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Norovirus — the facts about and how to protect yourself from this much-publicized disease
Price, location and character are three things I look for when reserving a hotel in Europe. Photo: Gretchen Strauch
Spending less and having a richer experience
Eilean Donan Castle, Loch Duich, Scotland. Photo by Richard Semik/123RF
A Passenger Bill of Rights for US passengers in North America purchasing cruises, regardless of itinerary, with any CLIA member cruise line. Also, the British airline EasyJet encourages smaller carry-ons.

Back in the good old days of the 1950s, most ocean liners had a few single cabins available for their single customers. The builders of those ships realized that, yes, there actually were single people in the population! 

Since then, however, all cruise ships have standardized on double cabins, and payment is virtually always based on double occupancy. Persons occupying a double cabin alone are generally forced to pay a single supplement, which is usually 50 to 100 percent of the price of the unfilled half of the cabin. In cruising lingo, these latter figures would be described...

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Sir Geoffrey standing near the green door to the Secret Seaside Gardens of Black
Touring the Secret Seaside Gardens of Blackpool Sands — Devon, England
Façade of the Tivoli Palácio de Seteais in Sintra.
A look at three royal palaces in Sintra (2 of 2 
on Portugal)
The Mud Maid in repose. Photo: Julian Stephens
The Lost Gardens of Heligan in Cornwall, England
Our group talking with children at Hacienda Venecia, outside of Manizales, Colombia.
(Part 2 of 3 on Colombia)