New Itinerary

[Leonid]

MightyQuinn - I would vote your NW US - Alaska sailing the winner! Without doubt the best suggested itinerary. Have been there on three different lines, but your entry is tops. Good luck!!!

 

Brian_UK - Sorry but your recommendation is what many of us have experienced before on various sailings. With our Dover round trip next year, DW & I will be "Europed out".

[Paulchili]

Congratulations, FDR, on a brilliant marketing idea!! Who ever heard of asking passengers where they want to go?

 

And if I can interject between Paulchili, Brian UK and Bruin Steve, here's my suggestion about O's first appearance on the West Coast. ...

 

Not that you need my permission, but feel free to interject anytime.

In fact, you are entitled to one more itinerary :D - interject away.

[Rickey 88]

Not that you need my permission, but feel free to interject anytime.

In fact, you are entitled to one more itinerary :D - interject away.

 

Aw Shucks, my mother brought me up to always ask permission!

 

As for another itinerary, I'm working on it!! :)

[Paulchili]

Aw Shucks, my mother brought me up to always ask permission!

 

Touché :)

[Bowie MeMe]

To me, the Missing Link in Oceania's itineraries is Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean. My proposal addresses that gap and gives cruisers the opportunity to visit seven countries with diverse cultures, enjoy natural wonders such as Niagara Falls and Mr Kilimanjaro, experience African Safaris and relax on gorgeous islands. The diffficult element for me is estimating the number of sea days required. I've chosen Dubai as the start/end port as it is easily accessible from North America and Europe. Dubai also enables a fascinating pre- or post-cruise few days, which isn't currently available with Oceania.

 

Embark Dubai

Days 1-3 3 sea days

Day 4 -5 Mombasa (Kenya) - overnight to Mt Kilimanjaro and Masai

Mara safari

Day 6 Dar Es Salaam or Zanzibar (Tanzania)

Days 7-8 Durban (South Africa) - overnight to Victoria Falls and

Zambezi River

Day 9 Port Louis (Mauritius)

Day 10 Mahe (Seychelles)

Day 11-12 2 Sea Days

Day 13 Muscat (Oman)

Day 14 Disembark Dubai (UAE)

 

 

I think this meets the competition criteria.

 

Rogey from Melbourne, Australia

Hey Rogey. this sounds great and would be great but you forgot to put in the time to travel on shore. It took us a full frustrating day to go from Mt. Kilmanjaro airport to the start of a 5 day safari. Just a few of the problems were only about 20 miles of pavement then one lane dirt road. Even pavement was about 30 MPH MAX (white knuckles instantly)because you share the road with everything from motorcycles to oxen with 10foot of hay piled on top. One of my best memories is of the local bus with as many people hanging on the outside as seated inside. Apes in the road held us up for at least 1/2 hour while driver and assistant shot sling shot rocks at them. We did not tangle with the water buffalo-- he got as long as he wanted. Coming back we left at 6 AM to travel cross country to a certain strip of land. The plane holds 9 people and would buzz the ground to chase the zebras away. Load the plane and the drivers would drive down the strip blaring horns to get the girraffes to the side. You wait your turn. We got to Dar Es Salahm about 4 in the afternoon. Zanzibar is also wonderful but travel is difficult and involves boats, cars and airplanes even with deluxe tours. I so hope I get to go back and do days 4-5 of your trip but you will need more than 10 days.

[Bowie MeMe]

Ok, My second entry- part of a transatlantic, but as Reykjavik is so close and easy to get to from NY, it allows the remote ports in only 14 days:

Day 1. Reykjavik, Iceland

2. Djupivoqur, Iceland

3. Seydisfjordur, Iceland

4. Husavik, Iceland

5. Akureyri, Iceland

6. Isafjord, Iceland

7. at sea

8. at sea

9. Nanortalik, Greenland

10. Qaqortoy, Greenland

11. at sea

12. at sea

13. Reykjavik, Iceland

14. disembark in Reykjavik, Iceland

The hardest thing about planning this itinerary, was spelling the names of these places.

 

Love this one. Very little to Iceland and Greenland except the hard core and very expensive National Geographic or you have to go to Denmark to embark. Bring some creature comforts to Iceland itinerary. Could it embark maybe in Canada? Last year I found that there were very few flights to that area since Icelandic air is not much of a player now. The economy of this area could surely use help of tourism also.

[Bowie MeMe]

Part Two

 

Can be done as a B2B with my 1st entry.

 

Dubai

 

Muscat, Oman

 

Sea Day

 

Salalah, Oman

 

Sea Day

 

Aqaba, Jordan

 

Sea Day

 

Ain Sokhna (Cairo) Egypt

 

Transiting the Suez Canal

 

Marmaris, Turkey

 

Sea Day

 

Naples, Italy

 

Sea Day

 

Barcelona, Spain

 

 

Jill

 

Where are the Pirates? I'm scared of Pirates!

[Bowie MeMe]

Really Really enjoying this thread. when we put our collective minds to dreaming it makes me want to go on them all. The NW USA is wonderful. We took the Snake River cruise on Majestic paddleboat and it was so different from O cruise but very enjoyable. Sadly the paddleboats are now history.

[chicagogal]

I like the idea of an "All France" cruise. I don't think I've ever seen a cruise line do this. Easy to fly in and out of.

 

Nice

Cannes

Marseilles (overnight to give more time for Provence)

St. Tropez

at sea

Bordeaux (overnight)

St. Malo

at sea

Brittany

Honfleur

Rouen (overnight for Paris)

 

Great itinerary. And don't forget Biarritz - FABULOUS! (We just got back from St Tropez, Cannes, Nice, Cap Ferrat and the Grand Prix in Monaco about a week ago and enjoyed every minute)

[Tenngal]

How about the Northwest Passage? With global warming, it's open now in the high summer. We could sail from Halifax to Vancouver, or in smaller segments. Maybe Halifax to Churchill, Manitoba (in the Hudson Bay), then another cruise from Churchill to Vancouver.

 

I see this itinerary as the new Antarctica-type of adventure...

[brian_uk]

Leonid........I appreciate that you are all Europed out but there are still many, like myself, who, for many reasons cannot travel too far.

 

For me, I have an ailing Mother of 86 and I like to be within 2-3 hours flying time of London and so I put together this itinerary which offers me an alternative to the run of the mill routes in Europe.

 

I have never fancied a Baltic Cruise, so Jean and I flew last weekend to St Petersburg to see what all the excitement was about.......an interesting City with lots of Palaces and poor food.

 

One day we will get to Australia and the Far East but this entire thread started with Frank asking me where I would like to go.

 

The glamour of St Tropez (Brigitte Bardot etc) the yacht harbour of Antibes and lunch at the Vielle Mer (I think that is the name) a Restaurant built higher up in the Town by the City Wall looking overthe Sea....can life get any better.

 

Anyway these are only dreams of my ideal route and yes, they are similar to existing routes in that it follows the French, Spanish and Italian Coasts but the stops are different in so many ways.

 

I wish you well and hope that we may meet one day.

 

Brian

[MightyQuinn]

Newfoundland has it all. Whales, birds, icebergs, fjords, mountains, ancient Viking settlements, friendly folks & the best blueberries in the world. Really. I circumnavigated the Island by coastal ferry back in the day when I was a sweet young thing. Now you can go in style on an Oceania cruise. You’ll return with travel bragging rights and an unbeatable collection of Newfie jokes! :cool::cool:

 

St. John’s, NL

Placentia, NL

Francois, NL

At Sea

Port aux Basques, NL

Bonne Bay, NL

Scenic Cruising Bay of Islands

Port au Choix, NL

At Sea – Strait of Belle Isle

St. Anthony, NL

Scenic Cruising Notre Dame Bay

Twillingate, NL

Bonavista, NL

St. John’s, NL

[geologygeek]

Here's my first entry - I'm reminiscing about the Greek Islands and Turkey. It's easy to escape the more touristy ports (but you've still got to visit some!) and the distance between ports isn't too much, but you definitely need that sea day!

 

1 Athens, Greece

2 Santorini, Greece

3 Delos, Greece

3 Mykonos, Greece (late night stay)

4 Hydra, Greece (stunning)

5 Naxos or Naupflio (for Mycenae and Epidarus), Greece

6 Bodrum, Turkey (sweet town and also not too far from Ephesus)

7 Feithye, Turkey (mud baths and ancient tombs, Olu Deniz is a beautiful beach)

8 Antalya, Turkey

9 Iskenderun (for Antioch/Antakya), Turkey

10 Tartous (for Krak des Chevaliers), Syria

11 At Sea

12 Samos, Greece (where Pythagorus came from, make sure you tender into Pythagorio and not Samos town)

13 Thassos/Skiathos (more beautiful wooded Greek Islands, nice towns and beaches)

13 Late afternoon/Evening scenic cruising Meteroa/Mount Athos Peninsula Monasteries

14 Cannakale (for quick trip to Troy, doesn't take too long) cruise the Dardenelles and Bosphorus/late afternoon arrival in Istanbul

15 Istanbul

[Benita]

Love this one. Very little to Iceland and Greenland except the hard core and very expensive National Geographic or you have to go to Denmark to embark. Bring some creature comforts to Iceland itinerary. Could it embark maybe in Canada? Last year I found that there were very few flights to that area since Icelandic air is not much of a player now. The economy of this area could surely use help of tourism also.

 

If you add two days, you can disembark in Nova Scotia or St. Johns. There are still lots of flights, however, from NY to Iceland and it is only about 5 hours of flying.

[plimsol]

A visit or re-visit to the several World War II Pacific sites. Note - this cruise can be reversed.

 

Hong Kong

Manila, Phillipines (for Corregidor and/or Bataan)

Mariana Islands (Guam)

Truk Island

Marshall Islands (Majuro) *

Madang, Papua Guinea

Guadalcanal

Solomon Islands

Cairns, Australia

 

* NOTE - this is the port of registry for all Oceania ships, and fly the flag of this port.

 

Tis itinerary may take longer then the 14-15 day rule depewnding how long the ship stays in port.

[portpuno]

This is a great idea. Here is my suggestion

 

Paris (Rouen/Le Havre)

St Malo

Bourdeaux (great city to visit and walk around)

Lisbon

Sea day

Porta Delgada, Azores

Funchal, Madeira

Tenerife, Canary Islands

Santa Cruz, Canary Islands

Lanzarote, Canary Islands

Sea Day

Casablanca

Tangiers

Gibraltar (fun place with apes, plus great view from top)

Barcelona

 

Several other close ports could be inserted like Cadiz, Seville, Valencia, or Palma de Mallorca.

 

This includes all the stops you normally have to do a transatlantic to visit without the many sea days.

 

After checking some of the distances, I need to submit a revision as follows:

 

Paris (Rouen/Le Havre) This gives a chance to do Paris pre-cruise instead of London

St Malo

Bordeaux

Sea day

Lisbon

Sea day

Porta Delgada, Azores

Sea day

Funchal, Madeira

Tenerife, Canary Islands

Santa Cruz, Canary Islands

Lanzorate, Canary Islands (Pick 2 Canary Island ports or half days)

Casablanca

Tangiers

Gibraltor

Sea day

Barcelona

 

I think this will work timewise. If Bordeaux isn't possible due to the river/tides then Bilboa, La Coruna or Oporto can be placed here to make the timing work.

[lvannrn]

In case Cuba does not "open up" for American tourists, here is my second suggested Itinerary in the same general area-

 

New Orleans- overnight in port

Tampico, Mexico

Belize City, Belize

Santo Tomas de Castilla, Guatemala

Puerto Moin, Costa Rica

Montego Bay, Jamaica

Margarita Island, Venezuela

Bridgetown, Barbados

San Juan, Puerto Rico- overnight in port

[geologygeek]

My second (and final offering) to South East Asia.

 

1 Hong Kong, China

2 At Sea

3 Manila, Philippines

4 At Sea

5 Sandakan, Borneo, Malaysia (for wildlife - Sepilok Orang Utan Sancutary, Kinabatagan River)

6 Kota Kinabalu, Borneo Malaysia (for Mount Kinabalu NP)

7 Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei

8 At Sea

9 Da Nang, Vietnam

10 At Sea

11 Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam

12 Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam

13 Sihanoukville, Cambodia (for optional tour to Angkor Wat day or overland to BK)

14 Bangkok , Thailand (either overnight of chuck in Ko Samui as another option for some beach time)

15 Bangkok

[Aussie Gal]

I had chosen to plan a trip from Santiago visiting Easter Island, Pitcairn Island, Tahiti, etc. but found that someone else had already beaten me to it so here is my second choice.

 

1. New York

2. At Sea

3. Boston

4. At Sea

5. St. John. Newfoundland

6. Halifax, Newfoundland

7. Quebec

8. Quebec

9. Scenic cruising Saqueney Fjord

9. Saqueney - Canada

10. At Sea

11. Charlotteville, Prince Edward Island

12. Sydney -Canada

13. At Sea

14. New York

 

This is a cruise I would love to do someday in the Northern Hemisphere's Fall.

 

Jennie

[potterhill]

In case someone is looking for Charlotteville and can't find it, its called Charlottetown. While there, be sure to catch a performance of the musical Anne of Green Gables.

 

Mo

[Wendy The Wanderer]

I'd like to see an Iberian concentration, with several days in Lisbon and Porto. Beginning and ending in Lisbon--easy flight from North America. Let's see:

 

Day 1: Lisbon (overnight)

Day 2: Lisbon

Day 3: Porto (overnight)

Day 4: Porto

Day 5: La Coruna (Santiago de Compostelo)

Day 6: Santander

Day 7: Bordeaux

Day 8: Brest

Day 9: St. Peter's Port, Guernsey

Day 9: St. Malo

Dan 10: Nantes (Loire valley)

Day 11: Bilbao

Day 12: Gijon or Vigo

Day 13: Viana do Castelo (a beautiful old sailing port)

Day 14: At sea

Day 15: Lisbon

 

Perhaps an awkward length, could add in a sea day, since not sure of the distances. I've done part of this route, and know we had a sea day between Bordeaux and Honfleur, so tried to find stops in between. Porto is a great city, and well worth an overnight. I would love more Portuguese ports, but can't comment on places south of Lisbon, not sure if they would be accessible. Northern Spain is lovely with lots of great places to see, I would love to have more time there.

[Leonid]

Brian_UK........DW & I are planning on being in London end of 06/2010. Perhaps we could get together.

My use of the phrase "Europed out" was really too broad and misleading. What I should have said is that traveling from the western US to the Continent and beyond is quite strenuous for DW. LAX to Heathrow non-stop is about all she can handle, that's pushing it. That's also why we will not return to Australia & NZ. Just too far too travel.

[raffeer]

I do like Benita's contribution as follows. This is an area I would love to see.

 

>Ok, My second entry- part of a transatlantic, but as Reykjavik is so close and easy to get >to from NY, it allows the remote ports in only 14 days:

>Day 1. Reykjavik, Iceland

>2. Djupivoqur, Iceland

>3. Seydisfjordur, Iceland

>4. Husavik, Iceland

>5. Akureyri, Iceland

>6. Isafjord, Iceland

>7. at sea

>8. at sea

>9. Nanortalik, Greenland

>10. Qaqortoy, Greenland

>11. at sea

>12. at sea

>13. Reykjavik, Iceland

>14. disembark in Reykjavik, Iceland

>The hardest thing about planning this itinerary, was spelling the names of these places.

[LHT28]

6. Halifax, Newfoundland

 

Jennie

Halifax & Sydney are in Nova Scotia

[Rickey 88]

Dear FDR,

Bowie MeMe brought up a very good point - "What about the pirates?"

 

So, assuming that their threat doesn't go away and that travel through the Suez and Gulf of Aden becomes questionable, my second itinerary suggestion is as follows:

 

(Move the ship from the Med as.....)

1. TA to Miami

2. Miami to San Diego (Panama Canal)

3. Coastal sailing to Vancouver (L.A., S.F., Seattle, etc)

4. Vancouver to Seward (Inland Passage)

 

Now that Oceania's ship is in Alaska, here's my suggestion to move to S. E. Asia and Australia for the winter season:

 

1. Seward

2. Kodiak Island

3. Dutch Harbor

4. Petropavlosk, Russia

5. Vladivostok, Russia

6. Hakodate, Japan

7. Tokyo, Japan

8. Osaka, Japan

 

Due to my lack of knowledge on sailing times, I have not made any allowance for days at sea. You folks are better at that!

 

P.S. Although this is not a third entry, it is simply a suggestion to amend the cruise around New Zealand to include two more explorations into the fjords of Doubtful Sound and Dusky Sound to that of Milford. (No charge for this suggestion!) ;)