Table Mountain is the large plateau overlooking Cape Town and the city's icon. It is flanked by Devil's Head on one end and Lion's Head on the other. Viewing Cape Town from the sea is a spectacular sight, with the city nestled at the foot of the plateau and the mountains continuing south towards Cape Point. Viewing Cape Town from the summit of Table Mountain provides the ultimate view of the city, its beaches, and Robben Island.

Table Mountain in Cape Town (c) Linda Garrison

Table Mountain in Cape Town originally appeared on About.com Cruises on Thursday, March 11th, 2010 at 06:56:23.

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Many of us dream of a secluded island where we can swim, snorkel, and comb the beaches for lost treasure. We visited Gibbs Cay on a shore excursion from the Holland America Eurodam while on Grand Turk Island.

Gibbs Cay near Grand Turk Island (c) Linda Garrison

Gibbs Cay near Grand Turk Island in the Turks & Caicos originally appeared on About.com Cruises on Wednesday, March 10th, 2010 at 06:13:51.

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I've just spent two days in Santiago prior to our cruise on the new Silversea Silver Spirit, and I thought readers might be interested in my personal experiences in this lovely city just one week after the massive earthquake struck 200 miles south of here.

The good news for those planning a trip to Santiago is that the city is open for tourists, with the airport having the worst damage (from a tourist perspective). When we arrived on the morning of March 6, the terminal was still closed, and we waited on the plane while they off-loaded the luggage onto the tarmac. We had to use stairs to exit the plane. Then, we claimed our baggage and queued up to pass through immigration and customs, which were set up in a large tent. We were at the very end of the line because one of my bags was temporarily lost. Even so, it only took about 30 minutes to get processed into the country. The Chilean government had 10 people working the computers, speeding up the line significantly. They also were only processing one airplane at a time. An Air France flight landed right after us, but they didn't bring their luggage to the tarmac area and disembark the passengers until our group was cleared out.

Read more...

Santiago - A Week After the Earthquake originally appeared on About.com Cruises on Tuesday, March 9th, 2010 at 14:22:58.

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The Oasis of the Seas has wonderful indoor public areas, but the outside decks really are special and different. Its size allowed the designers to be very creative in their use of the space. And, since the Oasis of the Seas is based year-round in the sunny Caribbean, it makes sense that the cruise ship would have spacious outdoor areas and plenty of activities for guests to enjoy in the sunshine and fresh air.

Two of the most talked about areas are the Boardwalk and Central Park. However, these photos demonstrate some of the many other fascinating outdoor deck areas on the Oasis of the Seas.

Oasis of the Seas (c) Linda Garrison

Oasis of the Seas Outdoors originally appeared on About.com Cruises on Tuesday, March 9th, 2010 at 05:57:02.

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The 684-passenger Regatta cruise ship of Oceania Cruises is marketed as a "premium" ship, but it includes many features such as excellent service and cuisine normally expected only on "luxury" lines. Therefore, I think the Regatta is a good value for cruise travelers who enjoy something extra for their vacation dollar.

I sailed on the Regatta roundtrip from Los Angeles to the Mexican Riviera, and was impressed with the ship's ambiance, excellent service, and cuisine.

Join me on a tour of the Regatta of Oceania Cruises.

Regatta at Cabo San Lucas (c) Linda Garrison

Regatta - Cruise Ship Profile of the Oceania Cruises' Regatta originally appeared on About.com Cruises on Monday, March 8th, 2010 at 06:58:34.

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Many cruise ships sailing the Mediterranean stopover in Barcelona for the day, or use the fascinating city as an embarkation point. One of the best ways to get an overview of a large city like Barcelona in just a few hours is to ride a hop-on, hop-off (HOHO) bus.

Barcelona has at least two tourist bus systems that traverse the city. This photo tour was taken from the Bus Turistic, which stops at all of the sites tourists like to visit such as La Sagrada Familia, the old town (Barri Gotic), and Parc Guell. Those fascinated by Antoni Gaudi might like to visit Casa Batllo, one of the homes Gaudi designed. The bus stops right in front of the house.

Barcelona (c) Linda Garrison

Barcelona Street Scenes originally appeared on About.com Cruises on Sunday, March 7th, 2010 at 06:32:46.

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The Galapagos Islands are on many nature lovers' bucket lists, and travelers have several small ship cruise options for sailing the islands. One of these small adventure cruise lines is Quasar Expeditions, which has three small ships sailing in the Galapagos Islands. One is a 16-passenger sailing vessel - the Alta. The other two are motorized ships - the Evolution (32 passengers) and M/Y Grace (18 passengers). The M/V Grace was originally owned by Princess Grace and Prince Ranier of Monaco and was first used on their honeymoon.

Since Quasar's ships are very small, passengers have more opportunities to visit quiet coves and interact with the diverse wildlife of the Galapagos Islands.

Galapagos Photo Courtesy of Quasar Expeditions

Sailing the Galapagos Islands with Quasar Expeditions originally appeared on About.com Cruises on Saturday, March 6th, 2010 at 07:24:43.

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Traveling to London and the UK has always been expensive for those of us from the USA. It's still expensive, but a recent survey shows that prices are lower. Southampton, a popular cruise embarkation port, showed a 30 percent drop in 2009 from previous years. That's a real discount! European cruises seem to be more popular than ever this summer, and London is a great place to "add-on" to your vacation.

This article by the About.com Guide to UK travel provides more information.

London (c) Linda Garrison

2010 May Be Good Year to Sail from the UK originally appeared on About.com Cruises on Friday, March 5th, 2010 at 12:54:09.

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Cruise ships sailing the western Mediterranan and docked at La Goulette, Tunisia often include a tour of Tunis as a shore excursion option. These tours include a walk around the Medina and one of the enclosed souks (shopping areas).

The city tours also will travel to the Bardo National Museum, which has the world's largest collection of Roman mosaics. Tourists might also choose to visit Sidi Bou Said, a small town near La Goulette and the remains of Carthage.

Tunis Souk (c) Linda Garrison

Tunis - Walking Tour of the Medina originally appeared on About.com Cruises on Friday, March 5th, 2010 at 06:44:49.

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The newest MSC Cruises' ship, the MSC Magnifica, will be christened on Saturday, March 6, in Hamburg, Germany. Sophia Loren will be the godmother. The MSC Magnifica will join the 10 other ships in the MSC fleet. Six of the ships have been launched in the past five years, giving MSC Cruises one of the youngest fleets in the industry.

The MSC Magnifica will sail the eastern Mediterranean beginning March 20, for 7-night itineraries departing Venice, Italy and calling at Bari, Italy; Katakolon (Olympia) Greece; Izmir, Turkey; Istanbul, Turkey; and Dubrovnik, Croatia.

Although the MSC ships are targeted towards the mainstream cruiser, I sailed in the luxurious MSC Yacht Club on the MSC Splendida last year, and loved this "ship within a ship" concept.

MSC Splendida (c) Linda Garrison

MSC Cruise Ships originally appeared on About.com Cruises on Thursday, March 4th, 2010 at 07:07:47.

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