Just before the Christmas holiday, the ship will sail on the first of the season’s six Southeast Asia voyages between Singapore and Hong Kong, beginning with an 18-night Southeast Asia cruise from Singapore on Dec. 21, 2010, followed by four consecutive 14-night voyages between the two cities. The ship will sail its last Southeast Asia voyage of the season with a 14-night itinerary from Hong Kong to Singapore on March 29, 2011, before embarking on a 24-night repositioning cruise from Singapore back to Athens on April 12. Each Southeast Asia voyage includes at least four overnight stays. Overnights are scheduled for Hong Kong, Singapore, Bangkok, Hanoi (Halong Bay) and Ho Chi Minh City. A voyage during Chinese New Year, which departs Singapore for Hong Kong on Jan. 22, 2011, offers overnights in all but one of the ports it visits during the cruise.

Two 12-night Northeast Asia cruises, sailing from Hong Kong to Shanghai on March 5, 2011 and from Shanghai to Hong Kong on March 17, will offer different itineraries, creating a 24-night, back-to-back sailing option for guests who wish to experience mainland China, Japan and South Korea in one trip. The northbound itinerary visits Kagoshima, Nagasaki and Kyoto (Osaka), Japan, as well as Xiamen, China, and Busan, South Korea. The southbound itinerary features an overnight call in Beijing (Tianjin), as well as calls at Seoul (Incheon), South Korea, and two ports new to Azamara: Qingdao, China, and Jeju Island, South Korea.

The line is offering six seven-night land packages as parts of cruisetours. The pre-cruise package begins in Beijing and ends in Hong Kong. The post-cruise package begins in Hong Kong and ends in Beijing. Some of the most widely known spots on the land portion of the cruisetours include the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, the Great Wall at Mutianyue, and Victoria Peak. Throughout the tours, guests will overnight in cities like Beijing, Xian, Guilin and Hong Kong. Some meals are included, most notably a traditional Peking duck dinner in Beijing, a Chinese dumpling dinner followed by dumpling-making and noodle-throwing demonstrations in Xian, and lunch during a cruise along the River Li in Guilin. The tours also include visits to museums like the Terracotta Warriors Museum, the Bronze Chariots Museum, the Yangling Museum and the Shaanxi Provincial Museum. Guests will also experience several temples, including the Temple of Heaven in Beijing, the Great Mosque of Xian and Hong Kong’s Man Mo Temple. Each package includes ground transportation, hotel accommodations, some meals and ample time for independent dining, shopping and sightseeing. For more information, call 877.530.5699