With the number of families going on cruise ship vacations growing in large numbers – Carnival Cruise Lines plans to host more than 600,000 children in 2008, a five-fold increase over seven years ago – cruise lines are making sure their ships are “family friendly” while catering to this cash-rich market.

To make sure they continued to please families, carnival recently introduced the new 110,000-ton Carnival Cruise Line Glory, the line’s newest “Fun Ship”.

One of the biggest cruise ships on the market, this huge 2,974-passenger Super Liner is designed as the perfect family vacation with a 4,200-square-foot play area, “kid-friendly” dining selections, fun morning-til-night activities, toy rentals and more.

Carnival made sure to include teens by including a high-tech game room/dance club.

You can enjoy your meals surrounded by awesome decorations, with striking interiors that offer dramatic interpretations of different colors on the Carnival Cruise Line Glory.

To prove my point, the Carnival Glory’s casual eatery, the Red Sail Restaurant, like the name implies, offers a distinctive nautical interior with red canvas sails, chrome hardware, faux portholes, teak flooring and sailboat models located throughout the sprawling, two-deck-high 1,250-seat room.

Creative Kid Activities: Including the EduCruise projects, children of all ages cruising aboard Carnival Cruise Line Glory will have so much fun to select from, supervised activities morning-til-night.

Some new activities include snow-cone making, pie-decorating and cake-making sessions during which kids can make their own food creations under the care of Carnival Glory’s trained youth staff.

Carnival cruise line glory goes out of their way to help passengers locate a stateroom that you can afford. Depending on what you like, you can stay on a upper deck, near the pool area, yards away from the duty-free shops or — if you’re a parent— right next to the children’s facilities.

Information and Reservations For additional information and reservations, contact any travel agent, call 1-800-CARNIVAL, or visit www.carnival.com.

Your only job: To escort single women cruise ship passengers.

Your assignment is to assist with dance classes or be an escort on shore excursions and to dinner.

Male hosts must be able to dance and waltz. Be prepared to audition at a local dance studio to prove your worth to the cruise lines. For your service, you receive a free or cheap cruise, meet nice women and enjoy really good food everyday.

Important note: Remaining professional is key.

Taking extra dances or trying to romance cruise ship passengers is strictly prohibited. If caught, you’ll be asked to leave the ship at the next port and will have to get home at your own expense.

Male host are not paid but receive a free cabin, low cost drinks, laundry service and sometimes free air travel.

To sign up as a gentleman host…
Crystal Cruises. 800-804-1500, www.crystalcruises.com (“Ambassador Host Program for Singles”).

The Working Vacation. 708-301-7535, www.theworkingvacation.com.

To grab a last minute cruise deal, I begin calling the cruise lines 30 days prior to the sailing date. You should also try booking your cruise 11 days before the ship sails.

You should also try to find repositioning last minute cruise deals for a really nice bargain. Many people have cruised from Vancouver to Los Angeles via an Alaskan exposure at a really cheap price on Royal Caribbean.

One of the best websites for locating last minute cruise deals is Cruisecompete.com. Vacationstogo.com is another cool website where you can view everything at once. VTG staff is prompt, efficient, and very informative.

Most of the times it’s easy for me to get an upgrade or some added bonus that my local agent can’t offer me.

Last minute cruise vacations can be one of the most exciting ways to travel – one day you are hard at work, the next you’re on a last minute cruise headed toward a beautiful destination on a top-rated ship for that earned cruise vacation.

What hard working person wouldn’t enjoy some time off to discover such hot vacation spots like the black-sand beaches of Hawaii, the fresh beauty of Alaska, the charms, castles, and culture of Europe, and more!

A lot of singles are concerned about which cruises will have the greatest number of singles on the ship, how can you be introduced to other singles, how much will the cruise cost and if you’ll have a fun time.

Take it easy. Vacationstogo All inclusive vacations for singlescruises are perfect for singles of any age. You can’t find a more easy way to meet other singles and make friends. Vacationstogo Singles Division will help you locate the perfect All inclusive vacations for singles on a cruise that’s perfect for you…and will work hard to help you meet the other singles on the cruise.

You’ll enjoy singles cruises on sailings to many of the world’s best destinations. And they can help you choose popular singles packages on large, newer ships that meets the needs of different audiences, so you can locate the All inclusive vacations for singles that’s best for you.

If you need a way to save money on your singles cruise, Vacationstogo Match Program will line you up with a same-sex single in one stateroom (on hosted sailings only), allowing them to provide you the same per-person cost that couples get.

Regardless of what you choose, they will provide their own onboard host to put together great singles parties, mixers, games, group excursions, single-mingle dinners and much more.

Check out these first time cruise tips for more details.

1. Do I have to let a travel agent book my cruise?

Go straight to the cruise line Web site. Booking your own trip is very possible. How do you find the right cruise for you? Do you prefer the nightlife or would you prefer a family friendly cruise? Will you need childcare, organized arts or activities for your teen?

Researching more first time cruise tips and what each ship offers can be done at Web sites like CruiseCritic.com or TripAdvisor.com.

2. What accessories do I bring?

It’s always a good idea to pack flip-flops or other slip-on shoes along with a robe or cover-up for going from the pool to your cabin. Find out the local weather forecast. A New York-Caribbean trip in winter means some cold days at sea.

A lot of cruise lines provide self-serve washing machines and dryers. Using the ship’s laundry can be expensive. Be sure to pack enough clothing for your cruise or locate a coin-op laundry in port.

Do you think you’ll need a clock by your bedside? Pack one. Not every room has them (though you can always arrange a wake-up call). The stateroom bathroom will have shampoo and soap, but maybe not free moisturizer and conditioner, like you’d have in a hotel.

3. What’s included in my cruise price?

Your cruise fare should include the room, food and some beverages. No-cost drinks should include coffee, tea, iced tea, lemonade and — with breakfast — juice.

Wine or liquor should be added at no cost on most luxury cruise lines. On some other cruises, you can’t even receive a free soda, but you can purchase drink packages with unlimited soda ($6 a day is typical).

You can go through a lot of cash on alcohol, casinos, spas, Internet access, video games and shopping.

If you have to watch every penny, go with the free activities — pool, gym, shows and — in port — a stroll through town or the beach instead of that costly helicopter ride.

For those interested in shore excursions, you’ll find vendors providing tours in each port. They may cost less than what the cruise ship charges for similar outings.

Book in advance via the cruise line and know that it’s money well-spent. Popular tours book quickly.

4. Who should I be tipping?

Many luxury cruise ships don’t allow tipping. Many other ship lines suggest certain amounts. Some provide advance gratuity options or include a service charge for the dining room crew and the person who takes care of your room.

The usual tip for stateroom staffer is $3.50 a day; dining room employee tips average $5-$10 per day, with that amount shared by your waiter, wine steward and maitre d’.

With included tips, you’re charged a gratuity for each person in your party, for each day of the cruise. So even if your kids never eat in the formal dining room, advance tips will be provided to the servers on their behalf. It could be a wiser decision to decide on tips at the end of your cruise, in case it makes more sense to tip a buffet worker who delighted your children each night at dinner with a magic trick.

Let me share a few tips with you:

Find a specialized agent. There are travel agents, and then there are preferred cruise line agents. “Locate an agent that specializes in booking with your cruise line of choice.

Only a select few have preferred status. Working with preferred agents and agencies can yield you a better discount and amenities, and the cruises will run you between 10 percent and 25 percent less than cruises bought from regular agents.

Buy some stock. When you purchase 100 shares of Carnival or Royal Caribbean shares, they will offer you between $50 and $200 of free cabin credit on every cruise. Note: Carnival and Royal Caribbean control the majority of the cruise lines out there, so this is a sweet deal.

Private tours can save you a lot of cash. Let’s say you have six of your friends or family members on a cruise. You’d be better off having a private arrangement for shore excursions.

Run a few Internet searches to find less costly tours for groups that are “more intimate” and cost less than those offered by the cruise line.

Here’s a great article published by Cruise Critic which features their top 5 cruises of the year.

1.Cruise to Bermuda aboard Celebrity’s new Journey. Joining the fleet in May, it will be the most contemporary mid-size ship offering Bermuda itineraries. A high ratio of cabins with balconies, multiple dining venues and a charming spa put it at the top of our list. Seasonal homeport: Bayonne, New Jersey’s Cape Liberty.

2.Disney will be in Europe! The ship sails out of Barcelona and offers a 10- and an 11-night itinerary. Ports include Sicily’s Palermo, Naples, Sardinia, Civitavecchia (for Rome), Tuscany, Marseilles, and Villefranche. Disney aficionados without kids may want to check out the trans-Atlantic repositionings.

3.A destination in its own right, Freedom of the Seas, which debuted this year, has the now-famous surf park, kids’ splash park and boxing ring to go with the cruise line’s already established ice skating rink, rock climbing wall, and indoor promenade teeming with shops and eateries. Liberty of the Seas, which debuts in April 2007, is a sister ship to Freedom of the Seas. Who cares where you go on these mammoth vessels? But if you must know, both ships will alternate between the same Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries.

4.Cross The Atlantic On Regent Seven Seas Voyager or Cunard’s Queen Mary 2

For those who always lament how little time is actually spent on board, Seven Seas Voyager’s two repositioning cruises — in April and November — offer eight-day all-at-sea sailings between Europe and North America. Still dreaming of basking in luxury? Cunard’s Queen Mary 2 offers similar appeal.

5.Princess Cruises’ Sapphire Princess in Asia

This ship appeals to a wide range of travelers, but we’re especially excited about the fact that it offers all the big-ship amenities, is a reasonable length, and is moderately priced. The 16-night trip sails between Beijing and Bangkok; stops along the way include Japan’s Nagasaki and Okinawa, China’s Hong Kong and Shanghai, Vietnam’s Nha Trang and Ho Chi Minh City, and Singapore.

Cruise Critic is a cruise review community website which also has information for cruisers written by editors, news on cruising and a forum. They offer over 225 reviews written by editors and members of the site, and information on cruise ships and over 135 ports of call.

The forum is quite popular, with over 225 000 members, and topics discussed include different cruise lines, roll calls and group member cruises. Cruise Critic has been praised by numerous sources, including New York Times, Newsday, and the Washington Post.

Started in1995, Cruise Critic is now one of the largest websites dedicated to cruising. The forum is the most heavily trafficked cruise board on theWeb. The site also offers information on specific cruising niches, including low-carb cruising and gay cruises.

There is also a daily poll relating to cruising on the home page.