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Published on 01/10/2024
Perhaps you’re thinking a bit bolder now and envision finally being able to check off bucket list locales and once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Maybe reconnecting with your partner during a romantic escape aboard a luxury cruise ship known for its dreamy Italian luxury linens is your top priority. Whether you’re looking to effortlessly island-hop in the Caribbean or do a cultural deep dive in a country such as Japan or Iceland, a Crystal cruise ship can be the ultimate home-away-from-home. Crystal Serenity and Crystal Symphony will take you to enriching ports of call all around the globe while also deepening your appreciation for fine food and wine, ancient and modern culture, and each other.
As you contemplate the best places to go, here’s a look at some of the hottest cruise destinations for 2024 and the Crystal itineraries that can take you there.
The Caribbean
Travelers from the United States love the ease and convenience of the Caribbean — which ranks among the top cruise destinations in the world — and Crystal’s 2024 sailings in the region offer ample time for sunning on the pool deck as you enjoy ocean views and for heading off the ship to experience local culture on a shore excursion.
One island that’s a must-visit is St. Lucia. Located in the Southern Caribbean and famous for its lush landscape and postcard-perfect twin Piton peaks, it offers a beguiling blend of culture and chill. Exploring, you’ll encounter traditional Creole cottages painted in rainbow hues, verdant fields of ripening bananas, and local artisans skilled in crafts such as silk-screening and wood-carving. Prefer to relax? Soaking up some sun on a stretch of golden sand, such as Reduit Beach, is the perfect way to absorb St. Lucia’s tropical glow. Crystal Serenity will call on the island’s capital, Castries, during multiple Caribbean sailings in late 2024.
The Western Caribbean is also a popular cruise destination — and one of the region’s top ports is George Town, Grand Cayman. Even before you step ashore, you’ll know why. The vivid turquoise waters and white-sand beaches that ring this flat and arid self-governing British territory are among the most spectacular in the Caribbean. And what better way to appreciate it all than to take a helicopter tour? During this Crystal excursion, you’ll fly over North Sound to gaze down at the sand bar area known as Stingray City, where visitors gather to interact with wild but playful Southern Atlantic stingrays. Other sights you’ll enjoy while soaring above the island include the submerged wreck of the Navy ship USS Kittiwake, world-renowned Seven Mile Beach, and Crystal Serenity at anchor. More down-to-earth pursuits, such as duty free shopping, are also available from the tender pier in George Town.
Crystal Serenity will visit Grand Cayman during several Panama Canal transits in 2024. Guests on these August, November, and December sailings will also experience another top tropical hot spot, Costa Rica, when the ship calls on the Pacific coastal port of Puerto Caldera. In June, Crystal’s transit sailing will instead visit the Costa Rican port of Quepos. Either of these exciting itineraries will allow guests to appreciate the beauty of Central America’s premier playground for nature-lovers. This is the place to spy on adorable capuchin monkeys and three-toed sloths or to enjoy a walk through a cloud forest inhabited by tiny hummingbirds and giant blue morpho butterflies.
If exploring the Mayan culture and architectural sites along Costa Maya is on your list of must-do’s, two Crystal Serenity sailings in December 2024 will call on Cozumel and offer shore excursions to the ruins at seaside Tulum or jungle-clad San Gervasio.
Baltic & Northern Europe
It’s taken a little while, but travelers have finally discovered just how incredible it is to explore Northern Europe on a cruise. While the Med gets tons of buzz, the countries of the Baltic Sea and North Atlantic offer just as much when it comes to natural beauty, heritage, art, and cuisine. Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Estonia, Netherlands, Scotland, Ireland, and Iceland are all home to culture-rich capitals, mind-blowing landscapes formed by volcanoes and glaciers, and captivating Nordic and Celtic traditions. Better still, a cruise with Crystal is a convenient and luxurious way to visit several of these countries during a single vacation.
In July, August, and September 2024, Crystal Symphony will explore the region during a series of itineraries ranging from seven to 38 nights. The longest sailing will visit 15 historic ports — including Stockholm, Helsinki, Tallinn, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, and Reykjavik — in nine countries, including three days docked in Copenhagen and three days visiting ports along the coast of Scotland. Guests will enjoy a rich sampler of Northern European cultures complemented by Crystal’s superb enrichment program of guest speakers.
Most curious about Iceland? A seven-night circumnavigation roundtrip from Reykjavik in September 2024 will visit five ports and even offer the chance to spot the Northern Lights.
Asia
What country ranks atop many travelers’ bucket list for 2024? According to Geoffrey Kent, Founder and Chairman Emeritus of luxury travel company Abercrombie & Kent (Crystal is a division of A&K Travel Group), it’s Japan. This island nation, which only fully reopened to tourism in late 2022 in the wake of the global pandemic, is ideal for exploration by cruise ship, with a bounty of coastal ports spanning the bustling modernity of Tokyo to the beaches and tropical climate of the southern island of Okinawa.
While Crystal Symphony will spend early 2024 cruising to other top destinations in Asia, in early 2025 the ship will call on Japan. An 11-night cruise on Crystal Symphony from Hong Kong to Yokohama/Tokyo in late January 2025 is specifically focused on the country, visiting six Japanese ports. But if Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Taiwan, and Singapore are also on your wish list, you can board Crystal Symphony in Singapore earlier in January to enjoy a 27-night journey that visits all of those destinations.
Australia & New Zealand
Summer Down Under is from December to March and in March 2024 Crystal Serenity will say G’day to Australia & New Zealand with an 18-night sailing that starts in Auckland, New Zealand and ends in Perth/Freemantle, Australia. In between the ship will call on historic Tauranga and picturesque Picton in New Zealand before crossing the Tasman Sea to Sydney for an overnight. Then it’s on to Eden, Melbourne, Adelaide, and Western Australia’s Busselton (for Margaret River winery visits) before arriving in Perth.
Alaska
Have you witnessed the visual majesty of our 49th State in person? If your answer is no, you’re missing out on one of the premier cruise experiences in North America. Cruise packages to Alaska are pretty much offered by every cruise line, but what sets Crystal’s Alaska itineraries apart from other cruise line offers is the dedication of its crew to providing guests with a five-star experience centered on stellar service and exceptional local and seasonal cuisine.
Alaska itineraries in July and August 2024 aboard Crystal Serenity include seven-night roundtrip sailings from Vancouver (calling on Sitka, Skagway, and Ketchikan) and seven-night one-way Vancouver to Seward/Anchorage cruises (or vice versa) that will call on Juneau, Skagway, Icy Strait, and Sitka. Excursions range from dogsledding and glacier flightseeing to rainforest walks and wildlife safaris — moments that will redefine how you view the wilderness experience.
The Mediterranean
How could this perennial favorite not make the list? The Mediterranean is forever a hot spot because it’s home to many of the world’s most popular travel destinations, from Spain, Portugal, and Morocco in the West to Greece, Turkey, and Croatia in the East. This sets the scene for Crystal to deliver a vast array of culture-centric itineraries and farm-to-table culinary experiences. Crystal Symphony will spend five months of 2024 (May, June, July, October, and November) in the Mediterranean and offer 17 sailings, ranging from seven to 12 nights. Want afull Mediterranean immersion? Go all in with Crystal’s 60-night epic Grand Voyage in October and November.
Whether it’s your dream to sail through the sun-splashed Greek Isles, double occupancy with the person you love in one of Crystal Symphony’s newly refreshed staterooms or suites, or to discover the palate-warming flavors, stunning architecture, and sensual rhythms of Spain, Portugal, and Morocco, the Crystal team will make sure that your Mediterranean journey is one that’s never to be forgotten.
PS: It’s not too early to start planning for 2025, when Crystal’s two ships will offer exciting itineraries enhanced by bigger and better onshore experiences in 112 countries.
