Brought to you by Resorts World Cruises
Resorts World Cruises is set to take travellers across Asia on two of its popular ships, Resorts World One and Genting Dream. Its new itineraries promise a variety of destinations, complete with delicious cuisine, and exciting activities and programmes, aboard the ships.
From Taiwan to Japan onboard Resorts World One
Get ready to sail away to the Southern Japan islands of Kyushu and Okinawa on the Resorts World One this summer. The stylish ship returns once again to homeport in Keelung and Kaohsiung, Taiwan, from July 12 to August 27.
Travellers have 23 itineraries to choose from including — two-, three-, four-, and five-night cruises to Kumamoto, Kagoshima, Sasebo and Nagasaki, in Kyushu, Japan, and to Naha, Miyakojima and Ishigaki in Okinawa.
The decision to homeport in two Taiwanese cities was largely due to the success of its previous deployment in Kaohsiung last year, which saw nearly 200,000 tourists coming from places such as Hong Kong, Macau, Southeast Asia.
“With these new refreshing itineraries and convenient departure times from two key homeports, we are committed to delivering best-in-class services and entertainment with a variety of quality cuisines and offerings,” said Michael Goh, president, Resorts World Cruises.
The 268m-long vessel is designed in complementary Eastern and Western styles, with Italian designed spaces such as the Roman-themed Parthenon pool and the Dream Dining Room.
Rooms range from the luxurious Palace Suites (21m2) to the Palace Penthouse (50m²) that come with butler service, as well as regular staterooms (12m² to 18m²),
Passengers can look forward to complimentary access to a Chinese restaurant serving authentic Chinese food. There are also other specialty restaurants that serve Japanese, Southeast Asian, and Western fare to satisfy all palates.
The upcoming season will see regular Friday departures for two-night cruises from Keelung to Okinawa, and five-night cruises to Kyushu and Okinawa.
Itineraries departing from Keelung include:
- Two-night Miyakojima Cruise (July 12, August 9, September 6, 11, 15)
- Two-night Ishigaki Cruise (July 19, August 2, September 4, 13, 20)
- Two-night Naha Cruise (July 26, August 16)
- Three-night Ishigaki & Naha Cruise (September 1, 8, 17)
- Five-night Kumamoto-Kagoshima-Naha Cruise (July 14, August 11)
- Five-night Kagoshima-Kumamoto-Naha Cruise (July 21)
- Five-night Sasebo-Kagoshima-Naha Cruise (July 28)
- Five-night Kumamoto-Nagasaki-Naha Cruise (August 4)
The five-night itineraries are the only ones presently in the market to visit three destinations in five nights.
From Kaohsiung, itineraries include the four-night Naha-Ishigaki Cruise (August 19); four-night Naha-Miyakojima Cruise (August 23), and two-night Ishigaki Cruise (August 27).
More convenient timings with Genting Dream
The largest of the fleet, the Genting Dream, has launched new itineraries from Singapore that run all the way till April 13, 2025.
The latest season sees more convenient timings for embarkation in Singapore three times a week, perfect for weekend trips and short getaways. Travellers have various options including the two-night Weekend Getaway Cruises departing every Friday; two-night Kuala Lumpur Cruises every Sunday, and the three-night Phuket Cruises or Penang-Kuala Lumpur Cruises every alternate Tuesday.
“With strong demand for the Genting Dream in the region and from the Fly-Cruise segment, we are pleased to announce our latest season of itineraries that will have convenient boarding timing and destination port time, which will elevate our guests’ experience in Phuket, Kuala Lumpur and Penang,” said Goh.
Passengers on the Genting Dream will be truly entertained on board the 18 deck ship with 35 restaurants and bars, live performances, movie screenings, an adventure water park with six water slides, the Zouk Beach Club, as well as various shops, gym and spas.
Can’t wait to get on board? Visit Resorts World Cruises or email reservations.en@rwcruises.com to book your next trip.
Travellers from Australia and New Zealand will now be able to enter China for business, tourism, and transit without a visa for up to 15 days, thanks to the country implementing a unilateral visa-free policy.
Australia and China also jointly declared to provide multiple-entry visas mutually with a validity period of three to five years.
According to the National Immigration Administration of China (NIA), the number of Australian visitors to China is continuously increasing.
In October 2023, the NIA released a list of 53 eligible countries for a 72/144-hour visa-free transit, including the UK, France and Australia. Then on May 15 this year, the NIA permitted the entry of foreign tourists by cruise ship without a visa, facilitating inbound visits by Australian residents.
Australia has a large community of Chinese residents; thus the introduction of the unilateral visa-free policy not only facilitates their visits to relatives and friends but also a chance to see the changes in China over the years.
New Zealand will also be included in the unilateral visa-free list, as flights between China and New Zealand have recovered quickly. Since last December, direct flights between China and New Zealand have recovered to that of pre-pandemic period. Six airlines including Air New Zealand, China Southern Airlines, China Eastern Airlines, Air China, Hainan Airlines, and Cathay Pacific are offering direct flights from eight stops in China to New Zealand.
China has been continuously expanding the unilateral visa-free countries since 2023 – to date, China has implemented unilateral visa-free for countries including France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, and more. Additionally, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, and Georgia are mutually visa-free countries with China.