Monday Mantra I’m coming back!… I’m coming back!… I’m coming back! Going Home to Holland America Line A familiar ship can feel like an old friend. It’s been quite a while since I sailed Holland America Line but I’ll be returning to the line on July 4 when my friend Rosemary and I …

Porthole’s Five Faves Father’s Day Gift Upgrades Just as Father knows best, he also deserves the best. Rather than going with the same ol’ standbys, allow the magic of cruising to enhance your Father’s Day gift. Father’s Day is only a few shopping days away, but planning your present couldn’t be easier. Take …

Monday Mantra Kids on Board!… Kids on Board!… Kids on Board! Man the Baby Stations! We’ve got a ship-load of kids ahead! Sometimes — not often, but sometimes — I’m wrong about children. Like Antoine. Antoine, about 2 years old, was perched on his mom’s lap in the seat next to mine when …

Porthole‘s Five Faves Adventure Awaits 5 Tips for Cruising Alaska Alaska. The last frontier. Home of magnificent glaciers, an abundance of wildlife, fascinating cultures, and plenty of culinary and shopping opportunities. It’s a land you can only imagine — until you cruise there. I just returned from an Alaska cruise cruise aboard Holland …

Monday Mantra Picture this… Picture this… Picture this… Flash Back The old cruise photographers might have been worth a thousand words after all Here’s a picture of me with a double chin and my eyes closed. Here’s another of me with my mouth full, my jaw sort of twisted as I chew a …

Porthole‘s Five Faves  Setting Sail Five Favorite Caribbean Sailaways  Is there anything better than a cruise sailaway? The churning of the engines. The breeze in your face. The sounds of the Lido Deck band playing in the background…. At Porthole Cruise Magazine, we love sailaways, which is why we share a new one …

Monday Mantra A bazaar reason to cruise… A bazaar reason to cruise… A bazaar reason to cruise… Marketplace, Ahoy! We’re shipping out for shopping! Fact: I love to shop in foreign lands. Another fact: I once went on a cruise specifically to buy a new wallet. Ironically, the wallet I was out to …

Porthole’s Five Faves Five Favorite Theme Cruises Whether you’re into progressive rock or proper punctuation, there’s bound to be an upcoming cruise that’ll float your boat Cruisers love company. One of the best experiences on any ship is getting to know someone new, whether it’s that globe-trotting elderly couple in the buffet line, …

Monday Mantra I plead guilty…I plead guilty…I plead guilty… Sympathy for the Sticky-Fingered It’s hard not to want to take a little piece of paradise home with you. Shiplifter (ship-lift-er) n.: One who disembarks from a cruise with stemware, dishware, linens, ashtrays, or other items clearly the property of the cruise line (usu. …

Porthole’s Five Faves Sea-centric Songs Enya may have created the sounds most synonymous with sailing away, but it’s not the only song in the key of cruising.   If you were putting together the typical cruising soundtrack, it would need to include the Love Boat theme, a dozen Bob Marley songs, and the …