NEWS YOU CAN USE CRUISE


Cunard to introduce wellness cafe as part of Queen Victoria refurbishment


Rhône Princess in Lyon


Involved Holidays unveils two itineraries including river cruises


Involved Holidays has launched its first collection combining its walking holidays with river cruises. The operator is offering two


European itineraries in 2027, with no single supplements. The seven-night Sailing


through Southern France: The Rhône and Saône on board Rhône Princess will depart on July 13. It will include visits to Lyon, the medieval palace of Avignon, the wetlands of Camargue and Vienne and the Roman ruins in Arles. The seven-night The Imperial


Cities of the Danube: Vienna to Budapest on board Beethoven will sail on July 26. The itinerary, which will call at Bratislava, starts at £2,599. Excursions include trips to


baroque monastery Melk Abbey and the Wachau wine region. Prices include flights, transfers


and guided excursions. involvedholidays.com


AE Expeditions offers 50% discount for kids


AE Expeditions has lowered its minimum age from eight to six years old and is offering a 50% discount on all sailings for children aged six to 15. Itineraries, which span destinations such as the Arctic, Antarctica and Indonesia, include wildlife watching and coastline exploration by Zodiac. aexpeditions.co.uk


16 13 AUGUST 2026


Cunard will refurbish Queen Victoria in October and November, adding eight staterooms and a wellness cafe. The Pavilion Wellness Café will offer breakfast, lunch and daytime dining. The Grand Lobby, Queens Room and luxury Grill Suites will also be updated. Queen Victoria, launched in 2007, will return to service on November 7 and operate sailings in the Mediterranean, the Norwegian fjords and the Canary Islands in 2027. cunard.com


Valiant Lady


Silversea uncorks culinary cruises during this autumn’s grape harvest


Silversea has launched a collection of SALT (Sea and Land Taste) Culinary Voyages with seven sailings on Silver Dawn and Silver Spirit across Portugal, Spain, France and the UK coinciding with this year’s grape harvest. Each cruise will have themed onboard programming and excursions, such as port-blending in the Douro and a truffle hunt in Cazeneuve. silversea.com


Virgin Voyages adds Baltic Sea and Scandinavia to 2028 range


Ella Sagar


Virgin Voyages has put its summer 2028 programme on sale, including inaugural Scandinavia and Baltic itineraries in what is its largest European deployment. Valiant Lady will homeport from Amsterdam for the


first time between July and September, operating six sailings and featuring 15 maiden ports of call. Highlights include a 12-night Scandinavia and


Stockholm Overnight on July 19, a seven-night Norwegian Fjords cruise on July 31 and an 11-night Arctic Circle and Norwegian Fjords on August 14. Virgin Voyages is also offering a Summer Season Pass


comprising four back-to-back sailings totalling 37 nights. Valiant Lady and Scarlet Lady will sail 39 voyages


in the Mediterranean between May and October, with Valiant Lady sailing from Barcelona and Scarlet Lady from Athens (Piraeus).


The sailings range from six to 14 nights and


include destinations across the Greek islands, Adriatic and western Mediterranean, with overnight stays in Mykonos, Ibiza, Istanbul and Alexandria (for Cairo). There will also be maiden calls at Santa Margherita


(for Portofino), Trieste (for Venice) and Ravenna in Italy, and Koper in Slovenia. Highlighted itineraries include a 10-night


Mediterranean: Barcelona to Athens cruise on Scarlet Lady, leading in at £1,299, and a seven-night French Riviera, Italy & Ibiza Overnight itinerary aboard Valiant Lady, priced from £855. There will be two repositioning voyages: the


14-night Miami to Morocco & Spain Transatlantic on Valiant Lady on April 16, costing from £957, and the 12-night San Juan to Spain Transatlantic on Scarlet Lady on April 22, starting from £728. sellvv.co.uk


travelweekly.co.uk


PICTURE: Shutterstock/Mae Pon


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