What can $99 buy? January 12, 2009
Posted by yp2m in Activities, Hotels, Travel, beach, cruise.Tags: airfare, cruise, hawaii, hotel, las vegas, mexico, swimsuits, tour, vacation, whales
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What can $99 buy you today? How about a winter escape to Huatulco, Mexico. If you don’t mind flying between January 23rd and the 30th, then get yourself on Escapes.ca and book away. Huatulco is one of Mexico’s latest recreational resort projects. Not as familiar to travellers as Puerto Vallarta or Mazatlan, Huatulco offers golf, horseback riding, tennis, boating, beaching and surfing.
When I was in Las Vegas over the Christmas week, I went to see the Phantom of the Opera at the Venetian and KA, a Cirque du Soleil theatrical show at the MGM Grand. Now you can too for only $244 from Calgary which includes airfare and a week stay at the Primm Valley resort. Be sure to check out Half-Price Tix for all your discounted entertainment tickets. Don’t expect to get 50% off popular shows like the Phantom or KA but you can get some pretty good savings if you show up in line early.
If the hustle and bustle isn’t your thing then pack your swimsuits and head for Puerto Vallarta. For only $497, get an all-inclusive vacation with air from Calgary. Stay at the Costa Club Punta Arena hotel which is only 5 minutes away from downtown Puerto Vallarta and 15 minutes from the international airport where you will fly into. Visit Hume-Travel.com for more details.
Planning for Valentine’s Day? Sail on the NCL Pride of America for only $999 and visit all the Hawaiian Islands. Did you know it’s a great time to be in Hawaii? During December to April, you can see humpback whales and their youngs up close and personal with a Zodiac tour. To take advantage of this cruise, visit CheapTickets.com
Cruising with Air Miles November 9, 2008
Posted by yp2m in Travel, cruise, money, saving money.Tags: air, carnival, code, cruise, flight, miles, princess, special, vacation
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On long weekends like this, we are usually the first one out of town. Our friends at lunch couldn’t believe their eyes when they saw us at lunch. They would have thought we were miles away and basking in the sun. One of things I had to do today was to book our cruise and air using Air Miles. Booking your air using Air Miles is pretty standard stuff. As long as there are seats, you are pretty much guaranteed to fly out when you want. After booking the flight, they told me they have to charge me $259 for fees, taxes and security charges. On top of that, they have to charge $21 per person as a service charge but if you book a cruise or a vacation package at the same time, they waive the service charge.
When they booked the cruise, they asked if we were past passengers of Carnival. My wife had sailed with Carnival back in 1989 but could not find her Carnival Membership number. Without it, we were not entitled to get any special offers for past passengers. If we had it, we could get an Oceanview cabin for less points than an Inside cabin. Plus, we would have got a 2-category upgrade too. The Oceanview cabin at 6C would have cost us 6,821 miles and $0 dollars.
While on the phone with Carnival, my wife found out that Carnival has an affiliation with Princess Cruises. By getting the Air Miles Customer Care Specialist to quote the special code “CDW3″ when booking with Carnival, you can use your Princess Captain Circle number instead. This entitles you to a discount in Air Miles and gives you a 3-category upgrade.
Our cruise was booked using 4,717 air miles and we ended up with category “7E”.
Free Cruise and Air November 6, 2008
Posted by yp2m in Activities, Fall 2008/2009, Free stuff, Hotels, Lifestyle, Shopping, Sightseeing, Travel, beach, cruise, freebies, golf, money, museums, saving money.Tags: air, america, carnival, cruise, free, holland, miles, oceanview, rewards, shell, Travel
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What would you prefer, a trip that you would have to pay for or a free trip? I think most of us would prefer the latter. I am redeeming my Air Miles for a possible cruise and airfare. Affliated with Air Miles are two cruise lines, Holland America and Carnival. Unfortunately I am too late for the Holland America cruise that departed on October 18, 2008 and returned with memories. Carnival on the other hand has a whole list of cruises that are eligible for point redemption. The one I’m interested in is the one that sails February 7th from Port Canaveral. If the port city sounds familiar, it should because that’s where the space shuttle launches into space from. Visiting the Cape (Canaveral) is really something else. If you love rockets, space voyages and the shuttle, be sure to stop by and spend a day there. And if you’re lucky, you might arrive on the same day as a night launch. The cruise sails to Belize City, Costa Maya and Nassau, Bahamas. Belize is known for world-class snorkelling and scuba. Costa Maya is beach, beach and more beach. And Nassau has golf, shopping and the Atlantis Resort.
The folks at Air Miles are really helpful, as they instructed me to take the cruise and the air for all the points I have. It’s not totally free because you are still responsible for port charges, taxes, air and security fees. And if you have sailed on Carnival before, they will look up if there are any promotions or specials for past passengers. In this case, my wife has sailed with Carnival before and we were entitled to a free 2-cabin upgrade. They also offered an Oceanview cabin for lower air miles than an Inside cabin so the total air miles required was only 6832 for two plus $700.08 fees. The airfare required 6480 air miles and $259 fees.
With this free trip in mind, it gives me added incentive to shop at Safeway’s, buy gas at Shell and bank at the Bank of Montreal.
Life After 20 days September 25, 2008
Posted by yp2m in Fall 2008/2009, Geography, Lifestyle, Sightseeing, Travel, cruise.Tags: amsterdam, antartica, chile, cruise, deal, encana, explorer, holland, sailing, ship, south america
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For those of you who work for Encana, please accept my sincere regret that you cannot leave town for Christmas nor New Years. If you could, imagine getting on Holland America’s 20-day South American Holiday Explorer and Antartica Experience on December 15, 2008. Your ship departs from Santiago, Chile at 5pm and sails to the tip of South America before reaching Antartica. Long before seeing icebergs and whiteness across the horizon, you will visit Darwin Channel and the Chilean Fjords. You will marvel the glaciers, each one of them ranging from Francia, Italia and Romanche, Alemania and Amalia before sailing to Cape Horn and Drake Passage.
After sailing for 7 days, you begin to relax. After 14 days, habits begin to form. What would life be like after sailing 20 days? I think it would be heaven if you were sailing the Mediterranean or the Orient but I heard it can be hell and back, especially when the Pacific Ocean meets the Atlantic Ocean. This happens to be around the tip where there is no landmass to level the swells and the wind whips the sea into the worst water passage on earth.
It may sound like a deal at only $1,789 for an inside cabin but if you get seasick fast, I would skip this one. On the other hand if you always wanted to see Patagonia, this may be your chance, even if you work for Encana.
Cruise 13-nights for less than $50 per night September 16, 2008
Posted by yp2m in Geography, Shopping, Sightseeing, Travel, cruise, money, saving money.Tags: croatia, cruise, dubrovnik, epheseus, greece, Italy, rccl, south america, temple, turkey, Venice
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It’s almost time to shop for a cruise. First off the presses is the 13-night South American cruise that departs from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Believe it or not, with the right connections, you can get on for as low as $649. Unfortunately, get ready for an all day ordeal as you fly south to catch your cruise. Our friends took this cruise last year and enjoyed it immensely but they didn’t care for the 14-hour flight that took them from Calgary to Seattle to Washington, D.C. then to Buenos Aires.
If you are going to take a repositioning cruise, you might want to consider a transatlantic cruise that takes you from this side of the world to somewhere in Europe. Leaving April 19, 2009, RCCL will sail from Santo Domingo to Harwich, England. Again with the right connections, you can get onboard for as little as $899.
I’m still in favor for a European cruise. Something in the vicinity of Venice, Italy or Athens, Greece would interest me right now. There a 7-night sail roundtrip leaving from Venice and sailing the Dalmatian Coast. It includes a stop in Dubrovnik where the Cravat were invented, a historical name for a tie. Also it sails past Santorini before landing in Epheseus where the Temple of Artemis stands. If you are interested in this cruise, you can get an interior cabin for as low as $699.
All of these cruises are from RCCL and you can call Enid Hey directly at (800) 859-7225, ext. 30800. Just tell her you read it here.
Thank the Croats for Wearing a Tie September 8, 2008
Posted by yp2m in Activities, Books, Geography, Shopping, Sightseeing, Travel, cruise, money, saving money.Tags: bookstore, city, cravat, croatia, cruise, dubrovnik, euros, history, shuttle, tie, tour
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Thank the Croats next time you have to wear a tie. Young men and girls tid kerchiefs around their loved ones’ necks as a sign of fidelity. Unfortunately for us who have to wear them to work, this was a spontaneous act of love that spread around the world like wildfire. These kerchiefs became known as cravats in the 17th century after the Croatian soldiers wore them.
If you happen to sail on a Mediterranean cruise this fall and stop at Dubrovnik in Croatia, make sure you find the Boutiques Croata. Here you will find a variety of cravats or ties as we like to call them, all priced in euros. When we visited the store last fall, we were curious to find the store to browse through the cravats but when it came to time to buying it, we failed to do so. I hardly wanted to pay more than $20 for one, let alone pay 55 euros. The Boutiques Croata was not equivalent to the Tie Rack in Vancouver nor Toronto. And there were no ties on sale neither.
Getting to the walled city from your cruise ship usually cost a mere $4 for a one way shuttle. It is a good 20 minute walk so take the shuttle unless you have plenty of time to spare. I would recommend that you purchase a good tour book from your bookstore and skip the city tour that the shore excursion offers. A round trip shuttle, a tour book and your own sense of curiosity should give you enough history about Dubrovnik.
Freedom from Rome August 26, 2008
Posted by yp2m in Books, Fall 2008/2009, Sightseeing, Summer 2008/2009, Travel, cruise, museums, saving money.Tags: carnival, civitavecchia, colloseum, cruise, forum, mediterranean, roman, sistine, Vatican
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My friends are sailing today on the Carnival Freedom from Rome. I google’d the ship and found a webcam located on the bridge and on the aft of the ship. The weather looked great in Civitavecchia where their cruise ship is docked. No one including me, would have guessed that the port terminal was located so far from city center. Taking a cab from Rome seemed to take forever, almost reaching the airport then taking a northernly route to Civitavecchia.
They promised they would visit the Vatican City and see the Sistine Chapel. I doubt they would have ventured out to see the Trevi fountain, Piazza Navona, Spanish Steps, Colloseum and the Roman forum. Perhaps, all of that would have been covered by the day tour they took. Even that, it would have been a stretch to see all these sights in a day tour. I have been to Rome twice and have never seen the Colloseum up close. The one thing I was happy to see the last time I was there was the Pantheon.
I’m currently reading a book titled the Secret History of the Roman Emperors by Anthony Blond. I’ve always been fascinated about the topic and wanted to read something about the Romans. Some of these emperors were pretty ruthless and it helps put a meaning to my travel photos that I took of the Roman forum.
Looking for a great cruise to go on? Check out Royal Caribbean Brilliance of the Seas, sailing on November 13th for 12 nights. At $899 for an interior cabin, it comes to out to $74.92 per night. That’s a pretty good deal for accomodations, at least 3 meals a day, snacks, sports and entertainment.
Vegas for $93 August 8, 2008
Posted by yp2m in Event, Fall 2008/2009, Hotels, Travel, cruise, money, saving money, weather.Tags: airfare, alaska, christmas, hotel, las vegas, luxor, paris, vancouver
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It must be hot in Vegas in September because you can stay at the Luxor for as little as $59 per night. On the same week in September, it would cost you $79 per night to stay at the Paris Hotel. Between the two, I think I prefer Paris more so than the Luxor. There is something creepy about staying in a pyramid, considering that the pharaohs were buried in pyramids.
Las Vegas is one of the trips that I am considering in September. Another is a cruise to Alaska. What is the occasion? It’s my dad’s birthday and we want to celebrate it somewhere else. It’s my sister’s idea to leave town because she said she doesn’t like waiting around for the next meal. And that’s all we do. Sit around the house and talk about where we are going to eat next.
Sunwing is offering a Vancouver to Vegas roundtrip fare for $93. With taxes and fees, it comes out to $300 per person. That’s pretty good considering what I pay for when I fly to Vancouver for Christmas. If you are interested in that, check with the Flight Centre in town.
Keen-like Sandals for $10 July 18, 2008
Posted by yp2m in Her's, His, Shopping, beach, cruise, money, saving money.Tags: beach, boat, cheap, dock, hawaii, keen, pool, sandals, wal-mart, waterproof, zodiac
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Alot of my readers have been looking for Keen shoes lately. Since my blog about Pele and walking through lava fields on the Big Island, I’ve received emails asking where to buy Keen shoes. I’m sure I’ve listed a few retail stores in my earlier blogs but in Calgary and Vancouver, check out Coast Wholesale Sports and the Shoe Warehouse. Be prepared to pay on the upwards of $95 or more for the sandals and $130 or more for the casual hikers.
If you like the comfort of your Keen shoes but are scared of leaving them behind at the beach, pool or before you climb onto an inflatable such as a Zodiac or catamaran, you might want to consider the $10 Sun N Sand sandals at Wal-Mart. They only come in blue but they feel pretty good. The whole shoe is made of a rubbery foam that practically molds to your feet. Your toes are protected like a Keen sandal and the whole thing is waterproof. It feels like a pair of Crocs but is softer and a lot cheaper.
I would recommend it to those that are paranoid about leaving a good pair of Keen shoes on the beach, pool or dock. In Hawaii, they make you do that before getting on a Zodiac (for whale watching) or a catamaran (Napali Coast tour). $10 – how can you go wrong??!
