I thought I might never experience a cruise.... Until I found this one, which had no single supplement (that is, no additional $$ for having only one person in the stateroom). That, and the fact that I could drive to Charleston in less than 4-hours from my home in NC. (For an overview of the cruise, here's a link to my video: http://vimeo.com/84613460. You may have to copy and paste this link into your browser.)

Hotel/Park & Cruise:

Embarkation was on Sun, 1/5/14, at 5pm, I drove down the day before, so as not to be hurried the next day. I picked the Quality Inn at Patriot's Point because of the decent rate and, especially, because they had the Charleston Cruise & Fly program. This is the only way to go: included in the hotel 1-night rate is parking for the car for the week, _plus_ transportation to the cruise terminal and back. Since parking one's car at the port costs $17/day (i.e., $85 for the 5-days), the net cost of the hotel is minimal. I went into Charleston Sat night for dinner, and can highly recommend Hyman's Seafood on Meeting Street. Fresh and fabulous oysters, scallops and crab cake. Read more