Sail away with great cruise deals
A CRUISE to Norway during the summer solstice, have a family holiday in the tropics or watch November's solar eclipse - here are the best cruise deals of the week.
A CRUISE to Norway during the summer solstice, have a family holiday in the tropics or watch November's solar eclipse - here are the best cruise deals of the week.
Light up a trip
THE sensation of all-night daylight will greet passengers on a special Voyage of the Midnight Sun luxury cruise to Norway during the summer solstice in June next year.
A 17-day fly, stay and cruise package includes a 14-night return voyage from Dover in England to Norway, sailing inside the Arctic Circle during the summer solstice on June 21 when the sun is still in the sky at midnight.
The cruise aboard Holland America Line's Ryndam sails from Dover on June 15, taking passengers to the Norwegian ports of Honningsvag - 1900km from the North Pole - as well as Stavanger, Flam, Geiranger, Tromso, Hammerfest, Bergen, Alesund and Trondheim.
The ship also will take passengers on scenic cruises along the Sognefjord, the largest fjord in Norway and the second longest in the world, as well as Trondheimsfjord, Norway's third-longest fjord.
The package costs from $5999 a person, twin share, in an inside cabin, with a free upgrade to an ocean-view cabin while available, and includes return flights to London, three nights in London before the cruise and transfers between London and Dover.
Ph 1300 764509 or see cruiseexpress.com.au
Taste the Pacific
CRUISE the Pacific on a 20-night trip from Sydney to Honolulu visiting New Zealand, Fiji and Samoa. The cruise on Holland America Line's Amsterdam departs November 11, stopping at the historic NSW whaling town of Eden; Waitangi and Auckland in New Zealand; Lautoka in Fiji; and Apia in the Samoa Islands; before finishing in Honolulu.
The package includes two nights post-cruise at the Aqua Aloha Surf, as well as a flight home from Honolulu. Departures from Sydney are from $2349 a person, twin share.
Ph 1300 596 345 or see cruise1st.com.au
Take in rare sight
P&O Cruises is offering passengers the chance to view a rare total solar eclipse in November during cruises on Pacific Dawn and Pacific Jewel. Pacific Dawn will be off the northeast corner of Australia and Pacific Jewel will be in the South Pacific, both in prime position to watch the November 14 event.
The cruise line will have documentaries on poolside screens and lectures from experts. And it will provide eclipse shades for safe viewing.
Passengers onboard Pacific Dawn will be able to watch the eclipse from Port Douglas as part of a seven-night cruise departing Brisbane on November 10 from $799 a person, quad share.
Pacific Jewel will also offer a good vantage point during a 10-night Pacific Islands cruise departing Sydney on November 12, priced from $799 a person, quad share.
The last total eclipse viewed from Australia occurred in 2002, and the next will not occur until 2028.
Ph 13 24 94 or see pocruises.com.au
Feel the heat in the tropics
TAKE a family trip to the tropical warmth of New Caledonia with an eight-night cruise aboard Carnival Spirit, from $4069 for a family of two adults and two children aged two to 11.
Setting off from Sydney, passengers can take in one of the most picturesque regions in the world, with stops in Noumea, the Isle of Pines and Mare Island aboard a ship that features a waterpark with the Green Thunder corkscrew waterslide (pictured) and Power Drencher tipping bucket.
The package includes $50 spending credit a cabin. The offer is available for sale until November 30 for travel on April 21 next year.