Gerry Barker, Author at AllThingsCruise

Vantage Deluxe World Travel “Heart of Germany” voyage, 7-night sailing from Frankfurt to Munich on Ms River Splendor

November 20, 2019November 19, 2019 by Gerry Barker

Story and Photos By Gerry Barker In all the many cruises we taken over the years, there is one type of cruise we’ve never tried: River cruising. That all changed recently when we were invited by Vantage Deluxe World Travel to go on their “Heart of Germany” voyage — a seven-night sailing from Frankfurt to Munich on Ms River Splendor, touring six historic cities along the way. So it was with great anticipation that we boarded our …

Vantage River Cruise ~ Day 3

November 16, 2019November 9, 2019 by Gerry Barker

Story and photo(s) by Gerry Barker … HEIDELBERG, Germany – Today starts early. We need to get a hardy breakfast before we board buses to tour this historic, romantic city and visit Schloss Heidelberg, one of Europe’s most famous castles. Ms River Splendor is docked at Aschaffenburg, from which Heidelberg is about 90 minutes by bus. The weather continues to be cold and rainy – pretty typical for November – so Pam and I add a few …

Vantage River Cruise ~ Day 2

November 16, 2019November 9, 2019 by Gerry Barker

Story and photo(s) By Gerry Barker … KOBLENZ, Germany – It’s day two, and we just about have our body clocks adjusted to European time. This morning we are docked here in this historic city, described in our brochure as “a friendly town where its guests feel right at home.” Located where the Moselle and Rhine Rivers meet, its roots go back two thousand years, and has been governed at various times by the Romans, the French …

Vantage River Cruise ~ Day One

November 16, 2019November 7, 2019 by Gerry Barker

By Gerry Barker MAINZ, Germany – Stepping off the plane in Frankfort, it was clear we had left Florida far behind. We had gone from the high 80s to the low 50s, trading swaying palms for trees in their full fall-foliage glory. For us, this was a trip of firsts: Our first visit to Germany, and our first river cruise. We were excited to experience both. Pam and I were here for Vantage Deluxe Travel’s “Heart of …

Gerry Barker’s Experience on the Panama Canal

October 7, 2019October 7, 2019 by Gerry Barker

PANAMA CANAL_Here we are, floating quietly outside the entrance to the Panama Canal, along with dozens of cargo ships, all of us waiting our turn. Carnival Miracle is among the first cruise ships to make the transit as the 2019-2020 season starts; it was reported Island Princess was the first, a day or two before us, headed for Ft. Lauderdale. Ranked as one of the seven wonders of the modern world, it will take us the …

Gerry Barker’s Experience on the Brightline Inter-City Rail Line

October 6, 2019October 5, 2019 by Gerry Barker

In previous posts I’ve extolled the virtues of Brightline (soon to be Virgin Trains), the nation’s only private, iner-city rail line. If you live in South Florida, like Pam and I do, it’s the best way to get to the ports at Miami and Ft. Lauderdale, hands down. Recently, Brightline gave passengers more reasons to go by train with the launch of its new Train-to-Port packages. A typical package includes train tickets, parking at a Brightline …

Gerry Barker Visiting Cartagena, Columbia

October 4, 2019October 3, 2019 by Gerry Barker

CARTAGENA, Columbia_After over two days at sea and almost 1,300 nautical miles from Tampa, we have arrived at our first port — the historic Columbian city of Cartagena. Located on the Caribbean Sea, this is a city that is both steeped in history and a modern-day metropolis, which the locals call “Miami Two.” That’s in reference to the towering condominiums and office buildings that ring the harbor. But its most famous attraction is the 17th century …

Aboard Carnival Miracle- Day Three

October 4, 2019October 2, 2019 by Gerry Barker

On the third full day of our cruise, and over 1,200 miles from where we started, we are approaching our first port of call, Cartagena, Columbia. We are scheduled to dock at 6 pm, and we’ll be there overnight, giving us extra time to explore this Spanish Colonial port city that served as a military fortress in the 17th century. In the meantime, we’re taking advantage of the sea days to relax and take in some …

Aboard Carnival Miracle-Day Two

October 4, 2019October 1, 2019 by Gerry Barker

It’s Day Two, or actually, Day Three (if you count the sailaway), and we are currently navigating the Caribbean Sea off the coast of Central America en route to our first port of call, the walled city of Cartegena, Columbia. This is another day at sea, do Pam and I have had time to explore the ship and get to know our home away from home for the next two weeks. One thing we noted right …

Aboard Carnival Miracle-Day One

October 4, 2019September 30, 2019 by Gerry Barker

It’s Day One of our 13-day cruise. We are bound for the Panama Canal, then on to our final destination, Long Beach, California, where Miracle will reposition for cruises to the Mexican Riviera, among others. This was our first time to embark from Tampa, which means we have now cruised from all four major ports in Florida. It was a homecoming of sorts as well, since it was a job opportunity that brought us to Tampa, …