Spring Fever!

By Mike & Darlene Jordan

One of Mike’s favorite holidays is Groundhog Day. We know, it’s not really a holiday but it’s a day when people start talking earnestly about Spring and that it will be coming sometime within the next 6 weeks, or at least shortly thereafter.

Well, that was February 2—almost 13 weeks ago. Where the heck is it? We woke up this morning after an overnight low of 15 degrees. Darlene is worried that she’ll never get any plants to grow this year…her seedlings are scattered all around the house waiting for the time they can move outside, or at least to the greenhouse where it’s supposed to be nice and warm. The squash plants are already starting to produce!

It’s making us think of warm weather places and going somewhere we’ve never been, before. Like Tahiti.

We’re not sure we could handle spending a week or more on a beach. Sure, we love beaches, but even we need to do more than just roast for 7 days straight. We at least need to find a way to roast in 7 different places. That’s why we’d prefer a cruise to a place like that. Use the ship as a hotel and just go from island to island while we sleep.

There used to be a number of cruise lines that sailed French Polynesia, a large group of small islands, only one of which is actually Tahiti, the largest and most populous. The whole group is called French Poynesia because it’s owned by France, much the way Puerto Rico, St. Thomas, and St. Croix are territories of the U.S. Princess is the only major line left that cruises there on a regular basis. Their Royal Princess starts on the island of Tahiti, but visits other nearby islands that are fairly well known: Bora Bora, Moorea, and Raiatea. Princess even allows you to use the ship as a hotel on the day before your arrival, and doesn’t disembark until afternoon on the day you leave. That way you don’t have to cool your jets in the airport waiting for your overnight flight back to the states.

If staying on one beach for a week were our thing, Tahiti would be the place to do it. If you ever watch the Travel Channel, you know that this is the place where there are resorts featuring grass huts that are actually placed on stilts over the Pacific Ocean. Some of them deliver breakfast to your hut by canoe. This sounds seriously like a great place to us.

The only drawback to this island paradise is that it’s not easy to get to. Most flights to Tahiti (Its international airport is Faa’a, located in the capital city of Papeete which only proves that the Tahitian language is seriously deficient in consonants.) from the U.S. must connect in Los Angeles for the overnight trip on Tahiti Nui Airlines. It’s sometimes possible to get a flight on another airline that has a refueling stop in Papeete on its way to Australia. But, if getting there was easy, everybody would do it. Tahiti would become just another highly commercialized beach resort island with high rise hotels and a Starbuck’s on every corner. Isn’t the whole point of Paradise that it’s hard to get in?

This is another of those places that is on our bucket list. We’ll probably cruise from there to the nearby islands, but this just may be one of those places we can test our “we’ll be bored in one place for a week” theory. This is a tough job, but somebody has to do it, and what a great cure for Spring Fever!

We’ll be taking a hiatus from this space for awhile, but will return soon with lots of new places and experiences to tell you about.

In the meantime…get out the map!

Mike and Darlene’s Weekly DEAL!

La ora na ‘outou, and Happy Friday! This week we’re celebrating TAHITI and FRENCH POLYNESIA!

We’ve chosen an early December cruise, as lately we’ve had lots of clients booking cruise groups to share an early Christmas celebration with family and friends in a warm, sunny place. This itinerary offers an exotic, warm and beautiful itinerary, and will get you home in time for the holidays. 

Did we say exotic? For you “foodies” out there, traditional Tahitian meals are still cooked in an earth oven. Known as Ahima’a, this is where meats and vegetables are wrapped in leaves and placed on a bed of hot stones. The parcels are covered with more leaves and earth, and left to cook for several hours. 

As in the very beginning, fish, shellfish, chicken, pork, tropical fruit, breadfruit, taro, cassava, yams, and rice are staples and frequently used ingredients include lime juice, coconut milk and vanilla which is used with a passion in both savory and sweet dishes. YUM!

Tahiti is the largest of the French Polynesian islands, and this cruise starts in Tahiti’s capital, Papeete. December is considered to be part of the “off-season” for tourists, a bit more rainy than earlier in the year. We both prefer to travel off-season, as tours, hotels, and services and generally easier to get, and lower priced, than high-season, and that applies to cruises as well (see fares below). This cruise offers “ship as hotel” on both ends of the cruise in Papeete, you’ll have plenty of time to explore and really experience the culture.

For you animal lovers, there are nearly 500 species of fishes within the Tahitian waters, along with other amazing creatures such as sea turtles, dozens of sharks species, and the ever so popular dolphin (the “flipper” kind), porpoises, and the hugely popular humpback whale topping the list of marine mammals. Interestingly, there are no pinnepeds (seals or other flippered mammals) in Polynesian waters. 

You’ll also have an overnight at Bora Bora, with almost two full days to hike, take a jeep tour, enjoy the beach, take a tour by canoe with a local guide, and discover the world-renowned shopping for local and international original art, Tahitian pearls, and precious wood handcrafts.

Your home for these 10 nights will be Princess Cruise Line’s Royal Princess. This is one of Princess’ small ships, accommodating only 675 guests, and this sailing will be one of the last several to be offered to the U.S. market, as the Royal Princess will be transferred to P & O Cruises in May of next year. Book your cruise now, and be a part of maritime history on one of her last outings as a Princess ship! 

Princess Cruises
Royal Princess  December 9, 2010
Day	Date	Port	Arv	Dep
Thu	12/09	Papeete, Tahiti – Embark – Times subject to change
Fri	12/10	Papeete, Tahiti		05:00 PM
Sat	12/11	Huahine, French Polynesia	08:00 AM	05:00 PM
Sun	12/12	At Sea
Mon	12/13	Rangiroa, Tuamotu Islands	08:00 AM	05:00 PM
Tue	12/14	At Sea
Wed	12/15	Raiatea, French Polynesia	06:00 AM	11:00 PM
Thu	12/16	Bora Bora, French Polynesia	08:00 AM
Fri	12/17	Bora Bora, French Polynesia		05:00 PM
Sat	12/18	Moorea, French Polynesia	08:00 AM	05:00 PM
Sat	12/18	Papeete, Tahiti	08:00 PM
Sun	12/19	Papeete, Tahiti – Disembark – Times subject to change	06:00 AM

Fares for cruises in this part of the world are typically higher than a typical Caribbean cruise, there are not many cruise lines offering these itineraries, so ship space is at a premium. The great fares for this itinerary caught our eyes: 

Interior staterooms start at only $1192.58 per person, INCLUDING port fees and tax, for the 10-night cruise! Ocean views are currently available at $1392.58 per person, and you can upgrade to a balcony for $1592.58 per person.*  Imagine yourself sitting on your own private balcony, sipping your favorite beverage (we’re thinking coffee or tea, it’s early!), as your ship arrives in Rangiroa, Tuamotu Islands…a place most people have never heard of, let alone visited!

Keep in mind that this is a small ship. Space will not last long at these fares, so give us a call at 1-800-267-7613, or reply to this email, and let us know which type of accommodation to hold for you. Have a group in mind for this trip? Let us know, we’ll hold a cruise-sale and get reduced deposits and some nifty ship-board perks for you!

Until then, nana (goodbye) and be well!

Darlene & Mike

*Fares include port fees and tax and are per person, based on double occupancy. Airfare, transfers and insurance are additional.

Mike and Darlene Jordan  (800) 267-7613 – (719) 379-3133 www.CruisesInc.com/mjordan www.familycruises.com/mjordan www.SeaLuxury.com/mjordan Subscribe to our weekly newsletter

Mike and Darlene’s Weekly DEAL!

Hello Everyone, and Happy Friday!

We’re a little late today, we’ve been digging out from a spring blizzard that left us under about 14” of snow (so far). Looking out our window leaves us longing for a Caribbean cruise, just to relax and get some sun on our faces, so our DEAL today is a lovely Eastern Caribbean cruise aboard the Norwegian Epic! 

The Epic’s inaugural sail date isn’t until June of this year, so she’ll still have that “new ship smell”, and she will introduce many innovations to the cruise industry, from new stateroom design, to entertainment never before offered on a cruise ship: “Legends in Concert”, a tribute to some of the most beloved entertainers in history, the Blue Man Group, one of the funniest and oddest acts we’ve seen.  If you love to laugh, you’re going to love Headliners, with acts like The Second City® comedy troupe. Or, take the 200-foot Epic Plunge – the only tube slide and largest bowl slide at sea. Plus, the most diverse collection of restaurants ever assembled at sea.

All of that, and beautiful beaches, shopping and sightseeing opportunities on this great Eastern Caribbean itinerary:

Norwegian Cruise Line
Norwegian Epic
Day	Date	Port	Arv	Dep
Sat	12/04	Miami, Florida – Embark-Times are Subject to Change		04:00 PM
Sun	12/05	At Sea
Mon	12/06	At Sea
Tue	12/07	Philipsburg, St. Maarten	08:00 AM	06:00 PM
Wed	12/08	St. Thomas, USVI	08:00 AM	04:00 PM
Thu	12/09	At Sea
Fri	12/10	Nassau, Bahamas	12:00 PM	07:00 PM
Sat	12/11	Miami, Florida – Disembark-Times are Subject to Change	08:00 AM

For a LIMITED time, we have block space available with GREAT, LOW fares on this brand new ship! One category of balconies is already sold out, so if you’re interested in this ship, don’t wait! Once our space is gone, we’ll have to book at current fares, which are substantially higher than what we’re holding:

This ship does not offer ocean view staterooms, there are interior staterooms, and balconies and above. Interiors on this sailing start at a low $676.84* INCLUDING PORT FEES AND TAX!  Great rate, right? We’ll make it even better, as long as our block space lasts, by adding a $100 per room shipboard credit!

Our block space includes Deluxe Balcony staterooms at $1176.84* per person, and the $100 per room shipboard offer applies to these as well! And when you call, if there is a better fare that we can bring into our block space, we’ll do so, and keep the shipboard credit for you! 

Give us a call today at 1-800-267-7613, and we’ll secure your space on this amazing new ship!

Until then, have a great weekend, AND THINK SUNSHINE!

Darlene & Mike

*Fares include port fees and tax. Airfare, transfers and insurance are additional. Fares are based on double occupancy, and are subject to change and availability.

Get Out the Map

Snow Day

By Mike & Darlene Jordan

It’s days like today that we dream of travel…no matter how close we are to a trip. After digging out from 14 inches of snow we’re ready to go…anywhere. You’d think two people who’ve spent most of their lives in Colorado would be used to it.

Wrong.

Mike has been a snow hater most of his life, except during the 15 or so years between 30 and 45 when he liked to ski. He’d pretty much like to see plenty of snow in the mountains to maintain a good water supply, but stick to rain or good-old Colorado sunshine anywhere that it’s flat. So, what better time than a day like today to cover a few notes that have been affecting travelers recently.

First, of course, is the volcano in Iceland. According to reports at the time of this writing, (Friday, April 23) the skies over Europe are now virtually free of volcanic ash and the planes are flying again. The whole mess has accelerated the process of reforming the European air traffic control system. The “Single European Sky” project was slated to begin in 2012, but the volcano problem has illustrated that Europe’s air traffic crisis response has been less than stellar and can’t wait that long.

Interestingly, the one place you could fly to during this Iceland volcano mess…was Iceland. Winds were blowing the ash and smoke away from Reykjavik, but no more. Now that the winds have shifted, the Reykjavik airport is closed, making travel to that part of the world almost as difficult as pronouncing the name of the volcano that started it all, Eyjafjallajokull. We looked up the pronunciation…and we still can’t make any sense of it.

In the meantime, Spirit Airlines has decided that air travelers aren’t ticked off enough, and will begin charging $30 per carry-on bag, if you pay the fee in advance online or at the ticket counter. If you just show up at the gate with your carry-on, however, your fee jumps to $45. If you’re a member of Spirit’s Low Fare Club, which requires an annual fee of $39.95, the airline will only charge you $20 for your carry-on. (Gosh, how can they afford such largesse?) This appears to be an obvious way to get around those pesky passengers who, after learning they’d be charged for checked bags, learned to pack lighter and carry their bags on instead.

Apparently, the outrage over carry-on fees isn’t enough to sway Spirit’s Mensa executives from continuing to make passengers as uncomfortable as possible. During the research for this article, we learned that they have also begun eliminating reclining seats from their airplanes! According to the ABC News website, the reclining mechanism is too heavy and the change to fixed seats will save fuel.

The good news is that Spirit Airlines doesn’t fly to Colorado at all and that most of the airlines that do fly here have promised they won’t charge for carry-on bags—no word on whether they’ll eliminate reclining seats any time soon.

 It’s a good thing we don’t have to shovel 14 inches of snow off the deck very often…it makes us cranky.

Until next time…get out the map!

The Gift of Life…and New England

By Mike & Darlene Jordan

We received a phone call this week from a dear friend in Monmouth, Maine. He was calling in recognition of the very special anniversary of the day his daughter received a life saving bone marrow transplant that finally drove the acute lymphocytic leukemia from her body. We didn’t even know this man at the time of the transplant, but he was calling us because it was 15 years ago that Darlene made the anonymous donation of her bone marrow that saved the woman’s life. He calls us every year at this time.

We bring this up for this blog for two reasons. The first is that it reminded us of the visit we made to Maine on the 5-year anniversary of the procedure when we finally had a chance to meet this family. We went as a part of the of the “Five Points of Life” bicycle marathon from Maine to Florida to raise awareness of the need for life saving donations. It was an amazing experience to meet them and to travel to a part of the country we had never seen before.

Maine is an incredibly beautiful place. If you’ve ever seen a Courier and Ives painting (and who hasn’t every year at Christmas time?), you’ve seen what parts of Maine are really like. There is luscious greenery everywhere. Small villages dot the countryside with white church steeples poking up through the trees and waves crash against the rocks along the seashore. There are lighthouses all along the coast and there are places where we had to remind ourselves that it was the year 2000, not the late 1800s.

We flew into Bangor where we picked up the rental car for the short drive to our final destination, the beautiful seaside city of Bar Harbor. We considered ourselves fortunate to be visiting in late August because it was still warm (and a little humid) but the tourist season was already winding down so there were few crowds. Although we were there for the event kickoff and the donor/recipient meeting, we had enough free time to explore the area, especially the amazing Acadia National Park, which was virtually across the street from our hotel.

The first national park east of the Mississippi River, Acadia was established in 1919 and covers most of Mt. Desert Island just off the coast. It is crisscrossed by a network of well maintained dirt carriage roads that are open for walking and biking only. Yes, you can drive through the park, too, but not on the carriage roads. We rented bicycles for the day and must have covered at least 50 miles along these roads. They access nearly every part of the park and are punctuated by breathtaking views of Maine’s coastline and the islands that dot the Atlantic. We would have loved more than one day there.

We also had a chance to take a whale watching trip out into the bay where we saw more humpbacks than we’ve seen on any whale watching trip on a cruise. A female and her calf came right up to our boat and lingered as though she knew us.

Then…there’s always the lobster. If you’re one that likes—no, loves—lobster, Maine is your place. All lobster lovers should make the pilgrimage to this Mecca of crustaceans. Darlene is one of those lobster lovers, and she was in heaven. All along the highways near Bar Harbor are lobster stands where you can get lobster in all forms. We were in Maine for 5 days, and had lobster 5 days; sometimes twice a day, including a “lobster bake” that was part of the 5 Points of Life event. Mike had chicken.

When we finally left this incredible place we had some spare time to make our flight home so we roamed around Bangor trying to find Stephen King’s house. We failed, but saw quite a bit of the city and its surroundings.

The second reason we bring up this week’s phone call is to remind people that signing up for donor lists and being tested can and does save lives! Darlene’s experience had a profound effect on her and the family of the woman who received her bone marrow. The Bonfils Bone Marrow Donor Program is constantly in need of blood donors and volunteers to be tested as possible bone marrow donors. For more information, or to sign up for the donor registry you can go to http://www.bonfils.org, or http://www.coloradodonorregistry.org, or contact Bonfils directly at 303-341-4000.

It truly is the gift of life…we’ve seen it first hand.

Until next time…get out the map!