Small and perfectly formed: From sail ships to luxury yachts
In an age in which every new cruise liner seems bigger than the last, it's reassuring to find there are some ships that still resemble ocean-going vessels rather than floating hotels.
Perhaps the most romantic are masted sailing yachts, which offer the charms of a relaxed, intimate atmosphere and the ability to moor in small harbours or drop anchor in secluded coves.
And what could be more thrilling than standing on deck looking up at billowing white sails... knowing you are never going to have to climb the rigging yourself? If you prefer - and if you have the budget - you can even experience the luxury of a super-yacht worthy of an oligarch in the Mediterranean.
Here is a variety of suggestions for those who want to sail away from the crowds...
Budding sea dogs might want to sail the Med on Star Clippers' five-masted Royal Clipper, where you can volunteer to help hoist the sails or climb a mast. A four-night cruise from Civitavecchia, the port that serves Rome, takes you to Corsica to moor overnight, Sardinia's Costa Smeralda and finally to Elba, where Napoleon was briefly held captive.
Travel is by Eurostar and sleeper train via Paris. The cost for departure on June 5 is from £1,319 per person (0845 200 6145, www.starclippers.co.uk).
On the three yachts of Windstar Cruises, there's no need for anyone - crew or passengers - to climb the rigging: the sails are fully automated. The sleek part-yacht, part-cruise ships have a casual dress code and the mood is laid-back luxury.
Wind Star - one of the two smaller vessels, with just 74 cabins - has a six-night cruise from Rome to Barcelona departing on July 15, costing from £2,859pp, including flights. You'll call at Elba, Porto Vecchio in Corsica, Alghero in Sardinia and Palma de Mallorca.
Alternatively, you can head to the Baltic Sea on the magnificent, five-masted Wind Surf, one of the two largest sail cruise ships in the world, on a week's cruise from Oslo to Stockholm leaving July 27.
It stays overnight at Copenhagen and calls at Rugen in Germany - where you can see spectacular white chalk cliffs that flank one of the two national parks, and also the Danish island of Bornholm, with its dramatic landscapes and historic buildings. The cost is from £2,294pp including flights (020 7292 2369, www.windstarcruises.co.uk).
Built as the identical twin to Wind Surf, Club Med 2 sails on a variety of itineraries around the Eastern Mediterranean for the French holiday company. A seven-night cruise from Bodrum to Athens costs from £2,959pp, including flights (0845 367 0670, www.clubmed.co.uk).
A French option for lovers of Gallic chic is the Compagnie de Ponant fleet. Le Ponant is a three-masted sailing yacht for 64 passengers. The company also operates L'Austral, a new ultra-smart super-yacht launched last year. It has 132 cabins and suites.
A week aboard Le Ponant sailing from Nice on July 7 to St Tropez and western Corsica costs from £2,460pp, and a ten-night cruise on L'Austral from Venice to Croatia and Montenegro sailing on August 10 is from £2,780pp.
The price includes €150 (£122) per person onboard credit, but not flights (020 7399 7670, www.mundycruising.co.uk).
On glamorous twin mega-yachts SeaDream I and II, there are plenty of attractions to lure you out of your luxury cabins. In the evening you can go to sleep on deck in a 'Balinese dream bed'.
SeaDream say their itineraries visit the intimate ports, harbours and yachting playgrounds larger ships cannot reach.
A week sailing from Dubrovnik to Venice on SeaDream I, departing August 4, is from £4,070pp including tips, open bar and flights when booked with Azure Collection (01244 322770, www.azurecollection.com).
Looking for the latest FABCruise offers on a wide range of cruise holidays let FABTHINGS2do help you.
Showing posts with label Mini Cruises. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mini Cruises. Show all posts
Tuesday, 26 June 2012
Monday, 18 January 2010
European river cruises are a sedate alternative to life on the ocean superliners
The cruising boom isn't just about giant floating resorts partying across oceans. There's a more sedate style of cruise that's quietly sailing on a crest of the wave, too. And the rivers and canals of Europe are the perfect spot to experience it.
This year there are more operators, trips and boats to choose from. Here's our pick of the most interesting new developments for 2010 (prices include full-board and return travel from the UK).
New operators
US-based AMA Waterways launched its first dedicated UK brochures this year featuring 20 cruises on the Rhone, Douro, Volga, Danube, Main, Rhine and Mosel. AMA has also teamed up with York-based Great Rail Journeys to offer five holidays that include first- class rail travel from St Pancras. For example, a 16-day railcruise starts with the sleeper train to Warsaw and overnight express to Moscow. From there you board a 12-night cruise to St Petersburg. It costs from £2,975.
Another US-based cruise company, Avalon, also launches its UK operation this year, offering a very modern fleet of cruisers. A five-day cruise on the Danube from Budapest to Vienna costs from £759.
New vessels
This year's new river-cruise ships borrow some of the style and glamour from their ocean-going cousins.
The River Beatrice has a two-storey lobby, marble floors and mahogany panelled walls decorated with prints of works by Picasso, Matisse and Chagall. Contact Elegant River Cruises for more information.
And Avalon is launching two ships this year, including the Felicity in Amsterdam in March. Expect them both to be contemporary and spacious with all-outside cabins. Avalon staterooms are among the largest on European rivers - 172sq ft for standard rooms and 258sq ft for suites.
New destinations
Most operators are adding new cruises to their programmes as demand for river cruising grows.
Some involve different versions of the classic European river journeys. Collette, for example, introduces a 15-day trip from Amsterdam to Budapest taking in five countries, four rivers and two World Heritage Sites costing from £2,969.
And Grand UK now features a new eight-day Danube cruise from £859. One of Saga's new 2010 river cruises includes an excursion to Colditz Castle. The nine-night trip on the MS Koenigstein costs from £1,499. VFB has a new four-night cruise around Venice's lagoon, mooring less than 15 minutes' walk from St Mark's Square, from £499.
And one of Scenic Tours' new routes for 2010 sails through the heart of Western Europe from Amsterdam to Basle for £2,195.
Others are adding less well-known itineraries. ACE Cruises' latest offering is a trip from Avignon to Aigues Mortes in Provence aboard a small boat with just eight cabins. It costs £2,690 including rail transport.
Elegant River Cruises has a new 15-day 'Grand France' itinerary taking travellers the length of France from Monet's garden at Giverny to the lavender fields of Provence, with city tours of Paris, Rouen, Lyon and Avignon from £3,095 with flights.
New ideas
Freedom Treks launch a holiday this year using an unusual mix of river cruising and cycling on Italy's River Po between Padua and Venice.
Stay on a converted Dutch barge at night, waking up to a new part of the river each morning. By day you can take cycling excursions through the countryside. The seven-night trip costs from £659.
Glenton Holidays' 2010 brochure includes 'Romance of the Rhine Valley' - where you sleep in a hotel but enjoy daytime river cruises. Seven days cost from £459.
And DFDS Seaways has a five-night holiday combining two nights on board its ferry from Newcastle with three nights on a river cruiser visiting the tulip fields of Holland. Prices start from £459.
This year there are more operators, trips and boats to choose from. Here's our pick of the most interesting new developments for 2010 (prices include full-board and return travel from the UK).
New operators
US-based AMA Waterways launched its first dedicated UK brochures this year featuring 20 cruises on the Rhone, Douro, Volga, Danube, Main, Rhine and Mosel. AMA has also teamed up with York-based Great Rail Journeys to offer five holidays that include first- class rail travel from St Pancras. For example, a 16-day railcruise starts with the sleeper train to Warsaw and overnight express to Moscow. From there you board a 12-night cruise to St Petersburg. It costs from £2,975.
Another US-based cruise company, Avalon, also launches its UK operation this year, offering a very modern fleet of cruisers. A five-day cruise on the Danube from Budapest to Vienna costs from £759.
New vessels
This year's new river-cruise ships borrow some of the style and glamour from their ocean-going cousins.
The River Beatrice has a two-storey lobby, marble floors and mahogany panelled walls decorated with prints of works by Picasso, Matisse and Chagall. Contact Elegant River Cruises for more information.
And Avalon is launching two ships this year, including the Felicity in Amsterdam in March. Expect them both to be contemporary and spacious with all-outside cabins. Avalon staterooms are among the largest on European rivers - 172sq ft for standard rooms and 258sq ft for suites.
New destinations
Most operators are adding new cruises to their programmes as demand for river cruising grows.
Some involve different versions of the classic European river journeys. Collette, for example, introduces a 15-day trip from Amsterdam to Budapest taking in five countries, four rivers and two World Heritage Sites costing from £2,969.
And Grand UK now features a new eight-day Danube cruise from £859. One of Saga's new 2010 river cruises includes an excursion to Colditz Castle. The nine-night trip on the MS Koenigstein costs from £1,499. VFB has a new four-night cruise around Venice's lagoon, mooring less than 15 minutes' walk from St Mark's Square, from £499.
And one of Scenic Tours' new routes for 2010 sails through the heart of Western Europe from Amsterdam to Basle for £2,195.
Others are adding less well-known itineraries. ACE Cruises' latest offering is a trip from Avignon to Aigues Mortes in Provence aboard a small boat with just eight cabins. It costs £2,690 including rail transport.
Elegant River Cruises has a new 15-day 'Grand France' itinerary taking travellers the length of France from Monet's garden at Giverny to the lavender fields of Provence, with city tours of Paris, Rouen, Lyon and Avignon from £3,095 with flights.
New ideas
Freedom Treks launch a holiday this year using an unusual mix of river cruising and cycling on Italy's River Po between Padua and Venice.
Stay on a converted Dutch barge at night, waking up to a new part of the river each morning. By day you can take cycling excursions through the countryside. The seven-night trip costs from £659.
Glenton Holidays' 2010 brochure includes 'Romance of the Rhine Valley' - where you sleep in a hotel but enjoy daytime river cruises. Seven days cost from £459.
And DFDS Seaways has a five-night holiday combining two nights on board its ferry from Newcastle with three nights on a river cruiser visiting the tulip fields of Holland. Prices start from £459.
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