What it’s like to live on a cruise ship for 8 years

What it’s like to live on a cruise ship for 8 years

Lee Wachtstetter shows off the cushioned wall hanging displaying her earrings that was a crew member’s gift. (Si Liberman)

I still remember his words. “Don’t stop cruising,” my husband told me the day before he died of cancer in 1997. Mason was a banker and real estate appraiser who introduced me to cruising. During our 50 years together, we had taken 89 cruises.

Taste a bit of Napa Valley on these cruise ships with menus by Thomas Keller

Taste a bit of Napa Valley on these cruise ships with menus by Thomas Keller

Seabourn announced last year that it was partnering with celeb chef Thomas Keller in offering fresh cuisine on-board its ships. Now the time has come to taste it.

To Cruise, or Not to Cruise?

To Cruise, or Not to Cruise?

The cruise industry carried more than 23 million passengers in 2015, and nine new oceangoing ships will debut this year. But if you’re among the millions of Americans who have never cruised, here’s a primer on what’s happening on the high seas.

Cruise and Airline News: Four New Ships from Carnival

Lindblad Expeditions will have a new ship in the Galapagos Islands. Credit Ralph Lee Hopkins/Lindblad Expeditions

SWAPPING AIRLINE SEATS, BY APP

Care to monetize your prime aisle seat in the front of the plane? The new iPhone app Seateroo, launching today, offers passengers the opportunity to swap seats on a shared flight for a mutually agreed upon price (minimum $5). App users can post their seat for sale or browse for a better seat assignment, and must board with their original boarding pass. Once aboard the plane they can make the agreed swap before or after takeoff. Users set the price from which Seateroo charges a 15 percent fee and payments are processed electronically through the app. Except for Southwest flights, which are open seating, the market for seat swaps opens five days before departure and closes after the flight ends, leaving open the option, assuming you have Wi-Fi in flight, of ditching an annoying seatmate midair. Seateroo is free to download and an Android version is in the works.

Top cruising trends in 2016

Top cruising trends in 2016

When it comes to cruising in 2016, it’s go big or go home.

Last year, cruise companies announced high-tech innovations like robotic bartenders and greeters.

Now the industry is continuing to shake things up with more entertainment offerings, bigger ships and new incentives to attract the next generation of cruisers.

St Petersburg in winter: Like stepping into a Russian novel

St Petersburg in winter: Like stepping into a Russian novel

St Petersburg, the setting for key scenes in the BBC's dramatisation of 'War and Peace', is at its best under a blanket of snow

On the edge of a frozen lake, somewhere outside St Petersburg, I am stretched out on the wooden racks of a rickety banya, or sauna. Clouds of steam part to reveal several lobster-pink Russians on the racks below. Some maniac has just thrown a bucket of water on to the hot stones in the corner, and the temperature – already somewhere between gas mark 8 and Dante’s Inferno – rises dramatically. I feel my bone marrow is melting. Meanwhile, my new best friend, Seva, is whipping me with birch twigs – “For improving circulation,” he grunts.

Confessions of Cruise Ship Insiders: Secret Parties, Crew Bars, and More

Confessions of Cruise Ship Insiders: Secret Parties, Crew Bars, and More

Many of us go on cruises to let our hair down. To party with a cocktail or several. Some of us, flush with memories of the whirlwind romances on the TV show The Love Boat, maybe even seek a real-life shipboard love affair.

But what you might not know is that oftentimes, the real partying and at-sea romances are going down on the lower decks, where the ship’s crew lives and plays.

The best Cruise yachts in the World

1.«Eclipse» One of the newest yachts of Roman Abramovych, he is a big fan of the sea cruises. It is 162, 5 m long that makes it the longest yacht in the world. According to the mass media, this vessel cost $1.12 billion, but its real price is unknown.

2. «Al Said» The magnificent yacht of sultan Muscat Kabusa Ben Saida Albussaida. The most enormous yacht on the deadweight – 15 850 tons. The price is unknown.

3.«Dubai» One of the most expensive and magnificent yachts in the world, belonging to the emir of Dubai, Mohammed ibn Rashyd al- Maktumu. Its price is $350 million. It is the vessel with 8 decks, which can place more than 100 passengers on board and provide any entertainments.

Russia part 2 - River cruises in Russia

Russia is the most beautiful country with rich spiritual and cultural-historic heritage. The number of tourists looking for a vacation in Russia rises every year. They are both citizens of Russia and foreigners. Russian river cruises gains popularity. There is a possibility to spend a vacation near a river in Russia according to one’s taste. 

Vietnam part 5 - Beautiful Halong Bay

Beautiful Halong Bay. Halong Bay - one of the most beautiful bays in the world!

Ha Long Bay Vietnam. Arriving by Cruise Ship at the beautiful Ha Long Bay Vietnam, and a short junk ride around the Islands

Burma (Myanmar) part 3 - Boat cruise on the Inle lake

Boat cruise on the Inle lake and jumping cats (Myanmar / Burma)