Category: Cruising

‘It’s not the destination but the journey that matters’ is a quote used time and time again to describe cruising. But what happens when the journey terrifies you? It starts with sweaty palms and clammy skin, escalating to a pounding in your chest and a rising sense of panic that churns in your stomach, like… Continue reading No Fly Zone

Next month marks the 100th anniversary of the rescue of Sir Ernest Shackleton and his men from the wilds of Antarctica. Fortunately, whilst the sub-zero continent has barely changed since the Endurance Expedition, the chances of returning home from nature’s final frontier have. Men wanted for hazardous journey. Small wages. Bitter cold. Long months of… Continue reading The Final Frontier

Royal Caribbean made a lot of noise about their new arrival, Harmony of the Seas, promising a ‘bigger, better and more extraordinary’ ship. On the 20 May 2016, I got the chance to see if this was indeed the case. Armed with my handy pocket guide and a checklist of must-sees, I headed out to… Continue reading Harmony Of The Seas Has The Hype Been Fulfilled?

By the time you read this, Harmony of the Seas – the largest cruise ship in the world – will have set sail. Back in April however, our heads were being turned by Royal Caribbean International’s first new arrival of the year. Ovation of the Seas is the third ship in Royal Caribbean’s innovative Quantum-class… Continue reading All Rise For Ovation Of The Seas

Who knew huskies could cause quite so much hysteria amongst a group of well-travelled adults? “Do you have huskies in your cabin?” was the question on everybody’s lips and from the excitement that reverberated around the ship, you would have thought that our Arctic Superior staterooms had come complete with a pen full of puppies,… Continue reading The New Nordic

The Northern Lights are as elusive as they are impressive, making Hurtigruten’s promise to show you them even more appealing. Here’s what happened when our Into The Blue Copywriter, Rebecca Martin, joined the search. It was my first night aboard Hurtigruten’s MS Kong Harald and the whole ship had slipped into a post-dinner lull in… Continue reading Chasing The Lights

After spending time aboard Hurtigruten’s newly refurbished MS Kong Harald, we waxed lyrical about its Nordic cuisine to all who would listen. Norway’s coast is one of the most incredible natural ‘pantries’ in the world and Hurtigruten is its most loyal customer. The expedition cruise line launched the concept of Norway’s Coastal Kitchen in 2015, using food as… Continue reading Dine In Norway’s Coastal Kitchen

Viking Ocean Cruises recently became the first new cruise line in a decade but how would they recreate the success of the river cruise ships that reign supreme on the world’s smaller waterways? As final preparations were made for a second ship to join the fleet, our copywriter Rebecca Martin boarded Viking Star to find… Continue reading Viking Star: River Relaxation, Ocean Exploration

Reader Jo Clough first cruised with her mother in 1964 and has since visited 120 countries. Here she tells us how the cruise industry has changed since that very first trip. My first cruise was back in 1964 and in those far-off days there were very few en-suite cabins and no balcony cabins at all.… Continue reading Jo Clough Cruising Through The Years

Who could have predicted that NCL Escape would bring some Miami heat to Southampton? Into The Blue’s Marketing Team spent a night on board and rediscovered the meaning of the word ‘fun’. The morning we arrived in Southampton was a wet one, with driving rain blighting the whole of our journey. Having grabbed our cases… Continue reading Let’s Escape!