By Jackie Sheckler Finch

Concerts and cruises seem like a winning combination. Add another “C” into that mix – Carnival Cruise Line – and you’ve got a fun lineup, especially when it features Tim McGraw, Little Big Town, Jay Leno and Jeff Foxworthy. Read more...

By Jackie Sheckler Finch

Sprouting out of the Albanian hillside like a poisonous mushroom, the concrete bunker is one of the weirdest things I have ever seen. But, unbelievably, the story behind it is even more strange.

“A crazy dictator built the bunkers,” said M/V Athena cruise program director Antun Matičević. “He built almost 800,000 bunkers to protect Albania. They were never used and now they are protecting rocks.” Read more...

By Jackie Sheckler Finch

The historic Corinth Canal is not a passage that all cruisers get to see. An unusual scenic ride through high limestone walls, the canal is not passable for larger ships so passengers who want to experience the canal will have to book passage on a smaller ship. Read more...

By Jackie Sheckler Finch

How many passengers on a river cruise talk or write about a ship’s gift shop? I’m going to because I think the Amadeus Silver II gift shop is quite nice and is rather unusual. Many river ships don’t have a gift shop at all or it is tucked away in a closet-size room. Read more...

As a child, Jan Markech looked forward to summer and holidays with his grandmother. He loved her and her cooking.

“I used to follow behind her in the kitchen to see what she was doing,” he recalled. “She would say ‘Go away, you might get burned.’ But I still followed her around.” Read more...

Fans cheer when a Seattle Mariners pitcher throws a strikeout during a home game. But now folks will have even more reasons to rejoice. For the third season in a row, the Seattle Mariners and Seattle’s hometown cruise line of Holland America will join forces to help the Seattle Children’s Hospital. Read more...

A pilot who ditched his aircraft in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Hawaii was lucky to be in the same area as the Holland America cruise ship ms Veendam. Now the ship’s captain and crew have been honored as “Seafarer of the Year” for the rescue of the pilot who ejected from his aircraft in the Pacific Ocean. Read more...

Children can now create their own personalized souvenir on a Carnival cruise ship – a cuddly stuffed bear complete with “birth certificate” stating the bear’s name along with when the toy critter was made. Carnival Cruise Line and the Build-A-Bear Workshop are partnering for the first Build-A-Bear Workshop At Sea. Read more...

You don’t have to go to Cuba to enjoy a taste of Havana. The Carnival Sunshine and Carnival Vista cruise ships now have a spot that’s intriguing by night and friendly any time.

Step into the Havana Bar and be transported to antebellum Cuba preserved today in old postcards, vintage literature… and classic delicacies. Read more...

When Luksa Ivancic was a little boy growing up on the coast of Croatia, he would admire the sea captains and think about what it would be like to sail the world on some grand ship. How he would love to follow in their footsteps.

“They wore uniforms with those hats and long twirling mustaches and smoked pipes,” he said. “Other little boys might want to be a doctor or a lawyer but I wanted to be a ship captain.” Read more...