by Ralph Grizzle

From overland odysseys to the Himalayas to the icy realms of Antarctica, cruising in 2008 not only will cover the globe but also will offer a variety of experiences never before available from — or on — a cruise ship. Here are some of the highlights.

Think Big: While maintaining a strong Caribbean presence, Carnival Cruise Lines continues to expand itineraries worldwide. The summer of 2008 sees Carnival’s first-ever Baltic cruises on the company’s newest and largest ship, the 3,006-passenger Carnival Splendor. Act quickly: These 12-day Northern European sailings are selling well, thanks, in part, to low lead-in prices. In September, Splendor repositions to operate the line’s popular Mediterranean and Greek Isles cruises. Those run through October, when Splendor returns stateside to cruise a series of seven-day Caribbean voyages until January. Splendor then operates Carnival’s first-ever South America cruises through March. Among the SuperLiner’s highlights: a two-deck-high “Cloud 9 Spa,” with adjacent spa staterooms and suites that provide private access to the spa.

Think Small: This past fall, Celebrity Cruises introduced the second vessel in its new two-ship brand Azamara Cruises. After some initial teething pains, Azamara continues to refine and perfect the cruise experience that it defines as “deluxe.” Offering cruises around the globe, Azamara aims to put itself squarely between the premium and luxury cruise categories. The industry’s newest cruise line promises to deliver an experience on its two 694-passenger ships that is slightly more upscale than its sister brand Celebrity Cruises. Azamara features butler service and such niceties as fresh fruit daily. Meantime, big sister Celebrity will launch in December her largest ship to date, Celebrity Solstice. Staterooms will be 15 percent larger on average than the balance of the Celebrity fleet, and bowing to a trend in home designs, bathrooms on Solstice will be 24 percent larger than on other Celebrity ships. Solstice begins sailing seven-night Eastern Caribbean cruises from Fort Lauderdale in December.

Cruising West: Compact, Seattle-based Cruise West will offer 160 Alaska departures in 2008. That’s a 10 percent increase over 2007, so there’s plenty to ponder. The increase is partly due to the debut of Cruise West’s eighth ship in Alaska, Spirit of Glacier Bay. Continuing to improve its classic small-ship fleet, Cruise West also upgraded Spirit of Yorktown to feature private balconies and other improvements. Cruise West offers three distinct itineraries that allow guests to get up-close and personal with the wonders of Southeast Alaska: nine-day Inside Passage cruises between Ketchikan and Juneau; Alaska’s Whales & Wilderness, nine days roundtrip Juneau; and Gold Rush Inside Passage, between Seattle and Juneau over 11 days. Land tours of the Denali National Park and Preserve, home of towering Mt. McKinley, North America’s tallest peak, can be added to any Cruise West Alaska itinerary.
  
Land Cruising: Crystal Cruises will take its guests higher than ever before in 2008. Literally. New overland adventures feature travel in Bhutan, situated in the Himalayas, and India, during Crystal Serenity’s 2008 world cruise. In fact, for those with Asia on their must-do list, Crystal will operate two ships that will offer more than 120 shoreside adventures in Asia March through May of 2008. A dozen new programs and nine new overnight tours will offer in-depth travels in Vietnam, Thailand, China, Laos, Cambodia and India. The company also will offer more in-port overnights than ever before in Asia, 17 in all, in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Osaka, Kobe, Singapore, Ho Chi Minh City and Bangkok.

Hail To The Queen: Queen Victoria, England’s “modern” monarch, was the first queen to have a telephone, ride a train, be photographed or host a World’s Fair. Like her namesake, Queen Victoria, the second largest Cunarder ever built, boasts many firsts at sea: the first traditional West End-style private boxes in the Royal Court Theatre, the first Cunardia museum exhibit and the first two-storey library. Following her maiden season world cruise beginning in January, Queen Victoria will offer inaugural European itineraries in the Mediterranean, Baltic and Northern Europe.

Back By Popular Demand: Disney Cruise Line announced plans that it would double its fleet. But the two new ships aren’t due out until 2011 and 2012. Until then, the popular Disney Magic and Disney Wonder, now nearing 10 years old, just keep on bringing smiles to kids, families — and even seniors, singles and honeymooners. In 2008, Disney Magic returns to the West Coast to offer a dozen seven-night Mexican Riviera sailings from Los Angeles.

Dam Ship: Making its debut in June, Eurodam will feature staterooms influenced by the earthy color schemes of the Pacific Northwest — a big change for the more-than-one-century-old Holland America Line. Eurodam will offer a series of Baltic cruises before sailing trans-Atlantic to begin Canada/New England cruises. The new ship will winter in the Caribbean with other ships in the HAL fleet. In all, HAL will offer 121 Caribbean cruises ranging from three days to 20 days in 2008. Longer cruises are, in fact, a Holland America Line hallmark, and for those who really want to go long, the company will offer Grand Voyages around Africa (73 days), South America and Antarctica (68 days), and Asia and Australia (65 days).

Fit For A Princess: Princess crowns a new ship in November. Ruby Princess will be nearly identical to the recently introduced Emerald Princess and Crown Princess. Princess’ newest ship will sail from Fort Lauderdale on Caribbean itineraries through April 2009. Sister ship, the two-year-old, 3,070-passenger Crown Princess makes her debut in Europe in 2008 while the smaller 670-passenger Pacific Princess cruises the Mediterranean. Also new for 2008: Tahitian Princess will offer new 14-day “Connoisseur Alaska Cruises;” Princess’ first-ever Galapagos Islands cruisetours; three ships sailing South America; and the debut of the historic Chinese city of Hangzhou as a new destination. The city is one of the highlights of a new Beijing, Hangzhou and Xian tour, one of three Princess cruisetour options in China available in fall 2008 and spring 2009.

More To Cheer: It’s hard to top Regent Seven Seas Cruises’ announcement in 2007 to offer free booze on its ships. The award-winning cruise line just continues to keep on pleasing its guests, as evidenced by the fact that readers of Conde Nast Traveler recently ranked Regent number-one small ship cruise line. Each of the line’s four ships feature some of the industry’s highest space-per-guest ratios and crew-per-guest ratios. One of the highlights for 2008: the line’s popular Circles of Interest enrichment programs, featuring a broad range of topics by world-class lecturers, instructors and authorities. 

Bigger, Better, New & Improved: Royal Caribbean is putting the final touches on another behemoth ship: Independence of the Seas, which debuts in May to share the title of world’s largest ship with her two sisters: Liberty of the Seas and Freedom of the Seas. These 3,634-passenger floating resort/theme parks are real crowd-pleasers, noted particularly for their family friendly features: the FlowRider surf simulator; the wet and wild H20 Zone aqua park; cantilevered whirlpools suspended 112 feet above the ocean; an ice-skating rink; and the 1,215-square-foot Presidential Family Suite, which sleeps up to 14. Independence of the Seas will be the largest ship ever home-ported in Europe, when she begins sailing from Southampton, England this summer.

Show Me A River! Operating a fleet of luxury river cruisers, Uniworld Grand River Cruises is enhancing its on-board experience in 2008: complimentary wine with dinner, bottled water in each stateroom, 24-hour specialty coffees including cappuccinos and lattes, and a state-of-the-art Quietvox portable audio headset system to enhance the onshore experience. Also new for 2008: seven-night Danube Discovery Grand River cruises from Vienna to Nuremberg; seven-night Rhine Discovery Grand River cruises from Nuremberg to Basel; and 12-night Ukraine, the Black Sea & Istanbul Grand River cruises between Kiev and Nessebar, along with a 3-night hotel stay in Istanbul.

Sidebar: Dining Trends
For 2008, the trend continues to turn cruise ships into “dining destinations.” Celebrity Cruises recently inked a deal with Elizabeth Blau, credited for transforming Las Vegas from all-you-can-eat buffets to the dining mecca it is today. Blau and her team are bringing a whole new taste to Celebrity and indeed to the smaller Azamara Cruises brand, which features open-seating in the main dining room and two alternative dining restaurants (Prime C for beef-lovers and Aqualina for Italian fare) on each of its two ships.

Both Celebrity and Carnival will feature optional “spa cuisine” on their newest ships. Celebrity will do so in Blu, a 130-seat restaurant where dining is complimentary to guests booked in Solstice’s new AquaClass veranda accommodations. Carnival Splendor will offer a wide range of health-conscious dining options, including an extensive salad bar and 24-hour frozen yogurt in the Lido restaurant and gourmet-style selections in the main dining rooms that are lower in calories, fat, cholesterol, and sodium.

In response to a growing public health trend, Crystal Cruises has banned trans-fats altogether on its ships. Crystal also boasts perhaps the most “extravagant” alternative dining at sea — the Vintage Room, where meals paired with rare wines have gone for more than $1,000 per person.

For somewhat less, Princess Cruises’ “Chef’s Table” provides both a behind-the-scenes look at the galley during its busiest time (dinner) and a special dining experience for up to 10 passengers per evening. The cost is $75 per person.
Holland America Line’s Eurodam will feature three alternative dining venues, including a new pan-Asian restaurant on deck 10 with panoramic sea views.