I am Zumba mad

 Now for those of you that don't know me personally I am hooked by Zumba and so am very excited that Zumba classes are being rolled out across the Princess fleet.

Zumba is a latin based fitness class which combines dances moves - salsa, merengue, mambo with fitness move and is set to Latin American style music. It is really contagious and really good for you. 
Zumba burns anything from 400 - 700 calories per hour just dependant on your size and  the effort that you put in to it.


Now as a girl who likes to eat and drink aswell, Zumba on Princess ships will hopefully offer me the chance to maybe not put on quite so much weight on holiday. I hate doing that 8 week pre cruise diet to just go and put on half a stone on my cruise and have to start again.

Princess have been trialling Zumba on selected cruises since December 2010 but have seen the classes prove to be so popular that they are now taking it fleetwide. Currently it is featured on Caribbean Princess, Dawn Princess, Diamond Princess, Emerald Princess, Grand Princess, Golden Princess, Island Princess, Ruby Princess, Sapphire Princess, Sea Princess and Star Princess and they have promised 1 to 2 free classes on every sailing by 2012.

I am particularly impressed by the fact that it is free - as many cruise lines charge for there exercise classes.

If you're not sure what Zumba is, here is a YouTube clip of some customers enjoying Zumba on Emerald Princess in 2009. Click Zumba Please note this is not one of the classes that Princess are now running - if anyone is going on Princess this summer I'd be greatful if you could send me some footage!

Is a kettle really a health and safety issue?

I have just enquired with Thomson as to the use of kettles in their cabins and been advised that they are not provided and customers cannot take their own as it is a 'health and safety issue.' My customer is also not allowed to take her own kettle for the same reason.

I am slightly confused as to how a kettle can be a health and safety issue, I understand that hot water can burn skin but surely cruisers can decide themselves if they are willing to take the risk in order to have a cup of tea.

Thomson are not alone in this Celebrity and Royal Caribbean also do not allow kettles in the cabins but Fred Olsen do.  Maybe as Fred Olsen customers are generally slightly older they are more responsible. I can 't quite see why some lines provide it whilst others don't, I assuming it's a cost issue. But in the grand scheme of things a kettle and a couple of cups is hardly going to break the bank but maybe I'm missing something?

Fantastic Late Deal

Well I don't often put deals on my blog as we have a separate offers section on forum Cruises.co.uk but this was is just so good I wanted to advertise it in as many places as possible.

MSC Opera is sailing an 8 night cruise on the 22nd July 2011 and we have some very special rates for it.
Inside cabins are just £499pp.


She sails a lovely cruise down the coast of France to Spain and calls in at one of my favourite places - La Rochelle, be sure to get off the ship and have some mussels for lunch.
The full itinerary for this 8 night sailing is:

22 July - Southampton
23 July - Amsterdam
24 July - At Sea
25 July - La Rochelle
26 July - Bilbao
27 July - La Coruna
28 July - At Sea
29 July - Cherbourg
30 July - Southampton

There is limited availability left but I can still offer:

Cat 1 inside cabins at £499pp
Cat 9 outside cabins at £549pp
Cat 10 balcony cabins at £599pp
Cat 11 suites at £899pp

And there's free car parking too!

(Unfotunately all the cabins for 3 or 4 passengers are already fully booked)

If you want to take advantage of this great deal, just give me a call or e-mail me your phone number and I'll call you

I've just had a great weekend away..

Well I've just had lovely few days off, as well as Milo's school holidays it was also a special birthday for my Dad and he paid for us all to go away for the weekend. We stayed in the Cotswold Water Park, which is only an hour away but somewhere that I'd never heard off.

It's an area of 133 lakes covering 40 square miles and despite the fact that it used to be quarries, it is beautifully scenic and offers all sorts of facilities and entertainments from birdwatching and walking to windsurfing and jet ski-ing. It is a place that attracts all types of people and all age groups.

We stayed in a 5 bedroomed luxury holiday home on the Lower Mill Estate, which was a complex of luxury house all with lake views and on a site offering spa facilities, an indoor and heated outdoor pool, children's play areas, trampolines and tennis courts. The site itself was nice and quiet and the house was fab with 3 balconies, giant beanbag sun loungers, a hot tub and barbecue.

We spent most of our time eating and drinking and it was really good to spend some time with my brother's family and my nephews.

 If you are looking for a weekend getaway and can't find a mini cruise to fit your dates, then I would recommend this area. The details of the property we stayed in can be found via this link  

Plus we have my Mum's big birthday next year, so if anyone knows of similiar places that are great for 3 generation families from 5yrs upwards then let me know.