Must Read

a deck with chairs and a table overlooking the water
| |

Magic on NCL Jade Cruise: Review of Penthouse Suite 10166

ByMelinda

We were excited to see our room, and it was finally time! Norwegian Jade’s Penthouse Suite 10166 is also known as a Romance Suite, since it used to be sold as a room for 2, with a maximum of 3 guests instead of 4. It is located on Deck 10, in the very back of the ship (aft). This turned out to be a fantastic location and I’m now an absolute fan of these staterooms. True, pretty much all of the restaurants and activities were forward, but that just meant a bit more exercise which balanced out with all the extra desserts and goodies onboard.

a large staircase with a vase of flowers
| |

Hotel Review: St Regis Abu Dhabi

ByMelinda

The scorching desert heat was no match for the strong air conditioning of the Bentley hotel car, and it was already comfortably cool when we got in. There were individual digital temperature controls for each seat, as well as window shades to use if it had been daytime. Chilled bottles of Aqua Panna were waiting in the drink holders, and I gladly took a long drink from one.

a bedroom with a bed and a desk
| |

Hotel Review: Four Seasons Istanbul At Sultanahmet

ByMelinda

The cab dropped us off right at the entrance to the Four Seasons Istanbul hotel, where the doorman stood at the ready. We were shown in to the reception area through the high-arched lobby which was very grand. You may be surprised to learn that the luxury Four Seasons Istanbul started out not as a hotel, but a Turkish prison.

a sunset over a body of water
| |

Magic on NCL Jade: Taking the Long Way to the Port in Rome

ByMelinda

There were several ways to get from Rome Airport to the Port of Civitavecchia. A train ran from the airport to the central station, and then a second train went on to the port. I knew the trains would be packed with people heading to the cruise port though, and didn’t relish the idea.

a building with a car parked in front of it
| |

Magic on a NCL Jade Cruise – Hotel Review: Hilton Rome Airport

ByMelinda

The Hilton Rome Airport is connected to the Rome Fiumicino Airport Terminals 1 & 2 by way of a series of people movers and hallways. It took what seemed like 20 minutes to walk from the Terminal to the hotel on the way there since I was exhausted, but when leaving I realized it only took about 5 and that it was actually quite convenient.

a room with a bed and a table
| |

Hotel Review: Ritz-Carlton Kyoto

ByMelinda

The white-gloved driver pulled the taxi right up to the porte-cochere where three well-dressed Ritz employees were standing attentively. As soon as the vehicle stopped, two of them sprung into action and pulled the suitcases out of the trunk. The third led us along a path that meandered over the top of a shallow stream, where the cool water tumbled over smooth stones.

a sun shining over the water
|

Magic on a Cruise: Norwegian Jade Eastern European 10-Day

ByMelinda

After taking a family cruse, my husband and I wanted to go on another with just the two of us. Being relatively new to cruising unlike our highly-esteemed salty pirate friend MJ on Travel, we scoured website after website for just the right deal. We knew we wanted a balcony, and that we wanted something fairly inexpensive. But there were so many choices, how to decide?