To cheat or not to cheat....on our favorite cruise line.

This is a real dilemma for us.  Do we try another cruise line or do we continue to be exclusive to Royal Caribbean?  It's no secret we love Royal Caribbean.  It's the only line we've sailed on for the last 17 years.  We've got a lot invested in Royal Caribbean at this point, finally making it to Diamond Level of the Crown & Anchor Society.  Still, there is always that temptation to try another line.  This may be the time to do it as getting to the next Crown & Anchor level, Diamond Plus, will most likely take several years.

What draws me to other lines is the same thing that drew me to Royal Caribbean in the first place, the ships.  Royal Caribbean has been at the forefront of innovative ship design since the line's inception.  I absolutely love the Voyager, Freedom, and Oasis Class ships and I desperately want to try a Quantum ship (come on RCCL, get one down here to Florida already!).  That being said, there are some other interesting ships in development without the Crown & Anchor on the stack.

Currently, the most intriguing line is MSC.  They seem to have come out of nowhere and are making a play to go against the big boys of the industry.  They have several new builds in progress or in the planning stages, some of which sound amazing.  The first of those will be the MSC Seaside which looks very cool.   MSC also has a current offer to match whatever level you are on another line's loyalty program.  I've already taken advantage of that while it was available.  You can sign up for that loyalty match even if you are not currently booked on MSC.  Even if I never go, it's worth the 5 minutes it took to sign up, just in case.  I have family that has gone on MSC before and they have had good things to say.

MSC Seaside video:


Another option is NCL.  They have some interesting ships and features that are tempting.  They also offer some very nice incentives such as free specialty dining and free drink packages on some sailings.

Finally, there is Celebrity.  I've been on Celebrity in the past, the last time was 1998, but never on any of their more modern ships.  The plus is that they are part of Royal Caribbean so they match your loyalty status level.  The downside is that their programs are still separate even though they are technically the same company.  So points you earn on one line do not add to your total on the other.  Celebrity has some existing ships that interest me, the Solstice Class of ships in particular, and they have plans for a newer class, the Edge Class,  that will incorporate some very unique and innovative features into it's design.

Celebrity Edge Video:


I'm not entirely sure what we will do.  We will continue to sail on Royal Caribbean no matter what happens, as it is still our favorite cruise line, but there are always other fish in the sea.  The competition is heating up in the cruise industry, and that is a good thing.

We're Back!

I can't believe it's been almost 4 years since I last posted to this blog.  Life changes have placed this on the back burner but I always wanted to continue with the blog.  Well, I think it's about time and I'm going to give it a shot.

I probably won't be posting every day or even every month, but I do want to keep the blog relatively current.  We'll see how it goes.

Since the last time I posted there have been a lot of changes in my life.  New job and a move to a new city are the big ones.  When I last posted, I lived in New Jersey, now I'm writing from sunny Florida.  I bet you can guess what one of the major reasons for us to move to Florida was......anyone?  If you guessed cruises, you are correct.  From where we are living now, we have access to 4 major cruise ports - Port of Tampa, Port Canaveral (Orlando), Port Everglades ( Ft. Lauderdale), and Port of Miami are all within driving distance of our new home.  Needless to say, we have been taking advantage of our easy access to a huge selection of cruises that leave from these ports.

If you have been keeping an eye on our list of completed cruises in the right column of the blog (My Cruises), you will see that we have been busy over the last few years.  Since getting settled in our new home here in Florida a few years ago, we have been on 5 cruises, all with Royal Caribbean (I may post some quick reviews and pictures, if I have time).  We just recently returned from our 3rd trip on Freedom of the Seas and we are now officially Diamond Level members of RCCL's Crown & Anchor Society.  As usual, we had a great time.  Next up, is Oasis of the Seas in October.

Hopefully I can keep posting new content and maybe grow the blog a bit, time will tell.

Cruise Critic Article - 7 Ways to Get Free Drinks on a Cruise

Just read a neat little article on how to find free drinks on various cruise lines.  Good stuff because we all know how expensive that bar tab can get.

Check out the article here - Cruise Critic - 7 Ways to Get Free Drinks on a Cruise