Bourbon Trail - a Man-cation..not a cruise!

Not a cruise - but a Man-cation - the BOURBON TRAIL

I should start by saying, I do NOT drink Bourbon.  Heck, I barely drink the hard stuff at all.  I am a red wine drinker and when I do drink booze, it is usually fruity or what my husband calls "foo-foo".  But, with five cruises booked and planned for the next 8 months, I figured I better go ahead and practice what I preached in my last blog:  Man-cation!  So, I booked and planned a trip to the Kentucky Bourbon Trail. 

We had done part of the KBT before but last time we flew...this time we chose to drive, in case we wanted to bring some "liquid souvenirs" back. When we went last time we were part of the First Knob Creek Campout and had to ditch belongings to get our gifts home in our luggage.  That weekend is a whole other story mainly because I enjoy camping a whole lot LESS than I drink!

The drive is a very nice from Tampa area and is over before you know it.  Apart from the curvy roads in the mountains and my husband's fearless driving, I really enjoyed seeing the rivers, trees and old bridges. Please don't worry, my knuckles have returned to their natural color and are unclenched now! 

The distilleries are pretty much within a three hour circle so if you stay in Frankfort you are pretty much is the center and can get to most within an hour.  You could start at the east end and work across if you don't mind sleeping in a different place each night.  There is also an official "Bourbon Trail Passport" you can have stamped at each location and then send it in for a free t-shirt.  We were not willing to go to all the stops so we had to buy our own t-shirt.  I choose one from our first stop: Buffalo Trace.  My chosen shirt proudly proclaims "eat meat, drink buffalo".

Buffalo Trace notes:

1. Free tour and reservations do NOT have to be made.
2. The Blantons bottling part of tour is awesome!
3. You get to choose two tastings from their selection, plus a third sample of the Creme is given to you with "dessert".  
4. Excellant Bourbon Balls
5. The Buffalo Trace Creme is there for sale along with an extensive gift shop full of goodies.

Picture shows the loss over the years...alcohol abuse!  LOL

Jim Beam:

1. Make reservations ahead of time online.  Great tour, very informative and also a great decanter collection.
2. You can by a bottle of Knob Creek, watch it on the line and do your own thumbprint in the wax.  You can also pay a little extra to have this bottle etched.
3. This is the only tour that issues a tasting card good in their machines, your choice of three.  It also has the most selection of products to taste
4. Each guest receives a complimentary square shot glass souvenir.
5. Great property which even has a good BBQ lunch place.
   
   
   
   
   

Maker's Mark

1. Make reservations ahead of time online.  Another Santori property with a good tour, worth the drive even if it is a bit out there.  Make sure you watch your GPS:  one route takes you on a small backroads route!
2. Bourbon balls are "okay"
3. Another bottle experience...you can buy a bottle in the gift shop and do the wax dip yourself.  Nice gift shop.
4. We were there for the Chiluly art exhibit.  There is a large permanent one too.

Learn about the inserts and what makes this bourbon smoother! 

               

Wild Turkey

This is the tour that we added once we got there.  You did not need to make advanced reservations and I am so glad we decided to go.  I simply asked "Who is that gentleman signing bottles?"  So glad I got to meet awesome Master Distiller, Jimmy Russell.

Man-cations

Man-cations...Planning a Trip for the Guy in Your Life?

Yes..this is a "thing"!  Women, wives, friends, partners, sisters, etc...are all planning trips for the special guy in their life.  There was a recent survey done by a combo of men blogs/magazines to reveal the hottest trends in planning a vacation around a man.  Can you guess what the winner was?

1.  An Alaskan Cruise bundled with some adventurous land tour!  

• I personally would recommend Princess Cruise Lines for this!  A total of 10-15 nights of both luxury and adventure.  
• 7 nights of a wonderful relaxing cruise, paired with 3 to 8 nights on land.  
• Experience Alaska with their On-Your-Own, Denali Explorer or most popular Off-the-Beaten Path.
• and offering what no one else does — Direct-to-the-Wilderness® Alaska rail service on most itineraries. Step directly off your Princess ship onto a waiting rail car that delivers you the very same day to your Princess Wilderness Lodge, without needless time spent in transfers. More time in the wilderness !

2.  A Golf-Trip in Florida

• Well, I live in Florida, in a 55+ Community with a lot of golfers including my husband.  This doesn't surprise me at all.
• Florida is home to more than 1,000 public and private golf course facilities, more than any other state in America.
• Florida has even more resorts so pairing a golf vacations with the sandy beaches and sunshine is a no-brainer.
• Did you know that Florida is host to the only all-inclusive ClubMed on the USA mainland?  Check out Sandpiper Bay - Club Med specializes in premium all-inclusive vacations packages for families – with absolutely no hidden costs.

3.  The Kentucky Bourbon Trail

• Funny this should come up...we are doing this next week!
• Kentucky has more to offer than the Kentucky Derby, although combining it with the Bourbon Trail would be a heck-of-a-good week.  And let's not even get started on the BBQ.
• Learn how to "chew" your bourbon and if not, you can at least enjoy the Bourbon Balls, eat some bbq and play a round of golf.

There are of course some other wonderful vacations on their lists.  Sport fishing in the Caribbean - paired with a cruise.....Tequila tasting - paired with a cruise... LOL.  I think you could find a cruise to go with just about everything.  I would like to accept the challenge anyhow!

Give me a call sometime and we can plan something special for the Man in your life!

The FUTURE of Embarkation when Cruising

Princess Cruise line, Innovating Embarkation and more

I recently attended a seminar and luncheon put on by our local BDM for Princess Cruise line.  Not only was I impressed with her knowledge and personality, but also with the news she shared with the Travel Agents present.

Have you heard about the new technology:  Ocean Medallion?

Each guest is mailed an Ocean Medallion about two weeks prior to their cruise that holds their unique digital identity and communicates with readers throughout each ship and in select ports. It allows the crew to know who you are and serve you better. Guests also can use the Ocean Medallion for payments, unlocking your stateroom door, speeding up embarkation and much more.  She recently got to experience this new technology herself and shared her experience which also includes enhanced interactions with crew members and guests (for example, a room attendant or bartender will have the ability to assist you with booking Spa services or specialty dining reservations). It will help Princess crew members to deliver what you want...where you want it.  Imagine ordering a drink or burger and having it delivered to you on the Lido deck!

Watch these videos:

https://www.princess.com/ships-and-experience/ocean-medallion-class/

https://www.princess.com/ships-and-experience/ocean-medallion-class/moments-videos/

The Ocean Medallion is a free, wearable device that you can even customize  with a choice of colors. It will also be laser-etched with your name, ship, and sail date.  While you must carry a Medallion while onboard, it’s up to you how much or how little you want to take advantage of the full experience.  


And more good news!  Security facts:

• It will also add another level of security as your photo will populate when the account is used.  The Ocean Medallion contains no personal information. Your Ocean Medallion is associated with your profile that contains your onboard security picture. If that picture does not match a guest when a purchase is being made or when someone other than the original guest is nearby, access will not be granted to a stateroom and purchases cannot be made.
• The Medallion holds your unique digital identity which is encrypted and communicates with thousands of sensors onboard and in port. 
• You can wear your Medallion as a wristband or pendant, or just keep it in your pocket.
• All information provided before and during your cruise will be encrypted and is not stored on your Ocean Medallion. The most advanced software security models, tools, and methods are fundamental to Ocean Medallion Class. However, any guest is also welcome to opt out of all services at any time.  If you do not want to take advantage of the full Ocean Medallion Class experience, you can switch your privacy setting to "Safety Only" and enjoy the cruise the same great way you do today.

Some other features:

• Streamlines and expedites the port embarkation and disembarkation process
• Allows you to access your stateroom as you approach the door (no keycard required)
• Locates friends and family around the cruise ship
• Enables you to purchase merchandise without any transaction, cards or paper
  
  I am excited to try this out...thinking of booking during the current "Sip and Sail" promo that includes the FREE beverage program.  Would you like to go?