Regular readers of Cruise News will remember the announcement in February that after many years in the ownership of Carnival, Windstar Cruises was acquired by Ambassadors International. Although it was no surprise to see Carnival divesting itself of a niche product such as Carnival, its new owner was not the one we had all expected. So who, or what, is Ambassador’s International?

A newcomer to the cruise industry, its cruise group went from no vessels to ten in just over a year, with the acquisition of Majestic America Line and the Delta Queen steamboats, and then of Windstar. The initial focus on renovations to upgrade the product has been completed on many of the vessels, and of course on the Windstar ships Carnival had already committed to their programme of upgrades.
Windstar Cruises veteran Diane Revnes Moore and her team moved across from the Windstar offices in Seattle to those of Ambassadors Cruise Group, and are leading the impetus to create business earlier for both brands.
The president of Ambassadors Cruise Group, David Giersdorf, points to research with past and potential customers to develop 2008 itineraries. In one big change, Mississippi River programmes will focus on seven-day itineraries, with many of the shorter cruises eliminated. .
Majestic America can be considered to be an all American cruise line, with ‘homeland’ journeys targetting a domestic market who do not leave the shores of the US. A leader in American river and coastal cruising, it is committed to providing discerning guests with one-of-a-kind American travel experiences.
The largest river and coastal cruising company in America, its fleet of seven boutique river and coastal cruise ships ply the mighty waters of the Mississippi, Ohio and tributary rivers; the Columbia and Snake Rivers in the Pacific Northwest and the breathtaking waterways of Alaska’s Inside Passage.
Majestic America Line’s three river cruise ships home-ported on the Mississippi and Ohio rivers – the grand American Queen, the magnificent Mississippi Queen and historic Delta Queen – allow guests to soak up Cajun culture in New Orleans, walk in the footsteps of American icon Mark Twain in Hannibal, Mo. and feast their eyes upon the fabled countryside, along the Tennessee and Cumberland rivers, that gave America such legends as Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone.

Three boutique vessels, the 223-guest Empress of the North, 142-guest Queen of the West and 150-guest Columbia Queen, retrace the footsteps of Lewis and Clark, and see first-hand the dramatic contrasts of the Pacific Northwest landscape – from lush coastal forests to the golden, rolling wheat fields of Eastern Washington and Oregon. A trip through the majestic Columbia River Gorges takes guests through eight locks and dams and transports them from sea level to an elevation of 738 feet.

In the summer, the Empress of the North will journey deep into Alaska’s Inside Passage on a series of seven-night roundtrip voyages from Juneau, with plenty of opportunities to see Alaska’s breathtaking glaciers and abundant wildlife. Expert onboard naturalists travel on every journey. Meanwhile the intimate, 48-guest Contessa sails seven-night excursions between Ketchikan and Sitka, giving guests the opportunity to visit ports such as Silver Bay, Misty Fjords, Dawes and Sawyer Glaciers and more.

Windstar meanwhile operates three small ships with sails – not to be mistaken for the actual sailing ships of such operators as Star Clippers. The two smaller ships, Wind Star and Wind Spirit, are part of the original fleet and carry just 140 passengers, whilst the larger Wind Surf (310 passengers) was formerly in the French Club Med fleet. The emphasis is on the joys of being at sea under sail, enjoying a casual and relaxed style of holiday, with open seating dining and no dressing for dinner, the pleasure of all fresco dining and watersports from the marina at the back of the ship, unusual and port-intensive itineraries off the beaten track, and all for excellent value pricing.

All three ships summer in the Mediterranean, operating a whole variety of Western and Eastern seven night itineraries. For 2008, new longer Adriatic cruises have been introduced, to our mind the perfect way to visit the Croatian coast. In the winter, set course westwards: Wind Surf cruises weekly from conveniently reached Barbados, the perfect choice for British travelers not wishing to travel via the US. Wind Spirit sails from St Thomas, whilst Wind Star operates a unique itinerary on the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica, a fascinating eco-cruise with a Nicaragua call included. Unsurprisingly this is extremely popular and gets booked up very early.
2008 is on sale now, so call for further details.