Cruise Lines

You can always tell when the festive season is approaching as it's time for the puns to be dusted down and given an airing.

Costa has to get top prize, with its "Costa sleighs the competition this Christmas" headline - well it certainly caught my attention, as did the prices it is offering.

* Seven nights on the Costa Luminosa sailing around the Arabian Gulf from Dubai departing December 19 (so Yule (!) have Xmas on the ship) from £559 per person - less than £80 a day on a new ship and with all food included. Flights are extra.

* If you fancy staying closer to home, there's an eight-night Spain and Portugal cruise on the Costa Serena, also departing December 19, from £649 per person. That's £81 a night and it includes flights.

For more information on Costa, see your travel agent, click here or call 0845 351 0552.

If you'd rather something to blow away the post-Xmas blues (or just want to avoid those on-board Turkey dinners) Gill's Cruise Centre has some New Year deals.

* 15-day Caribbean cruise from Barbados on P&O Cruises' Ventura on January 2 from £1,299 per person. Price is for a balcony cabin and includes flights.

* 13-day Canary Islands cruise from Southampton on Fred Olsen's Boudicca on January 5 from £949 per person - £73 a day - for an outside cabin. And you'll get £75 to spend on board as well.

* 11-day Mediterranean cruise from Genoa on MSC Cruises' MSC Splendida on January 20 from £699 per person. That's less than £64 a day for a balcony cabin and including flights.

To book click here or call 08456 582323.

I'm not sure these deals are being offered entirely in the festive spirit - show me a cruise line that is happy to discount and I'll show you a real live fairy on top of a Christmas tree.

But who cares? There are some great offers around for anyone still looking for a great pre or post Xmas getaway.

* French line Compagnie du Ponant is offering mums and dads a free second cabin for two kids aged under 18 on selected sailings this month. They include a one-week cruise around the Arabian Gulf from Dubai departing December 16 and costing from £1,770 per person and a seven-night sailing from Bombay to Cochin departing December 28, priced from £1925 per person. Prices exclude flights. For more details click here or call 0808 234 3802.

* Windstar has cut the price of a seven-night cruise from Barbados on the 312-passenger Wind Surf sailing ship until March 2010. Prices start from £2,207 per person (down from £2,866) for a cruise departing December 13 including return flights. For information, click here or call The Cruise Portfolio on 020 7292 2387.

* Gill's Cruise Centre is offering a five-night Fred Olsen Christmas Markets cruise on Black Watch from Southampton on December 14 2009 from £249 per person. That's for a superior outside cabin. Book here or call 08456 58 23 23.

* Not quite Xmas but perfect for the New Year - a 15-day Caribbean cruise from Barbados with casual cruise line Ocean Village departing January 27 from £1,199 per person for an inside cabin including flights. Contact Gill's again on 08456 58 23 23.

It you'd prefer more time to plan, Costa Cruises has some good deals already lined up for 2010.

* 11-night Colours of Canada cruise from Quebec to New York on Costa Atlantica departing April 24 from £789 per person excluding flights.

* 21-night Alluring East cruise from Mauritius to Singapore on Costa Romantica departing March 27 from £1,479 per person excluding flights.

* 20-night Greenland cruise roundtrip from Amsterdam on Costa Luminosa departing August 1 2010 from £3,359 per person excluding flights.

For details of Costa cruises click here or call 0845 351 0552. 

The economic news throughout this year might have been dire but not enough to trouble the folk booking with Gill's Cruise Centre.

The cruise specialist says this year, 80% more customers than in 2008 have chosen to book balcony cabins. Or put another way, balconies have accounted for 36% of the company's bookings this year.

A kind of two fingers to the recession I guess, or is it just that the prices are so good they would be daft to miss out.

How about an 11-night Eastern Mediterranean on MSC Splendida from Genoa from £699 per person including flights and a balcony cabin on January 31? Or a 14-night transatlantic crossing from Barbados to Southampton on P&O's Oceana on March 19 2010, from £1,299 per person including a balcony cabin and one-way flight to Barbados?

Both deals, and more, are bookable by going to Gill's website or calling 08456 582323.

Rooms with balconies have become the cabin of choice for more and more people these days - it's why new cruise ships have so many and invariably the cruise lines report that the ships fill from the top down.

They are also addictive. It's a strange person indeed who chooses to go back from a balcony to an inside or seaview room that never enjoys a bit of fresh air.

Just think. No private place to sit outside and get away from the maddening crowds and nowhere to enjoy a glass of bubbly as the sun goes down and you bid farewell to yet another port. It's a hard life!

Cruise Critic's editor in chief Carolyn Spencer Brown must have been reading Cruise Thomas Cook's latest press release when making her 2010 prediction that cruise lines will carry on discounting into 2010.

Last week the cruise retailer hit the high streets fighting, promising a 2010 campaign where "we won't be beaten on price".

Specifically, it guarantees to match any quotation from another ABTA travel agent within 24 hours of booking or receiving a quote. It is also offering up to £500 more discount per booking and giving away a cruise a week with Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises via an in-store scratch card promotion.

Here are a few of the deals available until January 31:

* P&O Cruises - save up to £800 per stateroom and get up to £200 on-board credit. Oceana special --- on board credit on every 2010 sailing.

* Princess Cruises - save up to £1,000 per stateroom and get $200 on-board credit on Alaska 2010 sailings and selected Exotic 2010/11 sailings.

* Cunard - save up to £300 per person on all transatlantic crossings and get $10 per person per day to spend on board if you book by February 28.

* Royal Caribbean International - save up to £400 per stateroom and receive up to $200 per cabin on-board credit on selected Oasis of the Seas sailings.

* Costa - receive £400 on-board spend on selected Far East sailings on Costa Allegra and Costa Classica.

The recession might be officially over, but there's no sign of an end to the great cruise offers we've been seeing over the past year or so. Here are some to get the credit card jumping.

SeaDream Yacht Club

If you can pack fast, you can save an incredible £6,000 on an 18-night Caribbean cruise from St Thomas in the US Virgin Islands to San Juan in Puerto Rico on SeaDream I on March 5. Prices now from $6,516 (£4,200) per person cruise-only, down from $14,800 (£10,200).

Closer to home, save more than £4,000 on a seven-night June 5 Greece and Italy cruise on SeaDream II from Piraeus, the port for Athens, to Civitavecchia, the port for Rome. Prices now from $3,226 (£2,080) per person cruise-only, down from $9,327 ($6,200) per person.

SeaDream I and SeaDream II each holds just 112 passengers. Drinks and gratuities are included in the prices. To book visit your local travel agent and tell them to call 0800 783 1373, quoting IBOS2010.

Oceania Cruises

Cruise the Med in luxury while saving more than £2,000 on this 14-night Venetian Rhapsody cruise from Barcelona to Piraeus, the port for Athens, on Insignia on April 18. Prices now from $3,612 (£2,300) per person cruise-only for a Penthouse Suite with a butler, down from $7,039 (£4,500).

Join the jetset on a 10-night Yacht Havens cruise from Civitavecchia, the port for Rome, to Barcelona on Nautica on August 5 and save £650 per person. Prices now from $2,139 (£1,450) per person cruise-only, down from $3,139 (2,100).

To book, see your travel agent, click here or call Oceania on 0845 505 1920.

P&O Cruises

Cruise into spring for just £74 a night on a 14-night no-fly Mediterranean voyage from Southampton on Ventura departing April 10. Prices from £1,025 per person cruise-only for a balcony cabin and including £100 per adult on-board credit.

Or why not try something new? There's a 16-night no-fly cruise on new ship Azura on May 10 from £1,475 per person cruise-only for a balcony cabin and including £100 per adult on-board credit.

To book, click here or call on 0845 3 555 333.

Iglucruise

Book an eight-night cruise from Lisbon to Oslo on Royal Caribbean's Vision of the Seas departing April 19 from £579 per person including flights and gratuities. You can also upgrade to an outside cabins for £100 per person and to a balcony for £250. To book click here or call 020 8544 6447.

The top is the ultra-lux lines Yachts of Seabourn and Silversea, which have released some very tempting offers.

The bottom is Louis Cruises, which has eight-night cruises from £399 per person. You have to buy a flight as well with these guys, but with a full-board cruise at under £50 a night it's still a bargain.

Yachts of Seabourn
Book a summer or autumn cruise in the Med or Norwegian fjords by April 30 and you'll get free flights and private car transfers. Here are some samples, all including flights and transfers. Don't forget on Seabourn drinks and gratuities are also included in the price.
 
* Seven-night Cote D'Azur & Spanish Isles cruise from Monte Carlo to Barcelona on Seabourn Legend departing August 14 from £2,199 per person.

* Seven-night Greece & Dalmatian Isles cruise from Pireus, the port for Athens, to Venice, on Seabourn Odyssey on September 4 from £2,499 per person

* Twelve-night Grand Norwegian Fjords cruise from Copenhagen to London on Seabourn Sojourn on September 15 from £3,199 per person.
 
To book, see your travel agent, call Seabourn on 0845 070 0500 or click here.

Silversea
Silversea is including free flights on selected Middle East cruises. These prices include the flights and transfers, and also all drinks and gratuities while on board.

* Seven-day cruise around the Arabian Gulf roundtrip from Dubai on Silver Whisper with departures on March 30 and April 6 from £2,538 per person.

* Fifteen-day cruise from Dubai to Piraeus, the port for Athens on Silver Whisper on April 13 from £4,183 per person.

To book, see your travel agent, call 0844 770 9030, or click here.

Louis Cruises
This is the no-frills end of the cruise market, perfect if you're on a budget and desperate to get away to the sun. These are all cruise-only so you'll need to book your own flights. Prices are valid until March 31.

* Eight-night Iberian Coasts cruise roundtrip from Genoa on Louis Majesty on April 1 (you can also embark in Marseilles on April 2) from £399 per person.

* Eight-day Greece and Turkey cruise roundtrip from Piraeus, the port for Athens, on Louis Cristal on April 2 from £489 per person.

* Three-night Aegean Legends cruise roundtrip from Piraeus on the Aegean Pearl or Aquamarine on April 2 from £169 per person.

To book call 0800 018 3883 or click here. 

Still undecided about whether you can afford to book a cruise this year? Here's a selection of this week's best deals.

* Cruise and Maritime Voyages is offering free upgrades on a six-night springtime cruise from Tilbury on April 23, visiting Rouen in France, Guernsey and the Isles of Scilly. Prices from £399 (that's just £66.50 a day) per person cruise-only. See your travel agent, call CMV on 0845 833 9798 or click here.

* Iglu Cruise has seven nights on Princess Cruises' Grand Princess sailing from Southampton to Scandinavia on May 22 from £599 - that's just £85 a night with all food included - and you'll get a free upgrade to a balcony cabin. The cruise visits Bruges, Copenhagen, Helsingborg and Oslo. Call Iglu on 020 8544 6447 or click here.

* Gills Cruise has 14 nights on P&O Cruises' Oceana, sailing from Southampton to the Med on May 1, from £799 per person for an inside cabin. Cruise calls include Gibraltar, Civitavecchia (for Rome), Barcelona and Cadiz. Call 08456 582323 or click here.

* Gills again, but this time with a 10-night cruise on Royal Caribbean International's Independence of the Seas from Southampton to the Canary Islands. Prices start from £749 per person for an inside cabin. Call 08456 582323 or click here.

* Star Clippers has a kids-sail-free offer on a one-week Turkish Riviera cruise roundtrip from Rhodes on the clipper ship Star Flyer on July 24. Kids have to be under 18 to qualify and will have to pay port taxes. Price start from £2,860 for a family of four excluding flights (saving £2,320). See your travel agent, call 0845 200 6145 or click here.

* If river cruising is more your thing, AMAWaterways is offering two free nights' in a five-star hotel in Prague with all bookings for its seven-night Castles and Rivers' cruise from Nuremberg to Trier on the Main, Rhine and Mosel Rivers. Prices start from £1,275 per person departing October 29, including daily excursions and wine with dinner but excluding flights. See your travel agent, call 0808 223 5009 or click here.

* Finally, Voyages of Discovery is offering upgrades from inside to outside cabins on selected cruises (there's one to France in August and one to Libya in October among the selection). Bookings must be made in April. See your travel agent, call 0844 822 0802 or click here.

Sometimes you come across an offer you just can't afford to ignore. I reckon the first three here, from Iglu and Carnival Cruise Lines, fall into that category. This week there are also some great no-fly deals and an Arctic one for would-be explorers.

Iglu Cruises has a five-night Spring Getaway from Southampton on Cunard's Queen Victoria from £399 per person, with a balcony cabin just £50 per person more - £449. You'll have an night in Amsterdam and visit Zeebrugge (for Bruges) and Le Havre in France. Call 020 8544 6447 or click here.

Iglu also has 14 nights from Southampton to the Norwegian fords on P&O Cruises' Oriana departing June 2 from £699 per person for an inside cabin. That's just £50 a night. An upgrade to an outside cabin costs £200 per person. Call 020 8544 6447 or click here.

Carnival Cruise Lines has a seven-night Western Caribbean cruise on the new Carnival Dream from Port Canaveral from £359 per person cruise-only on May 1, and there's a host of other great deals as well. But you'll have to hurry as these prices are only available today and tomorrow. Ask your travel agent to find Carnival's Pack and Go rates.

Cruise & Maritime Voyages has a six-night Norwegian fjords cruise on Ocean Countess from Hull on April 20 from £449 per person for an inside cabin or £649 per person for an ocean view. See your travel agent, call 0845 833 9798 or click here.

Gills Cruise has a 10-night Canary Islands cruise from Southampton on Royal Caribbean International's Independence of the Seas. It departs May 5 and costs from £749 per person for an inside cabin. Call 08456 582323 or click here.

It's Gills again, but this time with a 13-night Baltic cruise from Dover on Fred Olsen Cruise Lines' Braemar departing May 29, with prices from £999 per person. Call 08456 582323 or click here.

For something very different, polar cruise operator One Ocean Expeditions is offering free charter flights from Canada, worth $1,600 per person, to passengers booking a 13-day cruise through the Northwest Passage from Resolute in Canada to Kangerlussuaq in Greenland on the 122-passenger Clipper Adventurer on August 2. Prices start from US$5,590 per person excluding international flights. For more information, click here.

Lots of cruising deals are still coming in for anyone still hanging on for a bargain. Most are for this year - with plenty of no-fly cruises from the UK in the wake of the ash fiasco - but MSC Cruises has put some spring into its 2011 launch by repeating its cruise-for-£1 offer.

Sounds too good to be true? Well it's certainly not quite as good as it seems as you only get to cruise for £1 if you're sharing a cabin with a person who has paid full brochure price. So it's actually a two-for-the-price-of-one offer by another name.

But whatever you call it, it's a good deal and not to be sniffed at. The cruise-for-£1 offer applies to more than 280 Mediterranean cruises in 2011, but you'll need to book by May 10. Flights are not included. See your travel agent or call MSC Cruises on 0844 879 4923.

There's also still time to snag a bargain in the Windstar sale, which ends on May 3. Windstar operates three sailing ships and is offering incredible savings of up to £1,958 per couple as well as free cabin upgrades on selected Wind Surf sailings in the Med. To find out more, see your travel agent, call 020 7292 2369 or click here.

Here are some of the best-of-the-rest offers.

Ventura from £91 a night
P&O Cruises has some last-minute availability on a 14-night Mediterranean cruise from Southampton on Ventura departing June 19. Prices from £1,277 per person (£91 a night) for an inside twin cabin and you'll also get £100 each to spend on board.

If you prefer a smaller ship and can go now, there's space on Aurora's 14-night Mediterranean sailing from Southampton on May 19. Prices from £1,386 - £99 a night - for an inside cabin plus £100 on-board spending money.

Call P&O Cruises on 0845 3 555 333 or click here.

Balconies for just £100
Iglu Cruise is offering a four-night mini-cruise from Southampton on Cunard's Queen Mary 2 on May 28 from £399 per person for an inside cabin. Balconies are available from £100 extra. To book, call 020 8544 6447 or click here.

60% savings from Oceania
Oceania Cruises has knocked up to £2,646 per person off the price of a 12-night Mediterranean Grandeur cruise from Monaco to Venice on Insignia departing October 29. Prices now from £1,513 per person excluding flights.

There's also £1,500 off a 14-night Footsteps of History cruise from Venice to Barcelona, also  on Insignia, departing November 10. Prices from £1,167 per person excluding flights.

Contact Oceania on 0845 505 1920 or click here.
 
Cut-price rivers
Save £250 per person on a one-week river cruise with AMAWaterways from Nuremberg to Trier along the Main and Moselle rivers in Germany on June 27. Prices now from £1,265 per person.

You can also get £250 off a one-week cruise from Nuremberg to Budapest. Prices now from £1,365. Or save £325 on a 12-night cruise from St Petersburg to Moscow on September 28. Prices now from £1,930 per person.

All AMAWaterways prices include wine with dinner but exclude flights. For more information, call 0808 223 5009 or click here.

No-fly cruises from £64 a night
Gill's Cruise Centre has a 14-night cruise on Royal Caribbean International's Independence of the Seas from Southampton on June 19 from £899 per person - that's just £64 a night.

They are also offering 13 nights in the Norwegian fjords from Dover on Fred Olsen Cruise Lines' Braemar departing June 18. Prices start from £899 per person for an inside cabin.

Finally, there a Princess Cruises voyage from Southampton - 14 nights in the Mediterranean on Grand Princess departing August 21 from £1,499 per person for a balcony cabin, plus you'll get $400 per cabin onboard spend.

Call Gill's on 08456 582323 or click here.

If you're still waiting to book this year's cruise this year, the good news from specialist retailer Iglucruise.com is that there are lots of deals out there - and they're not all last minute either. Here's this week's selection of deals.

The fjords from £599
Iglucruise.com is offering a seven-night cruise to the Norwegian fjords on Fred Olsen's Braemar on July 1, visiting Bergen, Olden, Flam, Gudvangen and Stavanger, from £599 per person for an inside cabin, £669 for a room with a view.

Iglu also has a 12-night cruise to the Baltic on P&O Cruises' Aurora on August 8, calling at Copenhagen, Stockholm, Helsinki, St Petersburg (overnight), Tallinn and Bruges, from £1,099 per person for an outside cabin.

To book, call 020 8544 6447 or click here.

New York getaway
Cruise Thomas Cook is offering a five-night Getaway cruise on Cunard's Queen Mary 2 on July 1, sailing from New York to Halifax in Canada, from £1,179 per person for an inside cabin including flights from London.

CTC also has a seven-night Eastern Mediterranean cruise from Venice on Norwegian Cruise Line's Norwegian Gem on August 21, calling at Dubrovnik, Piraeus, Izmir (Turkey) and Nauplion (Greece), from £1,037 per person for an inside cabin including return flights from Edinburgh.

To book, visit your Thomas Cook or Going Places travel agent, call 0800 916 6070 or click here.

Ventura to the Med?
P&O Cruises is offering 14 nights in the Med from just £97 per night. You'll cruise on Ventura from Southampton on July 31 and visit Lisbon, Palma, Barcelona, Cannes, Livorno, Civitavecchia (for Rome) and Gibraltar. Prices from £1,358 per person for an inside cabin.

P&O also has a good deals on a seven-night cruise on new ship Azura from September 21-28. You'll sail from Southampton and visit Dublin, Cobh, Bilbao and Brest. Prices from £671 per person for an inside cabin.

To book call 0845 3 555 333 or click here.

Cruise for less than £50 a day
Cruise and Maritime Voyages is offering 12-night cruises to Iceland in June and July for less than £50 a day. Marco Polo sails from Tilbury on June 22, Ocean Countess departs from Leith in Scotland on July 12. Prices for both cruises start from £599 per person for a "best available" cabin.

To book, see your agent, call 0845 833 9798 or click here.

Eclipse from Southampton
Gill's Cruise Centre is offering a 14-night Scandinavia and Russia cruise from Southampton on Celebrity Eclipse on June 26. You'll visit Zeebrugge, Warnemunde, Stockholm, Helsinki, Tallinn and Copenhagen, and spend two days in St Petersburg. Prices from £1,049 per person for an inside cabin and £1,299 for a room with a balcony.

Gill's also has a 16-night Mediterranean cruise from Southampton on P&O Cruises' Aurora on July 23. You'll visit Malaga, Dubrovnik, Split and Corfu and spend two days in Venice. Prices from £1,299 per person for an inside cabin.

To book call 08456 582323 or click here.

MSC Cruises is offering a 15% discount on all its 2010 and 2011 departures booked from today until July 31, to mark its role as official supporter of National Family Week, which also starts today.

MSC says by lending its support to the week, it hopes to highlight the important role families play in society.

I imagine it also hopes to make quite a few cruise sales as well.

To claim the 15% discount, call 0844 561 1955 and quote code MSC/NFW. The discount only applies to cruise-only prices and excludes MSC Yacht Club and cruises on MSC Opera.

That seems strange to me as Opera is sailing from Dover this summer and Southampton in 2011, and is therefore potentially the most attractive ship for the Brits to book.

Could it be MSC reckons the Bris prefer the newer, glitzier ships? In which case...?

For the next 10 days, whenever you book a P&O, Princess or Cunard cruise with Cruise Thomas Cook that costs more than £899 per person, they'll throw in a free theatre break in London for two.

So you really can enjoy a West End show when you cruise!

You have until June 13 to make the booking and October 31 to take the break, which includes an overnight in London in a three-star hotel with breakfast.

What can you get for your £899? Here are a few suggestions:

* Twelve-night Caribbean cruise-and-stay combining three nights at the Orlando Marriott Village with a seven-night cruise from Miami on Princess Cruises' Sea Princess on October 24 from £979 per person for an inside cabin including flights.

* Seven-night Mediterranean cruise from Civitavecchia (the port for Rome) to Southampton on Queen Victoria on November 24 from £899 per person for an inside cabin including one-way flight.

* Ten-night British Isles cruise from Southampton on P&O's Oceania on July 22 from £999 per person for an inside cabin.

To take advantage of the theatre offer, see your local Thomas Cook or Going Places agent, call 0800 916 6070 or click here.

If none of those appeals, there are plenty of other offers around.

Free kids with Star Clippers
Star Clippers is trying to drum up family business this summer with a free kids' offer on its two smallest ships, Star Flyer and Star Clipper.

There are free kids' cruises in June, July and August, offering savings of from £2,320 for a seven-night cruise for family of four and bringing the one-week cruise price to from £2,860 excluding flights.

Children have to be under 18 and travelling with two adults.

Call on 0845 200 6145 or click here.

Oceania's first cut is the deepest
Oceania Cruises is offering more than £4,000 per person off a 45-night cruise from Hong Kong to Athens on Regetta on March 26 2011. Even with the discount the cruise will set you back quite a bit - it costs from £8,450 per person excluding flights. That's £187 per night - but at least you get free bottled water!

If you're looking for something more immediate, there's up to £2,646 per person off a 12-night Med cruise from Monaco to Venice on Insignia on October 29. Prices now from £999 per person but that's still excluding flights.

Oceania prices are in dollars so sterling equivalents quoted here are approximate.

Call 0845 505 1920 or click here.

I am told it's a tough market out there, what with the public's fear of the impending austerity measures and stay-at-home fever caused by the World Cup.

Unless you are Gill's Cruise Centre, that is. They say bookings rose as the World Cup loomed as footie fans snapped up cruises, reassured they would be able to see their favourite team in action despite being at sea because cruise lines are screening the games on special screens around their ships.

If you manage to drag yourself away from the TV, or are just looking for an excuse to get away from the footie, here are some of this week's top offers.

P&O for £71 a night
Gill's Cruise Centre has a 14-night Baltic cruise from Southampton on P&O Cruises' Azura on July 2 from £999 per person for an inside cabin - just £71 a night.

Gill's also has a 14-night cruise from Southampton to the Baltic on Cunard's Queen Victoria on July 8 from £1,299 per person for a balcony cabin.

Prefer Norway? There's a 12-night Iceland and Norway cruise from Southampton on Princess Cruises' Crown Princess on July 12 2010. Prices from £899 per person for an inside cabin.

Call 08456 582323 or click here

Round Britain
Fred Olsen Cruise Lines is offering a nine-night no-fly round-Britain cruise from Newcastle on Boudicca on September 26 from £726 per person - that's £80 a night - for an inside cabin.

See your travel agent, call 01473 742424 or click here

Marine Harmony
French cruise line Compagnie du Ponant is offering a Marine Harmony wellness cruise on mega-yacht Le Boréal sailing from Nice to Honfleur in France on June 18-27. It's all being done in partnership with Carita, which is bringing beauticians, health specialists and dieticians on board to offer advice and treatments. Prices from £2,690 per person excluding flights and transfers.
 
See your travel agent, call 0808 234 3802 or click here

River savings
AMA Waterways has £500 savings on a seven-night cruise from Budapest to Amsterdam on July 19 and 23. Prices now start from £2,750, including flights and transfers, wine with meals, free wi-fi and daily excursions.

AMA is also offering £425 per person off the price of a Russian Waterways cruise from Moscow to St Petersburg on July 30 and August 23. Prices now from £1,995 per person including flights and transfers, wine with dinner, free wi-fi and daily excursions.

See your travel agent, call 0808 223 5009 or click here 

Land of the Midnight Sun
Voyages of Discovery is offering £300 off a 15-day Iceland and Greenland cruise on its ship, Discovery, on August 6. You'll fly to Reykjavik and have a day there before cruising to Greenland and then to Dover. Prices now from £1,099 per person.

See your travel agent, call 0844 822 0801 or click here

Half price Baltic
Iglucruise has a 12-night Baltic cruise from Dover on Norwegian Sun from just £689 per person. That's half the price it was but you'll have to be able to drop everything and go as it departs June 28. Balcony upgrades are available for an extra £100.

Iglucruise also has a good deal on a 12-night transatlantic from Southampton to New York via Boston on Dawn Princess on July 14. Prices now from £799 per person for an inside cabin, down from £1,199, with balconies from £999.

Call 020 8544 6447 or click here.

Mediterranean summer
P&O Cruises is offering a 14-night Mediterranean cruise from Southampton, visiting France, Italy and Spain, on Ventura on July 31 from £1,358 per person for an inside stateroom.

See your agent, call 0845 3 555 333 or click here

* All offers here are subject to availability.

Ever fancied a cruise on a tall sailing ship? Then this is the moment to book as Star Clippers is offering more than £500 per person discounts on selected cruises this summer.

There's £416 per person off a seven-night roundtrip cruise around the Greek Islands and Turkey from Athens on Star Clipper on August 14. Price now from £879 per person excluding flights.

Alternatively there's £546 per person off a 14-night cruise from Athens to Malaga, again on Star Clipper, on October 14. Prices now from £1,989 per person including flights, transfers and one night bed and breakfast in a hotel in Malaga.

If time is short, there's £116 per person off three and four-night cruises along the French Riviera from Cannes on September 4, 8 and 29. Prices now from £499 for three nights and £649 for four nights, both excluding flights.

To book, contact your travel agent, call Star Clippers on 0845 200 6145 or click here.

Win a cruise

Book a cruise this month with Iglu Cruises and you could win a free cruise from Southampton on Royal Caribbean International's Independence of the Seas

Iglu has a five-night Mediterranean cruise from Malaga in Spain on Royal Caribbean International's Adventure of the Seas on November 8 from £369 per person including flights.

There's also a 12-night Canary Islands cruise from Southampton on P&O Cruises' Oriana on August 15. Prices now from £1,099 per person for an inside cabin with upgrades to a balcony from £250.

To book call 020 8544 6447 or click here.

Escape with Cruise Thomas Cook

If you are free to pack and go, Cruise Thomas Cook has a seven-night roundtrip Mediterranean Discovery Cruise from Palma, Majorca, on Island Cruises' Island Escape on July 29. Prices now from £680 per person for an inside cabin including flights from Bristol.

If you fancy a break from the Med, how about a nine-night Western Caribbean cruise from Miami on Celebrity Solstice at the end of August? Prices now from £1,100 per person for an inside cabin including flights from Gatwick departing August 28.

To book, visit or visit your local Thomas Cook or Going Places travel agent, call 0800 916 6070 or click here

No kids cruise

Cruise and Maritime Voyages is offering up top £300 per person savings on a 10-night Norwegian fjords cruise from Tilbury on the adult-only Marco Polo on August 19. Prices now from £599 - less than £60 a night - for an inside cabin, or £699 for a room with a view.

To book, see your local travel agent, call 0845 833 9798 or click here.

If you've ever wanted to go to the South Pacific, now's definitely the time as Paul Gauguin is offering free flights from London to join the ship.

You'll have to be quick though as the offer is only valid on three cruises.

There's a 14-night voyage from Papeete to Auckland in New Zealand on November 6 that visits all sorts of exotic sounding places such as Taha'a, Bora Bora, Aitutaki and Tauranga and a mirror-image 14-night cruise coming back from Auckland to Papeete on November 21.

These voyages, incidentally, are also Paul Gauguin's maiden visit to New Zealand.

Finally there's a 14-night round-trip cruise from Papeete, visiting more unpronounceable exotic-sounding places.

Prices start from £4,187 per person, which includes soft drinks, alcohol and gratuities as well as the free air.

If none of these dates works, Paul Gauguin is also offering free or two-for-one air travel between Los Angeles and the ship on all voyages in 2011. Not quite so generous, but better than nothing.

There have been some cruise great deals around lately but this surely is the deal to top all others.

Free flights on Orion Expedition Cruises voyages in Borneo, Vietnam and the Kimberley, which is that bit across the top of Australia.

And not just on one or two departures, but loads of dates - 13 alone in the Kimberley between April and September. That's free flights to Australia. You can't afford not to book.

There are also a few two-for-the-price-of-one flight deals on Orion's cruises in Melanesia, Papua New Guinea and New Zealand and the sub-Antarctic.

You have to book by the end of October. Call 020 7399 7620 or click here.

Wine offer
You've got less time to ponder with Virgin Holidays Cruises, which is giving away a case of wine worth more than £80 to anyone who books a cruise of seven nights or longer by Monday July 26.

That means you only have this weekend so get booking.

Here are a few suggestions:

* A seven-night Caribbean cruise from New York on Norwegian Cruise Line's Norwegian Gem on November 13 from £929 per person including flights

* A 10-night holiday combining three nights' all inclusive at the Hilton Ras al Khaimah Resort & Spa (that's in one of the United Arab Emirates) with seven nights' cruising the Arabian Gulf on Costa Cruises' Costa Luminosa on November 25 from £1,299 per person including flights.

* A 14-night holiday combining four nights at the Quality inn International on International Drive in Orlando with a seven-night Western Caribbean cruise on Carnival Cruise Lines' Carnival Legend on January 19 2011 from £999 per person including flights.

Call 0871 781 9893 or click here.

Iglu deals
Iglu Cruise always has some great deals and its first September offers are no exception, with hundreds of pounds slashed off selected departures.

You can save £1,550 per person on a 12-night cruise from Southampton to the Med on Cunard's Queen Mary 2 and get a free upgrade to a balcony cabin. It departs September 19 and prices are from £1,399, down from £2,949.

There's also £850 off a 21-night cruise from Southampton to San Francisco on P&O Cruises' Oriana on September 23. Price is now from £1,299 per person, down from £2,149, including the return flight back to the UK.

Call 020 8544 6447 or click here.

Drop and go 
If you're able to drop and go, Cruise Thomas Cook has some great offers for August.

* A 10-night Taste of France cruise from Harwich with Voyages of Discovery on August 20 visiting St Helier (Jersey), La Rochelle, Bordeaux, St Malo and Rouen from £999 per person.

* A seven-night Eastern Mediterranean cruise from Venice on MSC Cruises' MSC Armonia on August 30, visiting Dubrovnik, Piraeus, Argostoli (Cephalonia), Kotor (Montenegro) and Ancona from £649 per person including flights.

Visit a Thomas Cook or Going Places travel agent, call 0800 916 6070 of click here.

Fellow blogger Gene Sloan carried a story last week saying prices for cruises are rising, but fear not as there are still some great deals around.

Ultra-luxury line Crystal Cruises is offering free return flights on an 11-night New England and Canada cruise to Montreal the refurbished Crystal Symphony on October 22.

Prices start from £2,729 per person for an oceanview stateroom including gratuities and the flights, and you'll also get up to $500 per person on-board credit that can be spent as you wish - on shore excursions, on spa treatments, drinks, whatever.

Call 020 7287 9040 or click here.

I don't often get deals from Thomson Cruises but seems they have some spaces to fill in September once the schools have gone back.

There's a seven-night Mediterranean cruise from Palma on Thomson Destiny on September 11 from £809 per person. That includes flights and transfers.

If you're fed up with the Med, there's a seven-night Egypt and the Holy Land cruise from Marmaris in Turkey on Thomson Celebration on September 13 that visits Alexandria and Port Said in Egypt, Ashdod in Israel, Larnaca in Cyprus and Antalya in Turkey. Prices from £879 per person including flights and transfers.

Call 0871 231 3243 or click here.

Iglucruise is already thinking of Christmas with its deals this week.

For those who want to escape the pre-Xmas madness, there's an 11-night Canary Islands cruise from Southampton with Royal Caribbean on November 29 from £649 per person for an inside cabin, down from £979.

However, if you want to get in the Christmas spirit, there's an eight-night cruise from Southampton on Fred Olsen's Balmoral on November 29 that visits Gothenburg, Copenhagen, Hamburg and Amsterdam, so you can pop in on the Xmas markets. Prices from £679 per person and they'll also throw in £50 onboard credit, car parking and an upgrade to an outside cabin.

Call 020 8544 6447 or click here.

Cruise Thomas Cook has a winter sun deal with Princess Cruises for anyone in Scotland - 15 nights' cruising from Barbados on Sea Princess on November 15 from £1,479 per person for an inside cabin including flights from Edinburgh and $350 onboard spending money.

See your local Thomas Cook or Going Places travel agent, call 0800 916 6070 or click here. 

It's not often you long to be older than you really are, but this month it pays to be in your Saga years as Italian line MSC Cruises is offering special discounts for over-55s on its no-fly cruises from its new home of Southampton next year.

Book before the end of August and you'll be able to take a 2011 cruise from the south coast port to Northern Europe or Northern Spain and France from just £599 per person.

If you're not over-55, don't feel too discriminated against. As revealed first on Cruise Lines, MSC is planning special offers for other groups throughout the year, including solo cruisers, single parents with children, honeymooners and military veterans.

The line is currently sailing summer cruises to the Norwegian fjords and Baltic from Dover on the 1,700-passenger MSC Opera but is moving to Southampton next year to be in the thick of the UK's cruising action, but also because it reckons it's easier for passengers to get there.

It also means they can offer new eight-night cruises to Northern France and Spain as well as continuing to sail to the Baltic and fjords.

You can always tell when National Cruise Week is looming. First, even better cruise deals than usual start trickling into the in-box and second, you start to get silly pictures.

Well I'm all for the latter if they raise a few spirits. So here's to Stephen Moffet, MSC Cruises UK sales director, Adele Foster, left, and Flo Powell, right, both from the Passenger Shipping Association, seen here on MSC Opera during a turnaround in Dover recently.

National Cruise Week runs from September 19-26 and promises good deals and fun events to get you in the mood to buy a cruise.

If you're planning to book a P&O cruise for next year, do it next month, when the line is running a Early Booking Spectacular (their words, their capital letters!), with up to £1,500 per couple off cruises departing Southampton between March and October 2011.

They're also giving away free car parking or coach transfers on cruises of seven nights or more, on-board credit of up to £375 per couple and an extra 5% off if you pay for the cruise in full when you make the booking (roundtrip cruises from Southampton only).

You've got until Thursday September 30 to browse their brochure and make the booking. Call 0845 3 555 333, click here or see your travel agent.

If you'd rather get away sooner and escape the British rain, Iglucruise has a 26-night cruise from San Francisco to Sydney on October 13 on P&O Cruises' Oriana from £1,849 including flights, transfers and three nights at the Grace Hotel in Sydney. Call 020 8544 6447 or click here.

I'm recently back from a cruise along the US East Coast and into Canada so I can thoroughly recommend the places you'll visit on this nine-night Canada cruise offered by Cruise Thomas Cook from £1,140 per person including flights. I went with Princess, this one is with Carnival Cruise Lines, cruising on Carnival Glory, and it departs on October 2. Call 0800 916 6070, click here or visit your nearest Thomas Cook or Going Places.

River cruise companies say they are choc-full with bookings this year, but AMAWaterways has nevertheless found enough room to offer a few two-for-one deals on the Danube and Rhine including a seven-night Europe's Heartland cruise from Trier to Nuremberg on November 7. It now costs from £1,549 for two people including meals, wine with dinner, daily excursions but excluding flights. Call 0808 223 5009 or click here.

With the start of National Cruise Week now just two days away, it's time to think seriously about booking your 2011 cruise.

Now in its third year, National Cruise Week is organised by the Association of Cruise Experts and is the time of year when all the cruise lines come out with some great deals that you'd be mad to miss.

Your ACE travel agent will have details of all the offers but to whet your appetite here are some that have winged their way to Archer Towers.

P&O Cruises has a prize draw, giving one lucky winner the chance to win back the cost of their cruise. To qualify, you need to book one of the voyages in the cruise line's Early Booking Spectacular during National Cruise Week.

Fred Olsen has a special National Cruise Week brochure featuring great deals on 60 2011 sailings. The offers must be booked through an ACE agent.

MSC Cruises is giving away champagne, chocolate-coated strawberries and two MSC souvenir flutes to anyone booking an MSC cruise during National Cruise week. Quote "MSC welcome gift" when making the booking. If you book a 2011 cruise from the UK on MSC Opera, you could win back the cost of your cruise in a prize draw.

Cruise & Maritime Voyages is giving away a free no-fly cruise for two in a Cashback prize draw.

Norwegian Cruise Line is running a prize draw, refunding the cost of a seven-night Western Mediterranean cruise in 2011 for one lucky winner.

Star Clippers is offering a one category free cabin upgrade for all bookings made during National Cruise Week.

Hurtigruten is offering an 11-night cruise along the Norwegian coast for the price of six. The prize has to be taken between October and December this year, which means there's also a chance to see the Northern Lights.

Don't forget, to get the deals you have to book between September 19 and 26.

Still wondering what to do this Christmas? Why not escape all the hassle of cooking, washing-up and being nice to auntie by escaping on a cruise?

To help with the budget, Cruise and Maritime Voyages (0845 833 9798) has slashed £800 per person off the cost of their Caribbean Christmas cruise on Marco Polo.

The cruise departs Tilbury on December 6 and gets back on January 10. You'll spend Christmas Eve in Aruba, and Christmas Day and New Year's Day at sea.

Prices start from £1,999 per person for an inside cabin - that's just £57 a night - or £2,699 for a room with a view.

Oceania Cruises (0845 505 1920) special offer this week is not for the Christmas period, but with discounts of £625 per stateroom on cruises in Alaska, plus $1,000 on-board credit, it'll help to get you in the festive spirit.

The cruise line is making its Alaska debut next summer, offering a selection of 12 and 14-day cruises around the 49th state with new prices from £1,406 per person cruise-only.

Island Cruises' (0871 231 3253) free all-inclusive drinks package - as much beer, wine, liquor, fizzy pop as you can drink, as well as selected cocktails - will certainly get you in the festive spirit. It's available if you book any 2011 cruise before October 31 2010.

The cruise line's one ship, Island Escape, will be sailing in the Canary Islands in winter 2011, then relocating to Palma, Mallorca, for seven-night cruises around the Med in summer.

To avoid another Watchdog incident (Island Cruises is owned by Thomson Cruises) please note that Island is a budget brand with an old ship, and all about casual cruising, with no dress code and self-service meals.

Put it another way, you do not get a luxury cruise paying £654 per person - and that includes flights and all meals don't forget - for seven nights in the Canaries. You have been warned.

The best place to pick up good deals recently was the Cruise Show in Birmingham, so for those of you who missed out, bad luck. While you ponder your mistake, here's a selection of offers that have come my way in the past couple of days.

Spirit of Adventure (0800 300 432) has last-minute availabilty on its 22-night Christmas and New Year Trade Routes of India cruise from Dubai to Port Louis in Mauritius departing December 12 2010. Prices from £3,849 per person including flights, excursions and gratuities.

P&O Cruises (0845 3 555 333) has availability on a couple of sectors of Oriana's world cruise, which unusually started in October rather than waiting until January, as is the norm with global circumnavigation.

There's a 22-night Singapore to Southampton leg between November 25 and December 17, which is being sold off at £1,199 per person, or £54 a night, excluding flights but you'll get up to £75 to spend on board

There's also a 16-night voyage from Mumbai to Southampton from December -17 from £999 per person excluding flights, but including up to £50 on-board spending money.

Hopefully the good citizens of France will have got over their revolutionary fervour in time for Royal Caribbean International's (0844 493 2061) three-night cruise from Southampton to Le Havre (for a day out in Paris) on Independence of the Seas. Prices from £349 per person departing on April 27 2011.

With the first frosts of winter now here, Fred Olsen Cruise Lines (01473 742424) has picked a good time to cut the cost of a 15-night Eastern Caribbean cruise from Montego Bay in Jamaica on Braemar on November 25. Prices start from £1,141 per person including flights and fuel supplement, plus you'll get up to £150 credit to spend on board. Golfers can book a Flagship Golf package - four rounds ashore and practice sessions on board - for £425 per person.

AMA Waterways (0808 223 5009) has knocked more than £650 per person off a seven-night Christmas cruise from Budapest to Nuremberg departing December 20. Cost is now £1,295 per person, which includes flights, all food, wine with dinner and a gala Christmas lunch.

* Prices are correct at the time of posting but can change at any time.

I was going to point out how wrong fellow blogger Captain Greybeard was in predicting that cruise fares were going to rise next year, but I see he has beaten me to it.

How do I know he was wrong? Well although the cruise lines have just have reported some really strong results, look at the latest offers that have arrived this week. This doesn't smack of an industry thinking of putting up its prices.

Fred Olsen Cruise Line has raised its on-line discount from 5% to 10% for six 2011 cruises, listed below with the cruise numbers to help you find them. The offer is only valid for two weeks, until November 11. Click here to reach the website.

M1109: 14-night Canary Islands cruise on Braemar from Dover on April 30.

L1104: 14-night Baltic cruise on Balmoral from Southampton on May 13.

M1110: 14-night Western Med cruise on Braemar from Dover on May 14.

W1116: nine-night UK and Ireland cruise on Black Watch from Dover on September 25.

D1123: 15-night Canary Island cruise on Boudicca from Newcastle on October 16.

L1120: seven-night Northern Europe cruise on Balmoral from Southampton on November 10.

Royal Caribbean is giving away 10,000 free flights on selected 2011 Mediterranean cruises, saving an average £200 per person, provided you book between October 30 and December 20 2010.

The free flights, for cruises from Palma, Venice, Civitavecchia (the port for Rome) and Barcelona, will be given away on a first-come first-served basis so you'll need to get in quick. The offer applies whether you book through a travel agent or direct.

And for those who prefer a no-fly cruise, Royal is offering savings of up to £500 per cabin and free port car parking on selected Independence of the Seas departures.

Ultra-luxury cruise line Silversea is offering business-class flight upgrades on eight 2011 Asian cruises from £599 per person one-way and giving away $250 per person on-board credit on many of the voyages. There are also Mediterranean and Northern Europe business-class flight upgrades from £249 per person return.

The airline says the offers are "capacity controlled", which basically means you need to book early.

**The best of the rest**
 
MSC Cruises is offering Caribbean cruises on MSC Poesia this winter from £399 per person for seven nights and £550 for two weeks. Need I say the prices are cruise-only? It means you'll also have the cost of a flight. Call 0844 561 1955 or visit the website for more information and to book.
 
Budget cruise line Cruise & Maritime Voyages has slashed £1,000 off its 35-night Christmas Caribbean cruise on Marco Polo departing Tilbury on December 6. It now costs from £1,799 per person for an inside - equal to £52 a night. An oceanview cabin costs from £2,299 per person. Call 0845 833 9798.

Cruise Thomas Cook has an eight-night cruise on the Danube with Viking River Cruises from £719 per person including flights. Departure is on November 28, sailing from Passau in Germany to Budapest in Hungary. Call 0800 916 6070 or visit your nearest Thomas Cook or Going Places shop.

Virgin Holidays Cruises has a special offer on a 10-night holiday combining three nights in an all-inclusive resort in Barbados with a seven-night Southern Caribbean cruise on Carnival Cruise Lines' Carnival Victory departing January 30 2011. Prices start from £1,499 per person including flights and an inside cabin. To book, call 0871 781 9893 or visit the website.

You'd better get in fast if you want one of the 10,000 flights Royal Caribbean International is giving away with bookings for Mediterranean cruises next summer.

In theory the offer runs until December 20, but latest news is that they are already starting to run out.

Prices start from £644 per person for a seven-night cruise from Palma on Grandeur of the Seas in May.

Call 0844 493 2061 or visit the website for book.

South Pacific-based cruise line Paul Gauguin is offering up to $1,000 per couple onboard credit on all cruises between January and June 2011 if booked by November 30.

The credit can be spent on spa treatments, shore excursions or in the onboard boutique.

The $1,000 credit is available on the 14-night Marquesas, Tuamotus & The Society Islands cruises. On all other cruises, you'll get $500 per couple.

Paul Gauguin is also offering free or two-for-one flight deals between Los Angeles and the cruise embarkation point on all voyages next year.

Call 020 7434 0089 or visit the website for more details.

Starting today, and for the next five days, servicemen past and present can get a 50% discount if they book a summer 2011 voyage in the Mediterranean with MSC Cruises.

Giulio Libutti, their UK managing director, told me why he had decided to launch this offer, which is exclusive to the UK and is timed to coincide with Armistice Day.

"This is our opportunity to do something for servicemen in the UK, in recognition of what they do for us. MSC is an Italian company, but a lot of British people work for us here in the UK, so it was also our chance to underline our strong ties with this country.

"I expected there to be a lot of interest, but I was surprised how fast news of the offer spread. Well before today we have had calls from servicemen asking to preregister.

"I was also surprised at the strong reaction it caused [posts to Cruise.co.uk asked why it took an Italian cruise line to offer discounts for British servicemen] because I thought British cruise lines would offer something like Carnival Cruise Lines' discount programme for the military.

"The offer is subject to availability but we have a lot of ships, and a lot of big ships, in the Mediterranean in summer so I don't see a problem with capacity."

The 50% discount applies to the cruise portion of the holiday only and is available to servicemen past and present who are registered with the MoD and have a valid service number and to everyone sharing the same cabin, regardless of occupation. The offer runs until November 15.

For more details or to book call 0844 561 7412 or visit the website.

Carnival Splendor, the Spam ship that was disabled by a fire last week and had to be towed to San Diego for passengers to disembark, will remain out of service for repairs until January 16 2011.

(And yes I know Carnival said none of the passengers on Splendor had been served Spam, but why spoil a good epithet by the facts).

Anyone who was booked on Splendor's cancelled cruises will receive a full refund of their cruise and air fares, plus a 25% discount off a future Carnival cruise.

That's fair, but not much consolation for those looking forward to their Christmas cruise.

But all is not lost, because although the Big Day is only just around the corner I'm still getting news of availability.

Yachts of Seabourn (0845 0700 500) has room on its Christmas and New Year Sojourn, on the 450-passenger Seabourn Sojourn, departing Fort Lauderdale on December 20.

The 16-day cruise is to Los Angeles by way of Cartagena in Colombia, Puerto Caldera in Costa Rica, Huatulco in Mexico and San Diego, and prices start from £5,199 per person including flights, all drinks and gratuities.

Cruise and Maritime Voyages (0845 833 9798) has a half-price offer on its 35-night Caribbean Christmas cruise on Marco Polo, sailing from Tilbury on December 6. The new price is £1,749 per person cruise-only for an oceanview cabin, saving £1,750 per person.

CMV has also cut the price of single cabins on the same Christmas cruise. Prices now start from £2,799 per person. The cruise line says they won't guarantee romance for soloists but they promise singles who cruise with them won't feel all alone during the festive season.

French cruise line Compagnie du Ponant (0808 234 3802) has a 12-night cruise on Le Diamant from December 16-28, sailing from Hong Kong to Ho Chi Minh City, and spending Christmas day in Nha Trang in Vietnam. Prices start from £1,555 per person cruise-only.

Alternatively, Ponant has a seven-night Amazon cruise roundtrip from Martinique December 20-27 on Le Levant that spends Christmas day in Port of Spain in Trinidad. Prices from £1,930 per person cruise-only.

Fred Olsen Cruise Lines is offering savings of up to £400 per booking in a Captains' Collection brochure featuring 52 2011 no-fly cruises.

The collection includes everything from two or three-day mini-cruises to 16-night voyages.

A 14-night golf-themed cruise from Dover to Iberia on Braemar on May 14 costs from £1,199 per person. A two-week golf and antiques-themed Baltic cruise on Balmoral from Southampton on May 13 costs from £1,359 per person.

Captains' Collection prices are valid until February 28 2011. Call 01473 742424 or visit the website for more details.

Crystal Cruises (020 7287 9040) is throwing in a free upgrade to British Airways World Traveller Plus if you book an Alaska cruise for May and June next year by January 31 2010

If you book a cruise for July or August, you'll get free economy flights.

Bit of a no-brainer isn't it?

It'll be the first time the cruise line has been back to Alaska since 2005. It is offering 12-night cruises from San Francisco on Crystal Symphony that visit Vancouver, Juneau, Skagway and Glacier Bay, and cruise the "Inside Passage".

Prices start from £3,550 per person including the flights, transfers, soft drinks and water, plus $500 per person on-board credit.

....but only if you cruise from the UK!

Cruise lines that offer no-fly cruises from the UK could never have bought the kind of advertising they have had in the past eight months.

Flights grounded by the volcanic ash cloud back in May and now by snow just as everyone wanted to get away for Christmas.

I can almost see the likes of P&O Cruises, Cunard and Cruise and Maritime Voyages rubbing their hands with glee and saying (in hag-like tones because after all, it is the pantomime season) "we told you it was better to cruise from the UK".

I know you still have to battle through snow to get to your departure port, and this weekend roads have been particularly bad, and there is a chance of bad weather on the Bay of Biscay.

But the ports of Dover and Portsmouth kindly informed me this morning that the English Channel hasn't frozen so cruises are departing as planned.

And a couple of days rocking and rolling on the way to the Med, Canary Islands or even the Caribbean has surely got to beat night after cold night camped out on the floor at Heathrow Airport.

The Passenger Shipping Association estimates that 710,000 Brits will take a no-fly cruise in 2011, 55,000 more than in 2010. Given the chaos that now reigns, I suspect there could be even more.

It's a little late to think about a Christmas cruise, but if your holiday plans have just been buried under a snow drift why not cheer yourself up with a New Year no-fly cruise instead.

Iglu (020 8544 6447) tells me they have availability on Royal Caribbean International's Independence of the Seas, cruising from Southampton to the Med on January 8 or 26, and on February 13, with prices from £719 per person for 18 nights.

Iglu also has space on Fred Olsen's Boudicca, sailing from Southampton to the Caribbean, up the Amazon to Manaus and back to the UK. It departs on January 30 and prices start from £2,399 per person for 30 nights.

Cruise Thomas Cook (0800 916 6070) has a 14-night cruise from Southampton to the Canary Islands, also on Boudicca, departing on January 16. Prices from £974 per person for an outside cabin.

Forget the white stuff outside, I'm being snowed under by emails offering so many deals and discounts you'd think it's Christmas.

Here are some of the best.

Bah humbug
Oceania Cruises has kindly sent a Season's Greetings e-Christmas card, but diluted the message by adding a link to a page on their website offering discounts of up to 61% and $1,000 on-board credit. Marketing gone mad, but an offer you can't refuse!

Booze cruise
Thomson Cruises has all-inclusive upgrades for £49 per person on seven-night cruises from Palma on Thomson Dream and Thomson Destiny if you book by January 31 2011. If you book a winter 2011/12 cruise on Thomson Destiny or Thomson Spirit by April 2011 you'll get a free all-inclusive upgrade.

And so to bed
Princess Cruises has free upgrades from an oceanview to a balcony cabin on Grand, Ruby and Star Princess cruises from the UK and in the Mediterranean, on Caribbean Princess in the Caribbean and on Coral Princess in Alaska. Book by January 31.

Spend, spend, spend
P&O Cruises has savings of up to £2,500 per couple, as well as £1,000 on-board spending money, on selected cruises booked before January 31 2011. Shuttle buses, where provided, are now free and P&O is going overboard (sorry!) to tell the world how cheap their booze is.

Bah humbug (again)
Holland America Line is jumping on the ash cloud and airline strikes bandwagon to promote its no-fly cruises from Dover next year. And why not? Perfect time given all this snow chaos. But hey guys. Is free car parking at Dover really the best bit of Xmas cheer you could rustle up? Scrooge would be proud of you. It's not even available if you only book an inside cabin.

Love is in the air
Full marks to Norwegian Cruise Line for thinking outside the stocking and coming up with an Epic Valentine's Day deal - seven nights on Norwegian Epic in the Caribbean from £1,079 per person including flights. The ship will be decorated with heart-shaped ice sculptures, there'll be a special Valentine's menu in the Le Bistro and they promise I can dance the night away to a selection on love songs.

Sounds great. Now all I need is someone to go with.

Carnival Corp chief Micky Arison speculated during a recent earnings call that this winter's bad weather will have a positive impact on cruise sales, with winter-weary folk rushing to book a holiday in the sun.

Logic says that should also mean fares will start to go up.

But what has logic to do with anything? Cruisers tasted some unbelievable deals during the recession and with no end to talk of austerity measures in sight, I reckon they are going to be hanging on for the best deals.

There are certainly plenty of them around.

Uniworld, the river cruise company, has slashed up to £1,450 of the cost of a nine-night Prague/Rhine/Main cruise-and-stay holiday.

P&O Cruises has 12 nights in the Mediterranean at the end of March, sailing on Ventura from Southampton, from £998 per person - that's just £84 a night.

Holland America Line, which made it into the Bah Humbug list before Xmas for their paltry offer of free parking at Dover, has made amends with a seven-night cruise to Scandinavia on July 24 from just £15 a day.

OK, it's not quite that good. That price is for a third or fourth person sharing a cabin with two adults paying from £789 per person, but it's not to be sniffed at if you're looking for a summer getaway with the family.

The cruise lines might be hoping the cold weather and snow will lead to more bookings and therefore higher fares, as Johanna Jainchill speculates in USA Today's Cruise Log.

They can hope but I suspect it's one New Year's wish that won't come true.

If you're casting around for a cruise, this really is a happy new year, with deals galore to suit all pockets and all tastes.

Royal Caribbean International (0844 493 3005) has launched its "What you see is that you get" campaign, with prices from £699 per person. That's for seven-night cruises from Palma on Grandeur of the Seas and from Malaga on Adventure of the Seas for an inside cabin with flights and transfers included.

As the ad says "Why Not?"

Well only because there are so many other great offers to pick from.

Iglu Cruise (020 8544 6447) has a seven-night transatlantic cruise on Queen Mary 2, sailing from Southampton to New York, from an iincredible £679 per person for an inside cabin - and that includes the flight back from the Big Apple. You can upgrade to an outside cabin from £99 and a balcony room from £199 per person.

Iglue tells me they are booking up fast. There's a surprise!

Celebrity Cruises (0845 456 0523) has a 14-night no-fly Italian Mediterranean voyage on Celebrity Eclipse from Southampton on May 7 from £1,416 per person. Not quite such a bargain, but at least they throw in $100 onboard credit and free car parking at Southampton. You'll need to book by February 28.

Orion Expedition Cruises (020 7434 0089) is celebrating Australia Day on January 26 by offering free return flights for selected cruises on Orion and new ship Orion II between now and the end of February. They include:

* Three nine-night Vietnam Explorer voyages in November and December priced from £4,295 per person.

* Two seven-night, one from Bangkok to Ho Chi Minh City, the other in reverse, in October and December from £3,340 per person.

* Two 10-night cruises in the Kimberley, Australia, one sailing from Broome to Darwin, the other in reverse, in August and September, from £5,325 per person. The price also includes a free two-night stay in Darwin or Broome at the start or end of each cruise.

If prices keep tumbling like this, the cruise lines will soon be paying you to go on a cruise. Who's complaining?

Last week's top deals included a seven-night Spanish Med cruise from Palma on Royal Caribbean International (0844 493 2076) ship Grandeur of the Seas from £699pp. This week's missive from their "what you see is what you get" campaign is cheaper again - from £599pp for departures from May to October.

And that includes the flight!

Grandeur is sailing two seven-night itineraries that be combined into a seven-night cruise from £1,099pp.

Royal Caribbean is also offering a three-night cruise from Southampton to Le Havre, with excursions to Paris, on Independence of the Seas on April 27 from £299pp.

A four-night cruise from Southampton to Cork in Ireland, also on Independence, on April 30, costs from £400pp.
 
Iglu Cruise (020 8544 6447) is offering a seven-night no-fly cruise from Dover to the Baltic on Holland America's Line Ryndam on July 31 from £679pp for an inside cabin, or £799pp for a room with a view. As kids sharing pay just £99, a family of four can get away for a week for just £1,589. And Iglu will throw in $50 to spend as well.

They've also got a seven-night Mediterranean cruise on Disney Cruise Line's Disney Magic on August 27 from £2,195 for a family of two adults and two kids, and flights at £599 for all four.

Holland America Line (0845 351 0557) is offering a seven-night Mediterranean cruise from Barceona on April 28 Eurodam from £599pp cruise-only or £849pp including flights.

P&O Cruises (0845 3 555 333) sent me five of their best deals from their current sale. Here's the three best ones. You can go on line or call to find others.

* A 12-night Western Mediterranean cruise from Southampton on Ventura on March 27 from £1,035pp - that's £87 per night.

* A seven-night Iberian cruise from Southampton on Azura on April 1 from £666pp - that's £96 per night.

* A 14-night Western Mediterranean cruise from Southampton on Arcadia on March 29 from £1,331pp - that's £96 per night.

Saga Cruises (0800 056 5880) is offering savings of up to 35%, with a further £1,000 discount on selected cruises. They include:

* A 26-night Mediterranean cruise from Southampton on Saga Pearl II on April 3 from £3,068pp.
 
* A 21-night Mediterranean cruise from Dover on Saga Ruby on June 14 costs from £2,991pp.

* A 15-night cruise from Dover to Iceland and back on Saga Ruby on August 4 from £2,516pp.

All Saga Cruises prices include travel insurance, gratuities and a transfer from home to the departure port.

Cruise Thomas Cook (0800 916 6070) is giving away a free case of wine to every customer who books a cruise from now until Monday. They're also offering 10% off all cruises confirmed by January 31 2011, as well as free car parking, free all-inclusive upgrades and free onboard spending money.

There are some of their best deals:

* A 14-night Italian Mediterranean cruise from Southampton on Celebrity Cruises' Celebrity Eclipse on May 7 from £1,409pp.

* An 11-night Caribbean cruise roundtrip from New York on Princess Cruises' Caribbean Princess on July 9 from £1,599pp including flights and $260 per cabin onboard spending money.

* A 12-night Mediterranean cruise from Barcelona to Venice on Holland America's Nieuw Amsterdam on June 15 from £1,499pp including flights and $50 per cabin onboard spending money.

Cheers!

MSC Cruises isn't actually giving away free holidays, but it's not far off.

Book one of their Mediterranean cruises in February and you'll get free flights, free transfers, £50 onboard credit and free cabin upgrades.

On Lirica-class ships, you'll be upgraded from an inside to an outside cabin or an outside to a balcony cabin.

On seven-night Fantasia and Musica-class ships you'll be upgraded from an outside to a balcony cabin; on eight-night cruises on a Musica-class vessel, you'll leap-frog from an inside to a balcony cabin.

The offer means you can pick up a seven-night cruise from Venice on MSC Magnifica, their newest ship, next November from £599 per person, with flights, transfers, on-board credit and an upgrade all included.
 
Bookings must be made between February 1 and 28 for two people sharing a cabin. It excludes MSC Yacht Club passengers.

Louis Cruises, the Cypriot-owned low-cost cruise line, has also cut prices. Book by February 18 and you can pick up a seven-night Greece and Turkey cruise from  Piraeus, the port for Athens, on the Louis Cristal from £446 per person.

Not quite such a bargain as MSC as it excludes flights and transfers but Louis says you'll be saving more than £70, so there's something to put towards the extra expenses.

If you always though ultra-luxury cruising was out of your league, think again. There are some amazing six-star offers around right now that make top-end cruise lines uber-affordable.

Crystal Cruises (020 7287 9040) has cut fares on its autumn cruises, so prices now start from an incredible £2,249 per person.

That's for a seven-night Mexican Riviera (great place, just don't mention Top Gear!) cruise on November 20 or 27 and - here's the best bit - it includes free return flights, soft drinks including water, gratuities and $500 per person on-board spending money that can be used to buy alcoholic drinks, in the spa, on shore excursions. In fact whatever you want.

(Maybe that's why the promotion is called All Inclusive-As You Wish - Ed?)

Crystal has autumn cruises in and around the Mediterranean, along the east coast of the North America, visiting New England and Canada, in the Caribbean and the Mexican Riviera, so there's bound to be a cruise and price to suit.

Many of Crystal's cruises come with $1,000 per person on-board cruise credit and new for 2011, they are offering open dining so you can eat when you want.

As I am no fan of fixed dining, that's especially great news but want my advice? Try the Asian and Italian speciality restaurants. They are the best and all they ask in payment is a suggested $7 per person gratuity.

It's a bargain. And with all that cruise credit, it won't actually cost you anything anyway!

Silversea has extended its onboard credit, offering $1,000 per couple to another 25 cruises in Northern Europe and the Med, and $500 per couple to 38 voyages worldwide. To qualify, you need to book by June 30 2011.

Windstar (020 7292 2369) isn't quite in the six-star league, but it's a top-end brand and it has a great onboard credit offer so I reckon it deserves to be listed here.

They are offering up to $1,000 per couple onboard credit on selected 2011 European voyages on their three ships - Wind Surf, Wind Star and Wind Spirit - booked by March 15 2011.

The amount is determined by the cabin category. Book a B or A level cabin and you'll get $600 per couple, book a suite (Wind Surf only) and you'll get $1,000 per couple.

I've only cruised on Wind Surf, their biggest ship, and I had a ball. Good food, fabulous service and nice other passengers. You can read about it here.

Windstar's 2011 European cruises cost from £1,603 per person cruise-only. That's for a  five-night voyage from Cannes to May onboard Wind Surf departing May 30.

... if you're all alone, does Uniworld have a deal for you!

 St Valentine's Day is not really the best one to be reminded you are alone, but if you are then you might as well make the most of it.

By which I mean save money.

River cruise company Uniworld (0845 678 8558) is offering no single supplements on 14 European voyages - in France, Portugal, on the Danube and the Rhine - if you book before February 28.

In case I've whetted your appetite for a cruise on Marina, Oceania's new ship, I'd better tell you where it will be cruising this summer.

Marina sails from Miami to Europe in March and will be offering various 10 and 16-day cruises from Barcelona, Civitavecchia (Rome), Venice and Piraeus (Athens), before repositioning to Copenhagen for a couple of Baltic cruises.

In July, Marina visits London and there's a round-Britain cruise and another no-fly cruise to Spain.

It returns to the Mediterranean in August and repositions to Miami at the end of November for a winter series of Caribbean cruises, returning to the Mediterranean in March 2012.

Prices start from £999 per person - including soft drinks and bottled water - for a 12-night no-fly cruise from Dover to Santander in Spain on July 29, visiting Amsterdam, Bruges, St Peter Port in Guernsey, and Honfleur, St Malo, Pont-Aven, La Rochelle, Le Verdon and St Jean de Luz, all in France.