The cruise lines and its patrons are always on the lookout for new and exciting ports of call. Along with indoctrinating first-timers, finding new entry points is valuable toward sustaining the industry and keeping it fresh. While favorite ports of call remain, some new, as of yet fully tapped ports are coming to the forefront and giving the cruise lines more options in fashioning their itineraries. For cruisers, experiencing new destinations gives them the impulse to keep coming back for more—music to the cruise lines' ears.

Travel Agent spoke with cruise lines and travel agents alike to gauge where the new hot destinations are and why they are gaining such traction. No doubt, you will have heard of many of the ports (not even the cruise lines can create new cities—though they can create their own islands), but you may not have known why they are exploding on the scene. Here is what we found, so you can be prepared when your clients walk through the door and ask, "Where's the go-to destination?"

St. Petersburg, Russia and the Baltics

To some, St. Petersburg in Russia conjures images of a cold, communist holdover, where the sun doesn't shine and winters are relentless. While they are right about the winter (temperatures are frosty), the summer months are quite pleasant. And it doesn't take a historian to know that Russia isn't the Soviet Union. When former Soviet Union leader Mikhail Gorbachev proclaimed "Glasnost," perhaps it was an invitation for the cruise lines.

They bit. Today, St. Petersburg is one of the hottest European destinations, and figures into most Baltic itineraries. The city is famous for its architectural design that comes alive in landmarks such as the Kazan Cathedral and the Summer Palaces. The city also has a Venetian quality, with its contiguous canals that run under a total of 342 bridges.

The city pops with excitement and travel agents are seeing demand rise. "From my point of view, St. Petersburg is the leading port in Europe," says Yuval Nissan, manager of Prestige Travel & Cruises in Las Vegas, adding that cities such as Copenhagen and Amsterdam are benefiting from St. Petersburg's popularity, because many cruises that call in Russia originate or end in those cities.

In fact, some travel agents are saying that Baltic cruises are overtaking the Mediterranean in terms of following. "Baltic cruises are hotter than the Mediterranean," says Ralph Cooper, vice president and general manager of Bon Voyage Travel in Tucson, point blank. For him it's a fact: "Our daily bookings look that way."

Not sold? The cruise lines are in the same boat. "It's one of our most popular itineraries," says Joni Rein, Costa Cruises' vice president of sales development for North America. "It's the most North American friendly."

Carnival Cruise Lines (www.carnival.com/) will be doing its first Northern Europe itineraries with the debut of Carnival Splendor, set to begin operations in July 2008. It's already selling out. "Advance bookings are great," says Terry Thornton, Carnival's vice president marketing planning. "For 2008 and beyond."

Weak Dollar Spurs New Destinations

The almighty dollar losing its mighty title might be one culprit behind the emergence of new cruise destinations. For many Americans, doing a land-based vacation in Europe (or almost anywhere overseas) is becoming price prohibitive. Jeanne Wyndrum, director of operations of Port Everglades, FL-based Cruise.com/, has tried it. "I tried to put a land package together and it was difficult," she says. So instead of doing South America by foot, she went by sea. Adds Bon Voyage's Cooper, "People are using cruises as a means of exploring."

This doesn't mean that it's purely economic. Take, for example, traveling to any of the now Cold War relics. Twenty-five years ago these were places Americans did not travel to—yet curiosity is ingrained in most Americans DNA, so exploring new places, whether it is the Baltic states or parts of Asia, becomes a quest.

"Many people like to visit places that, not long ago, were inaccessible to westerners," says Jerry Vaughn, president and CEO of World Voyager, Inc., which operates two offices near Seattle.

Dubai

Case in point, look at Dubai, one of the most up and coming destinations in the world. Fifteen years ago, you'd be hard pressed to sell Dubai as any type of vacation. Fast forward: Dubai is red hot, attracting everything from hotel development, to golf course construction, to entertainment parks. Cruising, too.

"I see a growing demand for Dubai," says Prestige Travel's Nissan. "Seems like people hear more and more about the economical growth there, and that it is a safe destination for Americans."

Yes, some Americans might find travel to the Middle East a bit disconcerting during these tremulous times, but Dubai, thus far, has gone unscathed.

In addition, cruise ships become a built in safeguard for travelers visiting a new region. As much as they explore, they always come back to a familiar place at the end of the day. "It's a great way to see an area you may have otherwise been afraid to go to," says Anthony Hamawy, director of Cruise.com.

Costa Cruises' (www.costacruises.com/) Romantica currently homeports in Dubai, and Costa's Rein says demand has prompted the line to add another ship in the region—it will commit Costa Europa for the winter season.

South America, the Galapagos Islands & Antarctica

From the Middle East, we travel back westward toward the continent of South America, which has become a much-ballyhooed cruising destination over the last year, and both cruise lines and travel agents say it will remain popular next year and beyond.

One of the places gaining more cruising attention is the Galapagos Islands, an archipelago just off Ecuador. Hearing the word Galapagos and images of turtles, lizards and a bearded Charles Darwin usually pop up. Cruisers are interested in the endemic species (no offense to Darwin).

"We've got lots on the books for the Galapagos next year," says Bon Voyage's Cooper. "It's hot. People are thinking of doing it now because there is a sense that there will be a limit on tourism there because of the effects on the islands."

Like the Galapagos, Antarctica, too, is gaining a lot of attention as an area for exploration. Why not? It's not everyday that you can frolic on the ice with penguins, right?

Both these regions are not your regular cruise destinations and, most likely, are for more seasoned cruisers or those travelers who are more interested in learning and nature, than sun and fun. Your best bet is to look at lines such as Lindblad Expeditions (www.expeditions.com/), Norwegian Coastal Voyage (www.hurtigruten.us), Hapag-Lloyd (www.hapag-lloyd.com/) and Holland America Line (www.hollandamerica.com/).

The Far East

Asia might not strike some as a cruising destination, but if there's water the cruise lines will be there. One of the best ways to discover Asia is by riverboat, which is a perfect mode for traversing the Yangtze River. Many lines such as Uniworld Grand River Cruises (www.uniworld.com/), Avalon Waterways (www.avalonwaterways.com/) and Viking River Cruises (www.vikingrivercruises.com/) operate itineraries within China.

While the riverboats cover the inland of Asia, the bigger cruise lines are also in the act, visiting ports such as Hong Kong, Vietnam and perennial favorites Shanghai and Singapore. Oceania Cruises (www.oceaniacruises.com/) had its first season in Asia in 2006 and continues to go back, which Tim Rubacky, Oceania Cruises' director of corporate communications, says was, at first, a risk. "It was a big gamble on our part to go there because of SARS," he says.

SARS gripped the world between 2002 and 2003 when a reported 774 people died from the respiratory illness, which seemed to have originated in China. Obviously, people were leery to travel to the region, and it carried over well after the outbreak was contained. "I think Asia has been a little slow to take off in our area because the SARS issue received so much attention that the residual effect still hasn't disappeared," says World Voyager's Vaughn. As the stigma continues to dissipate, Asia will become an even stronger cruise destination.

Africa

Maybe the last place you would think cruising would catch on is Africa, but according to some cruise lines it's making its way toward the top of the heap. Seychelles, Madagascar and Mauritius, all located in the Indian Ocean off the mainland of Africa, are three destinations becoming as hot as the sub-Saharan climate. "They are right up there with Dubai," says Costa's Rein. The cruise line will begin its inaugural season in the region this November on Costa Marina. "Our travel agents tell us that North Americans want something new and different," she says. "We want to keep it fresh and exciting."

Others Making The List

It would be difficult to include every new hot destination, but some others are worth mentioning. In the South Pacific, Australia and New Zealand continue to stay on travel agents' radars. Making a strong push, says Cruise.com's Hamawy, is Tahiti for the winter. It's not surprising that the island paradise draws a lot of cruisers, just not like this. "It caught me by surprise," he says of bookings. "It's not a market that spikes so much."

Another trend that is coming on are bookings made on repositioning sailings (cruises in which a ship is redeploying to another region). This fall many cruise ships now in Europe will begin their sojourn to the Caribbean or other warm-weather destinations.

"For those who enjoy longer cruises, there are repositioning cruises to and from Europe," says Prestige's Nissan. Hamawy says these types of cruises are historically soft, "but we are doing well with them."