WHAT THE INSPECTOR THINKS

The latest news for your next cruise

ANY hotel that bangs on about being five-star should be avoided. Or, at least, treated with scepticism. We’ve all stayed in humble hotels and B&Bs with exemplary levels of service and comfort — five-star, even — but these would fall short of the criteria required to be officially five-star.

Corporate, chain hotels often talk about ‘fivestar luxury’ when in fact they deliver something strangely depressing and impersonal.

Half-price Venice

TO CELEBRATE UK travellers no longer having to quarantine for five days on arrival in Italy, Uniworld is offering a 50 per cent discount on ‘Venice and the Gems of Northern Italy’ autumn sailings aboard new river ship La Venezia.

Seven nights, including a gondolabuilding shipyard visit, from £1,499pp (uniworld.com, 0808 301 2561).

Shipwreck diving

BOOK Silversea Whisper’s 14-night ‘Bermuda & Southern Caribbean from New York’ cruise by September 30 for a 20 per cent discount.

The November 1, 2022 sailing features shipwreck-diving in Bermuda and a Jeep safari in the British Virgin Islands. From £3,999pp (iglucruise. com, 020 3553 3140).

Head to the Med

TAKE a ten-deck plunge on Ultimate Abyss, the tallest slide at sea, and zipline above the boardwalk on Harmony of the Seas’ Western Mediterranean sailings. The seven-night cruises from September 26 start at £472pp. Calls on the Barcelona round-trips include Palma de Mallorca and tours to Florence, Rome and Naples (royalcaribbean.co.uk, 0344 493 4005).

No single supplement

EUROPE’S largest river cruise operator, CroisiEurope, is waiving the single supplement on some seven-day autumn departures, including the Seine on October 15 with prices from £837pp and the Rhine, Moselle and Main on October 11 from £806pp (croisieurope. co.uk, 020 8328 1281).

Centenary voyage

STAY overnight in New York, San Francisco, Sydney, Hong Kong, Singapore and Dubai on Cunard’s ‘Queen Victoria Centenary World Voyage’ on January 11, 2023. The 101-night no-fly cruise starts at £12,699pp (imaginecruising.co.uk, 0800 840 5800).

Croatia getaway

SAIL from Dubrovnik on 36-guest yacht

Princess Eleganza for late summer sun. The eight-day ‘Gems of Croatia’ cruise calls into Split, Korcula, Hvar and Brac, with chances to swim in clear waters and join island tours. Depart September 30 or October 7; prices from £1,295 pp (aptouring.co.uk, 0800 012 6683).

See snow monkeys

WATCH macaques in the hot springs on Celebrity Solstice’s 19-night ‘Japan Discovery’ cruise on April 7, 2023. The Tokyo round-trip makes calls to Aomori, Hiroshima, Kobe, Kyoto and Hakodate. From £4,499 pp including Tokyo hotel stay,

all-inclusive drinks, tips and wifi (rolcruise. co.uk, 0800 204 4660).

LESLEY BELLEW