A true "Bucket List" cruise.

 

This is a cruise I'd like to take someday in the future.  It's 28 days long, and it goes to ports I'll never have the chance to go on other trips.  One of my friends from game night has taken a 1-way 2-week cruise from New York to Iceland, touching at some of these ports.  But I'd want to do a round trip, closed loop cruise and spend the better part of a week in Iceland.

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Yesterday, I found out how much RQS receives in pension and social security benefits, and I realized that she has many more demands on her monthly income than I have on an income 20% more than hers.  She'd never be able to afford such a trip on her own.  So, if I were to book this trip, I might as well pay for her share of a cabin, as it would cost me the same either way.  

There is one problem with this cruise - The last time it's being offered (right now) is in 2026.  Instead of costing $6600/pp, a similar 2027 cruise will cost $11400/pp and last 35 days.  However, it will be a Solar Eclipse cruise, and the cruise line is charging as much money as they can for the privilege of seeing the sun disappear from the sky for 4 minutes.  Hopefully, the cruise line will offer something similar to the 28-day cruise in 2028.

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In 2027, I'm hoping to be able to take RQS on a Hawaii cruise.  Sadly, with the new Hawaii taxes that start in 2026, it will cost at least 14% more expensive than it was this year (ignoring inflation).  It will still be worth the money spent.  But it will likely be the last time I get the chance to visit this state, as there are no discount ways to cruise the Hawaiian islands.

There are so many cruises I'd love to take.  I'm lucky - I have already checked off 3 of the most common bucket list cruises, with more to go.  Hopefully, I'll have both health and money to finish off my list. 

Now, we're thinking of taking one of two cruises next year.

 

The above two cruises interest me for completely different reasons.  The first is a 12-day mostly British Isles cruise.  The second is a 14-day cruise which visits English, Scottish, and Icelandic ports.  Both cruises have a stop in a European Mainland port before returning to Southampton.  Given the choice, I'd rather take the cruise that stops in Iceland before they get tired of cruisers visiting its ports.

If we were to take the 12-day cruise which visits English, Scottish and Irish ports, I'd be able to allocate more time to visit my niece before the cruise.  As much as I'd like to see more of London, I'm not in the mood to take the tube during the Summer.  Instead, I'd rather be able to stay above ground in air conditioned comfort as much as possible.

I figure that each of these cruises will be expensive bucket list trips.  Excursions (especially in Iceland) will be very expensive.  I have to look at how much we will need to spend, then keep RQS's budget in mind - she now has the cruising bug in her.  She can't afford to cruise as much as I can, and we try to go 50/50 on trip spending.

Unfortunately, I doubt that I'll be able to take either of these two cruises as Marian, given the unchecked power given to America's Customs and Border Control administration.  The Orange Snowflake has no love for us transgenders, and I don't want to be hassled by people who hate us.  (Luckily, I can still travel in stealth mode.) Hopefully, at some future date, I will be able to travel as Marian again.  Until then, it'll be stealth mode for me. 

How many of you have been to any of these port cities?  Did you like them?  Which cruise would you take?  Please let me know.... 

It's hard to believe that I booked another cruise already

I have a cruise coming up in 3 months, and both of us have another in 5.  Yet, RQS and I have just scheduled another cruise for the fall - this time to Bermuda, when both of us have a bucket list cruise to finish paying for.  AARGH!  Luckily, both of us can afford this cruise, but it forces us to think about the cruising/vacations we'll be taking in 2025.

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Normally, we don't see Free Pre-Paid Gratuities on NCL.  Its "Free at Sea" package does not cover gratuities - this means that we each would have to pay:

• Beverage Service Charge           - $152.55
• Specialty Dining Service Charge -  $19.80
• Daily Service Charge                  - $140.00

However, the deal noted above with Pre-Paid Gratuities (Daily Service Charge) made it worth the while to upgrade to a balcony cabin.  Yet, it's money that I wasn't planning to put out until after we returned from Europe.  

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Now that we've committed the better part of $15k to travel in 2024, what does this mean for 2025?  I'm not sure if RQS wants to commit to another bucket list trip.  Additionally, I'm not sure if our bucket lists are fully in sync with each other. This is not a big deal, as I see room for us to heck off a few destinations on each of our lists.

For example,  If one looks at the above chart that I maintain on a monthly basis, you'll see that I am looking to take either one of two Alaska cruises during the shoulder seasons.  Additionally, I am seriously looking at a cruise in Iceland, a cruise through the Panama Canal, and a Transatlantic crossing on the Queen Mary 2.  It's not practical to take more than one of these cruises in any one calendar year.  I'd like to take the Panama Canal cruise in 2025, as I expect that global warming will affect water levels in the Canal Zone. I can see us going to either Alaska or Iceland in 2026.  If we push the calendar into tracking 2027 cruises, I'll add a Hawaii cruise (or two) to this list.  Checking off bucket list destinations can get quite expensive, and I want to make sure that RQS enjoys the trips as much as I will.

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You'll note that we've also talked about river cruises.  These will cost even more than the ocean cruises we've been taking lately.  So instead, we might end up choosing to visit a city/region and exploring it for a week or so.  One of the places we've talked about going to is San Francisco before it implodes.  (A city that loses its tax base will soon neglect essential public safety and social services, and will be as crime ridden as New York was in the 1980's.)  Ideally, we'll find a place where I can go as Marian and both of our Texas friends would be willing to visit with us.  If not, we'll explore it on our own.  On our list of cities to explore are Seattle, New Orleans, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, DC.  (DC is always fun to visit, and it's a place where I've gone as Mario and as Marian.)

As you can see, travel is high on my list of things to do.  And I hope to do as much as possible while I'm healthy enough to do so.