I donâÂÂt usually do stuff like this, but I am enthusiastic about Jim McParland and his knowledge and the way he presents his topics. I strongly demand that if you are ever aware of this man presenting something you must go. I will provide some information from his bio: he graduated from QueenâÂÂs University (Canada) with degrees in geology and education, he taught high school chemistry, biology, physics and geology for 30 years. He coached soccer, basketball, baseball, tennis, golf and track. He directed and produced 25 musicals and was responsible for bringing professional summer theatre to Gananoque, Ontario. And, he had no problem with giving out his email address, with an invitation to ask him questions after the cruise. He is one of the most amazing men I have ever met!

We just got back from a lovely Caribbean cruise. Our last stop before we got back to New Orleans was Key West. DH and I just wandered around the shops dockside and it wasn't until I got back home that I was looking at some of the attractions there and discovered they have some beautiful museums and gardensbut you will need to find a tour or rent a car. Try "googling" Key West and you'll see for yourself. Key West was just gorgeous. The weather was balmy, the water so blue and so was the sky. You'll just love it.

I will guess that you will be sailing from Ft. Lauderdale on a weekend. I don't know where you will be coming from; if the west coast, don't do the red eye. It will cost a bit more, but arrive one day early and spent the night getting excited in a local hotel. Lots of good ones and some that are expensive. Arrival shouldn't be too much of a problem. You have two choices to leave the airport. We prefer a taxi as there are just the two of us. You can get between the airport and pier for about $20 (including tip). That is the best way to get back to the airport when the cruise is completed. Alternately, the cruise line will offer to sell you a transfer on one of their big charter buses. You gotta wait until all seats are filled and they charge way too much (compared to the convenience and cost of a taxi). The mess at the airport after the cruise can be awful. Generally there will be several ships all changing passengers and most will want to get to the airport early. The lines at Ft. Lauderdale and Miami can be horrible. If you have an option fly out after 1:00. If you work it right, you will see the kids early in the day and then dinner or later. There will be many organized activities created by the staff - all wonderful. Your mission - should you decide to accept it - is to relax. That can be accomplished easily. If you are a knitter, take your stuff with you. You'll find a spot and get a lot done. If you are a reader, there generally a decent assortment of books on board. Or, take your own and leave them when you disembark. If you want to soak up some rays, there are situations that you need to consider. Most ships of this size will have lots and lots of people who want to just park themselves outside and that is that. However, there are 'chair hogs', the folks who put a towel on a chair at 7 a.m. and then come back after 10. Then they eat lunch about noon and then return about 2! They expect that 'their' chair will be waiting for them! And yet they will be using it for only a few hours. A similar situation will develop in the show lounge in the evening. Someone from a family will 'reserve' the chairs and no one will be able to sit there. Many times the chairs that have been 'saved' are not used because the folks are having too much fun somewhere else on the ship. Both of these situations are rotten and they happen more on the larger ships. (Since we retired last year, we have been on the smaller ships - about 1200 passengers and that saving situation is not an issue.) Food! It is there, but no one will force you to eat it. Take your time, think about what you are doing and you will come out OK. When my father began cruising in the 70s, he looked forward to adding a pound a day. Later, he backed off to a pound every third day; he figured he paid for it why not eat it! Excitement? Anticipation? Both are part of the cruise experience. At the other end, is the feeling one often gets when the cruise is over. A big-time back to the routine mind set. Going on a cruise with extended family often seems restricting. You feel that you have to spend all your time with the family. DON'T DO IT! Grab some 'me' time and enjoy the experience. You will see the family enough, you don't need to be with them 18 hours a day! Plan some excursions, what you want to do, not what others want to do. The cruise lines are in the business of making money and they offer some nice excursions on shore; however they mark them up and do quite well that way. Do some detective work on your own and search out the what-to-do things at each port. Cruise Critic is a good resource for that as there are categories for ports of call and lots and lots of folks post questions and get good answers from others who have been there and done that. Cruise Critic is a good site, check it out. You will find a lot of good information about each port. I learned a long time ago to take ratty clothes with me. I'll wear them and leave them. The space that they took up in the luggage is now available for souvenirs! Be sure to get something for the person who will be watching your house while you are gone. Nothing fancy, but it shows that you were thinking of them while your are out on a cruise! If you really have a large group, have one person make the reservations. Many cruise lines will allow a significant price break when you book X number of cabins. You gotta ask for it, they won't offer it out of the kindness of their hearts. Ask me more questions! I love to do this stuff. Jim

We did a land and cruise trip on Princess Sapphire. We did the whole trip through them but honestly, we could have easily did the land part ourselves. The did a good job, though. We did the land part first and I liked doing that way. They had us flying into Anchorage late one day and leaving the next morning on the land tour. We flew in a day early so we had an extra day and a half there. We took a train to Denali, that was fun. There are a couple of tours on Denali State Park, one goes much further into the park then the other. The one we took started early in the morning and lasted about 12 hours. It was great. Try to get a seat on the left side of the bus, it has better views. We saw lots of animals. We also got lucky and Denali was completely out, it's so often covered with clouds. On the boat we had a mini suite. Our kids (ages 21 and 16) shared an inside cabin down the hall. Having the suite was helpful with 4 people. I suggest at least getting a balcony but you will have a good time even if you get an inside room. We really loved Glacier Bay, the boat spent all day there. Not all boats go there, I recommend it. In Skagway we rented a car (reserve in advance) and drove ourselves into the Yukon. It was so much cheaper then having someone else drive you and the road was fine. I recommend doing this, with your own car you can stop and go as you please. Take plenty of warm clothes but also take some lighter clothes. We had a couple of days in the 70's on land but a couple of days on the boat were cold. I was fine with a winter coat, hat, and gloves. I also like the anytime dining option that Princess has. We could eat anytime we liked. We could make reservations or just walk in. We never had a long wait if we didn't have a reservation.