London - You can explore the mysteries of Burma, travel in the footsteps of St Paul in Turkey, unravel the cultures of China, Korea and Japan - and do it in style aboard Voyager, the new ship from Voyages of Discovery, which prides itself on enriching, in-depth itineraries off the beaten track.
I had a preview of Voyager when I went aboard in its home port of Portsmouth.
Replacing the company’s previous vessel Discovery, Voyager is not a new ship - far from it, and all the better for it.
It was built in 1989 and has had no fewer than six name changes - the latest in a ceremony performed in December by the ship’s new ‘godmother’, BBC presenter Miranda Krestovnikoff. But after going through a top-to-toe, multi-million-pound makeover, it now combines the best of old-school cruise ships with 21st Century technology and amenities and modern interiors.
At 15,270 tons, Voyager is a shrimp compared with the mega-ships being built today, but with just 540 passengers, it feels on the grand scale, with ample space in the public areas.
Private outdoor space has been provided for 30 of the 270 cabins by the addition of cleverly clamped-on balconies. My suite had a ‘Juliette balcony’ just deep enough for two folding chairs, but giving air and light to the cabin through plate-glass sliding doors.
A minimum of space is taken up by the small gym, little shop and Atlantis Spa, which has just one treatment room, a small hair salon and a staff of two. And what was the top-deck nightclub in the ship’s previous incarnation is now The Bridge Club, with 15 tables - this in an age when card rooms of any sort are rare on cruise ships.
Another innovation is the change to open-seating dining, rather than the traditional two sittings at fixed tables, in the elegant main dining room. Next door is the more intimate Explorers Club restaurant, with themed Italian and French nights, without a supplementary charge.
The Darwin lounge is the lecture-cum-show lounge, with banquette seating and small tables and armchairs for 270. It adjoins the airy Lookout lounge, while Scott’s lounge and piano bar has the well-stocked library leading off it.
Voyages of Discovery prides itself on its educational offerings and I got a flavour when some of the onboard lecturers gave lively 15-minute speed lectures on their specialist subjects.
On days at sea, there are lectures all day, which can also be watched in your cabin. And some cruises now give the opportunity to learn by taking part in such activities as choir at sea, art classes and craft workshops - but don’t worry, there’s no homework. The Darwin lounge is transformed from lecture hall to show theatre, with energetic young singers and dancers.
Since my visit, Voyager, with her shallow draft for extra manoeuvrability and state- of-the-art new gyro compasses, under the command of British Captain Neil Broomhall, has begun her maiden Grand Voyage. It is a 147-day round trip, circumnavigating South America, sailing up the Amazon and calling at less-visited Atlantic and Caribbean islands, from which the ship returns in late April.
l Voyages of Discovery (0844 822 0820, voyagesofdiscovery.com) offers a ten-day Heritage Of The British Isles cruise aboard Voyager from £949 (about R12 400), including meals, entertainment and guest speaker programme. It departs from Portsmouth on June 2 and calls at St Peter Port in Guernsey, Holyhead, Liverpool, Belfast, Oban and Port of Tyne. - Mail on Sunday