12-NIGHT ONWARD TO FLORIDA VOYAGE

Lisbon, Europe's westernmost capital and Portugal's cultural hub, lies on the Atlantic coast at the mouth of the Tagus River. The city is a delightful mix of must-see museums, castles and cathedrals. Its charming neighbourhoods feature residences decorated with colourful tiled facades, sidewalk cafes along pedestrian thoroughfares and enchantingly original boutiques. The sidewalks are often paved with black and white volcanic stones in patterns specific to this city. Lisbon has a refreshingly non-commercial feel, old-fashioned and relaxed, and exploring on foot is a delight. Portugal enjoyed its heyday long ago, and some of the older buildings that reflect this era are as opulent as they get. However, much of the city was levelled in the devastating earthquake of 1755, so visitors will notice that the city's architecture is not as old as that found in some European capitals. Prices tend to be lower than in the rest of Europe, especially in the moderately priced meals, wine and entrance fees to the main attractions. If you like fish and shellfish, you've come to the right city. Pastry shops abound, many with lovely storefronts, providing sit-down respite for coffee, tea and something sweet. Lisbon is a city of hills, and the up-and-down geography adds to its charm. One of the best ways to experience it is via a tram ride through the medieval Alfama district, Baixa (the central business district) and the Bairro Alto (the major restaurant and nightlife area). Both the Alfama and Bairro Alto districts have wonderful miradoures, or viewpoints, to take in the city below, the nearby hills and the wide Tagus River that provides ships such easy access to the city. For cruise visitors, Lisbon is also a jumping-off point for day trips to Portugal's resort towns -- such as Estoril, near the mouth of the Tagus and lovely Sintra with its palaces up in the hills -- or a Catholic pilgrimage to Fatima.

Relax and enjoy the facilities and entertainment onboard your ship. If the weather is good take some sun and sunbathe on the pool deck. Otherwise explore below deck the wide range of activities that will be available during the day. Perhaps you prefer to find a quiet spot and catch up on your reading.

Relax and enjoy the facilities and entertainment onboard your ship. If the weather is good take some sun and sunbathe on the pool deck. Otherwise explore below deck the wide range of activities that will be available during the day. Perhaps you prefer to find a quiet spot and catch up on your reading.

The tranquil little port of Horta has long played host to transatlantic yachtsmen and has a colourful marina. It stands on pretty Faial Island, one of the nine emerald green Azores. There are several churches of interest including the Church of St.Francis which incorporates the Arte Sacra Museum and the Horta Museum. Also worth a look are the Torre do Relógio Clock Tower, the Império dos Nobres, and the Forte de Santa Cruz, a 16th century fort.

Relax and enjoy the facilities and entertainment onboard your ship. If the weather is good take some sun and sunbathe on the pool deck. Otherwise explore below deck the wide range of activities that will be available during the day. Perhaps you prefer to find a quiet spot and catch up on your reading.

Relax and enjoy the facilities and entertainment onboard your ship. If the weather is good take some sun and sunbathe on the pool deck. Otherwise explore below deck the wide range of activities that will be available during the day. Perhaps you prefer to find a quiet spot and catch up on your reading.

Relax and enjoy the facilities and entertainment onboard your ship. If the weather is good take some sun and sunbathe on the pool deck. Otherwise explore below deck the wide range of activities that will be available during the day. Perhaps you prefer to find a quiet spot and catch up on your reading.

Relax and enjoy the facilities and entertainment onboard your ship. If the weather is good take some sun and sunbathe on the pool deck. Otherwise explore below deck the wide range of activities that will be available during the day. Perhaps you prefer to find a quiet spot and catch up on your reading.

Relax and enjoy the facilities and entertainment onboard your ship. If the weather is good take some sun and sunbathe on the pool deck. Otherwise explore below deck the wide range of activities that will be available during the day. Perhaps you prefer to find a quiet spot and catch up on your reading.

The charms of a cruise to Bermuda are not lost on those who prefer big-ship voyages, but alas, neither the mouth of Hamilton Harbour nor the dock facilities in town can accommodate those larger vessels. Which means, increasingly, that cruise ships once based at Hamilton, Bermuda's capital city (or even at the picturesque St. George's) now must go to King's Wharf (also known as the Royal Navy Dockyard). But by no means does that mean one must bypass Hamilton; it's an easy ferry ride from the Dockyards. In any event, you really shouldn't miss a visit to Hamilton. It's also the place that attracts the most visitors because it has plenty of sightseeing attractions -- including Bermuda's newest, the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute. Most attractions are easy to see on foot. As you stroll through this beautiful port town, you'll love the charming pastel-colored two-story buildings along Front Street (take a break inside the Par-La-Ville Gardens on Queen Street). Amid the eye-candy viewing atop spots such as the Anglican Cathedral and Point Pleasant -- and the must-see "bird cage" near Queen Street where Bermuda-shorts-wearing constables direct the traffic -- is all the history that made this colorful and somewhat bustling town what it is today. Founded in 1790, Hamilton became the capitol of Bermuda in 1815 because of its central location on the island, which the Colonists believed offered more room to expand. The port city was named after Henry Hamilton, a British Lieutenant Governor and the island's governor (1788 - 1794), whose ancestry traced all the way back to Mary Queen of Scots. Maybe that explains why the passionate loyalty to England is way more than just fish and chips and cricket games. Among Hamilton's other highlights? Golfing is a big deal, for sure, and beaches are conveniently close by. You'll be tempted to buy gorgeous porcelain and cashmere till the cows come home, and the nightlife's not bad either -- but remember, we're comparing it to the rest of Bermuda, not Vegas or Miami. That being said, at 6 p.m. on Wednesdays (when most of the cruise ships that call at Bermuda are docked at one or another of the island's ports), Hamilton's Front Street becomes party central; the street's closed off to traffic and suddenly the sidewalks are lined with food concession stands, live music and plenty of dancing. Boogie 'til 3 a.m. any night at After Hours, The Deep or Splash.

Relax and enjoy the facilities and entertainment onboard your ship. If the weather is good take some sun and sunbathe on the pool deck. Otherwise explore below deck the wide range of activities that will be available during the day. Perhaps you prefer to find a quiet spot and catch up on your reading.

Relax and enjoy the facilities and entertainment onboard your ship. If the weather is good take some sun and sunbathe on the pool deck. Otherwise explore below deck the wide range of activities that will be available during the day. Perhaps you prefer to find a quiet spot and catch up on your reading.

No city in the United States has evolved into as many disparate identities in so short a time as has Miami. A bit more than a hundred years ago this former Spanish settlement, located along the Miami River where it spills into Biscayne Bay (now the centre of the city of Miami), attracted neither interest nor population. That's understandable since up until that point, the only way to reach Miami was by boat.

That changed in 1896, when financier Henry Flagler extended his new Florida East Coast Railroad south from its previous terminus at West Palm Beach. By the turn of the 20th century, the first of Miami's real estate booms was underway, a pattern that continued unabated right up to the Great Depression. Miami was one of the few places on earth where someone could offer you a get-rich-quick deal on 10 acres of swampland, and there was a good chance that you could actually get rich on it. Many made their fortunes here and left monuments to their achievements in places such as the grand Mediterranean-style estates like Villa Vizcaya and the slew of privately developed islands along the causeways crossing Biscayne Bay.

The city of Miami sits on the Florida mainland. Offshore, due east in the Atlantic, are a series of barrier islands. The southernmost island in the near vicinity is Key Biscayne. Next to the north is Virginia Key, then Fisher Island, and then comes Miami Beach. The body of water between these islands and the mainland is Biscayne Bay. Early on, resort developers looked to the Atlantic Ocean beaches of Miami Beach, beginning their development with the elegant Art Deco hotels at the southern tip, now better known as South Beach. As development proceeded northward its complexion changed, becoming more "high-rise" and grandiose, with amenities geared to a wider range of interests, from yachting to golf.

The 1960s saw another sea change in Miami, generating another boom cycle, brought about by the unlikely combination of the advent of universally available air conditioning and the rise to power of Fidel Castro. As Cuban refugees fled in droves to the U.S., they settled in that part of our country most like their former homeland in climate -- namely, South Florida. Miami, whose tropical temperatures were now tamed by indoor climate control, thus tolerable to an influx of workers, became the gateway to the Caribbean for any number of businesses, which soon rivalled tourism as the keystone industry.

The Caribbean population influx also profoundly changed Miami's personality. It is now largely bilingual, with French and Creole also gaining a foothold with increasing waves of immigration from Haiti. It's hard to walk a block in Miami without coming into contact with Cuban food, Cuban music, Cuban culture. It is a dynamic, vibrant city steeped in multiculturalism. These new Miamians and their businesses have also contributed directly to the revitalization of the mainland portion of Miami, leading to a number of tourist assets along the western shore of Biscayne Bay, such as Bayside Marketplace.

Across the bay is the renovated Art Deco district, including South Beach (SoBe), which has become a mecca in its own right, attracting celebrities and those who follow them, whether it be with a camera or with autograph book. SoBe is also home to Miami's nightclub, fashion, music and hip dining scene, and rivals Venice, California as the place to go to people-watch.

Not all is development (or overdevelopment, some would say). Though the seaside corridor has been urbanized almost from the tip of Florida to midway up the coast, there is still much for lovers of nature and the great outdoors. The Everglades are within a half-day's drive to the southwest. Off the Atlantic coast a short distance to the south is the only living coral reef in the continental United States. Birders wax poetic over opportunities to spy tropical shore birds and waterfowl found nowhere else in the States. And where else in the U.S.A. might you have to brake to avoid alligators crossing the road?

Whether Miami is your port of embarkation, debarkation or a port of call mid-cruise, it is unlikely that you will encounter a city anywhere on your travels that appeal to as many tastes: foodie, shopaholic, eco-tourist, golfer, water sportsperson or lover of traditional tourist attractions.