CRUISE WITH YVONNE of WD World Travel

I have been waiting for the new Royal Princess with anticipation for over a year. Princess is my favorite of the large mainstream cruise lines, with their fantastic ships, service and food. The new Royal Princess will sail this fall and has a lot of great new features. Cruise critic has a great write-up on the ship, you can read all about this fantastic addition to the princess fleet here : Royal Princess 

And of course it is fitting that Kate will be the ships godmother!!

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There’s good news for couples who want to get married in a beautiful location without the hassle of planning a formal, sit-down dinner for 300 of their closest friends. Many cruise lines now offer a variety of services to help you plan a shipboard or shoreside ceremony, which, of course, will be combined with a romantic cruise honeymoon.

Planning a cruise wedding can be as easy as making one call. Just dial and, poof! In-house wedding coordinators will begin arranging the ceremony, menu, cake, flowers and music. Some will even help you to obtain wedding licenses or provide invitations and thank-you notes. And it’s easy to let them handle all the extras — from tuxedo rental to hair and spa appointments. 

An onboard wedding can be a great value, as well. Prices start at about $795 (the sky’s the limit) on top of the cost of the cruise. Typically, onboard weddings are held in a ship’s chapel (if one exists), a lounge, the library or a boardroom. But, the larger ships can offer offbeat ceremony locales aboard a carousel or on a rock-climbing wall. While the members of the wedding couple must be passengers on the cruise, most lines with full-service packages include an option for landside guests to come onboard for a couple of hours for the event.

Married folks can also get in on the fun with onboard vow-renewal ceremonies — a perfect way to celebrate on your anniversary trip.

Weddings and vow renewals at sea can, indeed, be the ultimate in romance. But, before you book your cabin, remember these tips: 

 If you want to get married at sea by the captain, you’re limited to only a handful of cruise lines, due to legal limitations that are based on ships’ countries of registry. On the “can officiate” list are Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Club Cruises, whose ships are now registered in Malta. Princess Cruises‘ captains are also able to marry couples at sea; its ships are registered to Bermuda. Beginning in 2012, Cunard will offer onboard weddings after its ships are re-flagged from Southampton to Bermuda.

Several cruises lines have private islands for wedding or vow renewals. Disney Cruise Line captains can lead wedding ceremonies onboard or at Castaway Cay. However, because senior officers cannot perform legal ceremonies, the actual “legal” marriage (and paperwork signing) must occur in the cruise terminal before the ship leaves Port Canaveral — not terribly romantic. Holland America conducts weddings and vow renewals at its private island, Half Moon Cay, during its Caribbean and Panama Canal cruises.

For the most part, it’s the big-ship, mass-market cruise lines that have embraced full-service weddings. Some, like Crystal Cruises, don’t allow onboard weddings. Others — mostly in the high-priced luxury category — like Seabourn don’t have a problem with wedding or vow renewal plans, but they eschew packages, opting to provide customized amenities to these guests.

Weddings have become so popular on some ships that Carnival, Celebrity, Azamara, Holland America and Royal Caribbean  levy surcharges for certain times of the year.

Cruise ship weddings may not be for everyone. If you’ve always dreamed of picking out each flower yourself or getting married in your hometown in front of 300 people, you may not be happy with this simple approach. And, getting married legally while at sea is complicated, so plan to have your ceremony on the ship while it is in port, or plan well in advance.

 Weddings in ports of call can be fabulous, but what happens if the ship has to cancel the call? Consider very carefully ports that require ships to tender; Grand Cayman, for instance, can be a highly unpredictable site, as winds often hamper tender operations, causing cruise ships to skip stops at the island. For the same reason, we do not recommend planning a shoreside wedding at a Caribbean locale during hurricane season (June through November).

And, while many brides start planning their dream nuptials a year to a year and a half in advance, don’t jump the gun by planning land-based, post-cruise celebrations too early. Couples have been bumped from their wedding cruises — due to full-ship charters after they booked — forcing them to reschedule everything.

Info provided by Cruise Critic

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I found this in my email box this morning and had to share the story in case any of you can afford it or have recently won the lotto!

The world’s most expensive luxury cruise package is up for grabs and comes  with a price tag of $A1.5 million per couple.

The 124-day holiday onboard Silversea Cruises’ vessel Silver Whisper departs  from Los Angeles in January 2013 and includes visits to 28 countries, including  French Polynesia, New Zealand and Australia.

The package, offered by UK cruise retailer Six Star Cruises, carries a price  tag of STG1 million ($A1.49 million) – or nearly $A12,000 per day per  couple.

The trip starts with the holidaymakers being whisked away from their home or  hotel in London by helicopter and flown to a London airport. At the airport the  couple will dine on Beluga Caviar, priced at a STG4,000 ($A5,967) per  kilogram.

The pair will then fly to the United States by private charter onboard a  Boeing business jet that features mahogany panelling and gold-plated fixtures.  During the flight a Michelin star chef will create a 10 course tasting menu for  the couple.

Once at sea the pair will stay in Silver Whisper’s Royal Suite, which has two  bedrooms, two marbled bathrooms, dining area and two balconies.

The cruise package also includes a four night pre-cruise stay at the iconic  Beverley Wilshire Hotel in Beverley Hills, Los Angeles, and a four night  post-cruise stay in a six-bedroom villa in Miami, Florida.

Six Star Cruises company director Mal Barritt said that despite economic  uncertainty in Europe, he believes this holiday package will sell well.

“We have listened to what some of our most discerning customers say they look  for in a holiday and have created the most desirable cruise holiday in the  world,” he said in a statement.

The four-month cruise departs the UK on January 1, 2013 and those looking to  get on board can opt for a less expensive option – Ocean View Vista  Suite for  the entire 115-day cruise are available from US$48,114 ($A45,018) per person,  double occupancy.

Story from the Sydney Morning Herald

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I hear from many people how they would love to volunteer in a foreign country building houses or perhaps help out in a school house. But most people either don’t know where to find these opportunities or think they won’t be able to afford the travel costs. They may also be wary of the accommodations once they arrive and may not have a month or two to take off work.     

One tour company is making it possible to experience volunteering in countries such as Peru and Africa. In a tour style they call a voluntour, it is the perfect way to explore the world, immerse yourself in different cultures, and make a difference and all at the same time! The volunteer work may vary but you’re sure to come back with a deep and genuine connection and memories you’ll never forget.

Continue reading ‘Voluntouring’

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BUYING an airline ticket is always something of a gamble — prices go up and down, and trying to figure out how far in advance to book to get the best fare can be tricky. Recent world events have been causing oil prices — a major factor in ticket prices — to fluctuate, making the calculation of when to buy even more challenging. Earlier this month, the price of a barrel of oil, which had skyrocketed to as high as $104 in response to events in Libya and the Middle East, dropped below $100 a barrel when disaster hit Japan.

Continue reading ‘Plane Tickets – Buy Early or Wait?’

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When it comes to the Caribbean, ever feel like you’ve been there, done that? For those intrepid travelers willing to venture beyond the glitzy casinos and cruise ports, the region holds a surprising wealth of authentic and diverse island treasures — if you know where to look.

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