Ancient Reflections Cruise

Day 1 - Dubai

Arrive: Fri 26 April 2024 / Depart: Fri 26 April 2024 at 18:00

Dubai can already be mistaken for a movie set featuring a futuristic metropolis, and there are big plans still in the works. In the middle of the desert where almost nothing existed 20 years ago, there are so many building projects that foreign construction crews vastly outnumber citizens. Everything is the biggest, tallest, and the first of its kind, including manmade islands shaped like palm trees and the world’s first underwater hotel. It’s a striking collection of styles, including modern interpretations of Islamic architecture. If the planet’s largest shopping mall doesn’t appeal, traditional souks do still exist, including a gold souk housing over 200 retail shops.

Day 2 - At Sea

Day 3 - At Sea

Day 4 - At Sea

Day 5 - At Sea

Day 6 - At Sea

Day 7 - Jeddah

Arrive: Thu 02 May 2024 at 08:00 / Depart: Thu 02 May 2024 at 23:00

Day 8 - At Sea

Day 9 - Aqaba

Arrive: Sat 04 May 2024 at 07:30 / Depart: Sat 04 May 2024 at 18:00

The warm, tranquil waters of the Red Sea are perfect for the growth of corals, and the masses of brilliantly colored fish that live amongst them, making Aqaba a prime attraction for snorkelers and divers. Inland is a vast desert of stark beauty that entranced Lawrence of Arabia when he headquartered in its empty canyons during WWI.

Day 10 - Sharm El Sheikh

Arrive: Sun 05 May 2024 at 06:00 / Depart: Sun 05 May 2024 at 18:30

Sharm el-Sheikh is an Egyptian resort town between the desert of the Sinai Peninsula and the Red Sea. It's known for its sheltered sandy beaches, clear waters and coral reefs. Naama Bay, with a palm tree-lined promenade, is filled with bars and restaurants. Ras Muhammad National Park is a major diving destination, with marine life around the Shark and Yolanda reefs and the Thistlegorm wreck.

Day 11 - Safaga

Arrive: Mon 06 May 2024 at 07:00

While Safaga has its share of charms, including renowned healing properties of the mineral rich waters of the Red Sea, nearby Luxor is where the main attractions lie. Known as “the world’s greatest open air museum”, the monuments, temples, and tombs found in Luxor are amongst the most impressive in the world.

Day 12 - Safaga

Depart: Tue 07 May 2024 at 17:00

While Safaga has its share of charms, including renowned healing properties of the mineral rich waters of the Red Sea, nearby Luxor is where the main attractions lie. Known as “the world’s greatest open air museum”, the monuments, temples, and tombs found in Luxor are amongst the most impressive in the world.

Day 13 - Sokhna

Arrive: Wed 08 May 2024 at 07:00 / Depart: Wed 08 May 2024 at 20:00

Day 13 - Suez Canal (Passage)

Day 14 - Suez Canal (Passage)

Day 15 - At Sea

Day 16 - Alanya, Turkey

Arrive: Sat 11 May 2024 at 08:00 / Depart: Sat 11 May 2024

With its strategic position on a small peninsula, Alanya was once a stronghold for a multitude of empires over the centuries. You’ll experience this at the 13th century Alanya Castle, with walls that overlook the city and split the town’s sandy beach into two—Cleopatra Beach on one side and the Eastern Beach on the other.

Day 17 - Antalya

Arrive: Sun 12 May 2024 at 08:00 / Depart: Sun 12 May 2024 at 20:00

This beautiful, ancient resort city settled in the 2nd century B.C. is home to many Byzantine churches and inspirational mosques. Take a step back in time into 130 A.D. and explore Hadrian's Gate and the symbol of the city, “Yivla Minare”.

Day 18 - Rhodes

Arrive: Mon 13 May 2024 at 08:00 / Depart: Mon 13 May 2024 at 21:00

Rhodes, the friendliest city in the Mediterranean, welcomes you with seemingly eternal sunshine thanks to more sunny days than any other place in Europe. Situated at the island's most northern point, Rhodes' only neighbors on the east and west are gleaming blue seas. This sunny retreat is also home to many historic sites ranging from the ruins of the Temple of Venus to the medieval Street of Knights.

Day 19 - Bodrum

Arrive: Tue 14 May 2024 at 08:00 / Depart: Tue 14 May 2024 at 22:30

As the site of the ancient city of Halikarnassus (and its famous Mausoleum of Halikarnassus, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, destroyed in the Middle Ages), Bodrum’s ties to the past are everywhere. There’s the Bodrum Amphitheater that dates back to 4th century BC and Myndos Gate, where Alexander the Great staged one of his greatest battles during his siege of the city. And there’s even the Castle of St. Peter, one of the best-preserved medieval monuments in the world and home to the outstanding Museum of Underwater Archaeology.

Day 20 - Ephesus

Arrive: Wed 15 May 2024 at 08:00 / Depart: Wed 15 May 2024 at 22:00

Sure, we could chat about the resort town of Kusadasi and its beaches and restaurants, or nearby places like Dilek Peninsula National Park, but let’s talk Turkey: The star attraction in this neck of the woods is Ephesus. Once the second largest city in the Roman Empire, eclipsed only by Rome, here are just a few of the incredible sights just waiting to be gobbled up! (Sorry, we couldn’t resist.) There’s the Library of Celsus, still magnificent almost 2,000 years later; the Odeon, home of our “Ephesus: Back to Ancient Times” AzAmazing Evenings eventSM; and the 24,000-capacity Great Theatre, where St. Paul used to preach. Stretching from this jaw-dropping amphitheatre to the harbor is the marble-made Arcadian Street. Stroll past the marketplaces, colonnades, and fields of wild fennel, and into bath complexes that once offered piped-in hot water and a sauna.

Day 21 - At Sea

Day 22 - Istanbul

Arrive: Fri 17 May 2024 at 06:00 / Depart: Fri 17 May 2024

Istanbul is supremely exotic, warmly welcoming, and quite unique – after all, where else can you tour Europe and Asia on the very same afternoon? Must sees include Haghia Sophia, decorated in 30 million tiny mosaic tiles, the greatest church in Christendom for 1000 years, then a mosque and now a museum; and Topkapi, palace of sultans, complete with harem quarters. And of course shopping in the Grand Bazaar, a medieval version of a mall, for unusual gifts to take home, stopping along the way in a café for a cup of Turkish coffee or mint tea.