As I boarded the Celebrity Eclipse in Southampton two words reverberated from the British passengers around me. Brilliant and stylish. The wow factor is exactly what Celebrity Cruises is striving for on Eclipse. But before the line’s newest ship carried any paying passengers it was called to carry out a mission like no other.

To the rescue

Eclipse didn’t set out to be a hero ship on its first cruise with passengers, but that’s just what happened right after it left the shipyard. The vessel’s late April inaugural celebrations were put on hold to participate in a unique and unprecedented rescue mission. Eclipse sailed to Bilbao, Spain to pick up more than 2,000 British tourists stranded by the shutdown of European airspace following the Icelandic volcano eruption.

Simon Weir, Eclipse’s hotel director noted that a party at that time was frivolous. “We had a window of opportunity to do something extraordinary – we had to help out.” And, boy did they. Rescued tourists traveled back to England in the lap of luxury onboard the 122,000-ton, 2,850-passenger Eclipse. Weir said many rescued travelers told him Eclipse was far better than the land-based vacation they had in Spain and were sold on sailing the ship for their next vacation.

Eclipse is easy on the eyes

The line hit a homerun with the launch of Celebrity Solstice two years ago and Eclipse carries on the captivating qualities. Like its two sister ships (Solstice and Equinox) the big appeal is the seamless blending of differing characters throughout the ship. Passengers who have been on the aforementioned sister ships will find themselves in familiar territory. Eclipse offers The Lawn Club, with real, growing grass; The Hot Glass Show, a glassblowing show and studio developed with The Corning Museum of Glass; 10 dining venues, along with vast entertainment offerings including shows with breathtaking aerial acts. But there are some interesting new additions and changes.

There are some cosmetic differences with the interior color scheme, artwork, and various refinements that make the ship even smarter and improve the overall guest experience. One very welcomed change is the modification of the entrance area to the AquaSpa that separates the spa reception area from the entrance to the gym. The previous design had guests funneling through the spa reception area to get to the gym.

Tweaks in the design aside, it’s the new offerings onboard that are making this ship better than its predecessors. The most unique addition is Qsine, a new restaurant by Jacques Van Staden, Celebrity’s vice president of culinary operations. Qsine turns the dining experience upside down—literally. The quirky venue is enveloped in avant garde décor, furniture, and large table lamps hanging upside down from the ceiling. Even the menu presentation is gimmicky – diners are given Apple iPads with descriptions of the main menu offerings and the desert menu is a paper cube that you unfold to find the selections. The menu features childhood favorites with contemporary touches served in small portions. It’s all-you-can-eat for the $30 cover charge.

The food was delicious and a lot of fun. The menu selection called Crunchy Munchies is an assortment of fried items presented in a paper cone. Sushi lollipops are served on a stick. Spring rolls are presented in vertical springs. An assortment of three cold soups is served in test tubes with a straw. Popcorn fish and chips were served in a red-and-white popcorn box. Other options include Kobe sliders, ceviche, tacos, and lobster and escargot fritters.

Another new feature on Eclipse is the Celebrity iLounge, a hip computer center stocked with Apple products, including 26 MacBook Pros. The ship also is authorized to sell Apple products as well as offer classes on how to use them. The iPhone/iTouch classes onboard were standing room only. Clearly a big hit.

Celebrity targets landlubbers

Weir tells me that Celebrity no longer competes with other cruise lines but with the great hotels of the world like the Bellagio. “We’re not just an American product, but an International one and we will adapt to sailing in differing regions,” added Weir.

Celebrity is targeting the cosmopolitan, upscale resort crowd and the Solstice-class ships like Eclipse are the perfect bait. It’s a large ship with a lot of passengers, abundant space, yet it’s still intimate and rarely feels hectic or crowded. Best of all it manages to be two things that many cruise ships aren’t these days — to be exhilarating and classy at the same time.

If you go:

Celebrity Eclipse cruises its inaugural season with sailings from Southampton with various cruises ranging from 14-night Baltic and Mediterranean sailings that begin at $1,913 per person. On October 31, the ship will sail a transatlantic voyage to Miami, Florida, where it will begin a series of alternating 7- night Eastern and Western Caribbean voyages through April 2011. Prices begin at $649 per person. All aforementioned prices are based on inside staterooms, double occupancy. Visit Celebrity Cruises Web site for more details.

Carnival Cruise Line’s senior cruise director, John Heald let the cat out of the bag on his blog this evening stating that the new Carnival Magic will be based in Europe in 2011. Heald stated that the Magic will be based in Barcelona when it enters service next year and will be sailing seven-night, nine-night and 12-night itineraries to Monte Carlo, Rome, Naples, Messina, Palma, Marseilles, Venice and Dubrovnik.

Sister ship to the Carnival Dream launched in September, the 130,000-ton Magic will also carry more than 4,000 passengers. Carnival Magic is currently under construction in Fincantieri’s Monfalcone shipyard in Trieste, Italy and is scheduled to enter service in June 2011.

This is great news for Carnival fans!

For families with children, travel to Europe can be daunting. Packing and unpacking and deciding where to go and eat is more difficult with kids in tow. However, Disney Cruise Line is setting out to make it easy for families to visit Europe.

In April, the Disney Magic will return to Europe, where it first sailed in 2007, only this time with a few new itineraries. The Magic will offer 10,11, and-12-day cruises to Scandinavia, Germany and Russia, in addition to a lineup of Mediterranean itineraries that include calls at three new ports. And in each port Disney will add its magic touch to enhance the touring experience.

Keys to culture

Each year cruise lines keep upping the ante on shore excursions, as passengers express more enthusiasm to spend money on experiences. Disney sees its return and expansion into the European market as an evolutionary step firmly based on a core Disney activity — storytelling.

Unlike other cruise lines where the hotel department handles the shore excursions, Disney places their tours in the hands of the entertainment department. David Duffy, Disney Cruise Line’s creative director for entertainment and shore excursions, summed it up this way: “We’re using our storytelling expertise to tell the great and fascinating stories of the places we’re visiting at each destination.” He added that the true objective is to provide fact-based narrative rather than fairy tales.

Indeed, the line’s return to Europe offers a treasure trove of culturally rich Italian ports such Naples, Civitavecchia (Rome) and La Spezia (Florence, Pisa, Lucca), as well as Barcelona, Oslo, Copenhagen and Stockholm. However, it’s the ones not normally considered children’s destinations, such as St. Petersburg, Russia and Tunis, Tunisia that are the most intriguing.

Disney realizes that for a lot of passengers it will be their first time in Europe and well-designed shore excursions are the key to a great cruise vacation. “We make our shore excursions very kid-friendly,” said Jason Lasecki, Disney Cruise Line’s public relations director.

“That’s what we do so well. If they know their children are well taken care of, parents have a good time.” Lasecki acknowledged the challenge for Disney is to keep the children engaged in the cultural significance of each port of call. “We’re looking for the sweet spot in each destination,” he added.

Sweet spot or not one thing Disney insists upon for shore excursion participants is comfort. The line goes the extra mile with comfortable transportation along with adding little touches like plentiful bottled water and cool towels. They even make gelato stops during long tours to keep the kids happy. Another nice option that Disney provides at each stop is a “Port Adventure” where youth counselors from the ship whisk the kids off for an activity allowing parents and grandparents to explore a site in more detail.

Onboard the Magic, there will be activities geared toward preparing kids for the ports, such as painting frescoes, mosaics, and Russian stacking dolls. There will also be a food tastings to familiarize the kids with what they’ll find in each port such as gelato for Italy or crepes for France.

Tunisian mystique

For the majority of passengers onboard the Magic, visiting Tunis, Tunisia will be the first time experiencing a Muslim country. Disney realizes this and will offer family-friendly lectures that will discuss Tunisian society and traditions.

Once ashore, tours and activities are clearly aimed at experiencing Tunisian culture. For example, a “Treasure Hunt” shore excursion in the white-washed village of Sidi Bou Said allows families high-octane fun while at the same time discovering the ancient history of the village. Tour participants are given a map booklet with clues for a successful treasure hunt. Along the way guests visit former palaces, receive a temporary Arabic henna tattoo, fetch water from a famous communal fountain, haggle with shop owners using local currency to buy trinkets, take a pit stop in a café where the locals smoke their hookah pipes, and have their name written in Arabic by a Wiseman.

Other tours of the area include tour of Tunis with a visit to a souk, and the Bardo Museum famous for its Roman mosaics. Also available is a visit to Carthage, a UNESCO World Heritage site, and a jaunt to a Berber village, which offers a similar atmosphere to Colonial Williamsburg except it has Arabic touches of snake charmers, camel rides, and belly dancing.

Ciao Tuscany

Florence is one of the most intriguing cultural centers in Western history, in which religion, philosophy, and politics played an important part in the development of the arts. So, how do you get an 8-year-old interested in all this?

Disney developed a tour to take kids beyond just talking about history — they will actually experience it. The line is offering an exclusive “Disney Experience” at the 14th century palace — Palazzo Vecchio. “This tour is something no other cruise line has ever done in Florence,” says Duffy. The tour is actually part of a program developed for Italian school children, but Disney was able to work with the museum to come up with an English-speaking version. The tour will allow kids to enjoy works of art Michelangelo, wander through secret palace passageways, talk with actors portraying Duke Cosimo I de’ Medici or his Spanish wife Duchess Eleonora di Toledo, try on medieval clothing, and paint a fresco.

Another exclusive tour that is only offered by Disney is a medieval parade experience in Lucca complete with drummers, troubadours, dancers, flag throwers, and a cross bow contest. For those that have always dreamed of going to cooking school in Tuscany you can do that as well. The line is offering the experience at the Torre A Cenaia winery just outside Pisa. While this excursion is more adult-oriented, kids are welcomed too. The best part about cooking school in Tuscany – eating what you’ve created and (for adults anyway) washing it down with the local vintages.

Russian intrigue

When the Magic heads north to the Baltics the grandeur of St. Petersburg, Russia will be the highlight for most onboard. For the first time in Disney Cruise Line history a ship will spend an overnight in port. With the added time guests will be able to delve deep into the city’s bloody 300-year history, admire the beautiful architecture of the Winter Palace and the Peterhof, or stroll along the rivers and canals.

“The shore excursions in St. Petersburg have been two years in the making,” said Duffy. A tour of Catherine’s Palace in Pushkin is the highlight where Disney will offer an exclusive Prince and Princess Ball in the palace’s grand ballroom. Imagine all the little girls dressed up in their Belle, Cinderella, and Snow White costumes being driven to the palace’s doors in horse-drawn carriages and then dancing with Disney princess characters. “This is a very exciting time for us,” added Lasecki.

Disney will also offer guests the opportunity to experience an evening performance of Swan Lake at the St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre. Another Disney exclusive tour will allow guests to experience a private performance at the Jacobsen Ballet School, where young dancers, ages 5 to 15, train for a career in the ballet.

Also, no visit to St. Petersburg would be complete without a visit to one of the world’s greatest art museums- the Hermitage. The museum’s collection includes more than three million works of art and artifacts. Disney offers a chance for kids to visit and also create their own masterpieces in the museum’s Roman sculpture section giving parents more time to explore.

The idea of heading on a family cruise often conjures up thoughts of sitting back on deck, soaking up the sunshine and splashing in the pool, but a European cruise offers something different. Cruising in this part of the world means seeing amazing sites and experiencing ancient cultures and customs. And for kids lucky enough to sail on the Disney Magic with all its family-friendly tours full of cultural enlightenment they’ll get to see that it’s a small world after all.

If you go:

In the Mediterranean, the Disney Magic will be based in Barcelona and offer four 10-day and four 11-day cruises in April, May, August and September 2010. Fares start at $1964 per person, based on double occupancy. Kids ages 17 and under traveling with 2 full-fare guests in the same cabin sail free on select Mediterranean sailings from April 24 through May 26, 2010 (taxes and fees not included).

In June, July and part of August the Magic will be based out of Dover, England and offer 12-day cruises to the Baltics. Fares start at $3,649 per person, based on double occupancy. Visit Disney Cruise Line’s Web site for more details.

Have you been pinching pennies, hoping to save up for a great vacation? Want to take a trip that feels decadent but in reality is a very savvy deal? Get ready to say, “Aye, aye, captain,” because cruise lines are offering a buffet of amazing deals that are hard to pass up.

Last minute savings
It’s clear that consumers are shopping, but they’re also changing booking behavior as they try to stretch their dollars further. Yesterday, during Carnival Corporation’s second quarter earnings call, the company cited that consumers are booking closer meaning they are waiting last minute to book. “Consumers have come to recognize the extraordinary value proposition our cruise vacations represent,” said Micky Arison, Carnival Corporation’s chairman and CEO.

Indeed, many are holding off an actual cruise purchase hoping that fares will go even lower. Will they? Perhaps. But there’s also a risk on losing out of a good deal by waiting too long.

“If vacationers haven’t made their summer plans, it’s hard to believe that there’s still incredible deals to all of the summer hot spots, including the Caribbean, Alaska, Mexican Riviera and even Europe,” says Stewart Chiron, a cruise industry expert who is nationally recognized as The Cruise Guy.

Chiron has uncovered some incredible deals that are hard to pass up. A few even include airfare, hotel, and onboard upgrades. It’s important to note that the following fares are starting prices, which means they are for inside cabins. You will almost certainly pay more for an outside cabin.

Alaska on the cheap
Chiron says Alaska cruise prices have started to go up, but not before offering the lowest prices, probably ever. Higher than normal airfares to Seattle and Vancouver and the controversial $50 Alaska head tax are probable reasons that made sailing to America’s Last Frontier less attractive during these tough economic times.

Still, if you’ve ever desired to visit Alaska, summer 2009 is your best opportunity. “Cruise and extended tour prices have never been lower, especially as the peak Alaska sailing season approaches,” says Chiron. He notes that the best values are on the Inside Passage sailings from Seattle or the one way cruises from Vancouver or Anchorage, as you can plan extended vacations to include Kenai, Talkeetna, Denali and Fairbanks at significantly reduced prices. One thing to keep in mind is that on roundtrip sailings from Seattle, U.S. citizens can still travel with only a birth certificate along with valid government issues photo identification.

Celebrity Cruises Infinity. This deal is one for the ages. The seven-night Inside Passage Alaska roundtrip from Seattle includes stops in Ketchikan, Hubbard Glacier, Juneau and Victoria. Prices, which were $2,899 per person, have been slashed to $899 per person. What makes this deal so amazing is that it includes round-trip air travel from select U.S. gateways! It’s one of the best deals ever seen for an Alaska cruise package on a premium cruise line. Get it while you can!

Caribbean & Mexico deals

Royal Caribbean’s Liberty of the Seas. Thank goodness the biggest cruise ship in the world doesn’t have the biggest fares. Check out the popular seven-night Western Caribbean itinerary round-trip from Miami, which includes stops in St Maarten, San Juan and Labadee (private beach) OR Labadee, Ocho Rios, Grand Cayman and Cozumel. Fares used to start at $1,749 per person; now they start at $899.

Carnival Cruise Lines Carnival Liberty and Carnival Valor. Both ships offer alternating seven-night Eastern and Western Caribbean cruises from Miami. Ports of call include Half Moon Cay (private island), St John/ St Thomas, San Juan and Turks and Caicos OR Cozumel, Grand Cayman and Ocho Rios. Fares that used to start at $1,769 per person are now priced at $599.

Carnival’s “new” Carnival Splendor.Carnival’s newest ship is based in Los Angeles and offers the biggest spa of any cruise ship based in the U.S. The seven-night Mexican Riviera itinerary includes stops in Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan, and Cabo San Lucas. Fares used to start at $1,769 per person; now they start at $599.

Royal Caribbean’s Mariner of the Seas. Another great West Coast cruise option, this seven-night Mexican Riviera itinerary includes stops in, Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan, and Puerto Vallarta. Fares used to start at $1,799 per person; now they start at $499.

Europe deals
European cruise prices have rebounded over the past few weeks and been raised across the board on most cruise ships. Chiron says consumers should look toward the fall months for the best deals.

Norwegian Cruise Lines Norwegian Jewel. Norwegian’s “Freestyle Cruising” goes the Baltics. The line is offering 12-night roundtrip sailings from London (Dover) to Copenhagen, Warnemunde (Berlin), St Petersburg (overnight), Helsinki and Stockholm. Prices that formerly started at $3,799 per person for the cruise only now from $2,499 and includes air from select U.S. gateways!

Celebrity Cruises “brand new” Celebrity Equinox. The much anticipated follow-up to the most beautiful ship afloat, Celebrity Solstice, sister ship Celebrity Equinox is bound to be just as fabulous. The ship debuts July 31 and is offering an amazing 13-night Mediterranean itinerary from Civitavecchia (Rome) in August and September with stops in Santorini, Athens, Kusadasi (Ephesus), Alexandria (Giza, pyramids), Ashdod (Jerusalem, Tel Aviv), Haifa and Naples (Pompeii, Sorrento, Capri). Cruise-only fares were priced from $5,599 per person; now they are priced from $2,999 per person, which now includes air from select U.S. gateways, two nights hotel in Rome, and Concierge Class accommodations.

The message is clear: Don’t miss the boat with these great deals!