220: African Safaris
Vacation Mavens
Tamara is hosting an all-women small group trip to Portugal this fall and she would love for you to join her! . Did you know that Kim has been on safaris in four African countries? Today she shares some great tips that will help you decide where you might want to go, understand the differences between various safari experiences, and provide some advice for planning an African safari trip. You can read more about a few of Kim's safari experiences here:
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219: German Christmas Markets Trip
Vacation Mavens
Tamara is hosting an all-women small group trip to Portugal this fall and she would love for you to join her! . In this episode, Tamara talks about her two-week German Christmas Markets road trip! If you have this magical holiday trip on your radar, make sure to give this episode a close listen and check out the following articles:
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Barge and River Cruising Through France
Vacation Mavens
Before we say goodbye to summer and pull on our flannels and break out the pumpkin spice, Tamara and Kim are back with a recap of Tamara's European summer travels including a month spent exploring France by river and barge cruise! Tamara first spent two weeks in the United Kingdom, on a road trip through both Scotland and Wales with two other travel writers. She then took the Eurostar down to France and spent one week cruising through the Canal Nivernais on the Hotel Barge Elisabeth. Next, she went to Bordeaux and her husband joined her for a weeklong river cruise with AmaWaterways. Tamara...
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217: Scottsdale and Japan (Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka)
Vacation Mavens
Well it has been a minute since we had a chance to catch up and record a podcast but in this episode Tamara shares her insights and experience from her recent family trip to Japan. Kim and Tamara also share their love for Scottsdale, Arizona and some of the things they did on a girls' trip together. Read more at: Tamara also talked about her time in Paso Robles, California. You can read her to get inspired to visit this wine region. Kim attended conferences in Walt Disney World (read her tips for using DVC points to ), Disney Land, and San Antonio. She also took a family cruise to...
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216: Ireland and Northern Ireland
Vacation Mavens
Kim took a last minute spring break trip to Ireland and Northern Ireland with her younger daughter and this week on the podcast, she tells us all about it! She flew into Dublin and then stay at a country estate hotel in Northern Ireland before visiting Belfast, the Causeway Coast, Derry/Londonderry, and Galway before looping back to Dublin. See Kim's articles on: Ireland Trip Highlights: in Northern Ireland Belfast - Titanic Belfast and city architecture - Carrick-a-Rede bridge, Giant's Causeway, Dunluce Castle in Derry - walk the walls around the city Galway - Kim...
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215 Oceanside Disneyland California
Vacation Mavens
Spring break is almost here and on this episode Kim and Tamara share their experience on a girls' trip in Oceanside, California and then their mother-daughter trip to Disneyland with their girls. If you want some inspiration for a SoCal getaway, be sure to listen in!
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214 Northern Italy + Big Announcement
Vacation Mavens
Happy New Year! We are back and apologize for taking so long to release a new episode. Moving forward, we will strive to have one episode a month to share our travels and tips, as we continue to each put more time into our respective websites. But first, Tamara has a big announcement and that is that she is hosting a women-only small group trip to Iceland in September 2023! You can get all the information on and she really hopes that some listeners will be able to join! Note that there is a discount of 15,000 ISK if you register by January 15, 2023. Next Tamara tells us all about her...
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213: Glacier Country, Montana
Vacation Mavens
This episode is sponsored by Glacier Country Tourism. All opinions are our own. This week, Tamara shares what it is like to visit Glacier Country, Montana on a girls' trip and Kim shares her thoughts on this scenic part of Northwestern Montana. From Missoula to Whitefish, Kalispell to Glacier National Park -- if Montana is on your bucket list, give this episode a listen! Read more: Things to do in Glacier Country, Montana Glacier Country is a tourism region of Northwestern Montana that covers eight counties To get to Glacier Country you can fly into Missoula or Glacier Airport in Kalispell,...
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212: Summer Travel Catch Up
Vacation Mavens
We are back from our summer travel and packed a whole lot into a one episode recap! We apologize in advance for some audio difficulties on this one, especially after taking so long to get it live. Thanks for hanging in there with us! On this episode we cover Tamara's summer trips to: Nantucket (read her ) New Brunswick, Canada (, , and ) Prince Edward Island, Canada () Sailing on the And Kim shares about her adventures: Mediterranean cruise on Costa Cruise Lines () Gorilla trekking in Uganda Alaskan cruise on Holland America Graduation trip to Disney World and Universal Orlando ()
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211: NYC to Bahamas Cruise
Vacation Mavens
We are still catching up about our spring break trips and this time Kim shares the ups and downs from a Norwegian Cruise Lines voyage from New York City to the Bahamas with stops in "Orlando" and Norwegian's private island. Listen in and see if you are ready to set sail. In NYC, Kim stayed in the Hyatt Centric in Times Square for 2 nights before her cruise. The hotel was part of the American Express Fine Hotels Collection and she was able to get a $200 statement credits on her Amex Platinum Card. The hotel has a good location, but slow elevators and the rooftop bar is not open to minors....
info_outlineDo you think cruising is all about the big ships? Think again. There are many types of cruising including river cruising, sailing cruises, barge cruising, small ship ocean cruises and more. Join us as we chat with Dana from Dana Freeman Travels about all sorts of cruising from the big ships to the smallest windjammers.
Don't worry, we also chat about a few of the newer big ships too so you can decide what is right for your next cruise.
ON THE PODCAST
00:30 - Talking with Kim and Tamara about cruises
03:35 - Talking with Dana
06:45 - River cruise
10:15 - Ocean cruise
15:18 - Barge ships
21:40 - Comparing large cruises with small ships
27:18 - Dana’s favorite way to cruise
28:30 - Tips for picking your cruise
33:28 - Dana’s favorite travel gear
34:20 - Coming up for Dana
36:00 - Shout out!
ABOUT DANA FREEMAN
Dana is originally from New York City but has been calling Vermont home for the last 20 years. She a freelance journalist and the editor behind Dana Freeman Travels. Dana is a luxury travel writer specializing in small ship cruises and places found on the road less traveled. Her work has been featured in CNN Travel, Porthole Magazine, Thrillist, Yankee Magazine, the Forbes Travel Guide and several other print and digital publications.
Follow Dana on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
TIPS FOR TRAVELING ON A SMALL CRUISE
- There is more to cruising that your typical large cruise ships. There are river, barge, windjammer, small ocean cruises and more. Both barge and river cruises will take you to different spots inside the country rather than ocean cruise that can only take you to areas on the coast.
- River cruises average under a hundred passengers. They will normally pull up to the center of a city rather than having to get a shuttle from the port that an ocean cruise will stop at.
- You will find that most river cruises have balconies so that you can see the sights go by. You will also sometimes find mini golf and a track on the boat. Unlike an ocean cruise, you will be spending most of your time during the day off of the boat.
- Small ship ocean cruises that will carry around three hundred passengers seem to have a choice of some vastly different ports to stop in rather that your large cruises that have two thousand or more passengers. You will also find that you will blend in more in a small cruise port rather than a large cruise port.
- Barge ships are more personal. You can book the whole barge with family or friends. But you can also book with a company and you will be paired with another couple or another family. Depending on the type of traveler you are this option can turn out to be the best way to meet and make friends with others while you travel.
- Barge cruising travels at a more leisurely pass in the early mornings rather than a river cruise, which will travel at night. The barge will only move about 4 miles per hour. Because of this you will actually have some opportunities to walk or bike alongside the ship. Then after lunch you will have a tour guide come and take you around the area.
- Large cruise ships will have a lot more options when it comes to food. Large cruises also have more entertainment options like shows, laser tag, pools and more.
- When booking a cruise, you should think about the age of your group and what the stops will offer. You should also look at what ships offers for amenities rather than picking your cruise by the boat.
FAVORITE TRAVEL GEAR
Dana loves her Lululemon cropped leggings. They are comfortable, have pockets and can be dressed up or down.
MENTIONED ON THE PODCAST
Dana Freeman Cruise Experiences
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If you liked this show, please be sure to subscribe and leave us a review! Have a question or comment? Send us an email at [email protected]. You can also follow our travels on Stuffed Suitcase and We3Travel, or follow the Vacation Mavens on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter. Thanks for listening!