As of Friday, the enforced gratuity charge of $7.50 per adult per day won’t be charged to your shipboard account; if you want to tip any a member of crew for exceptional service, it will be a matter of choice.
Cruising in Asia and the Pacific offers the chance to explore a rich array of native folklore and art. Indigenous culture is in vogue and interest shows no sign of abating. The movie Avatar, in which audiences side with the indigenous blue-skinned Na’vi people on fictional planet Pandora, was simply highlighting a trend.
A high-Arctic wildlife smorgasbord awaits travellers to Spitsbergen. Our adventure cruise editor, Roderick Eime, fills his plate to overflowing.
Over there on the iceberg: about 100 metres,” calls Judd Hill, our sea guide, in a loud whisper. “Where?!” I respond with less restraint and more volume. “There: he’s looking at us now,” Hill replies.
A Christmas to Remember: November/December 2008 San Diego California to Rio De Janiero Brazil via the Chilean Fjords and Antarctica. The itinerary was a wonderful mix of Mexico, Panama, South America and Antarctica all in one magnificent 42-day journey.
This was our fifth Star Cruise, second time on the Virgo and previously cruised on the Aries, Leo and Gemini. The ship is nearly in the same condition as it was in 2001, spotless with very few signs that she is now 10 years old.
My wife and I boarded the Queen Mary II at Fremantle, Western Australia for the Sydney to Capetown leg of her Inaugural Around the World Voyage. We sailed out of Fremantle at 5:30pm on a beautiful evening and were followed out of the harbour by some 1000 small craft and a crowd of more than a 100,000 that jam-packed Fremantle just to catch a glimpse of the biggest liner in the world.
Cruise Passenger's 2010 Reader's Choice Awards are almost over. Vote NOW for your favourite cruise lines, ships, destinations, ports, travel agents and airlines – whether you're an experienced cruiser or a first-timer, your vote is important to us. Besides, you could win an Orient-Express holiday valued at $4,500!
Hear the hilarious stories of life aboard the world's most luxurious fleet, including how nine men "mooned" BON VOYAGE from the San Francisco Bridge as the ship set out to sea.
