Do you have to book your shows up front?

So after all the anticipation and wait it is only 4 weeks to my cruise on the Norwegian Epic, in the meantime I will also be seeing the latest Queen, Elizabeth in just over a week, what an exciting few weeks I should have.

I have been reading some of the reviews on the cruise.co.uk website about the Epic, the 'blogs' of my colleagues about the ship and also some of the other comments passengers have been making about the ship. Am I apprehensive?
Well, yes I have read lots about the design of the cabins and I wonder if the cabin I have will have had the small sink replaced by the time I get there? But as with everything that is new I will go with an open mind and see what I think.

I have also seen comments about entertainment and specialists dining being 'full' and people being unable to book whilst on ship. Well, it is a big ship and if full there will be about 4200 passengers on board so I can understand that some of the shows and restaurants will get very busy. When on board I like be relaxed on do things on impulse, but the comments did concern me.

Well, having just had an email from NCL, I managed to access their online check-in and this gave me a list of excursions, events and dining and the opportunity to pre-book before you go on the cruise.

This is a copy of NCL's web showing the options available, it was easy to use and as usual payment is made on ship. I do now understand some of the comments i have heard, although I have booked the shows now, I did not get my first choice of times and now see how others might be disappointed if they waited until they embarked only to find they cannot get into the Blue Man Group et al.

So although I usually wait to arrange my trips and entertainment I am glad we have sorted it now, hope it works out that way!

As for the cabins, well things that are different need a little time to get use to, so I will wait and give my views after the cruise, so come back then for a full review, comments and some photos.

Travel Insurance is it necessary?

As part of our discussions with customers when they are booking a cruise, we always ask that they have suitable travel insurance cover and if appropriate give them a competitive quote.

However here is a cautionary tale.
I booked a couple onto a Caribbean cruise for next year, and asked the usual Insurance question and was told ' I have a policy and my insurers are aware of my conditions so I don't think it will be a problem.' Once a booking is confirmed it is subject to the terms and conditions of the cruise line on cancellations and if you need to cancel you will lose the deposit.

The passengers existing insurers wants a premium for this cruise, at £2000 - more than the cruise and he considered cancelling, but the deposit would be lost irrespective of the circumstances! I have to say the customer was less than happy.

So, what did he do. As you can guess he tried the usual places of alternative insurance companies without success but then found British Insurance Brokers' Association, a quick phone call and they gave him the name of a specialist broker who arranged  him cover for the cruise.

Now I have also used this a couple of other times for people who have an existing health problem or other issues and they have been able to find a quote for their holiday.

So the moral of the story is check out first, and if you have a problem ask because I might be able to point you in the right direction to get insurance sorted.

I think I might have a package for you!

Once upon a time many years ago when my hair had colour, not grey and I worked in my first job, banking, one of the roles I had was to approve personal loans for customers. This was in the days before credit scoring and taking 5 minutes to apply online to the many loan providers that are out there now.

At various times in the year we usually got asked the same question, can I have a loan for a holiday? Well, these were short term 6 or 12 months and only 'holidays of a lifetime' were considered for longer loans. But what is a holiday of a lifetime?

In those days long trips were uncommon and a family holiday to see Mickey at his home in Orlando was considered to be just that, but what about now?

Well, Florida is just any holiday, the Caribbean is a short trip to get a cruise and even Hawaii although a long way is not necessarily a trip of a lifetime. You now see more often places like Machu Picchu, The Great Wall of China or even Tahiti.

So here at Cruise.co.uk we have added a new bit to the website, Tailor Made Cruise Holidays which adds some of those special places to various cruises. To be honest the choice is endless and it doesn't mean these are all we do just ask and if it can be packaged I will come up with a price for you.

Its a great idea and one I have looked at myself recently, although I haven't shown my wife yet or else I might have to be talking to the computer to see if I can get a loan!

Anyone got a spare tenner?

Are cruise ships a Museum peice?

What do you see when you go into a Museum,...... artifacts, relics and bits of history!

So when next in Miami, why not go to the Miami Childrens Museum, well before anyone says anything there is a definite cruising connection here.

Carnival's presence is felt in many places throughout Miami with their headquarters being in the city and many of their ships using the port as their home port, in addition some people say Miami is the Cruise Capital of the World. So its no surprise that they add their bit to the community and visitors to Miami Children's Museum will now see the bow of a Carnival cruise ship at the updated version of their exhibit at the museum, to teach kids about what goes on aboard a cruise ship and to spark their interest in careers available on the ships.

Now, my kids have all left home and when I go to Miami at the end of next month to go on the Norwegian Epic I'm not too sure that I'd find the time to go but if you are going and taking the children on a cruise that leaves from Miami and you want something to do - give it a go.

Cruise to see a natural phenomenon, or not depending on the weather!

Over the last few weeks I have had a lot of conversations about cruises with a hint of something different, 'natural phenomenon', so what do I mean?

Well as you know I recently went on the QM2, to 'The Land of the Midnight Sun'. Well as you all know such things are subject to the vagaries of the weather, it was more like 'The Land of the Midnight Overcast!' As you can tell from the picture of low clouds over the North Cape at about 11 O'clock at night!

So when I was asked about the Fred Olsen's trip to see the Northern lights, on Boudicca in Feb 2012 I thought, what an excellent trip top do something different and try to catch the natural phenomenon of the Aurora Borealis. And I know that this cruise has become really popular because it is the first time that Fred Olsen has sailed to this area in the winter months.

I am told that this is one of the best times to see the lights in the Northern hemisphere, but it needs to be a  clear night to get the full effect.

There is also a similar phenomenon in the southern hemisphere, and you can also see the Northern lights in Alaska. So to be honest there are a number of different opportunities to see them from a cruise!

So as no one can guarantee the weather, and I know because I did not see the sun at all in the Artic circle, I hope that it won't turn out to be a disappointment for those who go. If you have similar weather to my trip, you'll just have to hope that Fred Olsen Cruises do it again!