Choosing the right cruise & excursions without breaking the bank!!!

   

When I plan a cruise with my family, here are a few things I think about that help us decide. Sometimes it’s a new ship we want to check out, it may be particular ports we would like to visit, and sometimes it’s just “we need a cruise” and don’t want to fly across the U.S. to get to a port so we look for a port close to home to leave from. We usually try to cruise 3 times a year and like to choose different ports or ships as much as possible. Although, I will say we are starting to run out of options… We do end up repeating some ports but can’t complain about it. For example, Cozumel is one we have been to many times and never get tired of it. It seems to always fall into a port stop on all the western Caribbean itineraries. We can always find something to do there. We have been swimming with the dolphins at Dolphinaris, gone on jeep tours, ATV excursions, experienced different beach clubs, grabbed our own cab to the beach for the day, and even just got off the ship and hung around and shopped in the port. I can’t say we have ever had a bad day in Cozumel. Continue reading “Choosing the right cruise & excursions without breaking the bank!!!”

Video Tour of Carnival Miracle Cabin #7301 (My favorite cabin)

Here’s a video tour of Cabin #7301 (Premium balcony) on the Carnival Miracle.  It is a Spirit class ship, so all the Spirit class ships have these, although very limited.   I have stayed in all types of cabins including suites and for the price this is my overall favorite.  Awesome cabin!!!

The ABC Islands

                                          

                                       Aruba, Bonaire, & Curacao

 When I’m getting ready to take a vacation to a new destination, I always do my research.  I have been to 2 out of 3 of these places and I will be visiting Bonaire for the first time next March, so I have started my research and thought I would share some of the information I have found with you. Aruba and Curacao are amazing places and I can’t wait to visit Bonaire as well.

The ABC Islands consist of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao. They are all located off the western coast of Venezuela in the Southern Caribbean. Curacao is the largest of the three islands and also holds the highest population with very high standards of living due to its oil refining business. Bonaire is slightly larger than Aruba although Aruba holds a higher population. Aruba is also the most developed of the islands, offering many resorts, casinos, malls, golf courses, restaurants, night life and more. Bonaire is surrounded by staggering coral reefs and is also protected by a national marine park. It is known as a diver’s paradise. It doesn’t have the tourism that Aruba does and does not have the commercial power of Curacao. Continue reading “The ABC Islands”

Carnival Miracle Review

 

                                               Relaxation At Sea

We decided to take our fall cruise on the Carnival Miracle down to the Mexican Riviera for 7 days. It was a new ship class for us and we have been on this itinerary before and enjoyed it in the past. It was just the 3 of us this time myself, husband Jamie and son Matthew. We went during the week of Matthew’s fall break from school. We just wanted to keep it simple and relax. We had already planned not to do any excursions this time and just get off the ship and go to the beach or just hang out since we had been to these ports a few times and have done different excursions in the past. This cruise was all about relaxing for us. So unfortunately, I won’t be talking about any exciting excursions we took this time. I will focus mostly on the ship and some of the differences from other ships. We had booked this cruise over a year ago and we were able to book a premium balcony (cabin 7301) which is hard since there are only 2 cabins like this on the ship. The cost was not much more than a regular balcony and well worth the money.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Besides having a suite, this has been our best cabin in all of our 18 cruises. It felt like more closet and storage space, and with 3 of us it worked out great and let’s not forget the awesome huge balcony. Well more on that later. Continue reading “Carnival Miracle Review”

Little French Key Isla Roatan, Honduras video review…..Amazing day!!!

Little French Key in Isla Roatan, Honduras is an amazing place. Perfect excursion for the day for family and friends of all ages. You can book a day here directly through their website. Check out the beauty of this place in my video on you tube and subscribe to my channel for all my latest videos!!!

Click on the link below to view…..

 

SIGHTS OF SEATTLE

Seattle, Washington, the largest city in the state offers visitors a wide variety of spectacular natural and man made wonders, a wide range of indoor and outdoor activities, and an exceptional variety of culinary treats.

 

 

 

 

To start off, coffee and Seattle go together. Coffee companies founded or based in Seattle include Starbucks, Seattle’s Best, and Tully’s. Starbucks fans can see the original shop where it all started at Pike Place Market. You can also check out one of the top coffee shops in Seattle “Street Bean Espresso” where their coffee is locally roasted.

Original Starbucks

 

 

 

 

For some of the top cuisine in Seattle, check out Wild Ginger, Pink Door, the Dahlia Lounge, and Ray’s Boathouse for fresh seafood and waterfront dining. Continue reading “SIGHTS OF SEATTLE”