BIG Savings (And More!) with Oceania Cruises

Oceania Cruises has savings of up to 56% off cruises on board its mid-sized luxury cruise ships, plus an additional $1,000 on board credit per stateroom, allowing guests to make their cruise as inclusive as they want it to be. All prices are quoted per person, based on two guests sharing an inside stateroom and include all meals, complimentary bottled water and soft drinks.

Check out these examples:

7th September: ‘Jewels of the Aegean’, 12-night cruise Venice to Istanbul from £1,799pp

New ship Marina has a spectacular sailing from Venice with $1,000 onboard credit and a saving of £1,654pp. It cruises through the Aegean Sea via Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro, Corfu, Patras, Zakynthos and Athens before disembarking in Istanbul.

19th September: `Sands of Time’, 12-night Greek island cruise from £1,199pp

Marina has a spectacular sailing from Istanbul to Athens with $1,000 onboard credit and a saving of £1,264pp. It voyages through Rhodes, Limassol, Haifa, Jerusalem, Crete, Patmos and Volos before disembarking in Athens.

3rd October: ‘Jewels of the Aegean’, 12-night Aegean Sea cruise from £1,999pp

Cruise from Venice to Istanbul through the beautiful Aegean Sea via Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro, Corfu, Patras, Zakynthos and Athens on mid-sized ship Insignia with a saving of £1,182 per person, plus $1,000 onboard credit per stateroom.

1st October: `Roman Revelations’, 14-night Med cruise from £1,399pp

Cruise from Istanbul to Barcelona via Ephesus, Patmos, Crete, Marmaris, Alanya, Limassol, Haifa, Jerusalem and Valletta on Oceania's Nautica, with $1,000 onboard credit and saving up to £1,467 per person.

For more info, visit www.oceaniacruises.co.uk or contact the UK's leading luxury cruise specialists of The Cruise Line Ltd.

More Big Savings With Oceania

Oceania Cruises is offering savings of up to 57% off selected cruise departures in spring and summer, including sailings on board new Marina, with an onboard credit of $1,000 per stateroom. All prices include all meals and complimentary bottled water and soft drinks but exclude flights.

Route of the Vikings: 14 nights from £1,399 saving £1,829 PLUS $1,000 on board credit.

Departing July 1, Oceania has a 14-night sailing from Copenhagen to London on Marina, crossing the North Sea and Atlantic through Norway, the Shetland Islands, Faroe Islands, Iceland (above) and Ireland before disembarking in London.

Greek Isles Odyssey: 12 nights from £1,499, saving up to £1,235pp PLUS $1,000 on board credit.

Departing July 9, this cruise sails from Istanbul to Athens through some of the Greece’s most beautiful and historic islands on board the mid-sized Nautica, with with savings up to £1,235 per person for an Outside ocean-view stateroom, based on two sharing.

Myths and Legends: 12 nights from £1,199, saving up to £1,160pp PLUS $1,000 on board credit.

Departing July 21, this magnificent sailing from Athens cruises the Greek Islands, Montenegro and Croatia before disembarking in Venice on Nautica, now from £1,199 per person for an Inside stateroom.

Majestic Inspiration: 14 nights from £1,399, saving up to £1,529pp PLUS $1,000 on board credit.

Departing August 2, cruise through the magical Aegean Sea on a 14-night cruise on board Nautica and save up to £1,529pp for an Inside Stateroom, based on two sharing, with a $1,000 credit/stateroom. The sailing departs from Venice and continues into the Aegean Sea cruising through Croatia, Greece, Italy, Monaco and France before disembarking in Barcelona.

For more info, visit www.oceaniacruises.co.uk or luxury cruise specialists The Cruise Line Ltd.

Summer Bargains from Oceania

Cruise through the magical Aegean Sea on a 12-night cruise on board Oceania Cruises’ Nautica and save up to £1,179 per person this summer.

Departing on May 22, the ‘Jewels of the Aegean’ voyage can now be booked from £1,199 per person for an Inside Stateroom, based on two sharing, with a $1,000 onboard credit per stateroom. The luxury mid-sized ship sails from Istanbul and continues into the Aegean Sea cruising the Greek Islands, Montenegro, Croatia and Slovenia before disembarking in Venice.

Or try the 'Gems of Europe' cruise, 15 nights from £1,499 (saving up to £1,379pp) PLUS $1,000 onboard credit. This voyage sails from Rome to Greenwich, via Florence, Marseille, Barcelona, Malaga, Seville, Lisbon, Oporto, La Coruna, Bilbao, Bordeaux and Lorient on sister ship Insignia, departing May 27.

The 'Greek Isles Odyssey' is a 12-night sailing from £1,499pp (saving up to £1,235pp), plus the $1,000 on board credit. Departing on July 9, Insignia sails from Istanbul to Athens through some of the Greece’s most beautiful and historic islands.

Then there is 'Treasures of the Continent', with 12 nights from £2,099 (saving up to £1,572pp) departing from Dover on July 29 and cruising the English Channel to Amsterdam, Bruges, Paris, Guernsey, Saint-Malo, Port-Aven, La Rochelle, Bordeaux, Biarritz and Santander. This cruise is on the brand new 1,250-guest luxury ship Marina. The price is again based on two sharing, including $1,000 onboard credit/stateroom, all meals and complimentary bottled water and soft drinks.

For more info, visit www.oceaniacruises.co.uk or contact the luxury cruise specialists of The Cruise Line Ltd.

Big Spring Savings With Oceania

Oceania Cruises is offering savings of up to 50% off selected departures this spring, including sailings on new ship Marina (above), and an onboard credit of $1,000 per stateroom. All prices include meals and complimentary bottled water and soft drinks, but exclude flights.

Wonders of the Ancients, 14 nights from £1,399, save up to £1,835pp PLUS $1,000 onboard credit:

Departing on April 23, Oceania has a magnificent 14-night sailing through some of Europe’s most picturesque and historical regions on the mid-sized Insignia, now £1,399 per person, based on two sharing, and including a $1,000/stateroom credit. The ship embarks in Rome, sailing down Italy’s west coast to Taormina, Sicily, to the Greek island of Zakynthos, cruising the Mediterranean Sea to Alexandria, Egypt, the ancient cities of Jerusalem, Israel and Alanya, Turkey, returning to port in Athens, Greece.

Grecian Glory, 10 nights from £999, save up to £1,816pp PLUS $1,000 on board credit:

Departing on May 6 on new ship Marina from Venice to Athens, the cruise now costs from £999 per person, based on two sharing, including all meals, complimentary soft drinks and bottled water, but excluding flights.

Jewels of the Aegean, 12 nights from £1,199, save up to £1,854pp PLUS $1,000 onboard credit:

Cruise through the magical Aegean Sea on mid-sized Nautica and save up to £1,854pp. Departing on May 22, the sailing departs from Istanbul and continues into the Aegean Sea cruising the Greek Islands, Montenegro, Croatia, and Slovenia before disembarking in Venice.

For more details, visit www.oceaniacruises.co.uk or contact the specialist luxury cruise agents of The Cruise Line on 0800 008 6677.

A Classic Frenzy!

It never rains but it pours. That 18th century saying is usually used to express bad things happening, at regular intervals. But it is also relevant to the sudden - and welcome - creation of new cruise lines pandering to the more cerebral and, perhaps, more mature passenger.

Hot on the heels of the new Cruise & Maritime Voyages announcement (see the next entry in Time Spent At Sea) comes news of another start-up cruise line offering a more distinctive, small-scale and even traditional experience.

Voyages to Antiquity will start in May 4, 2010, as a one-ship, classic cruise operation, featuring destination intensive voyages in the Mediterranean and Black Sea, taking in the Middle East, Aegean and Adriatic. They will offer a heavily lecture-based onboard programme, with a focus on the ancient civilisations of the area (hence the line's title) and definitely aimed at an English-speaking audience.

The vessel will be the extensively-revamped Aegean I, which has been laid up in port following an ownership dispute for several years, and which will be reborn (after a multi-million pound facelift) as the Aegean Odyssey.

She will carry just 380 passengers and offer single-occupancy cabins as well as some new balcony cabins, with voyages varying from 14 to 29 nights (May-Nov). They also intend to get off the beaten cruise track where possible, and visit some out-of-the-way ports like Kotor (Montenegro) and Syracuse (Sicily).

Under the helm of Gerry Herrod, who started the original Orient Lines in the early 90s, this promises to be a thoughtful and educational cruise offering. So expect lots of seriously high-brow guests lecturers and a really in-depth focus on the destinations, their history and culture.

They are still several weeks away from launching their website and sales line, but, for those who really enjoy the classic cruise experience, this is definitely one to keep an eye on.