Beijing to Tokyo on a Crystal Cruise

By Larry Taylor

updated 5:18 p.m. ET Nov. 16, 2005

My wife and I are inveterate travelers but had never been to Japan, even though it had been high on our list of places to go. As well, we love to take cruises and had heard good comments about Crystal Cruises and its reputation as one of the best.

We read the brochure and found that Crystal's 11-day Ancient Treasures cruise started in China and ended in Japan, the ideal itinerary. We could visit Japan while checking out this luxury line.

We signed on and early last May we flew to Beijing on a Tuesday and boarded our ship, the Crystal Harmony, Wednesday, ready for an afternoon departure. Many of our fellow passengers had flown in three days earlier to take a pre-cruise tour of Chinese historical sites, including the Great Wall and the Forbidden City. We had been to China, so we decided to forego this part.

Our first two days were at sea, giving us a much welcomed chance to relax and get over our jet-lag, as well as time to become acquainted with the ship.

The thing that distinguishes Crystal Cruise ships is the elegance of the interior, from lush carpets to the mirrors on the corridor walls. Overall there is a feeling of spaciousness. A grand center court, the Crystal Plaza, spans the width of the ship and opens above as well. From midship, a crystal and brass staircase leads up to the Tiffany Deck and to the Atrium.

Our stateroom was very comfortable with a king-size bed and a sitting area that included a love seat and vanity and large closets. But what made the room definitely above average was a spacious verandah. (On our ship 85% of rooms had verandahs, many more than on most other large lines.) The public areas onboard are large and comfortable, and contained several high-end shops. There was an auditorium for movies and speaker presentations and a large theater for after-dinner productions and entertainment acts.

We especially liked the spacious Promenade Deck where we took morning walks on days at sea. Afternoons we joined those around the swimming pools and took a rehabilitating soak in the Jacuzzi spa. For those who like to exercise in a gym, there is a full fitness center as well as deluxe spa where massages and treatments were offered.

During a chat with Hotel Director Josef Lumetsberger, we found out that capacity for the Harmony is 940 and that our cruise was about 2/3 full, the majority being Americans, with the rest mostly Europeans, along with 90 Asians.

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Lumetsberger says that the ship caters to an upscale clientele and that above-average service is stressed. The staff numbers 545, many of whom are Eastern Europeans. We observed that there were more women working than we see on most lines. Cabin stewards were women, and there were even a few women servers, surprising in an area dominated by men. We could attest to the quality of the service. If we ordered breakfast in our cabin, for example, it was delivered piping hot 15 minutes later.

For dinner, we chose the 8:30 serving in the main dining room. There were six at our table, couples from Manchester, England, and Banning in Southern California. During our excellent four-course dinners, we looked forward to visiting with them and sharing the day's experiences.

We were not restricted to the main dining room, however. Two alternative restaurants were available-Prego for Italian food and Kyoto for Japanese. The food was so good in both, we opted to eat twice in each.

The talk of the ship was the mushroom soup in Prego. Served in a crusty bread cup, this creamy, thick soup of assorted mushrooms was outstanding. We had heard good comments about the roasted rack of lamb as well, and it was excellent-both times we ordered it. In Kyoto, we particularly enjoyed the Salmon Shio-Yaki, pan-roasted Alaskan Salmon with Pozo Sauce, and Beef Teppanyaki, a grilled-to-order filet on a bed of sauteed onions.

After two days at sea, our first stop Saturday was Shanghai. We had been to Shanghai in 1987 but were not prepared for the amazing changes in the city. Before it was a dingy, crowded place with streets congested with bicycles and pedestrians. Now with 12 million people, it's still crowded but this time there are a lot of cars among the bikes. The big surprise is the amazing growth in the infrastructure. Skyscrapers stand in areas which were formerly swamps. In an expanding Chinese economy, this is the vibrant business capital of China.

During our two days in port, there were several shore excursions offered by the ship which took passengers to favorite tourist attractions, including an overnight trip to Xian to view the world famous Terra Cotta warriors. Since the main sites were fairly close to the dock and Chinese cab fares were very low, we decided to tour the city on our own.

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