Windstar Cruises will make a second attempt at a local deployment in Australia and New Zealand in 2022 after the coronavirus pandemic scuttled its 2020/21 program.
The cruise operator has released a new voyage planner detailing its potential cruises. The company expects the first of its ships to resume operation following a voluntary pause, beginning on 1 May this year, through until mid-2023.
“We have a mix of long-time favourites and fresh new itineraries, recently transformed yachts and exciting new cruise tours,” Windstar Cruises’ President, Chris Prelog said.
Windstar says it understands that now, more than ever, holiday-planners are looking even further ahead to plan their next cruise experience, which is why the program has been released as far out as May 2023, “giving travellers a chance to plan ahead with a comprehensive reference in hand”.
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Extensive Australasia program
Along with new seven-day itineraries in Alaska, comprehensive sailings in Asia, and a host of new ports around the globe, Windstar Cruises has developed a program of eight itineraries within the Australasia region in late 2022/early 2023 aboard the freshly extended Star-class ship, Star Breeze.
Star Breeze recently emerged from an upgrade program under Windstar’s US$250 million Star-Plus initiative. Capacity on the ship was increased to 312 guests.
Star Breeze will operate the following voyages in the Australasia region in 2022/23:
- 39-day Star Collector: Koi, Koalas & Komodos – East Asia & Australia. Sailing from Tokyo, Japan on 2 October 2022, this voyage will explore Kobe, Tomonoura, Hashima Island, Nagasaki, Yakushima, Amami Island, Okinawa, before heading to Keeling (Taipei), Hong Kong, Hundred Islands, Manila, Boracay, Coron, Palawan, Sandakan, Makassar, Loh Liang, Lembar, Benoa (Bali), Lembar in Lombok, Loh Liang, Ende, Pulau Banda, Kokas, Triton Bay, Tual, and then onto Australia’s Thursday Island and Lizard Island, concluding in Cairns.
- 25-day Star Collector: Indonesia & Australia Discovery, on 28 October 2022. Departing Bali (Benoa), the voyage makes port calls at Lembar in Lombok, Loh Liang, Ende, Pulau Banda, Kokas, Triton Bay, Tual, Thursday Island and Lizard Island, Cairns, Port Douglas, Townsville, Airlie Beach, Middle Percy Island, Fraser Island, Brisbane before concluding in Sydney after a day at sea.
- 12-day Edge of the Outback itinerary from Cairns to Sydney, departing on 22 November 2022. The journey includes stops in Port Douglas, Townsville, Airlie Beach, Middle Percy Island (explored by no other cruise line), Fraser Island, Brisbane and a day at sea cruising to Sydney.
- 14-day Tasman Sea Treasures: New Zealand Fjords and South Australia; from Melbourne to Auckland on 4 December 2022. On the route, guests will stop at Burnie, Wineglass Bay, Hobart, cruise Doubtful Sound, then Dusky Sound, Bluff, Dunedin, Christchurch, Wellington, Picton and finally Tauranga
- 12-day Wildlife & Wines of New Zealand between Auckland and Christchurch, pushing out on 18 December 2022. Visits Tauranga, Gisborne, Napier, Wellington, Picton, Oban, Dusky Sound, Doubtful Sound, Dunedin.
- 25-day Star Collector: Australia & New Zealand Odyssey between Auckland and Cairns, departing 10 January 2023. After explorations of Tauranga, Picton, Wellington, Lyttleton (Christchurch), Dunedin, Oban (Stewart Island off the southern coastline of the South Island), Fiordland National Park, across the Tasman to Hobart, Freycinet National Park, Burnie, Phillip Island, Melbourne, Sydney, Mooloolaba, Fraser Island, Middle Percy Island and Airlie Beach.
- 13-day Hidden Indonesia & Great Barrier Reef Expedition, ex Cairns on 4 February 2023, this sailing stops at Lizard Island, Thursday Island, Triton Bay, Kokas, Pulau Banda, Loh Liang, Lembar, before concluding in Benoa (Bali).
- Another sailing, the 49-day Star Collector: The Fantastic Far East – Japan & Indonesia will also be available between Kobe and Cairns during the season.
Complementing Star Breeze‘s new extensive program in 2022/23 are two scheduled whistle-stop sailing aboard Wind Spirit later this year as part of its positioning cruises from Tahiti and the South Pacific.
Wind Spirit is scheduled to operate the following sailings in late 2021:
- 7-day Coral Sea Crossing: New Caledonia to Australia, operating from Noumea to Cairns, departing on 4 December 2021, and;
- 16-day Australia & Indonesia Encounter from Cairns to Benoa (Bali), on 11 December 2021. The voyage visits Port Douglas, Thursday Island, Yirrkala (in East Arnhem region), Darwin, Kupang, Ende and Loh Liang.
Full program details and pricing at windstarcruises.com/