luxury cruises
Choosing among the available luxury cruises is not only a question of which cruise line you choose, but also which ship you choose from the cruise line.
To choose luxury line and ship, luckily, there are companies that rate luxury ships and cruise lines. Examples of these rating companies are CruiseCritic (from The Independent Traveler, Inc.), and CruiseReport. CruiseCritic CruiseCritic rates cruise ships and aims to offer ships a measure of comparison. The Blue Ribbon system, which ranges from one (lowest) to five-plus (highest), evaluates ships on quality in dining, entertainment, family and rates. Those four categories are together evaluated to create an overall blue ribbon score. If your looking for the best in luxury travel, you'd probably want to take a look at the ships rated by CruiseCritic as 5+ Blue Ribbon ships. The last time I checked, these ships (with 5+ Blue Ribbons) included: Seabourn Legend Seabourn Pride Seabourn Spirit SeaDream I Radisson Seven Seas Voyager As for Seabourn, the company has had a mission since 1987 to deliver a new style of cruising, dedicated to the highest levels of personalized service to an exclusive group of guests aboard intimate, elegant ships that visit the best destinations worldwide. The Yachts of Seabourn are intimate in size, carrying a maximum of 208 guests each, exclusively in spacious suites. Destinations for Seabourn yachts include Mediterranean, & Atlantic Isles, Northern Europe, Asia, India & Africa, South America, Costa Rica, Belize & Panama Canal, Caribbean, Eastern Seaboard (U.S. & Canada), New Zealand, Australia & South Pacific, Transatlantic, and you can also participate in Grand Voyages. CruiseReport CruiseReport reviews include ratings for Best of the Sea. These awards range from the Best Small Ship Cruise Line to Best Fitness Center in a cruise ship. There is also a category for Best Ultimate Luxury Cruise. The winner in this category is Silversea (with the ship Silver Whisper). Silversea has dedicated efforts, ever since the inception of the company in 1994, to defining the elite luxury experience. The company has won several awards along the way, including the Best Small-Ship Cruise Line Award from Condé Nast 2004 Readers' Choice Awards. Silversea operates four ships, Silver Cloud, Silver Wind, Silver Shadow, and Silver Whisper.
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