The Cruise Report With Cruise Specialists Cruise Reporter Ralph Grizzle

1. In 1840, Cunard Line’s R.M.S. Britannia became the first ship to take passengers on regularly scheduled transatlantic crossings. Today, the Queen Mary 2 continues Cunard’s tradition of Atlantic crossings.
2. Holland America Line’s first ship crossed the Atlantic in 1873, sailing in 15 days from Holland to New York. The Rotterdam carried eight first-class passengers and 128 in steerage.

Cruising America’s ‘Great Land’ could just be one of your life’s greatest journeys. It was for me.  Read more... (1737 words, 4 images, estimated 6:57 mins reading time)

One way to fight that sinking feeling when it’s time to disembark your cruise: Stay on board.

Valletta, Malta – As I stood talking to fellow passengers at the end of a weeklong Mediterranean sailing on Windstar Cruises, it soon became clear that I was a mere babe when it came to the number of times I had sailed on Windstar. My only other cruise on the line had been five years ago, a seven-day jaunt along the Italian Coast. Sure, two cruises made me an alumnus, but certainly not what you would call a frequent Windstar cruiser.  Read more... (735 words, 1 image, estimated 2:56 mins reading time)

I had traveled the world before traveling to Quebec, and if my foot could reach my behind, I would kick myself for doing so. Of all the places I have visited, Quebec surely ranks in my top ten. The irony is that I traveled halfway around the world to visit less-inspiring places when Quebec was (and is) fewer than three hours by air from my home. The French-speaking Canadian province is practically in my own backyard, and yet it took a cruise (from Boston) and 49 years to get me there.  Read more... (724 words, 1 image, estimated 2:54 mins reading time)

It’s a 2.5-hour drive from Quebec City to the Saguenay region. We pointed our car toward La Baie, where we checked in to L’ Auberge des 21. Located on the shore of the Saguenay Fjord, the warm family inn also features fine regional (read: French) cuisine at a shockingly good restaurant for such a small inn.  Read more... (457 words, 1 image, estimated 1:50 mins reading time)

Quebec City offers beauty, fine dining and delightful diversions. And that’s just in the train station. Our three-hour train journey from Montreal to Quebec ended in what has been called ‘the most beautiful train station in North America.’ Reminiscent of similar grand terminals in Europe, Quebec City’s train station attracts those who come here not only to travel by rail but also to dine at the best steak house in town, according to our cab driver. The train station also houses a few shops and even a dentist office, should you want to dash in for a quick cleaning before the conductor calls ‘All Aboard.’  Read more... (511 words, 2 images, estimated 2:03 mins reading time)

If there is one phrase that characterizes Quebec, it is ‘et pourquoi pas?’ The phrase, which translates to ‘and why not?’ seems to be on the tip of every Quebecer’s tongue. It is a ready response of permissiveness and tolerance, a defender of an important concept — the joie de vivre or ‘joy of living’ — that is alive and thriving in Quebec.  Read more... (686 words, 2 images, estimated 2:45 mins reading time)

A bartender at Quebec City’s fashionable L’EChaude restaurant expresses mock indignation when a visitor asks how Quebec’s capital compares with the province’s largest city, Montreal. ‘They are not truly French,’ the bartender says, conveniently overlooking the fact that as a Canadian, neither is he. ‘In Montreal, people speak French 50, maybe 55, percent of the time.’ He steps back from the bar and folds his arms to proclaim, ‘Here, we speak French 95 percent of the time.’  Read more... (545 words, 2 images, estimated 2:11 mins reading time)