The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) published a survey a few weeks ago that indicated 27% of travellers are currently in the planning process for 3 or more trips. That’s a lot of travel! But it probably makes sense given how long we were having to sit on our hands for the past couple of years.
It also explains some of the demand pressure points we are seeing. Since the middle of 2021, the luxury leisure vertical of the travel biz has been adjusting to the pent-up demand caused by that event of which we do not speak. However, that extra demand is not evenly distributed.
So, what’s hot?
I’ve put this list together based on the requests we get from our clients AND where I’m having the most difficulty finding availability or options. Keep in mind, if you want to do one of these trips, we can almost always find you space. The tricky part comes if you want to travel with 6 other couples on a specific date – in which case, it may already be too late (but let us know anyway, and we’ll check).
Egypt
A river cruise is really the best way to see this fascinating country, and apparently the word is out. Many of the ships are sold out for 2023, and 2024 is already looking tight. All the river cruise lines have similar itineraries on this route: it’s usually a total of 4-nights in Cairo (pre AND post cruise), so you can visit the Egyptian Museum, and the pyramids at Giza. Then you fly to Luxor, to spend 7-nights on a river ship. The internal flights to/from Cairo and Luxor are included in your cruise fare.
These cruises typically run year-round, except for the summer months when the heat can be quite punishing in the Egyptian desert. Depending on the cruise line, there are also trip extensions to Israel, Jordan, and/or Dubai.
Here’s a sample fare that still has some availability:
AMA Waterways departing June 23 or Sept 1st 2023, with fares starting at $4949 per person.
- 4-nights Cairo and 7-nights aboard AMA Dahlia
- Includes airport transfers, 3 nights at the Four Seasons, Cairo Tour with Egyptian museum, tour to the pyramids & sphinx, Wine/beer with meals on ship, cocktail hour before dinner nightly, wifi on ship, pool spa fitness room, one more night in Cairo post cruise.
- Pre/post packages available to Dubai, Jordan and/or Israel
Portugal & Spain on the Douro River
Many people who have already sailed the Rhine, Danube, and/or the French Rivers next look at Portugal. It’s a fascinating part of Europe, and people come back from this trip as raving fans. They’re apparently telling a lot of people, because the Douro is filling up fast for 2023 and 2024.
Most of the river cruise lines run 7-night itineraries round-trip from Porto. There is fantastic scenery, you visit world heritage sites from the Middle Ages, royal palaces with unique Baroque architecture, and of course there is a strong focus on vineyards and wineries.
Some cruise lines add additional hotel nights in Lisbon to make 9- or 10-night packages, but the 7-night river boat experience round-trip from Porto is fairly standard. Common trip extensions on this cruise are to Madrid, other parts of Spain, and sometimes Morocco.
Here are two examples with availability:
Uniworld departing April, July, August or November 2023 with fares from $5099 per person.
- 7-nights round-trip from Porto, with optional extension to Lisbon for 3-nights.
- Includes transfers, a choice of excursions in every port, an open bar, on-board gratuities and wifi.
AMA Waterways departing March 2023 ($3399 per person) or November 2023 ($3099 pp)
- 7-nights round-trip from Porto, with optional extensions to Lisbon or Madrid.
- Includes a choice of excursion in every port, beer/wine with meals, and wifi on the ship.
Alaska
Alaska was closed for all of 2020; had very limited tourist traffic in 2021, and 2022 was very soft due to ambiguous policy from the Canadian Government. So in 2023, we have almost 3 years’ worth of demand to catch up with.
Luckily, Alaska has a lot of capacity, but availability is certainly tighter than we’ve seen in previous years.
Alaskan cruises range between 7 and 14 nights, and go round-trip from either Seattle or Vancouver, OR one-way between Vancouver and Anchorage. If you want to visit Denali National Park, you’ll necessarily have Anchorage as an embarkation or disembarkation port. Coastal Alaska and Denali National Park are both spectacular, but vastly different from each other, so many people try to do both if they’re investing the time and money to visit the 49th State.
You should also consider staying pre or post in Seattle or Vancouver (or both) – both beautiful cities with tons to do for those that like to be outside.
Some itineraries with availability:
Oceania 7-nights round-trip from Seattle departing June 9 or 16, 2023:
- Ocean view rooms start at $1949 per person. Verandas $3199 pp.
- Visit Ketchikan, Juneau, Wrangell, Victoria
SilverSea 7-nights from Anchorage to Vancouver departing May 18, 2023:
- Ocean view rooms start at $2750 pp. Verandas $3150 pp.
- Visit Hubbard Glacier, Juneau, Haines, Sitka, Wrangell
- Includes a shore excursion in every port, open bar, gratuities and wifi on board.
Viking 10-nights from Anchorage to Vancouver departing August 18, 2023:
- Veranda rooms start at $5299 per person.
- Visit Valdez, Icy Strait Point, Skagway, Juneau, Sitka, Ketchikan
- Includes transfers, a shore excursion in every port, beer/wine with meals, and wifi on board.
In Case You Missed It:
Last week we wrote about Explora Journeys – a brand new cruise line. We also learned they are planning a price increase on December 15th, so it’s worth dropping down a hold, if you’re considering it. Read the article here: https://pamperedcruiser.com/lets-look-explora-journeys/
We also produced a video about Explora Journeys for our YouTube Channel. Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/qxtqmE94EBg
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If you’re planning a trip, I’d love to help! Click here or call 800-876-0168 to get in touch today.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Sue Bradley
Sue Bradley
