I love cruise vacations. For more than a decade it has been a way for me to see parts of the world, experience new cultures, try things I wouldn't do back home, and just generally have a great time. During the more than 20 cruises that I've taken, I've also started to feel that while different lines offer unique features that might make me prefer one over the other for certain experiences, the reality is they are more similar than they are different. To change this would take some radical thinking and a brand with the confidence and tradition to be truly innovative. There is no other travel brand that could do this like Virgin and that's exactly what Richard Branson has done. They are attempting to be a disrupter in what - until the pandemic - was a thriving industry that boasted a 7% annual growth rate, the most of any leisure travel market segment.

While most of you think of the major lines like Celebrity, Viking, and MSC when it comes to Mediterranean Cruises, we met with the folks from Celestyal Cruises earlier this year and were impressed by the offerings that they are working on to bring a different feel to the market. They've been around for several years and as a Greek cruise operator offers an interesting perspective introducing guests to their backyard. With the introduction of Celestyal Experience - formerly Costa newRomantica - they have upped the game dramatically and this makes us even more excited.

There's a whole other world beyond just the big feature-packed cruise ships from the big-name brands you are all familiar with and that's the small ship luxury market. While I love sailing on ships like Norwegian Encore and Oasis of the Seas, the reality is that for many people the ship itself is getting in the way of enjoying a cruise. There are too many people, not enough personal attention, and the food ultimately suffers because you are cooking tens of thousands of meals each day. Plus, when you get to port there's always a long line waiting to debark and then once on shore there's more crowds to deal with. One increasingly popular alternative is small ship luxury cruises like those offered by Crystal Symphony, so we visited her in San Diego to see what all the buzz was about.

Opting for a cruise on the Mediterranean Sea this summer is a sure-fire way of making sure that you will have the perfect vacation experience. We've sailed often in the Caribbean and even explored Alaska and the maritime provinces of Canada but the Mediterranean is at the top of our list now. 

We've been waiting for this since the moment the ship was hinted at a couple years ago but now it's just a year away and Carnival just unveiled a ton of new details including the SkyRide - a pedal-powered attraction to take you around the top of the boat more than a 150 feet up in the air!

Often it seems like people think Cruises are for the "Newly Wed" and "Nearly Dead" - or just for families. Celebrity Cruises on the other hand offers a wide variety of activities and itineraries that are clearly designed to make you feel like, well... a celebrity! 

Their newest ship, Celebrity Reflection just launched this fall and is now offering 7-day Caribbean itineraries that by itself are ideal for a mancation - but check out all these awesome things on board too!