Your Cruise Express July 2014 E-Newsletter
Celebrate with Us
More of us are cruising than ever before as our news story below confirms which is why we are expecting record numbers at our annual Cruise Express customer celebrations and reunions this October and November. Our events in Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide and Perth are filling up quickly so be sure to book your seat today before they sell out. Catch up with old friends, make new ones and meet the Cruise Express team as we celebrate our love for cruising. Bring your friends along too for what promises to be a fun get-together on or near the water. We are particularly looking forward to meeting our growing number of clients in Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia and Victoria. Details for all five events around Australia are below. We hope you can join us but until then, we hope something in our July newsletter inspires your next holiday at sea.

‘Friends of Cruise Express’
Annual Customer Celebration and Reunion Events

 
Brisbane – Saturday October 18, 2014 aboard the vessel, Kookaburra River Queen
Melbourne – Sunday October 19, 2014, at Loft Watermark, Port Melbourne
Sydney – Sunday October 26, 2014, aboard the vessel, Sydney Harbour Ballroom
Adelaide – Saturday November 1, 2014, at Sammys on the Marina, Glenelg
Perth – Sunday November 2, 2014, at The Naked Fig, Swanbourne
 
All events start at noon and conclude around 2.30pm. Priced at just $69 per person including full luncheon and drinks.
To book:


^ Guests at last year's celebration and reunion
Bon Voyage from Meg, Hardy, Clive & the team!
Any Cruise, Anywhere, Anytime – cruiseexpress.com.au



Time is running out to enter our amazing competition which could see you win a luxurious all-inclusive 13-night cruise for two aboard the deluxe Azamara Quest from India to Singapore in an ocean-view stateroom this December. Our prize also includes return flights, a night pre-cruise in Chennai, India, and transfers.

A holiday with Azamara Cruises is a very special experience. Boasting the atmosphere of a plush, boutique hotel, each of Azamara’s elegant, mid-sized ships offers warm, personal service, complimentary beverages, exclusive cultural events ashore and longer stays in unusual ports not visited by bigger ships.

Enter today on our website and if you share news of the competition with your friends and they mention your name when entering, you will score a bonus entry in the contest.  Good luck!
To enter competition:



~ Tours may be escorted or locally hosted, depending on final group numbers.

Just Released!
2015 Africa Cruise Tours with QM2

March, 2015
Receive up to US$300 Onboard Spending Credit
If you haven’t experienced one of our exciting hosted cruise tours to Africa with Queen Mary 2 then make 2015 the year you explore the world’s wildest continent with us. Every year clients return from Africa glowing about how much they enjoyed the experience – read their letters for yourself.  We hope you can join us in March and April, 2015, when we will offer three packages ranging in length from 19 to 31 nights.
To read the testimonials:

Our Taste of Africa package includes a voyage aboard the majestic Queen Mary 2 from Australia to South Africa and three days in Cape Town before flying home. Our African Encounter package adds in two days at a safari camp in Kruger National Park where you will look for Africa’s iconic wild animals while our Icons of Africa package includes Cape Town, Kruger and also two days at spectacular Victoria Falls. Our cruise, tour and fly packages start from only $5490 per person, twin-share, and if you book soon, you will receive an onboard spending credit of US$150 per cabin for inside and ocean-view staterooms and US$300 per cabin for other staterooms including balcony cabins. 
For more information:

or call us on 1300 766 537


Experience a Magical Christmas on the Danube

  Bookings closing soon 
 
Many Australians celebrate Christmas in July to experience some of the magic of winter festivities but this year why not enjoy the real thing on our special Christmas on the Danube cruise tour. Imagine the winter delights of enchanting Christmas markets in medieval squares, Christmas Eve midnight mass, a horse-drawn wagon ride through the Bavarian Forest, a visit to world-famous Neuschwanstein Castle and Christmas dinner aboard Uniworld’s deluxe river ship, River Empress. You’ll tour Bavaria for four nights and then spend 12 nights cruising the Danube from Nuremberg to Budapest. Adding to the magic is a New Year’s ball in a regal Viennese palace and the baroque splendour of Salzburg and Vienna.
For more information:

or call us on 1300 766 537

 
Luxury 5-star cruising on the Spice Route to Rome
March 2015

 
We all deserve a bit of luxury once in a while.  Our 5-star ‘Spice Route to Rome’ package next March will see you enjoy a red carpet holiday from Asia to Europe, with non-stop pampering. Our 34-night cruise tour includes a flight to Singapore for a deluxe overnight stay, a voyage on the plush Celebrity Century to Italy via nine ports in India, Arabia, Israel and Greece and 3 luxurious days in Rome including a tour of the Vatican and your flight home. Fares for living the high life for over a month start at just $6990 per person, twin-share, or from $9990 for solo travellers.
For more information:

or call us on 1300 766 537


2015 Voyage to Lone Pine - Last Cabins!
  Including Special Offer for Serving or Ex Defence Personnel
 
Make your own special pilgrimage to Gallipoli for the 100th anniversary of the Anzac landings next year without the crowds. Our 50-day ‘Voyage to Lone Pine’ cruise tour will see you sail from Sydney on April 17, 2015, aboard the luxurious Rhapsody of the Seas for a 45-night journey through Asia, Arabia and the Greek Islands to Istanbul. In Turkey, we’ll take you on an overnight trip to Gallipoli for a private and crowd-free commemoration at Anzac Cove on June 1, 2015, little more than a month after the official centenary of the legendary landings.

Including a flight back home, this special package is available from $10,990 per person, twin-share, in an ocean-view cabin but hurry as the last cabins are now selling. We’re also offering serving or former Australian defence personnel, as well as widows and widowers of defence personnel a $250 onboard spending credit per cabin.
For more information:

or call us on 1300 766 537


100 Years of Anzac
April, 2015
Book Before July 31 for Free Bonuses

 
This Anzac centenary package will see you cruise off Anzac Cove at dawn on April 25, 2015, for the 100th anniversary of the Anzac landings at Gallipoli. The next day, you will step ashore on the historic sands of Anzac Cove itself as part of a full day tour of the Gallipoli Peninsula.  Our special ‘Spirit of the Mediterranean’ package includes three nights in Rome, a half-day city tour and a 12-night luxury voyage aboard Celebrity Constellation.  

You’ll also visit the exotic temples and bazaars of Istanbul as well as ancient Athens, enchanting Santorini and cosmopolitan Naples before returning to Rome. Departing Australia April 18, 2015, our 17 night package is available from $6490 per person, twin share, or from $8990 for solo passengers, including return flights to Rome and onboard gratuities. And if you book before July 31, you will receive an onboard spending credit of up to US$300 per cabin or a free cruise drinks package. Conditions apply.
For more information:

or call us on 1300 766 537


Taj Mahal to Singapore
  New Reduced Fares
 
Fares have been reduced on our exclusive and ultra-luxurious ‘Taj Mahal to Singapore’ cruise tour with Azamara Cruises this November. Our 23-night package offers serious 5-star pampering, starting with a 10-day tour of India, staying in opulent palace hotels fit for royalty. After visiting the majestic Taj Mahal, you’ll be pampered for 13 nights aboard Azamara Quest as you sail from India to Singapore, with beverages and an unforgettable evening of song and dance in Burma all included. Including return flights, fares are now available from $9990 per person, twin-share, or from $12,990 for solo travellers.
For more information:

or call us on 1300 766 537


A Luxurious Passage to India
March, 2015

  New Package Released
A complimentary glass of champagne will greet you in Singapore as you begin your pampered passage to India aboard the luxurious Seabourn Sojourn next March. Tailor-made for the discerning traveller who likes their luxuries and is keen to explore exotic cultures, our red carpet cruise tour will see you live it up at sea in style for 17 days as you enjoy the club-style refinement, gourmet cuisine, open bar and gracious service Seabourn is famous for. You will visit Malaysia, Thailand and exotic Myanmar, with its dazzling, golden pagodas, before you reach India. Your adventure then continues overland on a 10-day tour of colourful Rajasthan with its elaborate forts and palaces, fragrant bazaars, walled cities and, of course, the wondrous Taj Mahal.  You’ll enjoy five-star luxury the whole way, staying in opulent hotels fit for a maharaja.
For more information:

or call us on 1300 766 537


Sail to the Monaco Grand Prix in Glamour and Style
May, 2015

  New Luxury Fly, Sail and Race Package
 
Tickets to the famous Monaco Grand Prix are included in our new package which offers you the  chance to mingle with the rich and famous and live it up for eight days aboard the luxurious mega yacht, Wind Surf in May, 2015. Two nights in a five-star hotel in Rome offer a prelude to 8 nights aboard the 310-passenger, five-masted yacht, Wind Surf. You’ll swan around the Italian and French Rivieras and spend 2 days in Monte Carlo for the 2015 running of the prestigious Monaco Grand Prix, with tickets to the event included. Exclusive cocktail parties are also on the menu so fire up your engines and book your place on the start line for this unique and glamorous holiday.
For more information:

or call us on 1300 766 537


The World’s Most Beautiful Islands in One Holiday
April, 2015

Some of the world's most beautiful islands feature in a new cruise package to Tahiti and Hawaii we are offering aboard the stylish superliner, Celebrity Solstice next April.  From Sydney, you will sail for 18 nights to New Zealand, the idyllic Tahitian islands of Bora Bora and Moorea and the beautiful Hawaiian isle of Maui before disembarking in Honolulu for a two night stay near Waikiki Beach and a tour of Pearl Harbour. You can then fly home to Australia or spend another three nights on the lush Hawaiian island of Kauai, famous for the spectacular cliffs on the Na Pali coast which have appeared in many films such as South Pacific and King Kong.

You will also spend a full day exploring the breathtaking 1km deep Waimea Canyon - described as the Grand Canyon of the Pacific. Package fares start at $6290 per person, twin-share, in a balcony cabin, including onboard gratuities.
For more information:

or call us on 1300 766 537



Australian Cruise Market the Fastest Growing in the World
The Australian cruise industry is now ranked number one in the world for market growth, with a record 833,348 Australians taking a cruise last year. Maybe you were one of them! New figures from Cruise Lines International Association show Australian cruise passenger numbers soared 20 per cent in 2013 – more than double the growth of any other major cruise market. The statistics mean an unprecedented 3.6 per cent of Australians took a cruise last year - the highest rate in the world, compared to the 3.3 per cent of Americans, 2.5 per cent of British. 2.1 per cent of Germans and 1.4 per cent of Italians who cruised in 2013.

Facelift for Queen Elizabeth – Including New Single Cabins
 
Cunard Line has released a video showing the transformation of Queen Elizabeth during her recent multi-million dollar refit, including the addition of nine single staterooms. Also added were new carpets, new   mattresses and flatscreen TVs in all cabins, shade awnings on the sun deck and new-look dining and shopping areas. Growing numbers of single passengers have prompted Cunard to offer solo travellers special activities organised by social hostesses on all three Cunard Liners, including a welcome reception on embarkation day, coffee and cookies every sea day morning and specially organised meeting points and excursions on port days.
To watch the transformation:



How Suite is This?
 
Five-star liner, Seabourn Odyssey, will sport four new luxurious penthouse spa suites when she begins her summer Australian season this December. The suites offer 50m² of indoor space and large private verandas with floor-to-ceiling windows. The plush rooms also feature a living and dining area, a separate bedroom, walk-in closet, a bathroom with a tub and special spa shower and two flat screen TVs. The indulgence continues with an in-suite bar stocked with flavoured water, fruit juices and healthy snacks. There’s also soothing music and special spa products in the bathrooms.


Crikey, What's in a Name?
 
Skippy, Blinky, Crikey, Croc, Pizzaz and Charisma were among the 20,000 names suggested by Australians in a public contest run by P&O Cruises to name two ships to be added to the line’s local fleet from November, 2015. Dream, Starlight, Moonlight and Twilight were also popular but in the end P&O Cruises decided on Pacific Aria and Pacific Eden as the new names for the two 1300-passenger Holland America line vessels, Ryndam and Statendam, which will boost P&O Cruises’ year-round fleet in Australia to five ships. Stay tuned for itineraries for the new ships.

Above, the new ship names are announced in the sand on Bondi Beach.  Seen right the two new ships transit the Panama Canal.

New Ultra Luxurious Cruise from Australia
Here’s one for earlybirds who like to plan ahead...Acclaimed, ultra luxury cruise line, Crystal Cruises, will offer its first-ever round-trip voyage from Sydney in January, 2017. The 21-day voyage aboard Crystal Symphony will take pampered passengers to the Great Barrier Reef, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Fiji and New Caledonia..  Remember with Crystal Cruises your drinks, gratuities, welcome champagne and specialty restaurant dining are all included in the fare.
For more information:

or call us on 1300 766 537

A Very Fast Shore Tour
 
Crystal Cruises has also launched new jogging cruise tours for fit passengers who want to see lots of local sights as quickly as possible without stopping. The guided runs are from 5-10km in length and are available in ports like Dubrovnik, St Petersburg, Monte Carlo and Amsterdam. A great way to work off all the caviar served onboard!

Embarkation Day
 
It's the day you've been waiting for... time to board your cruise ship and begin your long awaited, much deserved holiday! So what's the best approach to embarkation day?
To read our top 10 tips:

or call us on 1300 766 537

 
From the cruising experts at Cruise Express

Cruise Express hosted around 200 people on our Mediterranean and northern Europe cruise tours in May and June. Many clients have written to us about how much they enjoyed their travels. Here are some samples…
To view photos from the May and June trips:

  “Many words cannot express the wonderful trip we have just had with Cruise Express in Europe but one word can and that is 'WOW'! We had never been on a guided tour before and we had the time of our lives in both the Mediterranean and the Baltic. We made many new friends (including the staff from Cruise Express) on the fun-packed trip and we look forward to meeting them all again at the Cruise Express reunion celebration in October. We realise many of your staff were involved in the organisation of this trip so thank you all most sincerely.”
Dennis and Barbara, Lugarno, NSW
           
Barbara (left) & Dennis (right) in St. Petersburg with local guide Ludmilla
           
  “My holiday with Cruise Express in the Mediterranean was just so wonderful, fantastic and awesome. The only complaint I have is that it is now over. But what a lot of happy memories there are to look back on. Hardy and his Cruise Express team were at their professional best as always – nothing was too much trouble for them. Our time in Rome before the cruise was just fantastic and what a great way to start the trip off with welcome dinner on the first night. The only word for our ship, Celebrity Reflection, was WOW. I was going to fake a loss of memory and forget to get off the ship at the end of the cruise but it didn’t work! Our group was great – so much fun and laughter all the way. This was my second trip with Cruise Express and I would like to think it won’t be my last. A big thank-you also to Carla in the office at Cruise Express for all the behind-the-scenes work she does to make your trips a success. Thank you so much Cruise Express. You are simply the best!
Connie, Caringbah, NSW   

Connie at the Ephesus ruins in Turkey

  “Thank you for organising our great trip overseas with you in May and June this year. We did the Mediterranean and the Baltic tours with Cruise Express and we can say that the organisation, attention to detail and the care and good humour shown by your company were all very much appreciated.  You even organised good weather!  Now that’s really something.  A big thank you to Hardy, Graham, Helen and David from Cruise Express for a job well done and much appreciated. We hope to be able to travel with you again and have certainly passed on the details of our experiences to friends thinking of travelling.”
Bob and Kerrie, Caringbah South, NSW.

Bob & Kerrie in Paris
  “Our holiday with Hardy, Graham, Helen and David from Cruise Express in the Mediterranean and the Baltic was wonderful. Everything was professionally done – we didn’t have to organise anything. The accommodation and cocktail parties on both Celebrity ships were wonderful also. We saw some amazing places and met some wonderful people. We can’t thank Hardy and Graham enough – they made our trip trouble-free. We won’t hesitate to book again and to recommend to others.”
Charles and Christine, Chipping Norton, NSW
   
Charles &  Christine at the Blue Mosque in Istanbul                               
  “To the Cruise Express team - a quick note to thank you all for a wonderful holiday hosted by Cruise Express in the Mediterranean in May. We really enjoyed all our shore excursions which were all organised so well and were led by our wonderful team leaders from Cruise Express -  Hardy, David, Graham and Helen. The visit to Gallipoli was a real highlight - very emotional. Our ship, Celebrity Reflection, was beautiful and we thoroughly enjoyed our time aboard her. Hardy, David, Graham and Helen were all so cheerful and helpful. They really made our holiday one to be remembered. We also want to thank the staff in the office who were all so very helpful every time we had to contact them. Thank you all so much for a terrific holiday.”
Aldo & Carol, Winston Hills, NSW

  “My cruise tour with Cruise Express in the Mediterranean in May exceeded my expectations. I had never travelled with a large group before and was not sure what to expect. However, I was most impressed with the service provided. All the tours were well organised and trouble-free. I got to see more places than I would have done if I’d been on my own. Also, as a non-gregarious person travelling on my own, I was concerned that I would find it difficult to make new friends. I needn’t have worried, and have exchanged contact details with a number of  fellow passengers. There was also the comfort that if anything did go wrong, it would be quickly sorted out. I tell everyone I meet now what a great company Cruise Express is. Many thanks for a wonderful experience.”
Peter, Engadine, NSW

Peter with Helen from Cruise Express in Europe
  “We wish to thank the Cruise Express team for making our first ever overseas  cruising holiday a most memorable experience. Hardy, Helen, David and Graham from Cruise Express were all extremely generous with their time and knowledge. They were all such nice people - nothing was too much trouble. Everything was planned so well and all the shore tours were amazing. It all seemed so effortless but we know a lot of work must have gone into the trip. We would not hesitate to book again for a holiday in the future.”
Margaret and Warren, Seven Hills, NSW

Did you Know?
And you thought your shopping bill was expensive?  In a typical year, P&O Cruises Australia foots the bill for a lengthy shopping list that includes 3.3 million eggs, 589 tonnes of poultry, 148 tonnes of bacon, 1100 tonnes of fruit and 341 tonnes of vegetables. To help wash that down, 260,000 bottles of Australian wine is ordered each year from local wineries along with 60,000 litres of milk products.
 
Also - did you know that Avalon Waterways stocks each bathroom on its deluxe river ships with different coloured towels so each passenger knows which towel is theirs?
Duck on Tour
There’s nothing plastic about our travel-hungry mascot, Duck, who was very active and lively during the two successful cruise tours Cruise Express Director, Hardy Schneider, and our team recently hosted in the Mediterranean and northern Europe. And when a camera comes out, our yellow friend never ducks for cover, as you can see from the photo gallery on our website - Among the many famous sites at which Duck proudly flaunted his feathers was the Little Mermaid statue in Copenhagen (pictured). After a brief nesting period, Duck will fly (with the help of a jet as he’s a tad lazy) to Europe again at the end of July to help host our sold-out British Isles cruise tour. Will Duck get to meet the Queen when he waddles inside Buckingham Palace with our clients? Stay tuned to find out!


Jokes Afloat!

Cruising for a Diagnosis
A man on a cruise rushed to the ship’s doctor crying, “Doctor, doctor, no matter where I touch myself it hurts. “Show me what you mean,” said the doctor.  So the man touched himself on the nose and cried out in pain. He touched himself on his chest and screamed from the pain. He then touched himself in another twelve places and every time it hurt, making him squeal. “What’s wrong with me doctor?” he asked. “How come I hurt everywhere?” “Because,” replied the doctor, “you have a broken finger!”
 
 
DISCLAIMER:  *All fares quoted herewith are subject to change without notice and availability at the time of booking. 
T : 1300 766 537
 
                         
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