Never been on a cruise before? Then you probably have lots and lots of questions…and that’s OK! TMI Tours & Cruises has been involved in the cruise industry for decades. We have an unbelievable amount of experience and knowledge about everything related to cruising. Please feel free to ask us questions! Ask us anything, whether it’s about a personal cruise, partial ship charter, or managing and creating a customized cruise itinerary using the entire ship. We are always eager to answer questions from people interested in cruise adventures. We love travel and enjoy creating cruise vacations for people; whether they are seasoned cruisers or first timers!
Please feel free to leave a comment here in the blog with your question, call us at 1-800-975-7775, or email us with your questions. We look forward to the opportunity to be of assistance to you!
So, what’s the best way to visit these stunning, distinctive locations? Why by ship of course! An incomparable itinerary deserves a really unique ship too…such as the RMS St. Helena. The 6,767 GT, 345-foot RMS St. Helena, built in 1989, sails with British and St. Helenian officers and crew, and carries 1,500 tons of cargo and 128 passengers. Here are some highlights of sailing aboard the Royal Mail Ship St. Helena:
• Passenger accommodations are among the most modern available today. All cabins on decks A and B have air conditioning, private facilities, and open views of the ocean.
• Every senior officer hosts a table at dinner, so you are able to get to know them well over the course of the voyage.
• It is an open ship where all passengers are free to visit both the bridge and the engine room to see how an ocean going vessel really functions. You only need to ask.
• The ship’s laundry service will gladly take care of all your washing and ironing. But if you prefer, you may use the self service laundry facility which is fully equipped with washer, dryer, and an iron.
• There is also a doctor on board and a small, well equipped clinic.
• The ship has excellent passenger facilities. There is a large passenger’s lounge with tables, couches, refrigerator, board games, a DVD player (along with a fairly large supply of DVDs), and a TV. There is a gymnasium room with books, a ping-pong table, a stationary bike, and a rowing machine. The ship also has an indoor swimming pool with three portal windows making it is light and comfortable. The pool is perfect for short laps, pool aerobics, and just relaxing as it moves, rolls, and sloshes as the ship sails along.
• There is a ship store selling both souvenirs and essentials for the voyage.
• The purser’s bureau also acts as the ship’s bank, changing travelers’ checks and foreign currency. It also functions as travel agent (arranging shore excursions), post office, international telephone exchange, and publisher of the ship’s daily newspaper. Read More…
Are you wanting to get away from the normal cruise itinerary, shore excursions, and typical amenities offered by the usual cruise lines? Looking for a truly unique, unusual cruise experience? Have you ever heard of Ascension Island or St. Helena? How about Walvis Bay? These are some lesser known, absolutely beautiful islands and locations along the West Coast of Africa.
Ascension Island
Ascension Island has never had permanent residents, but has long served as a critical communications base for the RAF, USAF, NASA, and the BBC. For decades, this island has basically been closed to visitors. However, with recent changes in these restrictions, Ascension Island is being opened up as a new and incredibly exciting destination. Currently, there are no big hotels or nightclubs, but there is unspoiled flora and fauna. Birds and marine life abound here along with beautiful country side, including many dormant volcanic craters. And, you can top it all off with some of the most incredible sport fishing available anywhere.
Jamestown, St. Helena Photo by Andrew Neaum
The island of St. Helena was once a critical trading center for the world until the Suez Canal was completed. Now, it is a quiet little tropical island with about 3,800 residents known as ‘Saints’, many of whom are direct descendants of the British East India Company workers, Boer P.O.W’s, and African and Chinese servants. The island lies about 1,500 miles northwest of Cape Town, South Africa within the Tropic of Capricorn. It’s an island of contrasts: part desert with 1,000 foot cliffs of bronze colored volcanic rock, part green pastures, and lush, vegetation filled valleys. The only way to get to and from St. Helena is aboard a ship. There is no airport (although there are plans for construction of an airport to begin in 2010 or 2011). Read More…
A bareboat charter is an arrangement for the hiring of a boat that does not include crew or provisions. Instead, the people who rent the boat from the owner are responsible for taking care of such things. In many cases, the boat is provided with full fuel tanks and freshwater tanks (with the expectation that it be returned in the same fashion).
For experienced sailors, this is a great way to vacation. There are many luxurious yachts, large and small, available worldwide for bareboat charter.
One thing to keep in mind is that most bareboat charters require you to hold some sort of credentials to validate your sailing experience (such as an ICC/RYA License, “Safety at Sea” certificate from Boat US, “Safe Boating” certificate issued by the local Coast Guard Auxiliary, and “Keelboat Certification” from US Sailing, or the “US Power Squadron Boat Safety” certificate). To learn more about the various types of licenses are acceptable, we recommend that you visit some of these online resources for various companies who offer instruction and licensing programs:
http://www.usps.org/
http://www.boatsafe.com/
http://www.cgaux.org/boatinged/
If this is something that piques your interest, please keep in mind that TMI Travel has access to motor yachts and sailing yachts worldwide. As a member of Virtuoso, TMI can make arrangements for bareboat charters virtually anywhere your heart desires! Please call Rhonda Sand at 1-800-975-7775 or email her.
In a couple of articles, we’ve discussed the advantages of chartering a cruise ship (whether it’s a full charter or partial charter) for large companies or groups to use for training sessions or meetings. The following chart lists many of the benefits attached to using a cruise ship for your group’s meetings. We hope you’ll find the information helpful.
| Why are So Many Groups Choosing to Meet on a Cruise Ship? |
| |
Land-only venues |
Cruise ship |
| Travel Efficiency |
Much time each day is spent just getting to and from the hotel to the meetings/meals |
Meetings, entertainment, and meals all continue while the ship moves from place to place. |
| Menu Flexibility |
Pre-paid meals at hotels are limited in variety |
Menus are wonderfully varied. Many ships now even offer different types of restaurants. |
| Transportation Needs |
Depending on group size, transfers can be nightmarish to arrange since they can involve different airports and different hotels. |
Airport transfers become much simpler as every attendee is going to the same place - the ship. |
| Pairing Exotic Enticement with Comforts of Home |
Too ofen the enticement of fascinating land-based venues also means added frustration with currency, drinking water, language, unfamiliar customs, and different appliance requirements. |
Cruise passengers can rely on safe water, consistent voltage needs, a crew accustomed to accommodating passengers from various countries, and most ships now have eliminated the nuisance of trying to figure currency exchange rates by setting up one-time-payment and accepting most major credit cards. |
| Luxury of venue already assumed |
Hotels vary in rating-to-actuality status and are often totally unknown to the potential attendee. |
Because cruise ships already have the reputation of luxury, the ship itself becomes a big part of the attraction. |
| Easy adaptation to varying group sizes |
Too often, small hotels often lack facilities that groups want and mammoth hotels are devoid of any sense of community. |
Cruise ships vary in size, to accommodate groups from 20 to 2000 or more. Yet, planning allows comaradie to develop, informal spontaneous discussion groups, easy traffic flow, and a variety of room types to suit varying tastes. |
| Variety of destinations |
Land-based group gatherings are typically single-city, with "extensions" to other nearby areas offered as options at additional cost |
Cruise ships move from port to port, offering built-in variety. |
| Cost control |
Many costs such as airport transfers, inter-venue transportation, and number of meeting rooms are extremely difficult to pre-determine without losing deposits. |
Many of the costs are either set (such as meeting rooms) or eliminated (such as inter-venue transportation! |
If you’d like to discuss the possibility of chartering a ship for your organizations next meeting, please contact Rhonda Sand at 1-800-975-7775 or email her.
