Check with your mobile phone provider prior to leaving for your cruise to ensure that you know what costs will be associated with phone calls, text messages and data transfer from the various ports you visit.  Turning your cell phone off is always the best option if you don’t want to incur extra costs.

Remember to bring along extra batteries for cameras etc., as they can get be quite expensive on the ships or in ports.

When you board the ship and are offered a cocktail be aware that there is most likely a cost for it

If you or people traveling with you drink a lot of soda check out the “soda package” that many ships have.  An example would be paying a flat fee of $25 for all soda over a 5 day cruise.

If you did not have a chance to eat while traveling to the port and are starving upon boarding the ship, check the buffet restaurant as they usually serve lunch items that afternoon.

You can use the gym at no charge and on most ships you also have access to the saunas that are in the fitness/spa area

If there is anything at all in your cabin that is not working or not to your satisfaction, don’t hesitate to call and ask if they can take care of it.  The staff on ships want you to be happy and will “fix” it if they can.

You can enjoy a “sit down” breakfast and lunch in the dining room vs. fighting the crowds in the buffet restaurant at no extra cost

Some ships have a couple of restaurants in addition to their “formal” dining rooms as options for dinner.  They are typically very nice and have a charge of somewhere between $15 and $40 per person.  The food served in the formal dining rooms is always very good, but the restaurants with the additional charges are sometimes nice for a “change”.

Room Service is free on most ships – you can enjoy your morning coffee and/or breakfast in your cabin if you like or a late night snack!

If you buy liquor when in a port or from the ship’s store, the ship will keep it and deliver it to your cabin on the last evening of the cruise

Be sure to bring light jackets, sweaters, wraps as the showrooms and lounges are sometimes quite cool

If on a long cruise, the ship usually offers a special to have a “bag” of laundry done for you. Some ships have washers and dryers accessible

Have fun!

Welcome Center to begin self-walking tour

The main attractions are Fort Clinch, Fernandina Beach Historic area and the beach.  The Welcome Center has a wonderful booklet (free) for a self-walking tour of the Fernandina Historic District which is at the north end of Amelia Island.  There are several B&B’s in the historic area, along with some wonderful restaurants and boutique style shops!  Joe’s 2nd Street Bistro has an excellent place for dinner – not actually a bistro, but a higher end restaurant and you will love every scrumptious bite!  Cafe Karibo is a nice lunch stop during the walking tour. 

Fort Clinch

If you tour Fort Clinch, plan on about 3 hours.  My husband and I have traveled to several areas with historic forts and were amazed at how much of Fort Clinch is intact.

Be sure to drive to the southern end of the island and at the Ritz for a cocktail and music in the lounge!  The “tree tunnels” on the way there are awesome!

House used for Pippi Longstocking movie

Last of all – if you remember reading Pippi Longstocking books, you can have some fun finding the home here that was used in the movie:)

Amelia Island is perfect for a romantic get away or a fun family vacation!

Sun glistening off of the gorgeous aqua blue water

In the early 1880’s, phosphate was discovered several miles up the Peace River, which empties into Charlotte Harbor before flowing west through the Boca Grande Channel to the Gulf of Mexico. Initially, the phosphate was shipped down the Peace River on barges to Port Boca Grande on Gasparilla Island, where it was loaded into ocean-going vessels. In 1888, Congress responded to the growth of the port by appropriating $35,000 for the construction of a lighthouse at the southern tip of Gasparilla Island, to mark the Boca Grande or “large mouth” between Gasparilla and Lacosta Islands. The lighhouse has a small museum with a lot of history and nice gift shop.  It is located at the south end where there is a beautiful, spacious beach also.

Boca Grande Lighthouse dates back to 1890

The number of boats and groups of boats in the water was interesting.  People’s boats were grouped together and they enjoyed the afternoon swimming, boating, fishing, having cocktails, etc.

Boaters Paradise in Boca Grande, Gasparilla Island, FL

At the center of the island lies the nucleus of this little community, The Historic Village of Boca Grande. Here, “Main Street” still exists with no stop lights, no billboards, no high-rises and no fast-food chains.  You will find unique shops and art galleries, casual and fine dining establishments serving fresh seafood just caught by the local fishing captains.

Florida has some of the most beautiful golf courses.  Many are surrounded by water, like the Country Club course in Boca Grande.  The views from this course are absolutely spectacular!

Boca Grande Country Club - What an absolutely beautiful, serene place to golf

Our first day trip in June was spent exploring Anna Maria Island which is south of Tampa and west of Sarasota. The island overlooks Tampa Bay.  Once on the island, you drive through Bradenton Beach, Holmes Beach and then in to the town of Anna Maria.  The town is surrounded by a sugar-white coastline.  The beaches are pristine, the water is crystal clear aqua.  If I had been blindfolded and taken there, I would have thought that I was on a small island in the middle of the Caribbean, yet I was only about 1 1/2 hours from my home!

Taken from the beach in Anna Maria

Many people boat to the area and spend the day at the beaches and in the water.

Having Fun Boating

The town of Anna Maria is quaint.  You won’t find fast food or chain restaurants but will certainly find a great selection of shopping and restaurants!  This is an ideal location for a day trip, a short get away or a nice long relaxing vacation in the sun!

One of many friendly Florida birds!

The kids took us to several restaurants outside of the downtown area and we were never disappointed.  The restaurants were trendy, full of life and the food was always excellent.  Some restaurants to venture out to if you visit Nashville; Marche for breakfast/brunch, City House and Eastland Cafe for dinners, Burger Up for lunch and Rose Pepper Cantina any time you have a taste for great Mexican fare.

Did you know that the home and plantation of President Andrew Jackson was in Nashville?  It is!  The name of it is the Hermitage and the mansion is still furnished.  The grounds are absolutely gorgeous!  Well worth a visit!

The Hermitage

Nashville is also home to a full-scale replica of the Parthenon.  I have no doubt that you will be impressed when you see the sculpture of Athena which is 42′ 10″ tall from the floor to the top of the center crest on her helmet!

Replica of The Parthenon

The Frist museum is another must see and if you go prior to Jan. 2, 2011 you will also have the pleasure of seeing quite a few pieces of Chihuly’s blown glass.

I happen to be a wine connoisseur and my son indulged me by finding a vineyard for us to visit one afternoon for a tasting.  Arrington Vineyards is about 20 miles south of Nashville in a beautiful setting in the rolling hills of the country.  The wines were very good and in addition to a great Cab, I purchased a very tasty Rasberry Dessert Wine!

 The Grand Ole Opry was definitely impressive.  It had just re-opened and was beautifully decorated for the holidays.  It is unfortunate that the valet parking is $21 regardless of how many hours you will be there.  We were there for a couple of hours to walk around and see it, have a cocktail and appetizer and although very excited would probably not go back for just a few hours with having to pay $21 to valet…

If you visit Nashville, I hope you really venture to the outskirts of the city and experience some of these fabulous restaurants and sites!

If you like boutique style hotels, try the San Juan Water & Beach Club  (http://www.waterbeachclubhotel.com/).  Unfortunately, they were doing a renovation on the rooftop bar and pool when we were there so we couldn’t stay there this time.  It is definitely a quaint little hotel that can be enjoyed by all!

While in San Juan things like bottled water can get very expensive in the hotels.  There is usually a Walgreens or a supermarket within walking distance of hotels and it is worth the visit to save a little.  I enjoy drinking wine, so I will usually pick up a few bottles at the supermarket vs. always paying $9 or $10 for a glass. 

If you travel to San Juan in the fall which is off-season, be sure to check out dinner and/or happy hour specials at the restaurants.  Ruth’s Chris had great deals in September.  If you enjoy Italian food, the restaurant La Piccola Fontana at the El San Juan Hotel and Casino is excellent and the ambiance is very good!  They also had some great specials in September.  Sushi anyone? The sushi restaurant in the Intercontinental was very good and the prices were great!

Lastly, visiting The Castillo de San Cristóbal is definitely worth the trip in to Old San Juan. It was built by Spain to protect against land based attacks on the city of San Juan. If you taxi in to Old San Juan, you will be very close to it when the taxi drops you off.  Plan on spending a couple of hours there and then you have the remainder of the day to enjoy the city!

If you are able to travel during the months of October, November and early December, you can save a tremendous amount of money.  Additionally, if you have the luxury of being able to plan your cruise 90 days or less from your departure date you can get discounted rates. 

I have a couple of favorite websites that I use when searching for a cruise…  www.vacationstogo.com gives you a quick look at the discounted rates for several cruise lines on their “90 Day Ticker” page (you can sign-up at the site for free and can save hundreds of dollars), the other website – www.cruisecompete.com allows you to enter the information pertaining to the cruise you would like to take and you receive emails back quoting prices for the cruise (if you do this, read the email carefully to ensure there are no extra charges in addition to the price quoted). Typically you will receive a quote back that can save you money (the amount of savings varies) and even $15 or $20 per person is good – that could be 1 or 2 days worth of gratuities aboard the ship!