Small ship cruising guides
By type
Find all of our small ship cruising guides by type
- expedition cruising
![Expedition cruising guide]()
- sailing
![Small ship cruising guide]()
- small ship cruising, cruises
![Small ship cruising guide]()
By destination
Find all of our small ship cruising guides by regions and countries
The Americas
The Americas
- Alaska cruising
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- galapagos islands ecuador
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Asia
- Maldives cruising
![Maldives cruising guide]()
- Myanmar cruising, Burma cruises
![Myanmar cruising guide]()
Australasia
- south pacific cruising, south pacific cruise
![South Pacific cruising guide]()
Europe
- british isles cruising
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- croatia cruising, croatia cruise
![Croatia cruising guide]()
- Iceland cruising, cruise
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- Small ship cruising, Scotland
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The polar regions
- arctic cruises
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More about Small ship cruising
They take you to another world. Places with names like the Mergui Archipelago, the Kyles of Bute, Wrangel Island or Wolf. Welcome to the world of small ship cruising holidays.
Small ship cruising comes in all shapes and sizes without ever entering that supersize, floating hotel territory. Read on to find out which type of small ship cruise is for you.
We've created a guide that sums up where you can go when on a small ship cruise. Of course the weather dictates everything, so you must always be prepared for flexibility.
What is a small ship, anyway? It might be a family-sized yacht, a schooner designed to tuck into orca fjords, or a 200-passenger icebreaker that delves into the frozen Arctic.
From weather, time at sea and your wildlife wish list, to low carbon credentials and accessibility – there are a boatload of considerations when choosing a small ship holiday.
Our top 10 cruises vary from the well known, such as the Galapagos or the Nile in Egypt, to some really far out there expeditions: Kamchatka in Russia or Svalbard in the Arctic.
Our best cruises from the UK include wildlife safaris, art workshops and family adventures among Hebridean islands teeming with wildlife.
Small ship cruise activities are far from the world of mini golf and lounge singers. The evening entertainment is more likely to be an eco lecture or a photography tutorial.
Some of the most characterful creatures on the planet can only be reached on a small ship wildlife cruise. Find out how you can see polar bears, penguin colonies and whales.
You can go on a small ship sailing holiday as an expert, novice or total beginner. Read our guide to work out which sailing holiday floats your boat and where you can go.
Whether you’re gliding down the Nile on a felucca, aboard a groundnut boat in the Gambia, or exploring Kerala, river cruise holidays explore cultural and spiritual monoliths.
Go to southern Spain and you can see 700 years of Moorish influence, go to Morocco and see millennia of it.
Who says cruises aren’t for kids? Some of the smallest Caribbean-bound yachts can be fitted with toddler-proof safety nets, while Antarctic icebreakers come with quad rooms.
We run through your options as a solo traveller on a small ship cruise, whether that’s booking a single cabin or recommending months when supplements are kicked to the kerb.
Our experts have given us some top cruise tips, from packing tips and remembering that you might be at sea for a few days, to sea sickness and whether to bring children.
Giant cruise ships have come in for a lot of bad press, and we believe that they really are cruising for a bruising. Read on to find out why we really don’t need a bigger boat.
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Photo credits: [Page banner: Gerry van der Walt]
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