Find your passport and pass the Strawberry Fields Forever

"Do you know where our passports are?"

Good question.  When my wife asked, I assured her they were in the blue Windstar pouch where we've kept them for more than 8 years. 

However, having moved a few months ago, the pouch was placed on a shelf behind some other stuff I rarely use, and if I had not looked for it yesterday, I can imagine a scenario of panic the night before the cruise where the rush of finding it could cause me to miss seeing it.


I've had phone calls from clients in that fix.  I have been able to calmly help them think it through and resolve the problem in all but one case, and that person missed the cruise, but it is easier to think methodically without the pressure of a fast approaching time limit.

Remember that your passport is representative of your freedom.  Make sure you know where it is.  And if you don't have one, start the process of getting one, and then you can have Strawberry Fields Forever.

I'm not talking about the dreamlike Beatles song.  I'm talking about dessert at Qsine, Celebrity's cutting edge restaurant which was the first in the world to use iPads for menus.  Do you want a cocktail?  Pick the liquors you want to combine on your iPad screen, add them to your virtual shaker, and then shake your iPad.  While you practice this seeming nonsense, a mixologist behind the bar will make the real concoction for your imbibing pleasure.

Yada yada yada...a great meal as you've come to expect on Celebrity, and then it's time for dessert.  Strawberry Fields Forever is one choice: chocolate covered strawberries on stems "growing" from a plot of real grass.  And quite delicious (you don't eat the grass unless you're more bovine than most cruisers).

Imagine spending the day exploring some glorious European port and returning "home" to your floating resort where you're treated like a Celebrity. 

Now, imagine the last night of the cruise (wow, where did the time go?). When you look at your final bill for your bar tab (for most beer, wine, other standard spirits and beverages) and gratuities for your room steward and restaurant waitstaff, you find the total amount is ZERO!!  My buddy Mike says he keeps his eyes closed when he opens the bill, but even he would open them and smile to see those amounts zeroed out.  Of course, there's still the fee for the alternative dining experience of Qsine, and maybe some souvenirs like T-shirts and jewelry, but those amounts look smaller with the big two items off the bill. And, if you're someone who doesn't drink alcohol, you could have selected the onboard credit and zeroed out a few other incidental choices.

Anyway, you get the point.  For ANY Celebrity cruise departing between February of 2013 and April of 2014, you can have your choice of free gratuities or free  Classic Beverage package for two as long as you book through me in an ocean view room between January 7 and January 27.  Or, if you would prefer, get onboard credit of $100 for a 3 to 5 night cruise, $200 for a 6 to 9 night cruise or $300 for a 10-night or longer cruise.  It's as easy as 123 Go!

But wait, you're saying.  Wes said free drinks and free gratuities.  That's right.  For Europe, you can choose any two of those three options.

This is a great time to lock in the best possible stateroom for a dream cruise on Celebrity Cruises. The memories will last the rest of your life.