well-known St. Catherine’s Monastery.

Costa takes cruisers into Israel and Jordan before returning to Egypt on Day 5 via Port Safaga. In stark contrast to the bustling city that is Sharm El Sheikh, Safaga strays a bit off the beaten path. While its position on the Red Sea makes it another ideal diving location, its black sand beaches are noted for their untainted beauty and therapeutic waters. Tourists visiting Safaga, especially those with skin irritations, can enjoy the healing powers of the water’s high saline (salt) concentration as well as the mineral pools and year-around warm climate. The unpolluted nature of this port even drew the attention of ancient Queen Hatshepsut who it is written suffered from psoriasis.

Unfortunately, we must now sail on over to our last Egyptian paradise, Sokhna. If you’re the type to get all giddy about discovering where the locals like to hang, be excited. The mere two hour drive (soon to be one with the completion of a new highway) between Cairo and Sokhna has made this town a purely Egyptian beach getaway. But if you have already been filled to your heart’s content with the Red Sea, beaches, and all things water, the road to Cairo isn’t one way only. You may also choose to visit the Eastern Desert Monasteries which is an even shorter ninety minute trip. With a good eleven hours at your disposal, there is plenty of time to not only make these mini-excursions but also truly explore the area before the return trip to the ship.

And so ends our journey with Costa Cruise Lines through Egypt, but we have only just begun! Stay tuned in for next week as we move a little farther south with the luxurious Silversea Cruises departing from Port Louis, Mauritius on a 10 day odyssey through a number of southern African ports. Then we will be on to the cape itself, with MSC Cruise Lines providing us with another perspective on this under traveled continent.

When Disney launched their first ship in the summer of 1998, they brought the term “kid- friendly” to new heights within the cruise industry. Instead of the expected quiet upper deck crammed with beach chairs and sleeping cruisers, Minnie and Mickey could be found with all of their best friends, dancing to the sounds of the Caribbean. But since that time, other cruise lines have been smart to follow their lead in employing the names of popular kid’s characters to wrangle in customers from this new cruising demographic. Norwegian Cruise Lines was one of these lines and introduced Nickelodeon at Sea to their ships in the summer of 2008. But wait a minute, if Nickelodeon at Sea was introduced two years ago, its old news! There is nothing to talk about, right? Wrong! While Dora, SpongeBob, and Blue all made their debuts during that summer in 2008, this was just a special appearance made once a year. Now, these famed friends are making appearances all year around!

This updated plan for Nickelodeon programming first hit the high seas back in April aboard the Norwegian Jewel and shortly after in July aboard the brand new Norwegian Epic. While these two ships will be playing host to Nickelodeon year-around, Nickelodeon themed cruises will also be held annually aboard other Norwegian vessels similar to what Norwegian offered back in 2008.

Now that I have gotten all the essential pieces of information out of the way, I can get to the good stuff! You see, Nickelodeon at Sea doesn’t just consist of a few photo ops with a guy in a SpongeBob suit or a show or two featuring Diego and his animal friends. No, Nickelodeon at Sea is an integrative, interactive family experience designed to get kids and parents alike up out of their beach chairs and slinging cream pies or getting slimed. For kids or anyone with kids, you know these are a few of the key components of Nick’s channel programming that draws in millions. They don’t want your cruising experience to be any different. Slime Time Live, for instance, offers the opportunity for all cruisers to learn the joys of cold, green goop dripping down your neck and back. If you don’t find that quite so appealing, a number of other regularly schedule activities are held poolside for cruiser’s entertainment. Not to mention the scavenger hunts, family improv shows, music parties, TV star appearances, interactive game shows, movie premieres… need I go on?

I know what all you parents are thinking; cruising is about getting away and relaxing and nothing about slime or pies exactly correlates with either of those things. But I assure you, Norwegian has not forgotten its adult clientele in favor of the children; you are after all the hand that feeds them. Both the Jewel and the Epic feature a sports deck, two in the case of the Epic, as well as have full spas for the cruiser in search of the ultimate rest and relaxation. The Epic also hosts Spice H20, a two-level, adults only beach club and the SVEDKA Ice Bar. We must not also forget Jewel’s 20 and Epic’s 28 different drinking and dining options, number of music clubs, casino, and theatre. So when you’ve had enough of family bonding time, there are plenty of options to get away for a couple of hours.

So next time you’re considering a family vacation, think a little more out of the box and sail Norwegian Cruise Line. With programming that manages to cater to the family as a whole in one second and the kids and adults as separate entities in the next, you really can’t go wrong!  For more information on Nickelodeon at Sea and all things Norwegian, check out www.NCL.com. If you like what you see, give us a call! We’ll help you set it up. 

Recently we had an opportunity tour the Celebrity Solstice with a group of travel associates while it was in port in Fort Lauderdale.   During our time onboard we had the chance to experience just a little bit of what this beautiful ship offers.  The Solstice, a 122,000-ton floating city, has more of a resort feel than what you may experience on other cruise ships. Besides the ship’s incredible ambiance, crew members we encountered during our tour were all friendly and attentive—and didn’t mind taking time out of their busy work schedule to point us in the right direction or answer our questions. With its understated elegance, the Solstice seems more intimate, down to earth. In a word: relaxed. 

Although we didn’t see all the cabin choices aboard the Solstice (there just wasn’t enough time, of course), the three cabins we did tour were all warm, well appointed and featured a good amount of storage. The Royal Suite and the Penthouse Suite (which someone commented looked like a condo at sea) were very impressive in their design and layout.  The Solstice also has unique “Aqua Class” cabins.  They are the same in design as the deluxe ocean view staterooms, however they also offer additional spa-oriented amenities, upgraded bedding, robes, complimentary bottled water, canapés and access to an exclusive "spa" room service menu.

The Solstice seems geared toward the adult, though from what we saw children and teens are just as welcome on board and have plenty to keep them occupied and entertained while the adults enjoy their fun. Programs onboard included the "Fun Factory" for 3 to 11 year-old's and the "X-Club" for 12 to 17 year-old's. For sports enthusiasts of all ages the Solstice offers a basketball court on Deck 15.

Besides the Grand Epernay Dining room, the ships main dining room, there are several specialty dining options.  All specialty restaurants boasted beautiful decors with intuitive layouts.  Among the standouts are Silk Harvest, offering family-style Asian dining and the Tuscan Grille steakhouse.   For an even more intimate and elegant experience there is the Murano restaurant, serving modern continental cuisine.   Exclusively for AquaClass guests, Blu restaurant serves healthy dining options in an elegant environment.   More casual dining options include the Oceanview Café, Bistro on Five and the Aqua Spa Café.   For indulging,   Café al Bacio is the place to go.   In addition to the specialty coffee, pastries and Italian ices they also feature a gelato bar (molto bene!)

After enjoying all of the food that the Solstice offers guests can work it all off or just lounge at the AquaSpa.   The highlights include the Persian garden, with soft music, gentle steam and heated seats and the Solarium, a perfect place relax on a cozy lounge chair. 

The lounge areas were impressive, most notably Cellar Masters wine bar and Crush Martini bar. The wine bar, with its enomatic machines, deep leather chairs and couches feels like you have stepped back in the time of speakeasies.  There are also wine tasting events on board for passengers to experience wines from around across the globe. The Solstice also offers a frozen vodka bar where the bar is actually kept at freezing with a thin layer of ice to keep your beverage cold, of course.  For entertainment the Solstice has the standard fare along with some unique options.  There is the main theater which features production shows and headliners.  There are also venues that offer comedy shows, live music, films and even a hot glass blowing show.

During our time onboard we were lucky enough to be able to have lunch in the Grand Epernay Dining room.  The food was impressive to say the least.  Our sample menu was creative and tasty.  If this is the quality of food in the main dining room we can only imagine what the specialty dining rooms offer.

With lunch over (sadly), it was time to make our way back through the ship and head back ashore to reality. As we all prepared to disembark, a chamber quartet was playing a familiar Mozart sonata. It was an elegant and fitting conclusion to a wonderful Sunday tour of the Celebrity Solstice.