Photography property of and copyright Atlantis Events

By Joan Sher

After this summer of record-breaking heat, I bet some of you are looking forward to the rains to begin again. But I promise you that when January rolls around, you will wish that the sun would re-appear and melt the ice. If you are one to plan ahead, you can be prepared for the cold icy weather that we are almost guaranteed to have this winter. Wouldn’t knowing that you are going on a cruise help the winter seem a little less long?

There are so many options to consider when you want to go on
a cruise. Some are budget, some are deluxe and there are many
in between. Some are made up almost exclusively of gays
or lesbians and some are for families made up of gay/lesbian
parents. And, if you prefer to go on one of mainstream cruises,
you can almost be assured that there will be other gays/lesbians
also traveling onboard. Today cruises are very diverse and there
is no reason to think that you cannot afford to go on a cruise or
feel that you will be out of place.

I will try to make the choices easier for you by outlining some
of the options.

If you are gay and prefer a charter cruise ship that will be
primarily other gay males, then you should consider Atlantis
Events.

If you are a lesbian and prefer a vacation primarily with other
lesbians, then Olivia is the company for you.

If you have a family and want to take your children, maybe
even your parents and grandparents with you, then you will want
to investigate RFamily Vacations. This is the company that Rosie
O’Donnell and Kelli O’Donnell are involved in.

Both Atlantis Events and Olivia both offer cruises and resorts
all over the world throughout the year. RFamily Vacations tends
to be more geared to vacations during the times that the children
are off from school.

Some of you may be wondering what if you don’t have a
partner to travel with, can you still consider going on one of
these cruises/tours, etc. Atlantis Events and Olivia will match
you up to with a roommate if you would like or you can travel
alone and pay a supplement for having your own cabin/room.
On any of their trips, you will feel comfortable being alone
as activities are geared to making everyone feel part of the
experience. This is the best place if you are single to travel with
others and make new friends.

So often, I have had clients who have resisted cruises for
various reasons, however, the two biggest ones are fear of
seasickness and afraid they will eat too much. Nowadays, there
are very good medicines that you can take to avoid getting
seasick and the newer ships have stability about them that it is
very unusual to feel sick. As far as eating too much (yes, the
food is delicious and plentiful and you have paid for it as the
prices are all inclusive), there are wonderful spas onboard to
counteract if you do overindulge. What one should fear, rather
than seasickness or overeating is getting addicted to cruising.
Many of my clients, once they have gone on their first cruise,
can’t wait to go on their next one. In fact, many sign up onboard
as there are often specials offered for your next cruise.

Speaking of specials, here is just one: Atlantis Events has a
cruise that is priced lower than it was in 2000. Now is the time
to sign up for that very special cruise to the best beaches in the
Caribbean from Miami January 17-24th. Just call me…remem-
ber my motto, Just Go Away and you won’t be sorry!!!