One Year Until Maiden Voyage of Cunard's New Queen Elizabeth

The countdown has begun! In just one year Cunard's newest ocean liner, the Queen Elizabeth, will set sail on her 13-night maiden voyage out of Southampton, UK. This cruise has been sold out for quite some time and there's a hefty waitlist. Cunard fans are thrilled to welcome a new Queen to the family.

Maiden Voyage Itinerary

1. Southampton, UK
   
2. At Sea
3. Vigo, Spain
   
4. Lisbon, Portugal
   
5. Cadiz, Spain
   
6. At Sea
7. Gran Canaria, Canary Islands
   
8. Tenerife, Canary Islands
   
9. La Palma, Canary Islands
   
10. Madeira, Portugal
    
11. At Sea
12. At Sea
13. At Sea
14. Southampton, UK
    

Queen Elizabeth will be much like her sister ship, Queen Victoria. There will be four categories of accommodation: Britannia Stateroom, Britannia Club Balcony, Princess Grill, and Queens Grill. The Princess Grill and Queens Grill—with their private lounges, dining rooms, and priority embarkation/disembarkation—are the best bets if you're used to sailing the top luxury cruise lines. The Britannia categories are more akin to a mass market experience.

All About the New Queen Elizabeth

• Passengers: 2,092
• Guest Decks: 12
• Gross Tonnage: 90,400 tons
• Length: 964.5 feet
• Width: 106 feet
• Draft: 25.9 feet
• Height: 179 feet
• 85 % of staterooms are outside
• 71% of staterooms feature balconies
• 12% of the accommodations are Grills Suites

For more information about Cunard's Queen Elizabeth, talk with your travel agent or contact Cunard at 1-(800)-7-CUNARD.

—Andrea M. Rotondo for LuxuryCruiseBible.com

Make-A-Wish to Host Oasis of the Seas Inaguration

The Make-A-Wish Foundation of Southern Florida and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines will be hosting the inauguration of Oasis of the Seas, which will set sail on Monday, November 30th for a one-night cruise to nowhere from Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale.

Guests are invited to be the first to experience the innovation and imagination of the world’s largest cruise ship, where entertainment areas are transformed into neighborhoods complete with the lush green beauty of Central Park and a magnificent Boardwalk carousel. Suites are redefined as swank lofts on the 16 decks of this grand floating palace.

The goal of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Southern Florida is to raise more than $1 million locally to grant the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions and give them much-needed hope, strength, and joy.

Individual, corporate, and ultimate sponsorship packages will be available for this one-night event. For more information, call (954) 967-9474 or visit the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Southern Florida web site. You can also find them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter.

Seabourn Nixes 2010–2011 Indian Ocean Sailings; Fear of Pirate Attacks

There's bound to be some disappointed travelers today due to Seabourn's announcement that Seabourn Legend will not sail its five-month, 15-cruise stint in the Indian Ocean in the latter part of 2010 and early 2011. Caribbean cruises will replace the original schedule.

Seabourn president Pamela Conover said the decision was made with regrets. However, the company feels the risk of pirate attacks is too great. (You'll recall that Seabourn Spirit was attacked in the Indian Ocean in 2005.)

Ms. Conover said in a statement, "It makes me sad to have to cancel these cruises. I personally loved touring Kenya's game parks, and the islands of the Seychelles, Madagascar, and Zanzibar are lovely and exotic destinations where we sincerely had hoped to be able to take our guests. We look forward to a time when the sea routes are controlled enough for us to cruise there for a season."

Seabourn will contact any passengers (via their travel agents) regarding this change and will offer further discounts and onboard credits if they rebook an alternative sailing. If it were me, I'd rebook on one of these itineraries:

Gems of the Java Sea
Seabourn Spirit
January 12, 2011 (10 days)
Singapore to Benoa, Bali (Indonesia) via Kuching, Borneo, Malaysia and the following ports of call in Indonesia: Karimunjawa, Semarang/Java, Lembar/Lombok, and Padang Bay/Bali.

or

Spice Islands Discoveries
Seabourn Spirit
January 22, 2011 (12 days)
Benoa, Bali (Indonesia) to Singapore via Indonesian ports of call Komodo Island, Palopo/Sulawesi, Ujung Pandang; Malaysia stops in Sandakan/Borneo and Koto Kinabalu; and Maura in Brunei.

For more information about the Yachts of Seabourn, talk with your travel agent or contact Seabourn at 1-(800) 929-9391.

—Andrea M. Rotondo for LuxuryCruiseBible.com

Photo courtesy of Seabourn