Save on Cruises to South America, Asia, Russia

If you want to see a lot in comfort and in a short period of time, a cruise is the way to go. You unpack only once, are fed plenty of food and entertained while you sail between various exotic ports. And, if you are careful, you can travel for a base price of around $100 a day per person.

Cruise Ship Centers (www.cruiseshipcenters.com) is advertising some unusually low rates for cruises that frequently cost a lot more. For example, the cruise around Cape Horn in South America is normally costly, but by sailing on the Zaandam of the Holland America Line this December the 14-day cruise price can be less than $100 per day. This is a cruise for nature lovers, with stops at glaciers, fjords and the Falkland Islands and the passage around the often stormy Cape Horn.

If southeast Asia is more your style, a voyage from Hong Kong to Singapore with stops in Thailand and Vietnam has a similar minimum price for two weeks. The popular Baltic cruise from Copenhagen that visits a lot of northern capitals and the former Russian imperial capital is somewhat more expensive but still less than $125 per person.

Of course, you need to add air fare, tips, and excursions to the basic cost, but with careful planning a cruise can still be a budget vacation. If river cruises are more your style, Viking River Cruises (www.vcr.com) is offering free air fare on all its Russian cruises this summer.