First a Life Lesson! https://www.amazon.com/Fix-Problem-other-Lessons-Pragmatic/dp/1091400830
Janine and Dr. Steve Havener break down this grand voyage, stop by stop, and in great detail for us. Janine keeps a detailed travel log that gives us a realistic and vivid look into their great adventure. As an avid photographer, she takes thousands of pictures to document their voyage. One really believes that they are traveling along with the Haveners as they explore beautiful vistas and new exotic lands.
Janine was a wealth of cruise knowledge! Her detailed lists will help all of us planning cruises in the future! We asked them many questions about being on a cruise for such a length of time and wow does she come thru!
Havner's love Holland America Cruises! https://www.hollandamerica.com/en_US.html
Some of the great travel trips they shared for a cruise:
Laundry: Have light weight wrinkle free clothing that easily washes and dries in your cabin. If you use laundry service (they used it once for their entire 77 days) stuff it full! If you travel a lot of HAL cruises laundry may be a coveted perk (all the reason to cruise a lot if you ask me!)
Mealtime: They preferred to dine in a variety of places but really liked the Lido Buffet for lunch and breakfast. They chose to eat dinner at a private table for a many reasons...such as a table partner that talks non stop or the opposite, a table partner that doesn't converse at all...both make for an unpleasant dining experience. Hats off to HAL's theme's dining experiences that they enjoyed as well as their delicious four course evening meals.
Exercise: How do Janine and Steve deal with keeping up their exercise routines? Janine states that they 1)never take the elevator 2) walk everywhere...once port they walked over 10 miles 3) walk more!
Medical issues: Get travel insurance and be careful! They feel that the price of the insurance is worth the cost. Accidents happen on and off the ship. The doctor on board does have clinic hours and basic care facilities.
Janine and Steve's Top Ten Tips for Grand Voyage and we think perfect for all cruises!
Master packing list (she provided that to us, thank you)
Books on Kindle or iPhone
Keep travel journal
Excursions in large cities or unique places not beach towns or villages
Never book panoramic excursion unless you want to sit on a bus for 4 hours
Take risk and book private tour in cruise terminal
Weigh pro/con of shared dinners for you
Lido is faster buffet dining: Seated dining is full-service w/menu
EXC lectures are worthwhile for learning minds
Exercise: walk:7lapes=two miles on days at Sea
Janine's fantastic packing list! This is a great list to keep for all cruises! Thank you Janine!
The Havener's loved the South America cruise EXC lectures. Each lecture was presented by an expert in their field and very interesting and educational!
