No kids? No problem on R Family cruises

By Jeff Guaracino

I don’t have kids, but I loved the R Family cruise. I wasn’t alone either. In fact, I met lots of adult couples with no kids who, like me, have discovered that they are drawn to the R Family experience. I just returned from my second R Family Vacations spring break cruise to western Mexico aboard Holland America‘s five-star Oosterdam.

I have been on other all-gay cruises and gotten dressed up for the costume parties and I have danced with 2,000 gay men until the early hours of the morning. Those trips were loads of fun, but this trip was awesome, luxurious and incredibly fun, just in a different way. I make my living through travel, and I can tell you that there is nothing else out there like r family.

R Family planned events and dinners geared towards singles, adult couples with no kids, single parents, and R Family’s first-ever bears and cubs get-togethers. In fact, on one port day in Mexico, I had the entire pool to myself in the mid-ship, and it was heaven.

There were no velvet ropes, no red carpets and no paparazzi, yet there were stars all around. I didn’t just meet these celebrities, we hung out. Every night, another star took center stage at one of the many Oosterdam lounges and stages. Ant, host of “Celebrity Fit Club” and “Last Comic Standing,” Rosie O’Donnell, The Tonight Show’s Ross the Intern (who is also a hilarious karaoke singer), Cyndi Lauper, more Broadway stars than you can count performing in Rosie’s Broadway Belters and Rosie’s Broadway Kids, DJ David Knapp, fitness guru and life coach Susan Powter, comedians Julie Goldman and Jessica Kirson, singer Sam Harris and our favorite “Queer As Folk” mom and “Cagney and Lacey” star Sharon Gless.

Rosie and her wife Kelli and r family vacations co-founder Gregg Kaminsky love to give amazing prizes away. Not only do you get the incredible cruise vacation and the brush with celebrity factor, but every day a guest wins something fabulous. With fewer than 2,000 guests on this cruise, the odds are pretty good that you will win! American Airlines donated plane tickets and gift cards. Philadelphia gave away trips to the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection. Rosie spent a few days on board but when she left, she gave her penthouse suite and Cyndi’s penthouse suite to two separate families.

Every day Kaminsky leads a 10 a.m. staff meeting. He invited me for an insider’s peek at the inner workings of r family. He leads a staff how about 20 volunteers who are there to create the R Family magical experience. A type-A personality through and through, Gregg probes the mostly volunteer team members for every single detail about the guest experience. What are guests saying? What last-minute details do we need to figure out for today’s entertainment hold? What else can we do to make sure everyone is having the time of their lives? Perhaps the most adult fun I had was after the late show in the disco hanging out with Ross the Intern and the R Family crew dancing to the amazing DJ David Knapp, who has a very cute family. Be warned, if you are going to want to hang out with David in the DJ booth, he is going to force you to look at this photo album.

My travel companion and friend Kevin spent the day relaxing in our superior suite with beds so comfortable, I can understand why he stayed in bed. I was running about the ship to every activity that the R Family team planned for us. From pool games to an adult version of the Amazing Race to the late night adults-only shows, I honestly spent about 10 minutes on the huge veranda deck with teak furniture looking at the beauty of the Pacific Ocean.

And the kids! These are no ordinary kids. Most are straight, some are questioning or gay but all are equally extraordinary. First, what makes these kids special is that they are all wanted and extremely well parented. As Joan Crawford would say, they were chosen. Toddlers to teens, these children are unobtrusive, and most of the time they were in the pool or at the Holland America Lines (HAL) Kids Club. R family provides for a baby sitting service at night, giving parents a night out on their own. Holland America’s Vista Dining Room 8 p.m. seating was almost always adults, and the food was exceptional.

(R Family Vacations’ 5th anniversary cruise to Canada and New England sails July 13-20, 2008, from New York City on the Norwegian Dawn. The itinerary includes St. John,
Halifax, Bar Harbor, Provincetown and Newport, Rhode Island.)

Related Orbitz resources:

• Gay travel
• Orbitz cruises

Jeff Guaracino is a professional gay traveler and knows the ins and ‘outs’ of travel. This Philly boy is also author of “Gay and Lesbian Tourism: the Essential Guide for Marketing” and made the phrase, Philadelphia Get Your History Straight and Your Nightlife Gay, famous.

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