As I prepare to celebrate entering my 70s with a 129-day Grand World Voyage aboard Holland America’s ms Volendam in January 2027, I’ve also been diving headfirst into Artificial Intelligence. Having already tackled high-strenuous adventures in my younger years—like trekking to Machu Picchu and hiking around Iguazu Falls—I have no desire to push through exhausting, steep trails today. Instead, I used Gemini and Gemini Notebook (NotebookLM) to analyze my entire itinerary, curate step-free shore excursions, and transform my cruise documents into a complete suite of personalized media assets.
Below are the downloadable guides, infographics, videos, and podcasts created during this project. Feel free to explore each resource as I count down to departure!
🎥 Video & Audio Overviews
- Maximizing the Grand World Voyage — The Energy-to-Impact Ratio
- Description: A cinematic video overview exploring the 129-day itinerary, focusing on balancing port energy, ocean cruising stretches, and high-reward accessible sights.
- The Itinerary Hacker
- Description: A documentary-style video blog experiment sharing my journey into AI travel planning, entering my 70s, and designing a step-free world cruise strategy.
- Tactical Mobility for a World Voyage
- Description: An audio briefing and podcast discussion covering milestone ports, ocean travel highlights, and practical mobility strategies for cane and walker navigation.
📄 Detailed Mobility & Excursion Report
- Around the World in 2027 — Accessible Shore Excursion Guide
- Description: A complete, port-by-port guide detailing Easy (E) and Moderate (M) activity options, flat walking routes, accessible vehicle transfers, and closed-vehicle safaris.
🖼️ Voyage & Photography Infographics
- Grand World Voyage Itinerary (Landscape)
- Description: A wide-format visual map and itinerary overview outlining major global legs, key ports, and accessible excursion levels—ideal for desktop viewing.
- Grand World Voyage Itinerary (Portrait)
- Description: A vertical layout of the 129-day voyage map, optimized for mobile readers and blog sidebars.
- Tender Ports Mobility Guide
- Description: An infographic covering key tender ports (including Easter Island, Moorea, Bora Bora, and Phuket), highlighting 5-Star Mariner priority tendering and pier footing conditions.
- Camera Desk Photography Guide — Reference Sheet
- Description: A quick-reference sheet for Deck 3 photography, combining morning arrival schedules with zero-walking vantage points for Table Mountain, Sydney Harbour, and the White Cliffs of Dover.
- Camera Desk Photography Guide — Structured Schedule
- Description: A clean, tabular desk schedule organizing ports, arrival times, Deck 3 vantage locations, and key camera highlights into a structured grid.
- Integrated Camera Desk & Vantage Point Guide
- Description: An integrated visual overview pairing the "from-the-ship" landmark schedule directly with Deck 3 promenade viewing strategies.
By leveraging AI, planning this 129-day adventure has been just as rewarding as the trip itself. Follow along here on the blog as departure approaches, and feel free to use these guides if you're planning your own accessible world journey!
