River Cruising | MORAL COMPASS: Great Places to Go Where the Going Does Good

Small-ship expedition to the Galapagos. From Alaska small ship cruises to Galapagos cruises, Adventuresmith Explorations specialists point to more and more options to focus a journey with kid-friendly meals, activities and other families, or ensure you’re aboard just with other adults © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Specialists at AdventureSmith Explorations, a global leader in small-ship, adventure cruise vacations, closely track what’s happening in the travel industry and in the destinations where its expedition trips operate.

As 2026 approaches, AdventureSmith is reporting on the interest and trends among travelers booking small ship cruises with the company:

Booking trends: Booking windows have lengthened, indicating travelers are planning farther ahead and booking less last-minute travel.

Shift to (years in) advance reservations: Higher demand is also evidenced by small ship fleets setting their departure dates farther into the future than ever. Many operators are boasting their earliest launch dates in history, listing 2027 and even 2028 dates before 2026 even begins, and select expedition cruises are experiencing multiple year sell-outs with waitlists.

Micro and small ship cruise growth: In 2025, AdventureSmith has seen a 20% increase in bookings aboard ships that are 30 guests or less. They have also seen a 101% jump in organic traffic for new users to their small ship cruises webpage over the past two years to date vs. the previous two years.

Digital love/hate: AdventureSmith reports noticing an interesting dual trend around digital connectivity. Some travelers are seeking out opportunities for a “digital detox,” but many are asking AdventureSmith’s travel specialists the opposite: to be connected in remote areas. Thanks to Starlink options coming to many small ships, this request can often be accommodated. AdventureSmith can speak to examples from both ends of the spectrum.

LAST CALL

Very limited inventory flash sales come and go around the Black Friday period, however they are sometimes not recommended by AdventureSmith’s specialists as they’re often “what’s left” vs. what travelers want/need for a once-in-a-lifetime expedition. But, AdventureSmith loves to help travelers sift through the deals to find the best overall value.

New this year, some cruise operators are extending “winter” sales vs. offering a specific weeklong campaign. Consult AdventureSmith’s Antarctica cruise deals, Alaska cruise deals, Galapagos cruise deals and global adventure travel deals pages for all the hottest deals as they are released.

Now is the time to book trips to Alaska for 2026 before coveted space starts to vanish at a rapid pace in January, historically AdventureSmith’s biggest booking month. Some great early-booking Alaska small ship cruise deals are available now that were not offered this same time last year.

NEW THEMED SMALL SHIP CRUISE OPTIONS

Music gets time to shine on a series of luxury small ship cruises. Think jazz at the Lincoln Center, a symphony at sea through Portugal and Spain with Boston Pops conductor Keith Lockhart, or chamber music in the Aegean with Trio Wanderer and Trio Arnold. AdventureSmith’s experts can link travelers to all the available routes.

Those who enjoy sampling the iconic libations of the destinations they visit won’t want to miss the Spirited Shores: Ireland to Portugal Cruise in June of 2027. Aboard the 154-guest Douglas Mawson (a brand-new expedition ship launching this winter), guests will explore the rich history of Europe’s spirited shores with a master storyteller host who is a professor, archaeologist or curator selected for their in-depth knowledge, expert storytelling abilities and unbridled passion.

The Feb. 23, 2027 departure of the Active & Wild Antarctica Air Cruise is for women only and will be led by female expedition leaders—this is truly a first for Antarctica cruises. The ship (132-guest Sylvia Earle) is also notable as it’s named after NOAA’s first female chief scientist, and all of the decks are named after other female leaders in science and conservation.

AdventureSmith is reporting more interest from families and adults who are seeking to travel with their own demographic. From Alaska small ship cruises to Galapagos cruises, there are more and more options to focus a journey with kid-friendly meals, activities and other families, or ensure you’re aboard just with other adults.

CRUISING ON THE GALAPAGOS LEGEND: SANTIAGO ISLAND

For more travel features, visit:

goingplacesfarandnear.com

Going Places @ longislandpress.com

www.longislandpress.com

goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com

moralcompasstravel.info

travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/

goingplacesfarandnear.tumblr.com/

instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near/

instagram.com/bigbackpacktraveler/

‘Like’ us on facebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures

X: @TravelFeatures

Threads: @news_and_photo_features

Bluesky: @newsphotosfeatures.bsky.social

The Netherlands’ Once-Every-Decade Festival Drew 2,000,000 Visitors in 2012

Tauck Tours’ MS Andorinha. Ten years after Tauck saw exceptional bookings for its European river cruises featuring the Floriade International Horticultural Expo, the Connecticut-based company is preparing to capture even stronger anticipated demand for the 2022 iteration of the Netherlands’ once-every-decade festival.

WILTON, CT – Ten years after Tauck saw exceptional bookings for its European river cruises featuring the Floriade International Horticultural Expo, the Connecticut-based company is preparing to capture even stronger anticipated demand for the 2022 iteration of the Netherlands’ once-every-decade festival. Where Tauck offered just a single itinerary that visited Floriade in 2012, it will feature the festival next year on a total of four different river cruises.

According to Tauck CEO Dan Mahar, the basis for the company’s bullish enthusiasm is two-fold. “Our excitement is rooted in both our past experience with Floriade, and in the really incredible plans we’ve seen for the 2022 expo,” said Mahar. “Our guests’ interest in attending Floriade is such that we essentially – and rather quickly – sold out our entire inventory in 2012,” he explained. Mahar also noted that the 2012 edition of Floriade drew more than 2,000,000 total visitors, or some four times the attendance at the 2010 performances of the Oberammergau Passion Play, another popular, once-every-decade cultural event featured on Tauck river cruises.

Next year’s Floriade, explained Mahar, will be far more than a simple flower show. The expo’s theme is “Growing Green Cities,” and it will showcase elements ranging from green architecture and environmentally-friendly food production to renewable energy and healthy living. The expo will be situated on 148 acres of land in the city of Almere that was raised and reclaimed from the sea, and following the festival’s conclusion late next year, its various buildings and facilities will collectively function as an enduring, environmentally-friendly urban center. “An apt comparison for the 2022 Floriade and its forward-looking emphasis on the cities of tomorrow would be Walt Disney’s vision for EPCOT,” said Mahar, noting how closely the EPCOT acronym (Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow) aligns with Floriade’s “Growing Green Cities” focus.

The Floriade expo will have more than enough to satisfy those with strong horticultural interests, including landscapes, gardens and greenhouses highlighting a vast collection of flowers, trees, shrubs, plants and crops from more than 40 countries. The festival will also feature live entertainment, themed cultural programs and exhibits, a host of international pavilions, a range of restaurants, food trucks and specialty tastings, and a diverse campus connected by gondolas, trains, bridges and walkways.

EARLY ADMISSION AND A PRIVATE SMALL-GROUP TOUR

Tauck guests will enjoy a full day at Floriade, highlighted by early-access admission one hour before the expo opens to the general public, and a 90-minute, small-group guided tour of key attractions hosted by a Floriade expert. Each guest will also receive a Tauck-issued, 25-euro Floriade credit card allowing them to enjoy lunch in their choice of dining venues, or purchase mementos of their visit if they prefer.

Tauck has also secured docking privileges in nearby Huizen, a short ten-minute drive from the Floriade grounds. For guests’ convenience and flexibility, private round-trip shuttles will be provided between the riverboat and the expo campus. The visit to Floriade, including expo admission, shuttle transportation, and the Floriade credit card, is included in Tauck’s cruise pricing, as are all other shore excursions, all gratuities, all onboard wine and spirits, airport transfers, luggage handling and more. The four Tauck river cruises featuring a visit to the Floriade expo include two 15-day itineraries, “Amsterdam to Budapest by Riverboat” and “The Rhine and Moselle,” along with two eight-day trips, “Belgium & Holland in Spring” and the new-for-2021 itinerary “Cruising the Dutch Waterways.”

LESSONS FROM THE OBERAMMERGAU PASSION PLAY

Information on Tauck’s four 2022 river cruises featuring Floriade has recently been posted on the company’s website, and can also be downloaded in an eight-page e-brochure. As Tauck begins to ramp up its promotional efforts for Floriade, CEO Mahar is urging those interested to make their plans quickly. “For most travelers, attending something like Floriade or the Oberammergau Passion Play is a true once-in-a-lifetime experience, and because they’re only available once every ten years, the opportunities to attend are really quite limited,” said Mahar. “Understandably, that creates a real sense of urgency among our guests that prompts them to act fast. With the Oberammergau Passion Play, we were 90% sold out before we started to actively promote it, and we’re fully expecting our Floriade trips to generate that same kind of response.”

Founded in 1925, Tauck Tours is a world leader in upscale guided travel, with more than 150 river cruises, small ship ocean cruises, land tours and safaris to 70+ countries and all seven continents. In each of the last 23 years, Tauck has been honored in Travel + Leisure magazine’s annual “World’s Best Awards” celebrating the very best in luxury cruises, tours, hotels and more.

For more information, contact your local travel professional, call Tauck at 800 468 2825, or visit www.tauck.com.