The Daily Telegraph - Saturday - Travel
Expert booking tips
Cruise fares go up and down like yo-yos throughout the year, with free drinks, tips and other perks thrown in for good measure. January is a good time to put down a deposit as lines have tempting deals to get bookings rolling in
If you are tied to school holidays or sold on a specific cruise, book as early as possible to secure the sailing and the cabin
Those flexible on dates and not fussy about where they sleep might get a better last-minute deal by waiting. Ships usually fill from the bottom up and top down so the cheapest and most expensive cabins and suites tend to sell first the annual Thanksgiving Parade. This is when the French Quarter comes alive with colour as floats parade through the streets and the music of marching bands fills the air. A final night in Memphis also offers time to get down with the blues on Beale Street. Fred Holidays (0800 021 3172; fredholidays.co.uk) offers 11 nights, departing from the UK on November
26, from £6,595pp including flights and cruise.
Celebrate the best of British
The Queen Anne – Cunard’s first new cruise ship in 12 years – is set to launch this year. Join its circumnavigation of the UK in May and you will experience the vessel’s first-ever British Isles voyage. Celebrating the best of Britain and Ireland, the itinerary will feature talks about the islands’ history and heritage, celebration menus, British and Irish entertainment and a day in Liverpool – Cunard’s base until 1967 – along with other port favourites including Edinburgh, Kirkwall and Belfast.
Cunard (0344 338 8641; cunard.com) offers the 14-night British Isles
Festival Voyage from £1,559pp; departs Southampton May 24.
Northern lights
Still struggling to know your Big Dipper from your Boötes? Take inspiration from Havila Voyages’ new 11-night astronomy-themed cruises along the Norwegian coast from Bergen to Kirkenes and back. On the March 2 sailing, passengers will be joined by space scientist and former Royal Astronomical Society president John Zarnecki; and on the October 30 departure by Ian Ridpath, editor of the Oxford Dictionary of Astronomy. Between them they will be talking about spacecraft, cosmic creatures and the stars, and supervising evenings on deck searching for the aurora borealis.
Havila Voyages (03455 280026; havilavoyages.com) offers 11-night astronomy adventures from £1,308pp including access to the lectures; departs February, March and October.
A journey to remember
How better to mark the anniversary of the D-Day landings of June 6 2044 than on a cruise ship anchored off the Normandy beaches exactly 80 years after British, Canadian and American troops landed there to begin the long push to free Europe from Nazi occupation. Board Ambassador Cruise Line’s ship Ambition from Bristol and experience a remembrance service on board, as well as talks by former brigadier Philip Sanders. The itinerary also includes favourites such as Guernsey, Le Havre and the Isles of Scilly.
Ambassador Cruise Line (0808 102
0129; ambassadorcruiseline.com) offers the six-night D-Day 80th Anniversary Voyage from £649pp.
A decadent debut
One year on from storming onto the cruise scene with luxury new ship Explora I, Explora Journeys is doing it again. Explora II makes its debut in August with the same leafy conservatory, Art Deco look and restaurant complete with rolling menus devised by some of the world’s most celebrated chefs. Bag the maiden cruise, from Barcelona to Civitavecchia (Rome), to visit the French and Italian Riviera favourites of Portofino and Monte Carlo. Round off a day of exploring the mazelike streets of Porto Santo Stefano, Italy, with a glass or two of chianti.
Explora Journeys (0800 031 8935; explorajourneys.com) offers the eight-night Journey from Barcelona to Rome from £4,377pp; departs August 11.
Get in the Olympic spirit
Inspired by this summer’s Paris Olympics, CroisiEurope is offering four Greek cruises that visit Olympia, home of the ancient Olympic Games, where only men could compete and Greeks gathered for five days of competition and partying. Sailing from Piraeus on La Belle de l’Adriatique, a small ship for just 198 passengers, the cruises include a call into Igoumenitsa and an excursion to Meteora, where dozens of monasteries appear to balance on precipitous rocky peaks. Round off a day in Athens with a Greek folklore evening. CroisiEurope (01756 691269; croisieurope.co.uk) offers the sevennight Tour of the Peloponnese and Meteora from £1,690pp; departs
March 8, 15, 22 and 29.
Cycle the Saône
Who says river cruising has to be slowpaced? Join AmaWaterways’ new seven-night Flavours of Burgundy cruise on the Saône between Dijon and Lyon and take advantage of the guided bike rides on offer – taking active sorts up to 18 miles (30km) along the river banks. There are also walking and wine-tasting tours, plus Lyonnaise specialities to savour on a foodie trip to famed Les Halles market in Lyon. AmaWaterways (0800 520 2250; amawaterways.co.uk) offers the seven-night Flavours of Burgundy aboard the AmaCello from £3,551pp; 12 departures between May 2 and September 26.
Channel your inner warrior Not content with its three new winethemed cruises in 2024, Sail Croatia has added three sailings for those who fancy practising their warrior poses while taking in views of the Dalmatian Coast. Sailings are from Split to Dubrovnik aboard the 38-passenger yacht cruiser Almissa. Activities include sunrise and sunset yoga on the sundeck, as well as yoga in a vineyard in Hvar before a wine-tasting and a traditional Croatian dinner.
Sail Croatia (020 4525 7534; sailcroatia.com) offers its seven-night
Yoga Cruise from £1,329pp; departs April 13, September 7 & October 5.
Launch into autumn
Castles, abbeys, cathedrals and vineyards are among the enticing sights on display as Viva Cruises’ new river ship Viva Enjoy sets sail on a 12-night maiden voyage from Frankfurt to Vienna this autumn. Sail over the Franconian Alps by way of 16 locks on the Main-Danube Canal, cruise the Main and Danube rivers, taste smoked beer in Bamberg and spend a day in Nuremberg, where an excellent Documentation Centre charts the rise of Hitler and life under the Nazis.
Viva Cruises (0330 818 7271; vivacruises.com) offers the 12-night
Maiden Voyage Viva Enjoy from £3,995pp; departs September 29.
All cruise prices exclude flights unless otherwise stated.