July 22, 2004

TIMES TRAVELS

Around the world in 80 days on Aurora

Cruisers looking for an around-the-world adventure have an opportunity to enjoy P&O Cruises’ unique British-style cruise experience with two new world cruise itineraries for 2005. Potential world cruisers may choose to travel “Around the World in 80 Days” aboard the cruise ship Oriana. 

The ship will sail roundtrip from Southampton, England giving travelers the opportunity to explore exotic ports of call in Asia, Africa, Australia, Europe, North America and South America. Oriana’s “Around the World in 80 Days” adventure, encompassing 29 ports in 20 different countries, departs January 7, 2005, returning March 29.

Passengers with fewer than 80 vacation days to spare can choose from shorter segments ranging from 13 to 61 days. 

Following in the footsteps of Jules Verne’s Phileas Fogg, the 1,800-passenger Oriana manages to cover the globe in just 80 days. The ship sets a westward course from Southampton to her first port of call Ponta Delgada, in the Azores, continuing to Barbados and Curacao. Oriana will then pass through the Panama Canal reaching Acapulco and San Francisco, before arriving at Honolulu. Next, passengers will travel to the South Pacific, stopping at island destinations including Pago Pago, American Samoa; Nuku ‘Alofa, Tonga and Aukland, New Zealand. In Australia, the vessel calls at Sydney, Brisbane and Whitsunday Islands. Following the Australian ports of call, Oriana will take her passengers to Southeast Asia, stopping in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia; Hong Kong; Da Nang, Vietnam; Singapore; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Phuket, Thailand. Next up is Colombo, Sri Lanka; and two ports of call in India—Cochin and Mumbai—before continuing to Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. Oriana will then sail through the famous Suez Canal, before reaching her next ports of call—Port Said, Egypt; Athens, Barcelona and back to her homeport, Southampton where the voyage ends.

For more information and reservations, call the Travel Desk in Almaden at (408) 723-0283, or visit their Web site at www.traveldeskonline.com.

Crystal Cruises wins Travel & Leisure’s ‘World’s Best Award’

For an unprecedented ninth consecutive year, luxury cruise specialist Crystal Cruises has been voted the World’s Best Large-Ship Cruise Line in Travel & Leisure magazine’s annual readers’ survey. At 89.16, Crystal’s score topped all cruise lines in the small-ship category as well as the large-ship cruise line poll. Crystal’s award-winning fleet consists of the luxurious 940-guest, 50,000-ton Crystal Harmony and Crystal Symphony, and the 1,080-guest, 68,000-ton Crystal Serenity, which was launched a year ago.

For more information and reservations, call the Travel Desk in Almaden at (408) 723-0283, or visit their Web site at www.traveldeskonline.com.

—By Sean Eastwood