Every year, there’s a small window of time when many of the ships empty out of Europe, but they’re trying to avoid hurricane season in the Caribbean, so they end up in the New England States and the St. Lawrence Seaway.  September and October are the perfect time of year to take in the spectacular fall colors (“colours” when you’re on the Canadian side of the border!) and to visit this unique part of the world.

Some cruise lines focus on the larger ports: New York, Boston, Halifax and Montreal.  All these cities are well worth a visit, but I like the itineraries that also include some of the smaller, lesser known places.  Charlottetown is infinitely charming, and Bar Harbor is increasingly frequented by cruise ships, but still an interesting stop. 

If your cruise starts or finishes in Montreal or Quebec City, then hopefully you get to visit some of the Quebec townships that dot the St. Lawrence.  If you ever doubted Canada was a French speaking country, a visit to rural Quebec will clear it up right away.

Quebec City is often an embarkation or disembarkation port on the longer Canada & New England Cruises.  It is North America’s only walled city, and is full of history for both Americans and Canadians.  We often forget that France colonized much of North America, and the Louisiana Purchase began the assimilation of the French into the American melting pot, but the French language, history and culture are alive and well in Quebec City.  You’ll want to stay an extra day or two here, and feel the European vibe.

It’s actually possible to visit Europe without crossing the Atlantic if you choose a Canada & New England cruise that visits the French Islands of St. Pierre & Miquelon.  This island colony in the Gulf of St. Lawrence is still a French Colony (their Head of State is the President of France), they use the Euro as their currency, and the cars carry EU licence plates.  These islands are definitely unique for their language and culture. The dialect of French they speak in this colony is neither European nor Canadian.

Almost all the cruise lines have some presence in Canada & New England.  The mega-ships tend to visit the big ports, but occasionally make a stop at the more interesting out-of-the-way places.  The small-ship ocean lines have a wide variety of itineraries of varying lengths, and the most interesting ones, in my mind, are those that have a mix of the big ports with some more remote ports that you’ll probably only ever visit on a cruise like this.

The best part about these cruises is that for many of us, the journey to the port can be made by a short domestic, or cross-border flight.  Those living in the Northeast may even be able to drive to the port.  

Canada & New England cruises offer a great opportunity to explore something new that is really our own backyard.  There are enough itinerary variations, that even if you’ve already done a cruise in the region, you can probably find another with almost completely different port stops. 

Travel Opportunities

Oceania Ultimate O-Life

If you’re looking to travel in the next few months, then this deal is pretty hard to beat.  Normally Oceania offers a choice of one of:

• Additional On Board Credits ($300 – $800 depending on the cruise), OR
• Free Shore Excursions, OR
• Free Beverage Package

Right now, you can get ALL THREE perks on selected sailings.  Oceania’s price point offers these luxury inclusions compelling under regular circumstances, and to get all three of them represents fantastic value.   Here’s a link to directly to their webpage with a list of eligible departures:

https://www.oceaniacruises.com/special-offers/olife-ultimate

The rest of today’s travel opportunities, are all about cruises to Canada & New England:  

Explora Journeys – Quebec to New York City – departing October 3^rd 2023 (10 nights)

• Visit Saguenay, Baie-Comeau, Havre-Saint-Pierre, Charlottetown, Halifax, New York (overnight)
• Bob and I are travelling on this journey – why not join us?
• $6350 per person – Veranda Room (377 Square Feet)

Hurtigruten –  Halifax to Boston for 7-nights departing September 12. 

• Visit Sable Island, Lunenburg, Eastport (MN), Rockland/Castine MN, Provincetown MA.
• Sail on the world’s first hybrid-electric cruise ship. 
• Outside cabin:  $2993.   Veranda  $3562

Oceania – Montreal to Boston for 11-nights departing October 8.  

• Visit Quebec City, Saguenay, Cornerbrook, Charlottetown, Sydney, Halifax, Saint John, Eastport, and Portland.
• Outside:  $5199. Veranda: $7499 – O-Life Ultimate Fares
• Includes round-trip air, beverage package, 3 free shore excursions (per person), $300 per person on board credit. 

Viking Ocean – Montreal to New York for 13-days departing June or July 2023

• Visit Montreal (overnight), Quebec City, Saguenay, Gaspe, Halifax, Boston (overnight), New York (overnight).
• Verandas from $4999 with Free Air.
• Includes all taxes and fees, air, transfers, beer/wine with meals, a shore excursion in every port, and wifi on the ship. 

Have something to say about this?

Join the conversation on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PamperedCruiser/posts/pfbid02rBgj2tCPWnREXz42XS71qrZDFUWaBFmDxQBWU8TH7SY8aeeMHH3e4vnoBQy5Dy8Ql

If you’re planning a trip, I’d love to help! Click here or call 800-876-0168 to get in touch today.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Sue Bradley

Someone recently mentioned to me that they’d visited South Korea.  I was intrigued… perhaps because I’ve never been there, and travel is my profession.  I followed up with questions: where did you go?  How long did you stay? What did you do? How was the food?

The answers were disappointing.  She had only changed planes at the Seoul Airport.  Sorry… that doesn’t count as having visited a country (as lovely as the Incheon Airport is).  

This got me thinking about how we experience places when we travel, and I came up with a scale.  On the extreme left hand side is “Travelling BROAD”: in this case maybe you only connect a flight at the airport  The other extreme is “Travelling DEEP”: this is when you live in the location for some period of time.  All of our adventures fall somewhere in between, and there is no ”right” way to travel.  But there should be an understanding that Broad and Deep are different experiences.  

Cruise ships lend themselves well to Broad Travel.  In most cases, you are only in a port of call for the day, and you generally can’t explore too far away from where your ship is docked.  In some cases, this works perfectly – you can get a little taste of a bunch of different places, and then (later) go back to the ones you really love to experience more deeply.  We see this in the Caribbean and in Europe.  Some cruises in those markets have a port of call every day – offering a little taste of a lot of places in a one or two week period.  

Some cruise lines are beginning to move a bit further to the right on the continuum, to offer a deeper experience.  This involves a longer port stop or even an overnight stay.  Perhaps they depart later at night to allow you to see what the port looks like after dark.  In some cases, the cruise lines are offering 2 or 3 day stays in certain ports of call.  This definitely gives you more of a feel for a place than a 6 hour stop during the day.

These longer port stops really appeal to those who have done a lot of cruising in a particular region before.  If you’ve been to a port before, it’s really cool to go back and be able to do things in that place that you haven’t experienced previously. 

There are also some port stops that simply require more than a few hours to see well.  The old saying that “Rome wasn’t built in a day”, I’ve modified to “You can’t see Rome in a day” – particularly because the cruise ships dock about 2 hours away from the things you want to see in Rome.

Vienna, Austria is a common port stop for river cruises, and definitely a place that requires more than a few hours to properly experience.  Istanbul, London, Paris, Jerusalem, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Athens, (there are many more)….the list of places that you need a few days to really see is long. 

To be clear, I’m not advocating for Deep Experiences over Broad Experiences.  I am suggesting that this is a dimension you’ll want to consider when making decisions about your next vacation, to avoid regrets.

Today’s Travel Opportunities

Viking River Cruise from Vienna to Bucharest (17-days)

• Explore Vienna for 3 full days, then carry on eastward to visit Bratislava, Budapest (2 days), Mohacs (Hungary), Vukovar & Ilok (Croatia), Novi Sad, Donji Milanovac and Belgrade (Serbia), Vidin and Pleven (Bulgaria), Constanta and Bucharest (Romania).  You’ll get to add a whole bunch of new places to your ‘been-there’ list.
• Prices from $5999 per person (May – August), $6499 pp (September),  $5799 pp (November)
• Includes round-trip international airfare, all taxes and fees, airport transfers, shore excursion in every port, beer/wine with meals, and wifi on the ship.

Northern Lights Cruise with Hurtigruten in Norway

Just as the days are getting longer, it may seem odd to be talking about seeing the Aurora Borealis, which are only visible on the dark days.  However, these cruises sell out, so you’ll want to be out in front of this.

• 14-days Amsterdam round-trip (making for easy flight logistics).  
• Departures in 2024:  January (6 or 20), February (3 or 17), and March (2, 16, 30).
• Encounter the coastal communities, glaciers, fjords, and wildlife of the Norwegian Coast in the winter
• This cruise features the “Northern Lights Promise”, so if you DON’T see them, Hurtigruten will give you another cruise.
• Prices start at $4478 per person

I was on this ship in Antarctica a few years ago, and here’s my video (with some photos of the ship):  https://youtu.be/3c-2TBXw6ls

Explora Journeys 

Copenhagen to London departing August 15, 2023 (9 nights)

• Visit Goteborg (Sweden), Oslo, Stavanger (Norway), Hamburg, Rotterdam, Bruges.
• Pampered Cruiser Special price: $5450 per person (Public Price: $5700 pp) – Save $500 per suite! – EXPIRES MAR. 17th

Quebec to New York City – departing October 3^rd 2023 (10 nights)

• Visit Saguenay, Baie-Comeau, Havre-Saint-Pierre, Charlottetown, Halifax, New York (overnight)
• Bob and I are travelling on this journey – why not join us?
• $6350 per person – Veranda Room (377 Square Feet)

Miami round-trip – departing December 13^th 2023 (9 nights)

• Visit Grand Turk, Dominican Republic, BVI, Guadeloupe, Bahamas
• Pampered Cruiser Special price: $3500 per person (Public Price:  $4700 pp) – Save $2400 per suite! – EXPIRES MAR. 17th

Bridgetown, Barbados round-trip – departing January 19^th 2024 (12 nights)

• Visit Dominica, Saint Lucia, Guadeloupe, Saint Barthe, San Juan, BVI, Saint Kitts, Antigua & Barbuda, Grenadines, 
• Pampered Cruiser Special price: $5500 per person (Public Price: $6750 pp) – Save $2500 per suite! – EXPIRES APRIL 14th

Bridgetown, Barbados to Miami – departing March 1^st 2024 (7-nights)

• Visit Martinique, Saint Kitts, Dominican Republic, Bahamas

Pampered Cruiser Special price: $3000 per person (Public Price: $3650 pp) – Save $1300 per suite! – EXPIRES APRIL 14th

Have something to say about this?

Join the conversation on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PamperedCruiser/posts/pfbid0PZ1omDjDguvXqx2BSZ8hpApaf7jA2zcNeY3QxLjdkjvKEzEMPr6n1NtJnJyKH9j3l

If you’re planning a trip, I’d love to help! Click here or call 800-876-0168 to get in touch today.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Sue Bradley

Sometimes our clients want to explore our their backyard here in the United States, and American Queen is perfect for such explorations.  The overwhelming majority of their port stops are inside of the United States, with a handful in Canada and Mexico.  They currently have seven vessels in operation, each of which holds between 160 and 400 guests – so they are ALL small ships with the quality of food, service, and amenities you would expect on a small ship cruising experience. 

For clarity, American Queen Voyages is the name of the company, and their flagship vessel is called the American Queen.  If you’d like to take a look around the flagship, here’s our Ship Tour video:  https://youtu.be/uqpoZrxbFHI

Here’s a look at their most popular itineraries:

Lower Mississippi – New Orleans to Memphis (or reverse)

• This cruise is all about food and music, with some Civil War History thrown in as well.  Take in a jazz show in New Orleans, followed by a Creole dinner.  Visit a Civil War battlefield in Vicksburg, and see Elvis’ Graceland in Memphis.  
• Cruises are one week long, and run late September through to May.
• Departing New Orleans  on September 10,  bound for Memphis
  • Visit Nottoway Plantation, St. Francisville, Baton Rouge, Natchez, Vicksburg, Greenville, 
  • Inside from $3219. Veranda from $4419
• Here’s our video blog from when we did this cruise last year:  https://youtu.be/HIfirwH0V5M

Upper Mississippi River System

• In reality, the Mississippi River system spans over half the Lower 48 States, so AQV’s river ships easily move from the Mississippi to the Ohio, Cumblerland, Tennessee, and Illinois Rivers.  
• Unlike the Lower Mississippi, on these cruises you will travel through locks, and the scenery is breathtaking.  
• Retrace Mark Twain’s domain in the middle of the country, or cruise as far north as Minneapolis, Chicago or Pittsburgh in the summer months.  
• Cruises range between one-week and three-week itineraries, and have a variety of start and end points. 
• Departing St. Louis on July 16,  bound for Minneapolis (one week)
  • Visit Hannibal, Bettendorf, Dubuque, La Crosse, 
  • Inside: $3119.  Veranda Cabins from $4419 (air included)
• Departing Minneapolis for New Orleans on August 6 (two weeks)
  • Imagine travelling almost the entire north to south distance of the country looking out from the deck of a river boat!
  • Visit Winona, La Crosse, Dubuque, Bettendorf, Burlington, Hannibal, Kimmswick, Cleveland (MS), Vicksburg, Natchez, Nottoway Plantation. 
  • Inside: $6309. Veranda $9909 (air included)
• Here’s our video blog from Chattanooga to Memphis:  https://youtu.be/1u3QmS7xU3E

Columbia & Snake Rivers – Portland, OR to Spokane, WA (or reverse)

• The scenery and wildlife in the Pacific Northwest rivals that in Alaska.  Waterfalls, volcanoes, snow-capped peaks, wildlife in its natural habitat… it’s all here.  
• You’ll also become privy to one of the country’s best kept secrets:  Washington and Oregon wineries.  Some varietals of grapes do better with the longer summer daylight hours further north.
• This region is open to exploration by river boat March through December.  It is not warm early and late in the season, but still well worth the trip.  If you go in October, you can experience the grape harvest.  
• Depart Spokane on June 18,  for Portland (one week)
  • Visit Richland, The Dalles, Stevenson, Astoria
  • Veranda rooms from $4369

Alaska & British Columbia – Vancouver, BC to Sitka, AK (or reverse)

• All the cruise lines are in Alaska, but if you want to explore it on a ship with 166 people, rather than a floating amusement park with 5000 people, then American Queen’s Ocean Victory may be a good choice.
• You will visit the more remote parts of the British Columbia and Alaska coastlines, and the off-ship activities include sea kayaking, zodiac boat rides, and walking.  
• The ship operates on 12 and 13 day itineraries, and besides Vancouver, Sitka and Ketchikan (where you can do more traditional cruise ship shore excursions), the port stops focus on Alaska’s spectacular scenery and wildlife. 
• You do NOT have to be an elite athlete to take part in these more active excursions.  All you need is an interest in Alaska’s natural beauty for this to be a good choice for you. 
• Depart Vancouver for Sitka on September 8  (12 days)
  • Visit Kynoch Inlet, Ketchikan, Misty Fjords, Wrangell, Waterfall Coast, Petersburg, Tracy & Endicott Arms, Fredrick Sound
  • Window Room: $5719.  Veranda Rooms from $7869 (air included)
• Here’s our Ship Tour video of AQV’s Ocean Victory:  https://youtu.be/KVaMZC2oTrQ

Great Lakes 

• There are a few variations of this cruise, with itineraries as long as 16-days.  Most of them are 11-days between Chicago and Toronto – making your travel logistics to and from the ship very easy.  
• AQV’s Ocean Navigator and Ocean Voyager both do this trip.  These ships hold 240 passengers, and it is fair to say that the primary attraction for those that take these cruises is on the incredible itinerary, and these ships are simply the best way to get you there.
• On this itinerary, you’ll visit the larger cities of Chicago, Toronto, Cleveland and Detroit, and also the smaller gems of Mackinac Island, Sault Ste. Marie, Manitoulin Island, and Niagara Falls. 
• Depart Toronto for Chicago on June 4. 
  • Outside rooms from $5289. Veranda Rooms from $7489.

Southeast USA

The Great Lakes can be chilly for a good part of the year, so Ocean Voyager and Ocean Navigator migrate to charming destinations in the American Southeast for part of the year. 

• 12-days RT from Jacksonville FLA departing November 19. 
• Visit Savannah GA, Charleston SC, Brunswick GA, Fernanda Beach FL, Port Canaveral FL, and Freeport (Bahamas), 
• Ocean View Rooms from $4759.  Veranda rooms from $7259.

American Queen Inclusions

American Queen Voyages include all taxes and fees, a pre-cruise hotel night, gratuities on the ship, unlimited shore excursions in every port, an open bar, wifi, and incredible on-board entertainment.  Best of all, you don’t need to fly overseas to enjoy these unique itineraries. 

Have something to say about this?

Join the conversation on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PamperedCruiser/posts/pfbid0RrnxnNXEPPijC3kNbpEq3xb1uAVfwP3AUtrWP7xWfR5yrQTwk8RHmZEJrmTJQuPPl

If you’re planning a trip, I’d love to help! Click here or call 800-876-0168 to get in touch today.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Sue Bradley

Many of you know that Bob grew up in Canada.  He was born in Vancouver, but his mother’s family was from Banff.  Every summer, Bob’s mom would take him and his brothers on the train to Banff to visit her family.  Only the extraordinarily wealthy would travel by airplane in those days, so train was the way normal Canadians got around.

Bob laughs now, because travelling those same tracks he rode on as a child is now a luxury train journey (on the Rocky Mountaineer – see below), while it’s routine to travel the same route by plane.

There is no doubt that many train trips harken to a bygone era and evoke feelings of nostalgia and elegance.  Here’s a quick guide to some of those special rail journeys:

Canadian Rockies on Rocky Mountaineer

This is quickly becoming one of the worlds “must-do” rail trips, and it’s easy to understand why.  The scenery and wildlife viewing has few rivals anywhere else in the world.  There are several different rail routes and packages, but if you’re unfamiliar with that corner of the world, then here’s what you do:

1. Fly to Vancouver and spend a few days there if you haven’t been previously.
2. Board the Rocky Mountaineer, choosing the “First Passage to the West” itinerary, and ride to Banff or Lake Louise.  In reality, these two destinations are only a few miles apart, so you can easily see both.
3. You DON’T sleep on the train (you’d miss all the scenery!), so Rocky Mountaineer packages include your hotel nights between days on the rails.
4. 3-night packages (Vancouver-Kamloops-Banff/Lake Louise) start at $1850 per person.
5. Fly home from Calgary OR ride the alternate routing back to Vancouver.  8-night round trip packages (Vancouver-Kamloops-Jasper-Banff/Lake Louise-Vancouver) start at $4164 per person

Rockies to Red Rocks in the USA

After 25 years in Canada, Rocky Mountaineer finally expanded to the US three years ago.  Again, they have several packages, but they are all based on one rail routing between Denver and Moab, Utah.  Denver is always well worth a visit, and Moab is the perfect jumping-off point to explore several of America’s National Parks. 

1. Just like the Canadian Rocky Mountaineer, you disembark the train at night. 
2. 3-night packages (Moab – Glenwood Springs – Denver) start at $1900 per person.
3. 4-night packages between Denver and Las Vegas with a flight-seeing connection between Moab and Vegas start at $3323 pp.
4. 4-night packages between Denver and Salt Lake City start at $2232 pp

Belmond

If you don’t know Belmond, they offer unique experiences all over the world, and some of those experiences are on the rails:

Royal Scotsman

As the name would imply, this is in Scotland, and is completely sold out for 2023, so you’ll need to plan ahead if it’s of interest. There are several different itineraries, but here’s an example:

1. 5-days round-trip Edinburgh.  Visit Kyle of Lochalsh, Boat of Garden, Rothiemurchus. 
2. Accommodation is on the train, and includes all meals, drinks, as well as some local excursions off the train. 
3. Prices from $9300 per person depending on prevailing exchange rates.

Venice Simplon Orient Express

The famous Orient Express has a number of itineraries in Europe:

1. Paris to Rome.
2. Amsterdam to Venice.
3. There are also itineraries that include Budapest, Prague, Florence, Istanbul, Innsbruck, Vienna
4. Prices from $4300 per person depending on prevailing exchange rates.

Europe River Cruise + Rail Combination

Uniworld offers combination river cruise and rail packages that makes it easy to experience both:

Zurich to Venice.  7-night river cruise in Italy AND 4-night package on the Golden Eagle Express.

1. Visit Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Austria, Slovenia, and Italy.
2. Depart in July or September 2023 from $10,398 per person.

Passau to Budapest.  7-night river cruise AND 4-night Rail Package:

1. 4-nights in Hungary and Romania and a 7-night Danube River cruise.
2. June or October 2023 from $11,398 per person

Alaska Rail System

Alaska is far bigger and far more remote than most of us can conceive.  For that reason, rail is a far preferable option than renting a car.  You also get to see WAY more.  Most of our clients find themselves in Alaska pre- or post-cruise, and most of the cruise lines offer extensions with some portion on the rails.  Be aware those cruise lines also move you around by motor coach as well.  For this reason, some of our clients prefer to do their pre or post on the Alaska Rail system (where you’ll maximize your time on the train).  For example, you can do 7-nights from Anchorage to Fairbanks from $2299 per person:

1. 2-nights Anchorage, 1-night McKinley, 2-nights Denali, 2-nights Fairbanks.
2. Includes hotels, and transfer by rail between destinations.

Southern Africa River Cruise + Rail Combination

Yep… there are trains down that way, and you can take a combination river cruise and rail journey with AMA Waterways:

1. 12-nights between Capetown and Johannesburg
2. Visit Capetown for 3-nights, then fly to board the Zambezi Queen for 4-nights to do a Safari in Nambia, 2-nights in Victoria Falls, then a 3-day rail journey.
3. Departures in September and October from $15,395 per person.

Amtrak

There’s no denying that Amtrak is not as exotic as the rail experiences above, but it might still be worth considering.  Here’s a few trips we have taken on Amtrak, that were certainly better than flying or renting a car:

1. Seattle to Vancouver, Canada – Yep… Amtrak does dip its toe into Canada in a few places.  If you’re taking a cruise out of Vancouver, but would rather fly into Seattle, then Amtrak goes a few times a day between those two cities.  It’s incredibly scenic – most of the journey is on the ocean, and when you consider the airport hassle and or the border line-ups, it’s faster than flying or driving between the two cities.
2. Memphis to New Orleans – We took a river cruise between these two iconic cities and had to get back to New Orleans.  The train took about 7 hours, but it’s during the day, so we got to enjoy the scenery of the Mississippi River Delta, as opposed to the seat back in front of us if we had flown.
3. Northeast Corridor – If you’re going anywhere between Washington and Boston, it’s worth considering the train.  The Interstates are fine in the Northeast, but it’s kind of boring.  If you fly, then consider the unreliability of the airlines, as well as wait times at airports if you think it’s going to be faster than the train.

If you’re looking for something a bit different, then rail journeys offer a different perspective.  You see MUCH more than you do from the highway (particularly if you’re the one driving).  You can also get up and wander around on the train – something not possible if you’re in a car or motorcoach. 

Have something to say about this?

Join the conversation on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PamperedCruiser/posts/pfbid0RZ6br6e5ELy2GwLVCASeNecRevunBzCDjFg27wtxYzX7giUYyurApmVrAiUvbUQWl

If you’re planning a trip, I’d love to help! Click here or call 800-876-0168 to get in touch today.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Sue Bradley

Ireland is a frequent request from our clients, so I thought I’d offer a few thoughts about travelling this region.

Ireland is actually TWO countries, and I will speak to them both.  The Republic of Ireland is home to 5 million people, the capital is Dublin, the President is Michael Higgins, and they use the Euro as their currency.  Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom (along with England, Scotland, and Wales).  About 2 million people live in Northern Ireland, the capital is Belfast, their Prime Minister is currently Rishi Sunak, and they use British Pound Sterling as their currency.

So that gets the social studies lesson out of the way.  What can you do in Ireland?

1. Family Heritage Trips.  It’s not a secret that in previous centuries, the Irish provided a ton of immigrants to the United States, so many people have no problem tracing their roots to this part of Europe (Hint: if your last name starts with “O’”, “Fitz”, or is “Ryan”, “Murphy”, or “Byrne” – do your family tree research in Ireland). 
2. Scenery.  Ireland is one of those unique places on the planet where it difficult to find a place WITHOUT stunning vistas.  There are cliffs that fall straight into the ocean, and rolling hills and countryside, too.
3. Learn About the Drink.  There’s a lot of bad jokes about the Irish and their love of the drink.  You don’t have to be a big drinker to find a visit to the Guinness factory or an Irish Whiskey distillery really interesting.
4. Castles.  Every castle tells a story… and there’s plenty of stories in Ireland.
5. Game of Thrones Tours — OK, much of it was filmed in Morocco, but there’s still plenty to see in Ireland for fans of this iconic production.
6. Traditional Irish Dance & Music.  You’ve undoubtedly seen this before – now go see it in its place of origin.
7. Go to an Irish Pub with Music.  The smaller the town, the more local… the better.
8. Ring of Kerry – This 110-mile circuit, is probably one of the most scenic drives in the world.  See it all:  waterfalls, beaches, castles, and a Hermitage built by Christian Monks 1300 years ago at top of a jagged ocean crag.
9. Learn From the Irish – There is no doubt the Irish have endured more than their fair share of misfortune in the past few hundred years – right up until the 20th century.  They have lived in peace and relative prosperity for the past few decades, and there’s lots to be learned from them about how they achieved this.

The Republic of Ireland is about the same size as Indiana but has about 4600 miles of coastline.  This means you’re never far from the ocean, and a cruise ship is a good way to sample several different places in this fascinating country.  Later, you might want to go back to the places you loved the most and stay for a while.

See below a for few suggestions as to how to see Ireland.

Today’s Travel Opportunities

Azamara departing Dublin for London on June 13 (or Aug 29) – 12 days

1. Visit Dublin (overnight), Warrenpoint, Belfast (overnight), Londonderry, Killybegs, Donegal, Galway, Foynes, Cork.
2. Oceanview from $2298 per person; Veranda Suites from $6842 pp.

Oceania Riviera departing Belfast (round-trip) on June 21 – 9 days

1. Visit Dublin, Waterford, Cork, Bantry, Galway, Killybegs, Londonderry.
2. Oceanview from $3549 per person; Veranda Suites from $4199 pp.  Air add-on: $1200.
3. See our Riviera ship tour video here:  https://youtu.be/KvgJJ2bE1OU
4. See our video about Oceania’s Culinary Program here: https://youtu.be/O0Que9codHo

Ultimate Ireland LAND Tour departing Dublin on June 20 (or July 11) – 15-days

1. Visit Dublin (3-days), Belfast (2 days), Giant’s Causeway, Derry, Donegal (2 days), Enniskillen, Galway (2 days), Killarney, Ring of Kerry, Kilkenny (2 days).
2. $4599 per person, double occupancy.
3. Includes all breakfasts, 2 lunches, 6 dinners, guided walking tours of Dublin and Derry, as well the services of a professional guide that travels with you throughout your journey.

Have something to say about this?

Join the conversation on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PamperedCruiser/posts/pfbid028X4unzFrSnBq8JueDe7rXZ8SaGV4BKD8hH7GUfMnok73JSXVU9ffBecj7VhEQonel

If you’re planning a trip, I’d love to help! Click here or call 800-876-0168 to get in touch today.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Sue Bradley