News & Cruise Reviews

Here we share the latest small-ship cruise news and first-person cruise reviews and round-ups from our team of globetrotting writers. If you've got a penchant for small-scale travel aboard boats, yachts, tall ships and mini cruisers, then enjoy the ride through our sea of stories about small-ship cruising.

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About Us


Heidi and Ted HEIDI SARNA

I'm up to 78 countries and 110+ cruises worldwide, and it's the small ship journeys that I love writing about most. And so QuirkyCruise.com was born, an excellent research tool for planning your own unforgettable small ship trip.

THEODORE W. SCULL

I have traveled between all continents by sea and cruised along three dozen rivers. Ships and travel are in my blood, and so is writing. My journeys have translated into many books and many hundreds of articles.

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Our Small Ship Cruise Reviews & Articles

If you can imagine it, we’ve cruised it! With reviews, articles and destination overviews, we’ve got you covered.

Africa River Cruises on the Chobe and Zambezi

Africa River Cruises on the Chobe and Zambezi

Africa River Cruises on the Chobe and Zambezi. By Ted Scull. African geography is not well understood for a whole host of reasons. It is off the map for most people until some news event comes splashing across the screen — a new Ebola outbreak, seemingly endless...

New England Islands Cruising

New England Islands Cruising

New England Islands Cruising By Ted Scull. (Note: updated from an original December 2015 post.) To visit New England's enchanting islands, a small ship cruise is by far the best way to sample them as trying to do the rounds independently involves making individual...

QuirkyCruise News: New Small Ships Delivered & Ordered

QuirkyCruise News: New Small Ships Delivered & Ordered

New Small Ships Delivered and Ordered By Anne Kalosh. Recent deliveries and new build orders — Greg Mortimer for Aurora Expeditions, Emerald Harmony for Emerald Waterways and Aranui 6 for Aranui Cruises — illustrate the diversified travel options for small-ship...

Reader Review: GLEN TARSAN in Scotland (Majestic Line)

Reader Review: GLEN TARSAN in Scotland (Majestic Line)

Glen Tarsan in Scotland. REVIEWER Janine O'Loughlin from Australia. CRUISE LINE Majestic Line. SHIP Glen Tarsan. DESTINATION Oban to Inverness on the Caledonian Canal. # OF NIGHTS 6. DEPARTURE DATE & PORTS April 2018, from Oban, Scotland. OVERALL RATING 5 out of 5...

Reader Review: WILDERNESS DISCOVERER in Alaska (UnCruise)

Reader Review: WILDERNESS DISCOVERER in Alaska (UnCruise)

Wilderness Discoverer in Alaska. REVIEWER H Schneider from the USA. CRUISE LINE UnCruise. SHIP Wilderness Discoverer. DESTINATION Alaska Inside Passage. # OF NIGHTS 7. DEPARTURE DATE & PORTS Aug 2019, from Sitka, Alaska. OVERALL RATING 5 out of 5 stars...

French Barge Cruising: My French Love Affair (Part 1) 

French Barge Cruising: My French Love Affair (Part 1) 

French Barge Cruising By Elysa Leonard. The Canal, The Boat, The Weather, The Locks, The Food & The Wine To be completely honest, I had mixed feelings about this quirky cruise as we planned it. It was not my normal kind of holiday. I am a scuba girl and love my...

Best 5 Small Ship Cruise Regions for Families

Best 5 Small Ship Cruise Regions for Families

5 Best Small Ship Cruise Regions for Families By Heidi Sarna. Small ships don't have playrooms, video arcades and waterslides like the mega ships do. In some cases there aren't even TVs in the cabins and an Internet connection may be spotty or non-existent. Small...

Sporty New Zealand Cruise with Ponant & Backroads

Sporty New Zealand Cruise with Ponant & Backroads

New Zealand Cruise Adventure By John Roberts. I arrive at the meeting point for the start of our New Zealand cruise and multi-sport adventure a bit bedraggled after about 22 straight hours of travel from New Jersey to Auckland, New Zealand. (Note to self: Next time,...

10 Great Places Only Small Ship Cruises Go (Sorry Biggies!)

10 Great Places Only Small Ship Cruises Go (Sorry Biggies!)

10 Great Places Only Small Ship Cruises Go by Ted Scull & Heidi Sarna. If you love traveling by water, here are 10 neat places around the world only accessible by our wee quirky fleet of ships, from North America to South America and Europe out to the Far East....

Reader Review: LEGACY in Alaska (UnCruise)

Reader Review: LEGACY in Alaska (UnCruise)

Legacy in Alaska. REVIEWER Lawrence from Canada. CRUISE LINE UnCruise. SHIP SS Legacy. DESTINATION Alaska Inside Passage from Juneau, Alaska. # OF NIGHTS 7. DEPARTURE DATE & PORTS May 2019, from Juneau. OVERALL RATING 5 out of 5 stars (5=excellent, 4=very good,...

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