Day four of the captains' favourite ports in association with CLIA.

Miami, USA – Captain Alessandro Galotto, Carnival Cruise Lines

“Miami is one of my favourite homeports as it not only offers warm, sunny weather all year-round but also a breathtaking view on arrival and departure.  The giant skyscrapers that line downtown Miami, the million dollar mansions along the coastline and the world-famous South Beach all come into view when sailing in and out of Miami.”

   

Cape Town, South Africa – Captain Christopher M Turner, Holland America Line

“The unique outline of Table Mountain with the ‘tablecloth’ laid and curling at the edges, as the view of Cape Town (Kaapstad) rises around Table Bay.”

Hong Kong – Captain Geir-Arne Thue-Nilsen, Seabourn

“One of my favourite city skylines is in Hong Kong.  To see the colour and light reflections from the sea is truly a beautiful sight.”

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Set sail with the CLIA for Cruise Week

Cruise Week sets sail this Saturday (27 September) with a destinations theme highlighting the huge choice of places to visit on a cruise holiday, together with the experiences to be enjoyed both on board and ashore.

Research shows that destination remains the number one reason for people choosing a cruise holiday, with 1.73 million Brits taking a cruise in 2013. Cruise Week, organised by the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), provides an opportunity for the travel industry to promote the benefits of cruise holidays and aims to encourage more people to consider a cruise for the first time.

Cruise Week will demonstrate the breadth in the choice of ship, style of cruise and destinations - from ships carrying just 100 passengers to floating resorts, from family holidays to expedition cruising and from worldwide destinations stretching from Antarctica to the Zambezi River.

Holidaymakers, cruise line staff ashore and on board, travel agents, ports and destinations around the world are being encouraged to post pictures on social media during Cruise Week featuring their favourite destinations, using the #lovecruise hashtag.

Andy Harmer, director of CLIA UK and Ireland, said: “It is our seventh year of celebrating holidays through Cruise Week and with destinations being the key reason people choose a cruise holiday, we wanted to focus on the huge choice of places to visit around the world either on an ocean or river cruise. A cruise holiday offers a mix of experiences whether that's for families, couples or solo travellers and the service provided is hard to beat."

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Adventure Cruising blog

Time Spent at Sea has moved and can now be found at World of Cruising. You can follow World of Cruising on Twitter and Facebook for the very latest in cruise news.

If you haven't already, subscribe to the World of Cruising magazine today.

Istanbul and Skagway - two of CLIA captain's favourite ports

Day two of CLIA's  Cruise Captains and their favourite ports. 

Istanbul, Turkey – Captain John Westgarth-Pratt, Thomson Cruises

“My current favourite has to be a sunrise arrival in Istanbul, Turkey.  As this huge city split between two continents awakes, the morning layers of mist lift from the surface of the Bosphorous.  The sunrise over the Asiatic side also illuminates the minarets and grand domes of the Haghia Sophia and the Blue Mosque.

“The ship’s course then alters slightly to place the towering Bosphorous suspension bridge straight ahead, leaving the Maiden’s Tower close to starboard – then the ship swings 180° to port through the strong strait currents and morning ferry traffic. A slow approach is then made to enter the Golden Horn estuary and berth starboard side alongside the Salipazari terminal in the very heart of the city. There really is no better way to enjoy and appreciate the dramatic skyline and architecture of Istanbul than arriving by sea at dawn.”

 Skagway, Alaska – Captain Daniel Green, Regent Seven Seas Cruises

“What I really enjoy is nature and one time, so my favourite port has got to be Skagway, Alaska.  The last time I visited, we were accompanied by some killer whales on the approach. I slowed the ship and we cruised alongside each other for a long time.  The sight was breath-taking and forms some of my best memories at sea". 

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Adventure Cruising blog

Time Spent at Sea has moved and can now be found at World of Cruising. You can follow World of Cruising on Twitter and Facebook for the very latest in cruise news.

If you haven't already, subscribe to the World of Cruising magazine today.

Cruise line's captain's favourite ports around the world

From the Northern Lights reflected in the Norwegian Sea to the breath-taking sight of the Opera House when entering Sydney Harbour, seeing a city or famous landmark from the water can be a magical experience, offering a completely different perspective on a destination.

To identify some of the most impressive views from the ocean, CLIA (the Cruise Lines International Association) has surveyed a selection of captains to find out their favourite port approaches or cities best seen by sea. 

Every day this week we'll be looking at some of them. 

Tromso, Norway – Captain Arnfinn Kaasbøll, Hurtigruten

"I never tire of sailing into the beautiful city of Tromso, with its wonderful blend of traditional wooden buildings and more modern structures such as the beautiful Arctic Cathedral, all surrounded by mountains to finish off the picturesque scene. 

"However, when you approach 'The Gateway to the Arctic' with the Northern Lights twinkling overhead, it is truly spectacular. Tromso is directly beneath the Aurora Oval (the epicentre of Northern Lights activity) so we regularly have an opportunity to watch this fantastic show as it changes from light green to dark purple flickering across the sky above the city."

  

New York, USA – Captain Hakan Svedung, Norwegian Cruise Line

“My favourite city to approach by water has to be New York. The Manhattan skyline is one of the best in the world. When approaching New York early in the morning the light casts a special glow over the city-scape and with the buildings still lit you can even see an almost perfect reflection in the Hudson River – it’s just stunning.”

  

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Adventure Cruising blog

Time Spent at Sea has moved and can now be found at World of Cruising. You can follow World of Cruising on Twitter and Facebook for the very latest in cruise news.

If you haven't already, subscribe to the World of Cruising magazine today.

New Year, New World of Cruising!

The brand new re-launch edition of World of Cruising magazine is due for publication next week, and it's time to reveal everything in store for Europe's leading and longest-running cruise publication.

First of all, as Time Spent At Sea readers will already know, we have new owners in the shape of Real Response Media, with ambitious plans to take the magazine to a whole new level in terms of profile, design and content. Among their initial innovations are SIX issues a year (instead of four), and a glossy year-end Cruise Directory, which will provide a comprehensive list of every cruise line and every ship, as well as providing a preview of the year ahead.

We also have a sharp new design team, who have revamped the look and style of our pages in keeping with the promise of a New Year. There are new columnists and new features, including some eye-catching destination stories that are sure to have you saying ‘I want to go THERE!’ like our Cover Story on Alaska (above).

We also feature an update on the Queen Elizabeth of Cunard and a full review of 2013's new Europa 2 of Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, and take a unique river journey on the Spirit of Chartwell with Titan Tours on the River Douro in Portugal.

For adventure-cruise fans, we travel to Norway with our blogger-in-chief Steve Newman, while for a mouth-watering cruise cuisine feature we feature Windstar Cruises. 

New features include Three Of A Kind - a special look at a trio of regional ports, in this case A Coruna, Bilbao and Santander of Spain's Costa Verde - and Being There, which is a photo highlight of a current 'hot' cruise destination, in this case the Canary Islands. And, following on from there, Where Next is a view of an up-and-coming port of call, with our first one taking a look at Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic.

For new columnists, we have Andy Harmer, the Director of CLIA UK & Ireland, and Silver Travel Advisor, the essential website for mature traveller advice.
 

Our features line-up is also more obviously demarcated, so readers can immediately see the difference between our Ocean, River, Adventure and Luxury cruising sections, as well as enjoying a new-look News section, which remains the market leader in cruise terms. Our essential Cruise Planner remains a part of the mix, though.

If that is the Big Picture in our wide World of Cruising, there is a huge amount of detail to follow, and we are sure you are going to want to stay with us for the full voyage. More and more people will be seeing our publication as the whole story of cruising goes widescreen and technicolour this year, with new ships, new places to see and new ways to see them.

No-one has our cruise know-how or our depth of cruise knowledge, and no-one provides the unparalleled range of stories and insight that we do. It all starts anew with Issue 61, so make sure you’re aboard! This is your Captain, setting sail…

Simon Veness

Time Spent at Sea has moved and can now be found at World of Cruising. You can follow World of Cruising on Twitter and Facebook for the very latest in cruise news.

If you haven't already, subscribe to the World of Cruising magazine today.