Darlene Harrison, DS

Interests & Specialties
Darlene has been with Central Travel for 18 years and has traveled the world.  She is an expert in Classic Cruising and holds the prestigious Commodore status with Cunard Academy. Darlene has also completed the following programs; Holland America Line Academy, NCL University, Princess Cruise Commodore, Royal Caribbean’s University of WOW, Grenada Specialist program, Fairmont Famous Agents, Certified Italy Specialist, Silversea Academy and Uniworld Boutique River Cruises Specialist Program. Darlene holds a Destination Specialist (DS) designation from The Travel Institute for North America, Western Europe and Southern Europe.  She has visited many of the popular destination in the US, Hawaii, Mexico, the Caribbean and Europe.  Darlene is located in the Perrysburg office and can be reached at 419 874-2457 888 295-5038 or darlene@centraltravel.com 

Expert Bio

Darlene Harrison loves to cruise!  She has cruised with Holland America, Carnival, NCL, Princess Cruises and Royal Caribbean exploring the Caribbean, Alaska, the Mexican Riviera, France and Italy.

One of her favorites is Alaska sailing with Holland America.  The scenery is spectacular day and night; mountains, glaciers, whales and wildlife. Talk about shore excursions!  Choose from a riverboat ride, helicopter flightseeing, the gold dredge tour, sportfishing, and glaciers to name just a few. Alaska cruises can also be combined with landtours to the interior of Alaska to visit Denali National Park.  Darlene looks forward to making your next cruise the best trip of your life!

My Recent Trips

My last trip was on Princess Cruse Lines on the Dawn Princess out of San Diego.  The ports of call were Puerto Vallarta, Cabo San Lucas and Matzatlan.

Prior to the cruise I spent two nights at the beautiful Hotel Del Coronado.  A favorite for romantic getaways and family adventures, it’s easy to see why USA Today rates The Del, “one of the top ten resorts in the world.”

Dawn Princess - along with its sister ships Sun and Sea - creates paradise on the high seas. Featuring a wrap-around Promenade Deck, this spectacular ship has more than 400 balcony staterooms to enjoy the ever-changing scenery and two spacious decks. Hot spots include two show lounges with nightly entertainment, and plenty of elegant and casual dining options from gourmet pizza to grilled steaks.

You may recall the film "Night of the Iguana," starring Richard Burton was filmed in Puerto Vallarta and it used to be a sleepy fishing village.  It has since transformed into an international resort with excellent dining, great shopping and mile after mile of palm-lined beaches.

Situated at the very tip of the world's longest peninsula, Cabo San Lucas calmly watches the cool Pacific Ocean merge with the Sea of Cortez. Once you experience its crystal-clear waters and white-sand beaches, you'll understand why this once-sleepy Baja cannery village transformed into a popular international resort.

Mazatlan boasts a superb year-round climate. Sitting on a peninsula at the feet of the rugged Sierra Madre and the Cerro de Neveria, Mazatlan has two distinct types of coastlines — the rocky Pacific beaches and the broad white-sand beaches beloved by visitors. Its beaches and world-class sport fishing quickly turned this once commercial fishing port into one of the world's top resort destinations today.

Anoher recent cruise was to France and Italy on Royal Caribbean's Splendour of the Seas. Our first stop was Monte Carlo and Monaco. Monaco is the cleanest city I have seen and one of the most beautiful! Nice and Eze folloed with a beautiful drive with breathtaking scenery. Once in Nice, take a stroll through the Old City, explore, dine and shop. Eze is a medieval city built on a cliff with narrow winding cobblestone streets lined with shops of various local crafts and products.

Florence, Pisa, Rome and Naples followed. In Naples I took the shore excursion that included Capri, Sorrento and Pompeii. First you jetfoil to Capri and when you arrive ashore you ride a funicular to the top of the mountain. A funicular is a type of train that goes up and down the steep mountainside. It is the most beautiful seaside scenery from the hillside city.

I would recommend this itinerary to someone that wants to get a taste of France and Italy. Please give me a call and I can share more of my experiences with you and help you decide which cruise is the right one for you. Bon Voyage!