By Paul Motter, iCruise Blogger | January 30, 2018 ( Comments)
Plan a Vacation Day
January 30 is “National Plan a Vacation Day,” and no one can help you plan better than a licensed travel agent.
Travel specialists agree that cruises provide one of the best vacation values possible. Once you board a cruise ship your accommodations, meals, entertainment and transportation to exotic ports of call are all included in the cruise fare. This makes it extremely easy to budget your trip and control costs.
And one of the best travel bargain options, especially for families, is what we call “drive-to” cruises; an affordable way to eliminate the cost, and more importantly these days, the hassle of flying to a cruise.
The Drawbacks of Flying
Flying has become deceptively expensive. It's not just the airfare anymore, your total flight cost also must figure in new fees for each checked bag, the cost of transportation to and from the airport for two flights. And don't forget - airlines no longer serve food.
Plus, there is the upgrade cost just for a comfortable seat, airline seats were already as small and close together as possible before the airlines started charging for checked luggage, but that new policy means passengers now bring more carry-on bags into the passenger cabin, and most flights now have every seat occupied.
The Advantages of Driving
So here is a great idea to save money and improve convenience - the drive-to cruise. When you compare the costs of flying a family of four to an old-fashioned car trip, driving makes so much more sense.
Here is an example: A Chicago family of four wants to take a seven-day cruise. The closest port is Baltimore, where the top-rated Carnival Pride offers a seven-day Bahamas cruise for $529 per person in an inside cabin, or $649 per person in a balcony stateroom.
The average air fare the family can find for that departure date is about $256 per person roundtrip, making the total for the flights alone $1024. But, add baggage fees for four people and the cost of airport taxis mean an additional $150, so the total trip cost of flying the family to Baltimore is roughly $1,200.
When you include driving to and from the airport and arriving early enough to get through security, the total travel time can reach five hours total.
That family could drive the 700 miles from Chicago to Baltimore in 11 hours at a total fuel cost of $148 round-trip, saving over $1,000 - enough to make up the difference between cruising in inside cabins and cruising in balcony cabins, plus an additional $100 per person in fun money!
Drive-to Cruise Advantages
Growing families are the people most likely to benefit from driving rather than flying because the cost of transportation is the same whether you have one or five people in the car. Along those lines, there are now some 15 U.S. ports you can choose from as drive-to destinations. On the East Coast, Baltimore is a year-round destination. If you live in more southern states, you can cruise out of Los Angeles, San Diego, Galveston, Mobile, New Orleans, Tampa, Jacksonville, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale or Port Canaveral year-round.
Other cities offering seasonal cruises include New York, Seattle, Norfolk, VA and Charleston, SC. And just for the record, you can also cruise out of Honolulu, Hawaii or San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Galveston is one of better “drive-to” ports because it serves the entire state of Texas and its six major cities. You can choose four- and five-day Western Caribbean cruises to Cozumel and Progresso, Mexico, for as little $499 in a balcony cabin. Or you can opt for a seven--day Eastern or Western Caribbean cruises for not much more in a balcony cabin for the parents and an inside for the kids.
Mobile, AL, has four- and five-day cruises to ports on Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula (including Costa Maya, a personal favorite of mine for a chance to visit Ixcaret, the Mayan-based eco-park with cave-tubing, swimming with the dolphins, snorkeling and exotic animals).
From New Orleans, you can catch four-, five- and seven-day cruises to the Eastern and Western Caribbean, and even 14-day Panama Canal cruises.
San Diego has the Disney Magic right now, which sails to Cabo San Lucas and Ensenada, as well as cruises to Hawaii.
Los Angeles offers cruises to as far as Tahiti from as low as $2599 per person, including 28 nights to Tahiti, Bora Bora, Moorea, and the Hawaiian Islands on the beautiful Emerald Princess. There are also many other choices from Los Angeles, the largest year-round cruise port on the West Coast.
Discover the Drive-to Cruise Convenience
Drive-to cruises offer the perfect vacation for families with some of the best food, service and entertainment amenities in the travel industry at very attractive prices. It is much more convenient and cost-effective than flying. You can fill your car with luggage without the hassles of checking bags, finding porters, finding and paying for taxis large enough for four people and the ever-increasing stress of going through airport security. When the cruise is over, you can bring back as many souvenirs as your car can hold.
Book your own drive-to cruise today!
