Fall foliage voyages: Princess Cruises' megaliners set sail for lush landscapes and fascinating ports-of-call

Cruise Travel, May-June, 2004 by Theodore W. Scull

Slightly more than 20 years ago, cruises from New York to New England and Canada were few and far between. The most regular sailings were offered by the Veracruz I, a 10,596-gross-register-ton hand-me-down originally built in the mid-1950s. Today, her cabins would be considered cramped and primitive, her public rooms lacking, and the centration of visitors arriving by air, land, and sea taking place in July and August, followed by a second rush during the fall foliage season. No region tops New England for the autumn colors, and having lived in the Northeast virtually all my life, I never tire of the grand spectacle.

Last year 17 ships sailed from New York Edward Island, and along the St. Lawrence as far as Quebec City and Montreal.

To witness peak fall foliage, the window is fairly wide, with the earliest period for parts of Canada coming in September then extending into mid-November for the New York region. Colorful leaves are not by any means the only draw for these cruises: Think idea of an alternative restaurant had not yet entered the cruise consciousness. But she was highly popular and can be considered most responsible for opening up northeastern U.S. and Maritime Canada to tourism by sea.

Today, cruising up north extends from May to late October, with the greatest conon New England/Canada cruises lasting from four to 14 days. Additional departures left from Boston and Montreal. Most cruises include New England ports, and the shortest roundtrips venture no farther than New Brunswick or Nova Scotia, while more wide-ranging ones call at Newfoundland, Prince French-speaking Acadians in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick; Pilgrims and Puritans in New England; whaling and fishing industries; spectacular coastlines; state and national parks; picture-postcard towns; sailing, kayaking, cycling, and hiking; clam bakes and steamed Maine lobsters; plus culture, art, and music in the bigger cities. On a cruise, there is often a different place to visit every day.

For our weeklong New England-Canada roundtrip aboard Princess Cruises' 109,000-grt Golden Princess, we boarded in New York on a Sunday afternoon, had two nights and a full day to settle in, then hit five consecutive ports--Halifax, Saint John, Bar Harbor, Boston, and Newport--each offering something different and, in some cases, a mind-boggling array of tour choices.

Princess has mounted an excellent web site that allows one to study the options and pre-book all shore excursions. The Golden Princess's large passenger capacity of 2,600 commands a huge choice of tours--motorcoach trips, bikes, town walks, carriage rides, cycling, kayaking, rafting, amphibious vehicles, and boat excursions--not to mention doing it on your own by foot or in a rented car. By registering in advance, tour tickets arrive at your stateroom door and you avoid queues and booked-up trips.

No departure tops a sailaway from New York as your vessel reverses into the Hudson River to join a parade of outbound ships gliding downstream past the Manhattan skyline to port and Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty to starboard. While we occupied one of the 710 balcony cabins, the best out door spots for splendid 360 degree views are high up on the Sun or Sports decks. The harbor show steams on under the graceful Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, sees the Sandy Hook pilot debark, and the captain set a northeastern course for Halifax.

For Sunbelt denizens, Northeastern autumn temperatures, ranging between 50 and 70, may be a bit nippy, more so on the ocean than ashore. During the day at sea, while few people ventured out on the breezy open decks for long, the sheltered lido deck attracted lots of fresh-air aficionados, the Jacuzzi social set, and even a few swimmers. Sweatered up, you can enjoy an exhilarating walk on the continuous wraparound promenade that stretches all the way to the bow.

For dining, the Golden Princess offers the choice of reserved seals at first or second seating in one main restaurant or open seating between 5:30 and 10 p.m. in two others--the trio named after Italian artists Bernini, Donatello, and Canaletto. We chose the fixed-seating option and noted short queues for the open seating rooms only at peak times between 7:30 and 8 p.m.

On one evening we enjoyed sea scallops with Kalamata olives, capers, and herbs--a cooking demonstration dish the executive chef had shown us earlier in the day. Beef, available in u variety of cuts, was also memorable. For an informal dinner after a long day ashore, the Horizon Court's buffet, open for dinner between 6:30 and 11 p.m., has well designed serving stations to even out the demand for the varied and appetizing selections.

For a multi-course feast--and be sure to arrive ravenous--the reservations-only Sabatini's Trattoria charges $20 for its Italian tasting menu. The feeding frenzy begins with antipasti and Italian breads; then continues to soup, freshly baked pizza, pastas, tossed salad, sherbet; next a choice of main entree including lobster, tiger prawns, veal chop, Chilean sea bass, and scallops; and finally Italian pastry or tiramisu as dessert. It's a festive formula that works, and only the mine strone soup seemed insipid, but others at our table liked the cioppino, an Italian-American fish stew that hails from California. Another $20 alternative is Sterling Steakhouse, a popular feature on all Princess ships, that now occupies the space of the former Desert Rose, which served a southwestern menu.