DJ Travel Adventures - Independent Travel Agent

08/06/2024

I love Princess! Cruises are booking 6-12 months out. Together, let's find the right ship, itinerary, and sailing date for your family.

07/01/2024

Now's the time to plan your winter get away! To get the best value and choice, plan to book 6-12 months in advance.

Follow along as we prepare for our next cruise on the Enchanted Princess.
She was built in 2020 and has a capacity of 3,660 passengers.
This cruise is a 10-night sailing from our favorite embarkation port, Fort Lauderdale.

Ports of call:
Princess Cays (Their private island)
St Thomas USVI
St Maarten
Antigua
St. Kitts
Tortola BVI

When choosing our cabin we consider what is above and below a cabin. In particular, we try to ensure there are no public spaces above or below our cabin.

After booking our cruise we downloaded the Princess app and input our reservation #. The app is where you input all of your information for online check in, order your medallions (more on that later), and look at available shore excursions.

Princess offers several packages that can add a lot of value to your trip. We booked the Princess Plus package which includes:

Beverage package
Wi-Fi
Crew gratuities
2 casual Dining meals
2 Premium Desserts
Ocean Now Delivery Activation
Medallion Shipping

Next~ Medallion cruising!

06/26/2024

This looks fun~

06/04/2024

Dreaming of a trip to Europe? Going overseas can be overwhelming~ a river cruise may be the perfect option. Avalon Waterways provides English speaking staff with a ratio of 3:1, includes excursions AND you unpack once and let the ship take you to numerous cities and towns as you sail along European rivers.

04/15/2024

Avalon Waterways ~ sailing the Rhine, while traveling through 4 countries! Intimate all suite ship, 166 passengers and 47 crew. Cruise includes beer, wine, soda at lunch and dinner. 4 course dinners. Excursion included in every port!

04/06/2024

River cruising! An entirely different experience. Avalon Waterways includes wi-fi, beer, wine, pop at lunch & dinner, sparkling wine is offered during breakfast. AND, one tour per port is included. Over the next few weeks we'll look at planning a European river cruise.

04/05/2024

02/18/2024

Day 6 ~ sea day onboard Carnival Horizon.
83• 🌞

The last day of the cruise ~ sigh, time to say goodbye

At some point, today,
we need to pack (checked suitcases need to be tagged & placed outside our cabin door between 9-11pm), cash out at the casino, decide if we want to purchase any photographs, take a final walk around the ship, and choose entertainment for the evening...knowing we need to be up at 5:45am (if you know me, you know😬).

So, with all that being said, what do you think I did? 🤔

Yep, Pool time!!! I have priorities after all😂. I chose the main pool, knowing there would be live Caribbean music AND just a few steps away from the Blue Iguana for breakfast burritos and Guy's burgers for lunch.

I scored a Lounger front & center. I was barely settled in and a bar server took my order for a cranberry mimosa.
The morning show began playing on the outdoor screen, featuring our cruise director and one of the Fun Squad team members. They recap the days activities and some highlights of the cruise.

I spent several hours in the pool, where a new cruise friend, Michelle (who we met on the first day of the cruise when looking for a seat to watch the Superbowl.
The seat was wet & she offered me her scarf to dry it off. We discovered she & her husband Lee had 2 of the same excursions booked). Anyway, I digress. Michelle, my new cruise friend, joined me in the pool. A perfect morning & afternoon.

The friendships made while cruising is one of our favorite cruising experiences.

Reluctantly, I made my way back to the cabin to pack and get ready for our last evening onboard.

Dinner was jerk pork loin, so good! We did our last night of the cruise walk around the ship, listened to some music ending our evening on the balcony. The stars in the night sky were so bright and the sea calm.

Until next time!

02/17/2024

Day 5 Cozumel, Mexico ~ continued!

Arrival time to our port was 9:30, which allowed us time to grab breakfast before getting off the ship.

We've been to Cozumel countless times, most recently, just last month. We had no real plans, except we knew we wanted..Beach time!
We walked through the port, a mix of restaurants and shopping to find the taxis. A fellow cruiser looking to share a taxi joined us. We agreed to a day at San Fransico Beach. A short taxi ride and we arrived. We found a pool, a pharmacy (rx med's without a script needed), water inflatables, jet skis, kayaks, restaurant, bar, and of course a beach.
We spent the day being serenaded by a Marachi band, beachcombing, playing in the waves, floating on rafts, and enjoying some Pina Colodas.

Around 3 we headed back to the port and browsed through the shops, enjoying the sea breezes.

Once back onboard we watched the sun set from our balcony and got ready for dinner. After 35+ cruises, this is the first time we've not had dinner in the dinning room. We enjoyed the flexibility of casual dressing. We found we had more time to enjoy numerous entertainment options. This evening we returned to the Ocean Plaza, listening to the Horizon Rock Band.

Tomorrow is our last sea day of this 🛳

02/16/2024

Day 5 Cozumel
83• ⛅️
Full update tomorrow, I'll leave you with this until then!

02/15/2024

Day 4 Georgetown, Grand Cayman
81•and 🌞

Today, we booked a tour to swim with stingrays. We eagerly looked forward to doing this tour again. The last time was 1998🫣 Our day started very early with a 5:45am wake up call. Grand Cayman is a tender port, which means the ship has to anchor out at sea and bring passengers to the port via small boats (aka tender boats).
We met in the Liquid Lounge onboard with our fellow "stingray tour friends". We were escorted to the tender boat and brought ashore. Next, we boarded a coach for a quick ride to meet our tour boat. After a 45 minute ride through the most beautiful turquoise water, we arrived at a sandbar. Graceful stingrays gliding around our boat.
Once in the water, (approx 3 - 4 ft deep) stingrays glide all around us. We were all given time to hold a stingray. (pictures coming soon). After holding, petting, and feeding the stingrays squid, I spent some time just taking in the glistening white sandbar, turquoise water, and the graceful stingrays. What a memorable adventure!
After our tour ~ some quick shopping & we grabbed a tender back to our ship.

Onboard, as we sailed away from Grand Cayman, we listened to some island music waiting for the Groove for St Jude event. Carnival partners with St Jude Children's Hospital, making significant donations. A part of their fundraising includes a Groove for St Jude event onboard each ship, once during their sailing. Passengers are given the opportunity to purchase a Groove for St Judes T-shirt, proceeds going to St Jude's. We purchased our T-shirts and spent the rest of our evening on our balcony enjoying the ocean.

Tomorrow~ our last port of the cruise, Cozumel.

02/14/2024

Good morning Grand Cayman

02/14/2024

Day 3 Falmouth, Jamaica 83• 🌞 onboard Carnival Horizon

An "Irie" day 🇯🇲
Jamaica currently is under a level 3 travel advisory. With that in mind, we opted for a Carnival excursion to a beach with a Jamaican jerk lunch. We felt safe and had a wonderful day in a beautiful country.

Once back onboard, we settled on our balcony to listen to some reggae 🎶 from the locals at the port.

We ended our day reviewing photographs, continuing to explore the ship (still finding new venues). Finally, our night ended with some good old rock n roll!

Tomorrow ~ Grand Cayman and swimming with the stingrays.

02/13/2024

Day 2 at sea onboard Carnival Horizon
84• 🌞
Today was a lazy day.
☆Spent the morning at the Tides pool watching the wake of the ship.
☆After lunch, casino time and reading on our balcony.
☆Watched a movie.
☆Dinner and a comedy show 🤣 ended our day.
The next 3 days are ports of call.
Tomorrow Falmouth, 🇯🇲. We have an excursion booked, Discovery Beach break with a Jamaican jerk lunch.
We've had smooth seas and perfect weather.

02/12/2024

Day 1 embarkation Carnival Horizon
80• 🌞

We had an arrival time of 10:30. (Arrival times are staggered every 30 minutes. Times are based on loyalty levels) We left our hotel, Courtyard by Mariott Miami Airport, around 9:15. Waze said we were 23 minutes away from the port. Apparently, Waze didn't take into account missing exits and circling back around, a time or two😬. Finally, we dropped off our luggage and parked. Soon we were checked in and onboard. By 11:30 ~ we dropped off our carryons in our cabin and were eating lunch on the Lido deck.
Great sunny day spent exploring some of the ship and watching the sail away party. Afterwards we scouted some prime seats to watch the Super Bowl game.

Tomorrow ~ a day at 🌊

02/11/2024

This could be you next year

02/11/2024

What are your plans for the Super Bowl? Next year, why not watch the game on a huge screen on the Lido deck of your favorite cruise ship?

DJ Travel Adventures is cruising (again😉)

Follow along as we 🛳 the Horizon. Port of calls:
Falmouth, Jamaica
Georgetown, Grand Cayman
Cozumel, 🇲🇽

01/28/2024

Final day of our cruise onboard the Carnival Jubilee.

We had some rough seas overnight~ great sleep!!
Not surprised to see dark skies, thunder & lightning this morning. Now, I feel the need to pause here~ travel is the journey not the destination. Simply put, you can control when, where, and what you book. Weather cannot be controlled. Embrace what cannot be controlled and have a back up.

So back to the thunder & lightening. When cruising, the last day includes packing, getting zone tags for your checked luggage (you debark based on loyalty status, air arrangements etc.) Checked luggage needs to be tagged and placed outside of your cabin door between 8-10pm.

Other items to consider; did you order pictures? Have you picked them up? If you spent any time in the casino, is there remaining $ on your sail & sign card? Spend it or cash out.

I opened our curtains , watched the storm for awhile and packed. Remember, you need something to wear off the ship!!! We usually use a carry-on for medications, electronics, travel clothes etc ~ this is kept with you throughout debarkation
With my packing complete, I picked up pictures & cashed out in the casino.

Time for lunch and a walk around the ship. Passengers were not allowed on open decks due to the stormy seas (after 30+ cruises, this is only the 2nd time) so, I did some shopping while my husband worked on his packing~

With packing completed, we had an early dinner followed by a hypnotist show. We attended a comedy show to finish our evening.

Next ~ my final thoughts on the Carnival Jubilee

01/26/2024

This band was so good!

01/26/2024

Day 6 Sea Day 90• 🌞

I chose to spend my morning on the Lido deck, listening to steel drums, watching deck games, joining in the line dances, and of course cooling off in the pool.
My cabana boy AKA my husband, delivered a burger & fries to me in my lounge chair for lunch.

I switched it up later in the afternoon and went to the Serenity Adult only area. There is a small pool and hot tub. Lots of various seating including padded lounge chairs.

Begrudgingly, I said goodbye to the sun making my way back to the cabin to get ready for the VIFP Platinum/Diamond Reunion party. This is a loyalty recognition for repeat cruisers who have sailed a minimum 75 days for Platinum and 200 for the Diamond level.

Next up, lobster and prime rib for dinner ~ kudos to Carnival, the food our entire trip has been very good.

We attended a wonderful Latin band to wrap up the day

Tomorrow is our last day of the cruise, another day at sea. Weather is expected to be much cooler sunny & 60• as we make our way back to Galveston.

01/25/2024

My vibe today

01/25/2024

Day 5 from Mahogany Bay~ Roatan, Honduras. 85 🌞

We grabbed a quick breakfast from the buffet and are walking off the ship by 9:15

The Beach is a short walk or for a small fee you can ride the flying chairs.

Today ~ beachcombing, swimming, walking the beach, and a bit of shopping.

It must have been hard work! Back onboard we both agreed to a nap 😴

Tonight we checked out the piano bar. 30+ cruises and this is my first experience. What a crazy, fun time. We will return!

Sea day tomorrow

01/24/2024

Day 4 Almost Costa Maya
Take 2 ~ Sea day
We were scheduled to arrive in Costa Maya around 8. Approximately 8:15 the captain came on saying he felt the winds were too strong to dock safely. It was very cloudy & stormy. The port was canceled. Part of any travel, especially cruising is dependent upon nature. We understand safety is always first and embraced our day at sea.
We regroup and take advantage of a sea day brunch in the dining room, did some shopping and here comes the 🌞. Yay!!! An advantage of cruising is the ship, at times, can sail out of bad weather. 83• and 🌞
I went back to our cabin, put on a 🩱 and found my spot for the day!
We kept it casual having burgers at Guy Fieri's for dinner.
Next up was a comedy show featuring B.T. 🤣 great show.
Our night ended with a movie.
Roatan is the planned port tomorrow.