Cruise & Travel Blog

Favourite Four Winter Sun Destinations

22 September 2017

And just like that, in a flurry of new pencil cases and iron-on name tags, the kids are back at school. September sees sighs of relief at a return to normality after the six weeks holidays, but the falling leaves and cooler days are a reminder that winter is just around the corner. There’s nothing quite like sinking your toes into warm sand when all at home are battling with their brollies. These winter sun destinations serve a mean piña colada too. 1. TENERIFE Sun-worshippers return to Tenerife year after year, tempted by temperatures that hover in the mid-twenties throughout November and December. Despite being just a few hours from the UK, the Canary Islands couldn’t be more different in terms of weather and terrain, with Tenerife coming out on top for its guaranteed sun and varied shore excursions. Golfers...
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Four Of Our Favourite Day Passes For Cruisers

18 September 2017

If the thought of spending the day on a private island appeals, read on. A resort pass is your ticket to a life of luxury without the hefty price tag, albeit for just a day. From private islands to five-star hotels, here are our favourite four day passes for cruisers. Atlantis Paradise Island, Nassau Located just 15 minutes from the port in Nassau, Atlantis Paradise Island is the playground of the Bahamas and it offers one of the very best day passes for cruisers. The $120 per person Aquaventure & Dolphin Cay Pass offers access to the 141-acre Aquaventure Water Park, entertainment and activities at family-friendly Dolphin Cay, access to 5 miles of Bahamian beaches and a choice of seven pools, including the 7-acre Paradise Lagoon Beach. If you’re travelling as a group, booking a room at the resort could...
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A Centenary At Sea

15 September 2017

Earlier this year, Colin Bell became the first person to have booked a hundred cruises with Bolsover Cruise Club. When he visited us for an evening of celebrations to mark the occasion, we decided to have a chat and find out what keeps him coming back. Colin Bell’s next cruise will see him travel further by ship in a week than he does in his own car over the course of an entire year. What’s more, whilst he estimates his annual mileage to be a miniscule 1,000 miles, Mr Bell’s four cruises per year see him rack up tens of thousands of nautical miles on the deepest blue. Colin has cruised since 1979, when like many avid cruisers he got his first taste of life at sea on board the SS Canberra. That first cruise saw him spend 11 days...
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Crossing Oceans

12 September 2017

Bolsover Cruise Club’s Mandy Maddison wondered how she’d fill her time on a Cunard Transatlantic voyage. Little did she know that the problem wouldn’t be finding ways to fill her days, but rather finding a way to fit it all in. Here’s her diary of a classic Cunard crossing. Friday 4th August, embark QM2 I’m up at 4am, ready to make my way to Southampton by train via London. Once I arrive, embarkation at the terminal is every bit as quick and easy as I had hoped for after such an early wake-up call and in no time at all I am on board the Queen Mary 2 bound for New York. My inside cabin is lovely and a lot bigger than I expected. The sparkling wine to welcome us was a nice touch too. After meeting the rest of...
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The Stunning Sights of Rocky Mountaineer’s First Passage To The West

05 September 2017

The Rocky Mountaineer isn’t just a rail journey, it is an all-out adventure. From the comfort of the train’s dome cars, you’ll travel through Canada’s west, ambling through mountain towns and National Parks, all the while keeping your eyes peeled for bald eagles above or bears and elk ahead. The sights you’ll see along the way are too many to list and too impressive to try and explain, but here are just a handful of the highlights that await on the Rocky Mountaineer ‘First Passage to the West’ journey. Vancouver The seaport city in British Columbia has it all, from cloud piercing skyscrapers to a famously scenic seawall and the wilderness of Grouse Mountain. Meet the resident grizzlies, Grinder and Coola, catch a lumberjack show, shop, hike, take a sky ride or zip line, cycle along the waterfront or run...
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10 Things To Do With A Day In Malta

29 August 2017

Malta packs a lot into its little archipelago. From movie locations – Game of Thrones and Gladiator have both been filmed here – to the kind of perfect beaches that make us grateful to have the Mediterranean on our doorsteps, Malta has it all. With a new title as the 2018 European Capital of Culture, the promise of over 300 days of sun a year, plus some seriously blue waters in which to sail, swim or soak, it is little wonder that P&O Cruises snapped up this Mediterranean marvel as the starting point for their Eastern Med cruise holidays. Here’s how to make the most of a day in the destination. Eat your spinach and head for Popeye Village Robin Williams remains one of our all-time heroes and a visit to Popeye Village will trigger the nostalgia of any 80s...
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36 Hours In Venice

25 August 2017

Venice is one of those places that must be seen to be believed. Films and photographs do no justice to the beauty of ‘La Serenissima’, the floating city set upon a lagoon in the Adriatic Sea. Only when you spend time there yourself can you throw back the curtains on Italy’s most dramatic city. Don’t miss… You can’t visit Venice without seeing its icons but it pays to be clever about the order in which you go about it. St Mark’s Basilica doesn’t open for visitors until 9.45am but anyone is welcome to attend its atmospheric Holy Mass. Mass celebrations are held hourly until 11.00am, however it is the early 7.00am and 8.00am gatherings which will see you beat the crowds. By the time 9.45am rolls around and St. Mark’s opens its doors to general visitors, you will already have...
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Six Of The UK’s Most Alternative Afternoon Teas

14 August 2017

If there is a better way to spend an afternoon than attacking a towering carousel of sandwiches, cakes and scones with your nearest and dearest we’re yet to find it. There’s something beautifully British about afternoon tea, from the politeness of taking it in turns to pour the teapot to heated discussions over whether the jam or cream should grace your scone first. As the nation unites to celebrate Afternoon Tea Week, we’re sharing six alternative afternoon tea spots that break with tradition. Rally the troops and prepare to taste test our top six picks, all of which can be found on our very own shores. Dirty Birds and Doughnuts Afternoon Tea Ma’ Plucker, 75 Beak Street (London) First in our pick of ‘afternoon tea but not as you know it’ can be found at Ma’ Plucker. The ‘Dirty Birds...
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The Chocoholic’s Travel Guide

08 August 2017

We’ve got chocolate on the brain and it’s been that way since Holland America Line announced they are set to introduce a Chocolate Surprise parade on every cruise. The thought of waiters parading through the Promenade decks, handing out bite-size chocolatey desserts such as double chocolate cupcakes, chocolate macaroons with Grand Marnier and chocolate cones with lemon curd has got us salivating. Our fellow chocoholics will understand the struggle to satisfy a sweet tooth, so we’re playing the enabler and sharing the top destinations in the world to cure those chocolate cravings. BRUGES Belgium takes its chocolate very seriously, earning itself the title of ‘Chocolate Capital of the World’. The cobblestone streets here are lined with chocolate shops, almost 2,000 in fact, from big names like Godiva to the tiny independent producers deliciously clustered together in the sweetly-scented Katelijnestraat district....
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Backpack Optional

04 August 2017

To say South America is diverse just doesn’t quite cut it. The continent’s 12 countries contrast wildly and many of them are now placed at the feet of cruisers who never fancied the thought of lugging around a backpack. A holiday here holds the promise of Brazilian beaches, Chilean fjords, Argentinian cities, colonial Colombian towns and the endless, undulating Amazon Rainforest. Urban sprawls are replaced with remote expanses in the blink of an eye, bucket lists are obliterated and catching a case of joie de vivre is guaranteed. Grab a glass of Malbec and read on to find out why South America should be on your radar. THE SCENE STEALERS ‘Bucket list’ is a term thrown about with wild abandon but South America deserves its crown as one of the true bucket list destinations. No other holiday offers the opportunity...
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