Coral Expeditions celebrates its 35th anniversary with a one-off voyage

AUSTRALIA FAIR

Coral Expeditions is celebrating its 35th anniversary in 2020 with a one-off Australian circumnavigation aboard the 120-passenger flagship Coral Adventurer. The 60-day voyage round trip from Darwin will visit 35 sites of significance to Australian history and landscapes, and will feature overnight stays in destinations such as Fremantle, Adelaide, Hobart, Sydney and Cairns. Highlights include a private winemaker's dinner at Cape Leeuwin, a sail on an historic barque in Sydney Harbour, and a private jet flight to Uluru for Christmas under the outback stars. The cruise departs on November 7, 2020. Phone 1800 079 545. See coralexpeditions.com

ALASKA SEASON

Cunard has announced it will spend its first full season in Alaska between June and September 2020, more than doubling its program in the region. The newly refurbished Queen Elizabeth will make nine round-trip sailings from Vancouver, ranging in length from nine to 12 nights, plus a special cruise to San Francisco that includes an overnight stay there on Independence Day. All the voyages visit Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan, Sitka and other ports, offer more than 120 shore excursions, and include scenic cruising in the Inside Passage, twin fiords of the Hubbard and Sawyer Glaciers, and Tracy Arm and Endicott Arm. Phone 132 494. See cunard.com

MEDITERRANEAN MARVELS

Viking Ocean Cruises has released five itineraries for 2020 and 2021 that cover the highlights of the Mediterranean. Among them is a 21-day Antiquities of the Mediterranean cruise from Venice to Barcelona and a 15-day Iconic Adriatic Antiquities cruise from Venice to Rome, both visiting Croatia, Montenegro and Greece, among other destinations. Three other cruises link the Mediterranean with the Americas, including a 27-day itinerary between Rome and Miami, and a 26-day cruise from San Juan in the Caribbean to Venice, which visits Portugal, Spain, France, Greece and Croatia. Phone 138 747. See vikingcruises.com.au

BEST OF NEW ZEALAND

Crystal Cruises' new ship Crystal Endeavor begins its inaugural season in August 2020, and by the end of the year will be sailing in New Zealand. A 12-day New Zealand Immersion cruise from Christchurch to Auckland departs on November 28, 2020, with highlights including Stewart Island, Abel Tasman and Fiordland national parks and Queen Charlotte Sound. It's followed by a Remote Coasts of New Zealand cruise departing December 10, 2020 and a Holiday Expedition on December 22, 2020 that also visits NSW ports Sydney and Eden, and numerous destinations in Tasmania before finishing in Hobart. Phone 1300 059 260. See crystalcruises.com

SAIL AWAY

Star Clippers, the cruise company particularly noted for its tall-ship cruise experiences, has announced that new ports of call in Europe for the summer of 2020 will include Stintino in Sardinia, Propriano in Corsica, and Vis, Krk and Zadar in Croatia. The company's flagship Royal Clipper will again be sailing in the western Mediterranean on itineraries from Venice to Civitavecchia (Rome) that visit Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro, Greece and Italy's islands and coastline. Its smaller sister ship Star Flyer will be in the eastern Mediterranean, visiting the Greek islands and Turkey. Phone 1300 295 161. See starclippers.com