A new $120,000 way to sail the world by living on a cruise ship for a year
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In travel news this week: railway ambitions in Greece, Vietnam, Britain and the United States, exciting new maritime adventures from Virgin Voyages and the Orient Express, plus the world’s top cities for 2024.
Life at sea
Spending $120,000 for a vacation sure does sound expensive. However, if it means you get to sail the world for a year with no land-bound expenses and you get free laundry and a balcony view of the world’s oceans, it starts to sound more alluring.
Virgin Voyages is the latest cruise line to offer the chance to turn your relocation into a sea-location, with its new all-you-can-sail annual pass.
The price is based on a double cabin (whether it’s single or double occupancy) and allows sailors to see the delights of the Mediterranean, Caribbean, Atlantic and more on any one of Virgin’s ships.
For the ultimate in maritime luxury, the Orient Express is launching the world’s largest sailing yacht in summer 2026, for wind-driven voyages around the Mediterranean, Adriatic and the Caribbean.
Making tracks
Amtrak, America’s national railroad company, has struggled post-pandemic. But following a $4.5 billion investment into its infrastructure and fleets, it’s had a record year. It’s carried close to 33 million passengers for fiscal 2024, and its goal is to double its ridership to 66 million riders a year by 2040.
In Europe, a new underground railway system with driverless trains has opened in the Greek city of Thessaloniki. The construction of the metro has been hampered by decades of obstacles, including the uncovering of archaeological treasures.
At the top end of the market, England and Wales’ first luxury sleeper train, The Britannic Explorer, A Belmond Train, UK, will hit the rails in July 2025. It will take people on trips through Cornwall, the Lake District and Wales, and the vision is of a garden party on wheels.
Few have heard of the Argo Wilis Panoramic train, which runs between the Indonesian cities of Surabaya and Bandung, but it’s one of the most scenic and underrated journeys in Southeast Asia – and it’s a bargain, too.
Finally, Vietnam has announced ambitious high-speed rail plans, connecting the capital Hanoi in the north to Ho Chi Minh City in the south at an estimated cost of $67 billion. Construction is expected to begin in 2027.
World’s top cities for 2024
Six European cities, including Rome, Barcelona and Paris, have appeared at the top of a new index of the Top 100 City Destinations for 2024. There’s one notable omission though - London has failed to break the top 10.
The report by Euromonitor International named Bangkok the world’s busiest city this year for international arrivals. As it’s now the high season in Thailand, here’s how to avoid the crowds by visiting these lesser-known destinations.
The world’s most-visited city in 2023 was the Turkish city of Istanbul. There are still some spots few tourists explore, however — such as this panoramic rooftop view from one of the city’s most iconic landmarks.
If you’re planning to take to the skies and then hit some city streets, soft-side carry-on luggage gets the balance of flexibility and durability you’ll need. Our partners at CNN Underscored, a product reviews and recommendations guide owned by CNN, have this round-up of the best on the market.
Journey to the ocean floor
It’s bigger than the TItanic, as long as a skyscraper and it holds the record for the fastest ocean liner to cross the Atlantic. It’s the SS United States and after rusting on a Philadelphia pier for three decades, it’s now making its final journey – right to the bottom of the ocean.
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