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Stay ‘n’ sail

Tagging a holiday on to either end of a cruise is the ultimate indulgence. Here are 10 of the best combinations

SYDNEY

SAIL 104-night world cruise aboard the Dawn Princess, departing 21 May 2010, stopping off at Singapore, Malaysia, India, Dubai, Egypt, Europe, England, USA, Caribbean, Panama Canal, Hawaii, Tahiti and New Zealand.

STAY Overlooking the Harbour Bridge, killer views do not come better than the Park Hyatt Sydney (tcsignature.com) – though book a Harbour View room or it’s not quite as impressive. Understandably, Orlando Bloom was recently caught frolicking with his Aussie girlfriend Miranda Kerr on one of the hotel’s balconies.

EAT Check out cult pony-tailed Australian chef Neil Perry’s latest opening, Spice Temple (10 Bligh Street, +61 2 8078 1888, rockpool.com.au), which is a modern Hakkasan-esque Asian restaurant. The food here is made for sharing; try the hot and numbing chicken if you’re looking for a wow dish you’ll remember, but if you’d rather your dishes milder, stay away from the dishes in red type.

SHOP Ivy (330 George Street, +61 2 9240 3000, merivale.com.au), Sydney’s latest boutique ‘lifestyle centre’, has a selection of stores from Australian designers such as Sass and Bide, Ginger & Smart, Lululemon and Peter Alexander, with bars such as Ivy Bar. And don’t forget to stop off for a treat at The Cupcake Bakery.

MIAMI

SAIL 12-night Ultimate Caribbean Cruise aboard the Jewel of the Seas, departing 21 December from Miami, visiting Nassau, Labadee, Cartagena, Colombia, Cologne, Puerto Limone, Georgetown.

STAY With early reviews of the Fontainbleau’s $200m (£135m) renovation not quite living up to its hype, why not opt for the city’s more contemporary classic, Loews Miami Beach Hotel (tcsignature.com). A coconut’s throw from the beach, there are refurbed art deco rooms or more modern suites in the newer tower. Either way, this is affordable luxury at its best.

EAT To satisfy any-hour cravings, the swanky Delano Hotel has recently opened a mini French bistro, Plat Bleu, in the lobby outside the Blue Door. Open from 11am, dishes such as steak frites and crabavocat salad (blue crab and guacamole) are served till 2am. Perfect for post-partying and chic jet-lag snacks.

SHOP Rebel (6669 Biscayne Boulevard, +1 305 758 2369) is a one-stop mum-and-daughter boutique where you’ll find some of the country’s best – and priciest – labels. In terms of resort wear, look out for local designer Bianca Coletti’s latest Puerto-Rican inspired line of swimwear, especially bright summer dresses and tropical bikinis.

BARCELONA

SAIL Silversea’s Silver Wind departs 24 September, sailing seven nights from Barcelona to Nice via Valencia, Majorca, Livorno and the Monte Carlo.

STAY Barceló Raval (thomascook.com) opened its avant-garde doors in January after a £32m facelift. The hotel’s design is as whimsical as the city’s art, and has a roof terrace with 360° city views.

EAT Indulge your inner foodie at Cinc Sentis (Aribau 58, +34 933 239 490, cincsentits.com), where the chefs aren’t afraid to push culinary boundaries. The Iberian suckling pig with glazed apples and orange-blossom honey reduction is a favourite.

SHOP H&M may be a European staple, but the recently opened outlet at Portal de l’Àngel 22 is worth scoping out for the edgy, ultra-modern design alone (and you can still pick up affordable, fashion-forward threads).

SOUTHAMPTON

SAIL The transatlantic crossing is a Cunard speciality. Sail westbound onboard Queen Mary 2 on 11 November and you’ll find yourself in New York six nights later.

STAY De Vere Grand Harbour (thomascook.com), perched on the waterfront overlooking the harbour, is Southampton’s flagship hotel.

EAT The White Star Tavern (28 Oxford St, +44 (0)23 8082 1990) serves up hearty, seasonal British favourites such as creamy fish pie and juicy, locally made sausages.

SHOP The historic Bargate in Southampton’s centre holds regular food markets, like the General Market on Fridays (9am-5pm).

NEW YORK

SAIL Jump onboard NCL’s Norwegian Gem for seven-days to the Bahamas on 12, 19 or 26 December.

STAY Vikram Chatwal’s design a-gogo Dream hotel is planning to launch an offshoot in the Meatpacking District at the end of the year. But if you can’t wait until then, their uptown digs (with Deepak Chopra Center & Spa) are available now (tcsignature.com).

EAT No other destination (outside Japan) does Japanese like New York. For a great under-the-radar experience, the bespoke omakase meal at Sushi Zen (108 West 44th St, +1 212 302 0707) is as impressive as it is immense.

SHOP Follow the glitterati downtown for buys without the Fifth Avenue price tag. Chloë Sevigny will be designing a men’s range this autumn at Opening Ceremony (35 Howard Street, +1 212 219 2688).

PALMA

SAIL A seven-night Mediterranean Renaissance cruise aboard Thomson Destiny departs 24 September from Palma, via Villefranche (French Riviera), Marina Di Carrara (Italy), Rome, Ajaccio (Corsica), Palamos (Spain), returning to Majorca.

STAY An affordable way to ‘do’ Majorca is by hiring a villa. C’an Busqueret (styleholidays.co.uk) is located near a beach but amid rolling countryside. You’ll need to hire a car but it’s worth it.

EAT Tuck into homegrown island fare for lunch at C’an Carlos (de S’Aigua 5, +34 971 713 869), where prices come in easily under £20.

SHOP See Picassos and Dalís at Museu d’Art Espanyol Contemporani (Sant Miquel 11, +34 971 713 515, march.es/museupalma) and the sleek Es Baluard (+34 971 908 200, esbaluard.org) is host to some lovely Majorcan landscapes.

DUBAI

SAIL Christmas in the sun? Costa Luminosa takes in Muscat, Fujairah, Abu Dhabi and Bahrain for a week on 26 December.

STAY Unless you’ve been in hiding for the past six months, you can’t have missed the hype around Atlantis, The Palm (tcsignature.com). This year, Cirque du Soliel comes to the super-sized resort with their show Alegría. The acrobatic company is developing a show especially for the resort in 2011.

EAT The Emirate attracts the big-name chefs (Gordon Ramsay, Jamie Oliver and Alan Yau), but for mouth-watering local shawarmas (spit-cooked meat in pitta bread), you can’t go wrong with Al Nafoorah’s (Emirates Towers Hotel, +971 4330 0000).

SHOP With the Dubai Metro slated to launch this September, doing a mall crawl will be as easy as DKNY. Take advantage of the duty-free haven and make for The Dubai Mall, which has everything from Burberry to Blahnik and Bloomingdales in 2010.

ROME

SAIL 12-night Grand Princess Egypt & Aegean roundtrip to and from Rome with stops at Naples, Athens, Kusadasi, Istanbul, Mykonos, Port Said and Alexandria. Departs 13 October.

STAY Located in a 500-year-old palace, the acclaimed St George Hotel (Via Giulia 62, +39 06 686 611, stgeorgehotel.it) is chic and central and is home to Europe’s first rooftop bar that only serves rosé (only open in summer).

EAT Where you buy your gelato is a highly contentious topic in the Italian capital. We recommend the unpretentious but outstanding Bar Alberto Pica (Via della Seggiola 12, corner of Via Arenula, +39 06 686 8405) with its 18 daily changing and scrumptious flavours.

SHOP Fendi’s recently opened flagship boutique (Via del Governo Vecchio 67, +39 06 68 134 1105) near Piazza Navona with a giant version of the label’s signature belt wrapped around it is more like a fabulous department store.  

AMSTERDAM  

SAIL Hop on the new Viking River Viking Legend for a trip down the Rhine to Budapest for 14 nights on 22 November, which is the last sailing of the year.

STAY For just £10-a-night more than the average three-star motel you can rest your head at the four-star Golden Tulip Amsterdam Centre (tcsignature. com). The rooms are contemporary and chic, and the hotel is more-than-conveniently located in the centre of the historical town.

EAT Nevy (40 Westerdoksdijk, +31 20 344 6409, nevy.nl), an old market hall-cum-modern gallery, is the latest gastronomic addition to the IJ river waterfront. Choose from the raw bar and have fish prepared to your taste – ceviche, grilled or tempura.

SHOP Pick up anything and everything, from clothes and books to electronics and art, at Albert Cuypstraat street market, Amsterdam’s lively and largest open-air trading space. You can also buy flowers at a relative snip compared to the more famous Bloemenmarkt.  

ATHENS 

SAIL Seven days aboard Windstar Cruises’ Wind Star departs 19 September, starting in Athens with stops in Mykonos, Santorini, Rhodes, Bodrum, Kusadasi and Istanbul.  

STAY The Hilton (tcsignature.com) has astounding views of the Acropolis without the astounding price tag. The cool but comfortable hotel also has a rooftop bar and restaurant where you can drink martinis and eat barbecued meats and fish with the who’s who of the Greek capital.

EAT Want to really eat like a local? See if you can find Diporto (Sokratous 9, +30 210 321 1463), an affordable lunchtime institution wedged between two unmarked doors and olive shops near Central Market. The daily-changing menu ranges from grilled sardines to meat-stuffed peppers (point to what you want) and it is all washed down with wine drawn from barrels. 

SHOP The acclaimed and slickly packaged Korres beauty brand started as a homeopathic pharmacy in this city. There are stores in London, New York and Beijing, but the flagship in the Greek capital is unmissable (9 Panepistimiou Street, Athens, +30 211 180 2736, korres.com).

For more, call 0800 916 3233, visit cruisethomascook.com, your local Thomas Cook or Going Places store, or see Thomas Cook TV, Sky channel 655

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