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CONGRATULATIONS TO US! -- Shirley just received the Society of American Travel Writers first place award for best travel article appearing on a travel website in the Atlantic-Caribbean Writing and Photography contest. See http://smallshipcruises.com/travelreport/travelreportclipper-amazon.html

BREAKING NEWS -- LAST MINUTE OFFER -- We just received notice that a private party charter has last-minute availability for 25 persons leaving Sunday July 30 for a roundtrip sail on the Mandalay in the British Virgin Islands. $600 per person for cabins; $1,700 per person for suites. This is a barefoot charter in a party atmosphere, mostly singles and couples in their 30s and 40s. Call immediately if you are interested: 727-551-0971.

CARIBBEAN -- Prices are up this year in Europe and Alaska over last year, but the Caribbean is experiencing softness in pricing. So if you are looking for a Caribbean cruise bargain for anytime in the coming year, now is the time to lock in your price.

BLUES CRUISE -- The legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise on Holland America is having a shorter (4-day) cruise this year from San Diego to Cabo San Lucas (www.bluescruise.com). The cruise has an international fan base that celebrates blues music while partying with the crew and dancing all day and all night, and passengers have the opportunity to take music seminars on-board and lunch and/or tour ports with musicians. Cruisers are also encouraged to bring their own instruments and play with the bands.

BAHAMAS DIVING -- If you love to dive and want a bargain, you can sign up for Sea Explorer, Morning Star, or Pirate’s lady, 65 ft. sloops that aid out of Freeport each Saturday and offer 3-4 dives per day. Current fare for 6-night cruise is just $879 per person plus port tax.

LABRADOR -- This is one of the last unspoiled, remote and pristine locations in the world! The WANDERBIRD will be voyaging there August 16-28 and still has a few cabins remaining.

HEBRIDEAN ISLAND CRUISES -- It has just announced renaming of the company to Hebridean International Cruises because in addition to operating its famous cruises around Scotland's west coast it now also cruises in the Indian Ocean, Africa, Mediterranean and Arabian Seas. The Queen will be celebrating her 80th birthday on the Hebridean Princess cruising around the Western Isles of Scotland accompanied by Prince Philip and other members of her family for a week-long trip.

SEA DREAM -- Among new 2007 ports are Molyvos, Phytagorion, Naousa, and Paxoi in Greece and Kotor, the medieval town on the Adriatic coast of Montenegro. In the Caribbean there will be calls on Montserrat to take a look at the volcanic scenery. In April a four-day cruise from San Juan will feature popular guitarist Earl Klugh during which the artist will perform several times with Earl Klugh, with ports of call at St. Barts and Virgin Gorda.

TUCANO ON THE AMAZON -- There are $300 discounts! on departures August 6 and September 3, and because of requests for short trips they are now offering a two-night itinerary from Manaus into the rainforest for $450USD.

KILIMANJARO EXCURSION -- Crystal Cruises is offering a nine-night land program to Mount Kilimanjaro in March, available pre- or post-cruise in conjunction with itineraries beginning or ending in Cape Town, South Africa. The trek to the top of the mountain is offered through the line's partnership with Micato Safaris. Hiking an average of four to six hours each day with overnight accommodations at mountain huts, climbers will traverse rain forests, grasslands, alpine desert, volcanic scree, and ice fields of the glacier. Participants will receive a pre-climb package including an eight-week fitness conditioning program.

SEVEN SEAS VOYAGER WORLD CRUISE – It will depart Ft. Lauderdale January 9 on a roundtrip six-segment, 111-night World Cruise and will include southern and eastern Africa, Seychelles, Maldives, Mozambique, Brunei, Sri Lanka and Spain (for America’s Cup), in addition to a game drive through Amboseli by Mt. Kilimanjaro. Following this extended voyage, the ship will head to Europe, including a 14-night Norway cruise to the North Cape and Spitzbergen and new 42- and 44-night Grand Europe voyages in May and October, each calling at 33 ports. Seven Seas Mariner will begin the year with a 59-night Circle South America voyage roundtrip from Ft. Lauderdale and reaching 31 ports in 16 countries. One segment will have Jean-Michel Cousteau aboard to cruise the Amazon.

CRONKITE AND BUCKLEY AT SILVERSEA -- Silversea Cruises has signed up Walter Cronkite and William F. Buckley Jr. as celebrity lecturers on the Silver Shadow's 126-day World Cruise, which will depart Fort Lauderdale on Jan. 15. Cronkite is scheduled for the World Cruise segment departing April 27 from Alexandria to Lisbon. Buckley will travel on the voyage departing May 8 from Lisbon to New York. Silversea also announced that they now have technology that enables guests to use their own cellular phones, laptops, and wireless PDAs while at sea.

NEW ORLEANS -- Amtrak and Carnival Cruise Lines will resume their “Rail and Cruise” program out of New Orleans with the resumption of four- and five-day cruise service from New Orleans on Fantasy beginning in October. Amtrak is offering discounts up to 25 percent for passengers traveling by rail to and from all Carnival cruises from Chicago, Memphis, New York, Washington, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Tucson, San Antonio and other cities.

• Crown Princess. It will have nine-day voyages to both the Eastern and Western Caribbean, and will also cruise to Bermuda.
• easyCruise in July will have a second vessel that will cruise weekly itineraries from Amsterdam to Rotterdam, Brussels and Antwerp. Passengers can join and leave the cruise where and when they wish, subject to a minimum two-night stay.
• American Cruise Lines has announced that it will build two 130-passenger vessels for delivery in 2008 and 2009 that are expected to cruise in the Canadian Maritimes, the Caribbean and Central America.

• International Expeditions has a 2-for-1 on a cruise around Newfoundland, Labrador, and Nova Scotia in September on Polar Star. The 12-day cruise starts at $2,265.
• Seven Seas Mariner has 2-for-1 in September on the voyage from Vancouver to Whittier with Jean-Michel Cousteau of the Ocean Futures Society aboard and on the voyage from Whittier to Tokyo.

• Yangtze -- Pacific Delight has a 17-day Yangtze River cruise-tour, priced $2,788 to $3,158 per person double that combines a 6-night cruise on the Yangtze with Huangshan Mountain, Suzhou, Shanghai, Xi’an and Beijing. The package includes hotels, outside cabin with private balcony on a Victoria Cruises boat, free air from Los Angeles and San Francisco to Beijing until November.
• Europe -- Free Air and 2-for-1 -- Cruise fares start at $1,999 per guest with Oceania Cruises on 2007 European cruises if booked by August 31. There is also free air (and 10 per cent discount to U.S. travelers) on Deutschland including a Black Sea cruise roundtrip from Piraeus (Athens) to Varna (Bulgaria), Odessa and Yalta in Ukraine, Constanta in Romania and Sinop and Istanbul in Turkey, Oct. 17-27.
• South America and Carnival Tickets -- The 500-passenger Deutschland goes to the Chilean Fjords, Punta Arenas, Ushuaia, Cape Horn Passage, the Falkland Islands and Buenos Aires Jan. 25-Feb. 14 with free air from New York City, free shore excursions worth up to $796, and free reserved Carnival tickets. Fares begin at $5,852 per person double occupancy including air.
• Free Air & No Single Supplement -- Norwegian Coastal Voyage has announced a waiver of the single supplement on air-inclusive Antarctica Expedition Voyages, saving solo travelers $1,115 to $1,580, on nine departures from October 16 to January 31.

KIDS CRUISE FREE -- MSC Cruises is offering a Kids Sail Free promotion for a Christmas cruise on MSC Lirica sailing December 18 out of Fort Lauderdale. This 11-day cruise goes to Santa Marta, Cartagena, Crist?bal, Puerto Lim?n, Roat?n and Grand Cayman. Children must 12 or under and be in the same cabin as two fare-paying adults.

PRINCESS WORLD CRUISE -- Princess Cruises will return to world cruising in 2008 with a 102-day adventure aboard the Pacific Princess visiting 31countries, including visits to Machu Picchu, the Taj Mahal, Angkor Wat, the Pyramids of Egypt and Easter Island. It will depart January 10, 2008 from Ft. Lauderdale.

NASCAR CRUISE -- Carnival has scheduled a Rusty Wallace Cruise on the Carnival Pride in December roundtrip from Long Beach, California to Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan and Cabo San Lucas. Several racing-themed contests and giveaways will be held throughout the voyage.

SOUTH GEORGIA AND THE FALKLANDS -- Pelagic Australis is making an early season trip to South Georgia, leaving Stanley in the Falklands on Oct. 14 and returning on Nov. 4. The three week cruise to the island made famous by Shackleton will visit wildlife sites and historical points of interest, focusing on bull elephant seals battling for harems on the wild beaches of the island. By early November the bulls will have gone back to sea so this spectacular and ferocious event is seldom witnessed by visitors.

PAPUA NEW GUINEA -- In September the Sepik Spirit will be conducting two four-night exploratory cruises into the middle and upper Sepik River, a region rarely visited. The boat has a shallow draft that allows it to travel to remote corners of the Sepik River and its tributaries, with day excursions to remote villages and close contact with villagers.

RIVERBARGE -- If you are looking for a family vacation, River Explorer allows children age 12 or younger to cruise free when staying in the same stateroom as their parents or grandparents; those under age 18 are half price. Teachers and retired teachers are half price when traveling with a full fare companion.

Note that fares quoted come from the cruise companies and are for limited times and certain dates.

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