The New Face of Asia Cruises
October 03, 2005
Perhaps no other area on the globe more exemplifies the duality of ancient history and cutting edge modernity more than Asia. From the Great Wall stretching across mountains and valleys, to the towering skyscrapers that stretching into the sky, Asia is past, present, and future in one breath.
Until recently, it used to be that the only way to experience that magic via cruise ship was on a trip on a world cruise or a small ship cruise. But no more. Many cruise lines are now offering people Asia cruises as an alternative to Europe and the Caribbean cruise vacations, with many of the voyages lasting only a few weeks.
A world cruise is a serious investment in not only time, but money. For those inclined to take one, they're in store for 100 days that could very well change the way they see the world. But, many people are unable or unwilling to spend so much time away from home. Now, thanks to shorter Asia cruises, as well as more cruise ship ports and more cruise ships, they have the opportunity to visit Asia without taking 3 months to do it.
But why even consider Asia cruises at all? Why not simply book a flight? For to be honest, in a land as vast as Asia, there are places you'll be unable to go via cruise ship—landlocked wonders or places simply inaccessible to larger ships. In many other ways, however, the benefits of Asia cruises far outweigh the disadvantages.
For instance, Asia cruises ensure that you don't have to worry with the logistical problems of moving from place to place. With a cruise ship to take you from port to port, all a person needs to deal with is getting back to the ship before moving on to the next port. The same is true with accommodations; rather than having to arrange hotel rooms, passengers on a cruise ship have comfortable accommodations waiting for them onboard. Something else to consider with Asia cruises is that any potential language barriers you'll encounter at your port of call won't be an issue when you return to your ship.
For the most part, however, lengthy world cruises are still where you'll find the majority of itineraries in Asia. However, many cruise lines offer segmented portions of their world cruises that allow a person to hop on or off the cruise at a point and time of their choosing.
One thing that has yet to change, however, is the list of cruise lines that travel to Asia. For the most part, all are the same premium or luxury lines that offer the world cruises; cruise lines such as Holland America, Cunard, Princess, Radisson Seven Seas, Oceania Cruises, and others of the same ilk. Cruise Network offers many cruises to Asia on some of the top cruise lines in the world.
In March and April of 2006, Holland America offers intriguing Asia cruises on ms Statendam. Departing for 14 days from Hong Kong and traveling to Shanghai and Xingang, China; Dailan, China; Pusan, South Korea; and Nagasaki, Japan, the 1,258-passenger ship is a special kind of Orient express.
In August and September of 2006, Princess Cruises' Pacific Princess offers Asia cruises out of Bangkok, Thailand, visiting exotic ports of call that include Phu My, Vietnam; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Phuket, Thailand; Colombo, Sri Lanka, and others.
Radisson Seven Seas' Voyager leaves in the end of February out of Hong Kong and stops in Ho Chi Minh City, Bangkok, and Singapore. It is just one of the several Asia cruises available through Cruise Network, so the best idea is to speak to one of our Cruise Specialists.
