Sunny Costa Rica and Caribbean Winter Sailings At Incredible Savings For One Week Only

Windstar Cruises, which operates a three-ship fleet of luxury yachts that explore hidden harbors and secluded coves of the world’s most treasured destinations, begins a one-week sale today on 2010 Winter Costa Rica and Caribbean sailings.

With most of the United States under a deep freeze, Windstar offers incredible savings on sunny and warm Costa Rica and Caribbean voyages. Cruise fares start from $1,199 per person, double occupancy on January 16 through March 20, 2010 sailings.

Wind Star’s 7-day Costa Rica cruise departs and returns to Puerto Caldera, Costa Rica, visiting picturesque San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua; Playas del Coco, Quepos, Bahía Drake, Curu (National Wildlife Refuge), and Tortuga Island, Costa Rica.

Wind Spirit’s new 7-day St. Martin roundtrip itinerary features pristine beaches, lively island culture, and additional daytime sailing. Port of calls include St. Kitts, Tortola, Jost Van Dyke, Virgin Gorda and St. Barts.

Wind Surf’s 7-day roundtrip sailings from Bridgetown, Barbados call on a variety of vibrant ports on northbound and southbound itineraries. The northbound itinerary includes St. Kitts, St. Martin, St. Barts, Guadeloupe, Iles des Saintes and St. Lucia. The southbound itinerary includes Bequia, Dominica, St. Lucia, Mayreau, Grenada and Tobago.

Windstar’s one-week sale is not combinable with any other promotions/programs. Taxes additional. Offer is capacity controlled and may be withdrawn or modified at the discretion of Windstar. Offer is valid on new bookings only and full payment required. Sale ends January 16, 2010.

For more information including rates and itineraries contact a professional travel agent or call Windstar at 1-800-258-7245. Visit Windstar Cruises online at www.windstarcruises.com.

Or for reviews on Windstar Cruises visit the review pages of Prow's Edge Cruise Magazine at where you will find two articles about Windstar - one at www.prowsedge.com/cruises-caribbean-windstar.html and one at www.prowsedge.com/cruises-atlantic-windstar.html

m/s Paul Gauguin Sails Under a New Umbrella

Originally completed in 1997 for Radisson Seven Seas Cruises (now Regent Seven Seas) the m/s Paul Gauguin was designed specifically to sail the shallow seas of Tahiti and French Polynesia.

In 2004, the m/s Paul Gauguin was bought by Paul Gauguin Shipping Limited, and now that Regent Seven Seas has completed its contract, the m/s Paul gauguin has set sail on its inaugral cruise under a new umbrella.

Executive Vice President, Paul Gauguin Shipping Limited, Roy Grimsland has promised to “continue to provide the same luxury product for which Paul Gauguin is known worldwide.”

The ship is 513 feet long, 71 feet wide and has a draft of 16.9 feet. She can accommodate 332 passengers with a staff of 215, one of the highest guest-per-staff ratios at sea (1.5:1). The m/s Paul Gauguin has undergone more than $25M in refurbishments since its inaugural sail in 1998.

For an experience of a cruise aboard the m/s Paul Gauguin, visit a Prow’s Edge Cruise Magazine review at http://www.prowsedge.com/cruises-tahiti-regent-seven-seas.html

There are also details of the m/s Paul Gauguin inaugral cruise this week at www.prowsedge.com/cruises-news-110110-paul-gauguin-cruises.html

Australia Day Spectator Cruises

If you happen to be in Australia either pre- or post- cruise for Australia Day on January 26th, you may be interested in the news that Captain Cook Cruises is offering a variety of Australia Day cruises including the Australia Day Lunch Cruise, Ferry Race Cruise and Tall Ships Race Cruise to ensure you are in the middle of all the Australia Day action. Book your cruise now to secure early bird prices.

The Australia Day Lunch Cruise includes a fabulous festive buffet featuring a selection of seafood and an open bar of still and sparkling wine, local and imported beers and soft drinks.

The Ferrython is one of Australia’s favourite free spectator events. Watch the whole race on Captain Cook Cruises Ferry Race Cruise.

If the majestic Tall Ships race is your preferred event, Captain Cook Cruises Tall Ships Race Cruise is for you as they race from Bradley’s Head, finishing under the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

The Australia Day Lunch Cruise departs from No 6 Jetty, Circular Quay on Tuesday 26 January at 10.45am and returns at 2.24pm. Early bird prices are adults $159, normally $199 and children (5 -14yrs) $99.

The Ferry Race Cruise and Tall Ships Race Cruise depart from No 6 Jetty, Circular Quay on Tuesday January 26. The Ferry Race Cruise departs at 10.45am and returns at 12.15pm and the Ferry Race Cruise departs at 12.30pm and returns at 2.00pm. Early bird prices are adults $39, normally $49 and children (5-14yrs) $25.

For further information and bookings visit www.captaincook.com.au.

Rick Sasso Shares His "View From the Bridge"

A popular and well-respected figure in the cruise industry, Rick Sasso, President and CEO, MSC Cruises, is making his 40th year in the travel industry. After holding key positions at Costa Cruises and Chandris Cruises, Rick joined the team that launched Celebrity Cruises in 1990 and served as the line’s president from 1995-2001.

In 1999 the National Association of Cruise Only Agencies (NACOA) named him “Cruise Industry Executive of the Year”. In 2004, he was named to head the management team of MSC Cruises USA, the fast-growing Europe-based cruise company, in the North American market.

Today, Rick Sasso shares his view from the bridge for Prow's Edge Cruise Magazine with his thoughts on the changing face of the cruises now being offered to passengers and how MSC Cruises fits into the mix.

For the full story "MSC Continues to Offer Guests the ‘Art of Cruising’ on Itineraries Around the World" by Richard E. Sasso, visit www.prowsedge.com/views-rick-sasso.html

For more information on MSC Cruises, visit the Prow's Edge cruise lines section for www.prowsedge.com/cruise-lines-msc-italian-cruises.html or visit the official MSC Cruises web site at www.msccruises.com/cruises.asp

Maine Windjammer Cooking Earns Rave Reviews

Imagine cooking three “squares” a day for 30 hungry guests in a kitchen the size of a walk-in closet? Don’t even think about using mixers, Cuisinarts or a gas stove…you are restricted to using hand utensils and piling logs into an antique wood stove that’s often tilted as you sail past the islands off mid-coast Maine!

Welcome to the world of Windjammer Cooking!

The good news is that two of the chefs battling these conditions have shared a recipe each for the Captain’s Table pages of Prow’s Edge Cruise Magazine at http://www.prowsedge.com/cruises-chef-paul-dorr.html and at http://www.prowsedge.com/cruises-chef-cara-lauzon.html.

More good news is that sailors and landlubbers alike can now recreate even more of these delicious dishes at home, using the newly released cookbook, Windjammer Cooking: Great Recipes from Maine’s Windjammer Fleet.

The 154-page cookbook, a collaboration between each of the 12 captains in the Maine Windjammer Fleet and Smith/Kerr Associates, LLC, features chapters about each windjammer, including histories of the vessels, 115 breathtaking, full-color photographs, and 60 recipes.

An introductory chapter describes the windjamming experience and guides the reader to the various islands in the Penobscot Bay area—the sailing grounds of the fleet—and a charming treatise on the traditional Down East Lobster Bake, which is a hallmark of every windjammer cruise.

Windjammer Cooking: Great Recipes from Maine’s Windjammer Fleet is available at a retail price of $27.00, the book is available in select bookstores or online at www.sailmainecoast.com.

WHEN AN EXPEDITION CRUISE REALLY IS AN EXPEDITION
Historic remnants of Douglas Mawson’s mono-plane uncovered in Antarctica

While looking for suitable shore-side landing spots for guests travelling onboard the visiting expedition ship Orion, Mawson's Huts Foundation team member Mark Farrell has uncovered remnant metal piping from Douglas Mawson’s single-propeller mono-plane, taken with Mawson almost a century ago on his 1911 Antarctic expedition.

Built just eight years after the Wright brothers' first flight, this aircraft was the first produced by the Vickers factory in Britain, and the first taken to either polar region.

The plane was last seen in the mid-1970s when Antarctic researchers photographed the ice-encrusted fuselage. Unusually low tides, in combination with unprecedented melting of ice had exposed the rusty remnants, found on New Year’s Day 2010.

It is understood that remains of the larger segments of the plane, which have been immersed in sea water possibly as long as 30 years, are still visible and clearly identifiable from archival photos as part of the aircraft.

Taking advantage of excellent weather, Orion’s guests were ashore at Cape Denison at 1600 to take a rare look inside the historic Mawson’s Huts and surrounding environs, including seeing the tail plane/rudder of Mawson’s plane, left in the hut by Mawson when he departed in 1913.

Further information on all Orion Expedition Cruises to Antarctica, Papua New Guinea, Melanesia, Asia, New Zealand, the Kimberley and Arnhem Land can be obtained by visiting the website www.orionexpeditions.com

News about Orion Expeditions can also be found at Prow's Edge Cruise Magazine.

Photo by Frank Hurley

CRYSTAL CRUISES WINS TOP TRAVEL AGENT ACCOLADES FOR 2009

Travel Weekly’s Readers’ Choice Awards announced Crystal Cruises as the “Best in Luxury” for 2009. Voted by U.S. travel agents, industry marketing executives and CEOs of the world's largest travel companies, the Travel Weekly award joins a host of other top accolades Crystal has earned from travel agents in 2009.

Travel agents also voted Crystal “the best,” according to the most recent polls from:

* Luxury Travel Advisor magazine – Best Cruise Line for Luxury Ocean Cruises
* Recommend magazine – Best Cruise Line, Luxury
* Virtuoso travel agent consortium – Best Large Ship Cruise Line
* Ensemble travel agent consortium – Cruise Partner of the Year, U.S.
* MailPound travel industry marketing resource – Best Luxury Cruise Line
* Vacations.com travel Luxury Cruise Partner of the year

“With virtually 100% of our sales through travel agents, we are particularly pleased that our travel partners voted the Crystal Cruises’ vacation as the Best in Luxury,” says Crystal president, Gregg Michel. “Discerning travelers depend on the expertise and recommendations of trusted travel professionals, and these awards are tremendous votes of confidence in Crystal’s winning formula of service, space, quality and choices.”

Besides winning accolades from travel agents worldwide, Crystal Cruises is consistently voted World’s Best by consumers and hospitality industry critics. In 2009, Travel + Leisure and Condé Nast Traveler readers voted Crystal Cruises #1, Zagat surveyors named Crystal as their favorite and Cruise Critic editors named Crystal “Best in Luxury,” among other honors.

In the past few years, Crystal Cruises has spent more than $65 million in the chic design of its vessels. “We are so delighted that travelers, their travel counselors and other hospitality professionals have appreciated Crystal Cruises’ commitment to the highest quality vacation experience – from the attentive, gracious service of our staff to the continual reinvestment in our fleet.”

For more information and Crystal reservations, contact a travel agent, call 888-799-4625, or visit www.crystalcruises.com.or take a look at Prow's Edge Cruise Magazine at www.prowsedge.com for news and reviews of Crystal Cruises.

NEW CRUISE TERMINAL FOR HONG KONG

As the Asia Pacific Region continues to reap the benefit of the growth in the cruise industry, Hong Kong is set to lead the way in the area with the brand new Kai Tak Cruise Terminal.

Upon the commissioning of the new cruise terminal, together with the Ocean Terminal in Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong will have a total of four berths for cruise vessels. Conveniently located, these terminal facilities can berth cruise vessels of different types and sizes, providing high quality infrastructure for the long term development of the cruise industry in Hong Kong and in the region.

The government will fund, design and build the cruise terminal, and lease the terminal to a cruise terminal operator, while retaining ownership of the site and the terminal. The new cruise terminal will have two berths with no air draft limit. Upon completion, it will be able to berth the largest cruise vessels, according to the Hong Kong government.

The first berth is expected to commence operation in mid-2013; the second berth will be operational in 2014.

The government is currently considering tenders for the design-and-build contract for the terminal building.