World Cruises for 2006
September 30, 2005
Make the world your oyster, and have enough pearls left over for a necklace. Visiting destinations in Africa, Australia, the Caribbean, the Mediterranean, and many other exotic places, World Cruises give people the opportunity to explore the globe we live on, as well as perhaps discover something about themselves along the way.
But what is a World Cruise? Think of it as a 21st century version of Magellan's exploits, or perhaps all of Captain James Cook's sailing routes combined into one. (Although unlike their trips, no significant danger of pirates.) With today's world cruises, passengers are given 100 days of luxury, service, adventure, and discovery.
Still, if the prospect of 100 days at sea doesn't appeal to you, or if you simply can't spend that much time away from the mainland, you have the option of taking segmented world cruises. Taking one of these exciting cruises is kind of like grabbing on to a moving train and seeing where it takes you (although much, much less dangerous). These segments can be a short as a matter of a few weeks or last almost as long as the entire world cruise, say 80 days or so.
When it comes to specific world cruises for 2006 that Cruise Network offers, there are four cruise lines offering them: Cunard and Holland America, both of which are considered premium lines; and Crystal and Radisson Seven Seas, ultra-luxury lines. Each cast off in January, 2006.
Cunard Cruise Lines' Queen Elizabeth 2 heads out from New York City on January 9th, 2006 and begins a 109-day roundtrip journey that eventually ends back in the Big Apple. However, for those people who do not want to, or are unable to, invest so much time, they can jump on the ship at a later date and disembark before returning to New York. Head from New York and end up in Sydney, Australia or Hong Kong, China 37 or 63 days later, respectively. Or, you can leave from Los Angeles and finish your journey in Southampton, England 89 days later.
The Holland America Grand World Voyage in 2006 takes place on the 38,000-ton ms Prinsendam, one of HAL's most intimate and comfortable ships. She leaves from Fort Lauderdale, Florida and return there after 105 days sailing on the sea and visiting unique ports of call. Guests will visit 22 exotic ports of call such as Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Cape Town, South Africa; Mombassa, Kenya; Mumbai, India; Naples, Italy.
With Crystal Cruises, a passenger has the option of taking the Full World Cruise: Discovery of the Hemispheres, which lasts 106 days, or one of the other seven much shorter segmented cruises that range from as little as 11 days to as many as 19. Trips such as "Ancient Empires" and "Aztec and Inca Treasures" are as alluring and intriguing as their titles sound. Crystal's World Cruise in 2006 begins on January 18th in Los Angeles and ends in London on May 5th.
The Radisson Seven Seas' World Cruise in 2006 is arguably one of the most diverse and interesting world cruise itineraries that Cruise Network offers. Leave from Los Angeles on January 10th, 2006 and visit ports of call in Polynesia, New Zealand, Australia, Bali, Borneo, China, Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Italy, Spain, Portugal, the Bahamas, and more before finally returning to Fort Lauderdale, Florida on April 28th. As with Crystal, you can sample a portion of Radisson's World Cruise in 2006 if you'd prefer; spend 15 nights sailing from Rome to Fort Lauderdale or 22 nights sailing from Sydney, Australia to Hong Kong.
There are too many products and events out there that are labeled as "once in a lifetime experience." However, World Cruises are actually just that. These are trips that can open a person's eyes to different cultures, landscapes, and attitudes in a way that they never thought possible.
