Every Adult Cruiser Needs To Be Ready For This!(Podcast #485)
Essential Cruise Tips
adults can cruise for far less than they think. In this video I cover: Adult-only ocean and river cruise lines, The surprising world of chartered “grown-up” cruises, How to find peace on family ships, Private island adult areas you might not know about, job-based discounts, and more Whether you cruise as a couple, solo, or occasionally with kids or grandchildren, these are the smart moves adult cruisers should know about. ***** GET 10% OFF ANY OF THE CRUISE MAPS PRODUCTS AT HTTPS://WWW.THECRUISEMAPS.COM/TFT (OR USE THE CODE "TFT" AT CHECK OUT) Become a Tips For Travellers...
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I've Cruised All 5 "Small Ship Luxury" Lines. No-One Warns You About This! (Podcast #484)
Essential Cruise Tips
In the last few years, I’ve cruised on all five of the major Small Ship Luxury cruise lines — multiple times on each — and I discovered something most cruisers are never told. They may all be grouped together by the industry, but they deliver very different experiences. In this video I put the five head-to-head: Oceania Cruises, Viking Ocean Cruises, Explora Journeys, Windstar Cruises, and Azamara I reveal: ✔️ Where each one genuinely shines ✔️ The weaknesses most brochures don’t highlight ✔️ What catches Premium cruisers out when they “upgrade” ✔️ How they compare...
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I’ve Done 5 Oceania Cruises. Here’s What No-one’s Warns You About! (Podcast #283)
Essential Cruise Tips
I’ve sailed five times with Oceania Cruises across three different ship classes, most recently on a 19-night Sydney to Papeete voyage on Riviera. It’s a cruise line I choose to return to and often recommend. But here’s the truth. I regularly hear from viewers who board expecting something extraordinary… and leave wondering what all the hype was about. So in this video I’m being completely frank about five areas that are often misunderstood, where the expectations created by the marketing don’t always match what people actually experience — and importantly where that really...
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Cruising This Year? Then You Need to Watch This! (podcast #282)
Essential Cruise Tips
If you’re planning a cruise in the next 12 months, be warned — cruising is changing, and some of the biggest shifts are happening quietly behind the scenes. Cruising this year is going to feel very different from what many of us are used to. In this, I unpack six major changes every cruiser needs to know, explain why they matter, and show you how they could directly affect your next cruise — whether you’re booking for the first time or you’ve cruised many times before. These are the changes many cruisers won’t realise until it’s too late — and that’s exactly why you need to...
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10 Cabin Checks Every Cruiser MUST Do BEFORE Unpacking. Here’s Why! (Podcast 281)
Essential Cruise Tips
Most cruisers walk into their cabin, throw their bags on the bed, and start unpacking. Big mistake. After more than 125 cruises, I’ve learnt – sometimes the hard way – that there are a handful of vital checks you should always do before you unpack a single item. In this video I take you inside a real cruise cabin and show you exactly what I personally check the moment I arrive on board. I also explain why it’s absolutely critical to do these checks on embarkation day, when problems are far easier to fix, cabins are still moving around, and engineers are on full standby. Leave it until...
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I've Done 15 Caribbean Cruises. Here's What No-One's Telling You! (Podcast #480)
Essential Cruise Tips
When I took my very first Caribbean cruise back in 2007, I often found myself stepping ashore as the only ship in port. Quiet beaches, local markets, no lines for taxis — it felt like true tropical escape. Fast-forward 18 years and 15 Caribbean cruises later, including my most recent ultra-luxury sailing on Regent Seven Seas Splendor, and the Caribbean is a very different place.In this video I reveal the massive changes that are reshaping Caribbean cruising — changes most cruisers don’t fully understand until they’re already there. I also explain how cruise lines are responding — and...
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I've Done 13 Ultra-Luxury Cruises. Here's What No-One's Telling You (Podcast #479)
Essential Cruise Tips
When you pay more for anything — flights, hotels, cars — you expect more. More features, more choice, more “wow”. So when cruisers upgrade from resort lines like Royal Caribbean, to premium lines like Princess, or even small-ship luxury like Oceania, and then spend much more on an ultra-luxury cruise… they naturally expect everything to be dramatically better. But here’s the surprise: for many first-time ultra-luxury cruisers, it isn’t. In this video I explain why so many people I meet on lines like Regent, Silversea, Seabourn and Crystal feel confused or even disappointed —...
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Regular Vs. Ultra-Luxury Cruises: 4 Big Differences I DID NOT Expect! (Podcast #478)
Essential Cruise Tips
Are ultra-luxury cruises really worth the eye-watering price? Or is the reality very different from the dream? Most cruisers are fascinated by ultra-luxury lines like Silversea and Regent Seven Seas, but very few have actually sailed them. So after cruising recently on Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, Holland America, Celebrity and Princess, I decided to book myself on two ultra-luxury ships – Silver Nova and Regent Seven Seas Splendor – paying the full fare to find out what really changes when you step up to the very top tier of cruising. And what I discovered surprised me. In this video I...
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8 Widely Held Repositioning Cruise Beliefs Are Wrong. Here’s Why! (podcast #477)
Essential Cruise Tips
Repositioning cruises promise incredible value — sometimes half the price of a regular cruise — but after doing several of them (including my recent 18-night Silver Nova Alaska–to–Japan repositioning), I’ve realised many cruisers board with expectations that are completely misguided. And those myths guarantee disappointment. In this video, I reveal the most widely believed repositioning cruise myths that are 100% wrong — and what these cruises are really like. If you’ve been thinking of booking a repositioning cruise because they’re cheap, relaxing, sunny, or just like regular...
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Cruisers Say These Cruise Lines Are On The Rise RIGHT NOW. (podcast #476)
Essential Cruise Tips
After sailing on many lines myself recently, and analysing hundreds of cruiser reviews and ratings across Cruise Critic, Trustpilot, and other major consumer sites, I discovered a surprising trend while many lines are sliding — a handful are rising fast. In this video, I reveal the cruise lines that cruisers say are on the rise right now, what they’re getting right, and why ratings are climbing. This is the most up-to-date snapshot of which cruise lines passengers think are improving and why. These trends come from analysing 21 cruise lines covering over 90% of all cruise passengers,...
info_outlineThe Advantages of Cruising
There are many advantages that cruising has over land-based vacations. The following are some of the key ones:
Inclusive fares. A cruise fare will include your accommodation, cruising from port to port, meals, and entertainment. Some premium lines also include drinks, gratuities and excursions.
You are likely to spend a fair amount on board on items like gratuities, drinks, excursions, gambling and Internet access. However, these are at your discretion.
Packing. You only have to pack before and at the end of the cruise and not every time you visit a new destinations you would have to do on land.
Travel time is part of your vacation. You are able to relax and enjoy the facilities of the ship as you sail between destinations. You do not loose time commuting to airports and sitting on planes or in your vehicle moving between places you are visiting.
Simplified immigration. If you are visiting multiple countries you do not have to line up and pass through immigration at each one. Once you have checked in and the line has your details and passport they handle the authorities in most cases, except when disembarking. You will just have to use your cruise card to swipe off and back onto the ship.
Visiting places difficult to see by land or get to by plane. There are some parts of the world that are best, easiest or can only be seen on a ship. This includes hard to access places like Alaska and the Norwegian Fjords or passing through the Panama and Suez Canals. There are also places like the Galapagos Islands, Arctic, Antarctica and some of the Polynesian islands in the Pacific Ocean that are hard or impossible to reach by commercial plane.
Overview of a region. Cruises can provide a good overview of the highlights and attractions of a region like the Caribbean, Mediterranean and Asia by visiting up to seven different destinations in a week. It gives you a chance to get a feel for where you would like to go back and spend more time in. This would be hard to achieve on a land-based vacation as you would not have the time to get to and see as many places.
Wide variety to appeal to each member of your travel party. Ships and cruises have many options and choices available, including different cabin types and grades, activities, dining venues, entertainment and excursions. This means that different members of your travel party can enjoy very different experiences within the same shared trip. You do not have to make as many compromises and everyone has time to pursue their individual interests and passions but come together for meals and other joint activities.
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