Savings offered on first two Crystal World Cruise segments for 2009

Luxurious Crystal Cruises is offering free airfare back to the U.S. and special savings if you book the first two back-to-back segments of its 2009 World Cruise aboard the Crystal Serenity, departing Los Angeles in January of next year for Tahiti, New Zealand, and other Pacific stops.

Besides the free air back to some 20 U.S. cities, the perks include a five-percent combination-fare discount (ordinarily applied only to non-World Cruise back-to-back bookings), a full payment discount (if paid in full by October 27, 2008), and no fuel surcharge. Total savings could range up to around $6650 per couple.

The airfare is valued at $600 per passenger (or you could take an air credit in its place); the five percent combination-fare discount could save up to $2,900 per couple; the 3.5 percent full-payment discount could save up to $1,924 per couple; and the fuel surcharge rollback would save $624 per couple.

Additionally, you would receive a $200 shipboard credit for taking two segments and complimentary shore excursions in Cabo San Lica, Mexico, and Noumea, New Caledonia.

Besides those ports, the first two segments of the World Cruise -- one 12 days from Los Angeles to Tahiti, the next 14 days from Tahiti to New Zealand -- will call in the Marquesas Islands, several ports in French Polynesia, the Cook Islands, Fiji, and the Bay of Islands, New Zealand, before finishing in Auckland. (The entire World Cruise visits 46 ports in 17 countries throughout the South Pacific, Asia, Africa, and Europe, and has seven distinctive segments.)

Cruise fares for the two segments start at $12,910 per passenger (including the five percent combination savings, but not including the other discounts or airfare savings).

For more information or reservations, call a travel agent or Crystal at 888/799-4625, or go to the Crystal website here.

Photo of Crystal Serenity from Crystal Cruises.

Cruise Norwegian to Canada and New England for half fare

Orbitz has a deal for a seven-night cruise to Eastern Canada and New England aboard the Norwegian Dream for prices starting at $549 per passenger in double occupancy, a savings of about 50 percent off the brochure price.

Even better, you can land an oceanview cabin for just $30 more per person.

The deal is available on four sailings from late August to late September this year, so you'll need to act quickly. Departure dates are August 31, September 7, September 14, and September 21, all embarking from Boston and making calls at Saint John, New Brunswick; Halifax, Nova Scotia; and Bar Harbor, Maine, before returning to Boston.

Along with the discount, you may be eligible for some additional special offers from Orbitz. You can save 15 percent off any qualifying hotel booking at Orbitz if you book your cruise by August 31 and travel by the end of October. And, for the three September departures only, you can get up to $400 in onboard spending free on the Norwegian Dream. The amount of free spending varies by the cruise and cabin category you choose, and the cruises must be booked through Orbitz by August 13. The latter offer is only good if you call Orbitz at 888/656-8184.

Government fees and taxes ranging from $5 to $150 per passenger are not inluded in the package. You can find out more about the itinerary and offer by going to the Orbitz website.

Photo from Norwegian Cruise Line.

Viking River Cruises extends early-booking discount deadline

Viking River Cruises is extending its deadline for early-booking discounts on many of its 2009 cruises for one week, until August 7, 2008.

Click here to read our earlier blog post providing the details. Briefly, you can save $1,000 per couple by booking your 2009 cruise in the next week.

Call Viking at 800/304-9616 or a travel agent to book; click here for the Viking website.

Photo from Viking River Cruises.

Princess has special on 9-day October Caribbean sailing

Princess Cruises has a nine-day Southern Caribbean cruise on the Sea Princess out of New York City on October 23 with inside cabins starting from $679 per person, double occupancy. That's about $75 per day, a nice price for a premium line.

The itinerary includes six port stops, including St. Thomas, St. Maarten, Dominica, St. Vincent, and Grenada before finishing in Barbados. (Dominica, St. Vincent, and Grenada are three of my favorite Caribbean ports.) There are also three days at sea.

One-way air add-ons from Barbados back to New York are available for $299 per passenger, or you can ask for roundtrip air add-ons ranging from $399 to $599 per passenger, depending on whether you're flying from the East Coast, Midwest, or West Coast. Government fees and taxes are not included in these prices, so you may be able to do better on your own.

The base cruise price includes an $81 fuel supplement but not fees and taxes that may add up to $59 per person.

One thing to be aware of during fall Caribbean sailings: it's hurricane season there. However, cruise ships generally get plenty of advance warning if a storm is forming to the east, and can change itineraries as needed, so the risk of a cruise being cancelled mid-voyage is very slim.

If you're interested in booking, click here for the Princess website or call Princess at 800/774-6237 or a travel agent. Be sure to request Promo Code UEA.

Photo from Princess Cruises.

Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines offers 8 nights in Caribbean for $72 per night in deluxe cabins

British-owned Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines has a special deal on its eight-night Braemar cruise from Barbados to Miami departing November 5, 2008.

The line is putting a limited number of deluxe "B" category outside cabins on sale for just $576 per person in double occupancy, or $72 per person per night. Fares include taxes and port charges but not a $96 fuel surcharge.

After leaving Barbados, the 850-passenger Braemar will call at Grenada, St. Lucia, St. Kitts, and Tortola before the ship makes her maiden call in Miami on November 13. The ship will then depart later that day on the first of a season of Caribbean cruises out of Miami through April 2009. The Braemar was lengthened earlier this year by 102 feet.

Fred. Olsen is known for its mid-sized classic ships, English Country House atmosphere, and onboard friendliness. Having cruised the Caribbean aboard the Fred. Olsen ship Balmoral this spring, I can attest to the line's outstanding value, considering the high level of comfort and amenities you receive.

North American residents should call the line's booking agents, Borton Overseas, at 612/822-4640 or 800/843-0602 ext. 6, e-mail them at info@bortonoverseas.com, or go to their website here.

Braemar photo from Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines.

Early booking deadline near for 2009 Viking River Cruises

Viking River Cruises is offering savings of $1,000 per couple for many of its 2009 river cruises in Europe, Russia, and China. The only catch is that you have to book and pay in full by the end of this month -- that's Thursday, July 31, 2008.

Itineraries for 2009 eligible for the discount include Eastern European Odyssey and Treasures of the Rhine in Europe, Waterways of the Czars and Footsteps of the Cossacks in Russia and the Ukraine, and Imperial Jewels of China and Roof of the World in China.

To book, call Viking at 800/304-9616 and ask for offer code EBD. Reservation hours are up to 8 p.m. Pacific time on weekdays. You can combine the offer with a Past Guest Travel Credit if you're eligible.

Viking also has some special promotions on fast-upcoming 2008 river cruises; you can save up to $2,000 per couple on most October departures and $1,000 per couple on September departures of Waterways of the Czars, for example, or $2,000 per couple on October-November departures of the Grand European Tour cruises, among other deals. When you call Viking, ask for offer code 60W.

Go to the Viking website for more details on all these itineraries and discounts.

Photo courtesy of Viking River Cruises.

Free airfare deal sweetens Holland America's Eurodam inaugural sailing in northern Europe

Holland America is offering a free-airfare special on the Inaugural Voyage of the ms Eurodam, the line's new Signature-class ship. The cruise departs Copenhagen for the Norwegian fjords and Scotland on July 5, 2008, with port stops in Alesund, Vik, Flam, and Stavanger, Norway, as well as three stops in the UK before returning to Copenhagen.

If you act quickly, you can land an inside stateroom on the 10-day cruise -- including free roundtrip airfare from five U.S. midwest and eastern gateway cities -- for fares starting at $2,299 per person in double occupancy. Oceanview cabins are going for $2,599 per person and up, while verandahs are starting as low as $2,899 per passenger.

The roundtrip airfare deal to Copenhagen is good from Chicago, Cleveland, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh. Cruise-only fares are only marginally ($100-$300) lower, if you've priced summer flights to Europe lately. The special fares also include fuel supplements.

To book or for more information, call Holland America at 877/724-5425 or a travel agent and request promo code RX.

Photo of ms Eurodam from Holland America.