This Famed Cruise Line Just Announced a New Around-the-world Cruise — Visiting 35 Countries in 5 Months
Crystal Cruises relaunches this summer and just announced a 2024 around-the-world cruise, which will sail for up to 141 nights.
Nigel Deayton/Courtesy of Crystal Cruises
The luxury cruise line Crystal, which relaunches this summer, just announced a new world cruise that will criss-cross the globe in 2024.
The 141-night itinerary will depart Miami on January 18, 2024, sail through the Panama Canal, then cross the Pacific to French Polynesia, Australia, and New Zealand. It continues through the Indian Ocean before visiting ports in the Eastern Mediterranean. The trip proceeds to Italy then France and crosses the Atlantic to conclude in Miami. Guests also have the option of starting and ending the trip in San Diego.
In all, the journey will visit 70 ports in 35 countries, with custom excursions along the way organized by Abercrombie & Kent, a spokesperson for Crystal tells Travel + Leisure exclusively. The partnership is no coincidence: Crystal has been owned by A&K Travel Group since 2022, when A&K revived the storied cruise brand by acquiring Crystal Serenity and Crystal Symphony, twin ships that were, for many years, favorites among T+L readers.
Ian Schemper/Courtesy of Crystal Cruises
Ian Schjemper/Courtesy of Crystal Cruises
Guests on the nearly five-month journey will also enjoy gala dinners and special events, coordinated by Fernando Barroso de Oliveira, a legendary cruise director who’s worked on luxury ships for decades and joins Crystal as the company's world cruise ambassador.
“We are still working out the final details,” says Barroso de Oliveira, in an email to T+L. “But it’s the shoreside events that have me most excited.”
Courtesy of Crystal Cruises
The destinations will be another draw, he notes. “The itinerary covers a very eclectic group of ports from Israel and Turkey to Greece, Italy, Spain, and France,” Barroso de Oliveira says. “There are very few harbor entrances that can match the Bosphorus Strait and Istanbul, a city where the old cliche ‘east meets west’ was invented. The mosques and palaces right by the old port are stunning.”
The trip will also take guests to Egypt, for a swing through Luxor’s Valley of Kings, and stop in India, where there will be an opportunity to see the Taj Mahal in Agra.
“It will be the first world cruise with the new ownership,” Barroso de Oliveira notes, “but we will have most of the same crew that made Crystal an award-winning cruise line for many years. A great mixture of talents, and I’m so looking forward to it.”
Amanda Julca/Courtesy of Crystal Cruises
Courtesy of Crystal Cruises
Guests on the sail will travel aboard the Crystal Serenity, one of two Crystal ships that’s gotten an overhaul since going out of service during the pandemic. A rep for the line says Crystal has upgraded the Serenity’s suites, improved the onboard spa, revamped the gym, and even added a pickleball court.
Amanda Julca/Courtesy of Crystal Cruises
The ship is also home to a previously announced Nobu restaurant, which will be one of only two at sea. The other, of course, is aboard the Crystal Symphony.
Rates for the 2024 world cruise will start at $68,800 per person.
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