Castles and Cruises Travel - Karen Johnstone

04/01/2025

🎉SO BLESSED AND HONORED TO BE NAMED AMONGST THE TOP 20 - AND IT'S ALL THANKS TO YOU!!!! 🙏 Thank you so much for your trust, and for letting me plan your trips year after year! 2024 was an amazing travel year for many of you and I am honored that you chose me to work with you! Thank you to all of you who have already booked your 2025 trips or reached out to start planning them - I look forward to helping you make lots more wonderful travel memories! 😊

🌟 Celebrating Excellence in 2024! 🌟

A standing ovation for our Top 20 Sales Advisors who poured their hearts into every trip planned this year! 💼✈️ From magical Disney and Universal Orlando adventures to enchanting European escapes, Caribbean getaways, relaxing cruises, and beyond—your dream vacations were their mission. 🏝️✨

Congratulations to our outstanding team of top producers! 🎉👏

Here’s to an even more unforgettable 2025. We can’t wait to help you plan your next adventure! 🌍❤️

04/01/2025

✨Let's make 2025 YOUR year for an epic travel adventure! Whether it's magical family fun at Disney, thrilling adventures at Universal, cruising through the high seas, discovering the splendors of Europe or Asia, chasing the Northern Lights, lounging at a luxurious resort or shopping in Dubai - I can make it happen!✨

Let's plan something amazing!
[email protected]

02/01/2025

🍽️ DINE FOR FREE AT DISNEY THIS SUMMER! We're kicking the year off with an amazing Disney World Offer: GET A FREE DINING PLAN when you book a qualifying Disney Vacation Package for stays: May 27 - June 26th and Jul 7th - Aug 6th 2025. Meal credits are based on length of stay - so a family of 4 staying 6 nights will get 48 Meals and 24 sweet or savory snacks FREE with this offer! Meal allowances can be used at all Disney Theme Parks and Resort hotels and can be used for Breakfast, lunch or Dinner. Snacks can be used anytime (and can even be used for breakfast if you are light breakfast eaters!)

Email me for a quote! [email protected]

01/01/2025

🎉HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!🎉 Here's wishing you and yours abundant happiness, success and good health! This year WILL be YOUR year! And I look forward to planning your adventures and helping you create some amazing travel memories as you enjoy, explore and discover both familiar and new places on your travels! Here's to a truly epic 2025!

31/12/2024

WHAT AN AMAZING TRAVEL YEAR YOU'VE HAD! 2024 was a year filled with spectacular travel adventures and precious family vacations for many of you and I am truly thankful for you letting me plan these special trips! As I look back, here are the TOP 5 TRENDING VACATIONS booked by the families I've had the pleasure to work with in 2024!

#1 - DISNEY and UNIVERSAL are, as always, the top favorite family destinations. I was thrilled to lend my expertise to so many families this year - especially lots of first timers to the parks!

#2 - CRUISES are another family favorite - with Disney and Royal Caribbean coming in as top choices. They're also a great choice for multi-generational travel or friend group travel - looking forward to planning more of those in the future!

#3 - EUROPE was a hot choice this year! From custom trips to packaged tours, many of you got to explore and experience the old world charm of destinations like Italy, France, Germany, Spain and the UK!

#4 - BUCKET LIST TRAVEL was big in 2024! From Japan to South Africa, I was thrilled to help you tick some major far-flung destinations off your list! PRO TIP: While I can custom-build these trips for you, packaged tours are a great way to explore many of your wish list destinations!

#5 - ALL INCLUSIVE RESORTS - from Mexico to the Caribbean, from huge family-friendly resorts with waterparks to the romantic luxury of Sandals in the Caribbean, many of you took advantage of all-inclusive offerings for fun and relaxation!

I'm truly excited to plan your 2025 and 2026 Travel Adventures and help you explore this beautiful planet! Let's set up a time to chat about making your travel dreams come true! [email protected]

25/12/2024

🎄✨To all who celebrate- wishing you and your loved ones a truly wonderful and magical Christmas ✨🎄

10/12/2024

Take advantage of early park admission at Universal Orlando! Included when you book with me! [email protected]

10/12/2024

Good Morning from Universal Orlando! Did you know you can get into Universal’s Islands of Adventure while it is “closed” to ride popular rides like Velocicoaster and Hagrid’s? How? By booking with me! 😁 Your Universal Vacation package includes early park admission for every day of your stay so you can head into the park an hour before it opens! ✅ Just looking for tickets? When you purchase two day or more tickets through me you get Early Park Admission as a special perk! Ready for some thrills and adventure? Book your end of year or 2025 trip or tickets now! [email protected]

09/12/2024

Gingerbread Displays are an annual tradition for the holidays at Disney World. The giant Gingerbread House at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort is the one you see photos of and hear about the most, but did you know there are actually 6 different displays you can visit? They are located at:

Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge
Disney’s Beach Club Resort
Disney’s BoardWalk Resort
Disney’s Contemporary Resort
Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
and CommuniCore Hall at EPCOT

Here's a look at the display at Disney's Contemporary Resort which I visited yesterday - even in the daylight it's just so beautiful! To find it, head to the 4th floor and turn towards the shops (you'll see it immediately on the far wall!).

PRO TIP: Resort Hopping to see the decorations is a great (and free) holiday activity for your family! Head to the Grand Floridian (you can take a bus there from any theme park or from Disney Springs), then take the Monorail to the Contemporary, then take the complimentary water taxi over to Wilderness Lodge (to see their giant tree!). You can also water taxi from Epcot to the Boardwalk Resort and Beach Club Resort.

07/12/2024

One of the questions I get asked often is “WHAT IS THE TEMPERATURE LIKE IN ORLANDO IN DECEMBER?”. The honest answer - it varies wildly as you will experience winter, spring and summer like temperatures all in one day! 😝😂 For the most part you can expect your day to go like this: COLD, CHILLY, PLEASANT, WARM, PLEASANT, CHILLY, COLD - somedays it will be all chilly, some days it will be all cold, some days it will be all pleasant, some days it will be a mix of all or some. SO HOW DO YOU DRESS? Layers are your best friend! This way you can add or remove items as you warm up or cool down.

Here’s a look at the weather forecast for tomorrow - it’s going to be chilly overnight, but will warm up to a lovely 75℉ when we’re in the parks (which is quite a comfortable temperature when you’re walking around and on the go!). Next week, we're getting into the 80's on Wednesday! So it truly is a roller coaster 😂

03/12/2024

DISNEYLAND AND DISNEY WORLD - DO YOU GET THE TWO MIXED UP? 🤔 If you do, you're not alone! A lot of people say "I'd like to go to Disneyland" when what they really mean is Disney World! NBC have pointed out a clever way to remember the Difference! 🧐

Disneyland = LA (Los Angeles, California where most people fly to when heading to Disneyland which is in Anaheim)

Disney World = ORL (Short for Orlando, Florida home to the four theme parks that make up Disney World!)

Whether you’re booking Disneyand or Disney World, Castles & Cruises Travel is here to help! We’re an Authorized Disney Vacation planning agency with certified expert Travel Advisors!

02/12/2024

🎉WOOHOO! EUROPE 2026 BOOKED! 🎉 Congratulations to my travel-wise clients who took advantage of the current Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales to book their 2026 European Tour today! On this fully packaged and escorted 10 day tour they'll explore Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland! All they had to pay was a $500 deposit to secure their spot and they will have from now until June 2026 to make payments at their own pace! Packaged tours include Hotel, Transportation between Countries and cities, Tour Transportation, Sightseeing Tours with local tour guides, Admission Fees and several meals (daily breakfast along with some lunches and/or dinners). Most importantly, there's free time built into the schedule for independent exploration (or just time to sit at an outdoor cafe and soak in the vibes of the City). What an amazing trip to look forward to!!!!

✨Let's tick some bucket-list countries off your list and get your trip countdown started! [email protected]

27/11/2024

🇬🇧HEADING TO THE UK? 🇬🇧 IMPORTANT INFO BELOW! 👇
Starting January 8, 2025, the United Kingdom will require all non-European travelers to have an Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) upon arrival into the country. All visitors, including children, who do not have a visa or other UK immigration status will need to present a completed ETA when entering the region, even when just transiting through the UK. Once an ETA is approved, travelers are permitted to visit the UK for up to six months and take multiple trips through the country over the course of two years (or until the traveler’s passport expires, whichever comes first).

WHAT DO TRAVELERS NEED TO APPLY FOR AN ETA?
• Pay a fee of £10
• Complete the online form through a downloadable phone app or web browser.

Find ‘UK ETA’ through the app store on your phone/tablet, or visit their website. Here, you will be asked to:

1. provide contact and passport details,
2. provide a valid photo that complies with the digital requirements, and
3. answer a set of questions.

Travelers can start applying in advance, starting on November 27, 2024. The application process is easy, and takes about 3 business days for approval.

‼️REMINDER: This electronic authorization will be needed for any UK trips that occur January 8th or later!‼️ Learn more on the UK government website:
https://tinyurl.com/4ca59sun

20/11/2024

🎉2026 CRUISES HAVE BEEN RELEASED! ✅Today I'm working on quotes for everyone on my waitlist for Summer 2026 Caribbean and European Cruises! WHY BOOK NOW? You secure your cruise with a small deposit and can then make payments until your final payment date in 2026! For example, if you were cruising in July 2026, you would have until April 2026 to make payments. Payments are flexible and can be made at your own pace - and are refundable if you cancel before your payment deadline*. This is a win win for you as you get to lock in 2024 prices for a 2026 cruise and spread your payments out!

Image is an example of just two of the itineraries available - there are lots more!

🛳️Let's get you cruising! ✨[email protected]

*Detailed cancellation policies will be explained in your quote. All payments are via credit card only and are processed directly by the cruise line so no VAT or extra taxes and fees will be added to your cruise cost.

16/11/2024

✅ DID YOU KNOW: CASTLES & CRUISES TRAVEL IS A PREFERRED AGENCY PARTNER FOR UNIVERSAL ORLANDO!!! 🔥 Not only do we have access to regular in-person training, Universal Orlando ensures that we are in-the-know with heads-up communication, information and up-to-the-minute updates. Plus we have a direct line to a dedicated support team. This helps us to plan the most amazing and EPIC vacations for you and your family! FUN FACT: Universal requires us to sit an exam and get certified as Universal Specialists EVERY SINGLE YEAR!

🪄Let me put my Universal knowledge to work for you! You can book your 2025 Universal Vacation Package with just a $50 USD deposit (per person) and take advantage of flexible payments!
[email protected]

14/11/2024

✨DID YOU KNOW: CASTLES & CRUISES TRAVEL IS AN EARMARKED AGENCY! ✨ What does that mean? It's a special designation conferred on our agency by Disney as a tribute to our Disney expertise and knowledge , as well as to the value we bring to our clients when planning their trips to the Parks, on Disney Cruise Line or other Disney experiences worldwide. This distinction also celebrates our commitment to planning magical, customized trips for our clients and our philosophy of ensuring that our service mirrors the standard of excellence that Disney is known for!

Whether it's your first or fifteenth trip to the parks, let me put my magic to work for you!

[email protected]