Cruising Adventures

18/06/2024

As most of you are now aware after my email earlier today, we are SO excited to be transitioning to be a fully independent agency from 1 July 2024.

In the coming weeks you will see our social media being renamed/rebranded as "Cruising Adventures" and here is our brand new logo!

My phone number will remain unchanged (0408 444 191), and my new email address will be [email protected]. Our brand new website is also under construction, so there is lots going on.

My new inbox is currently blowing up with emails from many of our loyal clients congratulating us. Thank you so much for the support - it is much appreciated.

We look forward to helping you to "Explore your Horizons"!

11/12/2023

So this happened today. I'm still gathering my thoughts after this bucket list meeting, but had to share a pic before I burst! 😍

11/12/2023

Ahoy Melbourne. I'm about to get onboard for a very special meeting. Wish me luck! Stay tuned for more pics later. ♥️

08/12/2023

This was a nice email to wake up to this morning. :)

https://qualitybusinessawards.com.au/2023/the-best-travel-agent-in-ulladulla/travelmanagers-ulladulla-jo-TravelManagers - Jo Patton

07/12/2023

Ahoy from sunny Sydney. I'm onboard the beautiful Resilient Lady for the next 2 nights. Let me know if you have any questions or have anything you'd like to see pics of.

Tonight we are booked into Extra Virgin (the Italian restaurant) for dinner and then seeing a show afterwards.

For now I'm swinging happily in my hammock and watching the world (and the ferries) go by. Wish you were here!!!

For more pics, join my VV specific group Aussie Virgin Voyages Deals and Info

02/12/2023

For those sailing on the upcoming season with Virgin Voyages, look out for this awesome deal in your app while onboard. This is how I was able to get most of the lovely credits for those clients I have booked for the upcoming season, and now you can get your own for a future sailing.

With these "My Next Virgin Voyage" (MNVV) placeholders you don't have to have specific plans. You can just buy the MNVV and choose a cruise later. If I have booked you on your current cruise, I will automatically be your agent again on your future cruise, and I can assist you to choose a cruise once you're ready. The vouchers are valid for booking and sailing within 2 years.

There are rumours that there are changes coming for the MNVV's and that the onboard credit will be reduced in the future, so now is the time to grab one (or up to 10 that you can share with family and friends) to lock in a great deal for your next cruise.

If you haven't booked yet and would like to get this deal for a cruise for the current season, next season in Australia, or anywhere else in the world, contact me asap and I can purchase one for you on one of my upcoming cruises, and we can then book a cruise for you with this deal included.

The cost is US$300 (approx A$450), and this will go towards your cruise deposit, you'll get US$300 off your fare, and US$600 onboard credit! This is also stackable with any other current promotions (like bar tabs etc) as well.

29/11/2023

Hot deal alert! 3 night cruise for $447pp and more amazing deals! This is not a misprint.

Do you want to get onboard Virgin Voyages and see for yourself what all the fuss is about? You can't go past these deals. What a great Christmas present one of these cruises would be! There are cruises departing from Melbourne, Sydney and Auckland.

Contact me now for more details, or book here. The first 2 people who contact me and book through me will be eligible for an amazing onboard credit bonus for Sea Terrace (balcony) cabins or above:

https://www.virginvoyages.com/book/voyage-planner/find-a-voyage?cabins=1&AUD[%E2%80%A6]lors=2&toDate=2022-10-04&agentId=24634&agencyId=836

19/11/2023

Deck party tonight. Loved Mickey and Minnie’s pirate costumes!

19/11/2023

Pirates IN the caribbean deck party tonight. If you’re coming onboard even in the middle of summer, bring a jacket! 🤣😍🏴‍☠️🎶

19/11/2023

Jack Jack’s diaper dash this morning was fun to watch. 2 heats and a final and this little guy was the overall winner. This was the first heat.

17/11/2023

17/11/2023

We had dinner in Tiana’s Place last night. There was great food, music and even a Mardi Gras parade. So much fun.

17/11/2023

Disney Trivia and learn to draw Pluto in the French Quarter lounge this morning. I may be crafty, but I am NOT artistic, so I was quite pleased with my Pluto. Oh and we got to meet Pluto in the flesh this morning too, and goofy walked by too. 😍

16/11/2023

Ahoy from the Disney Wonder! 🚢😍

We set sail from Melbourne today on a 5 night cruise to Auckland. The staff are incredible, and the Golden Mickeys show was fantastic. I feel like we’ve hardly scratched the surface yet and look forward to 4 full days at sea where we can see and do all that this ship has to offer.

05/11/2023

If anyone is in Sydney this coming Friday (10 Nov), my uncle is hosting a walking tour from Town Hall to Darling Harbour, Barangaroo and The Rocks. You can book on the link below. The tour is free to book, but you can pay what you think is appropriate after the tour.

Free tour from the Town Hall to Darling Harbour, Barangaroo and The Rocks. Guided by experts with locals. Detailed information and booking here!

05/10/2023

Here's another fantastic package!

2 nights in Athens, then 44 nights cruising from Athens to Fremantle via the Greek Islands, Egypt, Dubai, India, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Bali, Broome and many more ports!

US$1,800 bar tab to spend onboard, and a FREE upgrade to a Sea Terrace balcony cabin so you can sit in your hammock and literally watch the world go by.

All of this for under $10,000 per person twin share.

This deal is only available for a limited time, so contact me asap if you'd like to lock in the trip of a lifetime.

29/09/2023

Here is an exclusive package that I have put together for the Resilient Lady sailing from Barcelona to Athens in October 2024!

From $4,999pp!

This amazing package includes:

* $2,000 credit per person towards flights ex Australia
* 2 nights at a 4 star hotel (twin share) in Barcelona
* 10 day/9 night cruise onboard the Resilient Lady in a Sea Terrace balcony cabin
* US$600 bar tab
* All of your meals in 20+ eateries onboard including all specialty restaurants
* All essential drinks including tea/coffee/water/soft drinks
* Wifi onboard the cruise
* All gratuities
* All onboard entertainment
* All group fitness classes

You will also have the option to extend your stay in Athens before flying home.

This is one of the best value deals you'll find for a Mediterranean getaway in 2024. Cabins are limited, and the deal ends 12 October 2023 (unless sold out prior).

20/09/2023

This looks like an absolute must do activity in Tokyo!

The ultimate bucket list experience: Real-life Mario Kart in Tokyo 🍌🏎️🇯🇵

Tokyo is renowned for its cute and quirky attractions but nothing quite beats the go-kart tours through the city streets while dressed up as your favourite character! Tag someone you’d like to experience this with.

Things to note:
🍄 You’ll need an international driving permit
🍄 Participants must be 18 or older

Contact your personal travel manager today to start planning your Tokyo city adventure >> https://bit.ly/3ZJ0qh7

13/09/2023

I just booked myself in a "Seriously Suite" cabin on this awesome 14 night cruise departing 19 November 2024! I am so excited! The cost is $4,139pp twin share with US$600 bar tab.
With the suites you get not only a bigger cabin of course, but also access to Richard's Rooftop (an exclusive area on the top deck with hot tubs, lots of comfy lounges, a bar and more). You also get a full minibar setup, but they are full sized bottles of spirits, wine and beer etc, priority boarding, priority booking of restaurants and shore tours, and a Rockstar Agent to assist you with everything your heart desires onboard.

Oh there's also a record player in the suite, and you can get records to play to set the mood.

If you'd prefer a Seaview Terrace Balcony cabin, it's just $2,556pp twin share, and you still get the US$600 bar tab.

If you have more time, you can consider the 44 night Athens to Fremantle cruise for $8,295pp twin share (and that's 3 back to back cruises which means 3 lots of US$600 bar tab...you definitely won't go thirsty!), or you can continue on to Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane. There are just so many awesome options.

Would you like to join me on this or one of the other amazing new voyages? Contact me for more details - comment below or email me on [email protected]

13/09/2023

If you enjoyed seeing my pics of our NZ adventures last week, here's a very similar self drive itinerary including travel times. Let me know if you'd like me to put a trip like this together for you. :) It's very do-able in a week, and you can easily fly into Auckland and fly home from Wellington, or if you have a couple of weeks, you can continue on to the South Island and fly home from Christchurch or Queenstown.

10/09/2023

All good things come to an end and we are about to board our flight home.

Our last few days were full of adventure though with a couple of days of cracking weather (tshirt weather, even for me…every day is tshirt weather for Henry 🤣).

We caught the gondola up the hill in Rotorua and then had 3 luge rides. SO much fun - can’t wait to do this again somewhere else in the world). We then had a relaxing afternoon by a lake somewhere 🤷‍♀️, and then yesterday we did the Waitomo Glowworm cave tour. Completely magical!

If you’re thinking about a Roadtrip, you really can’t go past New Zealand. So much to see and do, easy to get to, our dollar is actually a bit stronger than theirs, and it’s much more compact than Oz, so you can see more in a short space of time. I can hook you up!

09/09/2023

Here are the full details of the dates and ports for the Resilient Lady's 2024/25 Aus/NZ season! There really is a lot of variety for this season, and hopefully something for everyone. 🙂

Pricing will be released Monday night or Tuesday morning Aussie time, and you can click here to book once they are released: https://www.virginvoyages.com/book/voyage-planner/find-a-voyage?cabins=1&AUD[%E2%80%A6]lors=2&toDate=2022-10-04&agentId=24634&agencyId=8366

08/09/2023

The Virgin Voyages schedules for their 2024/25 season have been released! Here are the Aussie sailings (as well as some pretty amazing repositioning cruises from Athens to Fremantle) on the Resilient Lady.

Next year there will be sailings from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Fremantle, so there’s something for almost everyone (sorry Adelaide, but there is a Fremantle to Melbourne that no doubt will stop in Adelaide).

They will apparently be available to book from next Monday 11 Sep (US time).

Which one/s take your fancy? Let me know and I can hook you up with some pretty amazing deals including exclusive onboard credits!

07/09/2023

Today we headed up to Rotorua. I kind of forgot how strong the sulfur smell is here, but we have had a great day! We saw some thermal springs along the way, and then visited Secret Spot Hot Tubs which is just south of town (and out of the sulfur zone 😉).

They have such a great setup there with a bar, street food, free “shinny dipping” barrels, and about 12 private hot tubs. They are all separated by beautiful greenery and they bring you drinks etc. There’s even a button to push to get more drinks brought to you. It was so relaxing - I can highly recommend it!

Tonight we went to the Redwoods Treewalk Rotorua (also just out of town), and they have rope bridges suspended high above the forest floor, and at night they have lights and lanterns throughout the trees. It is a really magical experience.

If you are heading to NZ, I can hook you up with these fantastic experiences. Rotorua is accessible from Tauranga if you are visiting on a cruise also.

05/09/2023

I was so excited to be announced the winner of the G Adventures prize at our conference in Christchurch over the weekend and I will be heading to Vietnam to experience one of their National Geographic Journeys next year. Stay tuned for lots of amazing pics. 😍

05/09/2023

On Sunday we experienced the TranzAlpine rail trip from Christchurch across to Greymouth (and back again). The scenery was spectacular, and the Scenic Plus service was fantastic! I can highly recommend it.

02/09/2023

I was equal parts surprised and chuffed to be nominated for the Supplier Choice Award at the 2023 TravelManagers conference Gala Dinner tonight.

This is an award which is voted by all of the wholesalers, cruise lines and tour companies that we as Personal Travel Managers work with every day to make your holidays perfect. To be recognised by these suppliers is a huge honour and I’m so thankful for the relationships I’ve been able to build throughout the industry over many years.

Oh and we also got to hang out with none other than our current Australian of the Year Taryn Brumfitt tonight. She was the keynote speaker to close our conference this afternoon and I absolutely love what she’s doing with her work to improve body image.

What a fantastic way to end a beautiful few days in Christchurch. ❤️

31/07/2023

Here's a great deal alert!

Virgin Voyages will be sailing from Melbourne in December. I have a group booking onboard, so I can offer this exclusive $200 discount per cabin for a midship balcony cabin, and US$350 bar tab!

What a great way to wind down in the leadup to Christmas! There's no kids on Virgin Voyages (it's strictly 18+), and the food and entertainment onboard is next level.

I cruised on the Valiant Lady out of Miami earlier this year, and after dozens of cruises, this was hands down my favourite cruise ever for so many reasons. You can see some pics of my adventures here: Aussie Virgin Voyages Deals and Info