Firestyle Magazine Issue 3 - Spring 2016 | Page 50

TRAVEL Flying to your initial point of departure opens up a whole new set of destinations and itineraries, from cruising the Mekong river through Cambodia and Vietnam to whale watching in Alaska. If you fly then you are restricted to the luggage weight limit of your airline, otherwise cruising has no weight limitations. Once you have a feel for where you want to go we can find a cruise with the itinerary that really ticks all the boxes for your ideal holiday. We use an agents tool that lists every cruise from every port around the world on a day by day basis, so once we have your criteria we can access the data base to search for exactly what you want, and recommend the cruise line that will best fulfil your expectations. Once you have decided on when and where, then we need to go into the detail of your cruise. What type of room, where is it located on the ship? If you are going to use your stateroom, i.e. cabin, mainly for sleeping then probably a basic inside cabin would be your choice. If you see yourself sitting on a balcony sipping a glass of white wine, whilst coming into port, then an outside cabin with balcony would be what you require, and an inclusive drinks package! Many first-time cruisers ask about the best location for stability for ocean cruises and we would recommend a mid-ship location, although, in reality, today’s ships are fitted with stabilisers so only very rough seas would incur any discomfort. Once you have chosen a stateroom we can then give you a quote. Most ocean cruise packages include everything, even tips, although this is discretionary and does differ from company to company. Drinks packages may also be included and are quite often used as an additional promotional offer at key times of the year. On board spend is also often included as a promotional extra. Shore excursions are extra, but these can be booked and paid for prior to the start of your cruise. You can chose to not join a shore excursion but go ashore on your own. So what did we find for our new cruising clients? A flight from Manchester to Barbados to pick up The Britannia with P and O, visiting Curacao and Aruba in the Dutch Antilles, Grenada, St Vincent in the Grenadines, St Lucia, Dominica, Antigua and St Maarten in the Leeward Islands and returning back to Manchester from Barbados, after 14 nights on board and 8 beautiful Caribbean destinations visited in an ocean view cabin with balcony. A wonderful journey to see some of the jewels of the Caribbean and a not to be missed first venture into the fabulous world of cruising. Tracy, Paula, and Jackie can be contacted to offer advice at Tracy Mason Travel, on 01785 712332 50