Experience Imperial Russia with eWaterways and Luxury River Cruiser Volga Dream

eWaterways the niche and river cruise experts, continue to provide the most unique travel experiences available on water with a new itinerary for 2012 on Europe’s largest and longest river - the Volga. The exceptional 11-day Russian Cruise and Stay package takes place on the Volga Dream, a luxurious ship which journeys along this emblematic river and other important waterways to Russia’s ‘Golden Ring’ cities. Starting in Peter the Great’s ‘Window on the West’ St Petersburg and ending in the medieval yet modern capital Moscow, this cruise promises a real exploration of this vast country’s vistas, history and culture.

The all-inclusive Volga Discovery Holiday is crammed with excursions, informative tours and the best of Russian cuisine. The impressive programme includes visits to the remarkable Palace Square and a tour of the Hermitage Museum at the Winter Palace in St Petersburg; a tour of the magnificent Church of the Transfiguration with its 22 ‘onion’ domes on the island of Kizhi Island; a trip to the Cyrilo-Belozersky Monastery in Goritsy and the 16th-century Monastery of the Transfiguration and Church of Elijah the Prophet in Yaroslavl as well as a city tour of the beautiful 10th century town Uglich - all before a visit to the renowned Kremlin, the Flea Market and the Dmitry Blood Church in Moscow.

The elegant Volga Dream accommodates just 109 passengers in 56 well-appointed, spacious cabins, each of which feature a window, individually controlled air-conditioning, satellite flat screen televisions, mini-bars and a welcome fruit basket. With a crew of 60, including an expert tour guide, the standard of service is impeccable. One of the highlights of the cruise is the onboard dining experience. With the à la carte evening dinner taking a different theme everyday, the Chef brings fine dining to each guest night after night. From the fresh steamed sturgeon to a rack of lamb or steak au poivre, tiger prawns and authentic Russian Borsch, every meal is a chance to marvel at the culinary excellence of the kitchen. The onboard facilities include a single sitting dining room where complimentary wine is served with meals, a chic lounge and bar, fitness centre, spa treatments and library with internet access.

The 11-day Volga Discovery Cruise will run from May through to September 2012. Prices start at £2,059 per person (including taxes) which includes 5-star hotel stays in Moscow (2 nights) and St Petersburg (2 nights), a 6-night deluxe cruise aboard the Volga Dream (full board basis), all transfers, tours and excursions, house wine and soft drinks with meals onboard and lunches and dinners in local restaurants. Flights and visas are not included.

For more information visit www.ewaterways.co.uk or The Cruise Line

SeaDream Yacht Club Receives Top Award from Cruise Critic

In the first annual Cruise Critic Cruisers' Choice Awards, SeaDream I has been placed as No 1 for Service in the Small Ship category. “Cruise Critic members who have reviewed the ship are clearly very happy with their cruise experience,” said Carolyn Spencer Brown, Editor in Chief of Cruise Critic. “SeaDream I gets excellent ratings for service, which is attentive and formal, without being fussy or intrusive.”

Cruise Critic-issued awards are based entirely on reviews/ratings submitted by cruisers when they posted a cruise review. Cruise Critic, the online guide to cruises, is one of the most influential travel sites on the web. With a world-renowned editorial staff, it provides objective cruise reviews, features, ports-of-call profiles and destination information.

Acknowledging the award, Bob Lepisto, President of SeaDream, said “The crew aboard SeaDream I & SeaDream II are to be thanked for their tireless efforts to ensure each guest is well taken care of. Independent reviews like this reaffirm our claim of providing unbeatable service.”

Just last month SeaDream I was showcased in London, at Tower Bridge, to over 400 UK travel industry professionals and the media, with a series of exclusive invitational events. Following her first time ever visit to London, SeaDream I sailed to Hamburg for a 20-day drydock and now, for the first time, is positioned for her northern-summer season in the Baltic, Northern Europe and the Mediterranean.

Together with sister vessel SeaDream II, SeaDream I is rated the ‘World’s Best Small Ship Cruise Line’ (source: the Berlitz Guide to Cruising & Cruise Ships 2003-2011). The expression “yachting” is not only a statement about size; it describes a lifestyle aboard the intimate vessels. Chic and stylish, SeaDream’s 56-stateroom twin yachts are favoured for their elegant informality, personal service provided by a crew of 95, state-of-the-art facilities, inclusive open bar and gratuities, ocean-view accommodations, luxury spa and world class cuisine. Itineraries include the Caribbean, the Mediterranean and the Amazon. “It’s yachting, not cruising” Enjoy the difference.

For more information vist www.seadream.com or The Cruise Line

Svalbard is a remote and spectacular archipelago of immense glaciers, narrow fjords and abundant wildlife, somewhere we have featured several time in World of Cruising in recent issues. And here's a new opportunity to visit it in style and comfort:

Let Noble Caledonia's small but comfortable sister expedition ships, the MS Quest and the MS Ocean Nova, take you on a memorable journey into the realm of the polar bear. In Spitsbergen, there are twice as many polar bears and walrus as there are people. The polar bear population is estimated at more than 3,000 and we hope to encounter some of them during our summer voyages.

Our guests will witness a vast geological spectacle of soaring mountains and immense glaciers. A photographer’s paradise unfolds before us: black basaltic islands rise from shimmering waters punctuated with gleaming ice sculptures, and lush tundra blazes with purple saxifrage and moss campion. Within this dramatic landscape resides a wealth of wildlife: seals, walrus, whales, Arctic foxes and, our ultimate goal, polar bears. The area is also home to hundreds of thousands of breeding seabirds, including kittiwakes, murres, dovekies, puffins and rare ivory gulls.

Guests will take full advantage of the long daylight hours and embark on numerous Zodiac excursions to view the profuse wildlife up close.

In the beginning of the season, Spitsbergen’s flowers are in full bloom and the bird colonies are bustling with life. In the latter part of the season we have very good possibilities of exploring the eastern parts of the archipelago when the ice is slowly starting to lose its grip.

Our expedition ships have the highest ice class and can carefully break through the pack ice, which is also home to seals, walrus and the king of the Arctic, the polar bear.

For more info, visit Noble Caledonia or contact the adventure-cruise specialists of The Cruise Line Ltd.