We make money from advertisers and affiliate partners. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Cruising
  • We Sailed Away with Styx & Carnival Live and it was Awesome

    In a market that is nearly saturated but at the same time working feverishly to expand its reach, the cruise lines are in a fight to find a way to fill their ships and bring in new cruisers. While other lines are building ever bigger boats with features unheard of at sea, Carnival decided to focus on entertainment and creating once-in-a-lifetime experiences that are surprisingly affordable. Earlier this month we had the opportunity to spend a week on the brand new Carnival Breeze and experience it for ourselves.

    Unlike "themed cruises" the band isn't actually on the ship during the voyage, so that means that you can still have a "normal" cruise experience but on concert night things turn up a notch. On this cruise, we started in Miami followed by stops in Ocho Rios, Jamaica, Georgetown, Grand Cayman, and then during our stop at Cozumel, Mexico the band loaded their equipment on the ship and we stayed in port till about 1 a.m.

  • How does Carnival Cruise Lines see Social Media and Bloggers?

    Interview with @CarnivalCruise about Bloggers and Social Media from @ManTrippingIn our second interview of this series, we talk with Joyce Olivia, PR at Carnival Cruise Lines.

    As you know, we are HUGE fans of Carnival and I think they are one of the top travel brands out there that really understands how social media and the travel industry have come together to extend the experience that most people will only be able to experience for a few days each year, into something that they plan, dream, and remember all year long.

     

     

  • A Day Aboard Costa Deliziosa

    As a cruise ship junkie I was thrilled for the opportunity to spend even a few hours aboard a ship that normally doesn't operate in the United States. Costa Crociere is an Italian cruise line that while the first to operate in the Caribbean is now working to rise to the attention of the North American travel market. The Costa Deliziosa in particular does an annual around the world tour and that's why she happened to stop in San Diego and give us the opportunity to check her out.

  • Carnival Miracle Cruise Review

    While Caribbean cruising may be king, the west coast of Mexico also offers some exciting opportunities for fun as well. To explore these, we boarded the Carnival Miracle and set off on a seven-day journey with our review starting in Los Angeles (Long Beach) and included two days in Cabo San Lucas and Puerta Vallarta before heading home.

  • Golden Princess Pacific Coastal Cruise Review

    There's more to cruising than the big three - (Carnival, Royal, and NCL) and I have been wanting to try Princess for quite a while, but never had the opportunity. Last month, we took a quick weekend escape out of Los Angeles on the Golden Princess and finally got to experience what it means to "Escape Completely".

    The Golden Princess is a grand class ship, measuring 109,000 gross tons and carrying 2,600 passengers (double occupancy) plus 1,100 crew members.

    Princess launched Golden in 2001, but retrofitted the ship in 2009.

  • Royal Caribbean Freedom of the Seas Review

    For this trip review, we decided to try the Freedom of the Seas. It isn't the newest or largest ship in Royal's fleet but it certainly had some fun "Designed for Wow" features that others simply don't, so let's start exploring.

  • Carnival Dream: Cloud 9 Spa Deck Review

    header-imageOver the past year, Heather and I have caught the cruising bug. It started out simply as a cheap way to get away for a few days without the distraction of email and mobile phones, but it has now become something that we actually enjoy.

    As we have progressed from "let's just cruise" to "let's have a great time" there are a few things that we have wanted to try out but had been focused only on budget. When we booked on the Dream, we got the opportunity to upgrade our rooms to the Cloud 9 Spa deck...

  • Carnival Glory Review - Boston 7-Day

    header-imageHaving cruised a few times in the Caribbean we wanted to do something new. A tour of New England and Maritime Canada, seemed like a great idea to explore a different area and show my wife some of the places I visited when I was younger. We had fun, the Carnival Glory is a great ship, but we learned a couple important things that will help guide us on future cruises 1) Sometimes the first trip on an itinerary is a bit rough 2) the "total cost" of a Caribbean cruise can be MUCH CHEAPER than other destinations 3) Sometimes you just need to be able to make your own fun when mother nature doesn't cooperate.

    Next year (2013), Carnival is set to bring the Glory back to Boston, but with Funship 2.0 Upgrades, and hopefully our cruise helped both Carnival and the various ports iron out any kinks that we experienced.

  • Carnival Ecstasy Review

    carnival-ecstasy-bowWhat's better - new mega boats or the smaller, older ships like the Carnival Ecstasy? While I can't answer the first part, I can say that the Ecstasy is an extremely fine ship and was as clean and polished as the much newer Carnival Victory that we sailed on a few months ago. This trip was Heather and I's "test" to see if we "really liked cruising" and I have to say that the Ecstasy and her staff passed with flying colors - Heather and I even executed our "future cruise" deposit, so now we are committed to sailing again!

    This cruise wasn't fancy, wasn't long, and wasn't expensive. It was however a perfect post holiday romantic retreat.

  • Carnival Victory Review

    Carnival Victory is now known as Carnival Radiance and has been updated with all new features.

    Cruising is one of the least tapped into mancation opportunities, but in reality to provides a great opportunity to party all day, see exciting sites, eat great food, and try things you maybe haven't tried in the past. We sailed on the Carnival Victory out of San Juan earlier this month and were absolutely impressed by what Carnival has to offer!

    With steak every night on the menu, some of the best beaches in the world, a bar around every corner, a chance to explore a new local beer and rum each day, and the opportunity to watch sports outdoors on a giant screen while waiters bring drinks right to you... can life get any better?