Cruise around europe?

Cruise AND "Northern Europe"

• We are planning on taking a cruise next summer in Northern Europe. This will be our first cruise experience. We are trying to gather some information on this. For example, what should we be aware of so that we don't get into a bad deal? Should we plan the trip ourselves and buy air tickets separately, or just go with a travel agency? Do you know which travel agency has the best deals and which cruise line offers most interesting route? Please provide me a list of 20 GOOD web sites - For each URL you give, please tell me why it's good - what do they do, why I should trust them or spend my time reading their opinions. Thanks very much.

• Answer:

  Hello hemv2003-ga: It was a pleasure to answer your question. I am answering this question because I have myself been involved in the research for a couple of travel businesses. As you may see that the two comments posted here suggest that it is important to shop around because it is true that reading a webpage is reading a brochure. Anyway, I am providing you a list of online travel agencies and cruise agents that not only provide a good service but are known for their variety (ships, price etc). Also, I am including the websites where you can go to read the reviews of the cruise ships. There are websites that have rankings for the cruise ships as well as websites with the sanitation reporting and other factors. I will also provide you the website that lists online travel agencies which offer the best discounted air fares from each country. You will also find a couple of websites where you can shop around for cruise vacation deals and airfare to Europe with out browsing through several websites, yourself. MY ADVICE is that first of all you should try to make your own itinerary by shopping around these very reputable websites. You can select the cruise and book the airline tickets separately. The second step is to consult a list of USTOA enlisted cruise tour operators and see what price (air + cruise) they offer you. Last of all consult your local travel agent and see what price they might offer you.--------------Search for a cruise agent near you by logging onto http://www.cruising.org. Also see the list of USTOA cruise tour operators to get their prices at http://www.ustoa.com/byactivity.cfm I have traveled extensively in Europe. Most of the times (90 percent) I am able to plan my travel by booking air, hotel and car etc without a travel agent and in the process get a better price. The only time I consult a travel agent is when I really have special interest or am looking for something special (After all they are specialists in their fields). My experience has shown that a vacation package for cruise will probably be more expansive than booking independently (if you know where to book). AGAIN HERE IS THE PLAN! First, see what price you can get from the very reputable travel websites that I am providing you (by planning independently). Secondly, call the USTOA cruise operators and see what price you get. Lastly and more importantly, call your local travel agent and see what price they have. You might also want to book with a travel agent if you have very special needs. Here is the list: 4 CRUISE TRAVEL AGENTS & TOUR OPERATORS All of these are highly recommended but the one on the top might be better than the one listed below. http://www.cruise.com (My Choice) The authority on the discounted cruise travel with a variety that is unparalleled on the web. http://www.cruiseone.com It is one of the best discounted cruise specialists for the Caribbean. Call them to see what they can offer you for Northern Europe OR shop around on their website. http://www.cruisedirect.com It is Simple and trustable for Northern Europe cruise. You can find many choices on their website BUT than you might have to call their representatives to get the prices for some ships. http://www.cruise411.com/ This is a very reputable website when it comes to discounts fro cruise ships but I am not very sure what they might have for Northern Europe. _______________________________________________________________________________ CRUISE LINE RANKINGS Here is the list of travel industry’s famous sources for rankings on everything from Cruise to hotels and what not: Conde Nast Traveler (My choice) http://www.concierge.com/interest/cruise Also see best cruise spa’s http://www.concierge.com/cntraveler/lists/spapoll03/cruise/ Look for yourself, which is the best cruise ship company in the industry. It is the definite source of rankings from thousands of actual travelers. Please see all, ‘The best cruise ships’; ‘Gold list’ and ‘Reader’s choice’. Travel & Leisure (My choice) http://www.travelandleisure.com/worldsbest/results.cfm?cat=otherccruises It is the only rival to the authority of Conde Nast and as reputable, if not more. Get a taste of what is best like. Frommers http://www.frommers.com/destinations/alaska/0210024436.html I am sorry I couldn’t put it as my favorites because this is just the opinion of the GREAT Frommers experts rather than the travelers. Also, the study is not based on a survey. _______________________________________________________________________________ CRUISE LINE REVIEWS & REPORTS ON QUALITY http://www.cruiseopinion.com It is not my choice BUT my personal best among this category. The best thing that I like about this website is its critics of individual ships on every aspect by the general public. You can also see who reviewed the ship and the detailed information about every reviewer. http://www.cruisemates.com/Index.cfm It is a very informative resource for the first time traveler. It has great statistics on every ship with a lot more information. http://www.cruisecritic.com/index.cfm Cruise Critic presents the reviews of the general public that is presented in a nice easy navigational format. http://www.cruisereviews.com/ It provides general reviews on many cruise ships. _______________________________________________________________________________ EUROPEON & NORTH EUROPEAON CRUISE RESOURCE Following is the list of the best cruise resources for Northern Europe. http://www.cruiseeurope.com/index.cfm This is a great resource for every Northern Europe Cruise Port. You will definitely want to check on this information. http://www.smallshipcruises.com This website lists small cruise ships that sail around the world. You will also find many of the small cruise ships that sail in Northern Europe. http://www.cruisescandinavia.com/ They are the well known specialists for Scandinavian cruise. _______________________________________________________________________________ VERY IMPORTANT CRUISE ORGANIZATIONS http://www.cruising.org (My choice) It is the website for the Cruise Line International Association (CLIA). It will also provide you the names of the travel agents who specialize in cruise, area by area. You definitely want to check the travel agents in your area. http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/vsp/default.htm This is the website that represents the cruise sanitation program for the government. See if your future ship is really clean. *** Also see http://www.cdc.gov/travel/cruiships.htm _______________________________________________________________________________ INTERNATIONAL DISCOUNT FARES http://www.etn.nl/ ***** http://www.etn.nl/discoun2.htm (country by country) Without any doubt, this is the best website to find the international airfare. It also provides the best website for an international ticket to OR in that country. See the second link. _______________________________________________________________________________ LOOK FOR DISCOUNT INTERNATIONAL AIRFARE & VACATION PACKAGE http://www.travelzoo.com It is the best known website for the best deals on nearly everything. I will suggest you to consult this website for the best airfares to Europe. _______________________________________________________________________________ CHECK THE TOUR OPERATOR’S PRICES United States Tour Operators Association http://www.ustoa.com ***** http://www.ustoa.com/byactivity.cfm (cruise tour operators) Go to this website and look which famous tour operator specialize in Cruise and than check their prices. _______________________________________________________________________________ OTHER USEFUL WEBSITES There is a guide published by Conde Nast in 2002 http://www.concierge.com/cntraveler/articles/CNT1029345300282085/ that lists the best travel agents. See if you can get this guide. Scan tours is one of the largest tour operators for Scandinavian countries. It also offers cruise packages. Visit them at http://www.scantours.com See a list of some of the cruise brokers and much more at http://www.msnbc.com/news /793659.asp Silver Sea cruise line is famous for its operations in Europe. Visit them at http://www.silverseaships.com/destinations/europe.html Enjoy alternate cruising information in Scandinavia at http://www.freighterworld.com/general.html#Scandinavia I hope this will help. Please clarify, if needed. Thanks for using Google Answers and I wish you good luck with your first cruise experience. Sincerely, leader-ga.