I'm Ashley Strickland, the advisor behind Cruise Vacations by Ashley. Ocean or river, Caribbean to Europe and beyond — I match you with the right ship, cabin, and itinerary on any cruise line, keep an eye on the promotions and your loyalty offers, and handle the details in between, so all you have to do is pack.
If it floats, I can plan it — river and ocean cruises to the Caribbean, Bermuda, Alaska, Europe, and beyond, on every cruise line, with the flights, hotels, excursions, and protection that make the whole trip run smoothly.
Inside Passage sailings, glacier-viewing days, and cruisetours that add Denali and the Yukon. I'll help you choose between Seattle and Vancouver departures, pick the right side of the ship, and time excursions like whale watching and the White Pass railway.
Best for: bucket-list trips, scenery lovers, multigenerational groups
Eastern, Western, and Southern Caribbean itineraries — including Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao — plus Bermuda sailings with their pink-sand beaches and easy overnight stays in port. Snorkeling in Bonaire, Eagle Beach in Aruba, Horseshoe Bay in Bermuda: I'll match the route to your pace.
Best for: beach days, snorkeling, winter escapes
Reunions, celebrations, and hosted group sailings like the FBBC Group Cruise. I coordinate the group block, keep everyone's cabins and payments organized, and make sure the group perks actually reach the group.
Best for: reunions, milestone birthdays, friend groups
The Mediterranean, Greek Isles, and Northern Europe — and well past it: transatlantic crossings, Hawaii, Mexico, Canada & New England, Asia, and the South Pacific. Wherever a ship sails, I'll plan it, including the pre- and post-cruise hotel nights that make embarkation day easy instead of exhausting.
Best for: culture, food, once-in-a-lifetime itineraries
Prefer to sail through a destination instead of past it? River cruises carry you right into the heart of it — the Rhine, Danube, and Seine in Europe, the Mekong in Asia, and the great American rivers. Smaller ships, included excursions, and a new town almost every day.
I book every cruise line, not just a favorite or two — and before we book, I check all of your loyalty statuses and offers on whichever line we choose. If you play in the casino, your play can earn real cruise value too. Whatever you've earned, I'll make sure it's counted, then stack it with the current promotion whenever the terms allow.
The right excursions book up early — I'll line up port days that fit your ship's actual schedule, with a buffer to get you back aboard, and book the ones that sell out before they're gone.
Every proposal I send includes a travel protection option with clear terms, so you decide with the full picture — and a surprise before or during your trip doesn't become an expensive one.
Fill out the trip request below — where you want to go, when, who's coming, and what you'd love the trip to feel like. Two minutes, no commitment.
I research sailings and build you a proposal with real prices and honest trade-offs — ship, cabin, itinerary, and which current promotions apply.
I handle deposits, payment reminders, documents, and excursions, and I stay in your corner if anything changes before — or during — your trip.
Two kinds of savings live here: the perks of booking through me, and the cruise lines' own promotions. I'll always check both against your sailing before we book — along with your loyalty status and any casino offers you hold, on every line.
These aren't limited-time deals — they're part of how I work, on top of whatever the cruise lines are offering.
Hosted group sailings and group blocks with the rates, space, and perks coordinated for everyone — one point of contact instead of twelve.
Before we book with any cruise line, I check your casino offers and loyalty status — you may already have value waiting that a website checkout won't show you.
I build your port days around your ship's actual schedule and book the excursions that sell out — before they're gone.
Every proposal includes a travel protection option with clear terms, so you decide with the full picture — not after something goes wrong.
The second guest in your stateroom saves 60% on their cruise fare on sailings departing October 7, 2026 or later. On select sailings of 3+ nights, kids 12 and under sail for a $0 cruise fare — and 3rd and 4th guests sail free on select sailings through August 20, 2027.
Save 75% on the second guest's fare with a non-refundable deposit (50% with a refundable deposit), plus bonus savings of up to $700 per stateroom. On select sailings, the 3rd, 4th, and 5th guests in the stateroom sail free. Ask me about stacking this with your casino or loyalty offers.
Up to 50% off cruise fares, bundled with Norwegian's More At Sea package: unlimited open bar, specialty dining, a $50 shore excursion credit in every port, and Wi-Fi. One of the strongest bundles if you like your cruise closer to all-inclusive.
Up to 45% off fares plus up to $450 in instant savings per stateroom, a $99 deposit, and 3rd and 4th guests sailing free on select voyages. A strong pick for Alaska — Princess is a Glacier Bay authorized concessioner with deep Alaska coverage.
On select 2027 and 2028 sailings, the Have It All package is included: up to $300 in shore excursion credit, specialty dining, the Elite Beverage Package, Premium Wi-Fi, and prepaid crew appreciation. Summer 2027 Alaska sailings need just a $99 deposit.
Adults-only Virgin Voyages is rewarding early planners on select Summer 2027 Alaska and Europe sailings: up to $400 in onboard credit plus up to $1,000 in instant savings. Wi-Fi, group fitness, dining, and entertainment are already included in every fare.
All cruise line promotions are set by the cruise lines, apply to select sailings and stateroom categories, and are capacity-controlled — they can change or be withdrawn at any time. Percentages apply to the cruise fare portion only; taxes, fees, and port expenses are additional and apply to every guest, including guests sailing on a $0 fare. Final pricing is confirmed at the time of booking.
The Cruise Vacation Club Rewards Program is my thank-you for trusting me with your vacations. Earn points for booking cruises, referring friends, and hosting group cruises, climb through four membership tiers, and redeem your points for onboard credit, cruise gifts, excursions, and hotel credits. Best of all, your points never expire.
Earn points for booking cruises, referring friends, hosting group cruises, and more.
Sail more nights and move up through four membership tiers, each with even more perks.
Use your points for onboard credit, cruise gifts, excursions, hotel credits, and more.
Start earning from your very first sailing and enjoy member perks right away.
Early notice of group cruises before they're announced, plus priority waitlists for group sailings.
A complimentary sailing gift on every cruise you book through me.
VIP status — my highest tier, with premium benefits.
Redeem your way: points turn into onboard credit, cruise gifts, excursion contributions, spa passes, and hotel credits. Save them as long as you like — points can be saved indefinitely and redeemed whenever you choose.
Want every perk, tier, and reward in detail? Book with me and I'll send you the full rewards packet with all the details.
Start Your InquiryShort, practical reads from my planning desk — the same advice I give clients, written up so you don't have to wait for our call to hear it.
For most destinations, a cabin is where you sleep. In Alaska, your balcony is a front-row seat — here's how to plan for it.
Alaska's season is short — roughly May through September — and the best glacier-viewing cabins on the best sailing dates go first. If Alaska is on your list for next summer, the time to look is now, not in the spring.
My honest take on cabins: if the budget allows one splurge, make it the balcony. Glacier days, whale sightings, and slow Inside Passage mornings are the whole point of the trip, and you'll experience them very differently from your own railing with a coffee in hand. Traveling northbound, the starboard side faces the coast; southbound, choose port side.
Also worth deciding early: cruise-only, or cruisetour? Adding a land package to Denali turns a great week into the full Alaska story. And pack in layers — an Alaska July can hand you 75° and 48° in the same afternoon.
Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao sit close together on the map but feel completely different in port. A quick guide to each.
Aruba is the beach day: Eagle Beach's white sand, steady trade winds, and an easygoing island that sits outside the hurricane belt — one reason Southern Caribbean routes that include the ABCs are such a reliable winter choice.
Bonaire is the water day. The island is ringed by a protected marine park, and much of the snorkeling starts right from shore. If you dive, this is the stop you'll talk about for years; if you don't, a clear-bottom kayak or a flamingo-spotting tour is a fine substitute.
Curaçao is the city day: Willemstad's candy-colored Handelskade, the Queen Emma floating bridge, and a genuinely walkable old town steps from the pier. Split your time between the Punda and Otrobanda sides, and save an hour for a beach club on the way back.
If you play in the casino onboard — or you've simply sailed before — you may already have cruise offers waiting. Here's what to know before you book.
Every major cruise line tracks rated casino play — table games and slots — and sends offers to players based on it: discounted or even complimentary staterooms on selected sailings, usually with specific dates and cabin categories attached. On top of that, each line's loyalty program rewards your past sailings with member rates and perks. The catch is that these offers rarely show up in a normal online checkout.
That's exactly why it pays to ask before booking. Whichever line we're looking at, I check three things: any current casino offer attached to your profile, the rate your loyalty status earns you, and the public promotion running at the same time — then which combination the terms actually allow. Sometimes the casino rate wins by a mile; sometimes the public sale plus onboard credit does.
One tip for your next sailing: make sure your play is rated — hand your card over at the tables and use it in the machines. Unrated play is invisible play, and invisible play earns nothing.
I'm Ashley Strickland, a cruise-focused travel advisor and the owner of Cruise Vacations by Ashley. Cruises are what I do all day, every day — researching ships and itineraries across every cruise line, building proposals for sailings from the Caribbean and Bermuda to Alaska and Europe, river cruises, and shore excursions, and coordinating group cruises for clients who'd rather travel together.
I run my practice on Tern, a planning platform built for travel advisors, so your trip lives in one organized place: your proposal, your payments and deadlines, and your documents. When you book with me, you're not a confirmation number — you're a trip I'm actively minding until you're home.
Have a casino or loyalty offer, a group to organize, or just a destination and a dream date? Start with the trip request below and tell me about it.
Most of my day-to-day cruise life happens in my Facebook community: new offers as they land, group cruise announcements, port tips, and photos from clients' sailings.
Join the group to follow along — or find me on Facebook and Instagram for the latest posts.
Tell me a little about the trip you're dreaming of. The more you share, the better your first proposal will be — but even a destination and a rough date is enough to start.
My inquiry form lives in Tern, the planning system I run my whole practice on — so the moment you send it, your trip is created in my workflow with everything in one place. No separate account, no email tag.
Start Your InquiryOpens my secure Tern inquiry form in a new tab. It takes about two minutes: where you want to go, when, who's traveling, and what you're dreaming of.
