Oceania Cruises’ 684-passenger Sirena was originally scheduled to sail a winter and spring season of voyages to Cuba. Instead, it will now extend its 2020 European season and spend winter/spring 2020/21 on in-depth explorations of Egypt, Israel, Turkey, the Arabian Peninsula, India and Southeast Asia.
Sirena’s ‘Exotic Collection’ comprises nine sailings of 10 to 24 days beginning in November 2020 and culminating in April 2021. Kicking off with a 12-day voyage from Haifa (for Jerusalem) to Istanbul, Sirena then charts a course through the Red Sea to explore the Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman before continuing to India, the Maldives and Myanmar.
Overnight calls, new ports
All itineraries include overnight port calls with some featuring as many as four overnights along with myriad new ports such as Marmaris in Turkey, Sir Bani Yas in the Emirates, Doha in Qatar, Al Bahrain in Bahrain, Al Khasab in Oman and Sabang in Indonesia.
Jerusalem to Istanbul
‘Aegean Awakening,’ 12 days, begins Nov. 9, 2020, in Haifa (Jerusalem) with two overnights then continues to Ashdod, Israel; Paphos, Cyprus; Alanya, Marmaris and Bodrum, Turkey; Chania (Crete) and Piraeus (Athens), Greece; Kusadasi (for Ephesus), Turkey, and ends with an overnight at Istanbul.
Istanbul to Dubai
‘Footsteps of Discovery,’ 20 days, begins Nov. 21 at Istanbul and continues to Dikili (for Pergamum, Kusadasi and Antalya, Turkey; Limassol, Cyprus; Haifa for an overnight call; Port Said (Cairo) then a Suez Canal transit; Aqaba, Jordan; overnight at Safaga (for Luxor), Egypt; Salalah, and Muscat, Oman; and ending with an overnight at Dubai.
An in-depth ‘Middle East Meandering’ cruise of 10 days, round-trip Dubai, follows, with additional stops in the Emirates, Oman, Bahrain and Qatar. ‘Souks, Spices & Sands,’ 15 days, takes travelers from Dubai to Mumbai (overnight) with calls at the Emirates, Maldives (overnight) and multiple stops in India.
Mumbai to Myanmar
On Jan. 5, 2021, Sirena embarks on ‘Indian Ocean Jewels,’ a 15-day cruise from Mumbai to Yangon, with three additional ports in India, an overnight in the Maldives, Sabang, Indonesia; Phuket, Thailand; and ending with two overnights in Myanmar.
Further journeys are ‘Mystical Asia,’ 15 days, from Yangon to Bangkok; ‘Ultimate Asia Odyssey,’ 24 days, Bangkok to Dubai; and ‘Passage Through Time,’ 22 days, Dubai to Piraeus.
