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Tee It Up: Cruise Lines Shoot Hole-in-One with Golf Offerings

DES MOINES, Iowa, Jan. 22, 2008 - For some cruisers, the ideal vacation at sea involves more driving, chipping and putting than sunbathing, snorkeling and sightseeing. The cruise lines are listening and offering more land excursions to some of the worlds most picturesque and challenging golf courses throughout the Caribbean, South Pacific, Mediterranean and Mexico.

"Cruises offer something for everyone, including golfers," said Bob Levinstein, CEO of Cruise Compete LLC. "In addition to personalized, on-board professional instruction and the chance to meet tour pros, a number of cruise lines offer escorted trips to unforgettable golf destinations designed to challenge golfers of all skill levels."

The following is a sample of the opportunities to tee it up on 2008 cruises:

SilverSea Cruises

Ultra-luxury Silversea Cruises has expanded its popular "Silver Links" golf program to 12 cruises in 2008. Golfers can perfect their swing on 35 world-class courses in 16 countries and islands. The golfing excursions, arranged and escorted by a ship's golf professional, range in price from course to course and include transfers, pull or power-drive carts (where available) and all green and caddy fees.

The following is but a sampling of the Silver Links voyages and golf courses to be played by cruisers this year:

• Silver Shadow departs May 16 on a 15-day Panama Canal crossing from Fort Lauderdale to Los Angeles, with golf excursions to La Iguana at Los Suenos (Puntarenas); Tres Vidas Golf Club (Acapulco); and El Tigre Golf Club (Puerto Vallarta).
• Silver Whisper leaves July 19 on a 7-day Mediterranean sailing from Rome to Monte Carlo; golfers can play at Golf Park Mallorca (Palma de Mallorca); PGA at Catalunya Golf Club (Barcelona); Servannes Golf Club (Sete); and Sainte Maxime Golf Club (St. Tropez).
• Silver Whisper departs Aug. 16 on a 7-day Mediterranean cruise from Barcelona to Rome, with golf excursions to Cannes Mougins Golf Club (Menton); Cosmopolitan Golf Club (Livorno); and the Monte Carlo Golf Club.
• Silver Shadow leaves Sept. 17 on an 11-day Mexican Riviera voyage from Los Angeles to Costa Rica, with rounds at Cabo del Sol Desert Course (Cabo San Lucas); El Tigre Golf Club (Puerto Vallarta); Club de Golf Marina Ixtapa (Zihuatanejo); and Tres Vidas Golf Club (Acapulco).
• Silver Shadow departs Dec. 3 on a 9-day Caribbean sailing from Fort Lauderdale to Barbados; golfers can play at Antigua's Cedar Valley Golf Club, the St. Lucia Golf & Country Club and Sandy Lane Country Club in Barbados.
• Silver Whisper takes a 15-day holiday cruise to the South Pacific, leaving Dec. 20 from Sydney to Auckland. Tee times are set at the Royal Melbourne Golf Club, Royal Hobart Golf Club, St. Clair golf Club (Dunedin), Clearwater Golf Club (Christchurch), Paraparaumu Golf Club (Wellington), Cape Kidnappers Golf Club (Napier), Kauri Cliffs Golf Club (Bay of Islands) and the Tauranga Golf Club.

Norwegian Cruise Line

NCL has launched a new Golf Bermuda program, giving its golf-loving guests more opportunities to hit the links in Bermuda, where there are more courses per square mile than anywhere else in the world. Golf Bermuda has excursions for every level of golfer at the island's most popular and scenic courses:

• Ocean View Golf Course, just outside of Hamilton, is rated "four stars" by Golf Digest;
• The challenging 6,100-yard Belmont Hills Golf Club was designed by famed course designer Algie M. Pulley, Jr.;
• Mid Ocean Golf Club, located in scenic Tucker Town, has challenged the biggest names in golf today;
• Port Royal Golf Course, operated by the Bermuda government for more than 40 years, offers some of the most challenging holes on the island;
• Tucker's Point Golf Club, ranked by Travel + Leisure Golf as one of the top golf resorts in the Caribbean;
• St. George's Golf Course, featuring ocean views at every hole; and,
• Riddell's Bay Golf Club, Bermuda's oldest golf course and described by locals as a "must play".

Crystal Cruises

Crystal Cruises also has expanded its golf-themed cruises for 2008. Guests can tee off on three 11- and 12-day golf fests, playing in the Mediterranean, the Canary Islands and the maritime coast of Canada and New England. PGA pros will join Crystal guests at several notable courses, including The Monte Carlo Club, situated high above the French Riviera; Spain's El Saler Golf Course; and Lisbon's Penha Longa Golf Course at the foot of the Sintra Mountain Range.

"Many of the golf courses the cruise lines visit are not open to the general public," Levinstein said. "The cruise lines have made special arrangements with them to allow their guests to play on these exclusive links. It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for many golfers - yet another reason cruise vacations are memorable."

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