Go Down Under This Winter With Voyages of Discovery

Here's a great pre-Christmas deal that is worth passing on this week: Save up to £1,370pp and snap up a great deal on Voyages of Discovery’s recently reduced South-East Asia and Australia cruise.

A remarkable melting pot of Asian and Latin cultures thick with history and flavour, Manila promises an exciting start to a voyage inviting you to meet the ‘Wild Man of Borneo’ and immerse yourself in local life on charming Indonesian islands. ‘Tamed’ territory, Darwin is an eclectic blend – modern city, Asian village and frontier town.

‘Untamed’ Australia comes in its rich rainforests and then the underwater riches of the Great Barrier Reef. Sample life on the Gold Coast with its miles of glorious beaches, or stroll along with some of the Hunter Valley’s finest wines before sailing into the ‘Harbour City’ – its twin icons Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge stealing the limelight.

With an itinerary carefully crafted to get the most out of each port of call and bring to life destinations with renowned Guest Speakers and excursions, a cruise with Voyages of Discovery is a cruise you’ll never forget.

This 20-night cruise now costs from as little as £1699 per person (based on two people sharing an inside guarantee cabin). The price includes return flights from London, transfers and the voyage departing from Manila (Philippines, overnight) and calling at Sandakan (Borneo), Bitung (Indonesia), Ambon (Indonesia), Darwin, Port Douglas, Brisbane and Newcastle before arriving at Sydney for another overnight stay. Price is based on a January 21 departure.

For more info and booking details, be sure to check out this link with the UK's adventure cruise specialists, The Cruise Line Ltd.

Luxury Goes Exploring With Regent

Demonstrating the line’s claim that ‘luxury goes exploring’, Regent Seven Seas Cruises has revealed their new programme from November 2012 to June 2013 featuring new ports of call, new itineraries and unique and adventurous sailings as they launch the latest edition of their impressive Cruise Atlas.

Regent is once again raising the bar on its already extensive all-inclusive offering, adding a 1-night pre-cruise hotel package on ALL of its 2013 cruises. The new 2012/2013 itineraries can be viewed online now at www.rssc.com and are already available to book as of this month. All past guests will automatically also receive a copy of the new Atlas.

Highlights of the programme include:

· Seven Seas Voyager sailing a new 17-night cruise from Hong Kong, with visits to Hiroshima (Japan) and Inchon (S Korea), as well as overnight stays in Keelung, Osaka and Beijing and a two-night overnight stay in Shanghai, departing February 27, 2013. Fares for a Deluxe Balcony suite start from £7,679 per person.

· Seven Seas Voyager sailing a new extended ‘World Voyage’ from the Mediterranean through the Indian Ocean, Asia and Australia, exploring the wonders of Indonesia, China, Vietnam, Japan and South Korea. Ranging from 7 to 143 nights, guests can choose an individual sailing, an extended combination of sailings, or construct their own combination. Fares for a Deluxe Balcony suite on a 54-night sailing from Bali to Singapore start from £20,239 per person.

· Seven Seas Mariner returning to South America, offering a selection of single voyages of 12, 14, 22 or 24-night voyages that can be combined to create longer cruises or a 72-night full circumnavigation of the continent.

For the latest info and to book, see this link with luxury cruise experts The Cruise Line Ltd.

Circumnavigate with Zegrahm!

Zegrahm Expeditions Embarks on Five Hallmark Circumnavigations in 2011

SEATTLE, WA, OCTOBER 20, 2010—In addition to their expert leaders and unique expeditionary style of travel, Zegrahm Expeditions has perhaps become best known for their circumnavigations of some of the world’s most interesting, and, often times, obscure, archipelagos. In fact, the 20-year-old company was the first to circumnavigate Baffin Island in the Canadian Arctic and New Guinea in the western South Pacific. Zegrahm believes linking together all the fascinating locales within a single destination by small-ship offers travellers an in-depth and uncompromised view of the local culture, history and natural environment. Plus, many of the areas that Zegrahm visits have little to no infrastructure in place, so travelling by small ship is the only way to go.

And, 2011 is no exception. Zegrahm’s travel year commences with the first of the following five highly-anticipated circumnavigations, two of which are brand-new itineraries for Zegrahm:

· Circumnavigation of Sumatra: Zegrahm celebrates the start of the New Year with an inaugural 18-day sojourn around Western Indonesia’s equator-straddling island of Sumatra. Travellers will be amazed by orangutans in Gunung Leuser National Park (above), spectacular Krakatoa Island and stone-jumping super-humans on Nias Island, plus the region’s incredible array of wildlife, unspoiled wilderness and more than a dozen ethnic groups.

· Circumnavigation of Sicily: Zegrahm’s first-ever April expedition circling the Mediterranean’s largest island combines visits to amazing archaeological wonders — from the Roman theatres and villas of Taormina and Lipari to the ornate Norman-Arab castles and cathedrals in Cefalu, Palermo and Monreale — with a tasty immersion into the region’s famed viticulture and cuisine.

· Circumnavigation of Iceland: This 14-day expedition reveals the element-sculpted landscapes and volcanic wizardry that have made the Land of Fire and Ice famous. Travellers search for breeding whooper swans; ride snowmobiles across Europe's largest glacier; walk among ruins that recall the heyday of Viking exploration; and explore the fabled Golden Circle — Thingvellir National Park, Gullfoss Waterfall and the Geysir Center.

· Circumnavigation of Ireland: The Emerald Isle truly sparkles on this fascinating August voyage that brings history to life as Zegrahm explores the Neolithic burial site of Newgrange; the Viking legacy of Waterford; and the 18th-century English architecture in Dublin, Cork and Killarney. No less spectacular are the rolling green glens of the Ring of Kerry, Dingle Peninsula's dramatic cliffs and Northern Ireland's Giant's Causeway.

· Circumnavigation of the Black Sea: Eurasia’s most intriguing destinations are revealed —Turkey, Georgia, Russia, Ukraine, Romania and Bulgaria — on a 15-day expedition where beautiful landscapes are enhanced only by the stunning architecture and archaeological sites that travellers experience on one of two September departures. This itinerary is a long-time favourite among Zegrahm travellers.

To learn more about each of these itineraries, plus read accounts of past circumnavigation expeditions, visit http://www.zeco.com/. To book in the UK, be sure to contact specialist agents The Cruise Line Ltd on 0800 008 6677.

New Cruises from Spirt of Adventure

By guest blogger Steve Newman

Discovery cruise ship Spirit of Adventure (above) has launched a new programme of exotic and intrepid itineraries for 2011, bringing passengers closer than ever before to the local cultures and traditions of many remote and unexplored destinations.

New to the schedule for next year are the United Arab Emirate of Ras Al-Khaimah and the exotic islands of Madagascar, Réunion and Indonesia, as well as the fascinating coasts of east, west and southern Africa. MV Spirit of Adventure will also be spending Christmas and New Year in the warm waters of Australasia, visiting Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific islands.

As one of the leading cruise companies, the small, intimate size of the ship means she can reach unusual and lesser known cities, islands and ports, including ports where no other cruise ships have ventured before. To get the most out of the destinations en route, Spirit of Adventure creates insightful tailor-made excursions, included in the price of the cruise, and carefully selects a range of expert guest speakers to inspire and educate passengers.

Here is a sample of next year's fascinating offerings:

The Undiscovered Coast
Visiting the lesser-known ports along Africa’s west coast, passengers will get an insight into authentic village life, including a unique opportunity to meet with a chief priest in the small village of Sanguera in Togo and a ceremonial Voodoo dance.
(17 nights from £3524 per person, based on two sharing; departs February 1, 2011)

Into Indonesia
Spirit of Adventure ventures to virgin territory as she leaves the ports visited by larger cruise ships to explore Indonesia’s picturesque islands. Passengers will be welcomed to remote villages by local tribes where they can visit the beautiful natural sites and track down the world’s largest lizard, the Komodo dragon.
(16 nights from £3,229 per person, based on two sharing; departs November 16, 2011)

To the Land of the Long White Cloud
For an unforgettable Christmas and New Year, customers can join this exciting voyage around the south coast of Australia and New Zealand, for the opportunity to visit incredible National Parks or join kayaking and jet boat excursions to see the most beautiful scenery.
(22 nights from £3924 per person, based on two sharing; departs December 15, 2011)

Red Sea Explorer
On an adventure off the well-trodden cruise path, passengers will visit the undiscovered ports of the Middle East as they sail from Dubai through to the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea, stopping to explore the picturesque villages of Salalah before calling at the rarely visited ports of Massawa, Eritrea, and Suakin, Sudan.
(16 nights from £2274 per person, based on two sharing; departs April 15, 2012)

All Spirit of Adventure cruises include a choice of tailor-made excursions, return scheduled or chartered economy flights, car parking at the departure port or airport, return transport, porterage, all visas, port taxes, all meals and on-board gratuities, a programme of lectures and presentations, welcome and farewell cocktail parties, entertainment and activities, plus table wines with lunch and dinner on selected cruises. What’s more, new passengers can take advantage of an introductory discount of up to £300 per person.

For further details, please visit http://www.spiritofadventure.co.uk/

You can also learn more about Spirit of Adventure offerings at The Cruise Show at Birmingham NEC on October 16-17 and at London's Olympia next March (26-27).