Hopefully cruising will resume in the coming months, right around what should be the Alaska cruise season.  Unfortunately, even if cruising returns soon, the Mendenhall Glacier, quaint buildings of Ketchikan's Creek Street, and Juneau's Mt Roberts might not be on your itinerary.  Canadian and US laws and even CDC restrictions are putting the Alaska cruise season in jeopardy, but there are six things that might save it. 

As we eagerly await a safe return to cruising out of North America, the world’s largest cruise company, Carnival Corporation, recently published new policies that give us a clearer picture of what cruising will be like.  Only a few days later however, they pulled these policies from their website.  We’ve reviewed the COVID-19 Policies and Procedures the company posted (removed as of early Feb 7 2020), which should give us some idea of what to expect on all of their lines, including Holland America Line, Carnival Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, Cunard Line, and others.  Below we’ve called out some of the highlights, and summarized what this means for your cruise experience...

Princess Cruises' Ocean Medallion program allows for a range of high-tech enhancements to the guest experience, including contactless payments, high-speed internet, easy entry, and now even sports betting at sea.  Of course those who like to put their money where their jersey is will enjoy this new option, but we think there is also good reason for those who don't partake to be happy about the news....

As cruise lines stay nimble and plan for a return to cruising from North America, Celebrity has made significant changes and announcements over the past months - including a shift to all sailings including tips, drinks, and WiFi (Always Included).  On a call with travel agents this week, the line announced some details around capacity, vaccines, inaugural voyages, and new itineraries...

No matter the cruise line or itinerary, cruising offers a wide variety of things you can do while on vacation. There are however some things you cannot do on a cruise. While some of the things on our list are rules related to safety or laws, other are a matter of practicality. We'll go over eight things you can't do on a cruise, and include some exceptions...

Whether cruising the Caribbean, Alaska, or Europe, make sure you consider these five things before picking a shore excursion...

With so many great cruise lines out there, it's worth taking a look at your options from time to time.  Recently, our friends and partners at TouringPlans.com asked us to compare Celebrity Cruises to Disney Cruise Line, and introduce Celebrity to those who might have understandably fallen for the allure of the mouse...  

Today in near Singapore, a case of COVID-19 was reported on Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the Seas, the first ship in the fleet to return to cruising since March.  The presence of this case though isn't necessarily indicative of a failure.  With advanced contact tracing and transmission measures in place, the coming days will demonstrate whether or not this exercise was actually a success in preventing spread, or an opportunity to update protocols...

As we often say, cruising isn’t one thing.  There are a wide variety of lines offering different experiences.  While about 30 million guests sailed on cruises in 2019 alone, the lines most cruisers think about are owned by the big three cruise companies: Royal Caribbean Group, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, and Carnival Corp.  There are boatloads of other cruise lines out there though, offering an incredible variety of vacations on ships big and small, on the ocean and on rivers.  In this post we're going over just six of the many lines you probably haven't heard of - but maybe one day...

There can be an overwhelming number of things to do on cruises. From stage shows included with your fare, to pricey spa treatments, you’ll find plenty of options listed in the daily program found in your room (and increasingly, in an app).  There are some things however, that you don’t want to miss, even though you won’t find them mentioned on the schedule...