Are you a Crown and Anchor member?

If you are, and you've achieved either Diamond, Diamond Plus or Pinnacle status then you need to book a cruise for December.

If you sail in December you  will be recognised and pampered by the entire Royal Caribbean Crew, regardless of the ship you are on or duration of the cruise. (I would expect that from Royal Caribbean anyway) but they are also giving double points for the sailing and triple points if sailing in a suite as well as special commemorative gifts and exclusive events.

There are some great deals for December at the moment to and you could sail with Royal Caribbean in the Med, Caribbean or Dubai at this time of year, have a look at our website or give me a call.

Looking for a family cruise this August..read on

Royal Caribbean have still got availability for families of 3 or 4 on Voyager of the Seas this August.

The sailing which goes from Barcelona on the 22nd August for 7 nights calls at Naples/Capri, Rome, Florence/Pisa, Nice and Provence has family availabilty on inside, outside and balcony cabins.

 She is  a great ship for families with an ice skating rink, rock climbing wall, sports court and teen disco on board. Along with a spa and fitness centre, theatre and champagne bar for adults.

The prices are good for school holidays too - cruise only rates for a family of 4 start at;
£2530 for an inside cabin, £3150 for an outside cabin and £3430 for a balcony cabin. Flights and transfers can be added with Royal Caribbean from London for £390pp or you can add your own low cost air. Many companies offer flights to Barcelona and the port is just half an hour from the airport so can be reached easily by taxi.

How much do drinks cost?

As a cruise specialist, I often get asked about the price of drinks onboard the cruise ships, so I thought I would share some details with you all!

Drinks prices vary from ship to ship, as they do in most bars at home. It is also worth bearing in mind that overall the American based cruise companies work out  more expensive as they add on a 15 - 18%  service charge to drinks aswell as being more pricey in the first place. Royal Caribbean, NCL & Oceania are all known to be expensive.

Fred Olsen and P&O tend to be more competitive  as their prices are in Pounds Sterling. A spirit and mixer is approximately £2.65, a bottle of beer is approximately £2.30 and a coffee is about £1.50, although some offer free tea and coffee in the afternoons or in your cabin you may get tea and coffee facilities, it is always worth checking this information when booking.

Island and Thomson Cruises are also fairly reasonable, charging average bar prices, but they also offer an All Inclusive drinks package for the duration of your cruise, starting from as little as £49 per person. These need to be purchased before departure, and is often offered for free if booked in advance. If you decide not to take this option, prices for a spirit and mixer is just over £3.00, and a bottle of beer from £2.70.


The European cruise lines such as Costa and MSC will charge prices in Euros. Depending on the exchange rate at the time, the prices work out at 7 Euros for a spirit/mixer, a coffee is approximately 2 Euros and a beer range from 4 Euros.


Cunard, Royal Caribbean and Princess Cruises all charge in dollars and will add a 15% gratuities onto their prices automatically. Prices for a beer aboard these floating marvels start at $4, and a spirit/mixer on average is $5 plus. Cunard offer a soda package which includes unlimited soft drinks from $3.75 a day, all of these prices do not include the 15% service charge. Royal Caribbean has a child soft drink package starting from $20 for a 7 night cruise - well worth it for those of you with thirsty children!

Seabourn and Regent - the most exclusive of cruise lines offer complimentary drinks aboard their ships, however you do pay for this in your original cruise cost.
Hopefully this will give you some insight into additional costs onboard and will help you budget for your dream holiday!  Any further questions just give me a call!

Royal Caribbean offer DIRECT flights from LOCAL airports for 2011

Royal Caribbean have finally done the sensible thing and teamed up with Thomas Cook airlines for 2011 to offer regional flights to Mallorca.

These flights are to go with their Vision Class ship, Grandeur of the Seas which will be sailing 2 7 night itineraries from May onwards. This will be a huge winner for Royal Caribbean and customers alike, up until now most people outside of London have been booking cruise only and arranging their own travel arrangements. However this has proved costly this year with BA strikes and ash clouds meaning many people have failed to make the cruise ship. By offering regional flights customers will now be able to have the protection of booking the complete package and the ease of flying from a local airport.

Flights are being offered from -
Gatwick
Manchester
Newcastle
Birmingham
Doncaster
East Midlands
Leeds Bradford
Belfast

My suggestion would be to book early for these flights, once they are booked up it will be back to travelling to London or maybe indirect flights.

Liberty and Freedom of the Seas to get ‘Oasis Attractions’

Royal Caribbean have decided to take some of the best features of Oasis of the Seas and to add them to their Freedom Class ships, starting with Liberty and Freedom in 2011. These ships already have flo-riders, water parks, ice rinks with excellent shows, casinos, spas, miniature golf, inline skating and more but will be enhanced by the following.


In terms of entertainment large 18.5-foot outdoor video screens for movies under the skies will overlook the main family pool area.

To tempt your palate they will feature the popular Cupcake Cupboard, which has proved a real hit on Oasis and the wine bar ‘Vintages.’ The wine bar allows you to taste rare vintages by allowing you to purchase wine by the millilitre, you get to taste several wines without breaking the bank (always a bonus on a cruise ship)

The ships will also have the Digital Wayfinder video screen – like your own personal sat nav, it outlines your route on board and gives step by step instructions on how to reach your destination. It also holds info on the ships entertainments, restaurants and daily menu’s.

And finally they are extending their babysitting service to include the ‘Royal Babies and Tots Nursery’ offering care for children six to 36 months. This special program was created in cooperation with the Fisher-Price and Crayola companies.

The 2 ships will go into dry dock at the start of 2011, so if you’re looking to sail next summer, you’ll get to experience them all

Winter in the Canaries ..just £799pp - and that's for 11nts

I have worked in travel for far too long, and don't think I have every seen the Canaries this cheap at this time of year. The Canaries are the only real place locally with heat and what's more you can sail from the UK so no worries about flights being cancelled.

Independence of the Seas is sailing an 11night Canaries cruise and on the 29th November & 10 December prices start from just £799pp including the taxes. Plus you'll get a free cooch transfer to the port.

Call me for the full itinerary and to claim an additional £30pp discount.

Hurry though, this offer ends 31 May. This is a deal that you should definitley book now...don't wait for the price to go down..it won't!

Think booking early is a con...read on

I have just quoted a passenger for Royal Caribbean's Independence of the Seas for August 2011, and the Royal Caribbean prices started at a price of £1393pp for a inside cabin with free car parking at Southampton

As a comparison I thought I'd look at the price of the same cruise this year and the price is at £1649pp, without any parking.

I am always being asked whether customers should book early and can now answer confidently - Yes, definately, if you can save over £500/couple and secure the cabin you want, why wouldn't you.

Epic coming to Europe...Royal Caribbean watch out!

NCL have just announced that there new flagship Epic will be based in Europe for 2011. This is fantastic news for UK cruisers, especially as she'll be based out of Barcelona.

With great innovations on board for all ages she is going to be a real hit. Featuring the Aqua Park, with the only tube slide and largest bowl slide at sea. A 33 ft high rock climbing wall and the most bowling lanes at sea, she will really give Royal Caribbean a run for their money.
She also has 14 restaurants and 18 bars and the first squash court at sea to work the excesses off.



Her new single studio rooms are hugely innovative with no single supplements and their own lounge area, making it much easier for single passengers to meet other guests, whilst enjoying big ship facilities.

Finally, NCL have made a very clever move basing her out of Barcelona. The easiest post of call for UK passengers wanting to arrange their own flights (especially if you’re travelling from Dublin or Belfast) she will sail a typical Western Med itinerary.

She goes on sale shortly and pre registrations are being taken now, so if you’re looking for a change to Royal Caribbean for next summer and suggest you look no further that Norwegian Epic.

Help..get me out of here

One of my customers had a shock when he came back to his cabin on Oasis of the Seas. A man was stuck in his toilet. Thanks for sending this is in Jhetin

FREE car parking ends soon

Don't forget if you have free car parking on an Independence of the Seas booking - you must confirm this with abparking by 31 Dec 2009. If you don't do this your free parking will not be honoured.
You can call 0844 880 6848  or visit http://www.abparking.co.uk/. You will need your Royal Caribbean booking reference.

If you haven't yet booked....book a 14 night round trip cruise from Southampton on Independance and you will get free parking. But hurry the offer ends 31 December.

Finally..real pictures of Oasis of the Seas.

Are you like me, thought Oasis of the Seas was going to be computer generated forever. Well now that she has finally launched Royal Caribbean have finally released official footage of the ship..she looks awesome to use a great American phrase.

http://www.oasisoftheseas.com/