Smooth Sailing: Cruise Insights with I Got a Guy Travel

Ever wondered why cruises are hailed as the ultimate vacation experience for both thrill-seekers and relaxation lovers alike? Join us for an engaging conversation with Frank Bellino from I Got A Guy Travel, who went from a cruise skeptic to an avid cruiser. We unpack the unique appeal of cruise vacations, especially for those who need a break from daily chores, and address common fears and misconceptions. From ice skating rinks to water parks, you’ll discover why modern cruise ships are floating paradises.

Choosing the right cruise can be daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. In our chat, Frank provides expert tips on selecting the perfect cruise tailored to your desires, whether you’re dreaming of warm Caribbean sands or Alaskan glaciers. We delve into the specifics of various cruise lines like Royal Caribbean, Disney, and Virgin Voyages, ensuring there’s something for everyone. Plus, learn why shorter cruises are the ideal starting point for first-timers and get a sneak peek into the incredible amenities and activities that await you on board.

Safety and sustainability are key concerns for many travelers, and we’ve got you covered. Frank sheds light on the rigorous maritime safety standards and the evolving landscape of eco-friendly cruising. From gourmet dining options to themed nights and a variety of cabin choices, this episode unravels how cruises have evolved into a versatile vacation option for all. Tune in for insights on how to find moments of tranquility amidst the excitement and why cruising might just be the ultimate escape you’ve been looking for.

ABOUT MY GUEST:

Frank Bellino is your guy at “I Got a Guy Travel,” where he turns his passion for cruising into unforgettable experiences for you. As the founder and a certified Gold Travel Advisor, Frank has made it his mission to share the wonders of the cruise industry and create memorable journeys for his clients.

His journey into the world of travel began with a deep love for cruising. Drawing inspiration from his Italian heritage, he has dedicated himself to becoming an expert in the cruise industry. With multiple master’s degrees in travel advisory coupled with his expertise in river cruises, Frank strives to provide you with the best-informed choices for your dream vacation.

Frank is proud to be a member of the Cruise Line International Association and the American Society of Travel Advisors, ensuring he stays at the forefront of industry trends and innovations. As a police veteran and a military retiree, he will always been driven by service, and that dedication now extends to helping you discover the world through cruising. His commitment to integrity and putting your needs first sets his travel agency apart. Together, ya’ll can make your travel dreams come true.

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Transcript

Bee: 0:09

Hello everybody. This is Bee. I am here with Frank Bellino. He is. I Got A Guy Travel and we are so excited to get started. Talk about all things cruises. Alright, frank, let's go ahead, introduce yourself. Tell everybody what you do and why you love cruising so much.

Frank: 0:26

Hi Bea. My name is Frank Bellino. As Bea said, I'm from San Antonio, texas. I just turned 62 years old and when I was younger, I thought cruising was just for older people. Well, here I am at 62, and guess what I'm doing? No-transcript been traveling and I love to travel, love to experience new things, love to meet new people. So what is the best thing to do? And I've always been told that if you love what you do, it's not a job Right.

Frank: 1:20

So, after, after being on my first cruise and I said I love this, this is awesome and the experience that I felt, I said well, why don't I try to help other people cruise, as still as a way of service to people, to help them understand? There are a lot of people that don't know the cruise industry. There are a lot of people that are afraid of cruising. That's me, yeah. There's a lot of people that don't know the cruise industry. There are a lot of people that are afraid of cruising.

Bee: 1:47

That's me.

Frank: 1:48

Yeah, there's a lot of people. I don't swim, my wife still doesn't swim and she's been on several cruises.

Bee: 1:54

That's awesome.

Frank: 1:56

So there are plus and minuses to everything right, and what I tell people is try it. If you don't like it, I can put you on a three or four day cruise. If you don't like it, it's not the end of the world, right? But if you get on it and you love it, you're hooked.

Bee: 2:15

I hear that yes.

Frank: 2:19

You know, most of the time and I'm going to be a little sexist here a little bit but if my men go on cruises, you know we're used to being taken care of right. But when a woman goes on a cruise she doesn't have to clean, she doesn't have to cook, she doesn't have to do laundry. She just gets up in the morning and the bed is made for her and everything's done, and so they actually get to take a vacation, right.

Frank: 2:45

Yes that you go to a resort or you go to a hotel. We get into this land versus cruise thing, right. And so you go to the hotel. You may get the steward to come in, you know, after the day has started, after you've already gone out, you come back and the bed is made. Yes, that's nice. But to have a situation where everything is handed to you, you it's uh, it's actually the cruise industry and again, with with everything, it's what you make it.

Frank: 3:16

When you go on a cruise, um, there are a lot of people tell you oh, I had a horrible experience. Well, what was horrible about it? Right. And then, when you start talking to them, well, you could have had had a horrible experience. Well, what was horrible about it? Right. And then, when you start talking to them, well, you could have had that same horrible experience at the downtown hotel or at SeaWorld, or at Aquatica, wherever you wanted to go. So, absolutely, why only say one, only one portion of that? So I I tend to think that people make it your vacation what you want it to make it.

Bee: 3:47

Yeah, I actually I totally agree with that. That's kind of the way, like you know, if you're you're going through and even if you're picking a hotel or anywhere, you know you're just doing your initial research and you get in there and you start reading some of these reviews and you're like I don't know about some of these people. It's not necessarily the reviews they're leaving, but it's like what did you expect out of the vacation to be so disappointed in it that you know you're leaving this horrible review about it. So I totally get what you're saying with that. So basically, cruise ships are like this, these huge floating cities, right, like what's the most unusual and surprising thing that you've come across, that you're just like whoa, I had no idea this would be here An ice skating rink.

Frank: 4:27

Oh there you go On the Royal Caribbean, on the Voyager-class ships, they have an ice skating rink in the middle of the ship. They call it Studio B. They have ice skating shows, right Like you see Disney on ice, and you see, of course it's not disney, but it's they have these ice skating shows and then in between shows when they're not performing, you can actually get skates and skate yourself, and so that was pretty interesting for me. Um, yeah, and, and that's on a bigger ship, but I tend to like the smaller ships and you say big floating cities. Now, with the Icon of the Seas out there, which is another Royal Caribbean ship, they are huge. I mean, this thing is massive. You're talking about seven to eight thousand people, right?

Bee: 5:18

Wow.

Frank: 5:19

On a ship, and you know, I live in San Antonio, the town. I may not see people on the other side of town forever, right, but on a ship you're in a little more confined space, but still you're floating on something that's huge and, um, the mariner of the seas, the voyage of the seas, those are the smaller versions, right, so that each ship has a different niche that they cater to. I call the icon of the seas right now, a floating amusement park. Ok, and so it. It is actually got water parks and it's got slides and it's got oh yeah, it's got everything you could think on it.

Frank: 5:58

So that particular ship is massive and you can go online and you can look they now it's a big deal right now on social media where they post the icon when it's parked at, uh, one of the ports next to one of the smaller ships and you see the difference in size and it's like, and so those type of things, um, that people tend to to look at, uh, so, and then, of course, a bigger ship. You don't feel as much of the ocean, right, because at this place there's more water.

Frank: 6:30

So I know that that's one of the subjects we'll get to in a little bit, but I prefer the smaller ships. It's more intimate. You get more, okay, so less people. You have less staff, but the staff has more time for the people. Okay, you have less staff, but the staff has more time for the people, okay. So when you go to start conversing with somebody and you start to talk to somebody because, uh, most of the people that work on cruise ships are from different nations, they're from different countries, right, and so that interaction with somebody from the philippines or from indonesia or from africa or from, uh, wherever they're from, right that they happen to have that contract on this cruise ship. You're getting to experience a different culture, right. And, of course, when I tell them I'm from Texas, they want to know about Texas. We're big everywhere and so those type of things you know. First, you're from the United States. Well, I don't hardly ever have to tell anybody I'm from the United States. I tell them I'm from Texas, we're our own state, we're our own country.

Frank: 7:26

Yes definitely so. Those type of things I like. I enjoy talking to people from different countries. I enjoy talking to people from different areas of the world. It gives you a different perspective and you know the more that people tend to think we're not alike, the more we are alike when you start experiencing that.

Bee: 7:46

Yes, no, I totally agree with that. That's actually my all-time favorite thing about going on any kind of trip is meeting the people that come along with it. I can't tell you how many people I've come across that have been St Louisans, you know, and I'm like, hey, we're out in Jamaica and it's like, where are you from? Oh, I'm from St Louis. Oh, really, what school did you go to? So you know, it's just everybody, just knows everybody. It's just crazy how, like you've never met in your entire state and you probably have walked past each other a hundred times, but you end up at this one place that's all inclusive or cruise or whatever, and you end up making the best friends that hey, live right down the street from you.

Bee: 8:19

So, that's one of my favorite parts, for sure. So how do you choose which cruise to go on? Is it one of those things where you're just like you know what I'm going to the Caribbean this year Like, how do you pick For me when I'm talking?

Frank: 8:32

to clients, the best thing I do is say what is your experience, what is it that you'd like to do? Like I have a client, a particular client. She doesn't like the warm weather, she's not a warm weather person, so she wants to go to Alaska, she wants to go to Canada, she wants to go to Iceland, greenland, you know, north, she wants to go north. Okay, well, so I look for a particular cruise that goes north, that she likes. There's a lot of people that Hawaii, the Pacific, the Pacific, mexico, then you have the Caribbean, right, you have the Mediterranean, then you have the Caribbean, right, you have the Mediterranean. So you, after you talk to people we happen to call it qualifying people right, we're going to qualify. Do you fit? Do you fit? Is this going to work for you?

Frank: 9:14

because I do not want to send you on a cruise or any vacation that you're not going to be happy with, right, and it's back to what you make it. But if you're definitely afraid of the water and you're going to and it's just going to be horrifying for you to be on a ship, then why do I want to send you on a cruise when you're not going to be comfortable, right?

Bee: 9:35

That's true.

Frank: 9:37

So we talked about that a little bit is that I will say, okay, let's try a three or four day cruise first. Don't set me up to send you on a 10 day rainy cruise if you've never been on a ship, and then you're going to be horrified the whole time. You won't be able to enjoy yourself.

Frank: 9:50

I talk to people, get to know them, we chat, okay, what would you like to do? Oh, and this is what I would like to do. Okay, so each ship has its own niche. Okay, certain Ship has its own niche. Okay. Certain ships are for older adults, certain ships are for families. Certain cruise lines cater to different type of clientele, just like hotels, just like amusement parks, just like certain areas of certain cities. It's the same type of setup. The only all adult cruise line out there is Virgin Voyages.

Bee: 10:23

Okay, I didn't even know there was one. Yes, they're all adults, that's awesome.

Frank: 10:27

No, children have to be 18 or over to get on that ship. Now they're the only one right now. That's all adult. And they even have commercials where the kids are singing it ain't fair that you don't take us on a, you know.

Frank: 10:39

But so that particular cruise line, but it's very limited. There's only four ships right now and so they have different sailings and their sailings are spread more apart because they only have four ships. Where you take a Royal or you take a Carnival Norwegian Princess that have a lot of ships, you have more selection, right, princess? And I don't know how familiar you are, but Princess is the original love boat. If you remember the show from the 70s rights and 80s, the love boat show. That particular show was made on a princess ship and so ship they princess touts themselves as the love ship, right? So, love boat, they tend to cater to romance and you know so. Do you have some children? Yes, not as many as you would on a royal. Royal is completely dedicated, or they try to dedicate themselves to children, just like disney, right, I wouldn't send a young married couple with no children on a disney cruise. They wouldn't want to have children well, yeah, yeah, you're probably right.

Bee: 11:45

right, oh my, they wouldn't want to have children. Well, you're probably right.

Frank: 11:48

Oh, my God, we don't want to have children now. No, but that's just something that that you, when you talk to people, you know, hey, I'm going to take my two children, okay, well, let's look at what do your children like to do, because Norwegian has some ships that have go-kart tracks on them.

Frank: 12:05

Oh, that's awesome, yes and the go-karts will go 30 miles an hour. You're on top of the ship, so there are different ships for different strokes, different strokes for different folks, just like anything else. Right? What do you want to do? The new msc ship has a swing that swings out over the ocean.

Bee: 12:26

Nope, yep, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope. I'm sorry I can't do it. I love the idea of it, but nope, deathly afraid of it, but some people like it right. Yeah, absolutely.

Frank: 12:36

So if you're a thrill seeker there, is that kind of things that you can do. They have a ropes course on some of the ships that walk out over the ocean. Right, you're hanging on with the ropes on the planks and stuff, so you have those options. If you're an adrenaline junkie, we can do that too.

Bee: 12:56

So that's crazy. I never expected anything like that on a. I mean, like I've seen like the slides and the big ass pools and all that stuff, but I've never actually heard of swinging outside. That just seems crazy to me. I love the idea. I would totally watch, but I don't think I'd ever participate.

Frank: 13:13

Right, that's cool. So you talk about the pools for real quick. The pools aren't as big as you think they are.

Bee: 13:19

Oh, they're not Dang it.

Frank: 13:21

No, when you get a thousand people in that pool, it's not very big okay, yeah, that makes sense right, and so most of the ships have more than one pool. Even the ships that cater, like royals caters to to the youth, I think they still have an adult only area okay, perfect so you can still go lay out by the pool. You won't have kids running by and all that stuff, so they still have that area. Now certain ships charge you for an area like that extra right.

Frank: 13:52

So there there are, and you can buy the packages that include that. Um. So there's different avenues and it's just like it's if you get a good travel agent, they'll talk to you and they'll say okay, what is, what is your expectations? Are you taking children? You're not taking children. How old are your children? Because that makes a big thing too. A lot of the cruise ships have, uh, nurseries.

Frank: 14:15

They have children's programs okay, so that mom and dad can still have mom and dad time. I think it's royal, I don't quote me on that, but I think one of the ships. Now you can have dinner and dad time. I think it's royal, don't quote me on that, but I think one of the ships. Now you can have dinner and I would have to research, but you can have dinner and the kids can join you for the first hour and then the kids club personnel come and get the kids, so you have the rest of your dinner, just you two.

Bee: 14:39

Oh, that's nice, I love that. Not that I don't love my kids, but there are times where you're just like, especially on vacation, you're like can I just have like just a half hour Just to myself, for just a couple minutes.

Frank: 14:52

And see, this is the thing I was telling you about. For men, you know and not all men, I get it, but for most men, when they go on vacation, it's still the wife doing her wife job. She's still doing her mother job, right, it's still the wife doing her wife job, it's still. She's still doing her mother job, right. So the cruise ships have seen that and that's why they open these adventure oceans and kids clubs and they even have teen clubs where it's all the teens can go there, and they have their own little dance area and they have their own little video games and that, yeah, it's a whole setup like a youth center, that's going to be fun.

Frank: 15:25

Yes, so the kids really enjoy it. Now, if you get a, I would guess my daughter. She's just now turned 18. There between 16 and 17, it was kind of hard for her to get into anything, because they do have the teen clubs. But does a 17-year-old want to be with a 13-year-old? You know, if you get Right, so there's that little bit of difference. But usually the kids are easier to make friends right, so they tend to just hang out together. That works too. There is so much to do on a cruise ship that you wouldn't even believe. I mean from the time you get up in the morning to the time you go to bed at night. And then again different cruise ships Carnival Virgin, they tend to shut off at two or three in the morning. The other ships Norwegian Princess they tend to close down a little earlier, like at midnight, right, so that because they cater to a different clientele.

Frank: 16:20

Right Not saying, not saying that they don't have youngsters on there, not saying they don't have real old people on Carnival, but I'm just saying they care to a different class, right To a different class, and probably not the right word, but a different generation.

Bee: 16:34

Right, that totally makes sense. Like in my head, every cruise ship is the same and they all offer the same thing and they go to the same places and all of that. No, it's good to know that there's a complete difference between them yes.

Frank: 16:46

So now do certain ports only go I say only generally go to the same location because of distance, economy, travel time, travel patterns. So if you cruise and most of my cruises that I sell are out of Galveston, texas I'm in Texas, so most of the cruises out of Galveston go to Costa Mel, belize, honduras, mexico and then back to Galveston. They go straight down and straight back up.

Frank: 17:11

The cruise lines have kind of adjusted a little bit because people are saying well, we don't want to go to the same place every time, right, Right. Even though there's a lot to do in Cozumel Now, I'm very happy getting off the ship, going to the end of the pier where the Margaritaville is, and I'm happy sitting there.

Bee: 17:26

I love Margaritaville. Yes.

Frank: 17:28

That's my perfect place there, but for most people there are a lot of excursions shore excursions, right, and there are a lot of things to do in Cozumel. There's a lot of things to do in Honduras. Lot of things do in Belize Different beaches, there are things to do. But how many cruises can you go on and still see the same thing and then still want to go on that cruise? So now the cruise lines have started going east from out of Galveston and they'll go to Key West. They'll go to the private islands. Most of the cruise lines have private islands. Royal Caribbean's private island is like a water park, but they still have beaches and they still have cabanas, they have food on the beach and msc has their own island, carnival's open in their own island. So each one of them have their own niche, right, I'm going to go to. So now they've started going out of galveston over to their private island because they can control the financial part of it, right right, that makes sense.

Frank: 18:21

Yeah, instead of taking they dock at cozel, they got to pay a fee. The ship has to pay a fee port fees to dock in Cozumel. If they go to their own island, it's free yeah. They don't have to pay that, so those parts of it. And again what is it that you want to do? What is it that that you like to do? If you like to lay on the beach and that's your idea of fun, then I'm going to say well, let's go MSC, let's take MSC, go to their private island where they have the lighthouse.

Frank: 18:51

They leave you on the beach at night. The ship stays there. You get to have the beach party at night with the bonfire, that type of atmosphere. Now, if you want to go and you want to have a water park and you want to play with the kids, well then I'm going to send you to Royal Caribbean's private island. Right, so I'll put you on a Royal Caribbean ship. Royal has just opened an adult only section on their island. They're seeing what is coming, they're seeing what. Okay, we've built it up for kids. But now what about the adults that want to be on our ship, that don't have children? What are we doing for them? Well, now we're going to fix that. So each cruise ship, each cruise line, is doing that.

Bee: 19:30

That's smart on their behalf too, because I'm sure at least it sounds like the newer generations, like my kids and and then they're not really so big into having kids and they kind of just want to be, like you know, adults and live their adult life. So I could see how like they wouldn't be able to really cater to that that audience, because the audience doesn't really care about kids. So that's actually really smart on their behalf to do that kind of thing. So what would you say? The biggest misconception is then on a cruise, like convince me, cause I'm I'm one of those people that's scared to death of doing it. So I'm, of course, in my head I've got sharks swimming all around me and it's super dark and really scary. So what would you think would be like the biggest thing that you kind of you know butt into when you're talking to a guest or trying to plan that trip for somebody? Well, let me tell you.

Frank: 20:18

What do they ask about? The fear of the dark is going to be there.

Bee: 20:26

It's very dark at the ocean at night, got it, yeah. So that one you're okay. That makes sense to you.

Frank: 20:28

You get that one that makes I'm gonna get that one, because you but you're gonna see stars and you're gonna see stuff in the sky that you don't see on land, because that's probably true yeah so I would.

Frank: 20:40

I would tend to say are you an ecologist? Are you? Are you, do you? Are you somebody that loves nature? Because you're going to see things on the deck at night that you don't see. You know, you're going to see. You talk about trying to see the shuttle go across. Oh, you're going to see the satellites. You're going to see all this stuff at night on the ocean that you won't see on land. So that part of it.

Frank: 21:02

I don't think that we've had a major disaster with a cruise ship. Really, since the Titanic I think we had one over in the coast in the Mediterranean that tilted, that tipped, but that's only two out of how many cruises that have been out there all these years. Right, the cruise industry has been, when you think about it, driving on land and going to a land vacation, to a hotel, you got just as much danger as you are on a cruise ship. Right, it's true. And the cruise lines, believe it or not, have so much safety built into their organizations. You know the standard, the maritime standards that are in place. You have to have enough light boats to fit everybody. You have to have enough life jackets for everybody in their cabin Just the standards to make sure that you're safe. The captain's not going to put his captain's license in danger by taking you someplace that you shouldn't be that part of it.

Frank: 22:04

Yeah, are there unforeseen things that are going to happen? Yes, but you know what. That could happen with anything and you know like I think somebody I read on social media and I'm a big social media guy A lady was complaining that the air condition went out on the on the cruise ship and I'm like OK, so if you stayed at the Waldorf historian in downtown New York, there's not a possibility that the air conditioning could go out. Let's think about things like that that were before we start downing the cruise ship, for something Could have been anything right. The air conditioning goes out in your house.

Bee: 22:37

God forbid you know yeah. My house is the money pit, so I'm literally every other weekend. We're fixing something new, so I'm used to it at this point. So have you ever had, like you've encountered, rough seas, like has there been any swaying or anything like that? Because that's one of my biggest fears.

Frank: 22:59

Remember you're taking a, you're not on a life raft where you're going to feel every now.

Frank: 23:05

Are you going to feel a little bit of the waves when it gets a little rough? Yes, and people are going to post the videos of the stuff on and they're going to do that. Right, you know, I've seen them. Right, because it's not an everything, it's not an everyday occurrence. So those cruises may get a lot of publicity because it's not an everyday occurrence. If somebody walking down the front of your street right going on a walk, everybody's gonna look, say okay, no big deal, right. But if he's walking naked, what is everybody gonna do?

Bee: 23:36

oh my god right, that's a great point. I get you that makes.

Frank: 23:42

So what you see in those videos, yes, it's real, it happened. But that's one cruise out of 50 million, right? So is it? Is it likely that it could happen? Yes, of course. I also know that different times of the year, Right, seas are going to be a little rougher because the hurricane season. But, right, every ship has meteorologists, they have all the latest. They'll try to go around it, they'll. They'll get the ocean's big hurricanes don't fill up the whole ocean, that is true, right, so they'll go around it. Yes, you may miss a port because of that. People get upset about that. Man, I would rather miss the port than be safe.

Bee: 24:22

Right, yeah, no, absolutely Right, for sure. So if we're at sea for a couple days, what's the food like? Am I going to be bored eating or no? Oh, no, no, because I'm all about the food.

Frank: 24:36

Yes, I am too. You can't see it on the camera, but I don't miss a meal. They never called me late for dinner. But what I like about cruising is that if you want to sit down, you want to have a formal meal, you can do that, and they'll bring you to the first course, and they'll bring you to the second course, and they'll bring you to the third course and they'll fill up your wine glass or your beer, whatever you want to drink, they'll do that, for it takes two hours to eat dinner. You can do that, or you can go to the buffet and get anything you want. Everybody's happy, everybody gets to eat what they want, right from chicken nuggets to a steak on steak night when they're cooking steaks. I have not found a bad meal yet and I'm a foodie, so. But they also have the burger place. They also have a hot dog place. They also have the burger place. They also have a hot dog place. They also have a pizza place.

Frank: 25:25

So any kind of food that you could want on a cruise ship and you'll have people tell me well, the food was eh. Okay, you can go to McDonald's today and get an eh meal too, you know. So what again the thing about a cruise ship? If you don't like what they serve you, you can tell them I really don't like this, I'm going to go get something else. Oh, okay, and they're okay with that. Yes, yes, when you order at the main dining room, whatever the, they have three selections. Usually for the main meal, right On Italian night, it's lasagna, spaghetti and chicken Parmesan. Well, you can pick one of those three and if you get it and you don't like it, you can say, hey, can I try it and they'll bring it to you. Okay, cool, so you don't really, you're really not stuck starving, it's what you make of it right Now. And I've had people tell me well, I bring my snacks and I bring this and I bring that.

Frank: 26:19

Food is available almost, I would say, from the time you get up in the morning. If you go down to the coffee shop, they have pastries, they have this, they have that. You get your coffee, you have pastries. Then it's time for breakfast. You get your breakfast at the buffet or you can go to the dining room or one of the Johnny Rockets on some of the ships they have a Johnny Rockets restaurant. They have a guy's burgers they have. So there's. There's some big name restaurants that are also in the ships, so it's the same as any other restaurant when you go to it. Sometimes you get a good meal, sometimes you get a bad meal. Right for me, it's never, always bad now, I like that attitude yeah, I tend to be.

Frank: 27:01

I tend to look on the brighter side of things. Hey, I, I'm on vacation. Right? If I don't like this, I'm going to go get some pizza. Yeah, you know, if I don't like this, I'll go get a burger. If I don't like this, I'll go get a hot dog. If I don't like so, I'm going to. There's plenty of options.

Bee: 27:17

So I'm going to be able to eat. You're not going to starve. That's all that really matters.

Frank: 27:23

And if you get that hungry, there's cereal in the dining room so you can go to the buffet and get cereal, if that's what you know.

Bee: 27:29

Perfect, I'll find something Dang it.

Frank: 27:32

Yes. So the one thing that I was most impressed about on a cruise is that man, the desserts. Not so much how good they are, but the selection. Okay, you want chocolate, you want strawberry, you want lemon, you want pineapple, you want whatever you want, they have it Cookies, cakes, puddings, pies, everything that you want. If you've got a sweet tooth, you're going to be taken care of, even when you go down to, and usually they have a coffee place on the ship. They have the pies, they have everything there, so you don't have to go to the dining room to get that, but they always have something available, right? I love that Certain ships, certain cruise lines, cater to different people, different types of people, and like military, or to firefighters, policemen, nurses. Margaritaville at sea, big new ship coming out of Tampa, florida. It's the only one they got. Well, they got two, but the one out of Tampa is their newest one. Now they have free cruises for teachers, firefighters, nurses yes.

Bee: 28:42

That's really cool.

Frank: 28:43

Yeah, they want to reward their heroes. To me, it's something that is worth looking at, number one. Number two if you're a brand-new cruiser, are you going to be out? Is your taxes and port fees. Let's go find out, if you like it or not.

Bee: 28:56

Yeah yeah. That's a perfect way to test the waters, I think, is to hop on a free one. That's really cool. I've seen the Margaritaville boat. I believe I'm in a group on Facebook and I see it all the time. It pops up in my feed and I'm like it looks so pretty. I'm still kind of scared.

Frank: 29:12

No, no it is. It is a very. They just did an overhaul of their leadership over there. They had a ship that was was a three-day ship. It went from Miami to Bahamas and back. They just did their overall leadership change over there and they're making a lot of improvements. And, you know, I think this leadership team that's in place now would be happy or trying to make Jimmy happy, you know, in heaven, because they know he's watching Margaritaville. Jimmy Buffett was an innovator, he was a master at what he does and you know, being an old parrot head myself, he you know that guy was a visionary and with the Margaritaville at sea, the Margaritaville restaurants, the Margaritaville resorts, that's kind of my job, my motif, so I like that. So, yeah, I tend to like that. But I'm hoping that they expand. Now that they've kind of righted the ship and now that maybe they'll get more ships and stuff, we'll see, that'll be awesome.

Bee: 30:10

Yeah, so every time we go to Jamaica, there is actually a Margaritaville inside the Jamaica airport, and every single time I'm like we have to give myself an extra hour so I can have nachos there, because that's like my favorite thing. So the trip does not end until we go to Margaritaville.

Frank: 30:24

Nope, and my deal is I collect a t-shirt from every one of my Margaritavilles, so I have the Margaritaville from where it says what it's on. Surprisingly, I don't have one for Margaritaville San Antonio, but-.

Bee: 30:36

What You're going to have to make that happen. I go there all the time so there all the time. So well, you live next to it, so you're like I don't really need a teacher. I've been there before. Right, that's awesome. So do you ever find yourself like do you, first of all, do you ever do solo cruises at all?

Frank: 30:52

or you, you always go with your wife I always go with my wife or my family.

Bee: 30:56

Yeah, okay, and so no worries, I was just curious, yeah no, but I have a lot of customers.

Frank: 31:01

I have a lot of clients who are solo travelers Right now. Just my opinion okay, don't anybody get mad at me, but Norwegian has the best solo program. Okay, because almost every cruise line will charge you, for a single cabin, a double rate on a solo traveler. Norwegian, of course, they don't have a lot of solo cabins, but they have the solo cabins and they have them on. Those ships require the most solo travelers, if that makes sense. And so a solo cabin is, like I? I equivalent to a dorm room in college. If you had a single dorm room in college, it's just a little room. It's got a bed in it, it's got a shower in it, it's not very big, but you're not paying a lot of money for it either.

Frank: 31:51

Now they have also some of the other cruise lines are catching on and they're they're figuring this out, that there are a lot of people like to travel by themselves. Number one you don't get the headache of having to say, okay, let's get five of us all together to try to figure out what we're going to do, right, right. And so there's people that do travel by themselves, and I get it. And so some of the other cruise lines are now catching on and they're moving people around and and and moving things around so that they have the single rate cruises.

Bee: 32:22

Awesome. So have you booked anybody on a solo cruise? Have they? What's their feedback then?

Frank: 32:27

Good, well, okay, again, it's been Norwegian for me. Norwegian caters to the solo traveler. They have their own lounge. They have where they only the solos can get in there. Their key card is the only one to open that door.

Bee: 32:42

Right, that's cool.

Frank: 32:43

Yeah, so you're not going in there, and there's couples already. Well, I mean, some of them may be a couple, you know, but they may hook up by that, you know.

Bee: 32:51

They didn't come there as couples. They didn't come there, yeah.

Frank: 32:53

They didn't book the room as a double, so. But those type of things happen and so and they have. Almost every cruise line has a gathering of some sort during their cruise. It's catered like Norwegian does the solo travelers. They have their own lounge, right. But Norwegian also does something special for the veterans. Carnival does something special for the veterans. They have their own little meet and greet where you go to that. They announce it. Hey, if you're a veteran, you can come to this. It's an hour like social thing. We can go talk to somebody. One time the last two cruises ago I was on it we went to the military thing. There was two guys in there that I went that I served with. We were in the same unit. That's so cool, yeah. And we didn't know that we were cruising together, so that was yeah.

Frank: 33:46

So that was pretty cool and I got to catch up with them and we got to talk and we ended up later getting in the pool drinking a beer and you know. So it was that type of thing that you, if you don't know somebody's there, that you that's from your past, you may, you'll run into them. And then they have LGBTQ gatherings, they have Christian gatherings, they have Star Wars gatherings. They have different niches for different groups, right? Whatever you think that you would like to do, there's something.

Bee: 34:17

That's awesome. So have you ever been on a themed cruise before?

Frank: 34:21

No, I have not, but I have sent people on them. So I sent in fact I sent a couple that is good friends of mine. I sent them on the uh star wars cruise and uh, they loved it and oh, I bet you know people seems like it'd be a lot of fun.

Frank: 34:36

Yeah, uh, we are cruise I'm a, an affiliate of cruise brothers, and we have a contract with six man who does a lot of the theme cruises. Uh, they do a lot of the blues cruises, the, the, the country cruises, the. In fact they're. They're doing one that I'm promoting right now. It's uh, big and rich and gretchen wilson cruise and so there's a a christian music cruise, there's a hip hop cruise, there's a clothing optional cruise.

Bee: 35:06

They got one for everything. Huh, yes, got it, yes.

Frank: 35:10

That would would not be one that I would go on, but hey, I'm not judging. Yeah, I don't judge. If you want me to book it, I'll book it for you.

Bee: 35:18

But that's awesome.

Frank: 35:19

Yeah, it is not. That's not for me, so, but there are there. There is a cruise lifestyle for everybody. Um, I think that's one of the things I like about cruising that the industry itself has seen over the years the progression from it being a more formal type event, right, maybe when your mom and my dad and my mom and and and my grandparents my mom was an avid cruiser later on in her life and you know she's always packing her formal dresses and stuff like that and I'm like you know that's not, yeah, I don't want to go on vacation, have to dress up every night to eat, you know.

Bee: 35:59

I agree with that Right.

Frank: 36:01

So now and then, at least one night, I think, but not every night, right so they, the cruise, the cruise line has has opened up and lightened up a little bit and, uh, you know, for men, if you wear a polo shirt and slacks, that's good enough. You know, now they do have formal nights, they have theme nights. On every cruise. They have theme nights, uh, from the 70s, and I wish I could show you some pictures, but we dressed up for the 70s night oh, I bet they're great yes, we have a formal night where you dress up in, in you know your suits and your ties, and texas and the women are on um they.

Frank: 36:38

On one cruise we were on, they had a 20s night where okay the women were dressed up like flappers right, and the men were on their gangster outfits.

Bee: 36:46

That's awesome.

Frank: 36:48

So they have different nights white night, where everybody wears white, on Virgin Voyages. They have scarlet night Everybody wears red. So what you do is you go on social media. How do you find out? You go on social media and almost every sailing has its own group, its own Facebook group. So you join the group and then somebody from the group is the organizer, right, and they'll go find out what the theme nights are going to be for your cruise and they'll list it and they'll show you If you get into the group far enough in advance. What they do is they say and I'm Italian, I'm sorry, you'll see my hands.

Bee: 37:25

You're fine, I'm the same way.

Frank: 37:26

Yeah, so you'll see people that have been in a group for a while and they get to know each other. You know, talking back and forth, they'll plan an excursion. Well, they'll all go to the beach together, okay. That's kind of neat. So that's kind of neat. So you start making friends before you even go on the cruise.

Bee: 37:43

Okay.

Frank: 37:44

And so this is the cruise industry evolving. I believe, right, I believe that, and I think that there's still going to be improvements. I think there's still going to be changes, all of them. Everybody's going to like no, you're never going to please everybody, right, right. But again, remember, it's your vacation, don't you.

Frank: 38:08

It is what you make of it. Dang it. Yeah, don't rely on somebody else for your happiness. You know you wake up every morning. You wake up every morning, you look out and you see the sunrise and you see, you know ocean water and you know you just like man.

Bee: 38:16

Yeah, I bet it. I bet it is very um breathtaking. But yes a little scary, not going to lie to you. So when you're booking you personally, what kind of cabin would you prefer? Do you like the indoor or the? What are the balconies? Which one do you prefer?

Frank: 38:32

Right. So different cruise ships again, name them different. But for me, for my money, I've been on balcony, I've been in interior, I've been in the ocean view, I've been in a suite. The amenities that you get with the different rooms and that's kind of the interior room being the lower end room, right, the stuff that you saw on the Titanic video right, they're inside, right. I equate that to a hotel room no frills, no bells, no whistles. But how often are you going to be in your room? That's the other question I ask you.

Bee: 39:09

Not very often.

Frank: 39:10

I usually shower and sleep, and that's about it so if that's all you're going to be in your room for, then an interior is going to do you fine and you're going to save yourself $300, $400, right, okay. Three, four hundred dollars, right, okay. If you are a little claustrophobic like me and you gotta have and you gotta, you gotta be able to see outside, which I I love, I'll take an ocean view. I'll pay the extra hundred or two hundred dollars to have an ocean view room. I don't need to go outside. If I want to go outside, I'll go out my room room, go upstairs, go out to the deck and I'll be outside, right, so it's only a few feet away.

Frank: 39:46

There are cruises that, if you catch it just right, you get the same room the same price for an ocean view or a balcony. Okay, maybe I'll take the balcony right. Or, if it's just a hair fraction Now, there are some cruises that, if you catch them at the right time, the balcony is cheaper than the ocean view. Oh, ok, again, your travel agent who's doing your research for you, so you don't have to do it.

Bee: 40:11

I got a guy travel, that's right. That's my agent.

Frank: 40:14

Yes, so if you're doing, if I got a guy travels looking for you and I'm looking and I'm saying, oh OK, so you're a little scared of the water, right. I'm saying, oh okay, so you're a little scared of the water, right, I'm not going to put you on an interior, because one of the things about it is, if you can't see, that's going to make your anxiety even up higher. So I'm going to at least put you in an ocean view or a balcony, right, and if you can spring for a suite, you might like the perks of a suite. Right, some of the suites. You have your own butler, you have your own wine service at night.

Bee: 40:48

You have your own lounge.

Frank: 40:50

You have your own dining area, so there are some upgrades in a suite life uh, they call it a ship within a ship experience. Okay, that you may like that you may. You may desire to pay for. Now I will tell most people if this is your first cruise, don't spoil yourself, because then you're going to be able to go back. You're right, you're going to want to do that every time and you may not be able to afford it, right?

Bee: 41:15

I'm very honest, I'm very upfront.

Frank: 41:17

I tell people exactly what I think when I'm. When I'm, I don't try to upsell you, because the way I feel about it is, if I can get you in at the best price, you enjoy the trip where you're going to come again. If you go and you hate it, you're never going to see me again. You're never going to want to talk to me again. I don't want you to hate it.

Bee: 41:36

You and I would not get along afterwards. Right, exactly Right.

Frank: 41:39

You see me on this miserable trip and again, it's how you made it, but yeah, right. Because I signed up for that's right and I talked to you and I told you this is what. This is what we're going to do. So for the most part, I tried to at least start people in Ocean View if they've never been on a cruise before. Now. There are some areas of the cruise like if you're going to alaska, gotta have a balcony.

Frank: 42:07

I would say yeah, unless you've been to alaska before, and this is not something. But just to go to alaska, be able to sit on the balcony, look out at the scenery and drink your coffee in the morning with your jacket on or your blanket wrapped around you, there's just something about that that is not only romantic but it's exhilarating, right, because that's what you signed up for to go to Alaska. If you've never been to the Mediterranean, right, and you can sail and see the blue houses and the orange houses and the green houses, I want to put you in a balcony where you can see that, right. But if you say, hey, I've been on five Mediterranean cruises, okay, well then, maybe you'll get, maybe an interior will work for you. There are people that like the interiors because it's dark, you're closed in, they feel comfortable, they know that they're in the middle of the ship, there ain't nothing going to get to them. So again, anxiety level. I take all that into consideration when I'm talking to you about what do you like, what would make you happy? And if you're happy looking out a window, okay, we're good. Right, I'm going to put you in an ocean view. That's awesome.

Frank: 43:18

Those are just things that we do as a travel agent and that's why people that have never been before on a cruise, I recommend they talk to a travel agent. And that's why people that have never been before on a cruise, I recommend they talk to a travel agent. You know every travel agent. I know their service is free, it doesn't cost you anything. And I don't really call myself a travel agent. I call myself a travel advisor because I'm going to advise you on what my experiences were, what I've researched, what I've studied. I have industry degrees they call them from different cruise lines, from different hotels, resorts, so that I know their product, I know what they sell, I know what they master in and what they don't master in.

Frank: 43:58

And if you're not a big party, jimmy Buffett head, why would I send you to Margaritaville when you're really not? If that's not your motif, right, that's not anything you like, that's not something I would do. So that's again, as a travel advisor, that's what I would do. I'd say, okay, you want to really stay there? I'll tell you, but this is what it's going to be like. So then, when you call me and say man, all I did is play Margaritaville every night, where are you?

Frank: 44:29

at I told you yeah, where are you at Right. So those type things.

Bee: 44:35

I love that, the honesty. I think that's what makes a great travel agent advisor. All of that is somebody who could just be blunt with you and say, look, are you sure you're gonna want this? Because I have some wild ideas sometimes where I'm just like, yeah, let's go blah blah and they're like, okay, wait, maybe you should stop and think about what it is that you're trying to do and let's talk through it. And then I'm usually like, okay, you're right, maybe it wasn't such a great idea.

Bee: 45:00

But so I I actually love that. Um, we're beachside banter with b, so we got to bring up some sort of beach talk, right?

Frank: 45:07

so what?

Bee: 45:08

what has been your favorite cruise where you visited a beach and what has been like a hidden gem for you that you would recommend?

Frank: 45:15

I like any beach with white sand and blue water. Okay, you know, charles, I don't know if you're familiar with the charles barkley thing with galveston, and he's talking about how dirty the water is there and I was on. You know he does the basketball for TNT, for the NBA, right? Yeah, and it was funny because we went on a cruise. We went down to Cozumel our very first cruise, and we got off and we went to the beach there at a place called Mr Sancho's and it's an all-inclusive beach club, right? All the food, all the drink you could drink.

Bee: 45:56

I'm six foot two, I'm to my neck and I can still see my feet in the water. That's awesome.

Frank: 46:04

That's my idea of a beach, right? Yes? Well, we get back to Galveston. We get off the ship, we're cruising down Shoreline Boulevard in Galveston and we're looking out the water that's brown and we're like we'll never look at Galveston the same.

Bee: 46:21

Now I understand what Charles Barkley was talking about.

Frank: 46:25

Yes, exactly. And so when everybody was making a big fuss about it. I was like, yeah, not really wrong, but you know being that. But but I am a Galveston advisor. I do love Galveston the beach. In comparison to a to a Cozumel, or to a to a Honduras or Belize, no comparison, yeah.

Bee: 46:46

No, I definitely get that Go ahead.

Frank: 46:48

And I have gone back and studied. Why is it that Galveston in particular has brown water, but yet you go right across the Gulf to Tampa, florida or to Pensacola and the water is blue. Well, come to find out. It's the drainage from the Mississippi River that drains in and the way the coast it brings the dirt back from the sediment from the river when it jumps into the Gulf of Mexico that the waves carry it to Galveston.

Bee: 47:19

Huh, well, I'll be, darned. I had no idea. I knew there had to be something, some sort of.

Frank: 47:23

Thing.

Bee: 47:23

Because I haven't personally been to Galveston but I've seen pictures of it. And it's been one of those like oh well, you know it's within driving distance, so maybe we can make it there one day. But we've also gone to like Orange Beach and Gulf Shores.

Frank: 47:36

Yes.

Bee: 47:36

And those are also kind of dirty a little. Yes, you've got to remember where they dump? I don't love it, it's a beach.

Frank: 47:42

Right, but you've got to remember the Gulf of Mexico. The Mississippi River dumps right there in New Orleans, and so the sediment comes down, but yet it is pushed back up by the ocean. That makes sense. So it's pushed right back up to those and then by the time it clears back to Florida right, it's already cleared out. All the sediment's already settled again. Clears back to Florida right, it's already cleared out, it's all the sediments already settled again. So that's why the Florida beaches are blue and sandy and we're muddy and dirty.

Bee: 48:11

It's so hard to go from like because we started out Orange Beach Gulf Shores and then we've made our way over to, like you know, jamaica and Belize, and then we've kind of also went over to French Polly and now it's like, you know, jamaica and Belize and then we kind of also went over to French Polly and now it's like I just don't know if I ever want to do another US beach again. Not that there's anything wrong with them, but I know what a beach really looks like now. So it's kind of hard.

Frank: 48:36

And if you go down to South Beach, miami, that is blue, that's blue and white.

Bee: 48:42

Oh, absolutely, yes, yes.

Frank: 48:46

So there are some us beaches that I love.

Bee: 48:49

Uh, key west is also really, really pretty too.

Frank: 48:52

I love key west love key west, so I could see myself living there for a while and being okay with it. Yes, and, and I have looked into that, but it's very expensive oh, yes, very.

Bee: 49:03

I mean, it's expensive even just to visit. Yes, yes, part of my vision, mission values all of that is to have purposeful, sustainable travel. So how are cruise ships kind of going towards that, because everybody's trying to do like sustainable, more green energy and that sort of thing? Do they have that? Are they taking that into consideration?

Frank: 49:26

They are very well much working for that. Clia, the Cruise Line Industry Association, has just put out a study Don't quote me on the year, but I think by 2030 or 2050. Because a cruise ship lasts about 20 years, okay, so the new ships coming out now are all natural gas, right, oh, okay, yes, cool, and they are now making them where they can plug into the electrical grid when they're parked at port so that they're not burning oil and energy there at the port. Okay and so, but because of the years of service for a cruise line, I think it's 2050. I think I would have to research it, but I think by 2050, all of the ships in every fleet will be eco-friendly.

Bee: 50:25

Awesome. I love to hear that. It makes me feel good to know that people are actually caring a little bit about the environment and trying to change things. And here's the thing.

Frank: 50:36

MSC's Island in the Bahamas. That was actually a toxic waste. They actually was a trash dump and they have cleaned it up. They have turned it into a beautiful pristine island and they've built reefs for the fish and for the wildlife. So they've done some things and every cruise line is trying to do that. The main purpose people go on a cruise is to go see that kind of stuff, right, right, because they want to see the blue waters. They want to. Well, if we don't take care of that, if they don't take care of that, it's not there anymore. People are going to stop going. I mean, they don't want to go and see trash, they don't want to go and see, right, toxic waste floating in the water. So the cruise lines have done their part, are doing their part. Are there slips up? Yeah, there's slip ups and everything, but for the most part they are working to do that in a better manner.

Bee: 51:40

That's awesome. I'm glad to hear that they're actually taking that like I said into consideration and they're trying to make things better. Because, you're right, when I go to look at a beach, I'm there to enjoy the sand, the beautiful little fishes that are swimming around, all of that sort of thing. And if that's not there, then why am I even going? What's the point? So where do you see the future of cruise ships going? How do you see them evolving?

Frank: 52:07

Well, right now it seems like the push is for the bigger ships, and I kind of get it, in one sense because the cruise lines are trying to make themselves an all-in-one destination.

Frank: 52:21

Right, you're going to get on this icon of the season. If you haven't seen it on social media, my God, it's huge. But you know, I call it the amusement park at sea. You're going to this destination, which is a cruise ship, but yet you're getting Broadway shows. Yet you're getting water park, yet you're getting the flight simulator where you're like skydiving park, yet you're getting the flight simulator where you're like skydiving. They have rock wall climbing, they have the ropes. Course, they have all this stuff on that one ship. Uh, they, they even have food trucks on the ship, right, wow, uh, one of the most unusual things I saw when I first got on the ship uh, my very first cruise is there was a car right In the promenade, in the center of the ship, and it was a full-size car, it was a Bentley.

Frank: 53:11

But you realize how huge this ship is, and so the comparison of a car in, you know it's only taken up In.

Frank: 53:23

You know it's only taken up. You know that much space, right, so you realize that you're on this immaculate, big, huge creature, right, and when you look up in the elevator bank and you can see, you can forget that you're actually in a ship, right, because because of the size and then, uh, you know, going back to what we were talking about a little bit ago, is that how many different music venues? Right, because we talked about music a little bit. But there is a bar and you don't have to drink, I'm not just talking about the alcohol, but there is a bar with every type of music that you could like. If you like calypso music, if you like country music, if you like folk music, if you like piano music, if whatever kind of music you like, there's a bar for it. Maybe only during a certain time, right band may come on and play a certain type of music for a while, they go off and then the next band that comes on plays a different type of music. So it may be limited, but there's everything that you could want.

Bee: 54:27

That's really cool. I'm not going to lie to you. You've got me a little excited about cruises. I never in a million years would have thought that I would feel this way, so I got to give you props for that For sure. Wow, this has been such a great time. I've learned so much from this conversation. I really truly have um, what's? Let's? Let's kind of leave it off with like, what's the most unexpected joy that you have found in cruising and what is it about them that keeps you coming back for more?

Frank: 54:54

okay. So one of the things that we do as a couple me and my wife is we decide that when we get on, we have our routine right. We're going to get on the ship. We've passed through customs, we've passed through the checkpoints, we've got on the ship. The first thing we do is we go get our first vacation drink on the ship Pina Colada, margarita, whichever, strawberry, daiquiri we're getting our drink right. That's our official get-together. We're getting our drink right. That's our official get together. We're now on vacation together type thing. And we'll go find some place when we do our security check-in, do our mustard station, and we'll have to come back and visit that in a little bit, because that's all you know.

Frank: 55:35

If I have to tell you about the process, then oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah so then we, and then we go get our mustard and we do that, and then we go find a place that we call our calm spot, ok, away from everybody, right, you can always find a spot on a ship, no matter where, where you can sit and find peace. There's all kind of chaos everywhere, right, there's all kind of chaos everywhere, right, but you go find that spot on the ship where it's the air, it's the ocean, it's the smell, and it you can reconnect to yourself, reconnect to your mate. Just okay, now, after we found our spot, then we go explore, explore it Okay.

Bee: 56:23

Now it's time to party.

Frank: 56:25

Now it's time to find out where we're going to. Okay, so we go walk around, we look at everything, but we take a time each day to go back to that one spot. Did you experience anything yesterday? We need to talk about that. Did I experience anything yesterday? Because it's always good to reconnect right, and if you're by yourself you can do the same thing, right, yeah, absolutely.

Frank: 56:43

Find your spot, take your favorite book, take your Kindle, whatever it is that grounds you and go spend 30 minutes to an hour of your of your 23 hours on that ship, right, and just take your time to be yourself, to reconnect yourself. That's what vacation is about, right? Vacation is a time for you to reflect and and to, to regroup and and to regather and to enjoy yourself. If you're taking that hour and some people like the chaos, right, that's their.

Bee: 57:16

That's their grounding I'm in the chaos, but I'm not that person.

Frank: 57:20

But get it, yes, but yes, but if you are, then that's fine. But on a Voyager class ship, right outside of the schooner bar, they always have chairs right and it's on the walkway toward the back of the ship and not very many people walk the ship right. Once you're in the day after the first day, everybody walks the first day After the first day. They all find their own little place. They're going to go and they're not going to walk.

Frank: 57:46

So we find our little place and we just sit there and it's. We look out at the ocean and and, and we get up and we go look and we just feel it in the breeze blowing and you know it's just a time to go and I fell asleep out there. You know that's how quiet it is. That's awesome. But that is something that we do. We always can go back. You can always go back to your cabin, right, you can always do that. We're usually in an ocean view cabin, so we have none of that outside air coming in. So I guess if you have a balcony, you can go sit on your balcony.

Bee: 58:23

It could be a good place to decompress.

Frank: 58:25

Right. So there's always somewhere on a ship, the back of the ship, on some of the ships, you know, looking at the wake of the ship. That's a beautiful place. You'll see a lot of pictures on social media where people go take pictures of that place because it's very peaceful. Like I said, cruising for me is it's an all-inclusive, it's a real all-inclusive. My wife says we get to visit three places and unpack once, okay, yeah, that's great Sometimes it's more than three places, depending on the length of sailing.

Frank: 58:59

We like cruising so much, we've got three scheduled this year. We like cruising so much, we got three scheduled this year, love it.

Bee: 59:05

So you basically look at cruises the same way I look at just going to the Caribbean and exploring little countries. That's my favorite thing. I don't know what it is about it, but it kind of brings me back to my roots and it makes me feel like I'm grounded. I don't know, there's something so calming about it, so I love that. So you're going to one island and I don't know there's something so calming about it, so I love that.

Frank: 59:24

So you're going to one island and I can get to four islands.

Bee: 59:26

Yeah, yeah, but I will say that I get to explore a little bit more of that one island than you do. That's it. That's the only like difference between the two.

Frank: 59:35

Well, now it depends, because some of our cruise lines now will stay overnight.

Bee: 59:40

Oh, okay.

Frank: 59:46

I didn't know that was a thing. Yes, so, and and it basically came from the mediterranean, that the ships that go to the mediterranean, they, they originally started that like, they'll be for a night in rome, they'll be for a night in barcelona, they'll be for a night in athens, they'll be for a night in palermo, so and they'll spend the night there, right, so that you can actually enjoy the culture of the nightlife on those type of cruises. They're now doing it. Most of the cruise ships are now doing it at their private islands where you can have the bonfire beach and stuff like that. So there are options out there, like it'll say extended stay or overnight stay. Uh, it'll tell the the travel advisor. So in your case, where you like to do that, your travel advisor would say oh, look b, we have one that stays overnight in turks and caicos. We said one that stays overnight in turcos, right, and so those, those would be the ships. Now, those are usually longer sailings right?

Bee: 1:00:40

well, that makes sense if they're going to stay overnight.

Frank: 1:00:41

So those are usually your 10 11 day sailings, nine day sailings, and then, well, that makes sense if they're going to stay overnight. So those are usually your 10, 11 day sailings, nine day sailings, and then again depends on which port you go out of and all that stuff. But again, a good travel advisor will talk to you and know what you want to do.

Bee: 1:00:54

That's awesome. Well, you know that you're my new travel advisor, that is for sure.

Frank: 1:00:59

I got a guy to travel.

Bee: 1:01:00

He's my guy.

Frank: 1:01:01

That's all I have to say about that.

Bee: 1:01:02

So that's awesome. So, real quick I'm going to go ahead. We're kind of running out of time a little bit. Just want to kind of give you some time to plug your business, your socials, all that stuff. So, yeah, tell everybody where to find you, okay.

Frank: 1:01:16

So I got a guy, and one of the things we were going to talk about is where it came from right and so my Italian heritage. I got a guy. Italians have a guy for everything, so got it I. So when you, when you hey, uh, I need my Texas, then I got a guy, hey, uh, I need, I got a guy, I got a guy. Well, I got a guy travels here, and that's all came from my Italian heritage and also came from my Christian study, my Christian belief that I got a guy in Jesus.

Frank: 1:01:46

And so he's my man and and, and I know that I wouldn't be doing anything without him. You can find me on Facebook, you can find me on Instagram, you can find me on Tik TOK. Uh, I got a guy. Travelcom is my website. The website is kind of just a push page. There's really not a lot of sale information on it because it changes so much. Facebook is more of the place to catch the sales, the latest trends coming out. The Facebook page is overview of the cruise industry, the different cruise lines, a little bit of history on me, my certifications. That's where it is, but.

Frank: 1:02:24

I got a guy who travels everything. I don't know if you can see it here, but my logo came. I developed this myself, so I'm pretty proud of it. It's got my little Italian flags on it. We specialize in cruising, but we do everything. I've done a lot of land packages. Like you were saying that you'd like to go to certain islands, I've done a lot of land packages. Like you were saying that you'd like to go to certain islands, I've done that the Bahamas, mexico, cozumel, cancun. I booked one last night of a person wanting to come to San Antonio.

Bee: 1:02:56

Oh, there you go For their vacation Okay.

Frank: 1:02:59

So there are those options. If cruising is not for you and you're definitely like I've been on a cruise and I don't like it, okay, I would suggest let me set you up with a three, four-day cruise, If you like it. It's not the end of the world, If you love it. Well, now you know what it's about.

Bee: 1:03:19

Now you're officially a cruiser.

Frank: 1:03:20

That's right, that's awesome.

Bee: 1:03:23

Well, thank you so much for taking the time to talk to me. Like I said, I learned a lot, and I do believe you might actually have me convinced that I might take a cruise one day. So that's huge because I've been totally against it my whole life. So I love that.

Frank: 1:03:41

I'm going on a four-dayer in July out of Miami going to Key West, going to the Bahamas, going to the private island and back to Miami. Four nights, that's awesome.

Bee: 1:03:49

And you're going to post tons of pictures so I can look vicariously through you.

Bee: 1:03:52

Yes, I am Love it, awesome. So, all right, you all you heard it first straight from I Got a Guide Travel. If you're looking for any kind of travel advisor whatsoever, he is your man. You can reach him on social media Facebook's, where I found him, that's where I see him the most, so I definitely suggest that platform. And, yeah, if you have any questions, reach out to him. I'm sure he's more than happy to answer those for you. He's got a great personality, tons of full, tons, tons of information inside that brain of his, so I love that. Thank you so much, frank, I appreciate it.

Bee: 1:04:26

I'm sure we'll keep in touch and have a great day.

Frank: 1:04:29

A great long weekend.

Bee: 1:04:30

Enjoy and thank you for your service as well. I appreciate all that, so talk to you soon. Have a good one. Bye-bye.