These cruises are going to be rare ones, Holland America fans. So get ready to book before they fill up.
26.02.2024 - 15:59 / thepointsguy.com
Holland America is going big with its latest around-the-world cruise.
The Seattle-based line on Monday revealed plans for a globe-circling voyage in 2026 lasting 132 days — as many as 19 days longer than other around-the-world sailings it's offered in recent years.
Kicking off in Fort Lauderdale on Jan. 4, 2026, the Grand World Voyage, as the line is calling it, will include visits to all seven continents — a relative rarity for world cruises. It'll also include extensive time in South America and Northern Europe — which is tough to pull off logistically on an around-the-world cruise.
For more cruise news, guides and tips, sign up for TPG's cruise newsletter.
"This one is ambitious in the sense that we're really stretching that line ... all the way down the east coast of South America to Antarctica and providing that experience and then working our way kind of diagonally back up to the Mediterranean and Northern Europe," Paul Grigsby, Holland America's vice president for deployment and itinerary planning, told TPG in an exclusive interview in advance of the announcement.
Grigsby noted that an around-the-world cruise the line offered in 2019 included stops in Northern Europe but not an extensive exploration of South America. To get both regions into the 2026 itinerary, Grigsby's team had to make the sailing considerably longer than the 2019 sailing. The 2019 sailing was just 113 days in length.
"I think we're more comfortable now with longer cruises," Grigsby noted.
In the last couple of years, Holland America has been doubling down on longer sailings, something for which the line has long been known. The line's efforts to add more longer sailings have included the addition of a new series of so-called Legendary Voyages that focus on a single region and range from 25 to 59 nights in length.
The newly announced world cruise will feature stops in 47 ports in 39 countries in all — a hefty number for a world cruise offered by any line.
As is often the case with Holland America's around-the-world cruises, the just-announced 2026 sailing will take place on the 1,432-passenger Volendam, one of the smallest Holland America vessels.
After starting in Fort Lauderdale, Volendam will first head southward to Barbados in the Caribbean before working its way down the east coast of South America toward Antarctica. Stops in South America will include Devil's Island in French Guiana; Belem, Recife and Rio de Janeiro in Brazil; Punta del Este and Montevideo in Uruguay; Buenos Aires, Argentina; and the Falkland Islands.
From the Falklands, Volendam will continue southward to Antarctica for a multiday visit before cruising along the coast of Chile and into the Chilean fjords. It'll then cross the Pacific to French
These cruises are going to be rare ones, Holland America fans. So get ready to book before they fill up.
Delta Air Lines has a stacked schedule to make it easier for travelers to get to Italy, with several new routes to Venice ahead of the summer.
American photographer Keisha Scarville is the winner of the Saltzman Prize, a new award for the best Emerging Photographer in the world. This annual prize is a $10,000 award and additional funds to support a solo exhibition of the winning photographer’s work at Photofairs New York each September. The Saltzman Prize is presented in cooperation with the Center for Photography Woodstock (CPW) and Photofairs New York. The winner will also be honored on 20 April 2024 at the CPW Vision Awards.
Spring has well and truly sprung and we’re just a few weeks away from Easter. As the flowers bloom and temperatures heat up, many of us are planning to make the most of the season and go on the trip of a lifetime.
Let's assume you're planning a trip to Europe and want to include a visit to the United Kingdom. Should you plan to visit London at the start, in the middle or at the end of your trip? Does it even matter?
There's nothing like the thrill of skiing and snowboarding—but it's no secret that mountain sports are expensive hobbies. After purchasing cold weather gear, travel, and lodging, the last thing you want to do is overpay for lift tickets.
On a Tuesday evening last December, the singer-pianist Michael Feinstein was at Café Carlyle on Manhattan’s Upper East Side in a sparkly silver blazer, making his way through the audience to the little stage, wherethe members of his four-piece band were taking their places. The audience erupted into applause. A few people stood and reached out a hand to greet him. As he launched into George and Ira Gershwin’s “Our Love Is Here to Stay,” some sang along, others swayed a little. Written in 1937, the American songbook standard is full of nostalgia, wit and romance. The same might be said for Café Carlyle.
Madalyn Monto grew up outside New York City and knew she'd live there one day.
Mardi Gras — or Fat Tuesday — marks the final day of the Carnival season. Festivities typically begin several weeks before the big day, and celebrations are held in countries worldwide, with music, parades, dancing, feasts and lots of fun (possibly fueled by a cocktail or two).
Starting Dec. 4, 2024, Delta will launch a seasonal route from Los Angeles to Brisbane, Australia, which will operate three times per week through March 28, 2025.
One of the best slow travel destinations in South America, Uruguay boasts world-class beaches, historical sites, a thriving wine scene, and culinary jewels that rival its neighbors.
Queen Elizabeth will sail to Barbados in October 2025.