Holland America Eurodam Offers Spa Staterooms

Holland America Line's new Eurodam offers 56 Spa Staterooms located on the two highest decks of the Signature-class ship.

The 2,104-guest Eurodam is the first ship in Holland America's fleet to offer spa accommodations. The Spa Staterooms are located near the Greenhouse Spa and Salon and offer in-room spa amenities.

Each room reflects a nature theme with walls of soft earth tones, green accent colors, fern-like patterns and charcoal-colored carpeting. A water feature in each stateroom provides a soothing ambient background sound.

Amenities in the Spa Staterooms include organic cotton bathrobes and slippers, a Burmese teak mat for bath and shower, an invigorating showerhead, a loofah mitt and aromatherapy bath salts.

In addition to standard stateroom furnishings, Spa Staterooms also include an iPod docking station, a Yoga mat, a pedometer for use aboard ship, a fitness DVD, a no-host minibar stocked with specialty waters, a cut-fruit tray at embarkation and a spa concierge to book treatments. Nightly turn-down pillow gifts include organic chocolate truffles, orchids and a line of chocolates called Elements, which are herbal-infused chocolates blending Belgian chocolate with specialty herbs.

Guests booking the Spa Staterooms may order spa stateroom-only packages in advance or during the cruise.

Four packages include a hot stone massage and facial bamboo massage for $256 and skin renewal with facial rejuvenation acupuncture and marine facial for $289. Other packages are a man's shave and deep-tissue massage for $189 and couple's cabana massages for $242.

An in-room dining breakfast card features a selection of Greenhouse Spa breakfast items including fresh-squeezed orange or grapefruit juice, fresh carrot juice, fresh fruit, bran muffins, yogurt and Kashi granola, Eggbeater or egg white omelets, turkey bacon, chicken apple sausage or an organic soy meatless patty. An all-day room service menu offers Greenhouse Spa selections that vary daily based on selections in the main dining room. Guests may also order from the standard room service menu.

The 56 Spa Staterooms include two Superior Verandah Suites, 36 Deluxe Verandah Outside Staterooms, four Large Ocean-view Staterooms and four Large Inside Staterooms on Panorama Deck.

The 10 Spa Staterooms on Observation Deck are all Deluxe Verandah Outside rooms with floor-to-ceiling windows and scalloped verandahs.

Eurodam debuts this summer with a July 1 naming ceremony in Rotterdam with Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, followed by a maiden voyage in the Baltic region.

Whale Watching Cruises from Captain Cook

Australia's Captain Cook Cruises is again operating its daily Whale Watching cruises throughout the Whale Watching season of May 27 to Nov. 15, 2008.

The Whale Watching cruise takes passengers past the Sydney Opera House, Fort Denison and the homes located in the bays of Sydney Harbour and then out through the heads and onto the open waters.

Here the direction of the vessel is totally dependent on where the whales have been sighted -- north towards Manly or south towards Coogee. All Whale Watching cruises are held on a 75-passenger, 16 meter super sea-catamaran purpose built for Whale Watching and featuring two decks both offering spectacular open air viewing and an all-weather lounge for the entire family.

Captain Cook Cruises offers a whale guarantee - if a whale is not sighted in the months of May to November 2008 passengers can rebook another cruise free of charge or for those cruising in June and July.

They also have the choice to receive 50 percent of their money back. Whale Watching cruises depart daily from Circular Quay at 1.30pm and twice daily from Darling Harbour at 9 a.m. and 1:15 pm from May 27 to Nov. 15, 2008.

Whale Watching Cruises are priced at: adults $69, concession $59, child ages four to 14years old pay $39, and families with two adults and two children pay $179. An additional child in the same family is $30.

For further information visit www.captaincook.com.au

Carnival and NCL Raise Fuel Supplements

Carnival has raised its fuel supplement from $7 per person, per day to $9 per person per day for all new bookings beginning June 12 for six of its brands—Carnival, Costa, Cunard, Holland America, Princess and Seabourn.

Carnival also is increasing the fuel supplement on third, fourth and fifth passengers in a stateroom from $2 to $4 per person, per day. The fuel surcharge will not exceed $126 per person, per voyage for first and second guests and $56 per person, per voyage for the third, fourth and fifth guests in a stateroom. Carnival first implemented a fuel supplement in November to the tune of $5 per person, per day, raising it to $7 in April.

Following Carnival's lead, Norwegian Cruise Line is doing the same, increasing its from $9 per person per day to $11 per person per day for first and second passengers in a stateroom, and $5 per person per day for additional passengers in the same stateroom.

For NCL, the adjustment will apply to new individual reservations made on or after June 20, 2008.

For NCL group reservations, the increase also goes into effect on or after June 20, but will also apply to group space held before June 20 without specific names and a full confirming deposit by June 19.

Spirit of Alaska Hits Bottom - Ends Voyage

Cruise West's Spirit of Alaska transferred its 41 passengers to another vessel June 5 after scraping the bottom in Tracy Arm early June 4 in Alaska.

The company said the 78-passenger vessel "briefly touched bottom during the process of getting under way after anchoring overnight in the vicinity of Williams Cove near Tracy Arm." The company reported no injuries to passengers or 22 crew members, nor any threat to marine life or the environment.

The U.S. Coast Guard received a call from the Spirit of Alaska requesting assistance. The ship reported unknown damage affecting its rudder, the Coast Guard said in a statement.

The Coast Guard sent a 47-foot motor lifeboat, a helicopter and the cutter Liberty to the scene. In addition, the Coast Guard deployed an inspector and investigator to the vessel to assess damage. An investigation is standard practice following the unintentional grounding of any commercial vessel.

Cruise West said the ship proceeded to Juneau under its own power, arriving at approximately 1:30 a.m. June 5.

Guests had breakfast onboard the ship and were to transfer to another Cruise West vessel, Spirit of Endeavour, to depart Juneau on a nine-day cruise of Alaska's Inside Passage.

Windstar Ranked #1 by "Celebrated Living"

Windstar Cruises, which operates a three-ship fleet of luxury yachts, was recognized for the second consecutive year as the best small-ship cruise vacation by the readers of "Celebrated Living."


The honor was published in the 2008 Platinum List, an annual readers' choice guide to what the publication touts as the "best-of-the-best" travel and vacation experiences in the world.

For more information visit www.windstarcruises.com

Carnival Pride Sailing Out of Baltimore

Carnival Cruise Lines will launch the first year-round cruise program from the Port of Baltimore with seven-day cruises aboard the 88,500-ton, 2,124-passenger Carnival Pride beginning in fall 2009.

The new program kicks off Sept. 13, 2009, and encompasses two weeklong itineraries departing Sundays. The "Exotic Eastern Caribbean" cruises will call at Grand Turk, Half Moon Cay and Freeport, while the Bahamas/Florida departures will visit Port Canaveral, Nassau and Freeport.

Carnival expects that the Pride will carry more than 115,000 guests annually from the Port of Baltimore.

Including its new Baltimore program, Carnival will operate from 17 North American departure points, including 11 year-round homeports, which it says is the most of any cruise operator.

Prior to the start-up of year-round seven-day cruises, Carnival Pride will operate a one-time six-day voyage round-trip from Baltimore Sept. 7 to 13, 2009. Featured ports on this voyage include Freeport and Port Canaveral.

Reservations are currently being accepted for the new departures from Baltimore.