While the major cruise lines dominate the mass market, dozens of smaller companies cater for more specialist tastes and small port experiences.
The international cruise industry comprises around 75 companies. Most major cruise lines are owned and operated by large corporations, with the exception of MSC Cruises, a family firm. Some companies don’t actually own their own ships, but charter them from ship-owning and ship-management companies for year-round or seasonal operation (Thomson Cruises, for example).
The following companies are listed in alphabetical order.
Alaskan Dream Cruises
Allen Marine Tours is an operator of local day vessels in Alaska, operating only in Alaska and family-owned by members of the Kaagwaantaan Clans of the Tlingit people. It formed a new micro-cruise company, Alaskan Dream Cruises, in 2010, after buying two Cruise West 78-passenger vessels when Cruise West declared insolvency and ceased operations. Spirit of Columbia and Spirit of Alaska became Admiralty Dream and Baranhof Dream in 2011. Another ship, Chichagof Dream, (ex-Nantucket Clipper), was added in 2016. Gratuities are not included in the cruise fare.
American Cruise Lines
ACL was originally formed in 1974, at the beginning of American coastal passenger shipping, but it went bankrupt in 1989, the ships were sold off, and the company lay dormant. The original owner, Charles Robertson, a renowned yachtsman who used to race 39-ft (12-m) America’s Cup yachts, resurrected it in 2000, and built its own ships in its own small shipyard in Salisbury, Maryland, on the Chesapeake Bay.
ACL’s ships (American Constellation, American Glory, American Spirit, American Star, Independence) ply the inter-coastal waterways and rivers of the North American East Coast, and provide an up-close, intimate experience for passengers who don’t need luxury or much in the way of pampering but do like American history and culture, and service from an all-American college-age staff. The ‘D-class’ vessels are less than 2,500 gross tonnage, and are subject neither to bureaucratic regulations nor to union rules.
In 2011, the company also started operating paddlewheelers (replica steamboats) on the Mississippi River, as well as on the Columbia and Snake rivers in the US Pacific Northwest. Gratuities and port charges are extra. The company’s sister brand is Pearl Seas Cruises.
Aurora Expeditions takes passengers to Antarctica.
Mark Jones/Roving Tortoise Photography/Aurora Expeditions
Antarpply Expeditions
Based in Ushuaia, Argentina, this company specializes in (comparatively) inexpensive Antarctic expedition cruises including the Falkland Isles, Shetland Isles, and South Georgia, during the austral summer. It has one ‘soft’ expedition ship, Ushuaia, but the quality of its voyages and operation is not as high as that of the better-run, more experienced European companies. Gratuities are not included in the fare.
Aurora Expeditions
This Australian company was founded in 1993 by Australian Mount Everest veteran and geologist Greg Mortimer and adventure travel specialist Margaret Werner. The company, which specializes in small-group expeditions, uses the chartered expedition ship Polar Pioneer for its Antarctic expeditions. Other destinations include Papua New Guinea, Australia’s Kimberley region, and the Russian Far East, for which it now charters the Russian expedition vessel Akademik Shokalskiy. Gratuities are not included in the fare.
This company, based in Santiago, Chile, operates ships on ‘soft’ expedition cruises to the Chilean fjords, Patagonia, and Tierra del Fuego – some of the world’s most fascinating but hostile environments. It caters increasingly to an international clientele, with Spanish as the official onboard language (English is also spoken). Don’t expect high standards aboard its ships, but the service is very friendly, and the organization and operations are extremely good.
The company introduced a brand new ship in 2010, the 210-passenger Stella Australis. Its cruises are ‘all-inclusive,’ with an open bar for beverages, including wine and gratuities. In 2013 the company shortened its name, from Cruceros Australis to Australis.
Azamara Club Cruises
Founded in 2007 this company, formerly Azamara Cruises, is an offshoot of Celebrity Cruises..Having started with little direction, the company was revitalized in 2009–10 by new president Larry Pimentel. It operates two 700-passenger ships, taking people to smaller and less visited ports that the large resort ships can’t get into.
Azamara specializes in providing high-quality dining, and the ships offer a floating ‘country club’ experience. This line is in direct competition with the ships of Oceania Cruises – except that Oceania doesn’t charge extra to dine in its specialty restaurants. However, Azamara has longer port stays and more overnight port stays.
The onboard experience is similar to that aboard the ships of parent company Celebrity Cruises (including tacky art auctions), but modified to suit those wanting a more sophisticated cruise experience aboard smaller ships. Its strengths are the food and European-style service; each ship has two extra-charge restaurants in addition to the main dining venues. Included in the fare are gratuities to dining and housekeeping staff, wine with lunch and dinner, coffee and tea 24 hours a day, and shuttle buses in ports of call, where needed. Complimentary standard spirits, wines, and international beers during bar opening hours were introduced in March 2013. One area where Azamara Club Cruises tries to differentiate itself from its competitors is by providing long-stay port days – including several overnight stays – as well as ‘AzAmazing Evenings’ cultural excursions within its immersive destinations programs. Both the company’s ships underwent major refurbishment early in 2016, and now look refreshed, with brighter decor.
Blount Small Ship Adventures
This company was founded in 1966 by the late Luther H. Blount, an engineer and inventor of the American steam trawler, who built his cruise vessels in his own shipyard in Warren, Rhode Island. The firm was established as a family-run venture, and today, as the oldest US-flag cruise line still operating, it is run by Luther’s daughter, Nancy Blount.
Cruises are operated like private family outings, using two unpretentious ships that have been specially constructed to operate in close-in coastal areas and inland waterways of the eastern US seaboard, with forays to the Bahamas and Caribbean during the winter. The onboard experience is strictly no-frills cruising in really basic, down-to-earth surroundings that have a 1950s feel.
Its early-to-bed passengers – average age 72 years – are typical of those who don’t like glitz or all things trendy. Gratuities are not included in the cruise fare. Blount Small Ship Adventures introduced select beers and house wines with lunch and dinner on cruises in 2013.
Azamara Journey cruising the Norwegian fjords.
Azamara Club Cruises
Celestyal Cruises
Established in 2014, Celestyal Cruises is a sub-brand of Louis Cruises. It has three all-white ships: the 966-passenger Celestyal Crystal, the 800-passenger Celestyal Nefeli, and the 1,450-passenger Celestyal Olympia. All three ships are dedicated to cruising in the Greek isles, Croatia, and Turkey – destinations with which the company’s Cyprus-based parent company (Louis Cruises) has many years of experience, particularly with group travel.
Club Med Cruises
Club Med became renowned for providing hassle-free vacations for the whole family. The first Club Med village was started in 1950 on the Spanish island of Mallorca, but the concept became so popular that it grew to more than 100 vacation villages throughout the world.
Club Med Cruises, an offshoot of the French all-inclusive vacation clubs, introduced its first oceangoing cruise vessel in 1990, the computer-controlled sail-cruise ship Club Med II (extensively refurbished in 2008). Aboard the all-inclusive ship, the so-called gentils organisateurs serve as both super-cruise staff and ‘rah-rah’ cheerleaders, carrying out entertainment and activity programs, for the mainly French-speaking passengers. Club Med II has a sister ship, Windstar Cruises’ Wind Surf, which also provides a relaxed onboard experience. Gratuities are included in the fare.
Crystal Serenity docked in Malta.
Crystal Cruises
CMV (Cruise and Maritime Voyages)
This UK-based company (with 50 percent owned by Greece’s Maritime Group) existed for many years as a sales and marketing organization representing several small cruise lines. It now charters and operates three ships owned by other companies. The firm, some of whose owners originally worked for long-defunct CTC Cruises, specializes in adults-only (16 and over) cruises from regional UK ports, and provides traditional cruise features such as mid-morning bouillon, and captain’s welcome and farewell dinners. The onboard product, particularly the food, is at the lower end of the market. Magellan and Marco Polo are ships operated for ex-UK cruises. Gratuities are not included in the cruise fare.
Crystal Cruises
Crystal Cruises was founded in 1988 by Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK), the world’s largest cargo ship and transportation company, with a fleet of more than 700 ships. The American-managed company is based in Century City, Los Angeles. Crystal Harmony, the company’s first ship, was built in Japan, and debuted in New York in May 1990 to great acclaim. Meanwhile, Crystal Cruises introduced two new ships, Crystal Symphony in 1995, and Crystal Serenity in 2000, the first built in Finland, the second in France. In 2006 Crystal Harmony was transferred to parent company NYK as Asuka II for its Asuka Cruise division, for Japanese speakers.
The ships operate worldwide itineraries with flair. Both ships are superbly maintained, and passengers who seek fine food and excellent service in a sophisticated setting should be delighted with their choice of ship and company. There is even an excellent Nobu sushi/sashimi bar aboard Crystal Serenity.
Open-seating dining was introduced in January 2011 for the first time, but passengers can still opt for fixed-time dining. In spring 2012 Crystal Cruises adopted all-inclusive pricing, with drinks, wines, and gratuities included in the fare. In 2015 the company was acquired by Genting Hong Kong (owner of Genting Cruise Lines, the parent company of Dream Cruises and Star Cruises and a minor shareholder of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd). It introduced Crystal Yacht Cruises (rebranded in 2016 as Crystal Yacht Expedition Cruises) with the introduction of the refurbished Crystal Esprit. The company’s ambitious expansion plans have since been scaled back somewhat, but there are still three ‘Executive-class’ ships due for introduction in 2022.
Disney takes its brand to Alaska.
Disney Cruise Line
Cunard
Cunard was established in 1839, as the British and North American Royal Mail Steam Packet Company, to carry the Royal Mail and passengers from the Old World to the New. Its first ship, Britannia, sailed on its maiden voyage on American Independence Day in 1840. The author Charles Dickens crossed the Atlantic aboard the ship in 1842 together with 62 other passengers, 93 crew members, one cow, and, most important, Her Majesty’s mails and dispatches. Since 1840, Cunard has always had ships built to sail across the North Atlantic. From 1850 until the arrival of QE2 in 1969, all of the line’s ships and those of White Star Line (with which Cunard merged in 1934) had several classes. Your luggage label, therefore, declared not only your name but also what you could afford. Today, there’s no class distinction, other than by accommodation grade.
Cunard celebrated its 175th anniversary in 2015. One is still reminded of the company’s illustrious history. For example, Cunard was the first company to take passengers on regularly scheduled transatlantic crossings. It introduced the first passenger ship to be lit by electricity (Servia, 1881) and the first steam turbine engines in an ocean liner (Carmania, 1905. The line was the first to have an indoor swimming pool aboard a ship (Aquitania, 1914), and it pioneered the around-the-world cruise (Laconia, 1922). Cunard long held the record for the largest passenger ship ever built (Queen Elizabeth, between 1940 and 1996).
The ships incorporate a lot of maritime history and the grand traditions of ocean liners – as opposed to the other ships, with their tendency toward tacky high-street trappings. Cunard is also the only cruise line that lets you take your dog or cat with you (Queen Mary 2 transatlantic crossings only).
While Samuel Cunard was from Halifax, Nova Scotia, he established the company in Liverpool. Today, the company is owned by the American Carnival Corporation. The three Queens were built in France and Italy, registered in Hamilton, Bermuda, with a home port of Southampton, England. The onboard currency is the US dollar!
Cunard has four distinct accommodation grades, each linked to a specific restaurant: Queens Grill, Princess Grill, Britannia Club, and Britannia.
Cunard has one real ocean liner (Queen Mary 2). It provides a regular transatlantic crossing service from April to December, while the company’s two other two ships are more about regular cruising, albeit in ocean-liner style. All three are best suited to a wide range of seasoned and well-traveled couples and solo travelers who enjoy the cosmopolitan setting of an ocean liner. Dressing more formally for dinner is encouraged, although – with the exception of the grill rooms – the cuisine is largely of mass-market quality, with many traditional British and French dishes.
Disney Cruise Line
It was Lawrence (Larry) P. Murphy, executive vice-president of the Walt Disney Company, who was the guiding light in the early 1990s behind the expansion of the company into the cruise business. Previously, Disney had flirted with cruising by participating in a licensing agreement with a Florida-based cruise line, the now-defunct Premier Cruise Lines, with three vintage ships based in Port Canaveral. Murphy and other Disney executives explored the possibility of creating their own ships when the licensing agreement ran out. They concluded that pairing with an established cruise line wouldn’t work because of Disney’s policy of generous spending on the guest experience.
The solution: create a new cruise line, wholly owned and controlled by Disney, and to be known as Disney Cruise Line. The company committed an astonishing $1 billion to the project.
Its two mid-size ships, Disney Magic (1998) and Disney Wonder (1999), the first cruise ships since the 1950s to be built with two funnels, cater to loyal Disney followers, and everything aboard the ships is Disney – every song, every piece of artwork, every movie and production show – and Mickey’s ears adorn the ships’ funnels. There’s no casino and no library. However, its ‘rotation dining’ concept proved to be completely Disneylogical; you move, together with your waiter, to each of three identically sized restaurants – each with different decor – in turn.
One new, larger ship, Disney Dream, joined the fleet in 2011, and sister ship Disney Fantasy arrived in 2012.
Disney, of course, is all about families with children, and the ships cater to both. You can buy a package combining a short stay at a Disney resort and a cruise. Gratuities are not included in the cruise fare. Disney has its own cruise terminal at Port Canaveral, Florida, its design being an imaginative but close copy of the Ocean Terminal in Southampton, UK, frequented by yesteryear’s ocean liners but little used today. The terminal and pier were extended in 2010 and connected to a new parking garage. Two new (slightly larger) ships are on order.
Hapag-Lloyd’s Bremen in the Corinth Canal, Greece.
Hapag-Lloyd Cruises
Dream Cruises
Owned by Genting Cruise Lines, this brand is a sister company to Star Cruises. Dream Cruises has two ships. The stunning Genting Dream started sailing in November 2016, and she was joined by sister ship World Dream in 2017. The company is a much more upscale and advanced version of Star Cruises, and it is aimed specifically at the Asian (and especially, the Chinese) market, with an abundance of bright decor and upbeat, colorful razzle-dazzle shows.
For part of the year, Genting Dream offers embarkation in three different countries, including its home port of Hong Kong,
Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines
This Norwegian family-owned and family-run company was founded in Hvitsten, a town on Oslofjord, Norway, in 1848. Today, a fifth-generation Olsen, Anette, owns and runs the company from its headquarters in Suffolk, England. The group also has interests in hotels, aviation, shipbuilding, ferries, and offshore industries. The company specializes in cruises for adults, who are usually retired and of senior years – typically over 65.
Aboard the ships, interior design reflects traditional design features, and dressing for dinner is expected on four nights during a two-week cruise. Many theme cruises, such as gardening and horticulture, and Scottish country dancing, hosted by recognized television celebrities, are regular features. The company welcomes solo passengers as well as couples and delivers a quintessentially ‘British’ cruise experience, albeit by a mainly Filipino hotel service staff.
The first ship dedicated exclusively to cruising debuted in 1987, and now ships cruise year-round out of UK ports such as Dover, Southampton, Liverpool, Newcastle, Greenock, Leith, Belfast, and Dublin (ideal for anyone based in the UK to join one of the ships without having to fly), with some ships operating fly-cruises from Canary Island ports, or Caribbean ports such as Barbados in winter.
Coffee- and tea-making facilities are provided in each cabin. Smoking is allowed only on the open decks, and nowhere inside the ships. Gratuities are not included in the cruise fare, but are automatically charged to your onboard account. Drink prices are extremely reasonable aboard the ships, where the social scene is courteous, friendly, and warm, and gentlemen hosts are onboard each cruise for unaccompanied women who would like dancing partners.
The National Express bus operator works in conjunction with Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines to provide a Cruiselink service via London’s Victoria Coach Station to the UK departure ports of Dover or Southampton.
FTI Cruises
This company, part of the Munich-based FTI Touristik (founded in 1983), bought its only ship from Saga Cruises in 2011 and started its cruise operations in May 2012 for the German-speaking market. The ship, Berlin, is known in Germany for low-cost, good-value, well-organized cruising for passengers not expecting luxury.
G Adventures
This Canadian company, based in Toronto, was founded in 1990 as GAP Adventures by Bruce Poon Tip, using funds from his own personal credit cards only. The company has a grassroots approach to travel and operates its own ship – the 140-passenger MS Expedition – on polar expedition cruises.
Grand Circle Cruise Line
Ethel Andrus, a retired teacher, wanted to share her vision of helping Americans lead more vital, challenging, and politically active lives. She founded the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) in 1958. The company has exclusive charters for its small group travel (the company’s foundation has donated more than $91 million to cultural, educational, and humanitarian organizations since 1992). For many years, this Boston-based travel company (its brands are Grand Circle Travel, Overseas Adventure Travel, and Grand Circle Cruise Line) has chartered riverships and small ocean-going vessels. The firm has three custom-designed sea-going ships (Arethusa, Artemis, and Athena) for coastal cruise tours for 50 passengers each, and in May 2016 acquired Tere Moana from Paul Gauguin Cruises. However, general cruise/travel agents cannot easily book into the company’s cruise programs.
Aboard Hebridean Princess, cruising around Scotland and its islands.
All Leisure Holidays
Hapag-Lloyd Cruises
Germany’s two most famous ocean-liner companies, the Bremen-based Norddeutscher Lloyd (founded in 1847) and the Hamburg-based Hamburg America Line (founded in the same year), merged in 1970 to become Hapag-Lloyd. The company no longer operates regularly scheduled transatlantic crossings, but promotes instead four ships in three different market segments.
Two small ships are in the specialized expedition cruise market: Bremen and Hanseatic (operated by Hapag-Lloyd Expedition Cruises, see below); and two (the more formal 400-passenger Europa and the more informal 516-passenger Europa 2 – for international travellers and families with children) are in the luxury market. All provide destination-intensive cruises aimed at the German-speaking market, with an increasing number of dual-language cruises for English-speakers.
The staff on board makes all its own breads, soups, pâtés, jams, and preserves from scratch.
Hapag-Lloyd Cruises hosts the annual Stella Maris International Vocal Competition, which attracts top-notch up-and-coming operatic singers from around the world. A top prize of €15,000 is offered, as well as a Deutsche Grammophon recording contract. The company also sponsors an annual Ocean Sun Festival – for classical/chamber music devotees (concerts are often held ashore as part of the program).
Hapag-Lloyd Expedition Cruises
The company operates two specialist expedition cruise ships, the 164-passenger Bremen and the 184-passenger Hanseatic. There are occasional dual-language cruises for the English-speaking market, but all the crew members speak English.
Both ships carry a fleet of Zodiac inflatable rubber craft (with environmentally friendly electric motors) for shore landings in the polar region and other destinations with no pier facilities. They have excellent cuisine, proper boot-washing and storage stations, lecture rooms, extensive libraries, and other expedition facilities to suit adventurous itineraries, plus some of the world’s best expedition leaders.
Hapag-Lloyd Expedition Cruises is a member of IAATO (International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators), a body committed to the highest standards of responsible tourism to Antarctica and to operating its ships in the most environmentally friendly manner, accompanied by the very best expedition leaders in the business.
Hapag-Lloyd publishes its own excellent handbooks (in both English and German) on expedition regions such as the Arctic, Antarctica, Amazonia, and the South Sea Islands, as well as exclusive maps. Gratuities are not included in the fare.
Two new expedition cruise ships are on order, for delivery in 2019.
Hebridean Island Cruises
The company (formerly Hebridean International Cruises) was set up in 1989 under the Thatcher government’s British Enterprise Scheme, and has its headquarters in Skipton, Yorkshire. It is independently owned and operates one all-inclusive boutique ship, Hebridean Princess, which conveys the atmosphere of English country-house life – and specializes in cruises for mature adults. Gratuities and all port taxes are included, as are most excursions. The ship offers cruises around the Scottish islands, with occasional sailings to English ports, the Channel Islands, and Norway. Each cabin has coffee- and tea-making facilities. Gratuities are included in the fare. The Queen granted Hebridean Island Cruises a royal warrant in her jubilee year.
Heritage Expeditions
This youth-minded adventure travel company, based in Christchurch, New Zealand, focuses on expedition-style cruising for small groups, specifically to Antarctica, the Sub-Antarctic and Russian Far East. The company was founded in 1985 by biologist Rodney Russ who worked for the New Zealand Wildlife Service for many years. The company’s single ship, Spirit of Enderby was formerly Professor Khromov, a small Russian oceanographic research vessel.
Hurtigruten
The company is an amalgamation of two shipping companies (OVDS and TVDS) and provides year-round service along the Norwegian coast, calling at 34 ports in 11 days. Hurtigruten, formerly known as the Norwegian Coastal Voyage, has also recently developed expedition-style cruises, albeit aboard ships that have been converted for the purpose, rather than specifically built for expedition cruises. So, as long as you think utilitarian and modest decor, you’ll get the idea of life aboard one of the Hurtigruten ships, which are practical rather than beautiful. Even aboard the newest ships, the food and service are fairly basic – there’s a lack of green vegetables, for example – but the ships provide a great way to see many, many ports along the coast of Norway in a comfortable manner.
Norway’s Crown Princess Mette-Marit was the godmother of the newest ship, Fram, a 318-berth expedition-style vessel built for polar and Greenland cruising. The next generation of dual coastal and expedition-style ships (Roald Amundsen and Fridtjof Nansen) will be delivered in 2018 and 2019, respectively.
Lindblad Expeditions
Lars-Eric Lindblad started the whole concept of expedition cruising with a single ship, Lindblad Explorer, in 1969, taking adventurous travelers to remote regions of the world. Today, his son, Sven-Olof Lindblad, runs the company, but with an array of small ships. It’s all about nature, wilderness, wildlife, off-the-beaten-path adventures, and learning. Zodiac inflatable craft are used to ferry participants ashore in remote Arctic and Antarctic polar regions.
The ships carry excellent lecturers, who are more academic than entertaining. In partnership with the National Geographic Society, the company operates the wholly owned National Geographic Endeavour and National Geographic Explorer (both with ice-strengthened hulls), together with two small ships (National Geographic Sea Bird and National Geographic Sea Lion) for coastal or ‘soft’ expedition-style cruising in, for example, Alaska. National Geographic photographers take part in all cruises. Zodiac inflatable craft are often used for shore landings, and the ships have extensive libraries. Gratuities are not included in the fare.
The National Geographic Society celebrated its 125th anniversary in 2013, when the company purchased Orion Expedition Cruises, based in Sydney, Australia. Orion Expedition’s ship, also called Orion, was renamed National Geographic Orion, when the ship was transferred from Orion Expeditions to the Lindblad fleet in March 2014. Built in Germany, this ship is a little gem, with handcrafted cabinetry in every cabin, together with marble bathrooms and a health spa and gymnasium. New ships were ordered for delivery in 2017 and 2018.
Louis Aura in the Mediterranean.
Louis Cruises
Louis Cruises
In the 1930s and 1940s, Louis Loizou became the undisputed father of tourism in Cyprus. His venture into sea tourism started with the charter of ships transferring immigrants from Cyprus to other continents. His son, Costakis Loizou, who took over the running of the company after Louis’s death in 1971, started organizing short cruises from Cyprus. In 1986 Louis Cruises was officially founded with the acquisition of the company’s first fully owned ship, Princesa Marissa.
Today, Louis Group owns almost two dozen hotels in the Greek islands and Cyprus, together with a multi-ship fleet of mainly older, small and mid-size ships, which operate principally from Greece and ports in the Mediterranean. Louis has over the years chartered some of its ships to many major UK and European tour operators. A sub-brand, created in 2014, is Celestyal Cruises.
MOPAS
Osaka Shosen Kaisha was founded in 1884 in Osaka, Japan. In 1964 it merged with Mitsui Steamship, to become Mitsui OSK Passenger Line (MOPAS). It is now one of the oldest and largest shipping companies in the world.
It entered cruise shipping in 1989 with Fuji Maru, the first cruise ship in the Japanese-speaking domestic market (now no longer in service). The company specialized in incentive meetings and groups at sea rather than cruising for individuals, but this steadily changed into more cruises for individuals. The firm operates a single ship, the very comfortable Nippon Maru (extensively refurbished in 2010), based in Japan for Japanese-speaking passengers. Gratuities are included in the cruise fare.
Noble Caledonia
London-based Noble Caledonia, established in 1991, operates three boutique-size sister ships, Caledonian Sky, Hebridean Sky, and Island Sky, each carrying around 100 passengers. It also sells cruises aboard a wide range of small-ship and expedition cruise companies as well as river cruises. It markets to British passengers of mature years, and operates cruises, generally in sheltered water areas, with cultural-interest themes, and so is not recommended for children.
The company, whose financial partners include Sweden’s Salen family, who had been very involved with expedition cruising in the past, has an excellent reputation for well-organized cruises and tours, accompanied by good lecturers. It specializes in itineraries that would be impossible to operate aboard larger ships. A Commodore Club gives repeat passengers advance information about new voyages and special offers. Gratuities are not generally included in the fare, unless otherwise stated in the brochures.
NYK Cruises
Nippon Yusen Kaisha, the world’s largest shipping company, owned the well-known, US-based upscale brand Crystal Cruises. It created its own NYK Cruise division – today branded as Asuka Cruise – in 1989 with one Mitsubishi-built ship, Asuka, for Japanese-speaking passengers. In 2006, the company sold the original Asuka to Germany’s Phoenix Reisen, and the former Crystal Harmony was transferred from Crystal Cruises to become Asuka II. The ship, known for its excellent Japanese and western food, operates an annual around-the-world cruise, plus a wide array of both short and long cruises in the Asia-Pacific region. Coffee- and tea-making facilities are provided in each cabin, as is a large selection of personal toiletries. Gratuities are included in the cruise fare.
The horseshoe staircase aboard Oceania’s Marina.
Douglas Ward
Oceania Cruises
The company’s ships provide faux English charm in a country-club atmosphere ideal for middle-aged and older couples seeking relaxation. Cruises are usually 10–14 days. Its trademarks are comfortable cabins, warm and attentive service, and fine dining combining French culinary expertise and top-quality ingredients. Breads and other baked goods, such as Poilâne-quality croissants, are excellent.
In 2006, Oceania Cruises was bought by Apollo Management, a private equity company that owns Regent Seven Seas Cruises and 50 percent of Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL). The brand was placed under the umbrella of Apollo’s cruise brand, Prestige Cruise Holdings, and now has six ships – Insignia, Marina, Nautica, Regatta, Riviera, and Sirena – catering to between 684 and 1,250 passengers.
With multiple-choice dining at no extra cost, these ships suit anyone who prefers small and mid-size ships to large resort vessels. Bottled mineral water, soft drinks, and beer are included in the price. Gratuities are added at $10.50 per person, per day, and butler-service suites have an additional charge of $3 per person. Bar drinks and spa treatments have 15–18 percent added.
Oceanwide Expeditions
Founded in 1961 as the Dutch ‘Plancius Foundation’ to operate cruises around Spitzbergen (Norway), the company changed its name in 1996 to Oceanwide Expeditions in order to offer adventures farther afield. It specializes in small group polar-expedition voyages and active shore visits rather than employing experienced lecturers. It operates two expedition ships, Ortelius and Plancius, and charters others as needed.
OneOcean Expeditions
Based in Toronto, Canada, this small company was founded by Andrew Prossin. It doesn’t own any expedition ships itself, but charters them from the Russian pool of specialist vessels. Environmental responsibility is a key ingredient for its staff, who are all personable and very customer-oriented. The company charters and operates two small sister specialist polar-expedition ships, Akademik Ioffe and Akademik Sergey Vavilov, on Arctic and Antarctic programs.
Paul Gauguin was built specifically to operate in French Polynesia.
Paul Gauguin Cruises
P&O Cruises
P&O’s full name is the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company, though none of its ships is powered by steam turbines. Based in Southampton, England, it was founded in 1837, just before Samuel Cunard established his company, and was awarded a UK government contract in 1840 to carry the mail from Gibraltar to Alexandria.
P&O Cruises acquired Princess Cruises in 1974, Swan Hellenic in 1982, and Sitmar Cruises in 1988. In 2000 it demerged from its parent to establish itself as P&O Princess plc. It was bought by the Carnival Corporation in 2003, and celebrated its 175th anniversary on July 3, 2012, when all seven ships assembled in Southampton.
P&O Cruises has always been a traditional British cruise company, never quite matching the quality aboard the Cunard ships, which have more international passengers. With P&O having mainly British captains and navigation officers and Indian/Goanese service staff, the British traditions of unobtrusive service are preserved and well presented. British food favorites provide the real comfort factor in a single-language setting that provides a home from home on ships for families with children, or on adults-only ships.
The company targets British passengers who want to sail from a UK port – except for winter Caribbean cruises from Barbados. But it’s also known for having adults-only ships, and so the two products differ widely in their communal spaces. It also makes an effort to provide theme cruises – on antiques, art appreciation, classical music, comedy, cricket, gardening and horticulture, jazz, Scottish dancing, etc. The ships usually carry ballroom-dance instructors. Bed linen is changed twice a week – not as often as on some lines, such as MSC Cruises, where it is changed every two days. The decor is a mix of British traditional (think comfy, somewhat dated, non-glitzy armchairs, and wood paneling). British artists are featured aboard all ships – Ventura, for example, displays works by more than 40 of them.
P&O Cruises (Australia)
Founded in 1932, the Australian division of P&O Cruises provides fun entertainment for the beer-and-bikini brigade and their families, and specializes in cruises in the Pacific and to New Zealand. The line is maturing, though, becoming more of a mainstream operator – particularly so with its latest ships, which are larger, more contemporary hand-me-down vessels (Pacific Dawn, Pacific Jewel, Pacific Pearl from P&O Cruises and Princess Cruises; and Pacific Aria and Pacific Eden from Holland America Line), from companies that are part of the Carnival Corporation. The ships have open-seating dining and specialty restaurants such as Australian celebrity chef Luke Mangan’s ‘Salt Grill.’ Gratuities are not included in the fare. The company has a new ship on order, due for delivery in 2019.
Paradise Cruise Line
This one-ship company is owned by Celebration Cruise Holdings, which also owned the now-defunct Imperial Majesty Cruise Line, whose reputation suffered from high-pressure telemarketing campaigns. Its Grand Celebration (originally built for Carnival Cruise Line in 1987) operates two-night cruises from the Port of Palm Beach, in Florida, to the Bahamas.
Despite the company’s claims to ‘international gourmet dining,’ the ship provides a highly programmed but absolutely basic party getaway cruise with very standard food, and much pressure for revenue from its dining, casino, and shore-excursion operations.
Pacific Pearl, of P&O (Australia), entering Hobart, Tasmania.
Douglas Ward
Paul Gauguin Cruises
Created by the Boston-based tour operator Grand Circle Travel, Paul Gauguin Cruises took over the marketing and operation of Paul Gauguin in 2009 from Regent Seven Seas Cruises, which had operated the ship since its inception. Also in 2009, the ship was bought by the Tahiti-based investor Richard Bailey and his company Pacific Beachcomber, which owns Polynesian resort hotels (including four InterContinental Hotels). Gratuities are not included in the cruise fare.
Pearl Seas Cruises
Founded in 2007 by Charles Robertson, Pearl Seas Cruises is now a sister company to American Cruise Lines. It has a single ship (a second ship order was canceled), Pearl Mist, which was the subject of poor shipbuilding and contract arguments in its early days. Pearl Mist was rejected as not fit for purpose by the owner, but she was finally completed and debuted in 2014. The ship’s loyalty club is called the Oyster Society.
Phoenix Reisen
Based in Bonn, Germany, the company for many years operated low-budget, tour-operator-style destination-intensive cruises for German speakers. It now has a loyal, widespread audience and more contemporary ships, with better food and service, particularly aboard Amadea and Artania.
To keep costs down, Phoenix charters its ships for long periods. It is consistently praised for its extremely good itineraries, particularly on world cruises, its pre- and post-cruise programs, and its excellent value for money. The wonderfully comprehensive Phoenix brochure provides photographs of its captains and cruise director, as well as bar lists and drink prices – a refreshing change from the brochures provided by most cruise companies. Single-seating dining is standard, as are low drink prices, and there is no constant pushing for onboard revenue – again different from most rivals.
Phoenix acquired Artania (formerly P&O Cruises’ Artemis and originally Royal Princess, named by Princess Diana) in 2011, and also operates the lower-priced Albatross (originally Royal Viking Sea). Gratuities are included in the fare.
Plantours Cruises
This company, based in Bremen, Germany, provides low-budget cruises for German speakers aboard its single small, chartered cruise ship, Hamburg, which was formerly Hapag-Lloyd Cruises’ original Columbus. The company also sells cruises on the rivers of Europe and Russia. Gratuities are not included in the cruise fare.
Ponant
The company was founded in 1988 by Philippe Videau and Jean-Emmanuel Sauvé. It started life as La Compagnie des Iles du Ponant, and was a subsidiary of the state-owned CMA CGM (Compagnie Maritime d’Affrètement/Compagnie Générale Maritime), until its acquisition by Bridgepoint Capital, a private equity company, in 2012. In 2015, Ponant was acquired by Artemis, the holding company of French billionaire François Pinault and his family.
The cruise company, whose head office is in Marseille, France, operates one boutique-size, high-tech sail-cruise ship, Le Ponant. In 2004, the company purchased the Paris-based tour operator Tapis Rouge International, which specializes in upscale travel. Three small ships – Le Boréal, introduced in 2010, L’Austral, introduced in 2011, and Le Soléal, introduced in 2013 – provide more space and more options for passengers, with a fourth (Le Lyrial), introduced in 2015. Four more ships have been ordered, for delivery in 2018 and 2019. Ponant teams with French partners such as Veuve Clicquot, Ladurée, and Alain Ducasse, one of the world’s most highly decorated chefs.
Ponant increasingly markets cruises in both English and French to international passengers and onboard announcements are made in both languages. Gratuities are not included.
The softly lit Horizon Lounge Deck aboard Seven Seas Voyager.
Regent Seven Seas Cruises
Poseidon Expeditions
Poseidon Expeditions, the Arctic expedition cruise specialist (founded and owned by Nikolay Saveliev in 2003), the company operates under the strict guidelines of the Association of Arctic Expedition Cruise Operators (AECO), the body committed to minimizing the impact of visits to the Far North. Expeditions to the North Pole (90 degrees North) are operated only at the height of the Arctic summer, in June and July, aboard the world’s most powerful icebreaker – the Russian nuclear-powered 50 Years of Victory (it can crush ice up to 10ft/3m thick.
This really is a once-in-a-lifetime adventure. Only 10,741 people had visited the North Pole when I went in July 2016.
The company also operates the smaller Sea Spirit – the only non-Russian foreign-flag ship permitted to operate into the territorial waters of Franz Joseph Land in the Arctic Circle from Svalbard without first calling at a mainland Russian port. In 2004 the company achieved the inaugural Northeast Passage via the North Pole. Gratuities are not included in the cruise fare.
Pullmantur Cruises
The cruise division was set up as part of Pullmantur, the Spain-based holiday tour operator founded in 1971. Its cruising division was established in 2000 when it bought Oceanic (then known as the Big Red Boat) from the defunct Florida operator Premier Cruise Lines. In 2006, Pullmantur Cruises was bought by Royal Caribbean Cruises; in 2015 it was sold to private equity company Springwater Capital. The company mainly serves the Spanish-speaking market, operating all-inclusive cruises for families with children to the Caribbean and Europe. Gratuities are included in the cruise fare. Pullmantur Cruises has a fleet of four ships (Horizon, Monarch, Sovereign, and Zenith).
Quark Expeditions
The company was founded in 1991 by Lars Wikander, Mike McDowell, and silent partners the Salen family (formerly of Salen-Lindblad Cruises). Based in Seattle, Washington, Quark specializes in providing up-close-and-personal Arctic and Antarctic expedition cruises.
In 2007, it was sold to the UK’s First Choice Holidays (founded in 1973), it merged with Peregrine Shipping, and was then bought, along with First Choice, by German travel company TUI.
Cruising with Quark Expeditions is all about being close to nature, wilderness, wildlife, off-the-beaten-path adventures, and learning, albeit in fairly rustic surroundings and comfort. The company, an associate member of IAATO (International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators), specializes in chartered Russian icebreakers, the most powerful in the world, to provide participants with truly memorable expedition experiences. This is adventure cruising for toughies. Gratuities are not included in the cruise fare.
Relaxed lifestyle aboard SeaDream I.
Douglas Ward
Regent Seven Seas Cruises
This company has a complicated history. It was born out of Seven Seas Cruises, which was originally based in San Francisco to market the cruise ship Song of Flower (belonging to ‘K’-Line, a cargo operator based in New Jersey), as well as expedition cruises aboard the chartered Hanseatic (then belonging to Hanseatic Tours). The lyre, logo of that ship, became RSSC’s logo.
For many years, the company was part of the Carlson group, and operated as Radisson Seven Seas Cruises. Carlson Hospitality Worldwide ventured into cruising via its Radisson Hotels International division – hence, Radisson Diamond Cruises (when Radisson Diamond joined in 1992). In 1994 Radisson Diamond Cruises and Seven Seas Cruise Line merged to become Radisson Seven Seas Cruises, and in 2007 it became Regent Seven Seas Cruises.
In 2007 the company was bought by US-based investment group Apollo Management, and, together with Oceania Cruises, was placed under the umbrella of its Prestige Cruise Holdings. The company spent $40 million to refurbish its then fleet of three ships in 2009–10.
It operates worldwide itineraries and strives to pay close attention to detail and provide high-quality service aboard its small cruise ships, of which there are now four: Seven Seas Explorer (debuted in 2016), Seven Seas Mariner, Seven Seas Navigator, and Seven Seas Voyager.
It provides drinks-inclusive cruising, which means that beverages and gratuities are included in the fare, as are shore excursions – even delicious illy coffees are included. Passengers pay extra only for laundry services, beauty services, casino, and other personal items.
Saga Cruises
Saga, based in Folkestone, England, was created by Sidney De Haan as a company offering financial services and holidays to an over-60s clientele. As the company’s success grew, it reduced this limitation in 1995 to the over-50s and allowed companions older than 40. Its popular travel flourished because it was good at providing personal attention and had competent staff. Instead of sending passengers to ships operated by other companies, it decided to buy its own ships and market its own product under the Saga Holidays brand.
Saga Shipping (Saga Cruises), the cruising division of Saga Holidays, was set up in 1997 when it purchased Saga Rose (formerly Sagafjord), followed soon after by Saga Ruby (formerly Vistafjord), and, in 2010, Saga Pearl II (formerly Astoria). Saga Sapphire (ex-Europa) arrived in 2012.
Another brand, Spirit of Adventure, was added in 2006, and in 2007 Saga merged with Britain’s Automobile Association. The ‘Adventure’ cruise brand ended in November 2013, when Quest for Adventure became Saga Pearl II again.
The cruise company emphasizes British seamanship and training, and its fleet manages to retain the feel of traditional, elegant, adults-only cruising aboard Saga Pearl II and Saga Sapphire. Saga Cruises offers open-seating dining, as well as friendly, attentive service from a mainly Filipino hotel service crew, and its ships have many single-occupancy cabins. It takes care of some of the little details that other lines have long forgotten.
All gratuities are included in the fare. Coffee- and tea-making facilities are provided in each cabin aboard Saga Pearl II. The company has two new ships on order, for delivery in 2019 and 2021.
Scenic
The company was founded in Newcastle, Australia, in 1986 by Glen Moroney, as Scenic Tours. The company began by operating coach tours throughout Australia. In 2008, it began river cruise operations in Europe (mainly for Australasian passengers). It now owns and operates several riverships in Europe, under two brands: Scenic, and Emerald Waterways, The company, which is still Australian owned, changed its name to Scenic in 2015.
The company will branch out into expedition/discovery cruising with its own, custom-designed ship (complete with helicopter), due for delivery in 2018. Expedition cruises are fully inclusive of gratuities and all onboard drinks (a few select premium brands cost extra).
Sea Cloud Cruises
This company was founded in 1979 by a consortium of ship-owners and investors known as the Hansa Treuhand (active in commercial vessel management, engineering, and construction), with headquarters in Hamburg, Germany. It owns and operates two genuine tall ships (cruise-sail vessels), the legendary Sea Cloud (built in 1931 for the cereal heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post), and the 1990-built Sea Cloud II.
The company has many corporate clients who charter the two sail-cruise ships, while a number of luxury cruise and travel specialist companies sell cruises to individuals. The onboard style and product delivery are something special, with elegant retro decor and fine food and service. Gratuities are not included in the cruise fare.
Seabourn
Originally founded in 1986 as Signet Cruise Line, the company, then owned by Norwegian industrialist Atle Brynestad, had to change its name in 1988 as a result of a lawsuit brought by a Texas ferry company that had already registered the name Signet Cruise Lines (no ships were ever built for cruising, however).
In 1998, a consortium, which included the Carnival Corporation and Norwegian investors, bought Seabourn Cruise Line and merged its operations into Cunard, which was acquired from Kvaerner. The fleet then included three ships plus Seabourn Goddess I and Seabourn Goddess II (bought by SeaDream Yacht Cruises in 2002 and named SeaDream I and SeaDream II) and Seabourn Sun (now Holland America Line’s Prinsendam). The Carnival Corporation acquired 100 percent of Seabourn Cruise Line in 1999.
Three new, larger ships joined the company between 2009 and 2011. All three have an aft water-sports platform, as well as a wider number of dining and spa options, and a greater amount of space, for more passengers. Seabourn Cruise Line was briefly rebranded as The Yachts of Seabourn in 2009–10, but then became simply Seabourn. The company is managed from within the headquarters of Holland America Line (also owned by Carnival) in Seattle, US. Gratuities are included in the fare.
In February 2013, the three smaller ships were sold to Xanterra Parks & Resorts, parent company of Windstar Cruises. Seabourn Pride was delivered in mid-2014; Seabourn Legend and Seabourn Spirit were delivered in 2015. Seabourn Encore was delivered in 2016, and Seabourn Ovation is scheduled for 2018.
Note that quality has been reduced substantially since the management has been taken over by Holland America Line, with various cutbacks reflecting the downgrade – Prosecco is served rather than Champagne, for example, poor canapés and disappointing cheese and meat selections are provided in place of the superior offerings of yesteryear, and reduced dining hours and fixed disembarkation by 8am are now standard. All in all it’s a much less upmarket product than previously.
Seabourn Odyssey’s water-sports platform.
Seabourn
SeaDream Yacht Club
Larry Pimentel, an American, and his Norwegian business partner Atle Brynestad, founder of Seabourn Cruise Line (now called, simply, Seabourn), jointly created the company by buying the former Sea Goddess Cruises’ ships. They introduced them in 2002 to an audience anxious for exclusivity, personal pampering, and cuisine prepared to order.
The two ships, SeaDream I and SeaDream II, have been refreshed several times – although SeaDream I is in a better shape than SeaDream II – and are often chartered by companies or private individuals who appreciate the refined, elegant, but casual atmosphere on board. The 100-passenger ships operate year-round in the Caribbean and Mediterranean, and provide all-inclusive beverages and open-seating dining at all times, and a high degree of personalized service, all in a cozy, club-like atmosphere, with great attention to detail and personal idiosyncrasies. Brynestad is now the company’s chairman and sole owner (Larry Pimentel moved to Azamara Club Cruises). Gratuities are included in the fare.
Serenissima Cruises
Vladimir Esakov, the Russian owner/operator of the rivership Volga Dream, purchased the former MS Andrea (a Hurtigruten vessel) in 2012, renamed it Serenissima and formed Serenissima Cruises to market the ship. The company has a long-standing association with the UK’s Noble Caledonia.
Silversea Cruises
Silversea Cruises is a mostly privately owned cruise line. It was founded in 1992 by the Lefebvre d’Ovidio family from Rome (previously co-owners of Sitmar Cruises; 90 percent partners are the Lefebvre d’Ovidios, 10 percent by V-Ships) and is based in Monaco.
Antonio Lefebvre d’Ovidio was a maritime lawyer and professor of maritime law before acquiring and operating cargo ships and ferries in the Adriatic. He took his family into partnership with Boris Vlasov’s Vlasov Group (V-Ships) to co-own Sitmar Cruises, until that company merged with Princess Cruises in 1988.
Silversea Cruises has generated tremendous loyalty from its frequent passengers, who view the ships as their own. All Silversea ships have teak verandas and all-inclusive beverages. Open-seating dining prevails at all times, and the company is known for its partnership with the hospitality organization Relais & Châteaux. A new, larger, 540-passenger all-suite luxury ship, Silver Spirit, debuted at the end of 2009, while Silver Whisper and Silver Shadow were refurbished in 2010 and 2011. Silver Muse debuted in 2017, with more than a design nod to Hapag-Lloyd’s Europa 2, but the ship still has the look and feel of a Silversea Cruises product.
Silversea Cruises also has three specialist ships for expedition cruising (Silver Explorer, Silver Galapagos, and Silver Discoverer, added in 2008, 2013, and 2014, respectively).
Gratuities are included for all ships as part of the company’s ‘all-inclusive’ culture.
The main pool on Viking Star when the roof is closed.
Viking Cruises
SkySea Cruises
This company in the China domestic cruise market is owned by partners Ctrip (which has the world’s largest reservations and booking platform in the Chinese language), and Royal Caribbean Cruises, each of which has a 35 percent holding, as well as China’s Stone Capital, which holds 30 percent. The ship is the ex-Celebrity Century, which debuted in May 2015 as SkySea Golden Era, with direct digital (internet) bookings only.
Star Clippers
Swedish-born yachtsman Mikael Krafft founded Star Clippers in 1991 with Star Flyer and then Star Clipper, both true tall ships. The company went on to build the largest tall ship presently sailing, the five-mast Royal Clipper, a truly stunning ship under sail. Friendly service in an extremely laid-back setting, under the romance of sail (when there is enough wind) is what Star Clippers is all about, and the food variety, creativity, and quality are all extremely good. The company’s new five-mast ship (Flying Clipper) will be added in 2018.
These real tall (sail-cruise) ships sail in the Caribbean, Baltic, and Mediterranean. Gratuities are not included in the fare.
Star Cruises
The company was incorporated in 1993 as a subsidiary of Malaysia’s Genting Berhad, set up in 1965 by the late Tan Sri (Dr) Lim Goh Tong as an Asian multinational corporation. Today, Star Cruises comes under the umbrella of Genting Cruise Lines. The group’s various businesses include palm oil production, power generation, property development, biotechnology, and oil and gas production, plus leisure activities including resort hotels and casino/entertainment complexes in Malaysia, Manila, and Singapore, and cruise ships. Almost single-handedly, Star Cruises opened up the Asia-Pacific cruise region (except for Japan).
Genting Hong Kong operates ships dedicated to specific markets. Its brands include Crystal Cruises, Dream Cruises (which started operations in 2016), and Star Cruises.
Gratuities are included in all fares.
Sea lion with Silver Galapagos in the distance.
Silversea Cruises
Thomson Cruises
Thomson Cruises’ first foray into cruising was in 1973 when it chartered two ships, Calypso and Ithaca, from the Greek-owned Ulysses Line. It was a disaster, and the company withdrew from cruising two years later (Ulysses Line became known as Useless Line).
The company started again in 2002 after seeing rival tour operator Airtours run ships successfully. Thomson Cruises charters its ships, preferring instead to leave ship operations, management, and catering to specialist maritime companies. The company features cruises for the whole family aboard Thomson Dream, TUI Discovery, and TUI Discovery 2 – catering principally to the British market. In 2018 the company is scheduled to add ships from the TUI Cruises fleet. Basic gratuities are included in the price
TUI Cruises
The German-owned TUI Group has several divisions, but started its own cruise line in 2009 with Mein Schiff 1, a mid-size ship (formerly Celebrity Galaxy) that underwent a huge reconstruction program. Mein Schiff 2 (formerly Celebrity Mercury) was added in 2011. Further new ships followed: Mein Schiff 3 debuted in 2014, Mein Schiff 4 in 2015, Mein Schiff 5 in 2016, and Mein Schiff 6 in 2017. Two more ships are under construction, to debut in 2018 and 2019 as the new Mein Schiff 1 and Mein Schiff 2, respectively – they will not be called Mein Schiff 7 and 8, as everyone in the industry expected. The original 1 and 2 will transfer out of the fleet as the new models are brought in.
Aboard all TUI Cruises ships, all cabins have an espresso machine, and there is a wide choice of dining venues and food styles, with an emphasis on healthy eating and high-quality ingredients. Much attention is placed on the extensive wellness facilities aboard the ships, which are all geared extensively to family cruising. Gratuities are included in the ‘all-inclusive’ fare, and the company provides many things that other cruise lines don’t, making this an outstanding value-for-money, high-quality cruise line. In other words, TUI Cruises has got it absolutely right.
UnCruise Adventures
This micro-cruise line was founded in 1997 as American Safari Cruises. It was bought in 2008 by InnerSea Discoveries, owned by the former chief executive officer of American Safari Cruises, Dan Blanchard. It bought the website and database files of now-defunct Cruise West in order to expand its reach to small-ship enthusiasts, and has a fleet of very small motor yacht-type vessels for six to 86 passengers for expensive cruises in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest. While the vessels are decent, the onboard facilities are few, and the one-seat dining experience is quite casual. However, all beds onboard have Tempur-Pedic mattresses. The advantage of these intimate vessels is that they can take you up close to fascinating parts of Alaska that larger ships can’t reach. InnerSea Discoveries changed its name to UnCruise Adventures in 2013. Gratuities are not included.
Venus Cruise
Founded in 1988, Venus Cruise, which was first known as Japan Cruise Line, is owned by four ferry companies: Shin Nihonkai Ferry, Kyowa Shoji, Hankyu Ferry, and Kanko Kisen. Its headquarters are in Osaka, Japan. As Japan Cruise Line, the company at first operated company and incentive charter cruises before branching out into cruises for individuals. The company caters exclusively to Japanese speakers and has a single ship, Pacific Venus, which offers cruises in the Asia-Pacific region as well domestic cruises in Japan. Gratuities are included in the cruise fare.
Viking Ocean Cruises
A sister to the long-established Viking River Cruises, this company aims to provide both ocean-going and river cruises to the same passengers and market segment – a unique approach in the cruise industry. The onboard product is aimed squarely at adults who want comfort and some elements of luxe, but no glitz, and at a price that includes many items other cruise lines charge extra for (such as shipwide Wi-Fi). This has proved to be a great success. Its chairman is Torstein Hagen, originally a major shareholder owner of the long-defunct but much-respected Royal Viking Line.
Staying away from large resort ships, the company ordered mid-size ships for 930 passengers. For the ships’ size, they offer an impressive array of public rooms and dining options, and modern, uncluttered Scandinavian design. Itineraries are designed so that they stay longer in ports and include overnight stays at some ports, so that passengers can take in the nightlife and cultural attractions of some destinations. The first ship, Viking Star, debuted in spring 2015, Viking Sea in 2016, and Viking Sky in 2017; Viking Sun is scheduled for 2018, and Viking Spirit for 2020. The company has established a fine onboard product that seems well placed to grow further in the coming years.
Voyages to Antiquity
Founded in 2007 by Gerry Herrod, who formerly created the now-defunct Ocean Cruise Lines, the company has just one ship, Aegean Odyssey, painstakingly converted into a comfortable cruise ship with a fairly handsome profile. The cruises are aimed at British and American passengers who seek educational experiences. Gratuities to dining and housekeeping staff are included, as are most shore excursions and wines with lunch and dinner.
Windstar Cruises
Founded by New York-based Karl Andren in 1984 as Windstar Sail Cruises, the company built high-class sail-cruise ships with computer-controlled sails, outfitting them in a contemporary decor designed by Marc Held. The first ship, Wind Star, debuted in 1986 to great acclaim, and was followed by Wind Spirit (1988) and Wind Surf (1990).
Windstar Cruises was sold to Holland America Line in 1988. The company, with headquarters in Seattle, US, was sold again in 2007 to the Ambassadors Cruise Group, wholly owned by Ambassadors International. It was purchased again in 2011 by Xanterra Parks & Resorts.
In 2014, Windstar took delivery of the former Seabourn Pride, renamed Star Pride, and, in mid-2015, two more Seabourn ships – Seabourn Legend (now Star Legend), and Seabourn Spirit (now Star Breeze).
The style is casual and unregimented, but smart, with service by Indonesian and Filipino crew members. The ships carry a variety of water-sports equipment, accessed from a retractable stern platform. Itineraries include off-the-beaten-track ports not frequented by large resort ships. The onboard product is decidedly American ultra-casual, with unfussy bistro-style cuisine, and service that lacks the finesse and the small details that could make it a much better experience overall. Gratuities are not included in the fare.