November 15, 2026 — 12:00am

Awards are generally handed out for outstanding achievement, and that often means refining what already exists. But I reckon attempting something new is more admirable. Sadly, that isn’t something seen much in cruise-ship itineraries.

What cruise lines tout as “new” every year is really just a tweaking of what has gone before: an added overnight, a single port change. But this year, Norwegian Cruise Line attempted something truly different when it linked Hawaii and Alaska.

Viking has an 81-day itinerary from Nuuk in Greenland to Ushuaia in Argentina, above. iStock

Let’s hope the 16-day “Fire and Ice” itinerary is repeated because it gave magpie travellers a taste of everything. They snorkelled on reefs and admired lava fields and rainforest. They dog-sledded and saw glaciers.…