5 Cruise Stories You Don't Want To Miss

Here's a quick look at some of the best cruise writing on the web this week...


Avid Cruiser correspondent Wallace Immen on AMA Waterway's new southern Africa itineraries


Writer Liz Fleming writes about one of my favorite Caribbean islands, Guadeloupe, for Cruise and Travel Lifestyles magazine


Cruise Critic announces the winners of the 2012 Cruisers' Choice Awards


Editor Paul Motter's step-by-step guide at CruiseMates for complaining to a cruise line and getting results


Cruise Diva, Linda Coffman, talks about new muster drill policies


What travel stories did you bookmark this week?

—Andrea M. Rotondo for Luxury Cruise Bible

Has Costa Concordia's Accident Changed How You Think about Cruising?

I cruise a lot; it's one of my favorite ways to travel. Over the years, I've sailed on many ships, including intimate yachts, masted sailing ships, and mid- to large-size cruise ships. Some itineraries were ultra-popular routes in the Mediterranean and Caribbean while some—like our recent Borneo cruise—were definitely off the beaten path. I never once questioned my safety and instead put my trust in the ships' officers and crew and the cruise lines as a whole.


Today, with the sad news that several passengers and crew of Costa Concordia have been lost at sea, I must reexamine the faith I put in others while traveling.


I am saddened by the Costa tragedy and all the families of those lost and those who survived a horrific experience are in my thoughts.


It's difficult to second-guess the situation when hard facts are still being determined but these questions definitely come to my mind...

• Why did the captain wait so long before issuing a mayday?
• Why didn't the captain and executive officers communicate more effectively with fellow crew and passengers in the early moments of the disaster?
• Why didn't the captain order all passengers to go to their cabins to put on warm clothes, grab their passports and medication, and then head to their muster stations?
• Why did the crew seem less than prepared for evacuating the vessel?
• Why did the captain leave the boat before making sure all passengers and crew had been evacuated?

We'll learn more in the days and months ahead, but how will this accident change the way you think about cruising?


As I said earlier, I love this method of travel and it would take a lot for me to shun the industry. Despite this accident, cruise travel is historically a very safe way to travel. (Check out Cruise Junkie's excellent website that details cruise ship accidents and illness reports.)


However, I will think more carefully about the cruise lines that I trust my safety to and why. I'll also be more cognizant of my own personal emergency plans (i.e., always carrying a copy of my passport on my person along with some cash and a credit card).


It's troubling that this incident causes us to question the faith we put into our ship's captain, executive officers, crew, and cruise line home office. There are so many well-trained and caring cruise ship employees.


I can only hope that this incident sparks conversation and that cruise companies make a renewed commitment to ship safety and training protocols. What happened aboard Costa Concordia is a wake-up call and it's up to each of us to press cruise lines to improve safety practices.

—Andrea M. Rotondo for Luxury Cruise Bible

Sign Up for Paul Gauguin Cruises Webinar on January 10

I've sailed with dozens of cruise lines over the years and one of my most memorable voyages was in French Polynesia aboard the m/s Paul Gauguin with Paul Gauguin Cruises.


If you've been dreaming about cruising the islands of Tahiti, Moorea, Bora Bora, et al, you'll want to sign up for the PGC-hosted webinar at 7pm EST on Tuesday, January 10.


Register for the January 10th Paul Gauguin Cruises webinar now.


PGC is offering 50% off cruise fares in 2012 plus free airfare from Los Angeles. Additionally, webinar attendees sometimes receive other incentives after the event.


Here are just a few reasons why I'm looking forward to sailing with Paul Gauguin Cruises again...

• the islands—the South Pacific is the most beautiful part of the world I've ever visited (and I travel a lot)
• the locals—French Polynesian culture is fascinating and we met so many engaging people
• onboard lectures and shore excursions—PGC works with the best lecturers and guides, including anthropologist Mark Eddowes and marine biologist Dr. Michael Poole
• the cuisine—dinners were especially scrumptious and we enjoyed the themed buffet lunches

To learn more, read my Paul Gauguin review for Cruise Critic.

—Andrea M. Rotondo for Luxury Cruise Bible

Vacation Planning Resource: Cruise Line YouTube Channels

If you're like me, you're taking some time off during the holidays to relax with friends and family. Part of this downtime includes planning vacations for 2012 and beyond. So far, we've booked reservations for getaways to Mexico, Fiji, Switzerland, France, and Thailand. We'll see what other adventures we settle upon for the year!


As we search for new vacation ideas, we're reviewing the YouTube channels of various luxury cruise lines and resorts. If you've got some time to view videos and plan your next trip, check out these YouTube channels:

Abercrombie & Kent

Azamara Club Cruises

Compagnie du Ponant

Four Seasons

InnerSea Discoveries

Oceania Cruises

Paul Gauguin Cruises

Regent Seven Seas Cruises

Seabourn

Silversea | Luxury Cruises

Windstar Cruises

There are some fantastic videos posted by these travel companies and you'll also find links to videos taken by fellow travelers. The combination of marketing videos and real-world experiences will help as you plan your next great escape.

—Andrea M. Rotondo for Luxury Cruise Bible

Lindblad Adds Undersea Divers to Alaska Itineraries

Lindblad Expeditions came up with an incredibly cool addition to its 2012 Alaska voyages—an "Undersea Specialist."


Each Lindblad ship already carries three naturalists, an expedition leader, and a Lindblad-National Geographic-certified photo instructor. The Undersea Specialist will join this team to provide an additional facet to cruises in Alaska.


What will this specialist actually do on each cruise? He or she will dive 40 to 80 feet below the surface to take high-definition photos of what lies beneath the ship. The images and video will be showcased during presentations throughout the cruise.


According to Lindblad, images will range from "...the tiniest organisms on the sea floor to giant octopi, to hulking sea lions to the whales that passengers see majestically breaching the surface." This is a very cool development! I'm just glad no one's asking me to dive the chilly Alaskan waters!


Lindblad will offer 8-night (Exploring Alaska's Coastal Wilderness) and 12-night (Alaska, British Columbia, and San Juan Islands) voyages from May–September 2012 aboard the 62-passenger ships, National Geographic Sea Bird and National Geographic Sea Lion.


Book Exploring Alaska's Coastal Wilderness by March 31, 2012 and you'll receive free roundtrip air between Seattle and Alaska on select May and June departures. Rates for this itinerary start at $5,990 per person based on double occupancy for a Category 1 cabin, and $7,690 for the Alaska, British Columbia, and San Juan Islands cruise.


Lindblad's been sailing Alaskan waters for 30 years, so they really know what they're doing in this region. I love the addition of the Undersea Specialist to its itineraries and hope to explore with the company soon.


For more information, talk with your travel agent or contact Lindblad at 1-(800)-EXPEDITION.

—Andrea M. Rotondo for Luxury Cruise Bible

What Luxury Cruise Lines Should Say to Lure Younger Travelers

It's been five years since I first set foot on a luxury cruise ship. I was still in my thirties then and was struck by the fact that my husband and I were the youngest travelers on board the ship. We couldn't understand why.

The itinerary was fantastic—visiting unusual ports of call—and the value was clear. We enjoyed a spacious, well-designed suite, attentive service, inclusive food and wine, and a cadre of entertainment options for less than a comparable vacation at a five-star resort on land.

Since that first experience, we've been on dozens of luxury cruise ships and yachts and we're still often among the youngest cruises aboard. All the cruise lines are reaching out to a younger crowd, and here's what they need to be saying to all those professional thirty- and forty-something's who've yet to set sail...

Our itineraries fit perfectly within the structure of your vacation time. Many luxury lines are now offering more 7-, 8-, and 9-night sailings. This makes it easier for a young professional to commit without tapping out his or her allotted vacation time. SeaDream Yacht Club has excellent offers in this regard as does Azamara Club Cruises.

We go to the destinations you want to visit. From close-to-home regions, like the Caribbean and Mediterranean, to more exotic locales such as French Polynesia and Southeast Asia, luxury cruise lines program compelling itineraries all over the world. Cruises enable the traveler to sample many ports across a region in a relatively short amount of time. For the Caribbean, thirty-somethings should check out Windstar Cruises, Compagnie Du Ponant Yacht Cruises offers excellent options in the Med, Paul Gauguin Cruises is the way to go in French Poly, and Crystal Cruises is excellent for Asia.

We offer active expeditions and wildlife-centric adventures. People often joke that cruises are for the newly wed and nearly dead, but that's just not true. More and more companies are offering expeditions that offer active adventures including hiking, kayaking, snorkeling, diving, and more. American Safari Cruises, part of InnerSea Discoveries, has excellent itineraries in Alaska's Inside Passage, Mexico's Sea of Cortes, the Hawaiian Islands, and more. Australia outfit, Orion Expedition Cruises, hits far-flung destinations like Borneo, Papua New Guinea, and Micronesia. And, of course, Silversea's expedition ship, Silver Explorer, is one of the best ways to visit polar bears in the Arctic.

No matter what your age, consider sailing with a luxury cruise line in 2012. It's one of the best vacation values available these days.

—Andrea M. Rotondo for Luxury Cruise Bible

Photo © Leonard Hospidor

Luxury Cruise Bible’s Gift Guide for Cruise Travelers

This time of year, every blogger posts his or her own “gift guide” for the holidays. Here’s my take on fun—and useful—gifts for cruise travelers…


Must-Have Memberships

Global Entry
My best investment of the year was enrolling in Global Entry. This is a U.S. Customs and Border Protection program that allows members to speed through Customs when returning to the United States from overseas. Simply apply, pay a $100 fee (which will be refunded if you use your American Express Platinum card), and attend a short interview at your local airport. After that you’ll spend far less time in line when returning from a cruise. In fact, on our last trip from Singapore, we spent a mere 45 seconds at the U.S. Customs kiosk when we returned to Newark Liberty Airport!

MedjetAssist
I’ve renewed my annual MedjetAssist membership every year for the past five years. Access to competent global travel assistance and medical evacuation gives me peace of mind at a very affordable price. (I had to medevac my father from Jacksonville to Boston last year and it cost $16,000. How I wish I had gifted him a MedjetAssist membership before he went on that trip.) Annual MedjetAssist memberships start at $250 and short-term memberships start at $95. This is the perfect gift for a loved one who travels.

InterContinental Ambassador Membership
We find this annual membership quite useful since we often stay at InterContinental hotels pre- and post-cruise. Benefits include guaranteed room upgrades (no matter what rate code you book), fresh fruit and mineral water upon arrival, one complimentary weekend night (buy one, get one), 4pm late check-out, complimentary pay TV film per stay, instant check-out, and a bonus points “accelerator” (earn 20,000 bonus points for every 15 qualifying nights). Ambassador membership costs $200 per year (or 32,000 Priority Club points).




Just for Fun

Scratch-Off Map of the World
I’ve already ordered a bunch of these from Uncommon Goods for my friends with wanderlust. This 32-by-22-inch world map has a “scratch off” component so you can scratch off the areas you’ve visited in order to “color in” the globe. I've never seen this particular item in stores before so I thought it would make for an unusual stocking-stuffer. $24

Vintage Cruise Ship Posters
Art.com has a nice selection of vintage-style cruise ship posters. I’ve got several of these in my office and they look fantastic.

Cruise Ship Ornament from Kyle Design
This is a nice-looking two-sided, engravable holiday ornament with a cruise-ship motif. This would be a great way to invite a loved-one on a Christmas cruise! $19.95




Cruise-Inspired Jewelry

Sextant Pendant from Dolphin Designs
This sextant pendant with an 18-inch box chain can be made with a variety of semi-precious stones, including lapis lazuli (shown), amethyst, turquoise, amazonite, malachite, aventurine, rose quartz, mother of pearl, onyx, and jade. $113.99

Propeller Cuff Links from Cuff Daddy
These three-blade propeller cuff links come in a variety of finishes, including sterling silver and gold. $28.99–$119.00

Have you stumbled upon any cool gifts for cruise travelers? Let me know! I've got many of them on my holiday shopping list this year!

—Andrea M. Rotondo for Luxury Cruise Bible