High Life Cruise News!

May / June 2010

Enjoy the high life – you deserve it!

Destination Spotlight !   ANTIQUA

Activities

• Visit the museum, housed in a building dating from 1750.
• Stop off at the Anglican Cathedral, Fort James, the renovated base of Nelson's Dockyard, and English Harbor.
• There are said to be 365 beaches in Antigua, one for every day of the year. Whether or not there are, there's sure to be plenty of sand for you to lay out on or do what you please at the beaches in Antigua. Click here for information about cruises visiting Antiqua

 Cruise Line Spotlight!  PRINCESS CRUISES

 Princess Cruises, one of the best-known names in North American cruising, is a global cruise and tour company. It operates a fleet of 17 ships on 115 different itineraries traveling to more than 350 destinations around the globe. Their Cruises range from seven to 107 days in length. Destinations include the Caribbean, Alaska, Europe, Panama Canal, Mexico, South Pacific, South America, Hawai’i/Tahiti, Asia, India, Africa, Canada/New England, Antarctica and World Cruises. Princess is one of the leaders in Alaskan Cruisetour Vacations –owning 5 riverside wilderness lodges, and a fleet of luxury motor caches and railroad cars. They also operate cruisetours in China, Australia, Africa, India, Europe, the Canadian Rockies and the Eastern United States.

• Classification: Premium Cruise Line
• Atmosphere: Romantic
• Style: Flexible
• Dining: Both Traditional and Open
• Service: 5 star
• Gratuities: Automatic Charge 

Click here for more information about Princess Cruises.

Cruise Ship Spotlight!  STAR PRINCESS

  Like her sister ship, Grand Princess, Star Princess passengers enjoy fine cuisine in Traditional or Anytime Dining venues, specialty dining at Sabatini's Italian restaurant and the Crown Grill steak and seafood restaurant, and relax in the Lotus Spa or on deck at the adults-only retreat, the Sanctuary. Below are some of the other features Star Princess has to offer: 2,590 passengers

• Three dining rooms, outdoor hamburger and hot dot grill, pizzeria and ice cream bar and 24-hour dining and room service
• A wide variety of bars and lounges, including a wine and caviar bar and Skywalkers nightclub and observation lounge suspended 150 feet above the water
• Five pools, including a swim-against-the-current lap pool
• Lotus Spa, gym and fitness area
• Adults-only retreat, The Sanctuary
• Nine-hole putting course and digital golf simulators
• Three unique show lounges
• 300 square foot Movies Under the Stars outdoor theater
• Casino
• Wedding chapel featuring wedding-at-sea program officiated by the ship's captain
• World-class art collection, gallery and auctions
• Duty-free boutiques

Click here  for more information on Star Princess

Travel Tips! CRUISE BUDGETING

Cruise lines do not make their profit from your cabin and therefore have lots of ways to let you line their pockets. Here are some ways for you to keep on budget:

• Eat in the main dining rooms. Many ships have specialty restaurants to give you options, but these options usually have an extra charge, as much as $25.00 per person extra.
• Factor in tipping. Some cruise lines automatically add gratuities, like Princess, while others still rely on passengers to make that decision. One helpful resource is cruise.tip.tpkeller.com. , which calculates the suggested tips per day for the various cruise lines.
• Budget for drinks. Most of the major cruise lines charge extra for both soft drinks and alcoholic beverages. Do not expect to bring your own booze onboard. Most cruise lines prohibit this and may actually seize your liquor not purchased on board and hold it until the end of the cruise.
• Book your own shore excursions. While most cruise lines have excellent shore excursions, quite often they are more expensive than you can book independently through outfits like Port Promotions . In some locations you can ask a taxi to give you a tour.