Solo Cruise Travellers on the rise

'Solo Zone' Service Launched for Single Cruise Passengers

Luxury 7-Night Mediterranean Cruise from Only $1299 For Solo Passengers

The rising popularity of holidays at sea for single passengers has prompted leading Australian cruise agency, Cruise Express, to launch a service called 'Your Solo Zone' on its website – cruiseexpress.com.au.

The new webpage offers solo cruisers the best deals and ships for single passengers and tips for cruising on your own, with Cruise Express also highlighting its own regular, hosted cruise tours as ideal for singles keen to travel in a group.

To mark the launch, Cruise Express is offering special solo passenger fares from only $1299 for a seven-day Mediterranean in June or July, 2014, aboard the superliner, Norwegian Epic, which debuted in 2010 with 128 studio cabins for single travellers and priced for single occupancy. The round-trip cruise from Rome, departing on selected dates in June and July, 2014, visits Livorno near Florence, Cannes on the French Riviera, Barcelona in Spain and Naples for the Amalfi Coast. For details, visit the 'Your Solo Zone' at www.cruiseexpress.com.au.*

Cruise Express Managing Director, Meg Hill, said the ageing population and an increased confidence to travel, coupled with the boom in cruising, had seen increasing numbers of Australians boarding cruise ships as solo passengers, with many cruise lines meeting the demand via dedicated single cabins and fares with low single surcharges or no surcharges at all.

"We know even more Australians would be enjoying holidays at sea as single passengers if the cost of solo travel could be reduced either through lower fares for single passengers or suitable schemes that enable solo travellers to share a cabin with another single passenger so as one of Australia's leading cruise agencies, we have launched the 'Solo Zone' webpage to tackle this issue and get more solo sailors to sea," Ms Hill said.

"We are also liaising with cruise lines in Australia to obtain the best solo offers for our clients and we have just completed a major survey to explore what single people are seeking in cruise holidays. We will use this research to expand our 'Solo Zone' page and enhance our service to this increasingly important sector."

Call Cruise Express on 1300 764 509 or visit the 'Your Solo Zone' page at www.cruiseexpress.com.au/solo-cruising.

* Fares are cruise-only and subject to availability and change and may differ between departures. Conditions apply.

Seabourn Sojourn gastronomic tour of France and 10-night cruise

EXCLUSIVE gourmet wining and dining on a gastronomic tour of France precedes a 10-night cruise aboard the stunning six-star Seabourn Sojourn as part of a luxurious cruise/tour only available from ecruising.travel

 

This is a first time opportunity to join the 26-night holiday departing 21 May 2014, taking in several one-star Michelin and unique upmarket French restaurants as it travels from Paris through France's most beautiful wine regions -  Bordeaux, Dijon, Beaune, Burgundy, Chantilly and Reims.

 

Activities include cycling through the vineyards, wine tasting at Chateau Pommard, dinner in the Eiffel Tower, a private introduction to the Champaign Fraternity, a visit to Chateau Moet et Chandon and a two-hour boat ride around the Bay of Arcachon.

 

The cruise sector starts with a helicopter transfer from Nice to Monaco to join the luxuriously intimate Seabourn Sojourn. The cruise takes in fascinating, less-frequented ports in Corsica, San Remo, La Lavandrou, Sete, Ciutadella and Valencia.

 

It also make stops at Ibiza, Marseilles and has two nights in Barcelona as part of a superb overview of the Mediterranean region.

 

The pampering continues with a two night stopover at the renowned Raffles Hotel in Dubai as you make your way back to Australia.

 

Now priced from $20,119 (was $29,589) per person twin share, this unique experience includes return economy airfares from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth,  deluxe hotel accommodation, many meals and all transport in France, all meals on board Seabourn Sojourn, airport transfers and a two night stopover in Dubai.

 

For more details contact ecruising.travel on 1300-369-848 or check out www.ecruising.travel

 

Adelaide cruise ship season starts with arrival of Dawn Princess

 

South Australia's record cruise ship season kicks off today with the arrival of the Dawn Princess at Port Adelaide Passenger Terminal this morning.

This season, 29 cruise ships will visit South Australian ports, bringing 67,000 passengers and crew and contributing an estimated $14.5 million in direct expenditure to the state's economy.

This is a significant increase from the 2007/08 cruise season when the state received eight cruise ship visits.

Tourism Minister, Leon Bignell, said the State Government has been working closely with domestic and international cruise lines to attract more ships to the state and help develop shore-based tours for passengers.

"Developing a strong cruise ship industry is important for tourism in our state," Mr Bignell said.

"Each time we welcome a vessel to Port Adelaide, hundreds of tourists head to McLaren Vale and Barossa wineries, to Adelaide, Glenelg and the Adelaide Hills.

Mr Bignell said the number of visits to regional ports was also growing, spreading tourism and economic benefits across the state.

"This season ships will also visit Kangaroo Island, Port Lincoln and, for the first time, Robe, which is great news for regional tourism," he said.

"Each time a cruise ship docks at Penneshaw, $200,000 is injected directly into the Kangaroo Island economy.

"This week travel bible Lonely Planet named Adelaide in the top 10 cities in the world to visit in 2014 which is sure to generate thousands of extra visitors to South Australia."

The number of cruise ships visiting South Australia is expected to grow even further, with 36 visits already scheduled for the 2014/15 season, bringing more than 97,000 passengers and crew.

"This means our goal to attract 30 ships and $11 million in passenger expenditure by 2014 has already been exceeded and we are well on our way to our 2020 goal of attracting 43 ships and $17 million in expenditure," Mr Bignell said.

The state will welcome the three largest ships operating in Australian waters this summer: the Voyager of the Seas, the Celebrity Solstice and the Queen Mary 2, which is returning to South Australia for its fifth consecutive year.

The State Government recently provided $170,000 for a new gangway at the Port Adelaide Passenger Terminal which will be completed by January when some of the larger vessels are due to arrive. The passenger terminal has also been given a facelift with South Australia's new logo featuring prominently.