This was published 4 years ago
Ponant release its new cruises for adventurous travellers
By Brian Johnston
Ponant's ship L'Austral in the Milford Sound.
DIVE IN
Ponant has released its new cruises for adventurous travellers in the Indian Ocean, Persian Gulf and Polynesia. The 48 voyages to 21 countries, departing October 2020 to May 2021, include 29 cruises with optional scuba-diving and 22 luxury tropical expeditions, three in partnership with National Geographic. The cruises explore destinations such as the Arabian Peninsula, Seychelles, Madagascar, India and Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Easter Island. Ponant is also offering 38 voyages in the Caribbean and Latin America to destinations such as Belize, Martinique, Guatemala, the Sea of Cortez, Chilean fjords and Amazon River.
Phone 1300 737 178. See au.ponant.com
MORE MEDITERRANEAN
SeaDream Yacht Club is sailing to Israel for the first time in 2021 as part of a Mediterranean season that features six new destinations. SeaDream II will sail to the Israeli ports of Haifa and Ashdod (which provides easy access to Tel Aviv and Jerusalem) on an 11-night voyage from Piraeus (Athens) that also visits Cyprus and Turkey. Other new destinations are Ksamil in Albania, Saint-Cyr-sur-Mer in France, Otranto in Italy and Agios Nikolaus in Greece. All 2021 voyages include at least one overnight call in each itinerary, allowing guests more time to explore.
Phone 1800 217 902. See seadream.com
HERE AND THERE
Small-ship expedition company AdventureSmith Explorations has announced 12 new itineraries for 2020, among them a six-day 'Wild Alaska Escape" through the Inside Passage, and an eight-day "Belize & Guatemala Wonders" that explores less-visited sections of the Belizean Barrier Reef and the mangrove and savannah habitats of Payne's Creek National Park. There's also a 35-day Antarctica cruise between Argentina and New Zealand, plus new Arctic cruises that take in Greenland, Canada and Russia. In addition, the company sails a 12-day "Mediterranean Gems" cruise between Dubrovnik and Naples that takes in Italian destinations such as Sicily and the Amalfi Coast.
VINE ROMANCE
Ecruising is offering a 17-night "Wine and Romance" package from Barcelona to London this May, topped and tailed by city stays and including a 13-night cruise on Azamara Quest that calls at some of the finest wine-producing regions on the Iberian Peninsula and France. The ship visits Gibraltar, followed by Portuguese cities Portimão, Lisbon and Porto, then Bilbao in Spain for a visit to the Guggenheim Museum. It concludes with calls at Bordeaux in France's greatest wine region, and Guernsey in the Channel Islands. The journey starts in Barcelona on 24 May 2020.
Phone 1300 369 848. See ecruising.travel
SAIL AWAY
Sailing charter company Sunsail holidays is adding six new Lagoon catamarans for charter across the Mediterranean in June 2020, and will add a further 15 in the Caribbean by the end of this year. The Sunsail Lagoon 424 features four en-suite cabins, a curvaceous design and single-level deck, while the slightly larger Sunsail Lagoon 464 features a four-cabin, four-head configuration with skipper cabin. Both have a generator, air-conditioning, and water-maker. Guests can charter the yachts in Greece, Spain, Croatia, the British Virgin Islands, St Martin, St Lucia, The Bahamas and Belize.
Phone 1800 803 988. See sunsail.com.au
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