This was a fabulous experience! We DID it! We made the coolest friends! But as of today the fathom brand no longer exists, and Former President Trump severed our relationship with Cuba so we can no longer visit. It's truly a shame because we would have been so much better TOGETHER. I will leave the post here for your enjoyment - but it's truly obsolete.
A handful of my favorite pictures - please scroll through
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ORIGINAL POST BEGINS HERE:
Cuba closed it’s borders around the time Rob and Lynn were born – 1962.
Lynn’s parents went to Cuba on their Honeymoon in 1957 when it was considered “the Vegas of the Caribbean” and travel to there was cheap and easy!
According to recent pictures – it still looks the same………… Of course they have been keeping their automobiles in good shape because we make most of the mainstream autos and they couldn’t get any new ones from us! Excepting the autos – it totally reminds us of Old San Juan Puerto Rico – one of our most favorite places on earth!
Enjoy the Video – of Conan making a few Friends! While you’re at it picture yourself in Cuba making new friends in the very NEAR future! Because Rob and I were officially selected to take Fathom’s FIRST Travel Agent Educational Journey on May 15, 2016. After a lengthy application process we were finally notified that we had been selected. We are super excited because the Social Impact Cruising / Travel With a Purpose is exactly what Travel Like an Architect™ is about! “For life long learners who desire to see the world in a more meaningful way” is an integral part of our identity! The journey we will take is only the second sail date available, we are going with a group of travel agents to learn about this new brand so that we can be a great value to YOU. The booking engine is up and running and you can book the first one, or you can book the one we will be on or you can wait until we return and know all there is to know about it! Join our list to be notified of new information as it becomes available!
While the Obama administration has made it easier for Americans to travel to Cuba by reducing licensing paperwork, your trip still has to fall under certain guidelines, and your schedule can’t include unlimited and unsupervised activites. In other words, you can’t just be a tourist, which is what mainstream cruise passengers are considered. Be sure to use a travel agent when you book to make sure your trip qualifies!
The good news is that by purchasing a pre-arranged trip, like a Cruise – you can meet all the requirements! The best option we see out there right now is fathom! fathom is now BOOKING for voyages with the required programming, educational or humanitarian in nature, meeting the current guidelines. The first sail date is May 1, 2016. It’s not too soon to start planning your trip – you won’t want to wait until commercialism ruins Havana, and May of 2016 is just right around the corner!
Another great reason to choose a fathom Cruise, as opposed to a land based trip, it the infrastructure travels WITH you. Cuba still has product shortages. Electrical interruptions. Poor water quality. And the impacts that 50 years of isolation have brought to Cuba. By cruising, your hotel will follow you. You can rest assured that you will have a safe and comfortable place to call home during your immersion into the culture of Cuba.
I know many of our friends will ask first about Rum and Cigars! According to the U.S. Treasury, which has published a FAQ on the Obama Administration’s new trade guidelines, you can bring back $100 in alcohol and tobacco if you travel on an authorized trip from Cuba. Buying online or in Duty Free shops is still prohibited so I guess you have to go!!!
Belles World Travel is Proud to introduce
“fathom”
Carnival Corporation’s new brand!
Rob and I are always promoting really stepping into a culture – interacting with the people and learning about their customs and way of life
“Travel with a Heart” and an open mind!
What better way to do this than with what “fathom” is presenting?
Cruise to Cuba – Lend a Hand
Beginning in 2016, fathom will offer cultural exchange voyages to multiple locations in Cuba in order to enable more people to experience Cuban society. As a fathom traveler, you would have the opportunity to immerse yourself in the Cuban culture, from the comfort of your floating hotel.
The Adonia – formerly a P & O Ship!
*According to “fathom” below
Your cultural exchange voyage will begin on the Adonia, a 710-passenger ship set to sail from Miami, which is intended to serve as a comfortable home base throughout your journey.
The Horizon Is Only The Beginning
For the true traveler, the world isn’t just something to be seen. It’s something to be touched. Shared. Moved, in some small way, by the meeting of cultures and the recognition of a common humanity. And now, as fathom intends to expand to the island of Cuba, that world is about to become a little wider.
Beginning in May of 2016, fathom is offering cultural exchange voyages to multiple locations in Cuba in order to enable more people to experience Cuban society. As a fathom traveler, you would have the opportunity to immerse yourself in the Cuban culture.
Think Beautiful Cuban Architecture!!!
As with other fathom trips, your on-board journey will include an orientation to the country’s history, customs and culture, including guided sessions with the fathom team to share your insights, ideas, and opportunities about the future of cultural exchange travel to Cuba. On shore, you’ll put that orientation to good use as you get involved in people-to-people experiences that include a variety of cultural, artistic, educational and humanitarian activities.
As you share information, as you build bridges of positive human relationships and experiences, you’ll be in the first wave of a fathom experience whose ultimate goal is to help facilitate and sustain programs that meet the needs of the local communities.
The true value of your fathom cruise to Cuba will be to connect to the heritage of Cuba though an immersive program that encourages cultural, artistic, faith-based, and humanitarian exchanges between American and Cuban citizens. Purpose driven travelers will immerse, learn and flourish. The opportunities are many, and so are the possibilities. And your presence on this journey will help you understand the power of story, as well as encouraging the Cuban people to share their stories more completely with the world.
A fathom journey is about connecting to the wider world in a way that enriches understanding, and it’s about personal transformation, too. Most on-board activities will be not just a learning experience, but also a chance to explore your own depths. And a chance to spend some meaningful time with fellow travelers who share your view of a world where all people have the opportunity to reach their highest potential. Here is a description of your fathom Cuba Cruise from start to finish!
The January 16, 2015 amendment to the Cuban Assets Control Regulations makes it possible for U.S. citizens to travel to Cuba with authorized carriers offering people-to-people programming that facilitates educational, cultural, humanitarian, religious and artistic exchanges between U.S. and Cuban persons. Carnival Corporation & plc received its license in early July 2015 and intends to offer fathom cultural exchange voyages to Cuba in May 2016. For more information about the specific regulations, please review the FAQ provided by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. fathom is taking reservations from US and non-US citizens who are legally eligible to travel within the United States and depart from Miami. All passengers who join fathom cultural exchange voyages to Cuba will be required to comply with US authorized OFAC regulations.
*Excerpted from www.fathom.org above
Reserve your place in history. Book your Cuban cruise with Belles World Travel now.
This is the real Cuba, up close and personal. The one that, until now, you’ve only seen in photographs. Come with us on a pioneering cultural immersion cruise; experience the sights, the sounds, the tastes, and the rhythms of everyday life and meet the Cuban people, one on one.
Travel With an Architect™ on May 15, 2016
Ports of Call
Havana: Tour the old colonial city. Revisit the more recent revolution. Follow in the footsteps of Hemingway. Have lunch at a local restaurant. Dine, dance, and explore the city’s night life.
Cienfuegos: Enjoy private musical performances. Learn some local dances. Sample traditional cuisine. And see why Cubans call this cosmopolitan coastal city “The Pearl of the South.”
Santiago de Cuba: Visit the location of the Battle of San Juan Hill. Explore the 17th-century fort that guards the harbor. Immerse yourself in the cultural diversity of Cuba’s former colonial capital.
An Unforgettable Experience. An Unbeatable Value.
What’s included in your cruise fare? Just about everything. Meals. Daytime excursions and activities. A comfortable cabin. All the amenities of a modern cruise ship. And even more, when you book your trip now:
Book by April 30, 2016 for extra shipboard credits.*
If you’ve ever been involved in a cultural immersion trip of any kind you know
how much planning goes into it.
Just think – fathom does all the planning. Just pack and go!
Grasp this opportunity of a lifetime to join a group of like-minded people!
Join us and be among the first Americans to Cruise to Cuba!
Unfortunately this experience is no longer avaiable.
Be the First to know if
the opportunity to Cruise Cuba returns:
SUBSCRIBE all the way down at the bottom!
Rob and Lynn Belles are seasoned travelers and Travel Advisors – gathering up the best experiences on the Globe to share with you!
We travel to get away and to be together, to learn and to teach, to experience and become wise, to turn off the news and ignore the clock, to connect to the world in a peaceful way all while leaving a bit of our wealth with someone else who needs it more than we do. We know you could do this too or we wouldn’t be promoting it. Go ahead step out of your comfort zone and dream a little then let us show you just how affordable your dreams really are!
Call 815-516-0300 for travel quotes and more information!
SHOP: www.PlanningToCruise.com
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