Beaches Turks & Caicos

I had the opportunity to visit the Beaches property in Providenciales, Turks & Caicos last week. I was excited to visit a location that I had not visited before but I was wary of visiting a "family" focus resort. Since I don't have children, and prefer to take them in small doses this would be something different.

I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised. Okay, maybe blown away. The property was absolutely beautiful! There are three (3) separate villages at this resort: Caribbean, French and Italian. The accommodations in all 3 were beautiful.

The service was outstanding, the food was excellent and the facilities were state of the art. Beaches is an all inclusive property so there is no tipping and all meals, snacks, alcoholic and non alcoholic beverages. Non motorized water sports are included. If you are a certified diver, and present your diver certification card, up to 2 dives per day are included! If you are not a certified diver, Resort Certification is available for a fee. The only other services not included are spa services, character breakfasts, laundry and dry cleaning, after hours babysitting, internet access and shopping.

There are age appropriate, supervised activities for infants through teens. The resort employs Certified Nannies. The little ones will enjoy Camp Sesame and visits by the characters from Sesame Street. Even I enjoyed the Sesame Street Parade! You could feel the excitement of the children in the air as they waited for the character parade. The looks on their little faces as the parade approached was priceless. The parade ends with a show on the open air stage. There is Pirate Island with a water park and ice cream shop and a kid sized swim up bar. For the older kids there is an XBox 360 Game Garage, Crayola Art Camp, Scratch DJ Academy, Beach Olympics, Karaoke, and more. There is even XBox in every room!

There are 8 pools-5 with swim up bars, a waterpark with 2 waterslides and a surfrider, a lazy river, outdoor movies, snorkeling, windsurfing, hobie cats, kayaks and sea trykes. There is a 7,000 square foot Shopping Village in just the Italian Village! There are 16 separate dining options! Did I mention the resort sits on a 12 mile stretch of powder white sand beach?

I thoroughly enjoyed the water slides and lazy river. The swim up bars were great and it was a hoot to watch the kids order the "virgin" pina coladas and other frozen drinks. They all thought that they were extremely cool. A few of the parents were envisioning blenders of frozen banana and strawberry drinks in their futures.

There are also special programs available for groups. Packages include Family Reunions; Group Weddings and Best Friends for Ever. The programs offer special rates and exclusive benefits.

I had a great time at this resort and would highly recommend this for a great girlfriend getaway, a family reunion, a family destination wedding or a great beach vacation. If you are looking for a perfect family beach getaway you can't go wrong with Beaches, Turks & Caicos.

Australia A Dream Destination

I just completed my Aussie Specialist Designation for the second time. I originally certified back in the early 90's-back in the dark ages when certification was through classes taken from a thick white binder and tests for certification were mailed in. This time, of course, everything was done online. It's been 5 years since my last trip to Australia and I'm ready to go back. I have been reminiscing about my past adventures and pulled out the old photo albums.

Oh the wonderful memories of experiences we have had never leave us from our trips to this magical destination. I have to say that even though I have been several times before, Australia is still someplace that I want to go back to time and time again.

Things have definitely changed since my first trip in 1984. But even though they have changed, the reasons Australia is so appealing to us all are still the same! The Great Barrier Reef, is still breathtaking. Turquoise clear water with 40 ft visibility is the same. Giant clams, schools of brightly colored fish and spectacular scenery are unrivaled.

Sydney and the Harbor Bridge are recognizable by just about everyone. Enjoying a Captain Cook Coffee Cruise of Sydney Harbor. Visions of Ayers Rock or Uluru at sunset are never forgotten. Driving to Kakadu National Park and seeing the Giant Termite mounds. Stopping in a bar in the outback with a dirt floor just like a scene from a Crocodile Dundee movie. Having a beer with the locals. Going to the horse races complete with "book makers" with briefcases full of money and watching the horses run the "wrong way". Port Douglas, Cairns, Brisbane, the Gold Coast, wild cockatoos, dolphins, crocodiles it's just amazing! Watching a sea turtle from the balcony of your hotel room.

Melbourne, Philip Island and the fairy penguins at dusk. Driving along the Great Ocean Road and seeing the 12 Apostles rock formations. Seeing Koalas in the wild. Holding a Koala, hand feeding a wallaby and a kangaroo. The vineyards and world renowned wines of Australia. Opals and the opal mines of Coober Pedy and the underground hotels. Perth and swimming in the Indian Ocean. Freemantle and America's Cup sailing traditions.

So many have mentioned Australia as someplace they would like to visit. I have to agree there is no place like it and deserves to be on your list.

Australia is truly a destination that delivers beyond your wildest dreams.

CruiseOne Now Supports Land Vacations

I am so happy that my headquarters has announced new partnerships with tour operators in addition to our current cruise partners.
As many of you know, I have always enjoyed providing assistance to you in booking your land vacations plus your cruise vacations. Now we have initial partnerships with Apple Vacations; Club Med; Disney Adventures; Funjet Vacations; Globus Family of Brands including Cosmos and Monograms; GoGo World Wide Vacations; Sandals; Trafalgar Tours; Travel Impressions and U.S. Airways Vacations.
I will be visiting Sandals and Beaches locations with our Sandals and Apple Vacations representatives next month. So, I will have up close and personal experience to help you plan your next land based vacation!
Don't worry if you don't see your favorite tour operator listed, we still have relationships with most major providers and will be adding preferred partners as we grow this phase of our business.
I am so excited to have these extra options available for you to plan your perfect vacation.

Today Show - Cruise Video

Today Show - Cruise Video

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Oberammergau 2010

Once every decade the residents of the town of Oberammergau, Germany perform the original Passion Play at the 5,000 seat outdoor theatre. The next performance of the Play based on the life and Crucifixion of Christ will be presented from May through September of 2010.
The spectacular play is performed in German (booklets are available with written translations in English and French). The residents are the performers and to participate you have to be a resident of Oberammergau for at least 20 years! The performance is broken up into 2 sessions: an afternoon performance of 2 1/2 hours; followed by a 2 1/2 hour dinner break; and a final evening session of 2 1/2 hours. Since this play is only once every ten years, the demand for tickets is great and as you can imagine sold out in advance. The best way to experience the play is by booking a land tour or even better, a river cruise in conjunction with the land tour. The hotels in town are reserved by the tour companies and blocks of tickets have been in their possession for months already. If you are interested in attending next year's event, please call for information.

Carnival Glory

This is such a great deal that I have to share! 7 night Western Caribbean Cruise on Carnival's Glory out of Port Canaveral departing October 17, 2009. You must purchase 07/22/09 or 07/23/09 (limited availability). Interior cabin $830.22 ($415.11 per person); Ocean View Cabin $1,030.22($515.11 per person) ; or a Balcony Cabin $1,370.22 ($685.11 per person). Rates are based on double occupancy and include port charges and taxes!

Broadway At Sea

Okay, even I have to admit I really like this idea. I haven't been impressed with much of what the cruise lines have been coming up with lately but I LOVE this enhancement. What could possibly be better than a Broadway Show at Sea! Kudos to Royal Caribbean for this great new innovation.

I'm attaching the article from Travel Pulse below.

Royal Caribbean's Oasis to Debut Musical "Hairspray"
Published on: April 24, 2009
Royal Caribbean International’s 220,000-ton Oasis of the Seas will debut the Tony award-winning musical “Hairspray” in December. One of two productions to take place in the Opal Theater, “Hairspray” will be offered three or four times on each seven-night cruise itinerary. Royal Caribbean licensed the show for three years aboard Oasis of the Seas with an option for a fourth year. “Hairspray” earned eight Tony Awards, including Best Musical, during its near seven-year run on Broadway, which came to an end in January and is currently playing in London’s West End. Set in 1962, the show follows the story of Tracy Turnblad, a big girl with big aspirations who wins a spot on the local TV dance program, “The Corny Collins Show,” and finds herself transformed into an overnight teen sensation. The show has been trimmed just slightly to fit within the average 90-minute run time consistent with Royal Caribbean’s theater productions, but the high-energy musical numbers will remain.
Oasis of the Seas will offer other entertainment, including an aerial show yet to be formally announced, which also will be performed in the Opal Theater. Entertainment Place, one of seven neighborhoods on Oasis of the Seas, which will a lounge filled with live jazz and blues. Comedy Live will feature comics while Studio B will be the place for an ice show featuring the writings of Hans Christian Anderson. The AquaTheater at the stern of the ship will host a comedy dive show and aquatic acrobatics synchronized to music and lights. For more information, call Denise Terkosky, MCC of CruiseOne at (888) 554-6440 or (904) 230-2565.

Accentuate the Positive

I think its time that we accentuate the positive. Amidst all the doom and gloom, did you know that 90% of us are still paying the mortgage and are still employed?? I'm starting the rumor that the economy is starting to turnaround-I want everyone to jump on the bandwagon with me to spread this news. Since the 1st of March, my business is actually up! Business is up 14% over last year and getting better!

I just returned from a trip to Las Vegas. From everything that I had read and seen on the news, I expected the casinos and shows to be very quiet. Boy, was I in for a surprise! We arrived on a Wednesday late afternoon. The airport was busy. I admit, I didn't have to stand in a long queue for a taxi, but the traffic was as bad as I remembered. We did get a great rate at the beautiful Wynn hotel and the restaurants now offer prixe fixe menus ($59 approximately per person) if you are interested in a "deal". We had pre reserved tickets on-line for Love at the Mirage (Cirque de Soleil show featuring Beatles music). -- there wasn't an empty seat in the house! We had dinner at Sinatra's in the Encore and were lucky to get a table in the bar without a reservation--the dining room was full! By Friday, the gang was all there. The casinos were busy, the sidewalks were full and people were everywhere.

I'm looking for last minute 7 night cruises for Spring Break and guess what--they are booked!! I can still find space on shorter cruises and cruises 3 months out-but people are realizing that there are some fantastic opportunities out there and taking advantage.

So I'm starting the rumor that the economy is starting to turnaround, won't you join me and we'll start to make it a reality by spreading the word.

Last Minute Opportunities

It's Spring Break and there are deals to be had. Carnival Sensation 3 night Bahamas cruise departing Port Canaveral March 26 $348 per person, double occupancy! Carnival Fascination 4 night Bahamas cruise departing Jacksonville March 26 $428 per person, double occupancy! Norwegian Jewel 5 night Western Caribbean cruise $376.75 per peson!! You need a break - here are some great opportunities to take advantage of. Hurry, because at this rate they are going fast!