How About a Long Cruise?

If you've got the time available, a long sea cruise is a great way to relax, make friends and explore a whole new world. If you don't have the time, you should seriously consider making time. You'll relax, make friends and discover a whole new world.

Even a relatively short 'long' cruise can be outstanding. Carnival offers five to seven day voyages from San Diego to Baja Mexico. Some of these are aboard the new Elation, an 855-foot long floating city. Cruise ships used to be like floating hotels but they've gotten so large and full of things to see and do that the description is no longer adequate.

A longer voyage gives you plenty of time to get familiar with the ship and take excursions to ports of call to explore exotic new destinations. On board you'll find a gym, elegant restaurants, swimming pools and tons of musical and theatrical entertainment.

The company even offers a 15-day trip to the Panama Canal. The rates are great for such a long voyage, and the group rates are outstanding. Some packages offer round-trip air fare from several spots around the U.S.

Fifteen days on a cruise is just about the perfect length for those who really want to take their time. You have ample time to relax and get thoroughly familiar with your surroundings and there's plenty of time to sample several of the dozens of things to do on board, or to just do nothing but sleep, eat and read a long book.

On the other side the world, there's the 14-day cruise from Athens where you'll get a chance to see a dozen Greek islands, including Mykonos, Naxos and many others. Plenty of sunshine most of the year will have you feeling like you never want to go home.

You'll have time to enjoy the gym onboard or to get your exercise crawling over ancient ruins. You can have a swim in the pool on ship or in the surf near the shore. You can enjoy gambling on a magnificent cruise liner or in one of the small bars that dot the Greek coastline.

Some cruises are relatively inexpensive because airfare is not included and you pay for food onboard or feed yourself in town. You'll find the accommodations comfortable if not luxurious.

For the full cruise experience, plan a month long voyage to Europe and back or to cut the time in half and take the ship there and a plane back. You'll find dozens of choices with docks in Ireland to Holland to the south of France.

Long cruises are the ideal way to discover and enjoy the complete luxurious experience that your grandparents knew in the days the Normandie was sailing from France to New York. You can get an even more comfortable journey than those who sailed the magnificent Queen Mary with many more on-ship entertainment options.