Innholdsfortegnelse for Cruise Planner 2020 i Cruise & Travel

After 40 years in the business, Titan knows one ship doesn’t fit all. That’s why the award-winning tour operator works with so many varied cruise partners, alongside chartering two of its own river ships. But with so many different kinds of ships on offer, sailing to all seven continents, it can be hard to know which one is right for you. Here are some of Titan’s suggestions. SUMPTUOUS SAILINGS You can slip serenely into relax mode on one of Titan’s luxury cruises with either Regent Seven Sea Cruises or Azamara. These cruise lines also emphasise the experiential, whether visiting cultural sites in the Mediterranean or sailing along South Africa’s rugged coast. INTREPID EXPLORATIONS Sometimes an adventure is called for and, on these occasions, Titan recommends one of their Hurtigruten cruises.…

One of the finest ocean cruise lines in the world, Silversea will hit a new milestone in July when it debuts Silver Origin, its first-ever destination-specific ship primed to unlock immersive travel experiences in the Galápagos Islands. And the cruise line has even more in store for 2020 when Silver Moon, another brand new ship, arrives in August, enabling authentic onboard and onshore experiences owing to the new culinary concept S.A.L.T. DESTINATION KNOW-HOW Designed exclusively for the Galápagos, Silver Origin offers a new way to explore this precious region by combining Silversea’s trademark levels of luxury with its local destination expertise. Unique shore excursions led by Silversea’s expert Expedition Team and the archipelago’s highest Zodiac-to-guest ratio, ensure there are lots of exciting opportunities for exploration, but Silver Origin delivers more…

Arctic tourism is on the rise with more cruise ships expected in Greenland, a record number calling at Iceland in 2019, and Svalbard – the high Arctic archipelago off the far north of Norway – earning more from tourism every year. Strictly speaking Iceland is just south of the Arctic Circle, although one of its small islands – Grimsey – is inside the line so it’s regarded as an Arctic country. And an extraordinary one at that. The land of ice and fire has live volcanoes, lava fields, hot springs, geysers and glaciers as well as snow-topped mountains and powerful waterfalls. From September to March you can catch the Northern Lights here and, during the summer, the Midnight Sun means for some days in June there’s 24 hours of daylight.…

Barbados is Britain’s favourite cruise destination and it’s the main focus of cruises that include islands such as St Lucia, St Kitts, St Vincent and the British Virgin Islands. Virtually every P&O Cruises’ Caribbean itinerary includes Barbados and most are seven-day fly-cruises from Bridgetown, the capital, which has gradually transformed itself into a year-round party town. There’s still the UNESCO-listed Garrison and colonial buildings, horse racing on the Garrison Savannah – as there has been since 1845 – and cricket at the Kennington Oval. You can get afternoon tea at the famous Sandy Lane hotel on the palm-fringed west coast but you’ll also want to check out the bars around the harbour and waterfront and enjoy the island’s natural attractions such as beautiful beaches, sea turtles and tropical fish at…

As Japan prepares for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics after recently hosting the Rugby World Cup, interest in the Far East is intense and excursions are ever-more imaginative. NCL will be sailing to four new Japanese ports: Beppu, Kumamoto, Niigata and Nagoya. Beppu has hot springs, mud baths and cherry trees; Kumamoto on the island of Kyushu is close to the active volcano Mount Aso-an and has a castle, temples and shrines; Niigata is known for its sea food, sake and hot springs, and Nagoya Castle has been declared a National Treasure. There has been a big increase in Chinese ports opening to cruise ships over the past few years, partly because more people go on cruises. The 2013-built cruise terminal at Shanghai means you can easily get to the city’s…

Tokyo, Japan With its soaring skyscrapers, Buddhist shrines and ancient temples, the Japanese capital — setting for the 2020 Summer Olympics — is a city of infinite possibilities. Chaotic crowds and flashing neon give way to idyllic green spaces such as Chidori-ga-fuchi, a section of the Imperial Palace moat which transforms into a tunnel of trees covered with pastel pink sakura in the spring. One of the city’s top spots for hanami (cherry blossom viewing), the path is especially pretty when illuminated at night, as well as when the petals fall, creating the illusion of an ethereal pink river. >> Turn to page 108 to read about ocean and river cruises to Asia for the year ahead…

CELEBRITY CRUISES Celebrity Apex arrives in April and launches into five sailings from Southampton. Apex, sister ship to 2019’s Celebrity Edge (named Best New Ship in the British Cruise Awards 2019), features twin-level villas with plunge pools, rooms with a glass ‘Infinite’ balcony and the Magic Carpet, a restaurant and bar which rises up and down the outside of the ship. Celebrity Silhouette, transformed as part of the £400m Celebrity Revolution to unify and modernise the fleet, sails from Southampton from May, heading both north and to the Mediterranean. With Apex, the line will have 11 mainstream vessels along with three Galápagos ships including Celebrity Flora which debuted in summer 2019. Noted for its stylishly understated ships, Celebrity was voted Best for Onboard Accommodation in the British Cruise Awards 2019.…

With a wealth of superb sailings from Asia to North Africa, Marella Cruises, winner of the Best Value for Money award at the British Cruise Awards, is renowned for the excellent service and fantastic onboard offering on its contemporary fleet of six ships. And now, for the first time ever, Marella is offering cruises to the USA. From summer 2021, Marella Discovery will sail from Port Canaveral on Florida’s Space Coast, home to the Kennedy Space Center. There are four new itineraries to pick from, featuring 11 ports of call – plus, as you’ll stay on the ship overnight in New York, Tampa and New Orleans, you’ll be able to explore these cities by day and night too. Plus on Marella Cruises’ Cruise & Stay itineraries, you can combine any…

A crowd pleaser in every way, we Brits love to cruise the Mediterranean. It has sunshine from early spring to late autumn, endless historic and cultural sites, ever-changing food, wonderful vineyards and beautiful beaches. You can sail from Southampton and a few other UK ports for a fortnight’s break or fly to a European cruise hub for a week-long trip that cuts out the sea days for an even more destination-rich and immersive holiday. And once you’ve seen those big, glittering Mediterranean jewels – Barcelona’s Gaudí buildings, Rome’s ancient monuments or Venice’s canals – there are smaller cities where quieter streets still offer up cultural treasures. Take Sicily’s capital, Palermo, where you can pick up a bag of fresh sundried tomatoes for a couple of euros then stand in awe…

Of all the northern Europe cruises, the Baltic offers the best chance to visit a different country virtually every day. Many are round trips, usually from Southampton or Dover, and typically offer the opportunity to spend two days in St Petersburg after visiting the Scandinavian capitals of Copenhagen, Stockholm and Helsinki. Highlights include Copenhagen’s lively 17th-century Nyhavn Harbour full of outdoor bars and inviting cafés, Stockholm’s unique museums – the Vasa Museum has a 17th-century galleon and ABBA The Museum is a must for fans – while Helsinki is like a breath of fresh air with a pretty harbour and lots of green spaces. For those who have already visited these cities but want to see more of Scandinavia some cruises also make a point of calling at less well-known…

Think of Africa and you conjure a land of safari game reserves, Zulu warriors and colonial towns. Modern South Africa also offers lively cities plus world-class wine paired with great food. All these elements are available on a cruise with additional land tours like those that Azamara has added to its line-up of itineraries for 2020. Its South Africa Intensive Voyages in January and February are return trips from Cape Town, calling at Port Elizabeth, East London, Durban and Richards Bay – all ports which were until recently confined to world cruises. From Cape Town you can take a cable car up Table Mountain, see African penguins on Boulder Beach at Cape of Good Hope and go to Robben Island where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned. Port Elizabeth is a few…

The wait is over. Spirit of Discovery, Britain’s newest cruise ship, is now here and embarking on its debut season. Accommodating just 999 passengers, the small ship is proving a big hit as it introduces boutique cruising to guests sailing to exciting places across the planet. Taking pride of place in Saga’s fleet, the flagship features design cues on par with the world’s best boutique hotels. But there’s more to the ship than its elegant décor – it similarly excels with exceptional levels of service, great dining options and excellent value for money. SUPERB DETAIL As soon as you arrive on board, you’ll be won over by the ship’s sumptuous styling. From the light-filled Living Room to the art deco-inspired South Cape Bar to the signature Britannia Lounge, the interiors…

CUNARD Cunard, celebrating 100 years of sailing in timeless style from Southampton, continues with its iconic transatlantic crossings. It is also blossoming in the wider world – the line will have its longest Australian season with Queen Elizabeth spending four months there in 2020/21. And it has doubled its Alaska programme with a whole summer of cruises. Sir Ranulph Fiennes and Kenton Cool (14-time Everest climber) will lecture as Queen Elizabeth sails through the wilderness. There are also more of the popular two-night breaks sailing from Southampton to Hamburg, while a fourth Queen, which is still to be named, will make its debut in 2021. 0800 028 2177; cunard.co.uk CRUISE & MARITIME VOYAGES This British company offers great value cruises – often with a ‘second person goes free’ offer –…

FEBRUARY REGENT SEVEN SEAS SPLENDOR The fifth in the Regent Seven Seas fleet, Splendor will offer a stylish travel experience on one of the most elegant ships ever to sail the globe. Adorned with over 46,000ft of Italian marble and 500 crystal chandeliers, plus a specially curated art collection, Splendor will live up to its name, offering huge balcony space in every one of its 375 suites. Billed as the largest suite on a luxury cruise ship, and perched high on the 14th deck, The Regent Suite has unobstructed 270-degree views over the ship’s bow from the 1,300 square-foot wraparound veranda, and a spacious glass-enclosed solarium seating area on top of the bridge, as well as an in-suite spa offering unlimited treatments. For food lovers, Splendor boasts a range of…

The popularity of round-Britain and Ireland cruises increases every year but there’s also a growing interest in boutique cruises to remote, out-of-the-way places, particularly along Scotland’s extraordinarily beautiful west coast. These small ship cruises have an expedition flavour to them, with locals guiding walks around the intricate coastline and sea lochs looking for wildlife such as dolphins, seals, otters, basking sharks and even minke whales. Inland there’s even more wildlife, from ospreys and golden eagles to the more common but still spectacular red deer that roam the heather-lined hills. Then there are the castles, Culzean on the Ayrshire coast, baronial mansions such as Glamis and romantic ruins like Urquhart on Loch Ness. The Majestic Line is a specialist small ship company based in Oban on the west coast of Scotland…

Cruises to see the Northern Lights have never been so popular among us British. Seeing the otherworldly Aurora Borealis regularly makes it into the top 10 of our travel wish lists, which is good news for cruise lines that need to fill ships during the darker months. From winter until March or April, Norway will be under snow so there’s the chance to go dog sledding, take sleigh rides pulled by reindeer and even stay the night in an ice hotel. Saga caters for this home-grown demand each year with its Searching For The Northern Lights cruises which include expert lectures and a free excursion to wilderness camps set up at sites where the lights are regularly seen. Hot drinks and open fires keep guests warm during the late-night vigils,…

Alaska is easily the USA’s most awe-inspiring cruise destination thanks to its extraordinary scenery and the chance to sample a unique way of life. There are stunning fjords, massive glaciers and towns with Russian, native American and Norwegian heritage. Then there’s the wildlife – whales, brown bears and eagles – for those lucky enough to spot them. America’s most northern state was partly shaped by the 1896 Klondike Gold Rush. Prospectors used Alaska’s ports Dyea and Skagway on their way to the Yukon in north west Canada. Now Skagway is in the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park and you can visit restored period buildings, including the 1900-built railway office, an 1898 saloon, and shops and homes furnished in gold rush style. From Skagway you can also walk some of…

The Panama Canal is a bucket list destination in its own right, as well as the man-made shortcut from the Pacific Ocean through Central America to the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean. At 50 miles long it can take up to 10 hours to transit the canal, which divides the Central American countries of Colombia in the south from Panama and neighbouring Costa Rica. Large cruise ships can now get through the canal but it’s only if you’re on an expedition ship that you’ll see much more of Panama than Panama City, the country’s cosmopolitan capital. South America is a massive continent with cruises ranging from 14-night highlight tours which include overnight stops in Argentina’s hypnotic capital Buenos Aires, where you might like to tango, and Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro,…