Brasilian vibe, upscale ship

[flar]

As an American with extensive experience in Brasil, I love the energy and friendliness of the people, the music, the food etc. I speak Portuguese fluently, so have no trouble on a ship where this is the primary language. I am particularly glad to meet new Brasilian friends. I can make more Brasilian friends in one day than I could American friends in a year.

 

I already know everything I need to know about Rio, Sao Paulo, Rio Grande do Sul, but would love to visit the more northern areas such as Recife, Fortaleza, as well as I have somehow missed the beautiful cities of Florianapolis and Buzios. I wouldn't mind combining Uruguay and BA as well.

 

My problem is that all the Brasilian based cruises on the Brasilian travel sites appear to use older ships in the 3 star category. I have become spoiled by such ships as the newer NCL's, Solstice class etc.

 

Are there any cruises in this region that accomodate a large population of Brasilians, but on a better class of ship? Or perhaps older ships but with high quality suites?

[argentinita]

Hi,

I dont know whichever stars have the MSC Orchestra.

We depart from Santos (Sao Paulo) to Maceio, the Nordest of Brasil.

Port of call are Buzios, Maceio, San Salvador de Bahia and Ilheus.

Hope this help !!

[pmacher61]

Are there any cruises in this region that accomodate a large population of Brasilians, but on a better class of ship? Or perhaps older ships but with high quality suites?

As the Brasilian R$ grew strong, more Brasilians started to cruise. Whether ships sailing in So Am waters will continue to carry a heavy Brasilian contingents is uncertain (the R$ is dropping fast these days).

Some TA sites will allow you to search cruises by ship, port, etc. One that I often use has "vacations" in its title and advertises here. If you like a better class, you might try the Regent Seven Seas.

[Fattony]

You're in the U.S. but are looking for cruises that include multiple Brazilian ports of call? Do you want to travel to the Northeast, as well as south, to Uruguay/Argentina? I'd go to a travel agency, since they'll have lots of brochures on cruises. We're in Fortaleza, which has few domestic cruises (mainly to Fernando de Noronha; not sure the ship is old, but it's not large and I'm not sure it's what you'd call upscale). There are, of course, cruises to international destinations, including Europe and the U.S. that include stops at some of the ports you mention. Princess, for example, has regular cruises from Rio to Valparaiso and include stops in Buenos Aires and Montevideo. There are also repositioning cruises. I know people who took the Star Princess a couple of years ago from Rio to Ft. Lauderdale, with stops at Santos, Salvador, Recife, Fortaleza, Devil's Island, Barbados, etc. MSC and Costa cruise lines seem to have many cruises that include Brazilian ports of call though most of the ones I have seen did this as part of a longer voyage to or from Europe. I think they also have a few options that stick to Brazil and its neighbors, at least during the Southern Hemisphere summer.

[cindilouwho]

Azamara and Oceania both have sailings. Excellent ships and wonderful service. 4 - 5 star