While some cruises sail from San Francisco, Ensendad in Mexico and Vancouver making continuous round trips, other cruises simply circumnavigate Hawaii and islands further away such as Fanning Island and Christmas island. Cruises from main ports in the USA, Mexico and Canada avoid the additional airfare, but less time is spent actually on the Hawaiian islands. However, starting and finishing in a major city port means that the cruise can be extended with a two or three day vacation in the city before flying home. There are pros and cons to each option. All Hawaiian cruises last at least 7 nights, and many are as long as 15 nights.

Days ashore in one of the ports will include trips to see some of the highlights, and each island is different from the next. The only common shore excursions will be those to the beach, and those visiting a Luau where Hawaiian cultural dance, drumming, fire knife dancing and song is demonstrated and usually traditional floral leis are distributed.

On Hawaii’s Big Island, the Volcanoes National Park has the only two active volcanoes in Hawaii. The Thurston lava tube and the Observatory can be visited. After dark the lava glows orange and steam can be seen as it hits the cool sea water. You can walk to Akaka Falls which drop an impressive 442 feet or visit a coffee plantation.

On Kauai, known as the Garden Isle, cruisers can tour the Botanical Gardens or visit the 10 mile long Waimea Canyon. Maui is known for its pineapple growing. You can fly over the island on a helicopter tour, see the whales nursing their young or visit one of the market places to shop. Oahu is home to Pearl Harbor where there is a memorial and visitor center. This island is known for its surfing competitions and the Kawaiahao church made of coral.

In between ports there is plenty to do on board your cruise ship. Eating, sunbathing, enjoying the spa, attending clubs, lectures and demonstrations are all part of cruise life. The cruise ship casino will also be open when the ship is offshore and is a popular way for those who enjoy gambling to spend their time. The casinos are very professional and cruise ship gambling is a popular pastime with many cruise guests. Slot machines and many gaming tables are offered on most cruise ships.

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This trip is highly recommended and better still, if you book in November, you can also sail on the two week relocation cruise from Miami, across the Caribbean, through the Panama Canal and down to Valparaiso with stops in Cartagena, Colombia; Manta, Ecuador and Lima, Peru. Trips can also be arranged from this cruise to the ruined city of Machu Picchu high in the Andes.

Life onboard these 14 night cruises (28 nights if you sail from Miami) settle into a pleasant routine of dining and entertainment onboard on sea days. The shows and casinos during the evening offer excellent entertainment. The casinos are Las Vegas style in very pleasant surroundings and the casino staff are patient with new players and friendly, particularly as they meet the same guests each evening and get to know them. The cruise has many slot machines in the casino and poker, roulette, craps and other popular gambling tables offering a very pleasant way to spend the evening.

This exceptional South American cruise offers many different ports and experiences from shanty towns to magnificent palaces; snow capped mountains to lakes and a unique chance to see llamas, penguins, seabirds and whales.

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The northern part of Norway lies within the Arctic circle, where cruises give passengers a unique chance to visit this sparsely populated land of tundra, glaciers and waterfalls. Tromso is the main city within the Arctic Circle and it has great museums and wildlife. It also offers the chance to experience the ‘midnight sun’ as dusk is swiftly followed by dawn during the summer in these northern areas. During the winter, the sun barely breaks over the horizon, creating almost totally dark days. The northern lights, called the Aurora Borealis, are another wonderful natural phenomenon as brightly colored lights can be seen dancing across the sky. They are caused by electrons colliding with air particles in the earth’s magnetic field.

One of the most popular ports on a Norwegian cruise is Bergen, with its colorful shops along the wharf. The town is full of narrow cobbled streets and quaint shops. Oslo features on some cruises, although the landscape around Oslo is flatter and less dramatic. A Christmas cruise can be particularly beautiful with the opportunity to ride snowmobiles, take a horse drawn sleigh ride, walk on a glacier and ski.

Mail boat cruises along the Norwegian coastline are very popular. They are on smaller ships and call at all the isolated communities delivering essential supplies and mail. Onboard all these cruises the food is legendary with many smorgasbord meals featuring fresh smoked salmon, fish and seafood which Norway is so famous for. Entertainment usually includes a Monte Carlo themed casino onboard which offers traditional gambling on slot machines, at poker tables and playing roulette.

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Bahamas cruises are an extremely popular route offering almost guaranteed sunshine, temperatures over 80F year round, white sand beaches and the clearest aquamarine water you will ever see. Carnival Cruise Lines, amongst others, offers short 2 and 3 night cruises from Miami and Fort Lauderdale whilst Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Cunard, Disney, Princess and Norwegian Cruise Lines offer the Bahamas as ports of call on longer 7-day cruises around the Caribbean.

The main ports of call on the Bahamas are Freeport and Nassau. Both are large ports which can easily cater for several cruise ships at a time. In Nassau, guests literally step off the ship and are in the heart of the town. For Duty Free goods, jewelry and designer shops both ports are excellent, but there are also plenty of cheap clothing shops and souvenir-type stores. It is interesting to walk around the Old Town in Nassau where there are colonial style buildings and gardens. Nassau also offers excellent casinos for those who enjoy gambling, or you can take a trip to Paradise Island and buy a day’s pass to the water park at the world famous Atlantis Resort. Freeport is just 50 miles east of Miami. With many beaches, an International bazaar and a large casino it makes a great day ashore.

Trips are offered to Cable Beach from Nassau, which is really beautiful. One tip is to avoid the high priced ship’s tour and pick up a taxi in town to take you for an agreed fee. It is not far, so the fare is low. A delicious buffet lunch is offered by the local five star hotel which is well worth visiting, and once again paying the hotel rather than booking lunch through the ship will save you at least $6 a head.

Some Bahamas cruises own a private Caribbean Island and these are a whole different experience ashore. Norwegian Cruise Lines began this clever idea in the 1970s by buying Great Stirrup Cay and Disney owns Castaway Cay. The islands, or cays, are largely uninhabited but the ships create their own trips including horseback riding on Half Moon Cay in Holland America’s case! With no high rise buildings or local souvenir touts, you can lounge in a hammock or snooze on a sun bed. Lunch is served, often with a barbecue, and it is an extension to shipboard life, but ashore. You can play volleyball, go for a walk or rent snorkeling equipment or boats and have a beautiful day on the beach in an idyllic setting.

After a day ashore, all cruise ships sail in the early evening and once offshore for 3 miles the onboard casinos will open for the night. With a selection of slot machines, poker tables, roulette and other activities, a sunshine cruise around the Bahamas is an excellent choice.

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Apart from Las Vegas and Atlantic City, most US gambling continues to be enjoyed aboard a gambling cruise, which often lasts for a day or just for the evening. These ‘cruises to nowhere’ usually offer a pleasant trip with barbecue buffets and excellent meals coupled with the opportunity to try your luck at one of the gaming tables or pump the slot machines.

A whole host of casino cruises operate from the ports of Florida, particularly from Port Everglades, Fort Lauderdale, Key Largo and Port Canaveral. Companies such as Discovery Cruise line sail to the Bahamas daily at 7.45am and return at 10pm. The low cost includes an all-you-can-eat breakfast, pool deck entertainment for all the family, bars, music and a Las Vegas rules Casino with the usual assortment of slots and gaming tables. There is a three hour stop at Freeport, Grand Bahamas Island, and then a return trip including a buffet dinner. These gambling cruises continue to be popular with families, groups and couples looking for a fun day out with a little cruise ship gambling too. Longer cruises on larger cruise ships can be from one to three days and again offer onboard nighttime entertainment and cabins while days can be spent ashore in Nassau or Freeport.

In Georgia, the Emerald Princess Casino offers snacks and a fully stocked bar as well as slots, poker and roulette. The cruise director keeps the party in full swing with Bonanza Bingo. Day trips sail from 11am to 4pm and evening cruises are from 7pm to midnight. Luxury gaming yachts fro gambling cruises are based in Myrtle Beach and Big M offers an upmarket casino cruise with food, gambling and live entertainment.

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Mediterranean cruises are provided by many different cruise companies offering a choice of itineraries and different starting and finishing ports. Cruises can also be combined with a few days in a city such as London, Amsterdam or Athens at the beginning or end of the cruise, making this an easy way to see your chosen dream destinations.

Cruises are offered at many different price levels by an assortment of cruise lines. Royal Caribbean and Celebrity cruise cater to the mass markets along with Holland America, Costa Cruises, Princess, P and O and Carnival. More luxurious, upmarket cruises are offered by Cunard Cruise Line on the Queen May II or the new Queen Victoria. Crystal Cruises and Silversea offer smaller ships with ultra-attentive service and amenities while Seabourn Cruise Line and Windstar offer luxury yachts with unparalleled staff to guest ratios. Itineraries offer many different ports in the Mediterranean from Gibraltar to Athens.

Although these cruises are chosen for their ports of call, times in between are filled with onboard activities such as shopping, beauty treatments, fun competitions, live music, pool activities, classes and demonstration and lectures about the next port of call. Food is a large part of the cruise experience with huge buffets, silver service 5-course dinner menus, afternoon tea, chocolate parties and more; all part of the inclusive cruise pleasures. Live entertainment and shows may occupy your evening or try your hand at gambling in the onboard cruise casino.

Cruise ship gambling is popular with many cruisers. Lessons may be offered during the day for novices and generally the atmosphere is of friendly fun. The dealers are professional but patient with new players. Cruise ship casinos are much smaller than Las Vegas casinos and like the rest of the ship are beautifully designed and equipped. Most cruise ship casinos offer roulette, craps, baccarat and several blackjack tables. There are plenty of slot machines too for those who like to try their hand with lady luck. Best of all, at the end of the evening, your cabin is only a short walk away!

Whichever cruise line you choose, and wherever you travel, a Mediterranean cruise is an excellent way to see some amazing sights and enjoy a rich cultural experience, returning each night to a comfortable bed and excellent on-board cuisine.

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Cruises are very family friendly and allow freedom for youngsters that could not be enjoyed in a hotel and resort vacation ashore. Provided that children understand the basic rules of safety, they are in a contained environment with plenty of activities night and day. Ensure that your child knows how to get to the main reception desk in case of an emergency.

Keeping in touch with your independent offspring is not easy as cell phones do not work away from ports. Many ships offer handset radios which can be rented to keep children in touch with parents and vice versa. This is essential if you want to make arrangements to dine together, or to enforce a bedtime!

Carnival cruise lines are particularly family-friendly and market themselves as ‘fun’ cruises. Camp Carnival has onboard activities for children from 2 to 14 and has excellent games rooms and amenities for all sorts of team fun. Babysitting can be arranged for an additional fee, and teens can go on their own shore excursions. Similar clubs and activities are offered by other lines, but Cunard excels with British nannies and fully trained children’s nurses employed for their mainly British clientele. Disney is a well-loved brand for children’s entertainment and they also excel at children’s programs and events. Although Regent Seven Seas offers luxury cruises for adults, during the summer holidays they do add youth counselors on select Alaska and Tahiti cruises with such lecturers as Jean-Michel Cousteau to share his Ocean Futures Society knowledge, teaching youngsters how to be responsible members of our planet.

While the children enjoy their fun and games, adults are free to enjoy the more adults-only entertainment onboard which includes shows and casino gambling. Cruise ship casinos offer the very best gambling entertainment with slot machines, blackjack tables, roulette, craps and baccarat so all the family can enjoy their favorite activities.

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Although once the domain of the hardy explorer, with the advent of cruises for the mass market Alaska is now accessible to most adventurous tourists. During the summer months, many cruise lines ply the Gulf of Alaska calling in at ports such as Juneau, Sitka, Skagway, Haines and Ketchikan. Glacier Bay National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage site and deservedly so although there are plenty of other wonderful sights in this final frontier of unspoiled wilderness. See glaciers break off in huge chunks, called calving, wildflower meadows, brown bears, humpback whales, sea lions, killer whales, moose and puffins in this stunning beautiful environment. The Inside passage is a narrow fjord passing between towering mountains and colorful waterfront communities. In September the Fall colors appear and make a stunning picture against the snow-capped mountains.

Cruising makes a trip to Alaska extremely accessible. It is sparsely inhabited with very few hotels and restaurants and would be unable to cope with tourists en masse driving and touring the area independently. For tourists, being transported from place to place with some spectacular scenery from the Inside Passage, cruising is the best, cheapest and easiest way to experience Alaska. Glaciers and icebergs are the main focal points for excursions ashore where cruisers can take a helicopter trip to view the scenery, go hiking up the ice-blue glacier with crampons, ski and snowboard, ride a snowmobile or take a traditional sleigh ride drawn by pony or traditional husky dog team. Meltwater from the glaciers creates amazing waterfalls.

Other wonderful sights and experiences offered from the warmth and comfort of your Alaskan cruise ships are whale watching and seeing the Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights. This surreal phenomenon is created when electrons collide with air particles in the earth’s magnetic field. The result is a display of colored lights dancing across the sky in bright greens, purples, oranges and reds. However, it has to be dark before this natural light show can be seen, and Alaska is known for its long summer days, with dusk closely followed a few hours later by an early dawn. Further north, in the Arctic circle, there is continuous daylight during June, and conversely in the winter, December sees continuous darkness.

While cruise lines offer mobile accommodation and excellent cuisine, there is also plenty of entertainment whilst cruising between ports. Lectures about Alaska give a rich insight into the area, or play organized card games, read in the library or watch a film. After dark, the casino offers entertainment to suit all skill levels. With blackjack tables, roulette, baccarat and plenty of slots, everyone is made welcome from the novice to the semi-professional player. Lessons are offered generally at the beginning of the cruise and regular cruisers may get vouchers for free chips or two-for-one bets in their loyalty package.

Cruises to Alaska are offered from May to September by Carnival, Celebrity, Holland America, Norwegian Cruise Line, Princess cruises and Cruise West as well as other leading tour companies. Booking an Alaskan cruise will certainly be a once in a lifetime experience and you will witness some breathtaking scenery and undoubtedly enjoy some wonderful experiences.

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