I think one of the bigger questions guests must answer when cruising is if having internet access is necessary. As usual, this is a personal question with a different answer for everyone. Some folks take a working vacation. Others like to stay in touch with folks back home. Still others are addicted to surfing the net for social media, news, sports and other interests.

Some ships provide complimentary internet. It is usually slow, especially on sea days and sometime it is next to non-existent depending on location. Cruise lines are starting to step up their game by offering hi-speed internet access. Other cruise lines charge an arm and a leg and your first-born to have internet access. So again, the big decision is: to connect or not to connect.

We like to sail with cruise lines that provide complimentary on-board internet. It allows us to post our daily postcard of our travels for our family and friends back home. However, keep in mind that on-board internet access doesn’t do you a heck of a lot of good on shore! For that service, you need to check with your cell phone carrier for coverage costs. Why do you need internet service on shore, you ask? Well, we use it for walking maps and directions when in port. Our phone carrier charges $10/day for this service. We typically only use this on the excursion days, and not on sea days, as we enjoy the complimentary service on board. We also use it while taking an Uber or Lyft car to make sure we are heading in the right direction. Recently, we had to ‘encourage’ our Uber driver to go the way the app said to go, instead of his ‘short-cut’. That was definitely an interesting ride!

“Cellular rates at sea vary by wireless company but generally reflect international roaming rates, which can be breathtakingly pricy. When the ship reaches port, pricing will switch to the country-specific roaming rate — also not cheap unless you’ve signed up for an international calling plan.”*

Not only do you have to evaluate your needs on a cruise ship, but also when traveling by airplane. Terminals provide access near gates with the airline’s app. While in the air, there is a fee that the handy credit card machine on the back of the seat in front of you gladly accepts. But again, be aware of the cost!

TIP: Always update all your phone’s files before departing as you may need to access various information when the internet access is less that favorable. Another lesson learned the hard way as we went through customs in a foreign country with connecting flights. I was being questioned as to our connections and was unable to access the information. I failed to print the information before leaving home as I knew I had it on my phone, in my travel folder. Thankfully, the customs agent finally let us pass through with a frown and a stamp on our passport.

Here’s a short list of cruise lines and their internet access/packages. Keep in mind that there are relatively few computers on the ship for public use. Most people have smart phones, iPads or laptop computers for personal, private access.

• Viking – offers complimentary on-board internet access included in your fare.
• Oceania – offers complimentary on-board internet access included in your fare.
• Royal Caribbean – offers two packages from $15-$20 per day.
• NCL – offers four packages from $15-$35 or pay by minutes.
• Holland America – offers three packages from $15-$30 per day or special 7-day pricing.
• Carnival – offers three packages to choose from ranging for $8-$25 per day.
• Disney – Pay as you go for 25 cents per minute or choose from three packages from $19-$89.
• Celebrity – offers two packages ranging from $15-$35 per day.
  
  NOTE:
  – Many times, the cruise lines will also offer special, limited time incentives to pre-purchase internet access prior to embarkation. Watch your emails for updates.
  – Depending on your cruise ship passenger status, you may receive complimentary onboard internet with every sailing. Check with your cruise line.
  – Basic cruise line internet information obtained from individual online cruise sites. As you can see by the above information, enjoying the internet onboard can become a rather costly option.

*Cruise Critic

Work, travel, save, repeat.
– Anonymous

Years ago, after my first international river cruise, I knew I wanted to visit Christmas markets or Christkindlmarkt in Europe. As life sometimes has a habit of getting in the way of plans, I never was able to fulfill that dream. That is, until one day two years ago, my daughter, Karen, asked me if there was anything on the calendar for specific dates. The next thing I know, we are jetting off to Germany for a whirlwind Christmas Market tour! Fröhliche Weihnachten! If you love Christmas, you have to experience a European Christmas Market. One year ago today, we embarked on a river cruise down the Danube, specifically to visit Christmas Markets. So many beautiful items, most of which are locally made. Everything from glass ornaments to cuckoo clocks, to nutcrackers, miniature Christmas villages and accessories, to elaborately decorated cookies, wooden toys and so much more! And, be sure to have a ‘brat’ with sauerkraut! Delicious! Don’t forget to get your souvenir mug with either beer or Glühwein! The mugs are collectible as each year they change. Just be sure that you have the correct year on your mug! We had to go back to the vendor as they had given us a previous year!

Be prepared. Plan on plenty of walking. Plenty of people. Plenty of uneven surfaces. Colder weather – so be prepared with winter wear and dress in layers. No place to sit – they want you up and shopping! And limited restroom facilities. (We usually take a break and head to a nearby restaurant to get warm, order a hot drink or have a snack and use their facilities.) Locally, we’ve visited Christmas Markets in Florida, Maryland and New York City, with plans to visit Philadelphia’s and Washington D.C’s markets this year.

Many Christkindlmarkt are located near a prominent square or in the shadows of a church, government building or other historical setting. I think the most notable European market that we have visited so far is Nuremberg (Nurnberg). We have also visited and enjoyed Wurzburg, Bamberg, Rothenburg, Vienna, Budapest, Passau, Lintz and Bratislava.

A few of our favorite purchases are hand-painted ornaments, holiday linens and assorted table-top decorations. For us, hand-made is an important criteria. And, it has to ‘speak’ to us ‘asking’ us to bring it home!

The more I travel with my challenges, the more prepared I am to deal with them. Hands cold? Bring disposable hand warmers to put inside your gloves. No clean place to sit? I fashioned an insulated seat pad that folds up small to protect me from dirt and cold surfaces such as low walls. If you use a walker, you hopefully have a ready place to sit. Wheelchair or scooter use could be problematic due to crowds and uneven surfaces. It is sometimes difficult to get up close to the vendor’s booth to shop their wares. Patience is needed here; just move in as the crowd moves out. Generally speaking, you should be prepared to use local currency as many vendors do not accept credit cards. Buying a cuckoo clock? You can have it shipped for a fee, but be prepared to wait for it to be delivered to the United States and go through Customs. Bring some bubble wrap with you for fragile items. Use your clothes to cushion other items. We generally save room in our carry-on luggage for our purchases. I’m still learning as I travel but I’m getting smarter all the time!

Still need some convincing?
Check out this article,
“8 Reasons to Take a Christmas Markets Cruise” from Cruise Critic:
https://www.cruisecritic.com/articles

Fröhliche Weihnachten

Currently on one of the travel groups I follow, there’s a huge discussion on cruise wear. It always amazes me to read some of the comments that people post! I believe there is a time and place for everything. And that includes proper attire, whether heading to the local store or cruising the seven seas. Gone are the days of tuxedos and ball gowns in the main dining room! Or is it?

Please acquaint yourself with the following terminology, as described on the website from each cruise lines listed below:

• Cruise Casual
• Smart Casual
• Informal
• Cruise Elegant
• Formal
• Evening Chic
• Gala
• Country Club Casual
• Resort Casual
  Who knew there were so many types of attire?

Carnival – undoubtedly the most specific!
Cruise Casual for Men – polo/sport shirts with sport slacks (dockers, khakis), jeans (cut-offs are not permitted), pressed long dress shorts with collared sport shirts and proper footwear (you’re likely to be in the minority), jackets.
Cruise Casual for Women – casual dresses and skirts (including summer dresses), pantsuits, Capri pants, pants and blouses, dress shorts, and again jeans (but no cut-offs or rips). Cardigans and blazers are also OK.
Cruise Elegant for Men – dress slacks and shirts, a sport coat and a jacket is suggested (but not required), same goes with the business suit (tie or no tie).
Cruise Elegant for Women – cocktail dresses, pantsuit, elegant skirts with blouses. Although this level of dress is not required, on elegant nights guests may choose to dress more formally (suit and tie, tuxedo, and the evening gown).

Princess
During your cruise, you should dress the same way you would do ashore. (Well, that could be interpreted many ways!) Leisure wear such as shorts and t-shirts is appropriate on board and on shore excursions in a warm climate. Depending on your itinerary, we advise you to bring sweaters and jackets for chilly evenings. Keep in mind that it could rain and that you need correct clothing for visits to religious sites. On deck, sandals with rubber soles and sneakers are ideal.

There are two recommendations for evenings and dinners:

• Smart casual:
  Dress the same way you would do for a visit to a restaurant at home. Skirts, dresses or trousers with t-shirt or blouse for ladies, trousers and shirt or poloshirt for gentlemen. Shorts and swimwear are not allowed in the restaurant.
• Formal:
  Evening gown, cocktail dress or pantsuits for ladies, suit, combination or dinner jackets for gentlemen. Princess Cruises offers formal wear rental on all cruises.

Celebrity
Evening Chic attire has replaced Formal attire. While dressier than Smart Casual, Evening Chic is intended to be less dressy than Formal attire. Women may feel comfortable wearing a cocktail dress or skirt, pants or designer jeans with an elegant top. Men may feel comfortable wearing pants or designer jeans with a dress shirt, button-down shirt or sweater, Sport coat or blazer are optional. If you would like to still wear a tuxedo or formal gown on Evening Chic nights, you absolutely should.

Holland America
Holland America has formal optional and smart casual evenings. The line calls its formal nights “Gala Nights” and its formal dress “Gala Attire.”. This attire includes collared shirts and slacks for men in all fine dining restaurants, and dresses, skirts or slacks for women.

Royal Caribbean
Casual: You’re on vacation – relax! Jeans, polos, sundresses and blouses are all the right amount of laid back. Please keep swimwear to the Pool Deck. Shorts are welcomed for breakfast and lunch.

Smart Casual: Think of this as a step up from your typical dinner wear. Dress to impress with collared shirts, dresses, skirts and blouses, or pantsuits. Jackets, sports coats and blazers are snazzy and welcomed. 

Formal: Make it a night out in your best black-tie look – suits and ties, tuxedos, cocktail dresses or evening gowns. There can be 1-3 formal nights during a sailing and is at the ship’s discretion.

Viking
Dress during the day is casual including shorts (if the season is warm), pants or jeans and comfortable shoes for walking tours. Swimsuits, brief shorts, cover-ups and exercise attire should be reserved for the Fitness Center, pool areas and Sports Deck. There are no “formal nights” in the evening; evening dress is “elegant casual” for all dining venues after 6:00 PM, performances and special events. On these occasions, required attire for ladies includes a dress, skirt or slacks with a sweater or blouse; for gentlemen, trousers and a collared shirt. A tie and jacket are optional.

Oceania
Recommended onboard clothing is resort or country club casual. For evening dining, elegant casual resort wear is suggested. Oceania requests that jeans, shorts, t-shirts or tennis shoes not be worn at dinner.

MSC

Gala – Dressy outfits, formal gowns or cocktail dress for women and tuxedo, dinner jacket or dark suit and tie for gentlemen. Informal – More casual dress or trousers and blouse for women and jacket and trousers for men. Jeans are not to be worn.

Silversea
Evenings rotate among casual, informal and formal dress codes. On casual nights, open-neck shirts and slacks are appropriate for men, while women wear casual dresses, blouses and skirts or pantsuits. On informal nights, dresses or trouser suits for women and jackets (ties optional) for men are recommended.

Disney
In general, most onboard dining locations are “cruise casual,” so casual attire, such as shorts and T-shirts, is permitted, with the exception of swimwear and tank tops. Most cruises have special theme nights that provide opportunities to dress up for a one-of-a-kind family photo. See website for special breakdown.

As you can see by the above information, the wearing of bathing suits, shorts, tank tops, t-shirts, flip flops and assorted beach-type clothing is not allowed in the dining room or specialty restaurants during dinner. Should you wish to dress and dine more casually, there is the buffet, lido deck eateries and room service available. While it is your vacation and you paid good hard-earned money for it, please respect other passengers and crew by dressing and behaving appropriately.

Typically, Karen will wear a cute cruise worthy dress and I will wear black slacks with a sweater, blouse or jacket in the MDR. While we choose not to dress formally for dinner, we do love to see those passengers that do ‘deck’ themselves out. And we applaud them for doing so! Whatever you do, make your cruise experience memorable – in a good way – for you!

NOTE:
All cruise dress code information provided by the online website for each cruise line.
MDR is the abbreviation for Main Dining Room.

A beautiful ocean sunrise is a wonderful way to start the day.
And another beautiful ocean sunset is a great way to end the day.

Ever wonder what the best time of the year it is to travel to certain places? Is it Summer? Is it Fall? Is it Winter? Is it Spring? The answer is, of course…YES! All of them! You just need to consider your itinerary. Are you driving? Are you flying? Are you taking the train? Are you on a cruise?

Spring
The temperatures are usually tolerable. Not too hot…not too cold. A good time to explore and enjoy the rebirth of the earth after the winter months. The trees are sprouting their new green colors and buds. The flowers are blooming. The grass is green. The rivers are flowing. The waterfalls are overflowing. It’s a magical time of year.

So, where do you want to go in the Spring? If you are interested in traveling internationally, then may I suggest Amsterdam, Netherlands? April and May may be my most favorite time of the year to visit Amsterdam. Why, you ask? One word – tulips! Visiting the beautiful countryside and seeing the multi-colored tulip fields is breathtaking. Visiting Keukenhof Gardens is amazing. The canals are busy with water traffic and lined with interesting houseboats. And the windmills at Kinderdijk! Definitely a must see! Love cheese? Visit a farm and help make some. Want a bouquet of tulips? Head to the canal for boat loads of fresh cut tulips in all the colors of the rainbow. We bought a bunch and put them in our stateroom on the ship to enjoy during the week.

Can’t make it to Amsterdam? Try Holland, Michigan instead! Tulips, windmills, Dutch girls and boys in traditional dress, wooden shoes, shops and more await.

Plan for the weather. As we all know, April showers bring May flowers!

Summer
Best place to head in the summer is somewhere to escape the heat and humidity. A nice drive up the Atlantic coast will have you eating fresh seafood, enjoying small town ambiance, lighthouses and lots more. Road trip? Take a circular route back home through the New England states for more small town cuteness.

Personally, I don’t care overly much for traveling during the summer months as school is out and it’s high or peak season. We generally prefer to travel in the ‘shoulder’ months – those that fall before or after high demand times. There’s generally less people, shorter lines, better deals and more tolerable temperatures.

Cruising to the Caribbean is very popular. If you long for a sandy beach, sunshine, waves crashing nearby or love to explore under the sea, the Caribbean is very popular. Or heading to Florida (unless you are a snowbird!) or other toasty climates for various amusement parks and attractions is also popular. Keep in mind, however, that it is hurricane season from May-November.

Fall
Fall used to be our favorite time to travel. Cooler temperatures, less people. The trouble with some destinations is that they close after Labor Day. So, before you plan that road trip, do your homework so there’s no disappointments. We recently took a fall foliage cruise in the beginning of October. Our hope was to see the beautiful fall colors along the Atlantic shore. Unfortunately, Mother Nature wasn’t dressed for our visit even though the ‘leaf peepers’ website said she was. So, perhaps plan to go a bit later in October if leaf peeping is of interest.

Fall is also a great time to travel abroad. Whether taking a cruise or simply flying over for a visit, the weather is likely to be cool and tolerable. Keeping in mind, however, that it is hurricane season from May-November.

Winter
One of our favorite trips during the winter is Christmas Markets, both here in the states and abroad. I will be posting another blog post in a couple weeks about these wonderful markets.

If you’re a snowbird, you head south for the winter. Or cruise to an island paradise for a visit. Or perhaps you enjoy the cold and head to Vail or another ski area for your get-away. If you are heading into snow country, please use caution as road conditions may be dangerous, especially if passing through mountain areas. If the signs indicate tire chains, be sure to use them!

A fun family-type activity to do year-round is Geocaching. This sport engages everyone from young to old. Take a road trip! Log in to http://www.geocaching.com to locate caches in the area you are planning to visit. Enter the coordinates into a hand-held GPS and you’re off on an adventure! Geocaching has taken us to areas that we always just drove by or to areas that we wanted to visit. Pack some swag to swap and a writing instrument to sign the cache log. It’s a great way to spend time outdoors and see new sites at the same time. We’ve geocached both here in the states and abroad. Finding a travel bug was always exciting then sending it on its way again. Over the years, we also hid a few caches ourselves. If you log on to the website, I bet you’ll even find a few geocaches near you!

Timing is everything – make sure you are aware of holiday dates/closures, weather conditions, and other important-to-you factors, such as special events like birthdays at home that you don’t want to miss. Or celebrate a special event during your trip! It will usually net you a complimentary dessert and a song!

Each of the four seasons presents different opportunities to get away, whether you are active or just need some R&R and pampering for a few days. So, start making some plans! Go! Seek! Explore!

Travel adventurously
– Josh Gates