Princess Southern Caribbean Cruise

Hello Everyone! It's Jerry back from my Christmas Southern Caribbean Cruise! We flew from Washington Dulles to San Juan, Puerto Rico, picked up our cruise transfer and were on the Caribbean Princess by 1 o'clock! The ship didn't depart until 10pm so we had the rest of the day to use the pool, eat and relax and enjoy the almost 90 degree day. The first day of the cruise was a day at sea on our way to Barbados so most of the day was spent relaxing around the pool and watching movies on the large outdoor movie screen. The next day in Barbados we went on an island tour including a tour of the Mount Gay Rum and the Banks Beer Factories for half of the day and the rest was spent shopping. The third day we were in St. Lucia where we went on a catamaran ride along the coast the see the famous Pitons Mountains. The water was crystal clear and the Pitons were beautiful. Day four had us in Antigua and our excursion was a 12 station zip line through the rain forest, in the rain, but it was alot of fun and I would do it again. The next day in Tortola we took another island tour and I have to say that it is a very beautiful little island. We were in St. Thomas on our last day and I think St. Thomas and St. Lucia were my favorite stops on the trip. In St. Thomas we went on a jet boat ride and the driver of the boat said they were having a cold snap. It was 80 degrees! The last time I was on a Princess cruise was to Alaska and it was a lot quieter than this one was. This was Christmas break for the children in San Juan so there were a lot of large family groups but there were adults only areas and pools so the children were not really an issue. The food was great, the weather was great and I had a wonderful time! See you next time!

Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas

Hello! It's Brandi and I was invited to be on one of the Inaugural sailings for the Allure of the Seas. She is a sister ship to Oasis of the Seas but there are a few differences. The first difference is the partnership with Dreamworks on this ship and you see this influence throughout the entertainment. The broadway style show is "Chicago". This was my favorite show. The ice show was "How to Train Your Dragon", a Dreamworks production. The parade they have on the Royal Promenade incorporates many characters from the Dreamworks movies, such as Shrek, Kung Fu Panda, and Madagascar. Another change is The Boardwalk has a Mexican Cantina instead of a seafood shack. We had dinner at Chops Grill, the steakhouse aboard many Royal Caribbean Ships. The food was very good and the dessert was awesome. The Oasis class ships are amazing and a vacation in themselves. The Allure of the Seas is sailing alternating Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries. This is a vacation the whole family will enjoy!

Siesta Key, FL

Hi all! It's Brandi and I went on a girl's trip to Siesta Key, Florida. We flew into Sarasota and took a cab to Siesta Key - about a half hour's drive. Siesta Key has a beautiful beach with white powdery sand. There was a sand castle building competition going on while we were there. There are great places to dine. Some of my favorites are Blase' Cafe, The Broken Egg and the Hub Baja Grill. We spent most of our time lounging in the sun. This is a great weekend destination!

Universal Studios, Florida

Hi! Jerry here! After the Travel Leaders National Convention my wife and I stayed in Orlando for a few days of R&R. We moved to Disney's All Star Sports resort to try a Disney value resort for 2 nights. We visited The Magic Kingdom and Epcot. The International Food and Wine Festival was taking place at Epcot while we were there. This is really something to taste :-)
We spent a day at Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. Unfortunately the Harry Potter ride was broken while we were there. We ate lunch at Hard Rock Cafe. We always enjoy the Orlando theme parks!

Orlando, Travel Leader's National Convention

Hi! It's Raegan, Brandi and Jerry. We all traveled to Orlando in November for the Travel Leader's National Convention. We stayed at the Gaylord Palms Resort which is 1/2 mile from Walt Disney World. This resort is HUGE with an atrium with live alligators, a pirate ship and beautiful gardens. There were shops and restaurants and four wings of rooms. We stayed in the St. Augustine wing. We ate dinner at The Flying Fish at Disney's Boardwalk Inn Resort. This is a beautiful restaurant with wonderful cuisine and wine. They had the best crab cakes we have ever had! We spent most of our time in meetings but on the last night Disney opened The Animal Kingdom just for Travel Leaders and we saw the Finding Nemo show and were served a great dinner in Dinoland. We rode the DINOSAUR ride and played arcade games and then moved to the Asia section of the park for amazing desserts and several turns on Expedition Everst Roller Coaster - in the dark! What fun!

Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas

Hi Everyone!
Brandi here. It's been a busy fall and I have lots of trips to tell you about. First up is my vacation on one of the largest cruise ships afloat; Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas. My husband and I flew from Richmond to Ft. Lauderdale. We flew down a day early and stayed the night in Ft. Lauderdale near the pier. We stayed at the Hyatt Place, which is a great new hotel. The terminal in Ft. Lauderdale was specifically built for these massive ships so check-in was a breeze; no long lines to wait in. The ship is a destination in itself. There is so much to see and do. We sailed to the Eastern Caribbean which includes Nassau, Bahamas, St. Thomas and St. Maarten. The Oasis of the Seas has great activities such as surfing, rock climbing, zip lining, miniature golf, ice skating, all without leaving the ship! The show are wonderful. There are Broadway style shows, comedians, shows on ice, and spectacular water shows at the Aqua Theater. My favorite was the Ice Show. There are many dining choices from traditional cruise ship dining to specialty restaurants and two a la carte options. The Royal Promenade is like being in a shopping mall. There is shopping, restaurants, bars (including a levitating bar that ascends and descends over three decks), coffee shop and my favorite, the Cupcake Cupboard. We tried out the Asian Fusion restaurant which is one of the a la carte options and the food was wonderful. Central Park and The Boardwalk are not to be missed. There are four pools to choose from, one with an infinity edge. I could go on and on about this great experience but you'll have to call me to hear more!

Western Mediterranean Cruise

Hi!
It's Raegan and in July I took a Western Mediterranean cruise aboard the Costa Concordia. We flew on Lufthansa into Barcelona, Spain and sailed from there. We visited a different port every day. This is my favorite type of cruise as I like to be on the go. On the first day we visited Marseille, France. We took a half day excursion to Aix en Provence which is a beautiful little city in the Provence region of France. That afternoon we spent in Marseille. We stopped for a crepe with chocolate and bananas - a "must have" on any trip to France! On day two the ship docked at Savona, Italy. We took a full day tour to Monaco. We visited the Palace of Prince Rainier III and watched the changing of the guards and heard stories about his romance with Princess Grace Kelly. We then traveled to Monte Carlo, known for it's casino and the Formula 1 Grand Prix race. The next day we stopped in Naples, Italy and visited the magnificent ruins at Pompeii. Day four found us in Palermo, Sicily. We did not take an excursion here. We walked miles and toured the city on our own. We enjoyed the side streets and the out of the way neighborhoods where the real people live. The next day we went to Tunis, Tunisia in northern Africa. We visited the archaeological site of Carthage with its ruins and aqueducts and then we toured the Medina (old town) and Souks (markets) for some interesting shopping. Thursday we visited Palma De Mallorca, Spain. This is a beautiful island! We walked miles and visited the Palace and shopping areas. Then on Friday morning we arrived back in Barcelona. We then spent two nights at the Barcelona House hotel which was an oddly modern hotel in a perfect location in the La Rambla area. We took the double-decker hop-on-hop-off bus tour of the city. We saw several examples of the famous architect, Antoni Gaudi's work, including the beautiful Sagrada Familia Cathedral and the Park Guell. Barcelona is one of my favorite cities. If you have the chance, definitely spend a few days here. Overall this was a fantastic trip. I can't decide which port was my favorite, I loved them all!