Cruising Down Under

For a holiday with a difference venture Down Under with a memorable cruise to Australia. Traditionally when people think about a cruise their first thoughts are of the Caribbean or a lazy cruise around the Mediterranean. If you are looking for something a bit unusual and the chance to take in some amazing sights then Australia might just be the cruise for you.

Royal Caribbean Cruises are one of the few cruise lines to offer a cruise to Cairns and the Barrier Reef; in fact it has newly been added to their itinerary. They offer a 11 night cruise from Sydney, Australia taking in Hamilton Island, Port Douglas and Cairns to name but a few of the destinations en route.

You will make a stop off at Hamitlon Island which is one of the 74 tropical islands in the Coral Sea, between the Queensland coast and the Great Barrier Reef. From here you will cruise to Cairns.

Cairns is an amazing tropical city and it often considered the ‘capital of the Great Barrier Reef’. It is the last major outpost of civilization before the remote jungle of Cape York Peninsula overtakes the landscape. It has long been a favorite holiday destination and it’s not hard to see why with it’s offering of some of the most exciting and original attractions in Australia. For beach lovers there are golden sandy beaches flanked by pristine rainforests, rivaling anything the Caribbean has to offer.

The Great Barrier Reef is less than an hour away and is one of the wonders of the natural world. It is the world’s largest coral reef ecosystem and was declared a World Heritage area in 1981. The reef is scattered with beautiful islands and idyllic coral cays and covers more than 300,000 square kilometres. The Great Barrier Reef system consists of more than 3000 reefs which range in size from 1 hectare to over 10,000 hectares in area. Top tip is to take a glass bottom boat tour if water isn’t for you!

Port Douglas has a distinctive laid back atmosphere, and a low-rise tropical old world charm. The world famous 4 Mile Beach is right at your door and is a great place to see the sun rise. From here you will cruise to Cooktown which is the last port of call on the Eastern side of Australia before cruising out to sea again past Willis Island.

The final port of call before Sydney is Queensland’s capital Brisbane, a bustling, adventurous city. There is so much to see it will be difficult to fit everything in a day but it provides a great insight into Queensland life.

SILVERSEA CRUISES ROLLS OUT 2009 CRUISE SCHEDULE

Silversea Cruises has announced its 2009 worldwide voyage schedule and is now accepting reservations.

Silversea's four all-suite ships are set to visit over 320 different ports in 108 countries on a diverse schedule of over 140 itineraries ranging from seven to 92 days. Complete day-by-day itineraries can be found at www.silversea.com.

Silversea will add its first-ever Grand Pacific Voyage, a 92-day extended odyssey that explores the azure waters and pristine beaches of the Pacific Ocean. Following a diverse route from Los Angeles to Papeete, Sydney, and the Far East, with final stops in Alaska and Vancouver, Silver Shadow will visit 45 ports, 15 countries and two hemispheres.


Other highlights include return visits to Alaska plus 10 new destinations: Szczecin (pronounced Stettin, as it was once known), Poland; Malmo, Sweden; Skagen, Denmark; Gozo Island, Malta; Symi, Greece; Koper, Slovenia; Olhahali Island, Maldives; Nemuro, Japan; Visakhapatnam and New Mangalore, India.

PRINCESS CRUISE TOURS GO TO SOME OF THE WORLD'S MOST CELEBRATED DESTINATIONS IN 2008-09

Princess will debut three new cruisetour options for the 2008-09 season to add more adventurous opportunities for passengers on South America, Asia or Australia cruises.

These land/sea vacations take passengers to explore some of the world's most fascinating destinations, including new tours to the remote Galapagos Islands, and Hangzhou, one of China's most scenic cities.
Together Princess' worldwide lineup of cruisetours offer passengers the opportunities to visit three of the new Seven Wonders of the World as well as a number of UNESCO's World Heritage sites, including such important sites as Machu Picchu, The Great Wall of China, Rio de Janeiro's Christ the Redeemer statue, Australia's Great Barrier Reef and Angkor Wat.
Courtesy of About.com

STAR CRUISES SELLS SUPERSTAR GEMINI

KUALA LUMPUR - Star Cruises announced Saturday the sale of the SuperStar Gemini, which is to be concluded in the following weeks.

The cruise ship will be chartered back from the new owner until December 2008 to continue offering her cruise itineraries before being handed over to the new owner.

SuperStar Gemini is presently owned by Star Cruises along with the Asian fleet of other mid-sized ships such as the SuperStar Virgo, SuperStar Aquarius, SuperStar Libra, Star Pisces, Megastar Taurus, Megastar Aries and Wasa Queen, of which she has been part since 1995.

Star Cruises' President David Chua said the sale was part of the company's fleet optimisation plan in line with the realisation of new growth opportunities in the region.

"Such a need to sell or replace selected ships in the fleet will occur as and when opportunities from potential buyers arise to enable us to acquire bigger, better vessels as well as to renew and further enhance our products and services to better cater to our guests' needs." he added. "An example is the arrival of the SuperStar Aquarius recently in June this year to Hong Kong, with greater capacity and features to cater to the needs and tastes of our guests."

Apart from the future growth potential with renewed and bigger capacities and features of ships, Star Cruises will now be able to focus on further improvements to its current ships such as the SuperStar Virgo, SuperStar Aquarius, SuperStar Libra, with continuous innovation and improvement of personalised services, ongoing new activities and world-class themes and performances.

SuperStar Gemini currently offers 7, 10, 11 and 21-night cruises from Singapore to destinations in South East Asia before moving to Australia, where her ardent fans are, in November for three months.

In Australia, she will do two full circumnavigations of the continent, creating many memorable itineraries taking in ports of call such as Perth, Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Cairns, Darwin and others. The decision to deploy the ship for three months Downunder during some of the very best cruising conditions, the Australian Summer, is largely due and in response to the huge popularity of SuperStar Gemini with the Australian market.

On returning to Singapore, she will continue with the ever popular 7-night Straits of Malacca cruises as well as another six 10, 11 and 21-night cruises taking in Thailand, Vietnam, China, Hong Kong and Malaysia.

At 19,093 gross tonnes, SuperStar Gemini is a world-class cruise ship with international and Asian dining, world-class entertainment and recreational facilities. Facilities include a swimming pool, restaurants and bars, hair salon, spa, well-appointed karaoke rooms and much more to cater to all types of passengers, young and old, singles, couples and families.

Courtesy of Travelmole.com