Cruises & Voyages Ltd

AMERICAN CRUISE LINES‘ new paddlewheeler Queen Of The Mississippi begins 7 night sailings 11 August.

CELEBRITY‘s 90 guest XPEDITION continues its run-away success with much sought after 7 and 10 night Galapagos Island sailings.

CRYSTAL CRUISES launches new Fast Track check-in, scanning a bar code on guest cruise tickets to ease embarkation formalities.

CUNARD‘s Queen Mary 2, Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth will be seen arriving and departing together for the first time in Southampton on 5 June to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. 

DISNEY CRUISE LINE‘s Disney Magic to return to Europe in 2013 with cruises out of Barcelona.

FRED OLSEN ditches 5% online booking discount, further highlighting the necessity to deal with a specialist cruise agency.

HOLLAND AMERICA‘s Eurodam 7 night Mediterranean cruise 27 April now on offer from £799. Highlights include Palermo, Tunis, Barcelona, Monte Carlo, Santa Margherita and Rome.

HURTIGRUTEN adding pre-Xmas charter flights to cope with demand for Northern Lights packages.

MEDITERRANEAN SHIPPING‘s Splendida now featuring Michelin starred TV chef Paul Rankin who will perform culinary demonstrations. 

NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINE announces a “revitalised” youth programme with new groups for ages 3-5 years, 6-8 years, 9-12 years, 13-14 years and 15-17 years.

OCEANIA CRUISES‘ new ship Riviera maiden voyage now set for 16 May following strikes at the Italian shipyard where it was built.

ORION EXPEDITION CRUISES introduce “Art Of Japan” voyage sailing from Busan, South Korea. Highlights on the 19 April trip include Hiroshima, Naoshima, Shikoku Island and Kobe.

REGENT SEVEN SEAS has launched its Grand Voyages 2012/2013 collection with sailings from 7-143 nights.

ROYAL CARIBBEAN 10,000 FREE flights offer just announced.

SILVERSEA has enlisted wine experts Lyn Farmer and Richard Nurick to host a Wine Series enrichment programme of six voyages. 

STAR CLIPPER introduce new rail and sail holidays as part of its expanded no-fly options.

SWAN HELLENIC‘s Minerva 15 August cruise from Valletta features guest speaker, former Foreign Secretary Rt Hon Douglas Hurd.

VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY‘s Nordic Natural Wonders 12 July cruise has guest speaker Sir Anthony Brenton who will share his political views.

Wayne Frieslander is in the business of giving his customers a truly memorable travel experience. He is Managing Director of award-winning Cruises & Voyages and is a leading authority on cruising, cruises, cruise lines and cruise ships. He can be reached on 0161 491 6677.

I was just about to settle down and write a new Blog, until I realised just how late it is and if I don’t get my skates on, then I am likely to miss my flight.

So I shall sign out here but will get back to you with another Blog just before the end of the year.

Wayne Frieslander

Do you get the feeling that some airlines are taking a good laugh at us when it comes to luggage allowance?

A client who booked a Mediterranean cruise with us on Silversea surprised me when she said they would look at their own flights on Jet2 to save money. In the big picture of things, and with what they had spent on the cruise, I always think this is a little wrong, and I do say it as it is.

People often challenge me as to how they could possibly pack all that they might need for their cruise, with the luggage allowance given by the likes of the “cheapie” airline carriers. Book scheduled flights and where you can afford it, go for Business Class.

The problem with Jet2, and I expect with the other “cheapie” airlines is that their generous luggage allowance is anything but.

Jet2 allow one piece of hand luggage per person, maximum weight 10 kgs and measurements not exceeding length 56 cms, height 45 cms and depth 25 cms. My client told me she had a fairly standard Swiss manufactured hand luggage bag on wheels, designed to fit the overhead locker. The problem…    even though her bag was well within the permissible measurements at 42 cms x 36 cms x 23 cms, when EMPTY, this bag already weighed 4.45 kgs leaving a measly 5.55 kgs for all her carry on items, including laptop.

Hold luggage was even worse. Her allowance she felt was fine at 22 kgs, until she realised again that her EMPTY suitcase already weighed in at 7.10 kgs, not leaving a great deal for everything she needed to pack.

Two suggestions…     one cruise from the UK, where the allowances can be around 200 lbs of luggage per person, only limited by what the person feels they can get in their cabin, or…

book scheduled flights always, and Business Class flights where you can, and get significantly increased luggage allowance, and no feeling that the slightest excess is going to be heavily penalised.

Wayne Frieslander is in the business of giving his customers a truly memorable travel experience. He is Managing Director of award-winning Cruises & Voyages Ltd and is a leading authority on cruising, cruises, cruise lines and cruise ships. He can be reached on 0161 491 6677.

If you have been watching the fabulous documentary series narrated by Sir David Attenborough recently, then, like me, you could not fail to have been absolutely captivated by this unbelievable destination.

If your appetite has been whet by all you’ve seen, then I suggest you take a look at this fabulous video titled “Expedition Cruising In The Arctic” at http://www.silversea.com/media-centre/online-videos/?videoid=10479

This is just one of many superb short videos that Silversea Cruises have that bring, not only their shipboard life, but, more importantly, the destinations they cruise to, to life…    so much so, that you actually feel you are there!!!

On a completely different subject, we’re back to customer service. This time something that really impressed me.

We have clients taking a trip over Christmas on the superb Great Rail Journeys, one of the outstanding tour operators we work closely with, because their products are a perfect “fit” for our very discerning cruise clients.

This morning I received a phone call from the tour leader who not only introduced herself to me, but, more importantly asked for my permission to directly contact our clients. Always a little skeptical when I hear this type of request, I asked why. She explained she simply wanted to ensure the customers, who are part of only a very small party, are entirely happy with all the documentation they have received, are clear on joining instructions, as well as what they will experience during the trip.

What a nice approach. With Great Rail Journeys, clearly good customer service still exists. 

Wayne Frieslander is in the business of giving his customers a truly memorable travel experience. He is Managing Director of award-winning Cruises & Voyages Ltd  and is a leading authority on cruising, cruises, cruise lines and cruise ships. He can be reached on 0161 491 6677.

Cruising still, without doubt, represents the best value holiday that you will ever experience. Ask anyone who has ever cruised more than once and you’ll get a resounding thumbs up!!!

It’s always been regarded as the most all-inclusive holiday when compared to land based holidays but, alas, the “all-inclusive” tag is, with some cruise lines, dare I say Royal Caribbean, Norwegian Cruise Line, Celebrity, Princess, P & O, Cunard to name but a few, not quite as all-inclusive as it used to be.

Cruise line-organised shore tours, spa treatments, casino gambling, cocktails and sodas, and Internet access have long been well-established extras. 

What gets me are all these new charges, the $35 service fee to dine in a speciality restaurant, the a la carte sushi menu, the $4 for speciality coffees and cakes, $100 for a private cabana by the pool, wine at $10 a glass, and on and on and on….

If you’re not careful, you could spend your cruise fare again on all those extras.

The problem here is simple.

Customers choosing the cruise lines above are obsessed with getting a “deal” and the cruise lines, pandering to this, artificially lower prices simply to dangle the carrot, but cruising costs, and they cannot get prices below a price that’s commercially sensible without something giving. They pay their staff less and less and expect them to make up the loss of income on tips. But, bargain hunters can be very mean and often will not tip either. Ultimately everyone loses out.

You’re not like that though…   and all you want is exceptional value-for-money so, the answer then is crystal clear. If booking any of the above lines, simply go for the elements of the trip that you HAVE paid for and forget the optional extras.

Or, if you are really wanting the best, and ARE prepared to pay for it, because it will mean a life enriching travel experience you’ll never forget, then opt for Silversea Cruises, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, Crystal Cruises, Seabourn or SeaDream Yacht Club.

Don’t get me wrong, many of the big lines do offer great value for money but it’s the customer who has to remember that everything has a price and should be evaluated before you try to get something for nothing.

Wayne Frieslander is in the business of giving his customers a truly memorable travel experience. He is Managing Director of award-winning Cruises & Voyages Ltd and is a leading authority on cruising, cruises, cruise lines and cruise ships. He can be reached on 0161 491 6677.

I saw an advert in today’s Daily Telegraph offering flights to Dublin one way from £14.99 and that brought back memories of that ever so cheap trip we had to this lovely city a few years ago. Cheap? Think again.

Friends let us know about a “deal” for flights with the same airline mentioned in today’s advert but these were real cheap seats at one penny…    yes..   1p per seat plus tax. Our friends got the seats at that price. We were a little late but still only paid £2.50 a seat. What a bargain we thought…    until the day after we booked, I was speaking to one of my clients who lives in Dublin. She warned me it would be expensive for us. I said knowing what prices and service are like in London, we probably will not be too surprised. She said we would..  and she was right. Expensive for sure.

You could argue that the flight seats were cheap, but then that’s not the full picture because with flights you then need accommodation, something to do at the destination, places to eat, to be entertained etc…   and the costs shoot up every so quickly.

Cruising is all about better budgeting. Take the uncertainties out of your next holiday. Make it a cruise. You get a lot more than you bargained for but this time you’ll be very pleasantly surprised.

Wayne Frieslander is in the business of giving his customers a truly memorable travel experience. He is Managing Director of award-winning Cruises & Voyages and is a leading authority on cruising, cruises, cruise lines and cruise ships. He can be reached on 0161 491 6677.

Shopping at one time was a pleasant experience. Not any more…   if you’re looking for customer service as well as a purchase.

My wife was in Marks & Spencer a few days ago and she told me that, like so many big stores these days, they have introduced the fast check-out tills where you can scan your purchases, bag them, pay, and be off in a flash. It’s quicker they said. Not so. It seems the fast check-outs are anything but these days and it’s not only M&S that are treating their customers this way.

Anyway, the story…    my wife got to the till with mountains of purchases and the system asks how many bags you require at 5p a bag. Not a lot of money…    but, really, let’s get real here. How could any shopper possibly walk out without bagging their goods. For many reasons. So why do M&S insist on charging for these?

I was just in W H Smith and purchased a book. The customer assistant at the check-out, not the DIY type this time, asked me if I needed a bag and just to be aware that she will need to charge me for one. Again, why are we being subjected to this type of non-sensical shopping experience these days?

Cruises, to date, have not hit this rock-bottom type of customer shopping experience mentality. At least they still provide you with just about everything you might need to turn your holiday into that memorable experience that will stay with you for ever. Not so of many other types of holiday.

Wayne Frieslander is in the business of giving his customers a truly memorable travel experience. He is Managing Director of award-winning Cruises & Voyages and is a leading authority on cruising, cruises, cruise lines and cruise ships. He can be reached on 0161 491 6677.

When will people learn?

Thomas Cook has been headline news in the past few weeks for all the wrong reasons. First they get a £100m loan to add to their already increasing mountain of debt. They then decide it’s not enough so they approach those same 17 lenders a month later and ask for another £100m. Great to hear their lenders have bailed them out and granted that extra facility until April 2013. Cooks are still going to close around 200 shops with many lost jobs. Problems over? I personally do not think this cures the root of the problem…    but we’ll come back to that in a moment.

Today, another big high street name, Co-op Travel announced the closure of their Manchester office with the loss of 180 jobs. Good to know that 100 of those staff are being re-located to other offices.

Again, what’s the root of the problem?

In my humble opinion, it’s obvious.

We have become a nation of bargain hunters when it comes to this level of travel. Let me explain. In travel, we simply can’t get “owt” for “nowt” because travel costs in those many areas in which tour operators continually look for savings. They are obsessed with offering lower priced holidays, so that the bargain shopper can get a holiday deal. Fine…  but, you simply cannot cut beyond a point.

Cut too much and it ends in tears. For the customer who gets a holiday totally different and sub-standard to the one they expected. For the tour operator and travel agent who cannot sustain those unrealistically low cost holidays and eventually collapse.

Take it from me. Find a specialist company that handles the type of holiday you are looking for and forget the big high street chains. The latter do have buying power admittedly, but steam-roller their way over the suppliers they deal with, leaving disgruntled people in their wake, and those are the very people that are supplying the holiday components.

Choose the former, the specialist. They also have buying power in their specialist field, but they usually allow the suppliers to make a living.

Need help on cruising? Yes…   we are a specialist.

Wayne Frieslander is Managing Director of award-winning Cruises & Voyages and is a leading authority on cruising, cruise lines, cruise ships and cruises. He can be reached on 0161 491 6677 or emailed at wdf@cruisesandvoyages.com

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CRYSTAL CRUISES 22 night Osaka to Los Angeles sailing 31 March to feature political experts debate with top speakers.

DERTOUR announce a 2012 Sea & Music cruise of the eastern Mediterranean featuring the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra.

FRED OLSEN scoop “THE OSMONDS” – Wayne, Jay and Jimmy – to perform live on two Balmoral cruises in May 2012.

MEDITERRANEAN SHIPPING CRUISES MSC Fantasia operating 11 night diet-themed cruise in January with a French diet specialist.

NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINES Nickelodean themed shows expand. Breakfast with SpongeBob, Dora the Explorer, SquarePants and more…

PRINCESS CRUISES‘ Italian restaurant, Sabatini’s gets updated menu. 

REGENT SEVEN SEAS drops prices by £1,000pp on three cruises – 17 nights Dubai to Athens, 10 nights Barcelona to Istanbul and 10 nights Tarragona to Istanbul.

VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY offer free excursion on select cruises to the Hermitage in St. Petersburg including tour, Champagne reception and exclusive performance from the State Hermitage Orchestra.

Wayne Frieslander is Managing Director of award-winning CRUISES & VOYAGES and is a leading authority on cruises, cruising and cruise ships. He can be reached on 0161 491 6677.

COSTA CRUISES newly acquired Costa Voyager to offer year-round one week Red Sea cruises.

HURTIGRUTEN to send extra ship to Spitsbergen summer 2012 following interest created by BBC’s Frozen Planet documentary.

MEDITERRANEAN SHIPPING CRUISES gourmet voyages with specially invited celebrity chefs from Spain, Italy, France, the United Kingdom and Germany.

OCEANIA to offer drinks packages from $29.95 per person per day in 2012.

P&O introducing automatic tipping.

ROYAL CARIBBEAN providing iPads in every stateroom onboard Splendour Of The Seas from February 2012.

SEADREAM announces a spiritual, educational and historical voyage following in the footsteps of Paul the Apostle.

Wayne Frieslander is Managing Director of award-winning Cruises & Voyages and a leading authority on cruises, cruising and cruise ships. He can be reached on 0161 491 6677.