The Joy of Cruising Podcast

The Joy of Cruising Podcast is a conversation with one of the dozens of amazing cruisers with fascinating stories that have been featured in The Joy of Cruising Trilogy—The Joy of Cruising, Cruising Interrupted, and new, The Joy of Cruising Again. In addition there will be conversations with global cruise personalities and cruisers I encounter with fascinating stories the cruise community would enjoy hearing. Order here: The Joy of Cruising ; Cruising Interrupted ; bit.ly/TheJoyOfCruisingAgain; Contact Me

The Joy of Cruising Podcast is a society podcast hosted by Paul C. Thornton, with 263 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Paul C. Thornton hosts The Joy of Cruising Podcast, a society show with 263 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

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  The Joy of Cruising Podcast

  Alexandra Carrier, Private Charter Yacht Trip Through the Croatian Islands

  Sep 30, 202639 min

  Send us Fan Mail Hello, passionate cruisers! This is Paul. I am delighted to welcome this week on The Joy of Cruising Podcast, Alexandra Carrier, a luxury travel advisor in Austin, Texas area. This past summer Alexandra hosted a private charter yacht trip through the Croatian islands. She told me, “Many people said they could never cruise any other way after a week on board. We were able to visit small ports, had lots of swim stops, enjoyed the local food, had private tours of the cities with time to explore on our own. We came away feeling like we had truly experienced Croatia rather than a short excursion stop. I'd love to talk about why this trip changed my groups feelings on cruising, what I came away with from experiencing and hosting the trip myself, and how private yachting/small-ship travel is a great fit for people who don’t think of themselves as ‘cruise people’......such as myself.” Alexandra Carrier is an Austin-based luxury travel advisor and independent advisor with Ciao Bambino. She works closely with her clients to plan trips that actually fit how they want to travel, rather than following a standard itinerary. She also spends a lot of time traveling herself, meeting with hotels and travel partners and experiencing destinations firsthand. Her recently hosted private yacht trip through Croatia, gave her a completely different perspective on seeing a destination from the water. Do you have a dream car? Support the show Support thejoyofcruisingpodcast https://www.buzzsprout.com/2113608/supporters/new Support Me https://www.buymeacoffee.com/drpaulth Contact Me https://www.thejoyofcruising.net/contact-me.html Book Cruises http://www.thejoyofvacation.com/ US Orders (coupon code joyofcruisingpodcast) The Joy of Cruising https://bit.ly/TheJoyOfCruising Cruising Interrupted https://bit.ly/CruisingInterrupted The Joy of Cruising Again https://bit.ly/TheJoyOfCruisingAgain Intl Orders via Amazon

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  The Joy of Cruising Podcast

  Lesley Carter, Bucket List Publications, “The Most Amazing Traveler I’ve Ever Met”

  Sep 23, 20261h 20m

  Send us Fan Mail Hello, passionate cruisers! This is Paul. I am delighted to welcome this week on The Joy of Cruising Podcast, Lesley Carter, the creator of Bucket List Publications. This episode is particularly special for two reasons. First, Lesley represents the last great guest of the many I have been able to reach who was featured in my last cruising book, The Joy of Cruising Again , to be a guest on The Joy of Cruising Podcast . Bucket List Productions’ chapter was featured in a section called, Cruisers Just Like You and Me…Sort Of. The second reason Lesley’s episode is particularly noteworthy is that The Joy of Cruising Podcast teaser recorded 3 years ago, https://www.buzzsprout.com/2113608/12172473 . In that eight-minute introductory episode, I unabashedly called Lesley, “The Most Amazing Traveler I’ve Ever Met.” Speaking in superlatives like that is sure to spark some pushback. I can’t do justice to Lesley’s bio in a few minutes. Read her feature in The Joy of Cruising Again amzn.to/3lAfyON and get a glimpse into the incredible life she leads. Or read her upcoming autobiography, Chasing Wonder , and get the full story. Let me just read you one sentence from her chapter in The Joy of Cruising Again. “She has piloted a fighter jet; gone diving with great white sharks; driven Indy cars, jumped out of planes, and sailed a tall ship to Antarctica as part of the crew…Lesley is a passionate world traveler, having visited every continent and over 150 countries, often accompanied by one or both of her children. (Athena and Max).” Since it has been over three years, I asked Lesley what she and her family have been up to since we last spoke. Lesley told me, “Athena took a year away from school and did school virtually. We traveled to 32 countries that year and went on an AIDA cruise for a month. We also went with Running on Waves yacht/cruise around the Greek Islands. Athena and I got PADI certified in Hawaii so we could dive together, and we are going on a live-aboard in October in the Maldives. I wrote and published a book with Simon & Schuster Canada that will be released in May. Max started kindergarten last year and he’s doing well socially. Athena started high school this year. We still travel as much as possible. We try to do at least one major trip a month with smaller trips in between. Last year, we visited Singapore, Maldives, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Ireland, Romania, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, and a few others. We have the following trips coming up: Maldives in October; Cook Islands in November; Quebec City in December; Finland in January; Colorado in February; Aruba in March. Do you have a dream car? Support the show Support thejoyofcruisingpodcast https://www.buzzsprout.com/2113608/supporters/new Support Me https://www.buymeacoffee.com/drpaulth Contact Me https://www.thejoyofcruising.net/contact-me.html Book Cruises http://www.thejoyofvacation.com/ US Orders (coupon code joyofcruisingpodcast) The Joy of Cruising https://bit.ly/TheJoyOfCruising Cruising Interrupted https://bit.ly/CruisingInterrupted The Joy of Cruising Again https://bit.ly/TheJoyOfCruisingAgain Intl Orders via Amazon

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  The Joy of Cruising Podcast

  Tosh & George, GNT Travel Pros, George's 70th Birthday Trip: Paris, Barcelona, then Embark Azamara Onward for a 9-day Med Cruise, then Rome-Part 2

  Sep 20, 202647 min

  Send us Fan Mail Hello, passionate cruisers! This is Paul. I am delighted to welcome this week on The Joy of Cruising Podcast, Tosh Junior and George Hodges, owners of GNT Travel Pros, a Dream Vacations franchise, where they work full-time as travel advisors. During their very busy stint as relatively new travel advisors—they went through TA training in the same class as Cheryl, Shornay, and me in late-2024—they took the time to celebrate George’s 70th birthday with a spectacular combination land and sea vacation so grand I had to invite my colleagues on The Joy of Cruising Podcast to talk about it. Tosh spent 30 years as a corporate IT executive, traveling the world for GE, Citrix, Atlassian, and McDonald's Corporation, among others. A Chicago native and University of Illinois graduate, he's called Fort Lauderdale home for the past 13 years. His credentials read like an operations manual — PMP, ITIL, ISO, Certified ScrumMaster, LEAN Six Sigma Black Belt, and an MBA — and he's since added a Certified Travel Advisor designation and ACC accreditation with CLIA. The through-line between the two careers is the same: complex logistics, handled so completely that the person on the receiving end never has to think about them. 30 years of leading teams also taught him the part no certification covers, which is that the job is service. George , Tosh’s partner, brings the other half of the equation. After 30 years in interior design and sales at Crate & Barrel, he retired with an eye for how a space is supposed to feel and a career's worth of practice reading what people want before they've said it out loud. They don't plan trips from a desk. In the past year alone, they've sailed more than 15 cruises across nearly every major line — Icon of the Seas, Celebrity Ascent and Apex, Norwegian Luna, Star Princess, MSC World America, Carnival Celebration, Virgin's Scarlet Lady, and an Azamara sailing through the Mediterranean, to name a few. On land, they've covered the map: London, Paris, Berlin, Amsterdam, Budapest, Madrid, Barcelona, Rome, Venice, Tuscany, and the Amalfi Coast in Europe; Tokyo, Seoul, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Delhi, and Dubai in Asia and the Gulf; Sydney, Rio, São Paulo, and much of Canada beyond that. That's the differentiator. When they recommend a ship, a port, a neighborhood, or a restaurant, it's because they've stood in it — whether the trip is budget or luxury, a couple or a full group. They have a particular soft spot for planning group travel, but they'll book anything, large or small. Do you have a dream car? Support the show Support thejoyofcruisingpodcast https://www.buzzsprout.com/2113608/supporters/new Support Me https://www.buymeacoffee.com/drpaulth Contact Me https://www.thejoyofcruising.net/contact-me.html Book Cruises http://www.thejoyofvacation.com/ US Orders (coupon code joyofcruisingpodcast) The Joy of Cruising https://bit.ly/TheJoyOfCruising Cruising Interrupted https://bit.ly/CruisingInterrupted The Joy of Cruising Again https://bit.ly/TheJoyOfCruisingAgain Intl Orders via Amazon

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  The Joy of Cruising Podcast

  Tosh & George, GNT Travel Pros, George's 70th Birthday Trip: Paris, Barcelona, then Embark Azamara Onward for a 9-day Med Cruise, then Rome-Part 1

  Sep 16, 20261h 17m

  Send us Fan Mail Hello, passionate cruisers! This is Paul. I am delighted to welcome this week on The Joy of Cruising Podcast, Tosh Junior and George Hodges, owners of GNT Travel Pros, a Dream Vacations franchise, where they work full-time as travel advisors. During their very busy stint as relatively new travel advisors—they went through TA training in the same class as Cheryl, Shornay, and me in late-2024—they took the time to celebrate George’s 70th birthday with a spectacular combination land and sea vacation so grand I had to invite my colleagues on The Joy of Cruising Podcast to talk about it. Tosh spent 30 years as a corporate IT executive, traveling the world for GE, Citrix, Atlassian, and McDonald's Corporation, among others. A Chicago native and University of Illinois graduate, he's called Fort Lauderdale home for the past 13 years. His credentials read like an operations manual — PMP, ITIL, ISO, Certified ScrumMaster, LEAN Six Sigma Black Belt, and an MBA — and he's since added a Certified Travel Advisor designation and ACC accreditation with CLIA. The through-line between the two careers is the same: complex logistics, handled so completely that the person on the receiving end never has to think about them. 30 years of leading teams also taught him the part no certification covers, which is that the job is service. George , Tosh’s partner, brings the other half of the equation. After 30 years in interior design and sales at Crate & Barrel, he retired with an eye for how a space is supposed to feel and a career's worth of practice reading what people want before they've said it out loud. They don't plan trips from a desk. In the past year alone, they've sailed more than 15 cruises across nearly every major line — Icon of the Seas, Celebrity Ascent and Apex, Norwegian Luna, Star Princess, MSC World America, Carnival Celebration, Virgin's Scarlet Lady, and an Azamara sailing through the Mediterranean, to name a few. On land, they've covered the map: London, Paris, Berlin, Amsterdam, Budapest, Madrid, Barcelona, Rome, Venice, Tuscany, and the Amalfi Coast in Europe; Tokyo, Seoul, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Delhi, and Dubai in Asia and the Gulf; Sydney, Rio, São Paulo, and much of Canada beyond that. That's the differentiator. When they recommend a ship, a port, a neighborhood, or a restaurant, it's because they've stood in it — whether the trip is budget or luxury, a couple or a full group. They have a particular soft spot for planning group travel, but they'll book anything, large or small. Do you have a dream car? Support the show Support thejoyofcruisingpodcast https://www.buzzsprout.com/2113608/supporters/new Support Me https://www.buymeacoffee.com/drpaulth Contact Me https://www.thejoyofcruising.net/contact-me.html Book Cruises http://www.thejoyofvacation.com/ US Orders (coupon code joyofcruisingpodcast) The Joy of Cruising https://bit.ly/TheJoyOfCruising Cruising Interrupted https://bit.ly/CruisingInterrupted The Joy of Cruising Again https://bit.ly/TheJoyOfCruisingAgain Intl Orders via Amazon

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  The Joy of Cruising Podcast

  Karyn Clay, Credentialed Professional Gerontologist, Yes! You Can Travel

  Sep 9, 20261h 12m

  Send us Fan Mail Hello, passionate cruisers! This is Paul. I am delighted to welcome this week on The Joy of Cruising Podcast, Karyn Clay founder of Yes! You Can Travel. Karen is located in Hawaii—which Cheryl and I were blessed to visit a couple of years ago. Every time she greets me via email with “Aloha” and closes with “Mahalo” it momentarily brings me back! Karyn combines her passion for cruising with more than three decades of experience supporting older adults. Through professional travel companionship, she helps travelers who may need a little extra support continue exploring the world and enjoying meaningful journeys. Karyn is passionate about helping people recognize that getting older does not have to mean leaving their love of travel behind. She believes that with understanding, thoughtful support, and the right companion alongside them, more people can continue experiencing the joy and freedom of travel. A passionate cruiser herself, Karyn also loves hearing people's stories and learning about the experiences that have shaped their lives. For her, cruising is about the discovery, connection, and possibility that comes when we continue to say “Yes!” to life. Do you have a dream car? Support the show Support thejoyofcruisingpodcast https://www.buzzsprout.com/2113608/supporters/new Support Me https://www.buymeacoffee.com/drpaulth Contact Me https://www.thejoyofcruising.net/contact-me.html Book Cruises http://www.thejoyofvacation.com/ US Orders (coupon code joyofcruisingpodcast) The Joy of Cruising https://bit.ly/TheJoyOfCruising Cruising Interrupted https://bit.ly/CruisingInterrupted The Joy of Cruising Again https://bit.ly/TheJoyOfCruisingAgain Intl Orders via Amazon

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