The cost of an Espresso you would be amazed

To start with cost is never an option that I ponder when I'm on vacation because the way I see it, a vacation is a reward that you have given yourself for all the work, crazy and stressful days in that year.

So what does this have to do with the cost of an Espresso, well boy do they range in price all over the Med.  The lowest in the range which is all in euros is 50 cents in Portugal, 2.50 in Monte Carlo to 5 in Portofino and this is a simple single shot espresso.  In these ranges you also need to figure out where you will be drinking that small cup of finely ground, hot and tasty coffee. 

So depending on the layout of the cafe, you can have it standing at the bar, sitting at a table inside or just out on the patio seats overlooking any piazza or beach.  The creme of the crop we experienced was on a floating pontoon in Portofino located within the small inner harbour and that was when we received the sticker shock of 5 euros for that liquid gold.

As an honorable mention, a cappucino at Harry's Bar in Rome which was smooth silk in the mouth set me back 10 euros, but oh so worth the view while enjoying the sunshine and morning warm breeze.

Princess Cruises - Royal Princess a tip or 2

A few lesson learned tips when travelling on the new Princess ships, Royal and Regal as we experienced her awesome splendour this past New Year's.  For one her Piazza is much bigger than the other larger ships in the Princess fleet, but I was a little surprised that the artist's video made it seem so much longer.  It is definitely wider and the surrounding shops and restaurants make it a great focal point.
The adult retreat pool forward is a nice change to the busy central pool especially when there are many families on board and it truly is an adult sanctuary.  The pool is a fair sized pool and the surrounding loungers are ample.  This non fee area is attached to the famous Princess Sanctuary and the paradise of space for a fee is so worth it.  The tip I share as I came across it the hard way was that on the first day when you arrive if you want to book any of the loungers, cabana's within the sanctuary or outside within the retreat pool area, you should book it on that day for the first day fully on board. The difference with the Sanctuary on other ships is that you book in the morning of on a first come basis, on the Royal, you can book anytime during the day for the next day just come early so that you don't miss out.

 

It's been awhile, but I'm back

I may have not kept the blog up to date, but I definitely have not stopped travelling in fact we have been travelling even more from the Caribbean to Western Europe over to the Canary Islands and our first sailing yacht voyage that took our breath away.

New Tips coming in 2012 - Trip set to the Caribbean for January 2012

It's been a while since my last post, it has been a busy fall/winter and time is a luxury that I don't have at the moment, check me out in January with new tid bits from the Islands in the Sun - Dominican Republic (La Romana), Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Antigua, Turks & Caicos and St Barth's. Voyage on the Marina from OceaniaCruises.com. 

A Tour of Vancouver

My parents recently spent some time in Vancouver British Columbia and this being their first trip out west, I was not sure what the expect or even how to provide them with a fun and exciting experience.  While I passed thru Vancouver in May after my California Wine Cruise, I came across some tour operators at the airports visitors centre.  One of those operators was Vantoptours.com and what made me pick up their brochure was that they provided smaller group tours with the option for personalized multi-language tours. 
As my parents first language is Portuguese with English being their second language, it was a relief to know that I could find them an option that will make their visit that much better.
My parents took two tours, one around Vancouver (Vancouver City Tour) and the second to Whistler with their guide Salvador and to them he made all the difference.  Thanks to all the staff at Vantoptours for giving my parents the vacation of a lifetime.
So if anyone is out in the Vancouver area, give them a shout or check out their website, Reservation online: travel@vantoptours.com