Princess Launches "Greatest Romantic" Contest

Appropriately for Valentine's Day, Princess Cruises launched its "The Greatest Romantic" contest today, with a grand prize of a seven-day Caribbean or Mexican Riviera cruise for two (airfare included) to the person judged The Greatest Romantic.

The Love Boat line is asking for video submissions -- from "heartfelt stories" to "crazy stunts," song and dances to poems -- that will convince the judges that you or someone you know is The Greatest Romantic. The ultimate judges will be registered visitors to the Princess website who vote on the winner; a lucky voter will also win a free cruise for two, and five finalists will also win prizes.

Entries will be accepted from today (February 14) until March 20. Voting will begin April 1 and continue for two weeks; the winning video will be announced around April 15.

Naturally, there are a whole raft of rules; click here to begin reading about them.

Good luck, and if you insist on nominating me as The Greatest Romantic, well, I'll send you a postcard from the cruise! Happy Valentine's Day!

Photo from Princess Cruises.

Save 25 percent on Cruise West Stowaway Program

I like the name of this offer from Cruise West: the "Stowaway" Program.

If you're a flexible traveler who can take off with just 30 days' notice, you can save 25 percent on your fare from Cruise West, the small ship line that covers the West Coast from Alaska to Mexico.

Here's how to become a "stowaway": sixty or more days prior to the first date of your desired travel period, make a $700 deposit for the cabin category and cruise itinerary of your choice that departs within a particular 30-day window of that travel period.

Cruise West will then inform you of a specific Stowaway travel date at least 30 days prior to departure.

If you accept that date, your payment of 75 percent of the published fare must be made in full by credit card within 24 hours. (Once full payment is made, you'll be subject to penalties if you cancel; cancellations within 30 days of departure forfeit 100 percent of the cruise price.)

If you decline the date offered, your deposit can be applied to a future cruise but is not refundable.

You can also elect to receive Cruise West travel coupons in the amount of the deposit to be used toward any Cruise West destination within 24 months of issue. These travel coupons are transferable but not refundable.

More fine print: Stowaway availability is limited and your choice of ship, departure dates, sailing direction (northbound or southbound) and cabin category are not guaranteed. If Cruise West can't offer you a departure date and cabin category within your 30-day travel window, the line will refund your deposit in full. The offer is valid for the cruise only; when booking cruise/land tours, the 25 percent savings is only on the cruise portion.

Cruise West past guests (Quyana Club members) are eligible for an additional 5 percent savings, but the Stowaway Program can't be combined with group savings or other offers.

If you need help with last-minute air arrangements, Cruise West may be able to assist from various gateway cities.

To sign up for the Stowaway Program, call Cruise West at 888/851-8133.

Photo by Dennis Cox/WorldViews.

Last-Minute Savings on Fred. Olsen cruises from Miami

Four Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines voyages out of Miami aboard its newest ship, the Balmoral, are available at last-minute savings. The cruises depart in March and April 2008 for destinations in the Caribbean and Europe.

A March 13 11-night Western Caribbean departure heads for Nassau, Ocho Rios (Jamaica), Belize, Santo Tomas de Castilla (Guatemala), Roatan Island (Honduras), and two stops in Mexico before returning to Miami via Key West. Prices begin at $720 per person, double occupancy. A similar voyage at similar rates departs Miami April 3 as well.

A 10-night March 24 Eastern Caribbean itinerary includes Grand Turk, Samana (Dominican Republic), Antigua, St. Kitts and Tortola. Double occupancy fares begin at $840 per person.

A 17-night repositioning cruise leaves Miami on April 14 for Civitavecchia, Italy, the port of Rome, via Nassau, Hamilton (Bermuda), Funchal (Madeira), Malaga (Spain), and Ajaccio (Corsica). Fares begin at $1,145 per person.

The fine print: Full payment is required at the time of booking and is non-refundable. Prices include port charges, taxes and fuel surcharges. The offers are based on availability and subject to withdrawal at any time.

For more information, call Borton Overseas at 800-843-0602, ext. 6, or visit http://www.bortonoverseas.com/.

Phoo from Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines.

Holland America Alaska cruise sale this week

Holland America Line is putting its 2008 seven-day Alaska cruises on sale February 6-8, with prices starting at $599 per person for an inside cabin in double occupancy.

Those prices are available on the May 10 "Alaskan Explorer via Hubbard Glacier" voyage aboard the Oosterdam, the May 16 "Alaskan Explorer via Glacier Bay" sailing aboard the Amsterdam, and the September 14 "Glacier Bay Inside Passage Cruise" aboard the Zaandam.

Many other week-long Alaska cruises are available for prices starting at $649 per person and up, May to September. And back-to-back two-week Glacier Discovery cruises are on sale at prices starting at $999 per person.

A host of cruise tours (combining sea and land itineraries) are also on sale.

An added bonus: depending on the date of the cruise, you can get free or reduced fares ($99 to $299 per person) on many seven- and 14-day Alaska sailings from May to September, subject to the availability of triple and quad staterooms.

The fine print: Prices do not include taxes or a $5 per day per person fuel surcharge. These rates are for new bookings only. You must book by 11:59 pm, Pacific Time, Friday February 8. Ask for Promo FJ.

For more information or bookings, go to the Holland America website or call 877/724-5425 or a travel agent.

Photo from Holland America.

Hurry to land baby boomer savings on MSC Caribbean sailings

The Italian line MSC Cruises is offering special Baby Boomer/Senior-Saver rates on some fast-upcoming 10-day MSC Lirica cruises to the Caribbean.

Rates start at $799 per person, double occupancy, if even one passenger in a stateroom is at least 50 years of age. Kids or grandkids 17 and under sail free in the same cabin. Government taxes and fees are additional, as is a fuel surcharge for the first two people in the cabin.

Rates starting at $799 are available for a 10-night March 9 cruise with stops in Puerto Rico, St. Maarten, St. Lucia, Antigua, Tortola, and the Dominican Republic.

Rates start at $949 per person for a 10-night March 19 Caribbean cruise with stops in Cozumel, Mexico; Puerto Limon, Costa Rica; Cristobal, Panama; Cartagena, Colombia; and Cayo Levantado, Dominican Republic.

The offers expire on February 29, 2008, but space is limited and cabins could fill at any time.

For more information, go to the MSC Cruises website. For reservations, call a travel agent.

Photo of MSC Lirica cabin from MSC Cruises.

Looking for a theme cruise? Try our new blog

Are you a bridge fanatic, a classical music lover, a political junkie?

Do you have a passion, hobby, or interest that you'd like to combine with your love of cruising?

Then you'd be a good candidate for a theme cruise.

Theme cruises -- appealing to groups as diverse as birders, photographers, golfers, history buffs, salsa dancers, and many others -- are one of the hottest trends in cruising. Like-minded people get together to celebrate their interests, attend lectures and performances, play games or sports, practice their dance moves, revisit World War II sites, view wildlife, learn yoga...the possibilities are nearly endless.

And all against the backdrop of the blue sea and the added flair of wonderful ports around the globe.

But many theme cruises are one-shot opportunities that you might miss out on -- unless you check in frequently with our new blog from Smarter Cruising:
Theme Cruise Finder (http://www.theme-cruise.blogspot.com/).

Launched February 4, the Theme Cruise Finder has already covered theme cruises appealing to bridge players, classical music aficionados, and wanna-be political pundits.

Whatever your special interest, you're sure to find an upcoming theme cruise that will appeal to you.

See you soon at Theme Cruise Finder!

Photo of Crystal Symphony from Crystal Cruises; the Symphony is hosting a classical music lovers' cruise to the Baltic on June 7, 2008.

Crystal offers 2-for-1 deals on S. America cruises

The luxury line Crystal Cruises is offering up to 50 percent off on some staterooms for two repositioning cruises on the Crystal Symphony between the U.S. and South America next winter.

One of the cruises leaves Los Angeles for Valparaiso, Chile, on December 7, 2008, and has a theme of Mind, Body and Spirit with instruction in yoga, Pilates, and tai chi and wellness seminars. Ports on the 15-day cruise will include stops in Mexico, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Peru.

The other, a 16-day voyage, leaves Buenos Aires for Miami on January 9, 2009, with stops in Rio De Janeiro and other ports in Brazil, Barbados, and Grand Turk.

On the first voyage, staterooms start at $3,450 in double occupancy and on the next they start at $3,790 . At around $230 per day per passenger, this is good value for a deluxe cruise line, which seldom offers such big discounts.

Note that fares do not include port, security and handling charges, or a $7 per person per day fuel surcharge.

For bookings, call a Crystal-approved travel agency at 888/269-9414 or 888/722-0021 or your own travel agent.

Photo of Crystal Symphony from Crystal Cruises.