Cruise Reviews, Ship Reviews by The Avid Cruiser

More than most travel experiences, a world cruise is an exposure to the exotic and the wondrous.

Even for those who call themselves seasoned travelers, world cruises invariably will open the window to new destinations, new cultures or a new way of looking at the world.

Holland America Line's Rotterdam in Monte Carlo

Consider the extended call that Holland America Line’s Rotterdam makes at Victoria, Seychelles. Victoria, a small city on Ile Mahe, one of the 115 Seychelles Is- lands. This is the Hawaii of the Indian Ocean, an absolute paradise. Something of a colonial football, tossed back and forth by the French and the British, Victoria is relatively unknown to Americans, but a couple of months into a world cruise, it will surely surprise and delight.

Or if you are looking at making a Grand Circumnavigation on Regent’s Seven Seas Voyager, you might be interested in an excursion from Shanghai to the Great Wall of China. This visit also includes time in Beijing, including an exclusive visit arranged by Regent to the Jinqui Study in the inner court of the Forbidden City.

These moments occur regularly on a world cruise as the ships call on the great wonders of the world and other destinations that are off the path that American travelers typically follow. A world cruise will provide access to exotic cultures, enchanting islands and jaw-dropping natural wonders.

Australia and New Zealand are excellent examples of these juxtapositions of culture and nature that one finds on a world cruise. The welcoming nature of these destinations are well known, but what a stark contrast they offer: Their cast open spaces and dramatic landscapes are populated by curious wildlife, and yet their cities are clean and modern, surging with an upbeat spirit and some world class attractions.

Unless you are so well read and so well traveled that there can be nothing new under the sun, a world cruise is sure to deliver you to new experiences, people and places – a trip to be savored and remembered.

A world cruise. At first, the idea seems viscerally decadent, conjuring images of bejeweled formal nights, exceedingly long sessions of bridge, day following day at sea, one gourmet meal blurring lazily into the other — and not to mention, super expensive for a luxurious journey of up to four months.

But as with so much about cruising, the image of world cruising is far removed from the reality.

For starters, world cruises are becoming much more affordable. For example: Book an inside cabin on Holland America Line’s 2009 world cruise for $24,508. Think of it: a full world cruise that circumnavigates the globe, visiting 39 ports on five continents, for less than $200 per day. You’d pay more than that for a stay at a resort — that doesn’t move.

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Click here to read the summer issue of Avid Cruiser magazine in digital format.

The digital issue is GREEN, immediate, up-to-date, portable, features embedded video, spans 100 pages and has no international borders. Anyone, anywhere, can read it, print it, pass it along and archive it for future reference.

To get the most from your experience, just click on this link, flip through the magazine or use the “toolbar” at the top of the page to navigate the magazine or print articles you want to read at your leisure.

Archives: allows you to access past issues of Avid Cruiser digital edition.

Thumbs: displays small icons of each page in the digital issue so that you can quickly find the article you want to read. Just click on the thumbnail to get to that page.

Print: possibly the most useful feature, allowing you to print the pages you want so that you can curl up on your couch and read.

Set aside what you’re doing for a moment, and come with me. Together, we will board Holland America Line’s brand new Eurodam for a virtual cruise. I’ll give you a few minutes to pack. Let me know when you’re ready.

You’re lucky to be traveling with me, because I’ll make travel painless for you. We’ll whisk through airport security, breeze through baggage claim and make a quick transit to the ship, where, with an air befitting royalty, we’ll cross the threshold into this lovely vessel.

Welcome aboard!

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For years I’ve followed the career of Jerry Zape, a bar manager for Windstar Cruises who fulfilled a dream to give his wife and three children a better life with earnings he sent home from his job on a cruise ship. 

What wasn’t reported in that story was that Jerry was one of three ship staff that I met in 1999 and wrote about in a story called “A Few Good Men.”

Whether by coincidence or luck, I recently ran into the “second” of the three good men, Bagus Gunawan, who was working in Tamarind, the Asian restaurant on Holland America Line’s Eurodam.

I asked Bagus if he had fulfilled his dream to return to Bali to open a restaurant and bed and breakfast. He had, but his story has a tragic turn. In 1999, Bagus returned home to begin the business he had dreamed about.

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In 1999, I talked with three Windstar Cruises’ staff members about their dreams and ambitions. Five years later, I caught up with two of those ship staff, Jerry Zape, who put his three kids through university, and Bagus Gunawan. Following is the original story from 1999.

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