NEW ENGLAND ISLANDS
8-Day Cruises

Begin your harbor hopping adventure in Providence, RI, a thriving city that has been lovingly preserved, while enthusiastically embracing the 21st-century. As your ship cruises down Narragansett Bay you'll visit New Bedford, still proud of its seafaring past and now home to a contemporary working waterfront, where much of the downtown is a National Historic Park. Spend an afternoon at the Whaling Museum viewing the world's largest American whaling and maritime history collections, or visit Seaman's Bethel, the chapel described by Herman Melville in the opening chapters of Moby Dick.

Continue with stops at the islands of Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard, summer resorts that have always welcomed visitors to their white sand beaches, flower­strewn meadows and meandering trails first forged by generations of Native Americans. Delight in the whimsical gingerbread cottages and exquisitely tended country gardens of the Vineyard, or gaze out toward the Atlantic from the heights of Gay Head Cliffs. Nantucket offers a cobble stoned town center filled with galleries, shops, and buildings from traditional clapboard houses to solid Quaker brick mansions. You'll be charmed by Block Island: its 10 square miles of paradise, deignated by The Nature Conservancy as one of the 'Last Great Places on Earth.' Back in Narragansett Bay is Bristol, RI, famous for the America's Cup Hall of Fame which cele­brates the yachts that for decades dominated the world's most exclusive sporting event. You'll see even more boating history in Newport, RI one of the prettiest ports in New England.

Take in the city's rich heritage with a tour of the 'summer cottages' of Vanderbilts and Astors which ushered in the lavish Gilded Age; seek out the classic colonial homes, the nation's first church steeple or oldest synagogue, library or tavern-all to be found in the City by the Sea.

With all there is to see and do on this itinerary, it's certain that your appreciation of our Harbor Hopping cruise will be enhanced by the on board experience. Be sure to feast on local lobsters and seafood, to chat with our knowledgeable, entertaining guest speakers and to cherish the invaluable opportunity you've had to spend a week on a small ship exploring America's maritime heritage.