Cruises That Will Get You Excited to Get Back on the Water: Viking’s Iceland, Greenland, and Canada Cruise

Viking Ocean CruisesOver lunch recently with the foremost cruise writer in America, Fran Golden, her enthusiasm over the current state of cruising was infectious. You couldn’t help but sense the excitement now that the world of cruising is finally back. It’s been a tumultuous 2 ½ years that started with passengers and crew being stuck on boats during the early stages of COVID and no ports allowing them to enter. Then came the inevitable bankruptcies like high-end cruise line, Crystal, going belly up earlier this year. But now Fran is jumping from cruise line to cruise line to report on all the changes, heading first on an expedition cruise with Quark to Greenland, then aboard the Paul Gauguin, now owned by the French company, Ponant, to cruise French Polynesia’s Society Islands, and finally the long-awaited arrival of Ritz-Carlton’s yacht on the Italian Mediterranean.

Here at ActiveTravels, we’ve been busy booking cruises to Alaska and the European rivers for fall 2022 and summer 2023. Our family of four will soon be on an AmaWaterways cruise on the Danube River in early September. The entire river cruise is taken over by the biking outfitter, Backroads, and each day we will have new cycling adventures in every port along the route from Prague to Vienna to Budapest. We’ll report on that trip once we return home.

In the meantime, we want to discuss the new cruises that gets us excited. First up, Viking Ocean’s adult-only cruises is quickly expanding in North America from the Great Lakes to Alaska. But we really like the 15-day Iceland, Greenland, and Canada itinerary that starts next summer in Reykjavik and ends in New York. You’ll visit 4 countries and 11 ports, and along the way see stunning remote seacoast and sea life.

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Canada Week: New Ferry Service Between Vancouver and Victoria

I spent the early part of last week in Manhattan for Canada Media Marketplace, where I met with media reps from all over Canada to hear about the latest travel developments. In a chat with Amber Sessions from Tourism Vancouver, I learned that Vancouver would finally be launching a direct ferry to Victoria. This saves the 40-minute drive to the ferry terminal in Tswwassen from Vancouver and another 30-minute drive from Swartz Bay Terminal on Vancouver Island to Victoria. Frankly, it also eliminates the need to rent a car in either destination. You also have the option to continue on by ferry from Victoria to Seattle to complete a great 8 to 10-day triangle. The Vancouver to Victoria ferry debuts in May. Cost starts at $120 Canadian for the 3 hour cruise. If you’re heading to Vancouver later in the year, be on the lookout for the unveiling of the $600 million Parq Vancouver complex next to BC Place Stadium. The new waterfront development will feature the first JW Marriott in Western Canada, The Douglas, a boutique Autograph Collection property, and eight restaurants and lounges designed by James Beard Award nominated restaurateur Elizabeth Blau. 

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Come Away to Newfoundland with Amy

Guest Post by Amy Perry Basseches
 
The Broadway show Come From Away was nominated for seven Tony nominations in 2017; it won a Tony for best direction, and a Drama Desk Award for outstanding musical. If you haven’t heard about it yet, Come From Away depicts the immediate aftermath of 9/11 in the small town of Gander, Newfoundland — the remote village which saw its population double in size, as it provided refuge to 6,579 passengers and crew from 38 planes, diverted when U.S. air space was closed. The airport in Gander was at one time the largest in the world, serving as an important refueling stop for cross-Atlantic flights, thus it could handle the traffic. Newfoundlanders call visitors those who "come from away," and that’s what happened. 
 
As I’m now living much of the time in Canada, eager to explore, and inspired by Come From Away, I’m going to Newfoundland in October 2018 with a wonderful group called Adventure Canada (a family-owned and operated expedition travel company since 1987). The trip is a circumnavigation of Newfoundland over the course of 10 days. Anyone interested in joining me gets 15% off, if you book by April 15. Adventure Canada trips are best suited for people with an adventurous spirit, who still want comfortable accommodations and good food. Sounds pretty good! 
 
Adventure Canada explains: Starting and ending in historic St. John’s, we will experience Newfoundland’s lively culture and dramatic scenery via daily expedition stops and community visits. Famed for its music and stories, Newfoundland is also incredibly picturesque, with a rugged coastline rendered spectacular by autumn foliage and light. We will visit Red Bay’s Basque Whaling Station (Unesco World Heritage Site), explore and hike the landscapes of Gros Morne National Park, learn about Viking history in North America at L’Anse aux Meadows National Historic Site, enjoy a taste of the Mi’kmaq culture in Miawpukek First Nation (Conne River), and visit to the French island of Saint-Pierre. Experience legendary music, food, and hospitality in true Newfoundland fashion: by sea, on the 137 metre Ocean Endeavor (Capacity: 198), with a team of naturalists and artists.
 
I’m also excited because Adventure Canada is partnering with Slow Food USA on the journey. That’s a topic for another day, but I am passionate about local food which is sustainably, humanely and fairly sourced. Seems like we’ll have plenty of that on the trip as well. Slow Food seeks to "connect the pleasures of the table with a commitment to the communities, cultures, knowledge, and environment that make this pleasure possible."
 
Finally, a personal note: My father worked as a lawyer for Allied Maintenance back in the 1960s- 1970s, when Allied played a large role at the Gander Airport, providing all ground handling and passenger services, plus aircraft maintenance. Dad also spent time at the Newfoundland fishing camp Allied’s CEO owned on the Gander River. I guess Gander and Newfoundland have re-entered my life in 2018.
 
Please contact ActiveTravels if you are interested in joining me in Newfoundland. 
 
 
 
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Cruise the Marquesas on the New Aranui 5

By far the most memorable cruise I’ve ever taken was a 2-week trip with Lisa aboard the freighter cruise ship, the Aranui. We traveled 750 miles north of the island of Tahiti to the Marquesas Islands, the archipelago most distant from any continent. The only way to visit all six of the inhabited Marquesas was aboard this upscale freighter that offers air-conditioned cabins and three French meals daily. The ship’s main function, however, is to transport goods to the local residents. She comes bearing bricks and cement, pipes and tractors, fishing nets, medicines, and food, all the necessities for an isolated existence; and returns to Tahiti with copra, dried coconut meat that is processed into oil, soap, and cosmetics.  

 
While burly crew members haul sacks of rice and other goods off the boat, guests get the opportunity to take guided hikes, go horseback riding, and visit the locals. Nuka Hiva is the island where a 22-year old sailor named Herman Melville jumped ship and wrote about his experience with cannibals in his first book, Typee. Paul Gauguin’s gravesite rests on the neighboring island of Hiva Oa. Sitting under a plumeria tree on a hillside over the bay, the stone is simply inscribed, “Paul Gauguin, 1903.” A three-hour cruise from Hiva Oa brought us to the verdant island of Fatu Hiva.  Here, we took a ten-mile hike into the stunning Bay of Virgins, the most majestic site of the voyage. Towering rock cliffs rises from the ocean’s depth, forming a v-shaped buttress that’s illuminated by the sun’s yellow-green rays. In the distance, serrated ridges, cloud-piercing peaks and impassable gorges stand as a monument to the centuries of volcanic fires that formed this fantastic landscape. That sight is hard to forget. 
 
On December 12th, the Aranui will be introducing a brand new ship, the Aranui 5. The 254-passenger ship features 103 spacious cabins, many with balconies. Public spaces include the Sky Bar with sweeping panoramic views, two lounges, library, video and computer room, outdoor swimming pool with a whirlpool, fitness room and massage room. Far more luxurious than the ship Lisa and I went on in 1994! The itinerary also includes a stop at Bora Bora on the return trip. Price starts at  $2,781 per person. 
 
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Day Four, Backroads Danube River Cruise Full Ship Celebration

Biking the DanubeDay Four of our Backroads Danube River Cruise started with a short 13-mile warm up along the river on bike trails. Then it was off to see the impressive Melk Abbey perched on a hill atop the small town, looking more like a palace with its large courtyards, countless rooms, and vast book collection in the library. The 23-mile afternoon ride was arguably the best of the trip, along the Danube in the heart of the Wachau Valley of Austria. Leaving Melk, terraced vineyards started to rise along the river, soon joined by the stone ramparts of forgotten castles. The ridges only got higher and soon small towns dotted the shoreline with their ubiquitous steeples piercing the clouds above. It was hard to bike because you wanted to stop repeatedly to take another photo better than the last.

It started to drizzle when taking a short ferry across the river. Soon we were biking straight through the vineyards, looking at the vines overflowing with fat grapes. We arrived in the small Medieval town of Durnstein, where we relaxed outdoors overlooking the vineyards at Alter Kloster Keller. We wisely chose to grab a bottle of their local Gruner Veltliner and an oversized charcuterie plate packed with local pates, sausages, hams, and cheeses. Perhaps we lingered a bit too long because when we got back on our bikes, the clouds were ominous and it started to pour. Five miles later, we arrived back at the boat drenched, only to find our fearless trip leader, Malcolm, hosting a party under a tent in a torrential downpour for all of us wet bikers. We drank shots of Schnapps and glasses of Riesling while listening to a soundtrack that featured, “It’s Raining Men.” Memorable!

 

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Nova Scotia Ferry Numbers Up Summer 2017

Happy to hear that ridership was up on the Portland-Yarmouth Ferry this summer. According to the Portland Press Herald, The Cat transported some 41,000 people, a 17 percent increase from the previous year. My sister and I took the ferry over to Nova Scotia in 2016 and it was an easy to get to the Atlantic Maritimes from New England. Just 6 ½ hours one way, it’s the ideal way to start your loop of the Maritimes, continuing on to Cape Breton, Prince Edward Island, and New Brunswick. You can visit Acadia National Park and the Maine coast on your drive back to Portland. Only a 30-minute drive from the ferry port in Yarmouth is one of my favorite stopovers, the Ye Olde Argyler Lodge. Start your tour of the Maritimes the right way with a guided sea kayaking tour of massive Lobster Bay and a lobster bake at sunset on the beach. 

 

Top Travel Days of 2022, Biking the Wachau Wine Region of Austria

Every day on our Backroads Danube River Cruise this September could have easily made it on this list, from biking high atop a ridge in Germany’s rural Bavaria region to riding from capital city to capital city, Vienna to Bratislava. But Day Four on the itinerary certainly stands out. It started with a short 13-mile warm up along the river on bike trails. Then it was off to see the impressive Melk Abbey perched on a hill atop the small town, looking more like a palace with its large courtyards, countless rooms, and vast book collection in the library.

The 23-mile afternoon ride was arguably the best of the trip, along the Danube in the heart of the Wachau wine region of Austria. Leaving Melk, terraces started to rise along the river, soon joined by the stone ramparts of forgotten castles. The ridges only got higher and soon small towns dotted the shoreline with their ubiquitous steeples piercing the clouds above. It was hard to bike because you wanted to stop repeatedly to take another photo better than the last.

It started to drizzle when taking a short ferry across the river. Soon we were biking straight through the vineyards, looking at the vines overflowing with fat grapes. We arrived in the small Medieval town of Durnstein, where we relaxed outdoors overlooking the vineyards at Alter Kloster Keller. We wisely chose to grab a bottle of their local Gruner Veltliner and an oversized charcuterie plate packed with local pates, sausages, hams, and cheeses. Perhaps we lingered a bit too long because when we got back on our bikes, the clouds were ominous and it started to pour. Five miles later, we arrived back at the boat drenched, only to find our fearless trip leader, Malcolm, hosting a party under a tent in a torrential downpour for all of us wet bikers. We drank shots of schnaps and glasses of Riesling while listening to a soundtrack that featured, “It’s Raining Men.” Memorable!

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