Celebrity Cruises is offering three new round-trip Greek Isles and Turkey cruises out of Istanbul on the Bosphorus Strait. The cruises will depart in September and October 2011.

Istanbul Port

The 12 night round-trip cruises on the newly refurbished Celebrity Constellation will call at the ports at Bodrum, Marmaris and Chania.
The new itineraries will include an overnight stay in Istanbul and trips to Ephesus, Rhodes, Athens, Mykonos and Crete.

Celebrity Constellation

Celebrity Constellation – Cruise ship information

The Celebrity Constellation has all the luxurious features of a floating resort, including award-winning cuisine at the casual Waterfall Cafe, the main dining room and the specialty restaurant. You can see a film at the cinema or a show in the tri-level Celebrity Theatre, or just lounge in the Italian coffee house, champagne bar, martini bar or Michael’s Club. For the children there is the Ship Mates Fun Factory and the video arcade. One of the ship’s unique features is the Magnolia Garden, a floral boutique that offers flower-arranging classes. For guests who wish to unwind there is the two-story library and Notes, where you can pick your favorite tunes from a large music library and settle into a listening station. The AquaSpa offers the ultimate way to relax, with its wide range of traditional and exotic body treatments. Staterooms include interactive television (use it to order room service, shop or play casino video games), VCR, direct-dial telephone and voice mail, safe, hair dryer, minibar and complimentary room service.

Dining: The San Marco Dining Room is on 2 levels and provides freshly cooked good food with excellent service. Dinner is also available as room service. Alternative dining is provided in the Speciality Restaurant and the Oceanview Cafe & Grill.

Cruise ship amenities

Cabin Features & Amenities
24hr Room Service, Hairdryer, Safe, Telephone,Television.

Special Needs
Adjoining Cabins with private connecting doors, Kosher Meals, Wheelchair Accessible Cabins.

Childrens Facilities
Babysitting, Playroom, Supervised Youth Programme, Teenagers Centre.

Services & Amenities
Bars/Lounges, Beauty Salon/Barber, Shop, Casino, Cinema, Disco/Dancing, Hot Tub, Internet Access, Laundry/Dry Cleaning, Library, Lifts, Onboard Weddings, Shops, Showroom, Spa, Video Arcade.

Fitness & Sports Facilities
Basketball Court, Fitness Centre, Golf Simulator, Jogging Track, Swimming Pool (inside), Swimming Pool (outside).

Ever fancied a cruise? There are loads of offers from all the cruise lines for last minute holidays throughout the internet.

First time cruising? Look out for the many bargain holidays that are being offered for this year and next year.

For more information on Turkey and to view my latest articles please visit my Turkey Blog.

Blue Cruise

WHAT IS A BLUE CRUISE?
Originated in Bodrum in the late 1950’s by groups of writers, painters, and others interested in natural beauty and historical sites, the Blue Voyage started in the Gulf of Gökova and later extended to include the more distant southern shores of Turkey.
The Blue Cruise is a way of exploring the beautiful, tranquil, unspoilt  coastline of south-west Turkey by a traditional Turkish gulet.
Unlike cruises on large ocean liners, on a gulet you can explore the secluded and often deserted bays, coves and islands of the spectacular Turkish coastline.
Gulet cruising is ideal for couples, friends and families, or for groups who may wish to charter a whole boat on a sole occupancy.
Comfortable accommodation and first rate meals are standard features on these gleaming wooden crafts, designed along the traditional lines of Aegean sailing boats.
The opportunity to combine sun, sea, history and the hikes on land is best experienced on a Blue Cruise. You can relax in your bathing suit all day long, enjoy the good food and the sun or you can experience more exciting activities like diving, snorkelling or fishing.

Turkish Gulet

WHAT IS A TURKISH GULET?
Traditional Turkish yachts are called “Gulet”. A gulet is an all wooden handmade motor sailing yacht, with masts, built for cruising the coasts in the calm, warm waters of the Mediterranean. These yachts are built to centre life on deck during the charter. A spacious deck and a large, half-moon shaped aft, dining and lounging areas are their main features. Not all gulets are equipped to sail, but most have a main sail to be used when the wind is suitable and the clients wish.
The most common gulets have 6 to 8 double cabins and accommodate 12 to 16 passengers.
Features of a gulet include an interior salon/bar area and a fully equipped galley. All cabins have en-suite with hot and cold running water. There are 1 or 2 sundecks with comfortable sunbeds and a canopied aft deck with cushioned seating,freezers to keep drinks cold, and a CD/cassette player. The gulets come with facilities for outdoor and indoor dining. Also a dinghy with outboard, a ship-to-shore radio,mobile telephone and life jackets are on board. All the boats are government approved with fully qualified captains. No experience of boats is required.

Pamphylia

VISIT HISTORIC SITES
Ancient cities such as Knidos,Kaunos, Telmessos, Antiphellos, Myra, Olympos, Phaselis and the rock-tombs in the Lycian cities are a must to explore. Your gulet could be sailing through the antique regions of Karia, Lycia and then on to the Pamphylia region. Every day a new cove, a new bay to be explored. Endless natural beauty and history enjoyed whilst cruising under the Mediterranean sun.

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