MEET MARGARET TIMKO

A lucky accident.

 Have you ever had a lucky accident that changed your life? It happened to me twelve years ago after my husband, John, and I took our first cruise. A friend overheard me telling other people how wonderful cruising was and offered me a job with her cruise travel agency. It was a wonderful opportunity to not only tell people about cruising but also to help them find the right cruise line and destinations to make their cruises the best possible. Now I am a partner in an agency that specializes in cruising vacations. I am proud of the fact that more than half of our clients are repeat cruisers or are referrals from others who enjoyed our service.

 Can you afford a cruise?

 For some people money is not a problem. If that describes you, that’s great. But if you are working with a tight budget, I can still help you find an affordable cruise vacation. It may mean shopping around for a special deal, being flexible about where and when you go, or planning ahead several months to allow for time to save for the cruise in a cruise fund. I love making what seems impossible possible.

 Which is more important the cruise ship or the destination?

 This one is a toss up. Cruise ships have evolved beyond the earlier versions which were designed simply to get you from one port to another in comfort. They have become floating resorts with theaters, sporting arenas, health spas, atriums, libraries, Internet cafes, informative speakers, coffee shops, and dance floors featuring every type of music from big band to country to disco. You could have a fabulous vacation and never leave the ship.

 Most people do leave the ship to visit the ports. A fun part of cruising is to visit places you have only seen on television and experience exotic places for yourself. You can visit the cathedrals of Europe , see the sunrise from the top of Mount Haleakala on Maui , ride down a river in Jamaica , touch Mayan ruins, join a Mardi Gras parade on Aruba , or watch a glacier slide into the sea. One of my favorite memories is sitting at an outdoor cafe in Santorini Greece sipping coffee surrounded by rectangular whitewashed buildings with their blue dome roofs and looking out at the cobalt blue sea.

 Come and see me. I can help get you there.

 Would you call me a cruise expert?

 You wouldn’t want to be operated on by a surgeon who had only read about surgery in books, would you? We all recognize that personal experience does matter. Here is a listing of the destinations I have visited and the ships I have cruised on or inspected in person.

Destinations:

 Caribbean – St. Thomas, St. Maarten, San Juan, Bahamas, Barbados, Labadee, Antigua, Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Jamaica, Curacao, and Aruba.

 Hawaiian – Maui , Oahu , Hawaii (both the Hilo and Kona sides), and Kauai .

 European – Italy , Spain , Croatia , France, Malta , Greece , England , Ireland , Scotland , Norway , the Netherlands , Belgium , and Monaco .

 Alaskan  – Sitka, Ketchikan, Skagway, Juneau and Glacier Bay.

Cruise lines and ships:

  Holland America Line – ms Statendam, ms Veendam, ms Zaandam, ms Westerdam.

Disney Cruise Line – Disney Wonder.

Carnival Cruise Lines – Sensation, Paradise , Inspiration, Ecstasy, Triumph.

Princess Cruises – Golden Princess, Sea Princess, Crown Princess, Sun Princess.

Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines – Monarch of the Seas, Majesty of the Seas, Sovereign of the Seas, Splendor of the Seas, Enchantment of the Seas, Rhapsody of the Seas, Navigator of the Seas, Voyager of the Seas, Grandeur of the Seas, Mariner of the Seas, Adventure of the Seas and Freedom of the Seas.

Celebrity Cruise Line – Millennium, Mercury, Galaxy.

Norwegian Cruise Line – Norwegian Majesty.