Departures Australia Spring 2017

BLACKBOOK Holland

BLACKBOOK Holland America’s forthcoming Nieuw Statendam ship Hoppen, who is best known as the woman who coined the phrase “texture is the new colour” and who is responsible for all four of the new Edge Class vessels, the first of which arrives in December 2018. Want to cruise like Captain Nemo? Ponant Cruises (ponant.com) is building four sleek, 184-passenger sister ships, commencing with Le Lapérouse, slated to debut in 2018. Personifying French chic, interiors will boast design cues of charcoal and white with colourful leitmotifs throughout. The cuisine is to food as foie gras is to pâté, while suites are modern-minimal. But it’s the multisensory underwater Blue Eye lounge – where the deep-sea universe comes alive for guests’ enjoyment – that will prove to be the conspicuous highlight of the ships. Clean lines, calm neutrals and natural elements are intrinsic to Viking Ocean’s (vikingcruises.com) Scandi style. On the heels of its phenomenal success in river From left: the colourful lobby of the Nieuw Statendam; inside Celebrity Cruises’ twostorey Edge Villa cruising, three 930- passenger vessels with the brand’s healthy blend of meticulous design and shipboard sensitivity have wooed the cognoscenti. A fourth, Viking Sun, will be christened in late 2017, while Viking Spirit launches in 2018. Rekindling nostalgia and romance in equal measure, when Flying Clipper debuts in 2018, she will be the world’s largest square rigger. Powered by 35 sails, this 300-passenger tall ship will become the flagship of the Star Clippers fleet (starclippers.com). Three pools include one that funnels sunlight through the atrium into the elegant restaurant. Prized accommodation is certain to be the 34 suites with balconies and four owner’s suites. Popular hangouts will be the alfresco Tropical Bar, bowsprit net and watersports platform. Following the success of Koningsdam in 2016, Holland America Line (hollandamerica.com) will introduce sister ship Nieuw Statendam in December 2018. Ofthe-moment designer Adam D Tihany will coordinate the opulent mise en scène for the interiors while consultant master chef Rudi Sodamin will ensure culinary offerings on this 2,650-passenger ship are exceptional. ♦ GREAT WINES AND GREAT MINDS Intellectual – and intoxicating – experiences at sea The latest trend in cruising comes in a bottle. The undisputed doyen of wine cruises, SeaDream Yacht Club (seadream. com), has no fewer than nine dedicated Wine Voyages in 2018, most of which are in the Mediterranean, where oenophiles will meet with luminaries such as champagne ace Clovis Taittinger. The pick of Europe’s wine harvests can also be savoured on board Celebrity Cruises (celebritycruises. com) thanks to its partnership with television’s The Wine Show. A different kind of diversion can be found on Crystal Cruises’ (crystalcruises.com) Experiences of Discovery programme, which offers up insights from US and British political and diplomatic heavyweights. Still more in depth, Seabourn Conversations (seabourn.com) present enthralling views by renowned politicians and learned scholars from the arts, sciences, politics and the humanities, while Silversea Cruises’ 132-day A Tale of Tales pan-global odyssey in 2019 (silvesea. com) features literary giants such as Paul Theroux and Pico Iyer, who will vivify this cruise that’s akin to an atlas of the imagination. For a quick escape from the brain aerobics, Crystal on Broadway is an exclusive new tie-up with multi-Tony Award-winning Broadway producer Kevin McCollum, bringing cast members and creative talent from some of theatreland’s leading shows to Crystal’s two ocean ships. SEQUESTERED AND SERENE: FASCINATING JOURNEYS TO NEW PORTS OF CALL Putting the “port” in opportunity, Regent Seven Seas Cruises (rssc.com) is calling at 28 maiden ports in 2018/19, including Martha’s Vineyard (Massachusetts), Archangel on Russia’s White Sea, and Makassar in Indonesia. The 2019 itineraries are set to be the most exciting in Azamara Club Cruises’ history (azamaraclubcruises.com). This destination-immersive cruise line will raise the bar with an array of curated itineraries that includes visiting Alaska, Japan, New Zealand, plus golf cruises in association with Perry Golf. Also thinking outside the box, Windstar Cruises (windstarcruises.com) has added 26 new European ports in 2018, from the impossibly narrow Trollfjord in Norway to Italy’s winsome San Remo. The gilded almanac of destinations visited by Crystal Esprit (crystalcruises.com) is expanding to the West Indies: from November this 64-passenger yacht heads to a cornucopia of bucket-list boltholes including St Martin, Anguilla and St Barths. CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: © HOLLAND AMERICA LINE, © CELEBRITY CRUISES, MICHEL VERDURE 34 DEPARTURES-INTERNATIONAL.COM

SEABOURN’S EXTRAORDINARY WORLDS Elegant adventure, luxury unbound. Syracuse Xlendi Valletta Ionian Sea Mediterranean Sea Skopelos PIRAEUS Spétsai Santoríni Aegean Sea Mykonos Naxos Kos Rhodes Ágios Nikólaos Runavík Atlantic Ocean Ullapool Kirkwall Newcastle upon Tyne Bergen Skjolden Lerwick Ulvik Eidfjord Rosendal Kristiansand North Sea Åalborg DOVER COPENHAGEN Great Yarmouth GREEK ISLANDS ODYSSEY Roundtrip Pireaus (Athens) 14 days, 16 Jun, 14 Jul, 11 Aug, 8 Sep & 6 Oct 2018 From AU,499 * twin share pp NORWAY & NORTHERN ISLES Copenhagen to Dover (London) 15 days, 16 Jun 2018 From AU,999 * twin share pp For more information or to make a booking, please call your Platinum Travel Service on 1800 67 3760 (Australia) or 0800 377 421 (New Zealand). Book today to take advantage of your Platinum Card amenities including US0 on board credit for double occupancy, bottle of premium wine, and special turndown service. *Benefi t valid for bookings made from now until 31 December 2017 and for travel completed by 31 December 2018. All bookings must be made in advance through the Platinum Travel Service and are subject to availability. Payment must be made using American Express ® Platinum Card in Platinum Card Member’s name. Benefi ts are non-transferable, non-combinable for back to back voyages, and valid for new bookings only. Benefi t valid for basic and supplementary Platinum Card Members. Maximum of 3 bookings on the same voyage per eligible card. Platinum Card Member must travel on itinerary booked to be eligible for the off er described. All benefi ts are per booking, based on two adults sharing accommodation on voyages of 5 nights or more. Single occupancy prices available on request, and benefi ts will be pro-rated for single travellers. Benefi t expires at checkout. Onboard credits are noted in US dollars and are not transferable or redeemable for cash. Benefi ts are available to all categories of staterooms and suites. Cruise Privileges are based on Cruise Line’s published rates. Off er is not applicable for ‘net rate arrangements’. On board Credits can be used in the ships’ boutiques, beauty salon and optional shore excursions. This promotion may be combined with all Early Booking Savings and Seabourn Club Members (Repeaters) Savings. Platinum Card Member Privileges above are off ered based on per booking, and NOT per voyage. A Platinum Card Member with back-to-back bookings shall receive a maximum of one set (01) of the above Privileges regardless of the number of segments booked. The On board Credit cannot be used in the casino. Unused portion of On board Credit is non-transferable and cannot be redeemed for cash or credit. Whilst every care is taken to ensure the accuracy of information, details may change due to circumstances beyond our control. Cruise partners and benefi ts are subject to change without notice. Fares are correct as at 20 Jul 2017. SE06.2