Best cruise deals of the week

ESCAPE gives you some of the best cruise deals this week.

Hong Kong

ESCAPE gives you some of the best cruise deals this week.

Under $2000

Fare go in Asia

SOAK up the excitement of Hong Kong, China, The Philippines, Malaysia and Singapore with an 11-night fly, cruise and stay deal from Cruise1st.

Departing October 22, the package includes eight nights on Royal Caribbean's Legend of the Seas, overnight hotel stays in Hong Kong and Singapore, and return flights with Singapore Airlines from $1799 a person, twin share. The 4-star ship departs Hong Kong and visits Xiamen, Manila, Boracay, Kota Kinabalu and Singapore.

Details: Ph 1300 596 345 or see cruise1st.com.au

Maiden voyage

CELEBRITY Cruises has extended its upgrade offer for six of Celebrity Solstice's maiden season of Australian cruises.

Book an interior cabin on selected Solstice sailings and get a free double upgrade to a balcony cabin if booked by March 31.
 
The deal includes early-booking savings of up to $1550 for a 17-night Top End cruise from Perth to Sydney departing February 15 next year.

Prices start from $1915 for a 12-night cruise from Sydney to Auckland in March next year, taking in Dusky Sound and Tauranga.

Details: Ph 1800 754 500 or see www.celebritycruises.com.au

Magnifica special

BOOK an 11-night cruise from Venice to Copenhagen and a second person cruises free on an MSC Cruises' special starting from $1512 a couple.

The offer applies until May 22 sailing aboard MSC Magnifica, with ports of call including Bari, Tunis, Gibraltar, Lisbon, Vigo and Zeebrugge.

In Marseilles on May 26, MSC Cruises will launch the latest addition to its fleet MSC Divina, named by the cruiseline's godmother, screen legend Sophia Loren.

Details: Ph 1300 028 502 or see msccruises.com.au

Epic solo adventure

SINGLES can sail the Mediterranean in style aboard Norwegian Epic which has special studio cabins set aside for solo travellers.

Guests can enjoy a seven-night cruise from $1345 a person, sole occupancy. Departing and ending in Barcelona, the cruise visits Naples, Pompeii, Rome, Florence, Cannes and Provence.
 
Norwegian Epic's studio cabins include access to an exclusive lounge where single travellers can enjoy a drink with fellow solo travellers.

The ship has a comedy club, jazz and blues club, bowling alley, casino, spa and multiple dining options. The offer is available until March 31 unless sold out prior, for travel on September 16.

Details: Ph 1300 450 133 or see cruiseabout.com.au

$2000-$5000

Aloha, New York

BASK in the sun on an 11-night Eastern Caribbean fly, cruise and stay holiday starting from $3331 a person, twin share.

The price includes return airfare from Australia to New York with Hawaiian Airlines, an option of a Hawaii stopover, two nights' pre-cruise stay at the Millennium Hilton New York, then nine nights aboard Norwegian Gem visiting San Juan, St Maarten, St Thomas and Samana before returning to New York.

The cruise departs on November 25.

Details: See cruising.com.au

Northern highlights
 
A 12-night return voyage aboard Caribbean Princess departs Southampton on August 13 and includes visits to the Channel Islands; Holyhead in Wales; Dublin and Belfast in Ireland; the Orkney Islands; Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness in Scotland; and Le Havre in France.

In Scotland, guests will cruise Loch Lomond, tour the royal yacht Britannia, visit a whisky distillery and see the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo.

Price is from $2990 a person, twin share. Flight packages with a post-cruise stay in London and a tour of Buckingham Palace are available.

Details: Ph 1300 764 509 or see cruiseexpress.com.au

Hawaiian dreams

ENJOY nine days in the Hawaiian Islands with a Pride of America cruise. Departing Honolulu, the seven-night cruise visits Maui, Hilo, Kona and Kauai.

Pride of America has 14 restaurants, nine bars and lounges, golf driving net, jogging/walking tracks, spa, pools, video arcades and a range of entertainment.

The offer includes return airfares from Sydney, pre and post-cruise accommodation at Courtyard Waikiki Beach Honolulu, all main meals and entertainment on board, port charges, taxes and gratuities.
 
The package is priced from $3799 a person, twin share, for an obstructed view cabin, or from $4239 a person, twin share, for a balcony cabin. The offer is valid until March 31, unless sold out prior, for travel on September 15.

Details: Ph 1300 450 133 or see cruiseabout.com.au

Myanmar magic

SAVOUR the beauty of Myanmar from the comfort of a river boat cruising the famous Irrawaddy River on an 11-night fly-cruise package available from June 29 until April next year.
 
The package includes return airfares, eight nights aboard the colonial-style Orient Pandaw riverboat, most meals, soft drinks, local beers and spirits, plus gratuities and taxes, daily sightseeing with local guides, a night in the Chatrium Hotel in Yangon, two nights in the Mandalay Hill Resort and transfers.

Orient Pandaw will sail between Prome and Mandalay. Prices start from $4999 a person, twin share, including an early-booking discount of up to $1000 a person.

Details: See cruising.com.au

$5000-$10,000

European vacation
 
BOOK a luxury APT 15-day river cruise through Europe in 2013 by April 30 and get 2012 prices and fly free to Europe.

Priced from $6395 a person, twin share, the deal includes return flights and a 14-night cruise through five countries between Amsterdam and Budapest.

Highlights include a visit to the Hungarian State Opera House in Budapest for a tour and private music recital; a tour of medieval Wertheim Castle; an exclusive wine event in Germany's oldest wine cellar in Kitzingen; a sampling of Rauchbier (smoked beer) with a complimentary drink at a traditional Bamberg "bier haus"; and a medieval dinner on board. The cruises depart from Amsterdam between March and December.

Details: Ph 1800 044 066 or see travel-associates.com.au

China on a plate

DAWN Princess will embark on a 25-night Grand Circle Pacific Voyage from Sydney to Beijing on June 27.
 
A package, including a two-night post-cruise stay at the Novotel Peace Hotel Beijing with breakfast, a Great Wall and Forbidden City full-day tour with lunch and one-way airfare from Beijing to Australia, starts from $5895 a person, twin share.

The price includes port charges, government fees and air taxes. Gratuities on board are additional.

Details: See cruising.com.au

Russia by river

A FASCINATING cruise from Moscow to St Petersburg along the Volga and Svir rivers offers daily touring at villages along the way, Russian language lessons onboard, a meal with a Russian family at their house and a visit to Russia's much-photographed Church of the Transfiguration a huge wooden structure built in 1714 without a single nail.

The tour begins on August 28, on river boat AmaKatarina, with 11 nights aboard the first three spent in Moscow for daily sightseeing taking in Red Square and the Kremlin, a ride on the Moscow Metro and a trip to the Moscow Circus.

The final three nights are spent moored in St Petersburg where passengers visit the Hermitage Museum and Peterhof Palace and see a ballet performance in the Hermitage Theatre.
 
Fares for the Russian Waterways package are available from $6490 a person, twin share.

Details: Ph 1300 764 509 or see cruiseexpress.com.au

All class in Alaska

UPPER premium cruise line Oceania Cruises' 2013 itineraries have been released, with early-booking discounts for deals such as a 10-day cruise through Alaska aboard Regatta in a luxurious penthouse suite priced from $5260 a person, twin share.

The round trip from Seattle takes in the Inside Passage, Ketchikan, Juneau, Hubbard Glacier, Icy Strait Point, Sitka, Wrangell and Victoria. Alaskan cruises have a two-for-one shore package deal if booked by June 30.

Details: Ph 9959 1371 or see oceaniacruises.com.au