Cruise Critic Announces Top Ocean and River Cruise Lines of 2015
P&O Cruises' Britannia Awarded 'Best New Ship'; AmaWaterways Named ' Best River Cruise Line'
LONDON, Oct. 5, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Cruise Critic®, the world's leading cruise reviews site and online cruise community, today announced the winners of its annual UK Editors' Picks Awards for 2015. The winners, which are selected by Cruise Critic's team of cruise experts, highlight the best cruise lines across 25 categories.
"New ship launches, itineraries and onboard offerings bring more choice than before, which is great news for UK holidaymakers, but can make it even harder to choose the right cruise," explained Cruise Critic UK editor, Adam Coulter. "We aim to identify the lines we feel are at the top of their game, and highlight the latest innovations in the industry to help people when planning a cruise."
The biggest ship built for the UK market, P&O Cruises' Britannia, was awarded 'Best New Ship'. Britannia, which debuted in March this year was praised for its sophisticated decor and design, and outstanding dining. In addition, P&O Cruises retained the overall award for 'Best Dining' for the second year consecutively, with commendations from Cruise Critic editors for its restaurants including Epicurean, Britannia's fine dining molecular gastronomy eatery.
AmaWaterways this year took three awards including 'Best River Cruise Line', lauded for its game-changing partnerships with Adventures by Disney and Backroads Tours to attract new, younger passengers and families. The line also won 'Best for Active Cruisers', and 'Best Dining'.
Other ocean cruise line winners include Royal Caribbean, which took three awards for 'Best for Families', 'Best Entertainment' and 'Best Suites'. For the third consecutive year Azamara won 'Best Shore Excursions', while Celebrity Cruises' Eclipse was awarded 'Best Refurbishment'.
River cruise winners include CroisiEurope, taking 'Best New River Ship' for Loire Princesse, and 'Best for Itineraries', while Emerald Waterways was named 'Best for Value'.
Southampton maintained the position as 'Best UK Departure Port' for the seventh consecutive year, while Guernsey won 'Best UK Port of Call' for the first time.
2015 Cruise Critic UK Editors' Picks Awards (Ocean):
Best New Ship: P&O Cruises' Britannia
Best Refurbishment: Celebrity Eclipse
Best for Luxury: Crystal Cruises
Best for Families: Royal Caribbean International
Best Itineraries: Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines
Best for Adventure: Hurtigruten
Best Value: Thomson Cruises
Best Dining: P&O Cruises
Best Entertainment: Royal Caribbean International
Best Suites: Royal Caribbean International
Best Cabins: Holland America Line
Best Shore Excursions: Azamara Club Cruises
Best for Romance: Star Clippers
Best for Nightlife: Norwegian Cruise Line
Best UK Port of Call: Guernsey
Best UK Departure Port: Southampton
2015 Cruise Critic UK Editors' Picks Awards (River):
Best River Cruise Line: AmaWaterways
Best New River Ship: CroisiEurope's Loire Princesse
Best Dining: AmaWaterways
Best Cabins: Sanctuary Retreats
Best Enrichment: Tauck
Best Shore Excursions: Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection
Best for Active Cruisers: AmaWaterways
Best for Itineraries: CroisiEurope
Best for Value: Emerald Waterways
For the full details of this year's winners, visit the 2015 Cruise Critic UK Editors' Picks Awards listing.
About Cruise Critic (www.cruisecritic.co.uk)
Cruise Critic® is an online cruise guide, offering a comprehensive resource for cruise travellers, from first-time cruisers to avid cruise enthusiasts. The site features more than 150,000 cruise reviews and hosts the world's largest online cruise community where travellers share experiences and opinions with fellow cruisers. Cruise Critic was the first consumer cruise site on the Internet, launched in October 1995 by The Independent Traveler, Inc., a subsidiary of TripAdvisor, Inc.
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UK Media Contact:
Vikki Bulbeck, Cruise Critic
vbulbeck@cruisecritic.co.uk
020 3194 2137
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