Destinations by Sharon

Counting down to 2009 Summer Mediterranean Cruise!

2009-06-04T18:30:00.004-04:00

Our group cruise for 2009 will be aboard Royal Caribbean's Brilliance of the Seas for an amazing 12-day cruise that embarks from Barcelona, Spain on June 27, 2009! Cabin rates have come down since last year, airfare is also lower, and the US dollar goes a little further, all good news in this economy! There are still some cabins and flights left if you would like to join us! Call me for cruise details, itinerary, excursions, and pricing. Here's a map of where the cruise will make port.

Monday Dish: Unbelievable deals to visit Atlantis, Paradise Island, Bahamas!

2009-02-02T19:13:00.006-05:00

Hello Everyone, Check out this great deal with Atlantis, as you know they usually don’t have deals like this. Great Deals.

Stay Four Nights for the Price of Three**
Atlantis
Super SunScape
FROM $499* KIDS STAY FREE

Package Includes: Two free dolphin experiences at our amazing Dolphin Cay+
141 acres of thrilling water slides, river rides and pools
50,000 marine animals swimming amid Atlantean ruins
The largest and most glamorous casino in the Caribbean
Complimentary entry to our exclusive Aura nightclub

Bonus: Receive a $200 rebate when you book an air-inclusive
package of 3 nights or more++

Add our $79/day exclusive dining plan including restaurants
by Bobby Flay, Nobu and Jean-Georges+++

Contact me now to book your Atlantis Vacation!

Call Sharon:
954-885-5313
1-866-948-8728

*Rates is pp, dbl occ., based on Sun. or Mon. arrival, eff. for travel through 4/4/09 in Beach Tower. Valid for new bookings only and must be booked by 3/1/09. Add up to $179pp for mandatory taxes, mandatory housekeeping grats., & utility svc. fees. Other Towers, categories and dates available upon request. Weekend, holiday & peak period surcharges apply. All rates, availability and offers are subj. to chg w/o notice. Not app. to groups & restrictions apply. Rates are based on hotel only and cost of transfers is additional. **Complimentary 4th night offer is valid on new bookings only, for stays of 4 nights or longer to qualify. Complimentary 4th night offer is based on prevailing rate. + Dolphin offer is based on 2 shallow water interactions per room and is valid for new bookings made 2/3/09-3/1/09 for travel through 4/4/09, certain restrictions apply. Offer valid only with the Atlantis Super Sunscape package. ++$200 mail in rebate is based on qualifying air-inclusive packages of 3 nights or longer, valid one per booking and is redeemable upon completion of the trip. Rebate offer is valid for bookings made 2/3/09-2/6/09 for travel 1/17/09-7/31/09. +++Dining plans are per person, per day and include breakfast and dinner at all restaurants on the Sunscape Gourmet Dining Plan, and must be purchased at least 3 days prior to arrival date. Children 6 and under eat free with accompanied adult dining plan. Atlantis and its tour operator do not assume responsibility for errors or omissions within the content of this ad.

Summer 2009: View the Solar Eclipse from China!

2009-01-31T07:43:00.000-05:00

A total solar eclipse is occurring in China on July 22, 2009. I have found a tour that will observe the total solar eclipse from Anji, Zhejiang, China.

Participants of this special two week tour will meet in Beijing, China on July 10, 2009. Tours in the majestic city include: Tian'anmen Square, the Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, Great Wall, Ming Tombs, Summer Palace and Yonghegong Lamasery.
After experiencing all Beijing has to offer, they fly to the ancient former capital city of Xi'an and enjoy the ancient Xi'an City Wall and Terracotta Warriors Museum. They then travel to Chongqing for three relaxing days of five-star cruising on the beautiful Yangtze River before heading to Shanghai.

In Shanghai they visit the Museum on People's Square with its fine collection of cultural relics, The Bund, the Yuyuan Garden, TV Tower of the Oriental Pearl and 88-story Jin Mao building.

Throughout the tour they will have time for provisioning for the total solar eclipse. Lectures by expert and amateur astronomers will aid in the preparations. On July 22, they set up in Anji near the Tianhuangping reservoir and observe the total solar eclipse. After celebrating with bottles of champagne, they continue the tour. Attractions include the Humble Administrator's Garden (Zhouzheng Yuan), Garden of the Master of the Net and a cruise on the ancient canal. The tour ends in Shanghai on July 24th.

The fare for the tour is $2898 -- if this is something you're interested in, let me know!

Monday Dish: Last minute travel deals and special packages!

2009-01-28T21:29:00.003-05:00

Hi! Every week, Royal Caribbean comes out with specials that go into effect on Tuesdays so I am going to try and put them online for everyone to see. Great last minute deals too!

Never before seen rates from Royal Caribbean:

12 Night Hawaii Cruise from $1,299.00 (USD)
10 Night Hawaii Cruise from $999.00 (USD)
10 Night Hawaii Cruise from $799.00 (USD)
7 Night Alaska Sawyer Glacier Cruise from $549.00 (USD)

Carnival can offer you such a wide choice of cruises -- from all five Florida ports -- at these truly exceptional prices.

West Coast Specials from $239.00 (USD) from California
Past Guest Specials from $219.00 (USD)
Fun from Florida from $249.00 (USD)
New York Specials from $399.00 (USD)

Carnival loves the "Big Apple" and offer wonderful sailings to a choice of beautiful destinations, including the clear blue waters of the Caribbean, the pink sand beaches of Bermuda and the scenic coastline of Canada/New England.

Holland America Specials too!
18-DAY FALL PANAMA CANAL
7-DAY CANADA & NEW ENGLAND DISCOVERY
1-DAY FALL PACIFIC COAST
14-DAY CELTIC KINGDOMS

At Club Med Resorts, Kids Stay Free!

Children 0-15 years stay free at Club Med. An escape for you... An adventure for them!

50% Off the Second Person
Book a 7-night all inclusive escape and enjoy 50% off the second person.

7-Day Weekend from $793.00 (USD)
Experience 7 days and nights for the price of 3

These are the specials coming up! Hope you enjoyed this Monday Dish!

Monday Dish: Great Prices on 2009 Sailings!

2009-01-19T21:04:00.000-05:00

Get your own - Open publication

Monday Dish from Destinations by Sharon!

2009-01-12T15:15:00.008-05:00

Also, I'm really excited about bringing you this blog and the "Monday Dish!" Every Monday, I'll dish on some travel ideas -- you know, food for thought! I'll keep it short & sweet, since Mondays are already hectic for you! Let me know what you think of the idea!

If you would like to have the Monday dish land in your email, just subscribe here in the column on the right -- where you see the green arrow that says "updates." I want you to know that I don't spam; in fact, I don't even collect these addresses. Feedburner will deliver the Monday dish to you for me! (And they don't spam either!)

Croatia Coastline Tour from Split to Sibenik

2009-01-04T17:59:00.006-05:00

If Split, Croatia, is one of your ports of call on an upcoming Mediterranean Cruise, you might be choosing between your ship's excursions. Last summer, we chose a Dalmatian Coast tour that took us from Split to Trogir and Sibenik, and ended with a welcome reception luncheon high in the hills at the Croatian hamlet of Draga! Here were the highlights!

In the village of Trogir, we visited the Cathedral of St. Lawrence, considered to be one of the finest examples of sacral architecture in Croatia. The main portal, carved by the artist Radovan in the 13th Century, is world famous.

Further up the coast, we roamed the well-preserved historical center of the town of Sibenik. This town was founded by the Croats more than a thousand years ago and the city walls themselves are fascinating.

The winding coastline of the Dalmatian Coast offers amazing views!

Tucked in the hills above Sibenik is the small village of Draga where we were escorted to a traditional Croatian hamlet of stone cottages called "Jurlinovi Dvori." Surrounded by firlds of grapes, olives, almonds and figs, it is a small inn as well as a working farm. On this warm sunny afternoon, we were treated to a traditional welcome with Brandy, almonds and figs, then serenaded by bouzouki players, followed by a hearty Croatian lunch!

If you want to read more about Croatia, don't miss this coverage by National Geographic: "Destination of the Year: Exploring the New Croatia."

Smile and say, "Cuisine!"

2009-01-04T17:39:00.008-05:00

Isn't it normal to look forward to the food on your cruise? Or as you saunter through the streets of a new town, don't you admire layers of pastries and stacks of pretzels through the glass windows of shoppes? For most of us, the cuisine of a region is as interesting as the people, landscapes, wildlife or customs. I have to wonder, why don't more people include FOOD in their vacation photographs?

When I returned home from the Leeds Group Cruise to Italy and Greece last year, my first international vacation I might add, I posted my pictures online for my family and friends! I was surprised to hear, "Wow, you must really love food!" Well, I do, but that's not the point.

Food photography brings back great memories!
I have vacation pictures that I swear I can smell! Really! Doesn't everyone?

There are two other reasons I love to photograph the cuisine when I travel. First, people cannot hide how they feel about food. If it's really good, the pure joy is transparent! (The people here have been cropped out to preserve their moment privately, or at least semi-privately.)

Second, regional cuisine so often tells a story about the locale. In Venice, the pasta isn't that usual shade of buttery yellow, it's red and green and eggplant! The bright pink confection at the bakery looks more like a painting than dessert. Venice is a colorful place in many ways, and so is it's cuisine.

Third, food also brings back memories from a particular day of vacation. Forever, upon hearing the word "Gelato," I will remember a day spent strolling around Locarno, Switzerland, shopping along the modern day galleria then taking a sidestep down the alleyways to historic shoppes, all just steps from one another. The quest for gelato, between handbags and watches, was to find the perfect flavor... lemon, chocolate, vanilla, pistachio, oh my.

Speaking of the quest for cuisine, in Greece, our cruise excursions usually allowed us some freedom for lunch where we found ourselves in a quest for the much-loved Moussaka. This lusciously-layered meaty potato-cheese-and-spices dish varied greatly from Athens to the islands of Mykonos and Corfu. It's a dish best served with a nice light white local wine that doesn't sneak up on you -- ask your Greek server for his/her recommendation! My choice was to give the fries away to the young people in our group, and grab another dolmas!

I personally would like to encourage more vacation photography that features food! That doesn't mean I'm suggesting to take less pictures of the scenery and the locals and your travel partners! But if you can capture a moment, such as upon arrival of hot steaming perfectly plated cuisine, or when the repetition of an object like Gelato knives lures you to it, then seize the moment and freeze it in time! I personally love the display cases of a hometown deli or bakery because it says so much about the customary cuisine.

I also encourage taking your vacation photos at the largest file size your camera can shoot (if it's digital), buying a bigger memory card or simply more cards, and taking more pictures altogether. If you ever want to put your pictures in print, or make a poster, you'll need the higher resolution. You never know when Bon Appetit may be looking at your Flickr account and, boom, you've been discovered!

(Contributed by travel friend, Diane Miano)

Welcome to the Launch of Destinations by Sharon!

2009-01-03T20:14:00.001-05:00

Hi Everyone! Thank you for taking time to visit my new web site! As most new people new to blogging for business, my desire is to create a site online where we can stay connected. I want to hear from you! Don't be shy to post a comment, share a link, make a suggestion. Travel is a personal decision... everybody has their own style! Some like it solo and others love "the more, the merrier" approach to traveling the country and abroad (I happen to be the latter). My hope is to gather opinions and tips and reports/reviews from many of you! So, here we go on this journey of blogging about travel. Thanks again for joining me! (Pictured, my daughter Jenn, on the right but I guess you could tell!)