The Cruise Report With Cruise Specialists Cruise Reporter Ralph Grizzle

Completed nearly 100 years ago, the Panama Canal took more than three decades to build — at a cost of 30,000 lives. Transiting this “path between the seas,” cruise ships move at a snail’s pace, waiting one behind the other to enter the enormous locks that flood with water to raise and lower ships.

Once the water fills the concrete locks, ships progress to the next set of locks. There may be a container ship in front of you, a sailboat behind on your panama cruise.

Seabourn Odyssey, the new ultra-luxury ship from the Yachts of Seabourn, completed her sea trials last week, and she departed yesterday on her maiden 14-day voyage from Venice to Istanbul.

The first addition to the luxury market for quite some time, the Seabourn Odyssey promises to be quite an elegant experience, with accommodations, cuisine and entertainments to suit its upscale target audience.

From San Diego and Los Angeles, it’s a short journey by sea to the storied cities and sites along Mexico’s western shore.

A Mexico cruise is where Tecate (one of the national beers) and tequila meet marine life and cacti — and where seven- and 10-day sailings expose travelers not only to marine wonders but also to Mexican culture. Mixed among such shoreside activities as swimming with dolphins and sport-fishing are cooking classes where participants learn to make six types of salsa before being instructed in salsa dancing.

Celebrity Cruise’s new ship, Celebrity Equinox, has completed its first and probably most difficult journey. With thousands of spectators lining the route, the 122,000-ton ship left the yard of shipbuilder Meyer Werft in Papenburg, Germany, last Saturday and made the 26-mile trip down the River EMS.

Tags: European Cruises

Cunard’s impeccable White Star Service will make an intriguing east-west world voyage aboard the Queen Mary 2 starting January 2011, the fourth world cruise for the line’s flagship. Cunard’s 2011 world cruises — on the magnificent QM2 as well as the newer Queen Elizabeth — go on sale next week, and Cunard is offering some significant early-booking incentives.

Cruise-ship devotees may want to mark their calendars for Jan. 13, 2011, and make plans to be in New York Harbor that day. That’s because three luxury ocean liners from Cunard Line — Queen Elizabeth, Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria — will make their second Royal Rendezvous, three years to the day after the first one.

The new Queen Elizabeth will make her maiden world cruise for Cunard in 2011. Cunard’s 2011 world cruises — on the Queen Elizabeth as well as the flagship Queen Mary 2 — go on sale next week, and Cunard is offering some significant early-booking incentives.

Spicing up the conversation or adding a note of jazz during the 114-day grand world voyage next January aboard the ms Amsterdam, Holland America Line is bringing some well-known guests on board for segments of the trip.

Cruise lines invite famous guests for portions of extended itineraries such as Holland America’s grand voyage in order to generate stimulating presentations during the cruise. Frequently, the featured speakers will mingle with guests for small-group discussions.

Tags: Holland America

Crystal Cruises has come up with several new luxury land packages to complement its Mediterranean cruise itineraries this summer and fall. Options include journeys through Prague and Budapest or a trip to Italy’s posh Lake Como. Each tour includes luxury lodging, gourmet meals and all land transportation, providing in-depth experiences that allow guests to extend their vacations and really immerse themselves in a destination.

Luxury, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder, and while cruise vacations are inherently luxurious, some are more luxurious than others. To an increasing degree, luxury is available from the major cruise lines who also cater to the hoi polloi. They are stratifying their ships with exclusive tiers, like private sun decks and V.I.P. pools, and offering shipboard services and shore excursions for those who prefer not to share and are willing to pay.

For instance, Cunard, which operates the legendary Queens, is taking the class divisions further. The ship’s top dining rooms are already reserved for guests in the so-called Queens and Princess Grill Suites. On Queen Victoria guests staying in those top suites will get their own elevator to take them to dinner, so they won’t have to rub elbows with the underclasses.