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B2b charter river cruise operator brings forward debut with former crystal river ship.

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While the B2B cruise operator awaits the delivery of its first new-build ship to arrive , Transcend Cruises has fast-tracked its actual launch due to “exceptional response” to its concept.

Transcend has contracted one of the former Crystal Cruises’ Rhine Class ships from new owner Riverside Luxury Cruises, branded as Advance by Transcend, ahead of the launch of its purpose-built vessels.

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“The debut of Advance by Transcend allows the company to bring elements of their groundbreaking service, customisation and client-support concept to market immediately and meet the strong demand for a charter-only river cruise product,” the new cruise brand said.

The ship will be named Transcend Advance and operate on the Rhine and Moselle this year, with wider deployments through December 2024 for custom group itineraries.

“We are pleased to advance our customer’s needs by previewing key components of Transcend Cruises with the Advance for the latter half of the 2023 season and all of 2024,” Matthew Shollar, Founder and Chief Visionary Officer of Transcend said recently.

“This opportunity means we are able to utilise a well-regarded, innovative luxury vessel, and operate it with Transcend’s uniquely flexible charter-focused, custom-designed programming and tailored food and beverage programs. Retail river cruise demand is at an all-time high, the charter customer has fewer options, and we are happy to deliver a new solution,” Shollar said.

“Our newbuild process that began during the middle of a pandemic and amidst global economic uncertainty has taken longer than we would like. The ability to host Advance by Transcend on a former Crystal vessel allows us to introduce the Transcend formula and service concept now and meet immediate charterer needs, while we finalise our own purpose-built river ship platform.”

Jen Halboth, CEO of Riverside Luxury Cruises, Americas confirmed it was never the brand’s intention to sail all five of the Crystal river ships it acquired in 2024. Halboth said the partnership with Transcend enables the new operator to “lend out” its hardware, paired with an onboard experience developed and operated by Transcend.

Meanwhile, the entry of the first of Transcend Cruises’ newbuilds has now been pushed back to the 2025 cruise season. Advance by Transcend is accepting charter requests for the second half of 2023, and 2024 seasons.

See transcend.cruises/advance .

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Transcend Cruises Unveils New River Cruise Concept

• April 28, 2022

Transcend Cruises, a new, global company and concept in river cruising, was announced this week in Miami.

The company said it is filling a void in the river cruise market with a new business model uniquely customized for group travel.

Through a purpose-built fleet of wellness-enabling luxury river cruise ships, and an innovative service model designed for multi-day tours, meetings and events, the company custom crafts experiences for each client.

Transcend Cruises will target corporate meeting and incentive planners, tour operators, affinity/alumni groups, private family groups, lifestyle brands, third-party agencies, and other companies marketing trips under their own brand.

Transcend Cruises has partnered with leading cruise and yacht interior design firm, Tillberg Design of Sweden, and Den Breejen Shipyard, to design, engineer and build initial orders of two identical, custom-built 135-meter ships in the coming months.

Transcend Cruises’ operating partner is UNITED RIVERS, a longstanding leader in premium river cruise management.

The first of these sustainably engineered and operated ships sets sail in the spring of 2024, the company said.

“Transcend Cruises was born because the complex needs of charterers are incompatible with the existing river options,” said Matthew Shollar, CEO and co-founder of Transcend Cruises, who brings two decades of luxury travel sales, marketing and cruise charter experience to the company.

“I have long experienced – first-hand and repeatedly – how existing river cruise lines had not been designed to prioritize the needs of groups. Similar experiences were shared with our founding team and by many travel organizers, up to and through the pandemic. Coupled with unprecedented new demand for smaller, experiential group travel programs, the opportunity for Transcend Cruises’ leadership position in the marketplace became very clear.”

Transcend Cruises’ 135-meter ships will have an industry-high guest-to-team member ratio with 30 to 60 percent fewer guests onboard than current retail-focused European river cruise lines, the company said.

Up to 120 guests can be accommodated in oversized staterooms, or up to 60 guests can be accommodated in two- room, two-bath suites.  

There will also be a 2,600-square-foot indoor/outdoor fitness, spa and guest wellness facility – the largest and most comprehensive of any river cruising vessel. Transcend’s food and beverage program will be rooted in European culinary and wine excellence with a chef-driven restaurant and speakeasy bar/lounge experience, with a mixologist and sommelier onboard. Additionally, Transcend ships are built to deliver a responsible travel experience. Sustainability is a core pillar of the company’s culture and strategy, embedded in elements of the ship build, onboard experience, product inclusions and nature- inspired design.

“We are honored to have the opportunity to work alongside the Transcend team to conceptualize and design the first yacht-inspired, purpose-built ship for the group market,” said Michał Jackiewicz, partner and executive director, Tillberg Design of Sweden. “The exclusive design concept will create an unmatched vessel on the rivers of Europe, specialized for meetings and group venues. This highly customizable and adaptable design is rooted in current sustainability practices and wellness offerings.”

Transcend’s vessels will sail the highest-demand European waterways including the Rhine, Danube and Moselle. The company’s operating model allows clients to build custom sailings around their individual needs,

“As the river cruise operations leader, we’re excited to partner with Transcend’s highly experienced team to deliver unmatched luxury service for the group and meetings market,” said Robert Straubhaar, CEO and president, UNITED RIVERS. “We are thrilled to bring our depth and breadth of expertise alongside Transcend’s proprietary brand standards and specifications to create remarkable onboard guest experiences. The Transcend concept, centered on experiential group travel that brings like- minded guests together in private venues is truly a future-forward concept that no doubt will be in high demand.”

Transcend also said that it revolutionizes the pricing model for groups. Transcend is pioneering a new sales approach that provides flat, clearly defined pricing with no blackout dates or retail booking surge pricing risks. Proprietary technology to simplify and support pre-trip planning and to provide a seamless onboard experience will also be a signature offering.

“Transcend recasts proven, popular European river cruises to exclusively serve private groups, meetings and events – our only focus. We are introducing a new category to the industry with wellness-enabled, luxurious, river cruising venues, providing unmatched support to our clients, all while expanding the market to audiences that typically have only considered hotels and resorts,” said Shollar.

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Transcend Cruises to bring a new class to river cruises

Matthew Shollar, co-founder of Transcend Cruises, opens up about the operator’s ambitions

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Transcend Cruises is building a fleet of identical river ships dedicated to chartering B2B clients in Europe. The first will launch in March 2024, but a fleet of eight is planned by 2027. Tillberg Design of Sweden has created a prototype that converts from 120 passengers/60 staterooms to 30 two-bath suites, to make the offering as flexible as possible.

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Markets targeted are Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) – the highest revenue contributor to the tourism industry accounting for $916bn in 2019 and projected to reach $1,439bn in 2025 – as well as alumni gatherings, third-party agencies, and private family groups.

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Transcend corporation, imex co ltd, the workshop inc..

The seed for Transcend Cruises’ concept was planted during Shollar’s earlier career. He has worked in the luxury cruise space and travel business for over 20 years, but in the early 2000s, he was CEO of Chosen Voyage, a company chartering Windstar’s cruise ships for the kosher observant market.

As the word spread, Shollar received requests from private groups for a similar experience and while he could service several, he recalls that around 50 were turned away because he couldn’t find the ships to fulfil the demand. Two decades later he launched Transcend Cruises.

Frances Marcellin: When was Transcend Cruises founded?

Matthew Shollar:  Transcend Cruises has been in the operative planning stages for over four years, and in active development for over two. We had been in “stealth mode” until our dual show announcements at Seatrade in April (concept) and at IMEX in May (ship and product). There are about ten of us working on Transcend, and it’s an exceptional group of very experienced cruise, hospitality, and business leaders from different parts of the industry.

Who are the shipbuilders?

Our ships are being built by family-owned Den Breejen Shipyard in Holland. They are a highly-skilled and very creative group that has really helped us to expand the boundaries of what is possible from a technical perspective, and also by working with us to innovate in the sustainable operations realm.

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The ships are yacht-inspired, how they are different to the standard design of river ship?

While all river ships are, to some extent, similar – they have the same dimensions and many consistent design similarities in existing fleets – we have taken several approaches to a new level of design in our vessels.

Our ships are very contemporary and uncluttered, yet have a strong emphasis on comfort – a purpose-driven design process that has created spaces both residential in feel, yet exceptionally adaptable for our clients’ needs. Biophilic principles and circular-sourced materials are also part of our DNA.

What has Tillberg Design of Sweden brought to the design?

I can’t say enough about Tillberg. When we were introduced to them several years ago, we felt an immediate bond – they had never designed a river vessel before, and we were looking for more than just a pretty design.

I think the challenges posed by designing to the very defined specs that are unique to European river cruising have created a space for us to really test the whiteboard and get away from the conventions that have driven the industry. Peter Snellman, who is leading the design team at Tillberg, doesn’t seem to have the word “no” in his vocabulary and that has led to a truly standout result.

Your company is B2B; what kind of groups are you designing your ships for?

Our client is the group looking for a dedicated venue for their own programmes. We serve multiple vertical markets. Some are traditional users of river cruising, like tour operators and college alumni/cultural affinity programmes; while others are new entrants like family buyouts, sponsored media travel, and wellness programs.

The biggest single market opportunity is the MICE/corporate vertical. Existing ships have been used in the past, but there is a real challenge for groups that need accommodations that is not the standard in the industry today.

There is a strong group programming dynamic that runs through in a common thread, which is what we refer to as “front-led programming” – the speaker-driven or topic-focused nature of these groups’ interests and their basis for participation.

This might include lectures, hybrid corporate meetings, trunk shows, arts demonstrations, or book signings. The needs of these clients are not aligned with the current options in the market, such as river cruises, ocean cruises, and in some cases land-based hotels and resorts.

What are the differences in designing for groups compared with the standard river cruise ship offering?

The fleets of the existing operators are optimised for their core clientele – namely, boomers and couples. The ships are very good and the related programming, like food and beverage services and entertainment, are well regarded.

But the product is inherently mismatched to the needs of the upscale group operators that we are bringing to the market. So much so, that river cruising has generally been not a focus for our audience. There is little space on board to try to execute programming as detailed above, and varying cabin types pose a challenge for groups that need consistent guest experiences.

What did you feel was missing from standard river cruise ships?

As I and my colleagues executed and sought ships for programmes in the past, we encountered the challenges of attempting to execute a group-focused private programme on a ship built for retail sailings with host lines that were doing 90% of their business in the retail markets. That lack of specific focus, hardware and software mismatch, and overall pain point level, was the opportunity for Transcend to create a new dynamic in the physical attributes of our ships and services.

Which cruise trends support your decision to design cruise ships for the MICE market and other groups?

There are a number of trends that track closely to our approach. Post-Covid-19 travel sensibilities dictate smaller groups, with readily accessible healthcare on demand and exclusive use of venues. Wellness- and sustainably-focused travel, with an eye toward avoiding over-touristed and congested, are very much at top of mind. On top, companies are looking to create unique programs and gain customisation and adaptation abilities that don’t exist today.

How can you avoid the over touristed and congested areas?

I kind of equate it to being in the Caribbean. If you come into St. Martin on a Wednesday, there are 15 ships in port and an island where 10,000 people live, and 15,000 tourists have just gotten off the ship. If you come the next day, there’s no one there because it’s off cycle. The same thing has happened on the rivers – inevitably they wind up at the same place at the same time and that’s why you get these multiple docking situations where you have to walk through four other ships to get to shore.

We don’t have an itinerary. We don’t have a deployment schedule. Instead, what we have is an opportunity for clients to book what they need – although we do operate a three-day minimum charter sailing – and we can keep away from the rigid itineraries that everyone else is doing. Many of our clients are looking to do things that can be delivered in other locations.

How does this flexibility support your product offering?

It’s really customised. We can start in the other direction by saying: what do you need to deliver to your clients and where can we travel to, to give them their bucket list experience? We’re really reversing the polarity of the relationship with the client – and therefore we can bring people to some of these wonderful, smaller places. Of course, if a client wants a more traditional product, we’ll deliver that. But we offer them opportunities they wouldn’t have otherwise.

The ships are cleverly designed to convert from 120 passengers/60 staterooms to 30 two-bath suites, why is that?

Flexibility and adaptation are our promise, and those elements flow through every area of our ships – from guest staterooms to public spaces, from charterer support to digital onboard branding, and from custom food and beverages to designing your own itinerary. Everything about Transcend is about this offer of a truly bespoke program.

There is a very extensive wellness zone that stretches over three decks, offering elements not usually found on river vessels, including a true spa, with wet areas, treatment rooms, a river-facing sauna, a ten-station gym and a digital yoga studio. In fact, our ships offer more square feet of wellness space per guest than many luxury ocean vessels.

We have five areas where all guests can gather for programming, with the highlight being the two-deck Forum presentation studio. We have up to five locations for formal dining, and up to ten for pop-up F&B. On the lower level, we have replaced the usual entry-level cabins with The Workshop, a 1,500 square-foot centre that can be customised to the charterer’s needs, which can include activity space for kids.

We are also building a number of charterer support elements, including several double occupancy cabins for support staff, a fully-equipped office, and dedicated storage.

What sustainability practices have you built into your business?

We have lower emission engines, replaced diesel generators with battery packs in several areas, and have re-engineered liquid storage to reduce fuel burn and also cut our draft by about 10cm. We have prioritised circular building materials where possible, and have a managed hotel operations strategy to mitigate issues everywhere from food waste to supplier support.

Have you already had charter requests?

We are very fortunate to have significant presales at this point. The response from our charter partners has been phenomenal. We are coming from having been in their shoes and are absolutely committed to erasing their pain points in chartering.

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• Regent Seven Seas Cruises

Best of Moscow by high speed train

By shuguley , February 15, 2014 in Regent Seven Seas Cruises

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Sure would appreciate someone who has taken "Best of Moscow by high speed train" from St. Petersburg could please share their impressions of this shore excursion. From the description this sounds like a very long day.

Wondering how the 4 hour train trip was in terms of accommodations, etc. Also what time did you leave the ship and what time at night did you return? Were both legs of the trip on the high speed rail (I read that slower trains also travel the same tracks)?

My wife and I are considering this excursion. We thought that if we are making all the effort to go to Russia then how could we pass up going to Moscow, walking in Red Square, seeing St. Basil, etc.

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If you are considering this on the 2015 June Baltic cruise on Voyager; my suggestion is don't. There is so much to do in St. Petersburg and although a train is one of my favorite ways to travel the time would be far better spent in St. P.

Thanks for the advice. Yes, this would be on the Voyager during the 2015 season but not yet sure exactly which cruise.

We did the Moscow excursion "on a different luxury line", but from your brief description it sounds very much like the same trip, so I will operate on that assumption. It is a VERY long day! We left the ship at 5:30 AM and returned at 12:30 AM. The highspeed train trip is comfortable, and while they call it "Business Class" it does not compare well to the equivalent class on say Rail Europe. When we did it in 2011, we did have highspeed both ways, and the trip back seemed much longer as the adrenaline and excitement had worn off!:D

Moscow itself is not that terribly different from any other big city in the world, but this Cold War kid never thought he would ever stand in Red Square, never mind walk the grounds of The Kremlin, or tour The Kremlin Palace, or see (but not visit) Lenin's Tomb, or visit The Armoury. But he did, and he loved every minute of it! Yes, it is a long day, and you barely scratch a scratch on the surface, but it is worth it. There is a tremendous amount to see in St. Petersburg, but every Baltic cruise goes to St. Petersburg, so you can go back if you choose to. Not every cruiseline offers you the chance to see Moscow.

I have not personally done this tour, but our last time in St Petersburg, the private guide that we hired for a day was leading the regent tour to Moscow on the high speed train the next day. He said it was way better than the previous alternative, which was flying to Moscow and back. He said that you actually got to Moscow faster because you didn't have to deal with airline checkin etc. it did seem like a very long day to me, and there is so much to see and do in st. Petersburg that I didn't consider doing it.

countflorida

We toured to Moscow from St. Petersburg via the hi-speed SAPSAN train last September, from a Baltic cruise on the Oceania Marina. You need to have a two-night, three day port call in St. Petersburg to take this tour because the tour typically leaves the ship around 5:00 - 5:30 AM and doesn't return until after midnight the next day. We didn't take the ship's tour; we made private arrangements with TravelAllRussia for three days of touring, the first and third days in St. Petersburg and the second day the tour to Moscow by train. Our cost for the private tour for three days was about the same as what the ship charged for the excursion to Moscow alone. There are a number of private tour agencies that operate in St. Petersburg and offer the Moscow train tours; we would strongly recommend them over the ship's tours.

All three days had private guides with car and driver. The second day, the driver picked us up at the ship and took us to the train, but we were alone on the train, and met in Moscow by the guide on the station platform. After our tour and dinner, we were brought back to the train and after the return train trip met by the driver and taken back to the ship. Because you are alone on the train you must have your own Russian visas.

If this is your first visit to St. Petersburg, I would agree there is much more to see there. We found Moscow somewhat a disappointment, particularly Red Square. The Kremlin and the cathedral in Red Square were also worth seeing. But the best thing we saw was the Moscow subway! I worked for the Washington Metro system back in the 1980s as it grew from 40 to 80 miles and although I was in the computer area, I learned a lot about the challenges of running a subway system. We used the Moscow system to get across the city from where we had dinner to the train station, and I was amazed at the cleanliness', speed of operation, the short headways maintained, and the courtesy of everyone involved. A very impressive experience!

We had been to St. Petersburg before, and so had the time to take a day and go to Moscow. Also, I really like trains, and the SAPSAN is a German train set running on Russian rails. Seats are like first class domestic air, spacious but not too plush or comfortable, but with enough room. Not too much recline, and almost 8 hours on the train in two shots is a lot for an old man. They come through and sell drinks, candy, etc. but the sellers don't speak English and no one around us helped, so we had just poor coffee once coming, and brought stuff with us for the trip back. Not too much to see from the train either, particularly on the return when it is night the whole way.

If you decide to go, take a private tour and avoid the overly expensive ship's tour. I'm glad we did it, but wouldn't bother to repeat the tour; we've seen Moscow.

Thanks so much to all of you for the thorough and thought insight. Yhe information you have provided is most helpful.

countflorida: Your detailed post is very helpful. We are not quite ready for a Baltic cruise but should do so within a year. Time enough to do our pre travel research, bookings and visa gathering.:) Thank you!

Emperor Norton

Sure would appreciate someone who has taken "Best of Moscow by high speed train" from St. Petersburg could please share their impressions of this shore excursion. From the description this sounds like a very long day.   Wondering how the 4 hour train trip was in terms of accommodations, etc. Also what time did you leave the ship and what time at night did you return? Were both legs of the trip on the high speed rail (I read that slower trains also travel the same tracks)?   My wife and I are considering this excursion. We thought that if we are making all the effort to go to Russia then how could we pass up going to Moscow, walking in Red Square, seeing St. Basil, etc.

I did this on Seabourn. IMO DONT. Take Aeroflop (er Aeroflot). The train has non folding seats where you are literally knee to knee with your fellow passenger (facing each other). Further they don't believe in air conditioning. It's also the worlds slowed bullet train. I think I would have found more enjoyment wandering around the St. Petersburg and Moscow airports.

Countflorida,

This is a little off topic,, however we had planned a river cruise in Russia but decided we would rather stay on land and have booked about two weeks with Travel-All-Russia using the private guide and driver. I'm curious as to how you found them as a tour company.

The guides they provided were fine. We had a different guide each of the days in St. Petersburg, but both were flexible, pleasant, knowledgeable and spoke English very well, as did the guide in Moscow, incidentally. She was a bit aloof, distant, not too friendly, but otherwise fine. In fact, she was the one who suggested taking the Metro, which unexpectedly became one of the highlights of the Moscow excursion. If I have a complaint with AllTravelRussia, it is with their plan and its execution (more later).

I had requested emphasis on World War II (in Russia, the Great Patriotic War) sites and info. In scheduling us, they weren't careful about dates and a couple of the sites we wanted to see were scheduled on the third day, after we'd been to Moscow. But both sites were closed that day of the week, and that info was readily available, right on web sites describing them. Also, the included meals (lunches in St. Pete, dinner in Moscow) were not what we asked for: light meals with some choices, so we could avoid things we didn't like and choose things we did like. My request was ignored; we were given full Russian meals with a fixed menu, no choice. On the first day, a fish dish was the entre, but I am allergic to fish. Fortunately, I had the e-mail I'd sent with me and showed it to the guide, and she was able to change my entre to chicken, which was very good actually. But we didn't want a 3-4 course lunches or dinner (in Moscow). We had the guide drop the lunch the third day, although we never got any credit or refund. But, particularly in contrast to the ship's tours, the prices were so reasonable we didn't worry too much about it.

The people who were on the ship's tour to Moscow saw us boarding the same train for which they were forced to queue up and wait on the way back, and asked us what we had done. I was candid and open so they were not happy when I explained what we had arranged and particularly what it had cost. Also, when we returned to the ship, we found they had laid on a late supper for those who had gone to Moscow, so up we went and had something. Well, it turns out the late supper was supposed to be just for those on the ship's tour, but we and others on 'independent' tours, there were a dozen or more of us, crashed the party, actually got there first, and they didn't realize it until the larger group arrived and there weren't enough tables/places set. By that time, the 'independents' had all gotten served and were eating; what could they do?

A couple from the larger group sat down with us and asked us about our tour, and they were the ones I told about our arrangement and its cost. They turned to others who’d been with them and announced the details, loudly enough so the whole room heard, which started a lot of bitching and complaining. I gathered they weren't very happy with the ship's tour to begin with, and this was the straw that broke the camel's back. We finished up and beat it out of there, but overheard later that one of the excursion staff came to check on something and ran into a real mess. I caught a cold on the trip, which forced me to bed the second day following in Tallinn, so by the time we reappeared we heard about the contretemps' but apparently no one recalled who started it, thankfully.

Because of what happened to us, I would probably not use AllTravelRussia if I were to go again, or if I did, I would be sure to get confirmation of every detail of the tour. They do have good reviews generally, and we were certainly helped by their visa department and liked the guides and drivers. Their weakness, I say now with full 20:20 hindsight, is that once the sales person who plans the tour, sells it to you and collects your money, he (or she) transfers the plan to their Russia office for implementation; there is no follow-up to make sure it gets done right. And that is where our problems arose; we paid for a custom tour but got a standard package with a few destinations switched, and no one checked them out, even to see when they were open the day we were scheduled to go. If you check every detail that’s important to you, it should be OK, but that’s a hell of a way to have to do business, in my opinion.

Thank you for the 20/20 hindsight observation on your Russian tour operator, and better priced than the ship's excursion cost.

Thanks very much for the feedback.

We had the same experience as you so far as price. We originally booked a Viking Cruise but, hearing some things about the river cruises that made us unhappy, looked into other options. T-A-R cost the same or less than a cruise and had us in hotels for 11 days. We opted for the private tour. They have three tour levels, based on hotels. We originally opted for the four star as it did not cost much more than the three star hotels. Finally we decided to throw it all in and upgraded to five star. In Moscow we will be at the newly opened Kempinsky which is two blocks from Red Square. In St. Petersburg it is the Grand Hotel Europe, one of the most vaunted luxury hotels in Russia. Location is important for us as the tours use up only part of the day so being in the center of everything for our independent touring is important. As with many other cities, the less you pay, the farther out of the center of town you are.

We have been working with our salesman in D.C. and he seems to get back to us with the changes we want. He recently returned from Russia so is up on everything. When I asked they said they paid the full TA commission if I wanted so I got my usual TA on board so he is watching our back and giving us that extra level of comfort. He also set up our air, which I know pays him little or nothing, and got us business class for much less than T-A-R wanted for economy, though it took working for a while with a consolidator. He's happy to get his 10 percent on this trip without having booked it. He also took care of the trip insurance. We've been doing a lot of research on the CC sister site Trip Advisor and will write a report there. We will, I guess, become a source of info for CC members after having spent 5 days in Moscow and 6 in SP.

• 4 months later...

scubacruiserx2

Anybody considering a day trip to Moscow from St. Petersburg on the Sapsan may want to look at our travelogue filled with pictures.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1927687

Very informative. Thanks dor sharing. Jeff

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• Moscow St. Petersburg Cruise

Moscow Cruise Route

Frequently asked questions from our travelers, what is the best time of the year to go on a moscow - st. petersburg river cruise.

The cruises are operated from the month of May until the beginning of fall. The best weather conditions during this period are usually from June through late July, but if you are looking for a trip at a more relaxed pace with less tourists in the cities on the route, we highly recommend to take a look at the months of May and September.  For more info, please see our useful tips .

Which cities and towns will I visit on a Moscow - St. Petersburg cruise?

The cruise itinerary covers all the main and the most important locations on the route. During the cruise you will have a chance to get acquainted not only with Moscow and St. Petersburg, but also with smaller towns and villages like Goritsy, Kizhi, Yaroslavl, Mandrogui. The number of cities and towns to be visited and the exact itinerary vary depending on the duration of the cruise.

Is it better to start the cruise in Moscow or in St. Petersburg?

The starting point of the cruise is totally up to you. You won’t miss any important sights whether you start the cruise in Moscow or in St. Petersburg. We always recommend checking the flight schedules from your city first in order to decide whether it is more convenient for you to fly into Moscow or St Petersburg.

A Russian Land Tour or a River cruise - which is better?

This decision completely depends on your preferred way of travelling. During the Russian river cruise you will not only visit the two largest cities of Russia, but also small towns and villages along the route and you will have a chance to participate in master classes, learn a little Russian language and dive into local Russian culture and hospitality. For those who prefer custom-made programs and more free time in the cities of their choice we recommend a land tour, both are excellent options. To find out more about the differences click here .

Do I need a visa for a Russian River Cruise?

If your citizenship is not on the list of countries with visa-free access to Russia, you will need a valid Russian visa. Please make sure to start the process in a timely manner, so as to avoid any last-minute pressure. More details on Russian Visas can be found here .

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Watch CBS News

Alaska set to limit daily number of cruise ship passengers who can visit Juneau

By Megan Cerullo

Edited By Anne Marie Lee

Updated on: June 6, 2024 / 4:59 AM EDT / CBS News

Cruise aficionados looking to experience Alaska's capital, Juneau, may have to vie for permission to disembark and step foot on land, under a new agreement between the city and major cruise lines that sail there. 

The agreement between Juneau and Cruise Lines International Association in Alaska (CLIA), finalized last week, seeks to limit the number of daily cruise passengers who can arrive in Juneau to 16,000 on Sundays through Fridays, and to 12,000 on Saturdays, effective in 2026. 

The measure intends to limit the congestion and wear and tear tourists can cause a city. Visitors to Juneau skyrocketed to a record 1.6 million last year, after the pandemic depressed numbers for two years. Other popular cities have taken similar measures to limit tourists and their effect on daily life for residents. For example, Venice, Italy, in April became the first city in the world to charge day-trippers a fee just to enter  on peak days.

Alaska's new agreement is designed to cap levels of visitors to roughly where they are now.

"The cruise industry is vital to our local economy, and we need to improve our infrastructure and grow our tour capacity to create a great guest experience and reduce impacts on residents," Juneau Visitor Industry director Alexandra Pierce said in a statement Tuesday. "With this agreement, we are committing to a cap to manage our busiest days and to meet annually to ensure that our visitor numbers remain sustainable."

CLIA, the cruise lines association, applauded the measure, calling the agreement "a well-balanced and thoughtful approach to keeping Juneau a great place to live and visit."

"Ongoing, direct dialogue with local communities is the best way to jointly self-regulate to preserve great resident and visitor experiences while providing a predictable market for the many local businesses that rely on the cruise industry," CLIA said in part in a statement to CBS MoneyWatch.

In Alaska, residents have complained that record numbers of visitors contribute to bad traffic and increase noise pollution when they visit glaciers by helicopter. On the other hand, many local businesses rely on the cruise industry and the steady flow of visitors it provides, the city of Juneau acknowledged in a statement . 

Cruise seasons have also been extended from early April to late October, offering year-round residents little reprieve from tourists' presence.

Under a separate agreement, only five large ships are permitted a day during the current cruise season. 

Pierce said other projects in the works will also likely diminish the impact tourists have on the city. They include installing a gondola at the city's ski area, updating its downtown sea walk and expanding capacity for visitors at the Mendenhall Glacier Recreation Area. 

City leaders are "trying to balance the needs of our residents, the needs of our economy, the needs of future opportunities for people to stay in our community," she said.

The agreement has its skeptics, though. Cruise industry critic Karla Hart says the new measure isn't sufficient to curb unsustainable levels of tourism. "It feels like we're just getting led along again, and expansion will continue and more time will pass," she said, according to the Associated Press. 

Hart is behind a local ballot proposal that would ban ships of at least 250 passengers from stopping in Juneau on Saturdays or on July 4. 

—The Associated Press contributed to this report

Megan Cerullo is a New York-based reporter for CBS MoneyWatch covering small business, workplace, health care, consumer spending and personal finance topics. She regularly appears on CBS News 24/7 to discuss her reporting.

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Investors Heavily Search Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NCLH): Here is What You Need to Know

Norwegian Cruise Line ( NCLH Quick Quote NCLH - Free Report ) has been one of the most searched-for stocks on Zacks.com lately. So, you might want to look at some of the facts that could shape the stock's performance in the near term.

Over the past month, shares of this cruise operator have returned +14.6%, compared to the Zacks S&P 500 composite's +3.4% change. During this period, the Zacks Leisure and Recreation Services industry, which Norwegian Cruise Line falls in, has gained 4.1%. The key question now is: What could be the stock's future direction?

Although media reports or rumors about a significant change in a company's business prospects usually cause its stock to trend and lead to an immediate price change, there are always certain fundamental factors that ultimately drive the buy-and-hold decision.

Earnings Estimate Revisions

Here at Zacks, we prioritize appraising the change in the projection of a company's future earnings over anything else. That's because we believe the present value of its future stream of earnings is what determines the fair value for its stock.

We essentially look at how sell-side analysts covering the stock are revising their earnings estimates to reflect the impact of the latest business trends. And if earnings estimates go up for a company, the fair value for its stock goes up. A higher fair value than the current market price drives investors' interest in buying the stock, leading to its price moving higher. This is why empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements.

Norwegian Cruise Line is expected to post earnings of $0.34 per share for the current quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +13.3%. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate has changed +8.2%.

The consensus earnings estimate of $1.42 for the current fiscal year indicates a year-over-year change of +102.9%. This estimate has changed +10.7% over the last 30 days.

For the next fiscal year, the consensus earnings estimate of $1.79 indicates a change of +26.4% from what Norwegian Cruise Line is expected to report a year ago. Over the past month, the estimate has changed +6.6%.

With an impressive externally audited track record , our proprietary stock rating tool -- the Zacks Rank -- is a more conclusive indicator of a stock's near-term price performance, as it effectively harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions. The size of the recent change in the consensus estimate, along with three other factors related to earnings estimates , has resulted in a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) for Norwegian Cruise Line.

The chart below shows the evolution of the company's forward 12-month consensus EPS estimate:

12 Month EPS

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RAND Corporation Study Calls for Regime Change in Moscow

ANGLO AMERICA , 21 Feb 2022

Bruce Gagnon | Organizing Notes - TRANSCEND Media Service

13 Feb 2022 – Imagine how Moscow felt when they first read this RAND Corporation study . When we look at current events can we notice the direct connection to the points from this study listed below? Whether it is US-NATO military expansion right up to Russian borders or efforts by Washington to kill the Nordstream 2 natural gas pipeline from Russia to Germany – it is clear that there is a method behind US-NATO madness. If you were sitting in Russia’s shoes how would you react to these proposals below – many of which have been or are now being implemented?

• Despite these vulnerabilities and anxieties, Russia remains a powerful country that still manages to be a U.S. peer competitor in a few key domains. Recognizing that some level of competition with Russia is inevitable, RAND researchers conducted a qualitative assessment of “cost-imposing options” that could unbalance and overextend Russia. Such cost-imposing options could place new burdens on Russia, ideally heavier burdens than would be imposed on the United States for pursuing those options.
• Increasing Europe’s ability to import gas from suppliers other than Russia could economically extend Russia and buffer Europe against Russian energy coercion. Europe is slowly moving in this direction by building regasification plants for liquefied natural gas (LNG).
• Encouraging the emigration from Russia of skilled labor and well-educated youth has few costs or risks and could help the United States and other receiving countries and hurt Russia, but any effects—both positive for receiving countries and negative for Russia—would be difficult to notice except over a very long period. This option also has a low likelihood of extending Russia.
• Providing lethal aid to Ukraine would exploit Russia’s greatest point of external vulnerability. But any increase in U.S. military arms and advice to Ukraine would need to be carefully calibrated to increase the costs to Russia of sustaining its existing commitment without provoking a much wider conflict in which Russia, by reason of proximity, would have significant advantages.
• Undermining Russia’s image abroad would focus on diminishing Russian standing and influence, thus undercutting regime claims of restoring Russia to its former glory.
• Reposturing bombers within easy striking range of key Russian strategic targets has a high likelihood of success and would certainly get Moscow’s attention and raise Russian anxieties; the costs and risks of this option are low as long as the bombers are based out of range of most of Russia’s theater ballistic and ground-based cruise missiles.

• Deploying additional tactical nuclear weapons to locations in Europe and Asia could heighten Russia’s anxiety enough to significantly increase investments in its air defenses.
• There are also ways to get Russia to extend itself in strategic competition. In terms of benefits, such developments would exploit Moscow’s demonstrated fear of U.S. airpower capabilities and doctrines. Developing new low-observable, long-range bombers, or simply adding significantly more of types that are already available or programmed (B-2s and B-21s) would be worrisome for Moscow, as would developing autonomous or remotely piloted strike aircraft and producing them in high numbers.
• Increasing U.S. and allied naval force posture and presence in Russia’s operating areas could force Russia to increase its naval investments, diverting investments from potentially more dangerous areas.

• Increasing naval R&D efforts would focus on developing new weapons that allow U.S. submarines to threaten a broader set of targets or enhance their ability to threaten Russian nuclear ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs), which could impose anti-submarine warfare costs on Russia.
• Checking the Black Sea buildup would involve deploying strengthened North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) anti-access and area denial over the Black Sea—perhaps in the form of long-range, land-based anti-ship missiles—to drive up the cost of defending Russian bases in Crimea and lower the benefit to Russia of having seized this area.
• A general increase in NATO ground force capabilities in Europe—including closing European NATO member readiness gaps and increasing the number of U.S. forces stationed in traditional locations in Western Europe—would have limited risks.
• Incremental investments in new technologies to counter Russian air defenses and increase U.S. long-range fires could significantly improve defense and deterrence while compelling increased Russian investment in countermeasures.

Obama’s ambassador to Ukraine made a trip to US-NATO training base in western Ukraine (where the Nazis predominate). US Special Forces are rotated into the base from Ft. Carson, Colorado to train the Kiev regime’s Army. Many of the Nazis have been brought into this ‘new military unit’. More than 27 million people in the former Soviet Union died during Hitler’s WW II invasion. Imagine how Russians today feel when they see the US arming, training and directing Nazi forces to attack the Russian-ethnic citizens living in the Donbass region of Ukraine, right next to the Russian border.

• Even if the Army were not directly involved in extending Russia per se, it would play a key role in mitigating the possible blowback. All the options to extend Russia incur some risk. As a result, enhancing U.S. deterrence posture in Europe and increasing U.S. military capabilities (e.g., an enhanced Javelin or active protection systems for Army vehicles) might need to go hand in hand with any move to extend Russia, as a way of hedging against the chance of tensions with Russia escalating into conflict.
• The most-promising options to “extend Russia” are those that directly address its vulnerabilities, anxieties, and strengths, exploiting areas of weakness while undermining Russia’s current advantages. In that regard, Russia’s greatest vulnerability, in any competition with the United States, is its economy, which is comparatively small and highly dependent on energy exports.
• Most of the options discussed, including those listed here, are in some sense escalatory, and most would likely prompt some Russian counterescalation. Thus, besides the specific risks associated with each option, there is additional risk attached to a generally intensified competition with a nuclear-armed adversary to consider. This means that every option must be deliberately planned and carefully calibrated to achieve the desired effect. Finally, although Russia will bear the cost of this increased competition less easily than the United States will, both sides will have to divert national resources from other purposes.

_________________________________________

Go to Original – space4peace.blogspot.com

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French citizen arrested in Moscow on charges of collecting military data

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MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s top state criminal investigation agency on Thursday announced the arrest of a French citizen accused of collecting information on military issues, a move that comes as relations between Russia and France have grown increasingly tense over the fighting in Ukraine.

The arrest was announced just as France hosted world leaders on the 80th anniversary of D-Day on Thursday. Russia wasn’t invited.

Russia’s Investigative Committee said the suspect, whom it didn’t identify, is accused of failing to register with authorities as a foreign agent while collecting “information about military and military-technical activities of the Russian Federation.” It added that the information could be used to the detriment of the country’s security.

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Russia’s state news agency Tass identified the arrested French citizen as Laurent Vinatier, an employee of the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD), a Geneva-based nongovernment organization.

HD confirmed Vinatier’s detention in a statement released to The Associated Press.

“We are aware that Laurent Vinatier, an adviser at the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD), has been detained in Russia,” it said. “We are working to get more details of the circumstances and to secure Laurent’s release.”

French President Emmanuel Macron told French television Thursday night that the French citizen was “in no way…working for France” and that he “works for a Swiss NGO founded by former UN chief Kofi Annan and which carries out diplomacy of working discussions.″

He is receiving consular protection, Macron said.

Vinatier’s LinkedIn page, which describes him as a “conversationalist,” says he has worked for the center for over a decade and indicates that he has had a focus mostly on former Soviet republics, Turkey and the Middle East over the years.

Russia’s Investigative Committee posted a video showing officers detaining the suspect at a cafe and driving him to the committee’s Moscow offices for interrogation. The charges carry a penalty of up to five years in prison.

The arrest comes during a strain in Russian-French ties that followed French President Emmanuel Macron’s statements about the possibility of deploying the country’s troops in Ukraine.

Moscow has warned that French soldiers would be legitimate targets for Russia if they are sent to Ukraine.

The charges against the French citizen are based on a recently approved law that requires anyone who collects information on military issues to register with authorities as a foreign agent.

Human rights activists have criticized the law and other newly endorsed legislation as part of a multi-pronged Kremlin crackdown on independent media and political activists intended to muzzle criticism of its actions in Ukraine.

Arrests on charges of spying and collecting sensitive data have become increasingly frequent in Russia since it sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022.

Recent high-profile arrests include Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who was arrested on espionage charges in March 2023, and U.S.-Russian journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, who was taken into custody in October 2023 for failing to register as a “foreign agent.”

Associated Press writer Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report.

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