Highlights from My Adventure of Your Life Cruise to Alaska

*Thank you to Oprah Magazine and Holland America Line Cruises for hosting this trip of a lifetime. #sponsored #liveyourbestlife #omaginsiders

I’m pretty sure that if you follow my blog or my social media then you know I recently went on one of the Holland America Line cruises to Alaska. This cruise was one of the Oprah Magazine partnered cruises that includes a variety of Adventure of Your Life activities. This cruise did not disappoint! Again, if you followed my social media (Instagram in particular) then you were able to follow along. I posted every day in my stories so you could see the amazing adventure that we were on. It was like you were right there with us, so thanks for coming along! If you missed it, you can still go to my Instagram and click on my Oprah Magazine/HalCruises Highlight reel.

My husband and I were able to go on this adventure cruise together. We looked forward to it for many months. We were able to upgrade our room to a Verandah cabin. This was important to us to have a room with a balcony to be able to sit outside to enjoy the beautiful scenery with coffee or cocktails depending on the time of the day. This was definitely one of our best decisions.

As an OMagInsider, which is a brand ambassador for The Oprah Magazine, I knew that there would be many opportunities to participate in experiences unlike any I’ve had before. I was able to participate in activities that I either 1. Never tried before or 2. Were totally out of my comfort zone. I’m so grateful for these opportunities. I approached every experience with an open mind and a grateful heart.

Seattle was our embarkation port. Unfortunately we didn’t have much time to spend there because we got into Seattle in the middle of the night before the cruise. However, we were able to hit a few of the “must-sees” of the city including the Pike Street Market. We had a lovely brunch at a cute place called Red Cedar and Sage (highly recommend) before heading over to our home for the next seven days, the Eurodam, one of Holland America Line’s beautiful ships. The check-in and boarding process were effortless. Everything is well orchestrated making the experience delightful.

Upon entering our cabin I was thrilled to see that my extra-large suitcase containing everything I needed for the cruise was carefully placed on the bed. I was in New York City for an event for several days before the cruise and I didn’t want to travel with this heavy suitcase. Holland America partners with a company called Luggage Forward. They picked up my suitcase from my home (through UPS) the week before the cruise and I never had to think about it again. I highly recommend doing this when traveling so that you don’t have to worry about the airline losing your bags or having to deal with the whole luggage issue altogether.

The cruise started with a happy hour with some of the Oprah Magazine staff and the OMagInsiders. The first evening’s show was a quick overview of some of the activities for this Adventure of Your Life Cruise. I was more than ready to dig right in. This post is a small portion of the highlights of my Adventure of Your Life Cruise.

Just Breathe

There was an activity called Just Breathe which was led by Sara Auster. She did sound bath meditation sessions. I’ve never done any type of meditation before. To be honest, it was a little bit difficult for me at first. The moment I close my eyes my mind starts to go in all directions. I have so much going on in my life that I start to make lists and such rather than focusing on the task at hand. By the third session I started to “get it.” I was able to focus on my breathing. There was something about the experience that put an extra pep in my step.

My husband and I had delicious meals in a variety of the ship’s restaurants. I may have eaten a few too many desserts (because who can resist). We watched some of the evening shows and lost a few dollars in the casino. I got to shop til I dropped in the onboard shops (again, because who can resist). They had some of Oprah’s Favorite Things from the past year available for purchase as well as some fun Oprah gear in the O Shop.

I was able to meet and spend time with two amazing ladies who are also OMagInsiders with me. Amber is an amazing travel writer and mother to 5 who is always on the go. Taura is an incredible songwriter and gentle soul who always has a smile on her face (even when she’s seasick). Go check out their blogs and read about their experiences on this Adventure of Your Life Cruise as well.

O’s Reading Room

O’ Beautiful

I could talk about beauty and makeup products all day long. I was so lucky to be sailing with Brian Underwood, Beauty Director for The Oprah Magazine. Brian held several sessions onboard that included 1. his product picks for the Fall Beauty Awards, 2. lessons on skincare and finding what’s right for your skin and 3. a before and after beauty transformation reveal with celebrity hair and makeup artists who were on board.

Amber and I, along with a few of the other cruise passengers, got to participate in these transformations, . We all got new haircuts and had our makeup done. We modeled on stage for our fellow passengers to see. It was a little bit out of my comfort zone to be standing on stage, but Brian made it so that it seemed like we were old friends hanging out.

As you can see, the Adventure of Your Life Cruise was nothing short of INCREDIBLE! I felt emotionally refreshed and renewed stepping off the ship. I thank the Oprah Magazine and their staff for the opportunity to sail on Holland America Line’s cruise to Alaska. It’s something that’s been on my bucket list for a few years now. The last Holland America Line “Adventure of Your Life Cruise” with Oprah Magazine activities for this year will be in October, 2018 sailing from Ft Lauderdale to the Caribbean. I hope you’ll book that one and get to experience the adventure for yourselves.