Travel Planning – Page 5

Architecture, ART, Attractions, Cruising, Decorative Arts, DESTINATIONS, Gardens, International, Museums, TRAVEL, Travel Planning

Florence Turns My Head

October 16, 2019October 30, 2019 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: THE JEWEL IN THE CROWN OF EXCURSIONS

Even the name of the shore excursion sounded exciting – Renaissance Vacation in Tuscany. I looked carefully, read all the options, but from the very first glance, I was sold. Here’s what I was sold on.

What I Wanted

Michelangelo’s David – is there really anything else in Florence you have to see? And the Duomo, of course the Duomo and this baptistery and those doors. And the Uffizi Gallery. That’s must. Florence is a lot like Rome – a ninety minute drive from its port with entirely too many things to see.

And then there was Netflix’s The Medici’s. It was way oversexed for me to actually say I enjoyed it, but it was filmed in Florence and seeing the Medici episodes made me want to see every location.

What I Considered

Michelangelo’s David is in one museum. The Uffizi is another museum. Conveniently, the doors and the baptistery were both at one church, but the church is not the Duomo. How was I going to see them all?

The Renaissance Vacation Shore Excursion from Celebrity Cruise Lines didn’t even mention these must-see classics. It was also one of the most expensive tours offered, but just reading it transported me back to the days of da Vinci and Titian.

What I Booked

The Renaissance Vacation excursion focused on Palazzo Pitti. I actually didn’t know what a Pitti Palace was until I did a little research. The name on the palace might be Pitti, but it was all Medici and to boot,it had the Boboli Gardens. I love gardens and the Boboli is like the garden of all gardens. Only the Gardens of Versailles had hold a candle of fame to it.

I assure you, I could spend a whole day right there. The online brochure waxed eloquent about the ride through the Tuscan countryside. The list of city sights to visit sounded like a list of shooting sites for the Medici’s. I grieved over (and still grieve over) not seeing Michelangelo’s David, but the Renaissance Vacation was going to be the best excursion of the trip – I just knew it.

And the booking was so easy. With so many things to see in the area, the usual must-see list with the Leaning Tower of Pisa and the David, was getting all the attention. Once I booked the excursion I started in-depth research into what we’d be seeing. I devoured the section of my travel guide devoted to the Medici’s. I soaked in every episode of the Medici’s and mourned when the second season was over. I found a special about Italian gardens which focused on the Boboli. I opened the pages of my copy of 1000 Place to Go Before You Die and marked all the pages which would described the places I would see in Florence.

I was literally giddy – again. Would this blast from the past be the highlight of my trip as I anticipate it would. Well, you’re just going to have to keep coming back to find out, but next week, we’ll talk about Monaco.

Architecture, ART, Attractions, Cruising, DESTINATIONS, DFW Metroplex, Museums, TRAVEL, Travel Planning

Naples Excursion Planning

October 9, 2019October 30, 2019 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: NOT DOING UNTO OTHERS AS I WOULD HAVE THEM DO UNTO ME

Naples is a lovely city. A traditional bus tour of the city with various stops would be a lovely way to spend the day. However, besides just being a lovely city, Naples is the gateway city for so may lovely attraction. Sorrento, the Amalfi Coast, Positano, the Isle of Capri! How does one choose which Celebrity Shore Excursion to enjoy?

What I Wanted

If I had done exactly as I wanted to, I would have hired a private guide and spent the day taking in Pompeii and Herculaneum. It would be hot, it would have been crowded and I would have been walking all day long. I would have also been in heaven.

Two cities from ancient history preserved for posterity by an extraordinary volcanic eruption, lovingly researched and restored over centuries. If I had to choose between the two cities, I would have opted for Herculeneum. Pompeii is the most famous, an entire city frozen in time, but Herculaneum had been a sort of ancient Riviera-type playground for the rich and famous. The frescoes and tile floors were supposed to be out of this world.

What I Considered

I’m not crazy. I know if you drag a bunch of people around to a bunch of places they don’t care about and wear them out at the first port of call, you are not going to be the most popular person on a cruise. I needed something a little more engaging to transition my group into the swing of things.

What I really needed was a sort of overview of the whole thing. I checked into the cost of a personal guide for the day, but in order to have sufficient space in the vehicle for all six of us, along with a driver and/or guide, was prohibitive.

What I Booked

Hoping to kick things off with a bang, I decided on something that didn’t have a very exciting title, but promised a wide variety of activities – sort a something for everyone smorgasbord. Capri, Sorrento, Pompeii didn’t grab me right off, but then I read on – jet foil to Capri, funicular ride, lunch in Florence and guided tour of Pompeii! First day planned.

Booking Nightmare

This is where the booking problem came in. I told you several blogs back that when I first looked at shore excursions, they were one price, but had gone up significantly a month later. I was new to Celebrity as a cruiser, so I had not antisciapted the shore excursion sale, but the Bagley’s had cruised with them many times. They let me know when the next promotion came along – 20% off all shore excursions. It was booking day.

Booking day lasted all day and into the next as I tried to guide everyone onto the same excursion at the same time. In the end, we were all going to the same excursion, but Jim and Melanie had been forced into another time for it. Not an auspicious way to start, but the hunt was on.

Frustrations be damned, we were booking excursions. Come back next week and let’s explore the opportunities in Florence.

Attractions, Cruising, DESTINATIONS, International, TRAVEL, Travel Planning

So Much in Rome, So Little Time

October 2, 2019October 2, 2019 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: BUCKLE UP EXCURSIONS AHEAD

I rarely get the vacation I dream up in my head. That’s disappointing, because I have such a lovely time up there in my own gray matter, but I usually enjoy what I end up with. Here’s how the planning for Rome went.

When in Rome or Not

When you sail out of Rome, the port is actually Civitavecchia and it’s not exactly convenient. It’s not all that far away from the airport, but it’s in the opposite direction from the city of Rome from the airport. Initially, I had hoped we’d stay in Rome for a few days before the trip. I planned and planned and re-planned it with the help of Sandra Rubio at CTC Travel. We worked out a pretty nice itinerary for and outstanding price, but it was still outside the budget of time and of money.

So, I thought the second best option would be a combo of airport transfer with a bit of sightseeing, but it was dicey. You had to factor in the bus trip from the airport to the city and then from the city to the boat. After all that was taken in consideration, we would have only have a few hours to see one of the most important cities in the world. I told myself something was better than nothing, purchased the transfer/excursion package and started investigating what we would see.

They took a whole lot more words to do it, but basically it was a loop around the Colosseum in the bus with a short photo opportunity and then a short stop at the Vatican. We would have had to stroll several blocks to and from the bus at the Vatican, so at best, we’d barely have time to gawk at St. Peter’s Square and get back to the bus.

Still, the buildings right around the Square have some pretty amazing stuff. The church holding the Pieta fronts on the Square and the Sistine Chapel is not far away. Only this is the Vatican. As soon as they open, huge lines form and you wait hours to get your few moments of grandeur.

I did more research. There were skip-the-lines tickets you could buy. Not exactly cheap, but not out of the realm of possibility either. What put them out of my reach is that they are timed tickets and no one anywhere could tell me what time I would be at the Vatican. Easy to read in the publications about the shore excursions was the notice that they reserved the right to switch the order of the tour based on crowds.

I was trying to make it all work in my head. I applied my favorite travel mantra – ‘seeing something is better than ‘seeing nothing,’ but I came to realize I was fooling myself. I would arrive exhausted from extensive air travel and board a bus. I’d gaze at some of the most famous architecture in the world and not even be able to get a decent picture of it. Worst of all, I’d be mere feet away from the Pieta and not even get a glimpse.

Then I thought about arriving at the boat in the afternoon – exhausted even further by the sightseeing and fighting all the last minute crowds every embarkation entails when you board at the end of the day. We’d miss the Concierge Embarkation Luncheon for sure and I’d miss out on the only opportunity I would have to unpack. Once I envisioned living out of our suitcases the whole trip, the uber-quick visit to the Vatican didn’t sound quite so good.

So, I cancelled the transfer/excursion and opted for the transfer only package. I’d see Rome someday, but it wouldn’t be on this trip. Come back next week and we’ll discuss a few more shore excursions.

Cruising, DESTINATIONS, International, TRAVEL, Travel Planning

All Ashore Who Are Going Ashore

September 25, 2019August 24, 2019 Jane Sadek

Isle of Capri Tourists — Cruisers on a Shore Excursion on the Isle of Capri

TRAVEL THERE: BOOKING OUR SHORE EXCURSIONS

For some people, cruising is all about the boat. The more days at sea they have, the happier they are. For me, it’s all about the ports of call and shopping for shore excursions is one of my favorite activities. The cruise and air were booked. Our ceremony was scheduled and I had a dress. We’d been talking shore excursions for a while and now it was time to book them.

Group Unfriendly

As much as I love travel, I have never had a yearning to be a travel agent. I love researching museums and shopping for hotels, but booking everything makes me crazy, even when it is just for Bill and I. Doing it for anyone else would drive me mad. How Sandra Rubio at CTC Travel puts up with me and the rest of her travelers, I have no idea. I think I’d quit after one day at it.

Initially, all this folderol was supposed to be easier, because we were going to book things as a group. Only our friends at Celebrity Cruise lines decided to disallow groups on this cruise. Then to make matters worse, our friends the Bagley’s went ahead and booked their cruise with their own agent before I’d even told them who my agent was.

Hello Celebrity! Not everybody that is traveling together books together and you should not make it so difficult to schedule excursions and dinners together. The problem plagued us throughout the process, but never was it more frustrating than when we were trying to book the shore excursions.

Deb, Bill and I were easy. I just booked us online and Deb wrote me a check. Viktorya was up in New York. She hadn’t bothered to go online and figure out the process, so she was booking everything through Sandra. Meanwhile, Jim was working out of town somewhere, trying to put in a full day’s work while I bombarded him with emails. Even if I had wanted to book the Bagley’s stuff and just let them pay me back, the Celebrity site wouldn’t let me, because we weren’t on the same booking and that’s why I was pretty mad at Celebrity. Yes, it was fairly stressful.

Choosing the Excursions

Now, I’d been shopping excursions since August and had quickly identified the ones I wanted, but I was also aware of the fact that I had a group of people who might not appreciate my penchant for spending my days wandering through the museums and historic houses of the world. Deb would go wherever I wanted to and love everything we did, but my husband, for one, would only tolerate so much museum stuff, so I had to balance museum time with other adventures.

I’m also a little more adventurous than Mr. Bill. My favorite day of our Danube Waltz cruise was a day on our own in Vienna. I’ll just say Mr. Bill didn’t feel the same way. He finds guideless wanderings in foreign countries a little nerve-wracking. It’s one thing to get lost in an American city and something else completely to not have a clue in say, Florence, and not know the language.

Budget was a consideration also. One of the things we loved about river cruising was that shore excursions were included. That way, you don’t have to hear the cash register in your head ring out each time you choose an adventure. And may I just say the Celebrity adventures were pricey – at least the ones we picked out.

So come back next week and I’ll tell you how it went.

DESTINATIONS, International, Shopping, TRAVEL, Travel Planning

Let’s Go Gown Shopping

September 18, 2019August 24, 2019 Jane Sadek

Wedding Toast 25 Years Ago — The First Time Around

TRAVEL THERE: WHAT DO YOU WEAR FOR A VOW RENEWAL

From the day we decided to go on this cruise and have a vow renewal ceremony, the thing my friend Deb seemed the most excited about was shopping for my gown. That’s not that big of a surprise. We love shopping and we don’t even need a reason to do it, but this was somewhat of an occasion.

Setting My Expectations

While Bill thought I should probably wear a lace sundress I’ve had in my closet for several years, Deb and I were determined I would have a proper gown for the big day. She started asking early on what I wanted and I actually had no idea. I did run on to several photos that had a sort of flapper feel to them that I liked.

I’d done the big , heavily-beaded satin gown with long sleeves the first time around. I was looking for something more simple, more mature and perhaps a little sexier. What I didn’t want was strapless, with a sweetheart neckline. I’d seen one too many of those on Say Yes to the Dress.

During our discussions about this singular article of clothing, Deb warned me that I’d need to spend about $5000. I knew that wasn’t happening. My original wedding dress had been a sample I found at a consignment store and it had only cost me a few hundred dollars. I’d seen it elsewhere for several thousand, but that’s not what I’d paid for it. I didn’t see why the renewal gown should cost more than the wedding gown – even with inflation.

The top dollar I had in my mind was $500 and it would have had to be some kind of gown for me to pay that much, but that was my ceiling. Deb thought I was in for an education.

Shopping Day

The first place we visited on a slightly dreary February day was David’s Bridal. I actually didn’t see anything I wanted to try on in the regular stock. Over on the clearance rack I found two likely suspects. One I adored and I adored the price tag even more, but I wasn’t going to end our shopping fun quite so quickly. If it was meant to be, then it would be there when I came back to get it.

We spent the day going all over the place, but I actually only found one other gown that even competed with that downright bargain I’d seen at David’s Bridal. We went to special occasion dress stores, bridal salons, a designer outlet, consignment stores and even a few department stores, but nada. With the field narrowed down it was time for Bill’s input. People are aghast that I have no problem allowing him to see the dress. He picked out the first one and it worked out OK, so why wouldn’t he do the same for the vow renewal.

Two Choices

The David Bridal dress would be best described as old Hollywood. Halter styled in ivory chiffon with a great big bow at the neckline – you’ve seen Marilyn Monroe in dresses like it. I found the other dress at Terry Costa and it was more Aubrey Hepburn than Marilyn Monroe. Demure, with a high-neck, lace bodice and chiffon skirt, it was in white. I couldn’t lose.

In neither of my stores was I going to get the Kleinfield’s treatment. Bill and I visited David’s first. He had the requisite tears, but he wanted to see the other dress, too. There was no comparison. He couldn’t wait to get back to David’s.

Remember my $500 budget? Well subtract $375 from that, because when I’m telling you I got a bargain, I mean it. What? You want to see it? Well, just because I let the groom see it doesn’t mean you get a peek at it before the big day. Come back next week and we’ll talk about shore excursions.

Accommodations, Cruising, DESTINATIONS, International, TRAVEL, Travel Planning

Welcome to Concierge Class

September 11, 2019August 23, 2019 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: THE SECOND MOST EXCITING DAY OF MY CRUISE

I’ve already told you about the most exciting day of my cruise. That’s when Jim and Melanie told me they had already booked their cabin. It was because we hadn’t and staterooms were filling fast. By the end of the day, we had our Deluxe Ocean View Staterooom 1B with Veranda #5578. The second most exciting day was when they assigned me to Concierge Class.

Concierge Class

I may never know exactly what happened with Celebrity, but I’m guessing my upgrade to Concierge Class had more to do with CTC Travel than it did with my social media footprint. One day I was going to have to pay $100 per person not to look through an over-sized porthole and the next I had a free upgrade to Concierge Class. I tell everybody, all the time, DO NOT take a cruise without a travel agent. Let my upgrade to Concierge Class stand as evidence of my reasons.

I’m going to tell you a little secret though. It wasn’t that big of a deal. The Celebrity brochure promised “from the moment your Concierge greets you for priority check-in” I would be in for a treat. Only there was no Concierge to greet me and no one had any idea of where to go for my priority check-in. That wasn’t really a big deal, because I had the Celebrity App, which actually was a big deal and check-in was such a breeze that it might have well as been priority check-in with a Concierge.

My only interaction with said Concierge was a telephone call I got from him each day, where he’d give me the weather report for the next day (often inaccurate) and tell me the HOUR, yes the one hour, that he would be available the next day. It was never an hour that I would actually be available to talk to him. I was hoping said Concierge would help us out with dinner reservations, because we had found it particularly difficult to book shore excursions together, since the Bagley’s had booked with another travel agent. My brochure had assured me my “own dedicated Concierge” would be just steps away. HA! He was over the river and through the woods from our room, if he actually existed at all. We stood in line with everyone else to square away our dinner reservations and I’ll just say it didn’t go well.

Other Amenities

But there was supposed be even more treats to come – like a destination seminar. Never a word about that on board. We were also supposed to “open our door to a beautiful array of fresh fruit and a chilled bottle of Blanc de Blancs.” Yeah, that was an exaggeration, too. The local Celebrity sales rep, who I’ve gotten to know through CTC, did send us some hors d’oeuvres, some flowers and a bottle of pinot noir. CTC gifted us with some chocolate-covered strawberries. But fruit from the Concierge? Nope.

We did get a bottle of champagne, but it was quite a challenge. On the first day, I told our room steward to go ahead and deliver it, because we had a frig and I could keep it cold. As it turned out, we got it on the last day, not chilled, to bring home in our suitcase. Not exactly as advertised.

They also promised afternoon delicacies, which they did deliver every afternoon. We’d come in after an all day shore excursion and voila, we’d have a four-sectioned, covered plate waiting for us. In each section would be a tiny sample of something odd. We could rarely tell exactly what it was, which was better than the days that we could. For instance, one day there was a teeny tiny little shrimp tooth-picked to a piece of bread. Only our covered plate was not on ice or refrigerated and we had no idea how long it had been sitting there. I’ve had food poisoning from seafood – no thank you very much. One thing I never need more of on a cruise is food.

There was a pillow menu, but the pillows on the bed suited me fine and I wasn’t going to chase down any others. The promised Hansgrohe massaging shower head was quite nice, however. No complaints there and I’m not even the showering sort. There was also a Welcome Luncheon for Concierge Class passengers which kept us from rubbing elbows with the likes of those who were staying in the Deluxe Ocean View Staterooom 1B with Veranda I’d first been assigned to and it was quite nice, but I’ll save the details about that until embarkation.

I guess I’ve fussed a little about about the short-comings of Concierge Class, but before they write about it in the brochure, they ought to do a little fact-checking. I loved my stateroom, but the not the mostly unavailable Concierge, his destination seminar, fresh fruit, chilled bottle and daily delicacies. As it was, I’d gotten a free upgrade, so who was I to complain.

Getting upgraded to Concierge Class proved to be more exciting than actually being in Concierge Class, and that’s too bad. However, we’re getting closer to our departure, so come back next week and let’s talk about the gown for my vow renewal.

Accommodations, Cruising, DESTINATIONS, International, TRAVEL, Travel Planning

It Wasn’t Their Fault

September 4, 2019September 4, 2019 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: WHEN YOUR CRUISE LINE SAYS OOOOPS

I want to begin this post by saying I love Sandra Rubio and CTC Travel. They have been more than good to me. They get all my lavish dreams and help me balance them with my frugal husband’s concerns. They have wonderful travel events. They treat me like a star, even though my travel is small beans in comparison to some of their clients. When I get all flustered and frustrated, Sandra is a rock. I’m about to complain, but I want you to know I’m not complaining about Sandra or CTC. In fact, they saved the cruise!

Obstructed View

I wasn’t exactly sure what Celebrity meant when I read “obstructed view” in an email from my travel agent. I’m actually a pretty easy-going traveller. Some people think obstructed view means that if you stand on your tiptoes and hold your head just right, then a tiny corner of the balcony above you can be seen. That’s not me.

Then I saw they were talking about and they were 100% right. I was going to have an obstructed view. It was like a porthole view, not a veranda view. I’d booked my cabin 18 months ahead and NOW, after I’d already booked my non-refundable air they were telling me about an obstructed view.

I’d booked the cabin especially, to be close to Eden, because I saw that as a sort of gathering spot for all of us who were traveling together. Then when we booked the vow renewal ceremony, I’d requested for it to be in Eden for all kinds of reasons. I was emotionally married to this Deluxe Ocean View State Room w/ Veranda 1B and now it was flawed! You might say I was even a little hysterical.

I’m a reasonable person and while I wasn’t crazy about the fact that a mistake had been made, I was willing to get over myself and change cabins. But guess what, after they had made the mistake of allowing me to book a deluxe veranda cabin, which was actually an obstructed view mess, they were ONLY going to charge me a $100 fee PER PERSON to transfer our reservation to another cabin. Oh and if the cabin was in a higher category, then I’d have to pay for the upgrade also. I could live with that, but $100 per person for their mistake was just a little more than I was ready to fork over.

My Little Russian Powder Keg

If I was a little hysterical, then you might also say my friend Viktoriya was Mount Vesuvius. She wanted heads to roll. To be honest, I kind of wanted a few heads to roll also, but I didn’t want those heads to be on the shoulders of anyone at CTC Travel. I told Viktoriya to dial it way back. I also told her the first thing we should do was pray, especially before we started lopping off heads.

What I most felt like doing was going somewhere to mourn, but if I didn’t do something and quickly, things would get ugly. While I’m certainly not a travel celebrity, I have been travel blogging for a decade now. I have thousands of followers on social media and hundreds of thousands of people see my Travel Advisor reviews. In fact, I’m one of the Top Twenty reviewers in Dallas. While Bill has tried to get a few upgrades with that information over the years, I do my best to downplay it. I don’t want to be feel beholden to anyone and feel like I have to say anything nice, especially if I don’t feel there was anything nice to say. I also don’t want anyone to think I’m just saying something nice because I was compensated for it.

For once, I was changing my policy. It’s one thing to tell some housewife in Heath that she’s looking at the Mediterranean through a big circle. It’s another to know that hundreds of thousands of people will hear how you ripped off someone celebrating their 25th Wedding Anniversary on your cruise ship. I can tell you one thing, those hundreds of thousands Travel Advisor people might not have cared and maybe even my 2,000 some odd Twitter followers might not have either, but let me tell you, my 500 plus Facebook friends would care and they were going to hear all about it.

I wrote a very apologetic email to Sandra, but I did give her all my social media stats (including a copy of one of the emails Travel Advisor sends me regularly about my status in the Top Twenty) so she’d have some ammunition to use with Celebrity. I assured her I didn’t blame her, but that I expected a different cabin and I wasn’t going to be paying $100 per person for it. In fact, I suggested an upgrade was probably in order.

I’ve already told you that Sandra saved the day, but come back next week and find out what she did for us.

Accommodations, Cruising, DESTINATIONS, International, TRAVEL, Travel Planning

Trying to Pretend We’re Having Fun

August 28, 2019August 23, 2019 Jane Sadek

Celebrity Edge Brochure — My Cruise Planning Bible

TRAVEL THERE: PRESSURE COOKER PLANNING

With 18 months to plan our Anniversary Cruise on Celebrity’s new Edge, it would seem that everything should have been smooth sailing, but as I shared last week, almost from the day we booked to the day we left, life was just one big crisis after another. So, what cruise planning did I manage. I’ll tell you.

Plodding Through the Planning

In late August, I decided I absolutely had to start thinking about the cruise. Deb was in her new house and even though Bill was all tied up remodeling our rent house, surely we could start thinking about the cruise. I got on the Celebrity Cruise Line website and started studying everything they had there about our dining choices and the shore excursions. Excitement abounded while I looked at all the options, but Bill wasn’t as thrilled about it when I tried to share the news. I understood why, but it still made me sad.

The next time I got around to thinking about the cruise was late September and the first thing I discovered was that much of the research I had done in August was null and void, because all the pricing had changed. I emailed my travel agent, Sandra Rubio of CTC Travel. She was glad to hear from me, because since we’d booked the cruise I’d been fairly invisible, but come to find out, the shore excursion pricing I’d been looking at was based on a special they’d been running. Not much she could do about that. The special was over.

Because we knew the cruise was going to cost so much, we’d already decided to keep a low travel profile for the year, but as I began to actually plan the cruise, I knew this event was going to take up more than two years of travel budget – more like 3 to 5 years – and all the while, we’re bleeding money on the house we were trying to sell. Still, I had to start making some decisions. If we were going to have a vow renewal ceremony, Sandra encouraged me to go ahead and book it. I got over that hump in October.

The next hurdle was considering pre and post trip excursions, so we’d know when to book the air. I planned the trip 14 ways. I priced it out with the Celebrity pre and post trip excursions. I even had Sandra price out DIY pre and post shore excursions. After all that research, we finally decided to just do the cruise and splurge on the best short excursions during the trip. I was ready to book our airfare on January 7th, exactly the number of days ahead all the travel bloggers say you are supposed to book international air.

“Obstructed Views”

We got air hundreds of dollars less than the cruise company was offering it and I had just started to relax. Things were shaping up for our trip in spite of what was happening with the stupid real estate problem. And that’s when I got an email from my Sandra with the words “obstructed views” in it. It’s a darn good thing we’d booked non-refundable air, because had we not done that, just days before, chances are we would have cancelled the cruise. It was just too much. There had been too many complications about the cruise and in our lives. Obstructed balconies made me want to stay home.

So what did we do? Come back next week and I’ll let you know.

Accommodations, Cruising, DESTINATIONS, International, TRAVEL, Travel Planning

A Year of Antiscipation

August 14, 2019August 10, 2019 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: I HAD MORE TO DO THAN WAIT

Excuse my sabbatical from blogging. I came back from my cruise more than overwhelmed. I came back, got to work and haven’t looked up since, until today. Let the cruise blogging begin!

If you’re thinking of cruising, a shift has occurred in the last few years. After of decades of saving the best deals for last, the cruise lines finally learned they’d been training their passengers to wait until the last minute to book their sailings. So, a major shift has occurred. The earlier you book, the better the deal – or at least that’s what they tell you. Sure, there will always be last minute deals, but you might not like what you get.

I just checked. To get a room in the same category I first booked, I wouldn’t save a penny if I’d waited until now. The good news would be that I wouldn’t be spending anymore. However, chances are, I wouldn’t have gotten the same room, but on a smaller cruise ship, there’s the chance I wouldn’t be going at all. So what did I do with that 15 months I had before the cruise? Well, I’ll share some it with you.

Come Cruise with Me

My first consideration in this had been to let our family members know what we were planning and invite them along. I notified them months before we ever settled on a cruise line. As we considered our options, we paid serious attention to which cruises would work best with the potentially interested family members. All that was for naught. In the end, not a single niece, nephew, sister or cousin joined us. Once I knew which cruise we’d be on and that there’d be no group deal, I sent out an invitation to virtually ever one on our buddy list. Several friends had talked a good game when the cruise was mere speculation, but when it came time to book a cabin, most wandered away, some without a word, some with ‘maybe later’ and a few with stated regrets.

In truth, I’d hoped for a heftier guest list. This whole thing had come out of my desire to stand before our friends and family and renew our marriage vows. Moving the ceremony from our backyard to the deck of a cruise ship had emptied the party chairs of all but the most faithful and oh, what faithful friends those were. Let me introduce you to our crew.

The first to sign up, as I’ve already told you, were Jim and Melanie. What delightful souls they are! Had they not stepped up and bought their fare the moment we told them which ship, I might be telling you a different tale today. I will be forever grateful for their encouragement that day. As a Christian I’ve learned that God often speaks through circumstances. The message that day was loud and clear. Come on, book your cruise. If Jim and Melanie are there, you don’t need anyone else.

But I knew there would be someone else coming along. From the time I first mentioned the idea of a vow renewal, my bestie, Deb, had planned to be there – backyard, boat deck or the back of beyond. Deb is always there for me. When we announced our choice, she was in the middle of a huge life crisis, but life crisis be damned, Deb was going to be there.

And then there’s Viktoriya. I’ve never had children of my own, but God has filled my life with wonderful people, who mean as much or more to me, as anyone who is actually a member of my family. Viktoriya is one of those people. She was literally a lost soul when we met in a class at UTD and I have observed her grow into an amazing woman. She graciously gives me some credit for the journey she has made, but it has been God that made all the difference.

Then Life Happened

When Bill first turned my attention away from a backyard ceremony to a cruise, I envisioned the fun we’d have, poring over the ship’s brochure, selecting our shore excursions and choosing our dining venues. He’d even promised that would be part of the package if I’d do things his way. Well then, life happened. Come back next week and I will tell you about that.

Accommodations, DESTINATIONS, International, TRAVEL, Travel Planning

Our Club Med Home Away From Home

October 17, 2018July 3, 2018 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: GENEROUS AND GRACIOUS SPACES

Since I’d won our trip to Club Med from CTC Travel, we had no idea what kind of accommodations to expect. How bad could things be at a five star resort, right? Still, I’ve usually pored over the available information and carefully selected our rooms to be as economical as possible, while providing what we need. We made out just fine in what they provided – in fact, better than fine.

The Big Picture

Most of the entertainments and dining facilities are centrally located on the property. If you go one way from there, you’ll reach the Zen side of the resort. That’s the more exclusive, adults-only part. If you go the other way, you’ll find building after building after building of more family-oriented hotel rooms.

Our Accommodations

I can’t speak for the rest of the rooms in any of the other buildings, but I can tell you 662 La Nina is a nice place to stay. When you enter the door there is a hallway. On the right is a room with a toilet and next to it is another room with the balance of the bathroom facilities, a huge walk-in shower and a large two-sink vanity.

On the left side is a huge, and I do mean huge, closet. Along with plenty of hanging space and hangers, there were two stacks of roomy shelving. If I would have had my druthers, I would have preferred a dresser with drawers, but that’s just me. The shelves worked fine. There was also a shelf all around the top of the closet that was great for hats and such. There was room for everything and to spare.

The room came with some equipment, a hairdryer, a frig, a coffee maker, an iron and an ironing board. There’s also free wi-fi, not the fastest in the world, but more than adequate for the usual stuff. The Dominican Republic is on the same power grid as the US, so they had the same kinds of power and plugs as we do.

After you get past the bathroom facilities and closet, the room opened up. To the right was a nice bed, queen-sized, I think. It seemed a bit smaller than at home. To the left was a secondary space with two sofas that could be made into beds. We didn’t have to guess that this was great for families, a pungent smell told us someone had recently had an accident there. As soon as we notified housekeeping they took care of it, but they had points taken away for it nonetheless.

There was also a nice balcony. I wasn’t really roomy, but there were two chairs, a table and an ashtry, which we no longer see in America very often. I spent some quality time out there, but had to be careful to wear socks, because if my ankles were bare, some invisible pest would begin to gnaw on me.

We were very comfortable there. The rooms are not what I consider luxurious, but they weren’t spartan either. Nicely, but not opulently furnished – it was a beach resort after all. We especially appreciated the bonus room. I’d retreat there in the mornings before Bill woke up and he liked to enjoy his online games there. We slept well every night without any interruptions.

We also walked a million miles or at least it seemed like it! La Nina was sort of in the middle of the cluster of buildings with rooms. I’m guessing there is a premium to pay for rooms which were closer to the entertainment section, but there were buildings which would have doubled our steps taken. I hope they are a bargain.

At the reception area they tell you that you can call whenever you like and a cart will come and transport you back and forth. On our first day we tested that theory and attempted to grab a ride to our room. So, had everyone else on the property. Well, not everyone else, but enough someone elses that we weren’t going to wait – especially when we watched an aggressive group jump on a cart and zoom away, rather than allowing the ladies who had been waiting ahead of us to take it. In other words, we didn’t plan to fight that battle on a regular basis. While I did see a lot of carts whipping around the property, it was rare for them to have guests as passengers. Usually they were toting bags or equipment.

So that’s it for our accommodations. Come back next week and we’ll go to breakfast.

Rate this:

Rate this:

Rate this:

Rate this:

Rate this:

Rate this:

Rate this:

Rate this:

Rate this:

Rate this: