Ok, so you guys convinced me to book a cruise for next year, instead of waiting til 2011 because of the good deals. So, DH and I are booked for Aug 26, 2010 on the Mariner - Athens to Istanbul through the Black Sea. Looks like a great itinerary, and we already know and love the Mariner from Alaska 2 years ago. Plus, I have a college buddy who lives in Athens, so we'll go in a day early to see her and Athens. We booked it through my new favorite travel agency - I can see why you guys rave about them - great service!

Here's the funny part - I was mentioning our plans to my parents and my dad got so interested, he called my new favorite travel agent, and might be on the cruise too! They've never cruised before, but are very well traveled. We didn't plan on vacationing with my parents, but we might end up with them...

The only wrench in the plan might be that next year is my grandparents' 70th wedding anniversary (the actual date is actually Aug 24, same as DH birthday!), and during the above conversation with my parents, I found out there will probably be a celebration of some kind. If it turns out to be more than a day or two I need to take off we could have a problem because of my limited vacation time (pesky jobs!). Obviously celebrating 70 years of marriage is going to take precedence over our cruise. Hopefully it will all work out and we can do both though.

Thanks guys for all your advice, and look forward to more questions as we get closer - you know I'm a planner so I'll want to figure out every detail! I can't wait to see it show up on my new rssc.com account!

:)
Liz

The Black Sea itinerary is absolutely sensational. You will love it. We did it last year on Navigator. Every single moment of it was special. We used private guides extensively. But the ship's tours were not included last year. And I can tell you everyone who took the ship's tours was delighted. You definitely made the right decision, IMO. And you'll no doubt be doing it for a lot fewer $$$ than we did. Pat

Yippee Liz! I think you picked a winner!

Yes, we loved it and the ship's tours were great. We especially loved Odessa highlights...the impressionist art museum is fantastic...the Russian Artists put the known masters to shame. It is a wonderful itinerary. While DH and I disagree, the 12 hour Bucharest tour is a must. He will agree that the tour guide was the best we have EVER had. There were 4 buses that went to Bucharest and all said their guides were the best. The Trabazon Monestary was terrific and Sevastopol, a real gem. If you love history, this is the tour for you.

I'm glad to hear from people who have been on this itinerary - prepare for tons of questions as we get closer (is it still a year away? - oh yeah, gotta earn the vacation days - blech)

Oh, and my parents did book it too (also through my new favorite travel agent)! That was a surprise! So much for our romantic getaway - at least they're pretty far down the hall from us!

:)
Liz