God I love this Guy! Another summer is winding down… Did you get away with your family like you planned? Maybe a camping trip – or weekend at the Dells? I used to think that only wealthy families got to go on real vacations. I knew lots of families that went to Florida, or to a lake house, or a campground. I guess that was the thing to do – like you know you made it when. And then I met Rob who introduced me to cruising. Their First Cruise! Cruising can be a great vacation de

Lynn in the Surf at Saint Martin Island Midway along a chain of islands in the Caribbean Sea referred to as the West Indies – lies an island called Sint Maarten, or was that Saint Martin? I was confused for a while not realizing that both were correct – but it’s not strictly a language distinction – the French govern the South and the Dutch the North segment of the island. The more important distinction is not “North or South”, “French or Dutch” but “Topless or Nude!” Topless

Cousin Mark and wife Amy from Boston A cruise is a great place to meet your long distance relatives for a multi-generational family get-away, a fun filled vacation surrounding a holiday (or not). Have a stress free holiday – where there is no work for anyone! Just love and laughter….with your long distance family members. Get-Away with Grandparents, Parents, Grandchildren, Aunts, Uncles, and Cousins. The best part about cruising is that nobody has to figure out how to enterta

To Travel Like and Architect™ you will want to travel in an unhurried and relaxed manner. This means NOT getting up in the middle of the night, rushing to get to your airplane, and arriving six to eight hours later at your destination totally exhausted! We have learned two great ways to start your vacation in a positive frame of mind for a top travel experience. First: Book a hotel room near the airport, with FREE parking for the duration of the trip. The cost of the hotel is

Suzee and Greg Gallello This started out as a post about making friends when you travel!  But then it evolved into a post about all the people we meet and lately they end up all being Musicians and Entertainers – everywhere we go!  Would you say we are finding our niche? When we travel we socialize, talk, listen, and make new friends. Our new friends may be hosts in a foreign port, other cruise passengers, or cruise ship staff.  We ENJOY them all.  Talk with the people you me

We’ve all heard the saying in real estate – the value is about location, location and location. Well when it comes to the price of travel it’s about the date, the date and the date. Choosing the right date can be the difference between affordable and not affordable. Travel Like an Architect™ and Take your kids on vacation during affordable dates. This week’s post is by our daughter Susan A. Belles, who missed about 40 days of her sophomore year in high school so she could go

Rob Belles trying on some leather shoes in Mexico When you Travel Like an Architect you will learn how the world works. It may come as a small surprise to many, and a little surprise to a few, but not everything is the same everywhere. Money is not the same – the value may not be the same, measurements are different (at least for us Americans). And daily schedules are not the same. As Dolly Parton sang “9 to 5,” five days a week, is the American norm. Rise, eat breakfast, wor

The McIntyres, Joni & Gary, Amy & Zack The entertainers on the ship have it good. They are someplace near the top of the food chain and always seem happy.  Our favorite to date is Mr. Greg Gallello,  who is just completing his contract on Holland America’s Eurodam this week. We met Greg in 2008 on the maiden voyage across the Atlantic Ocean of the Carnival Splendor. We spent 15 amazing nights in his piano bar feeling like we had known him for years by the end of the cruise. L

Suzee and Amy with their towel animals ready for “formal night” Not to mention that if you wait until the end of their Senior year it will be TOO LATE! What do you worry about when that thought enters your mind? You know, the thought of taking your kids on a cruise. If you’ve never cruised you might think, Oh my gosh, no. They might fall overboard. If you have cruised you might think, No way, it would cost a fortune. Traveling with kids isn’t easy  but it is most rewarding. O

To Travel like an Architect you have to have a plan – blueprint your vacation. After you book, you can do it yourself or get help from a travel professional.  There are different ways to go about it, depending on your learning style and preference. Here are some of the ways we do research about destinations for ourselves and our travel clients. Visual – if you are like me you can do this. Using Google’s browser, Chrome – Google the name of the city and country that you plan t

Rob, Lynn & Suzee Belles at The Third Millenial Cross Monument – Chile (Photo taken by taxi driver) Cruise ship taken from Millenial Cross You will make new friends — passengers, cruise line employees and people in exotic countries. Meeting people on the ship who love to cruise is easy, just eat in the dining room or pick a favorite bar. Recently we met The Merry Widows in the piano bar,  two fun loving ladies from England who were, in their words, “spending their husbands’ p

We can always find you a great seasonal travel deal!  There are times of any year when people just don’t need to travel. It is then that you can get the best deals.  Generally from about Christmas through Easter, or Spring Break, is when people will pay the most for vacations.  The industry knows this – after all – many parts of the northern hemisphere are very cold and unpleasant, so they charge as much as they can get during this time! Summer time is when families want to g