Same river.
Same ship.
Completely different trip.
river · ocean · expedition
A Danube sailing in September feels nothing like one in June. An itinerary that overnights in port is a different experience from one that pulls out at four. Those decisions shape the whole cruise, and they're made long before you board.
Most people choose based on price or a friend's recommendation. I choose based on how you like to travel.
01— The difference
Not cruise booking.
Cruise design.
Some ships feel like floating cities. Others are small enough that by day three you know everyone at breakfast. The right guide turns a shore excursion into something you're still describing to people a year later. Even the dining room tells you who the ship was built for.
None of that shows up in a fare comparison. When I recommend a cruise, it has nothing to do with the current promotion or which line pays the most commission. It comes down to how you want to feel on board and what you want to bring home.
I don't start with the ship or the itinerary. I start with you.
Four decisions that make the trip
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Included excursions are a starting point, not the story. A private hour with a collection you have wanted to see. A market before the groups arrive. Or permission to skip the organized tour and spend the day walking.
Port day strategy
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The same destination plays out differently depending on route, season, and ship. A Mediterranean itinerary that gives you one morning in port is a different journey from one that overnights. I read itineraries for how they will feel day to day.
Itinerary Intelligence
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Category names tell you the price. They do not tell you which side of the ship faces the castles on the Rhine, which deck sits under the pool, or when spending less gets you a better trip.
Cabin and deck choice
Twelve lines will all sell you luxury. They mean wildly different things by it: crew ratio, dress code, whether the lounge is full at ten or empty. I match the ship to your pace, not to a star rating.
Line & ship selection
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Get these right and the ship becomes part of the experience. Get them wrong and you've booked an expensive hotel that moves.
02 — what i do
What happens next is the part I studied for.
The right ship gets you there.
Bilbao: Everyone comes for the Guggenheim. The Museo de Bellas Artes, twenty minutes away on foot, has the better collection and almost no crowd.
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Split: Diocletian's palace is not a ruin you visit. It is a neighborhood people still live inside, with laundry hanging from Roman walls and a cathedral built into the emperor's tomb.
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Ravenna: Half the ships that call here send everyone to the same two mosaic sites. The one worth your morning is the smallest, a fifth-century mausoleum where the ceiling is a night sky in blue and gold.
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I think about how much context a place needs before it means something to you, and when slowing down beats seeing everything. That is the difference between checking a box and understanding where you travel.
03 - why the port days are different
I trained in art history and museum education before I ever planned a cruise, and it shapes every day you spend ashore. Three examples of what that looks like in practice:
What I've sailed myself
I know the differences between these lines from years of matching specific travelers to specific ships, not from brochures.
lines i design with
04 - three ways to sail
European River Cruises
River, ocean, expedition
The rivers are not interchangeable. The Danube suits travelers drawn to history and architecture. The Douro is the most intimate, with terraced vineyards on both banks and short days on the water. The Rhine gives you castles and scenery without much beneath it. The Rhône connects Provence, Lyon, and Burgundy through food and art. The Seine runs from Paris to Normandy and delivers the history.
I help you find the river that suits you, the line that matches your interests, and how to spend the days ashore, which often means skipping the standard excursion for something better.
lines i design with
for destination-first travelers
Ocean Cruises
A small port in the Aegean. A late night in a city the schedule should have given more time. Some travelers want the destinations, some want the days at sea, and a few want both in a particular rhythm. I start by asking which one you are, because the answer changes the ship.
From there: a line that matches your style, a cabin you can relax in, and port days built around more than the group tour.
where the fit matters most
lines i design with
Expedition & Small Ship
The inlets of the Norwegian fjords, the volcanic shores of Iceland, the Galápagos, Antarctica, the Arctic. If you would rather watch a glacier calve than catch the after-dinner show, this is your ship.
Expedition lines differ more than any other category: the ships, the itinerary, how often you get off the ship and onto the water. Some vessels feel like a working research station. Others are refined and comfortable, with the same access. Choosing right matters more here than anywhere else in cruising.
Expedition or small-ship sailing appeals to you, but you can't tell which line or itinerary fits.
You want the cruise to be one part of a larger journey, not the whole of it.
You would rather ask someone who knows the differences between the lines than spend three weekends comparing brochures.
You want real cultural experience in each port, not a ninety-minute walk around the main square.
You cruised once and it wasn't what you hoped for, and you still aren't sure what went wrong.
The number of options across lines, ships, itineraries, and cabin categories has crossed from exciting into paralyzing.
05 — fit
And it isn't for you if what you want is the lowest fare on a specific sailing. That's a booking, and you can do it yourself in an afternoon.
if any of these land.
This is for you
We talk about how you travel, which cruises draw you, who is coming, and what you want the experience to feel like. That conversation shapes everything after it, whether you are picturing the Danube or the Antarctic Peninsula.
01
Consultation
01
We Talk
I recommend the line, itinerary, ship, and cabin based on your preferences, never on commissions or current offers. Then the port days, the pre and post cruise stays, and every detail in between.
02
Design
You leave with a full itinerary: cultural context, dining notes, and what deserves your time in each port, including what you can skip. And me on the phone if anything shifts.
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Departure
Six to twelve months out is ideal. The best cabins on the best itineraries go first, especially on small ships.
06 — the process
"River, ocean, or expedition, the ship is only half the decision. The other half is what you do when you step off it."
learn about travel design
Two nights in the embarkation city before you board, so you see it awake instead of in transit. A train after disembarkation to somewhere the ship can't reach. Most of the journeys I design put the cruise in the middle of something larger.
A cruise is one chapter, not the whole book
rachel stankovic, travel designer
before and after the ship
Takes about three minutes. No obligation.
After we talk, you receive a written proposal with the scope of your cruise and your design fee. Nothing begins until you approve it.
You'll get a link to schedule our complimentary call, Monday through Friday, 10am to 4pm MST.
A short inquiry form: which kind of cruise interests you, roughly when, and who is traveling. "Not sure yet" is a valid answer to all three.
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Request a cruise consultation
+1 (480) 868-6152
Monday–Friday, 10am–4pm MST
Phoenix, Arizona, working with clients anywhere.
Any cruise, any region. "I'm not sure which kind yet" is a good place to begin. The first conversation is complimentary, with no pressure and no pitch.