We commonly recommend beginning or ending a cruise vacation with a land package offered by the cruise line either pre- or post-cruise.  Doing so enriches the experience if nothing else, providing a bridge between the awesome travel experience and real life.  But that can be done at Motel 6 too.  Trusting the cruise line to choose appropriate accommodations and tours to go along with them, we turn today to ultra luxe Crystal Cruises and a couple new hotel packages offered to those doing Fall foliage sailings this Fall.

Sailing in the Fall up the East coast of the United States and into Canada, cruise travelers see an abundance of Fall foliage, rich in vibrant colors.  Like a few other cruise lines, Crystal Cruises offers these voyages also.  Unlike other lines, Crystal Cruises adds a bit of luxury flair that makes their versions a bit different with luxury land packages, before or after sailing.

Quick Look: Crystal Cruises (amazing) land add-ons are a great addition to a fall foliage cruise.

Available on Crystal Serenity’s September-October voyages, the two- and three-night, pre- and post-cruise packages offer travelers the opportunity to explore beyond the rich New England/Canada cruise itineraries that begin or end in Québec City.

Guests can choose from programs in Toronto and Niagara Falls, Montréal and Québec City, or enjoy a free transfer between Québec and Montréal to plan one’s own extended adventure.

The 2-night Toronto & Niagara Falls package ($1,365) includes:

• A tour of breathtaking Niagara Falls, followed by a wet sailing excursion through the spray at the base of the falls aboard the Maid of the Mist.
• A visit to Niagara-on-the-Lake, home to 28 wineries producing award-winning vintages and ice wines, and a Heritage District full of specialty shops and eateries, plus a winemaker’s lunch of seasonal dishes paired with specially selected wines at one of the estates.
• A sky-high dinner 1,100 feet above Toronto at the CN Tower’s rotating 360 restaurant – home of the world’s highest wine cellar – boasting market-fresh regional specialties with a changing view of the city’s lights and shoreline.
• Old Montreal at night-72 dpiExploration of a “hidden” Toronto via the PATH – a 16-mile underground network of shops, museums, theatres and world-class dining.

The 3-night Québec City and Montréal by Train package ($2,850) includes:

• Accommodations at the chic Auberge Saint-Antoine hotel in the heart of Québec City – itself a UNESCO World Heritage Site – and the Ritz-Carlton Montréal, situated walking distance from the city’s many attractions.
• Business class train between Montréal and Québec City, including access to stations’ VIP-style Panorama Lounge, priority boarding, complimentary newspapers, wine, and lunch.
• Exploration of Québec City’s museés, shops and historical districts, plus Montréal’s renowned Notre Dame Basilica, Latin Quarter, and majestic Mount Royal.

Seven- and 10-day itineraries sail from Boston to Quebec departing September 19 and round-trip Quebec City on September 29.   October 6, 16, and 26 sailings are between Québec and New York and call in such wonderful places as Baie-Comeau, Havre-Saint-Pierre, Sept-Ĩles, and the Magdalen Islands, P.Q.; Saint John, New Brunswick; Halifax and Sydney (maiden call), Nova Scotia; Saint-Pierre & Miquelon, France; Bar Harbor and Portland, Maine; Boston, Massachusetts; and Newport, Rhode Island.

Join us for our next adventure as Whitney and I try Crystal Cruises for the very first time.  That’s coming up Friday, September 19 as we wing our way to Boston to begin a sailing of Crystal Serenity titled Autumn’s Palette.  Check this itinerary: