Springtime in the Netherlands and a colorful tulip cruise seemed like the perfect remedy after a long Chicago winter, so my wife, Ikuko, and I got in touch with Darcy, our Travel Consultant at Hideaways. It was our first Hideaways adventure, and I must say, Darcy hit the bulls-eye every step of the way. In addition to the cruise, we wanted some extra days in Amsterdam and Copenhagen, and her pre- and post-cruise hotel and tour suggestions were all excellent. Kudos!

In fact, everything would have been perfect had Queen Beatrice of the Netherlands not announced her intent to abdicate the crown in favor of her son, Willem-Alexander, shortly before we left. This was to occur on Queen's Day (April 30), an annual national holiday celebrating the Queen's birthday and the day after our scheduled arrival in Amsterdam. The hotel in which we were booked was co-opted by the Dutch Royal Family for their own use and that of their VIP guests—which somehow didn't include us! We were moved to another hotel, which actually turned out to be in a far better location.