Cruise Newsletters Archive

Cruise addicts (like me) can't wait to get back to the sea, and most are hungry to explore places they've never been before. Many have done the classic 7-day Caribbean, Alaska's Inside Passage and the Mediterranean, and are eager for something new and different.

Cruise addicts are particularly excited about remote and undiscovered ports, and those with the time and money may favor longer sailings that visit more than one region or continent.

Regardless of the rating of the ship, cruise addicts want access to every discount and deal and the lowest possible price for their adventure.

At Vacations To Go, we scour the itineraries of every cruise line as they are released, looking for unique and irresistible possibilities, the world's most tempting Grand Voyages.

You can find a link to these extraordinary cruises -- with every conceivable discount rolled in -- on the home page of our Web site. Click here to see this exclusive list now.

The most coveted of all Grand Voyages are the World Cruises. Most depart in January, and in 2013, there will be a total of 10 World Cruises offered by eight cruise lines: Costa, Cunard, Fred. Olsen, Holland America, P&O, Princess, Seabourn and Silversea.

Upcoming World Cruises range in length from 80 to 117 days, and even with our deep discounts, the least expensive, full-length World Cruise starts at more than $15,000 per person (click here for a list of all World Cruises and World Cruise segments.) For those who are still reading, it's better to look at the per-day price and take into account all that is included.

If you're like me, and not in a position to spend 3+ months circumnavigating the globe (no matter how much I might want to), you may want to consider some of our other Grand Voyage options.

For example, several ships in the Mediterranean offer enticing back-to-back (or back-to-back-to-back) itineraries that make it possible to sail for 16 to 28 nights with little or no port overlap. Some of these cruises combine Eastern and Western Mediterranean itineraries (click here), while others combine the Mediterranean with the Greek Isles (click here) or the Mediterranean with the Black Sea (click here). A few ships offer the possibility to combine back-to-back Mediterranean and Northern Europe sailings (click here).

I also like back-to-back sailings as a ship repositions from one region to another, for great variety in countries visited and the fact that repositioning cruises are usually cheaper (per day) than cruises sailing within a region.

I once booked a three-generation family cruise on a Regent ship as it ended its season in Bermuda and repositioned to Europe via New England, Canada and Iceland. We began our vacation on warm, pink-sand beaches in Bermuda and ended by climbing an ice wall on a glacier in Iceland. Only on a cruise could such an adventure be so easy.

During the spring, a number of cruise ships sail from the Caribbean to where they will spend the summer, and late in the fall, they return to the Caribbean. Some of the possibilities include Alaska & Panama Canal, Panama Canal & Caribbean, Transatlantic & Caribbean, Transatlantic & Mediterranean and Transatlantic & Northern Europe.

Or, try Alaska & Asia, Antarctica & South America, Asia & Africa, Asia & Middle East, Australia/New Zealand & Hawaii, Australia/New Zealand & Tahiti, Australia/New Zealand & Asia/Far East, Hawaii & Tahiti, Transatlantic & South America, Panama Canal & South America or Caribbean & South America.

Those who have the time and money to book these longer cruises will discover that the per-day rates are often much lower than they are for shorter cruises in the same regions, and Vacations To Go has arranged terrific discounts for our customers on these great escapes.

While I normally recommend booking cruises 60 to 90 days in advance to lock in the best rates, cruises comprised of multiple segments should generally be booked at least 6 to 12 months in advance, for two reasons. First, any delay in booking could result in one segment of your desired itinerary selling out, making it impossible to book the entire itinerary. And second, as the departure date approaches, it becomes more difficult to find a particular cabin that is available on multiple segments, which means it's more likely that you would have to change cabins at the end of the first segment of your cruise.

The best deals for World Cruises are always available well in advance and come in the form of early-booking discounts, past-passenger discounts, and additional discounts which apply only to the customers of the largest sellers of cruises, like Vacations To Go.

Beyond what I've listed here, if you ever run across any other back-to-back cruises you would like to combine, our cruise counselors will be happy to check for additional discounts and help you plan your own unforgettable Grand Voyage.

Sincerely,

Alan Fox
Chairman & CEO
Vacations To Go

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