travelwriter

Based in Miami, FL, Carnival Cruise Lines has recently begun testing six embarkation kiosks to improve the check-in process for guests.

Cruise guests who are from the USA, Canada, or are part of the Visa Waiver program are eligible to process their own check-in by swiping their passport plus they can also set up their Sail & Sign card by swiping a valid credit card.

And it’s that easy.  Carnival plans to expand to other ports including Los Angeles, New Orleans, and Houston.

For more information, visit: CarnivalCruiseLines

For the second year in a row, Marriott Golf, is offering ‘a yearlong series of one day events’ to promote family togetherness in golf.

The Marriott International Family Golf Festival invites families to Marriott Golf properties for a fun afternoon of FREE instruction, golf clinics, activities, interactive games, plus a chance to win family vacation prizes!

Plus, after 3 p.m. on the Golf Festival day, children and families can golf for FREE.  An estimated 10,000 children and parents participated in the Marriott program in 2008.

Marriott offers more than 60 golf courses at 44 locations in 13 countries – with more than 1,000 holes of championship golf.  Visit Marriott.com to see a complete list of 2009 Golf Festival Dates .

Roatan’s newest and finest cultural attraction will give visitors a little taste of Honduras all in one place.

Developed and operated by the iconic Anthony’s Key Resort (AKR), Maya Key is located in the harbor of Coxen Hole, Roatan.  Opened to visitors in the first week in June, 2009, Maya Key boasts reconstructions of Copan’s famous Maya ruins, a native arts & crafts studio, a traditional Maya village, and a wildlife rescue center displaying many of Honduras’ diverse wild animal species.

“Honduras is a small but diverse and culturally rich country and we want to pay tribute to that,” says Samir Galindo, General Manager of AKR. “We are very proud of our country and we want the world to get to know us better, and this is a convenient and quick way to do that.”

Twenty years ago AKR pioneered Honduras’ only research and educational dolphin program, the Roatan Institute for Marine Sciences (RIMS). The Institute is a unique on-site research and educational facility with the only dolphin program in Honduras. As one of Roatan’s first dive resorts over the years Anthony’s has expanded to include the RIMS, the Roatan Museum, a fully-equipped medical center, dolphin activities and now Maya Key.

The all-inclusive dive resort is located 35 mi (56km) off the coast of Honduras on Roatan, Bay Islands, part of the second largest barrier reef system in the world.

Carnival is offering Hot Summer Savings and Cold Hard Cash as part of their now extended Cash Back offer.

Book a summer cruise by June 30, 2009, and Carnival will load up your Sail & Sign Card with up to $50 per guest for 3-4 day cruises, up to $75 per guest for 5 day cruises, and up to $120 per guest for 6-8 day cruises.

The cash credited to your Sail & Sign Card can be used anywhere onboard the ship or on a shore excursion.  If at the end of the cruise you haven’t used all of your credit, Carnival will refund you cash for any amount you didn’t use.

For more information contact visit Carnival.

The official start of the Atlantic hurricane season is June 1, 2009 and the best defense for a hurricane is to be prepared.

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) provides information in regards to hurricane preparedness and what you can do to protect yourself, your family, and your property by directing you to the Emergency Management office in your state.

Weather forecasters have predicted the 2009 season will bring 14 named hurricanes with the potential for 7 of them to become hurricanes while 3 are predicted to become major hurricanes.

For more information, visit the NHC .

The new U.S. border rules of the United States Department of Homeland Security (USDHS) take effect on Monday, June 1, 2009, in accordance with the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI).

The new rule requires all U.S. citizens entering the United States, returning home from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean or Bermuda, by land or sea, to have documents that comply with the WHTI.  These documents would most commonly be a U.S. Passport, a U.S. Passport Card, or a Trusted Traveler Card (TTC) such as NEXUS, SENTRI, FAST, or an enhanced Driver’s License.

Canadian citizens traveling to the U.S. by land or sea will be required to present one of the following: a Canadian Passport, a TTC such as NEXUS, FAST, or SENTRI, or an Enhanced Driver’s License or Enhanced Identification Card.  Similar WHTI rules have been in effect since 2007 for air travel.  For more information, visit the USDHS .

Princess Cruises is offering an amazing 107-day world cruise that will take you to the north, south, east, and west with the experience and knowledge that only Princess can offer with over 40 years of sailing the ocean blue.

Sailing from Ft. Lauderdale, FL, to Rome, this 107-day luxurious cruise will stop at an amazing 40 ports including overnight stays in Sydney, Australia, and Xingang, China. 

If you don’t want to wait until 2010 for this cruise, a 104-day cruise is still available on the Dawn Princess sailing roundtrip from Sydney on July 5, 2009.  Ports include Cork, Ireland; Paris, France; Goa, India, plus an overnight stay in Bermuda.

Remember, cruising is the best vacation value for your money.  For more information, visit: Princess Cruises

---

---

Princess Cruises is offering fantastic savings on great holiday 2009 sailings from now until June 15, 2009.

It’s never too early to start thinking about the holidays and with these incredible savings now is the time to book a magical winter cruise to the Caribbean, Mexican Riviera, Panama Canal, South America, Asia or the South Pacific. 

This sale is offering savings of up to $1,600 per couple off Launch Fares with 50% off 3^rd & 4^th passenger fares plus free upgrades on select sailings.  To learn more information, visit Princess Cruises.

Today is Earth Day, April 22, 2009.  What better way to celebrate than to take action?

Earth Day events are happening around the world and it’s still not too late to participate!  Attend an educational workshop, a parade, wine tasting, or a concert – find a complete list of events here!

If you can’t attend an event, you can donate, join, or volunteer through the Earth Day Network (EDN).  Even easier - plant a tree or simply switch out an incandescent light bulb!  Everyone can do their part.

Today is also the official kick off for the Green Generation campaign started by EDN whose mission is to provide a healthy, sustainable environment for all people of the world today and for our future.

Happy Earth Day!

Royal Caribbean is asking you to join the ‘Nation of Why Not’, by offering activities that other cruise ships do not such as onboard surfing and rock-climbing walls.

Instead of asking ‘can I?’ citizens of the Nation of Why Not already know that with 21 ships covering 361,000,000 kilometers of ocean terrain, Royal Caribbean is almost its own independent country where anything goes.

With its highly interactive Nation of Why Not website , potential citizens of the Royal Caribbean nation are invited to learn how to say ‘why not’ in 24 languages, learn about their wildlife, holidays or to explore cool activities like ice skating.

And if you’d like to book a cruise on Royal Caribbean, you can do that, too.