Places you should go before you turn the big 40

I am pretty unsure about whether or not I am going to have internet access starting tomorrow. We will have to see how everything goes.

I apologize but I am going to get a little personal here. How old are you? If you are around thirty, this blog post is written specifically for you.

Bucket lists have been huge. And I know they are not as big as they once were, but they are still . If you are around thirty, here are some place you might want to put on your list.

• Don’t you want to see the Taj Mahel? After all, it is one of the seven wonders of the world. Someone built this place to honor his favorite wife after she died giving birth to their fourteenth child. It is recommended to visit this place first thing in  the morning because sunrise makes this place spectacular.
• Have you ever visited the Grand Canyon? This is another beautiful place to get to at sunrise. You will want to take a day or more to explore, do some hiking/walking.
• You might want to go to the Great Barrier Reef. This is in Queensland. Here you know will find all ks of sealife.

Tips for traveling with kids

Let’s get back to discussing tips for traveling with kids.

• First, you might want to consider boarding early. Yes, I know that will make your trip feel that much longer. But doing this will enable everyone to feel more settled in their places. It will be especially helpful if you do not have assigned seats.
• Everyone getting enough rest is essential for a nice, smooth trip. Consider getting a condo. If you are for sure staying in a hotel or resort, consider getting a suite or at least another room.
• Having free breakfast not only cuts down on costs, it also cuts down on stress. This is one meal you’ll know what you’ll be doing and won’t have to have any discussions about.
• I know a lot of people like to just go with the flow while they are on vacation, but some planning is a good idea when you’re traveling with children. You’ll want to try your best to work your children’s sleeping and eating schedules. Not messing with those will help keep everyone happy and on track.
• But you don’t want to overplan your trip, keeping everyone busier than usual.? Children love afternoons at the pool or movie nights.
• You will want to pack everything that you need, but you do not want to overpack. You don’t want to have more to carry than you have to. A lot of places are going to have washers and dryers that you can use.
• If you aren’t going to a resort that has a children’s program, consider bringing a babysitter. It isn’t going to cost that much extra. And vacations are the perfect times to get in some extra dates.

MSC Cruises

I’ve decided that I like doing two things at once. Sure, writing about what I am learning about in this travel agent school seems to take me a little longer. But we are supposed to get the word out about the things we’re learning, and writing about the things I am learning does help. And since this school has many different courses, I should keep quite busy for a while.

Today we are going to look at the MSC Cruiseline. MSC stands for Mediterranean Shipping Company. MSC  strives for excellence in everything that they do, and has won a lot of awards for what they do.

• Where do these cruises go? Basically anywhere you would be interested in traveling to. They do Mexico and the Caribbean, they also do Europe and Asia. They also do an excellent South American cruise.
• Let’s take a closer look at some of what they have to offer. When it comes to food, their specialty is Italian. They have a lot of great pasta dishes. You will be able to get a great pizza any time that you’d like. But Italian isn’t the only cuisine that they have. They have a famous Asian chef that is over their Asian restaurants. And of course, they have a pas chef to make sure your sweet tooth is satisfied.
• MSC has partnered with LEGO to bring children and their families experiences they will never forget. They will have all the supplies that you will need for your baby and toddler that you will need.
• MSC also understands your need to keep up with your fitness program while on board. They will help you create the right exercise program while you are on board. They will also help you come up with healthy menus.

I would love to know your thoughts on any of this..

Okay, I know there are ways to book trips on the internet. So why would you need a travel agent? Let’s look at some times you might want to use a travel agent.

 

• Travel agents are great when you and your extended family are going on a trip together. You have a lot of people, some people may have special needs to figure out..People may need to come and go on different days. There are just a lot of details to figure out.
• You might want to book through a travel agent if you are going to a place you’ve never been. You may have a lot of time to do the necessary research. A travel agent can help you to set everything up. We can figure out your complete itinerary.
• And when you’re planning your honeymoon, you probably want to go through a travel agent. You have a thousand other things you need to plan. And this is a special trip you is really do not to mess up. Let a travel agent handle all the details .

Movie places

I am going to try to do this, and hopefully I’ll do a better job than I did yesterday.. I’m still doing a lot of experimenting and figuring things out as I go along… x

I think a lot of us like to watch movies when we want to relax. But have you ever wanted to go to the places where specific movies were made? Let’s look at a couple of these today.

• Do you have any Indiana Jones fans in your did you family? You might want to visit Petra, Jordan where these films were made. This has become a popular destination since the films were made.
• Slovenia might be small, but it is where Narnia was made. If I am remembering right, the place has some absolutely gorgeous spots.

Planning the perfect girls’ trip #2

Let’s get back to discussing how to plan a great girls’ trip. I have several things I’d like to look into more today, but feel like I need to do the normal things first and just see how the rest of the day goes. Let’s pick up where we left off.

• Some friends don’t need much except to have a place to gather and some nice food to enjoy themselves. Other groups will want to go to some of the more exotic locations. If your group is trying to start their annual trips together, it might be wise to have a gathering and discuss what everyone is thinking as far as overall budget. Is it going to be easier to gather in each other homes, or do people want to mark places off of their bucket lists? One of you might want  to play hostess more often than the others to cut down on her costs. You can find solutions that work best for your group.
• If one person is planning the whole thing, this lady will want to give some clues. You might want to get creative with the e-mails you send your group. Some people will go a step farther and send cute little packages to give hints. Groups who are going go somewhere exotic will usually meet at one member’s house, and then they do the reveal at the airport.
• This is a girls’ trip, so you are going want to have comfortable places where ere you can sit and gab. You might want to have one more than one place like this in case your group wants to split up for whatever reason.
• But as much as girls like to just sit and talk, you will want to have a few activities planned. Especially if you are going somewhere you’ve never been, you’ll want to get out and enjoy some of the sights. The planner should have a pretty good idea of the things your group likes to do.

Have you done anything like this? I would love to hear about it.

Go play in your favorite video game

[Disclaimer : I have never been into video games. I have never enjoyed playing those type games. I hardly know anything about any of those games. I’m just going to tell you what this article says.]

I may not know much about these games, but I know they are pretty popular. I know some children, and adults, absolutely love these games. If they aren’t playing them, they’re thinking about playing these things. So let’s look at some places you can play these games in RL [for those that don’t know, RL is real life].

• The first one is, of course, Mario Brothers. I do remember sitting and watching people playing these games. Who doesn’t dream of getting into these games? The closest thing you can get to this is in Tokyo.
• There is always Pokemon Go. And I know that you can play that anywhere. The cool thing about this game is that you have to play it outside.
• In l Las Vegas you can play Any Resident Evil. There you can play zombies to your heart’s content
• .And now I have good news and bad news good news is that  Nintendo is building its own amusement park. The bad news is that it will not be ready until 2020.

Flying standby

There is so much to learn and figure out when you are in the travel business. One person can not learn everything.. Today let’s look into what what it means to fly standby.

Flying standby is a good way to fly if you don’t especially care when you leave or come back. It’s usually the least expensive way to fly, you’ll usually pay around twenty-five dollars, but you are not guaranteed a seat. So if you think that flying standby would be a good fit for you, here’s what you should do.

• Firs, you will want to see which airlines have this option available . You will want to read up your chosen airline’s policies to make sure that you, and they, play by the rules.
• A lot of times they’ll want you to purchase a normal ticket. Sometimes you can get away with a friend flying. Again, you will want to know the specific policies.
• Another thing that would be good to remember is that you do not want to have checked luggage. They’ll more likely to take you if you don’t. You’re allowed one carry on and purse in most situations. The day before or the flight, you will want to look at the airline’s website to get the latest info on the flight. You will not want to check Expedia or Priceline, they are not going to have the latest information.
• You are going to want to get there at least two hours in advance. You will want to go to the ticketing agent, and let them know that you’re interested in flying standby.
• Next you will want to proceed through security and all that. Be sure to let the people at the gate know that you want to fly standby.
• At the time of the flight, the gate people will be able to let you know whether you’ve made it on.

I would love to know your thoughts  about any of this.

Luxury on a large ship

Are you dreaming of free cocktails, spa reservations, and quiet, spacious accommodations where you only to mingle with those of the same class? You might think that I’m about to talk about river cruises, but I’m not. Large ships are starting to have exclusive clubs where those willing to pay are going to receive to special care and services. Today let’s look at some of what cruiselines have to offer.

• We are going to start with Celebrity. They call their cl, “Michel Club”,  and anyone who books one of their nicer suites can be part of it. Okay, so what do you get when you are part of this club? You will get free continental breakfast in the special lounge, and drinks and appetizers will be served each evening. A coincierge will be on hand to help make any special arrangements you might need.
• Disney just calls their lounge “Coincierge Lounge”. And it is for those who book a suite or coincierge cabins. You will have your a lounge with snacks and drinks, and looks like this lounge is open pretty much all of the time. You will also have internet access in the lounge. You will also be able to take advantage of coincierge services.

Being healthy on a cruise #2

We started this discussion yesterday, but let’s continue the discussion .

• Your fitness routine does not have to be boring. Maybe you know you want to do something to keep active, but don’t want to just do your old workout routine. Consider taking a fitness class while you are on board. You can also often play a lot of different sports while you are on board. A pick up basketball game may be just your thing, or you may love tennis. And of course, most cruise ships are going to have several pools. You may have to find a time when the pools are not busy.
• Cruises are vacations. Do not hesitate to sleep in if you want. Don’t have anything you especially want no to do during the day? Go take a nap .

Being healthy on a cruise

You may think going on a means that you eat all kinds of indulgent foods and do little except lay the p. And while that used to be the case, and you can still do that if you’d like, you can do a lot of other things as well. Let’s look at some tips that might help.

• When it comes to eating , and here I mean healthily, you don’t have to look far. You be able to healthy choices in the main dining room. Cruises know that not all people do not necessarily eat the same anymore, and they will have options for all kinds of eaters. If you just want to be sure not much, you can always just order appetizers, or not eat some of the courses.
• Some cruises are going to have restaurants that are dedicated to healthy eating. So if this is important to you, you will need to book a spa room because the people in these rooms will get priority at this restaurant.
• Many cruise ships are now making sure that their workout rooms are what guests want. not And the workout rooms are are in beautiful settings.

Getting a deal on a cruise #2

Let’s get back to our discussion about how to get good deals on cruises

• Check with your travel agent about good deals. We are always receiving e-mails about cruises and the deals they have. Some travel agents have websites that they put deals they are offering on.
• Do you want to go on a cheap cruise, but pay a fortune on airfare? I do not think so. Figure out the cost of the air before booking the cruise.
• And please, read the fine print. You will want to know exactly what you are paying for, and what you will have to pay once you are on board.
• Booking later on means that you may not get the nicer cabins. All of those will most likely be taken. But to be honest,most people need their room to sleep and change and nothing more. anything fancy.

Getting a deal on a cruise

Like I’ve said before, I really want to keep this blog up beat and positive. It does seem to me like most of the news is about this awful virus. But this will pass, I know it will. And then the celebrations will start.

One way you might want to celebrate is by going on a cruise. And you are probably going to be looking for a deal. I didn’t know this, but you used to be able to go to a ship on embarkation day and try are to get a place on the for a reduced price. They do not allow you to do that anymore. But there are ways to get less expensive cruises. Let’s look at some ways how.

• Booking sixty to ninety days before your cruise is always a good idea. People are making their final decisions about whether or not they are going. People who have booed earlier can decide to cancel. they will know exactly how many cabins they have left, and how much of a discount they need to give.
• You are not likely to get a discount on a Christmas or New Year’s cruise, they are too But you should be able to find plenty when most people don’t want to travel, think spring and fall.
• Cruise ships move from one region to , and when they do that the cruises are called “repositiioning cruises”. These are often not very popular cruises. And  they also usually longer cruises, seven days or longer.

Cruises that work best for kids #2

Let’s get back to our discussion of which cruises work best for kids. After all, summer is right around the corner, and surely everyone will want to take a vacation after this mess. I would love to help you plan something. Please write me at familytripsinc1@gmail.com

• We are looking at the best cruises for Disney, so of course, I am going to bring up Disney, right? They have a very small fleet, and all four of their work very well for children. Their cruises are perfect for children between the ages of four and eleven. Disney is working on getting more stuff for older kids as well. When children are between three and eleven, they are allowed to go around the same places to allow siblings or friends to go around together if they want. They have a kids’ pool. Disney’s cabins will be very family friendly, I hear that they’ll even have tubs. Families will love their live shows, taken from some of their beloved movies.

Cruises that work best for kids

You may want to keep in mind that your cruise experience can be very different, depending on ship you take. And yes, that even applies to different ships that belong to the same cruise company.

• Let’s start with Royal Caribbean. With them, you are going to to take a look at Anthem of the Seas, Symphony of the Seas, Harmony of the Seas,Allure of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas. These are the Oasis Class ships, and they are the biggest Royal Caribbean has to offer. They are also the best families having the most family friendly activities. Each of these ships is going to have a large 3d theater, multiple pools, an ice skating rink, and much more. There will be a large kids’ club on each of the ships. And they will have late night childcare for when you want to enjoy some adult fun. They have a good many family suites so that everyone will be able to stretch out. And they will also have a number of restaurants that everyone in the family will love.
• With Carnival Cruiselines, you are going to want to look at their Vista and Dream Class. They have great children’s clubs, and a good job separating your children out by age groups. not Carnival is only cruise that allows two year olds into their free programs, and yes, they do change diapers. Children are going to love their water parks. They also have family friendly accommodations and restaurants.

And even more on all inclusive resorts

I don’t know about you, but I’m getting lots done during this time. Of course, I do not have children so I am not doing any of this home schooling gig I’m not going to the grocery store myself. Hats off to all who have that stuff and so much more during all of this.

Back to our discussion about resorts.

• Not all resorts are the same. Some have most than one thousand units, a lot of times resorts focus on suites instead of rooms. Other resorts can house only about a hundred people at a time. Does one of these appeal to you over the other? Make sure you book the right kind of resort.
• Are you looking for a great deal on an all inclusive? You will want to look at properties in Mexico, the Dominican Republic or Jamaica. While you might be able to find a great deal elsewhere, these are the places where you will find the great deals consistently
• A lot of the family friendly resorts are going to kids’ clubs. You can send your children there and then have time to yo. Be careful though, some of these resorts say that once you send your children to their clubs being at the club is all that your children will want to do.

More about all inclusive resorts

 

 

I hope everyone had a good weekend, as different as it might have been with everything going on. But anyway. Let’s continue our discussion about all inclusive resorts.

 

• In all of my reading about travel, I don’t remember reading about this. But what this article I’m readings reading now is saying is that food at these resorts is nothing to write home about. And that is perfectly okay if you just eat to live, but not so good if you are a foodie. Aha, they do have “gourmet” resorts, but you usually have to pay more to get in to these places.
• This is a blog about family travel, but sometimes couples need to leave their children with someone they trust and take a trip just a the two of you. There are all inclusives that are for adults only. And even more resorts have sections where children are not allowed. Either of these may be great if you are wanting sometime to relax without children and their noise.
• Of course, if you do want to take your kids with you, some resorts on offer “Kids Stay Free” programs, or other good discounts for children. Some of these places consider anyone over twelve to be an adult, others don’t consider anyone to be an adult but until they are at least seventeen.
• A lot of resorts know you are going to want to get off the property to go and do things. They’ll make it easy and allow you to book your excursions through them You can either do this before you leave on your trip or when you get there.

Plan your all inclusive vacation #2

Let’s get back to our discussion on how to best plan your all inclusive vacation

• You may be wondering about adult beverages. W, I have good news and bad news there The good news is that are your adult beverages should be covered The bad news is that resorts tend to keep only the inexpensive stuff around. the good stuff usually costs extra.
• These s most everyone has their own soap, hair products and all of that stuff to use. Take your stuff with when you go to a resort?. They usually  charge a good bit for that kind of things.