How about to celebrate?  What’s happening in your world that you would like to celebrate?  My husband and I are celebrating his 40th birthday this year with a cruise on Royal Caribbean’s Oasis of the Seas.   Last summer my parents took our family to the western Caribbean on a Carnival voyage to celebrate their 40th anniversary.  There is a really fun trend toward cruising to celebrate a life event.  Family reunions, birthdays, anniversaries, retirement, job change, holidays, girlfriend getaways and many other reasons that one can find to celebrate.  Cruise lines love it, too, when you bring big groups of fun people onboard, they WANT to help you celebrate.   We booked Jason’s birthday cruise over a year in advance thankfully.  The prices are now around $800 more per couple, so it pays to plan ahead and it gives all of those going a chance to save their pennies.   Why not consider the next big event in your life a reason to cruise??   Happy sailing!

If you could cruise anywhere in the world, where would it be?  Let’s put some parameters around this or you would get my answer, a World Cruise, of course!!!  So let’s say anywhere from 7 to 14 days.  There are so many places to choose from!  My first thought goes to the Society Islands.  Princess Cruise Line has a 10 night itinerary that I must do someday.   Bora Bora, Tahiti and Moorea all ring my umbrella drinks, exotic island bells.   While the cruise pricing is reasonable, the airfare is a little outrageous for someone flying from the midwest, but it’s definitely on my “bucket list”.

There are so many other places that I dream of as well such as the Mediterranean.  There is a vast array of itineraries in Europe it will be hard to choose.  Greek Islands, the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, some itineraries even go to Egypt!  Not to mention the French and Italian Rivieras, Barcelona and Gibraltar.  Northern Europe would be another amazing place to visit.  St. Petersburg, Russia, the Northern Lights seen in Norway, the Norwegian Fjords, Copenhagen, the British Isles and so much more.

Gosh, I could really get carried away dreaming of far off destinations.  I look forward to the day when we can make the trek around the southern tip of South America.  Visiting Argentina, Chile, Brazil and the Faulkland Islands along the way.  Hmmmmmm….

Okay, enough about my dreams.  What are yours?  Happy Sailing

Okay, it doesn’t get much better than this for food AND cruise lovers…..

Celebrity Solstice will sail on August 22, 2010 roundtrip out of Ft. Lauderdale with the Food Network At Sea Featuring Iron Chef Cat Cora and Chef Aarón Sánchez from Chefs vs. City.

MIAMI, June 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Celebrity Cruises has long been recognized for offering award-winning cuisine, and in August, the brand will pair the top-rated megaship, Celebrity Solstice, with invitation-only events sponsored by Food Network and designed for culinary enthusiasts, through the first “Food Network at Sea” program.

The Solstice will sail to San Juan, St. Thomas and St. Maarten.  I personally have been aboard this ship, it’s beautiful!!  Guests who purchase the special cruise package also will have the opportunity to enjoy the following:

• VIP pierside check-in
• Red carpet “welcome aboard” reception
• “Battle of the Celebrity Solstice Chefs” competition event
• “Dine-around” experience featuring samplings of favorite Food Network recipes
• Access to the Food Network VIP Lounge and screening room
• Caribbean cocktails on Celebrity Solstice’s Lawn Club
• Pre-paid gratuities and special turndown gifts

Let’s hope this is a hit, I would LOVE to do this someday!

Celebrity Cruise Line is offering a way to visit behind the scenes with the master chefs.  Introducing the Savor series, designed by award-winning chef, and Celebrity’s Vice President of Culinary Operations Jacques Van Staden. It’s your chance team up with master chefs on the cutting boards, explore the “Art of Food and Wine Pairing” or expand your palate during the “Riedel Comparative Wine Workshop” designed in partnership with Riedel® Crystal.  Here is a peek at what they offer on board, how much fun does this sound??  I found all of this great info on www.celebritycruises.com .  Some of these classes are complimentary and some have a fee.  Enjoy browsing

 

FOOD AS ART

The Heartbeat of the Operation: Meet our chefs, and learn how they prepare your favorite dishes in this behind-the-scenes look at our culinary playground

A Taste of Equinox:  Join our Specialty Restaurant chefs as they demonstrate their interpretations of world cuisine

Star Chefs Cooking Competition:  Watch 2 of our chefs battle it out for shipboard supremacy – at least for the day

Global Flavors:  Our Executive Chef prepares some of his favorite dishes in a light-hearted cooking demonstration

Signature Series

Mixology 101:  Watch and learn the secrets to a perfect Mojito and other popular Celebrity cocktails

Molecular Mixology with the Liquid Chef:  Experience the new trend of “chef-inspired” bartending

Jameson Whiskey Tasting:  Join our Whiskey Professor in learning about and tasting the nuances of Irish whiskey

Master of Malts from the Macallan:  Learn the fine art of Scotch production, flavor profiles, aromas and styles from Macallan Master Blenders

Small Batch Bourbon Tasting:  Taste our exclusive collection of Kentucky bourbons, and learn the history behind this classic American whiskey

Celebrity Vineyards

Celebrity’s Wine Appreciation 101:  Join our Cellarmaster and Foodie to learn, taste and compare several wine varietals and styles

Celebrity’s World Wine Tour & Silent Auction:  Treat your palate to a global wine tour, and place a bid in our wine auction, hosted by our ships’ Sommeliers

Riedel Comparative Wine Crystal Workshop:  Discover the difference the shape and quality a Riedel glass makes to the enjoyment of fine wine

The Art of Food and Wine Pairing:  Learn the answers to your food and wine pairing questions in this educational workshop hosted by our Cellarmaster

Wow! What a gorgeous island. My new husband and I just took our honeymoon to New York City followed by a 7 night cruise to Bermuda where we spent 3 full days. A little different than we are used to, no changing ports each day. It gave us an opportunity to explore the island a little more. The water is absolutely breathtaking, so blue!! On our first day we did an excursion that involved snorkeling in the Bermuda Triangle. I’m scared fish, so my poor husband had a clingy snorkel partner. The second day we toured the Crystal and Fantasy Caves. What an interesting find in the middle of the Atlantic ocean. Horseshoe Bay Beach and Gibbs Hill Lighthouse on the 3rd day wrapped up our stay in Bermuda. Our ship was our hotel the entire time we were there, which meant no packing and unpacking, yeah!!! We finished each evening on board with Norwegian’s entertainment. A production of Bollywood was definitely a highlight and a favorite of both Jason and mine. We sailed on the Norwegian Dawn and had a fabulous time. Lots of BBCs and Bushwackers Thanks to our Honeyfund users we enjoyed lots of cake, champagne, chocolate covered strawberries, canapes, cheese and fruit tray all delivered to our stateroom. Ah the perks of a honeymoon. I would absolutely sail Norwegian Cruise Line again, hopefully on the new ship, the Epic.

River cruises are increasing in popularity as a unique option for those who enjoy ships but want to explore further inland.   Think about it!  A  river cruise  is one of the best ways I know to explore the inland, visiting cities, towns and villages that traditional big ships can’t access.  Europe, China, Brazil, Egypt and Russia all have incredible itineraries that visit amazing places.  As with big ships, your hotel goes with you and you don’t have that packing/unpacking dilemma.  River cruising is a little different from big ship cruising in that you won’t find all the big-ship features such as casinos, kids clubs, multi-level sun decks and large theaters, the real difference between a riverboat and a cruise ship experience is the intense emphasis on the places you visit. River itineraries in Europe, for example, feature a nice mix of sophisticated cities like Paris, Vienna,  Budapest and Amsterdam as well as charming and picturesque small towns and villages like the Rhone’s Chablis, the Danube’s Durnstein and the Rhine’s Cochem.   The shore excursions are almost always included in the cruise fare, not usually the case with a large cruise ship sailing.

Here is a list of some of the well known river cruise lines:

- Avalon Waterways

- Uniworld

- Viking

- AMA Waterways

Castles, cathedrals, bustling marketplaces, charming squares, ancient myths, spiritual wonders, a pagoda with golden dragons, rain forests and exotic wildlife are just some of the things to experience up close and personal on a river cruise of a lifetime.  Time to revisit the bucket list

Wow, it has been a crazy few months for my fiance and I!  I’ve found it difficult to work a full time job, plan a wedding AND keep up on my blog.  I thought I would pop in and let you know that Curious Compass is still here, just trying to keep up.

Once we were engaged, we talked seriously about getting married aboard a cruise ship.  The ultimate romantic adventure.  We found out that Princess Cruise Line was the only line that allowed the ceremony to be performed at sea.  The “Tie the Knot” program allows the ship’s Captain to perform the ceremony on international waters under the ship’s Bermuda registry.  Princess also offers fleet-wide harborside ceremonies in embarkation ports or weddings ashore in select ports of call. Together these options have created the cruise industry’s most diverse and unique wedding program, offering the convenience of a wedding and honeymoon in one customizable package that makes this important event easy and hassle-free.  To find out more click here. 

If I hadn’t dreamed of being married in front of all our family and friends, this would have been our first choice.  We couldn’t figure out how to get our closest 400 guests on the same cruise ship at the same time!  I definitely see vow-renewals in our future aboard a cruise ship…..

 

Jason and I have returned from our Baja cruise on the Radiance of the Seas.   We sailed out of San Diego and visited the ports of Ensenada and Cabo.  What a different experience from our cruising in the Caribbean.  First of all, we had to wear long sleaves and jackets for the first couple of days, it was quite cool!  The seas were a bit rough as well, making for an interesting evening on board, felt like we were intoxicated, unable to walk straight! 

As expected, Royal Caribbean delivered on their exemplary service.   Our room was always serviced promptly and our wait staff in the dining room were attentive.   You couldn’t walk by a staff member without them saying hello. 

We went into Ensenada on an excursion to two wineries.  It was a rather long bus ride, but worth it.  The countryside was interesting, sometimes even beautiful.  The wines tours were great, we tasted a lot!  The had us back to the ship just after noon.  Not sure I’ve ever had wine and cheese at 10:00am!  It was a great way to spend our day. 

Cabo was hopping.  We did some shopping and sampled Mexican Coca-Cola.  It is sweetened with sugar cane instead of fructose corn syrup, very yummy!  We also went to Cabo Wabo and had a cocktail.  My banana margarita was terrible!!  We can at least say we’ve been.   Jason bought me a pair of red coral and sterling silver earrings to match a bracelet we bought in Cozumel last year.  That was pretty much the extent of our purchases. 

Back on the ship to return.  We had a fabulous time sleeping , eating, evening shows, casino, reading, karaoke, eating……  Oh and did I mention that we were able to see whales???  There was a whole school swimming off of the starboard side of the ship.  We had a perfect view from our balcony, definitely a highlight of our vacation.

Did you know that October is National Cruise Vacation Month?  Time to celebrate one of the most fantastic ways to spend your vacation time off!  My business, Curious Compass, will be hosting a Virtual World’s Largest Cruise Night on October 14, 2010.  Watch for more details starting October 1st.

CLIA’s Virtual World’s Largest Cruise Night

The World’s Largest Cruise Night (WLCN) is just one of a series of innovative initiatives launched in celebration of October’s National Cruise Vacation Month (NCVM), a North American celebration of the cruise experience. CLIA member Travel agencies across the U.S. and Canada are focusing their promotional efforts to educate travelers on the value and diversity of today’s cruise vacations

CLIA member travel agencies across North America are going high tech to get the cruise vacation message out in October with a “Virtual World’s Largest Cruise Night”. This provides you with an opportunity to view up to 5 brief cruise line videos online, hosted by a CLIA member travel agency, Curious Compass.

Click here to visit my World’s Largest Cruise Night site and find out more information about your favorite cruise lines!

 

Happy Sailing!

We are anxiously awaiting the new Norwegian Epic! 

Here’s the scoop from Norwegian Cruise Lines:

The 4,200-passenger Norwegian Epic incorporates many innovations including several new types of accommodations – the curved New Wave staterooms; the largest ship-within-a-ship suite complex at sea, comprising 60 suites and villas on two private decks at the top of the ship; a new category of inside staterooms for the value-conscious traveler – The Studios and Living Room; and spa and family-friendly accommodations.  The ship also boasts unique nightlife options with the first Ice Bar at sea and Spice H20 with non-stop entertainment day and night; an expansive Aqua Park with the only tube slide and largest bowl slide at sea — The Epic Plunge; seven decks of Freestyle Family Fun with highlights including a 33-foot high, 64-foot wide extreme rock climbing wall and the first ever rappelling wall at sea; the most bowling lanes at sea with six in two venues; a mixed-use sports deck with the ability for guests to engage in eight different athletic activities; as well as three separate kids’ and teen activity areas and the first squash court at sea.  In addition, Norwegian Epic will offer the next generation of Freestyle Dining with 14 restaurant choices – the most at sea – and 18 bars and lounges.  Click here for more fun facts.

Another great piece of news about the Norwegian Epic:

NEW YORK – May 20, 2009 – Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) today announced it is changing the face of cruise line entertainment on its next generation of Freestyle Cruising ship, Norwegian Epic.  In another industry first, the company will welcome  Blue Man Group, performing in the 685-seat Epic Theater.  Blue Man Group is best known for their wildly popular theatrical shows and concerts which combine music, comedy and multimedia theatrics to produce a totally unique form of entertainment. The blissful party atmosphere created at their live events has become the trademark of a Blue Man Group experience and beginning in the summer of 2010 will be seen for the first time ever at sea only on Norwegian Epic.

The Norwegian Epic is taking reservations and will sail it’s maiden voyage out of South Hampton on June 24th, 2010 arriving in New York on July 1st.  Then on to Miami where it will sail the Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries for several months.