WHAT A DIFFERENCE a year makes! As I prepared my letter for last November’s issue, our first-ever Cruising Issue, it had been years since I’d last cruised. Now, as I prepare for final sign-off on this November issue, I reminisce about the two cruises I’ve been on in the past year, and I’m washed with nostalgia for the experiences and memories each brought.

What makes cruising such big business? Based on my two different experiences — one a river cruise on the Danube for New Year’s Eve and one a luxury cruise in the Caribbean on a larger ship — I can draw some of my own conclusions. One cannot overlook the ease of unpacking once yet seeing multiple destinations. Cruises are good for a wide range of family types; my New Year’s Eve river cruise with my fiancé in Europe was perfect for us, while the all-inclusive ocean cruise I took with my mom suited us nicely. You can please most members of the family with a cruise. Planned itineraries and offered excursions take some of the headache out of putting together your own trip, and with dining included, people can budget funds for other activities. I could go on about the benefits of cruising, but I’ll let the articles on the following pages entice you instead. As you can tell from my GT Tested reviews of U River Cruises and Seabourn, I had more words to write than room on the page.

To depart from the subject of cruising briefly, I need to offer a little update to my letter from last month. I wrote about the subject of haunted tourism just a few days before departing for Savannah, a well-known haunted destination. On a tour of the haunted Sorrel-Weed House I saw a ghost. While not necessarily a believer before, I am now. I know what I saw was paranormal activity, and it only bolstered the sentiment expressed in our October issue: Haunted tourism is and will continue to be popular for good reason, and there’s a bounty of it to be explored further.

Where do we cruise in this issue? Sail away with us to Colombo, İzmir, Miami, Cartagena, Nassau, Roatán, Dubai and Croatia. Prepare for the holiday season with a look at Christmas market cruises on page 70, and use Katie McElveen’s feature story on page 40 to determine which cruise line is right for you.

Celebrate with us next month as we announce the winners of our 16th annual GT Tested Reader Survey awards. Until then, happy sailing!