With interest in Arctic travel soaring, Hurtigruten has launched four new expedition itineraries on MS Maud for 2023.

The itineraries are:

Ring of Fire and Ice: Circumnavigation of Iceland. 11 days, prices starting at $7,589 per person. Sailing in July 2023 and July 2024, the Maud will circumnavigate Iceland, with nine stops, including Grimsey on the Arctic Circle, home to colonies of Atlantic puffins. Read the rest of this entry »

The best evidence that the cruise market is in flux and subject to wild changes is that Douglas Ward’s Berlitz Cruising & Cruise Ships hasn’t been updated since 2020. The Berlitz Guide used to sit on most travel agents’ desks. For 35 years, it could be counted on to give clients a two-page summary of every vessel promoted to clients by American travel advisors. It was more than a mere directory. The 754-pages of the 2020 edition rated the accommodations, cuisine, and service on each ship. It was the final word on ship statistics, so that passenger space ratios, passenger crew ratios, and tonnage could be reliably compared.

In my 2019 Amazon book, How to Plan Your Next & BEST Cruise: Secrets of Selecting Cruises, Ships & Destinations, I used Douglas Ward’s data in every chapter to show readers how to move beyond the ads and hype, and to make viable comparisons among cruise ships they were considering.  Read the rest of this entry »