Posted on

Planning For Extended Travel Abroad

When we first shared with our friends our plans to travel for six months, they were amazed and bewildered. “How do you begin to plan out a trip of this length?” “How much time goes into the preparation?” “It’s nice to have that kind of money”
Its really not that complicated and no we dont have “that kind of money”.

It all begins with the following:

1. List of countries to visit
2. 6 month Climate chart
3. USD exchange rate

First Steps To Follow

Continue reading “Planning For Extended Travel Abroad”

Posted on

Costa Favolosa – Fjords Cruise

  • We have just arrived in Waremunde, Germany from a 7 day Fjord Cruise on Costa Favolosa.
    When we first considered Costa as part of our 6 month tour of Europe we were very hesitant. We had sailed three times previously on Costa and we vowed never to sail Costa again.
    Money being the driving force for this trip, finalized our decision. Keeping in mind our previous experiences with Costa, coupled with their low review ratings, we decided to set sail with very low expectations.
    Much to our surprise, this trip exceeded our expectations in every area. I want to begin by acknowledging the Hotel Director, Ingrid Happ, Housekeeping Manager, Vincent Braganza and Cruise Director, Naim Ayub. What a fabulous team! From the minute we arrived at the port in Bergen Norway, these 3 professionls went above and beyond to ensure our embarkation was smooth and pleasant. After seeing these 3 in action, I had a gut feeling things were going to be okay. They were fabulous!!
    We ate in all the dining venues. The food was superb. We did not have one bad meal. The staff at the bars, dining room, lido deck and Chocolatier were amazing.
    The entertainment from Duo Fiesta, George and Jean Luc were phonomenal. Our room steward Yulia was the best. Special thanks to Victor, and most of all to Marife Rivera and Ron Kasiaro Purba the best bar staff in the cruise industry.
    The shows were fabulous! The entertainers hired for the shows in Hortensia Theater with the exception of Martin the Magician were top of the line.
    The animation team were energetic, fun and great!
    The Brindiamo Drink Package was included in with the price of our room. Although, the ship was full to capacity, we never had an issue getting drinks. In fact, we may have drank too much.
    Finally, the only sour note in this entire trip was our dining room server. She worked like a robot with no attention to detail or desire to please her guest. We gave her the benefit of the doubt but after a few nights we opted for the Lido Deck freesyyle dining. Overall it was a great cruise and has changed our opinion about future sailings with Costa.
Posted on

What To Do With Your Cell Phone Services When Traveling

Photo by Malidate Van on Pexels.com

What to do with cell phone services when traveling abroad. Most cell phone companies have an international travel program. Verizon has a program called Travel Pass.  For only $10 a day, you can access using your US cell phone services. As part of this plan, you are required to use your US data and minutes allowance.

If the Travel Pass is not an option, you can  request a list of international services and pricing while traveling outside of the US from your cell phone carrier

Check with your carrier to see what other plans may be available. As of this posting, Verizon has an $85 plan that provides you with 250 minutes a month and no data while you are traveling abroad.

Other options, depending on the length of time that you are traveling, would be to purchase an international SIM card that will work throughout Europe. Many of the international SIM cards will provide data which can be used to call home free using various apps such as Facebook Messenger, Google Voice and WhatsApp. If you decide to use Google Voice, make sure that you get your Google Voice number in the US. You will not be able to get a Google Voice phone number if you are out of the US. After attaining your Google Voice number you can forward all your calls to that number and receive free calls and text messages while you are traveling abroad.

If you are traveling for a long period of time and do not want to continue to pay your monthly carrier charges, you can choose to Port your number to a porting service such as “Number Barn. This will allow you to keep your number and received text messages and emails on calls made to your phone number. Keep in mind if you have a service agreement or contract with your current carrier porting your number to “Number Barn” or any other similar service provider may create early termination fees with your carrier.

P.S. Note you can only switch a SIMS card if your phone is unlocked.

Whatever you decide to do with your wireless service, make sure you are clear on how to use your phone while abroad to avoid costly roaming charges.

Posted on

Qué hacer con los servicios de telefonía celular cuando viaja al extranjero

  1. Photo by Malidate Van on Pexels.com

    Qué hacer con los servicios de telefonía celular cuando viaja al extranjero. La mayoría de las compañías de teléfonos celulares tienen un programa de viajes internacionales. Verizon tiene un programa llamado Travel Pass. Actualmente, Verizon tiene un plan de solo $10 por día, que le permite acceder a los servicios de su teléfono celular como si estuviera en los Estados Unidos. Utilizará sus datos de EU y la asignación de minutos.
    También puede solicitar una lista de servicios internacionales y precios mientras viaja fuera de los EE. UU. Desde su operador de telefonía celular
    Consulte con su proveedor para ver qué otros planes pueden estar disponibles. A partir de esta publicación, Verizon tiene un plan de $ 85 que le proporciona 250 minutos al mes y no tiene datos mientras viaja al extranjero.
    Otras opciones, dependiendo del tiempo que viaje, serían comprar una tarjeta SIM internacional que funcionará en toda Europa. Muchas de las tarjetas SIM internacionales proporcionarán datos que se pueden usar para llamar a los estados unidos sin cargo usando varias aplicaciones como Facebook Messenger, Google Voice y WhatsApp. Si decide usar Google Voice, asegúrese de obtener su número de Google Voice en los EE. UU. No podrá obtener un número de teléfono de Google Voice si se encuentra fuera de los EE. UU. Después de obtener su número de Google Voice, puede reenviar todas sus llamadas a ese número y recibir sus llamadas y mensajes mientras viajaba al extranjero de forma gratuita.
    Si viaja durante un período de tiempo prolongado y no desea continuar pagando los cargos mensuales de su proveedor, puede elegir Portar su número a un servicio de transferencia como “Number Barn. Esto le permitirá conservar su número y recibirlo”. mensajes de texto y correos electrónicos en llamadas realizadas a su número de teléfono. Tenga en cuenta que si tiene un acuerdo de servicio o un contrato con su proveedor actual transfiriendo su número a “Number Barn” o cualquier otro proveedor de servicios similar puede crear tarifas de terminación anticipada con su proveedor.
    Tenga en cuenta que solo puede cambiar una tarjeta SIMS si su teléfono está desbloqueado.
    Independientemente de lo que decida hacer con su servicio inalámbrico, asegúrese de tener claro cómo usar su teléfono mientras está en el extranjero para evitar costosos cargos por roaming

Posted on

Cruising Transatlantic The Economical Way

We have just completed our second transatlantic cruise and we are still hooked!  We love it!  We set sail on April 15th for our 13 day cruise on the Celebrity Silhouette.   Along the way we stopped in Bermuda, The Azores and Lisbon, arriving in Southhampton, England.  Sailing transatlantic to  Europe can be economical for the savvy traveler. The cruise lines are repositioning their ships. They are eager to offer reduced fare bookings on these routes.

Important Fare Saver

The key thing to remember, is not to pay your fare in full until the final due date.  Paying your fare in full before the final payment date will exclude you from fare price reductions. These reductions can only be applied if a balance remains open on your booking. We have a fabulous cruise agent, Darlene Foti at American Discount Cruises. We highly recommend her.

October 2018 Transatlantic Sailing on Royal Caribbean Symphony of the Seas

We are booked on Royal Caribbean Symphony of the Seas for our return back home in October. We are super excited about the return. We will be traveling with our two close friends, Maria and Cesar.  If any of our other friends are reading this article,  you are all welcome.  More to come….