Holiday Cruising From Thanksgiving to New Year’s

For years, CroisiEurope has delighted its guests with holiday cruises to some of Europe’s most festive locations, including Paris, Venice, Bordeaux, and Nuremberg—home of the largest and most popular Christmas Market on the continent. Now, for the 2017 holiday season, CroisiEurope is adding new itineraries and making changes to its classic trips to continue its tradition of cruising for the holidays.

Christmas cruises through the Alsace region of France and the Black Forest of Germany will now stop at the Freiburg Christmas Market in Germany. There, guests can admire locally made Black Forest crafts like blown glass, colorful wooden toys, ginger cake, and mulled wine. The cruise will then continue on to Colmar in the Alsace area, where they can visit museums for a showcase of Alsatian Christmas traditions. This 4-day cruise departs Strasbourg on Nov. 28 and Dec. 4 with prices starting at $771 pp dbl.

Also new this year is the cruise line’s Christmas cruise through Provence and the Rhone Valley of France. With this itinerary, the slightly warmer winter weather of southern France is paired with stops in the charming towns of Viviers, Montelimar and Avignon on this cruise, which sails roundtrip from Lyon departing on Dec. 21 and returning on the 25th. Prices for this sailing start at $1,409 pp dbl.

For more information, visit croisieuroperivercruises.com.

MSC Cruises’ newest mega ship, MSC Seaside, will make its debut just in time to sail the Caribbean alongside the MSC Divina this holiday season. Both ships will sail from PortMiami on 7- or 11-night itineraries packed with family-friendly holiday activities and on board entertainment.

Holiday voyages with MSC Cruises include the Thanksgiving sailing aboard MSC Divina, which includes a traditional turkey dinner and live casting of the day’s football games in the ship’s sports bar, plus cooking classes and scavenger hunts for the kids and teens. This itinerary departs on Nov. 18 with stops in Jamaica, Cayman Islands, Mexico and the Bahamas. Prices start at $609 pp.

For those celebrating Hanukkah, the MSC Divina will depart on Dec. 9 for a voyage that includes a nightly Menorah lighting and on board daily prayer services, as well as traditional Hanukkah foods. Kids and their families can play Dreidel together with dreidels and chocolate coins handed out with instructions on how to play. This cruise will visit Antigua and Barbuda, St. Thomas and The Bahamas. Prices start at $499 pp.

Christmas cruises include a sailing aboard MSC Seaside for its first 7-night itinerary to Antigua and Barbuda, St. Thomas and The Bahamas, as well as an 11-night itinerary aboard MSC Divina to The Bahamas, Jamaica, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica and Belize, which will also allow guests to ring in the New Year on board. Both ships will be fully decorated in holiday gear with activities like trivia, bingo, Christmas carols and more to get everyone in the holiday spirit. After sailing its first Christmas cruise, MSC Seaside will return to Miami to pick up passengers for its New Year’s Eve cruise to Jamaica, Cayman Islands, Mexico and The Bahamas. Pricing for these cruises starts at $958 pp.

For more information, visit msccruisesusa.com.

With itineraries that celebrate the unique culture of each destination visited, the American Queen Steamboat Company is taking guests on a ride down the most iconic waterway in the U.S.—the Mississippi River.

On the Holiday Jewels of the Lower Mississippi itinerary sailing between Memphis and New Orleans, your clients will get to experience a Creole Christmas-themed cruise where they’ll learn about Creole and Cajun traditions while soaking up the holiday cheer in the Antebellum South and admiring mansions draped in festive decor.

Another Holiday Jewels of the Lower Mississippi itinerary will also sail the Mississippi this holiday season, but will instead have a Christmas Markets theme as it travels in the opposite direction from New Orleans to Memphis and makes a special stop at the Nottoway Plantation. There, guests will enjoy live music dancing, desserts and more before witnessing the ceremonial lighting of bonfires on the levee. The American Queen Steamboat Company also offers short, roundtrip expeditions from New Orleans to ring in the New Year.

Prices for these itineraries start at $1,499 pp. For more information, visit americanqueensteamboatcompany.com.