Avid Travel With Britton Frost

Last month, I sailed the Danube with Avalon Waterways. During the sailing, I sat down with Cruise Director, Istvan, to chat about the Danube, Avalon's Active & Discovery program, and more. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last month I interviewed Pam Hoffee, President of Avalon Waterways. We sat down to record a three interviews that we will feature over the next few weeks.  In our first segment, Pam and I chatted about her recent trip to Egypt to cruise the Nile. We talked about Avalon's exotic itineraries and other "once-in-a--lifetime" trips, like Avalon's Mekong itinerary (though Pam has taken this voyage multiple times). Join us for the first a series of interviews with Avalon.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week I am joined by AmaWaterways Co-Founder and Executive Vice President, Kristin Karst. Kristin and I sat down to chat about her latest journey to Europe, as well as how AmaWaterways will welcome guests during the holidays. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As river cruising finally seems to be returning to normal, so will our podcast.  This week I am joined by Marilyn Conroy from Riviera River Cruises. Marilyn gives a great overview for those who are unfamiliar with Riviera and also shares an exciting promotion on Riviera's 2022 sailings.  Contact me: britton.frost@gmail.com VOTE FOR BEST RIVER CRUISE COMPANY: https://www.10best.com/awards/travel/best-river-cruise-line-2021/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There was no one that made traveling during Covid easier than our cruise manager, Martina. During my time on AmaSiena, Martina handled everything that we needed in order to pass freely from country to country by getting us paperwork, filling out forms, and even translating documents for the guests on board. I sat down with Martina as our cruise drew to a close to ask her about her first trip back as a Cruise Manager since before the COVID-19 pandemic. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week join I am joined by the CEO of UnCruise Adventures, Dan Blanchard. UnCruise is an adventure cruise company offering itineraries that sail North and South America.  I sat down with Blanchard, who joined me from his office in Juneau, to talk about what you can expect on an UnCruise adventure, as well as the company's experiences in Alaska and beyond.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week I am joined by MSC Cruises' EVP and COO, Ken Muskat. Over the past year, MSC has been successfully operating ocean cruises in the Mediterranean making it one of the only large ship ocean cruise lines to resume service in 2020.  Muskat sat down to talk with me what we can expect to see for MSC this year. On the heels of the company's simulation sailing on MSC Meraviglia, Muskat gave a great visual of what life onboard will look like when MSC resumes operations next week. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week I am joined by Marilyn Conroy to talk about Riviera River Cruises. The UK-based river cruise company is still relatively new to the American market, but in Conroy's own words, "[Riviera] offers a top of the premium line product, but where prices are less than premium." Because of its affordable cruise fares and amenities, the company has been busier than ever the past few years as it has introduced itself to the American market. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last week's podcast: https://omny.fm/shows/avidtravel/taucks-2021-river-cruises Past Tauck podcasts:  https://omny.fm/shows/avidtravel/avid-travel-with-britton-frost-s1e15-katharine-bon https://omny.fm/shows/avidtravel/avid-travel-with-britton-frost-s2e8-taucks-small-s https://omny.fm/shows/avidtravel/avid-travel-with-britton-frost-s3e17-taucks-galapa In part one of a two part interview, I am joined by Michelle Molnar from Tauck. Molnar is the Senior Product Manager at Tauck and has been with the company for 17 years.  Join us as we talk about Tauck's history operating tours, what's new for 2022, and more.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Past Tauck Podcasts:  https://omny.fm/shows/avidtravel/avid-travel-with-britton-frost-s1e15-katharine-bon https://omny.fm/shows/avidtravel/avid-travel-with-britton-frost-s2e8-taucks-small-s https://omny.fm/shows/avidtravel/avid-travel-with-britton-frost-s3e17-taucks-galapa In part one of a two part interview, I am joined by Michelle Molnar from Tauck. Molnar is the Senior Product Manager at Tauck and has been with the company for 17 years.  On today's episode, we will talk about Tauck's highly anticipated restart and what cruises are still available for this year. Join back next week for part two where we talk 2022 and beyond.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week I sat down with Kristin Karst from AmaWaterways to discuss the company's newly announced plans to restart river cruising in Europe. Karst states that her team at AmaWaterways is "dancing the happy dance" as the company gears up for its summer river cruises.  When and where will these cruises take place? What will cruising be like this summer? What's coming up for Ama in the future? Listen to find out.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last week we sat down with Avalon Waterways to speak about how the company is preparing to return to the rivers: https://omny.fm/shows/avidtravel/avalon-waterways-return-to-the-rivers This week, we look to what Avalon is offering in 2022 and 2023 - including special event cruises to Oberammergau and Floriade.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week many river cruise companies have announced their plans for restarting. I was lucky enough to sit down with Pam Hoffee from Avalon Waterways to talk about Avalon's restart, as well as some of her favorite itineraries available to sail this year.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, I sat down to interview Lesa Bain, Lindblad's vice president of sales for North America. The company recently announced its resumption of operations, offering itineraries in Alaska and the Galapagos. Lindblad got its start in 1979 and has become a major player in the expedition cruise market. But how does Lindblad stand out from its expedition cruise competitors? Listen to find out. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, I sat down to interview Lesa Bain, Lindblad's vice president of sales for North America. The company recently announced its resumption of operations, offering itineraries in Alaska and the Galapagos. Lindblad got its start in 1979 and has become a major player in the expedition cruise market. But how does Lindblad stand out from its expedition cruise competitors? Listen to find out. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Want to cruise this weekend on an eight-day Historic South and Golden Isles sailing between Amelia Island and Charleston? Yes, I consumed my morning coffee before writing this, and no, you’re not reading an old post from March of 2019. Cruising in the United States is back, after a year’s hiatus. You can now cruise again, this coming Saturday if you wish or any other Saturday thereafter. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Doing my first river cruise alone was one of the most fulfilling travel experiences of my life. There is something about traveling solo that makes me feel fiercely independent and unstoppable. The only downside to traveling solo, however, is the cost. Well … sometimes. Solo passengers often have to pay single supplements, meaning that they usually must dole out what a couple would pay for the same stateroom. Though single supplements can run high, some companies waive these fees.  Today we will look at the best river cruise lines for solo travelers.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

World Cruise article with photos: https://www.avidcruiser.com/2021/02/top-five-world-cruises-for-2022-2023/ At the end of a 7-day cruise I almost always have the same thought: I wish this didn’t have to end. Some might have a similar thought and look at taking grand voyages, spanning anywhere from a month to a couple of months. But for those who want to take their love of cruising to the next level, there’s a World Cruise for that. The World Cruises that we will look at today span from 118 days to 180 days. These voyages are a perfect opportunity for world travelers looking to cross off bucket list destinations. World Cruises also take guests to a number of UNESCO World Heritage sites, allowing for deeper exploration into destinations. Like regular cruises, there is no World Cruise that is one size fits all. So to help you decide which World Cruise is right for you, I will look at our top five World Cruises for 2022 and 2023. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How Will COVID-19 Impact The Future Of Cruising?: https://omny.fm/shows/avidtravel/how-will-covid-19-impact-the-future-of-cruising A few weeks ago we had a reader write in that they wished to unsubscribe from our newsletter because cruising "has no concrete future".  Today I sat down with cruise expert Ralph Grizzle to get his thoughts on the future of cruising. From good news like MSC's resumption of operations to the not so good news like Canada's cruise ban, the past few weeks have been a rollercoaster for the cruise world. But one thing is clear to both Ralph and me - cruising definitely has a future.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How Will COVID-19 Impact The Future Of Cruising?: https://omny.fm/shows/avidtravel/how-will-covid-19-impact-the-future-of-cruising River Cruise 101: What Are The Hidden Costs?: https://omny.fm/shows/avidtravel/river-cruise-101-what-are-the-hidden-costs Email me: britton.frost@gmail.com This week we are looking at the top wave season deals for river cruisers. These deals don't include things like free beverages or wifi like the ocean cruise deals we looked at last week, but that's because river cruise companies include these already. So what can we look for as far as deals go? Airfare incentives and percentage discounts.  With all this talk about deals, I've been thinking more and more about the future of cruising so we will also spend a minute previewing next week's topic - Does Cruising Have A Concrete Future? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.