Are you one of the many travelers considering a Christmas cruise this holiday season?

You're not alone - the popularity of cruises over the holiday season has grown exponentially over the last few years.

People take vacations and cruises over the holidays for different reasons. Some people live in colder climates and want to bask in the sun for the holidays. To these individuals, nothing sounds better than waking up to a white sand beach on Christmas morning after dancing the night away on Christmas Eve.

Others want a completely stress free holiday season. Just getting away from all the holiday madness is a welcome respite. Still others are far removed from family and friends and yet they want to do something exciting for the holidays. Christmas cruises can be great fun, even for those traveling alone.

Whether you're looking for sand or snow, there is a great variety of cruises available over the holiday season. There are cruises to tropical locations like the Caribbean, the Panama Canal, and Mexico.

For those who are seeking more of an idealistic winter wonderland vibe, there are European river cruises that visit many small towns featuring Christmas markets. There are even cruises to Antarctica!

Cruises over the holidays are likely to offer a variety of special holiday themed activities and events on board. There is usually a nice Christmas Eve dinner, and of course beautiful meals served all day on Christmas day. The ships will be very festive with holiday decorations galore so expect a little extra glitz and glamour on a Christmas cruise. Cruising this time of year is perfect for those who love to dress up although you can also find ships with a more casual feel.

Here is just a small sampling of the wide variety of Christmas cruises available this upcoming holiday season.

For the ultimate in holiday cruises, Hurtigruten Cruise Lines is offering a spectacular Christmas and New Year's cruise this year to Antarctica. This 21 day odyssey leaves from Buenos Aires, Argentina and disembarks in Ushuia, Argentina. Passengers will then fly back to Buenos Aires and the flight is included in price of cruise.

This spectacular cruise spends several days at sea, as well as visits the Falkland Islands, South Georgia, and the Orkney Islands. Four days are then dedicated to visiting various locations on Antarctica. Passengers will board small boats to land at different places that are not accessible to large cruise ships.

Following the visit to Antartica, the ship will sail the Drake Passage on its way to Ushuaia, the southernmost city. The brochure price for this cruise starts at around $9,800 pp. Keep in mind that unlike some of the mass market cruises, this price does include many extras like airfare from the U.S., pre-cruise and post-cruise hotels, port fees, transportation, guide services, and expedition cruise landings. This cruise departs on Saturday, 19 December.

If you've been wanting to take a European river cruise, a Christmas cruise is the perfect time. AMA Waterways is featuring two holiday cruises this year.

• Christmas Wonderland - this is actually a 12 day package which includes a 7 day cruise from Trier to Amsterdam. The first 3 nights are spent in Paris and the cruise visits a plethora of Christmas markets along the Rhine River.
• Christmas Time Cruise - this package begins with a 2 night stay in Prague. The cruise visits the German Christmas markets between Nuremberg and Budapest on the spectacular Danube River.

There are various dates available for both cruises and prices vary depending on the specific date chosen. These cruises can be purchased with or without airfare with cruise only prices starting at around $1,900 pp.

Have you ever wanted to spend the holidays in the Mediterranean?

The Norwegian "Jade" will be sailing from Barcelona round trip departing on Monday, 21 December.

This 14 day voyage includes visits to Barcelona, Spain; Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy; Naples, Italy; Alexandria (Cairo), Egypt; Rhodes, Greece; Izmir, Turkey; Piraeus (Athens), Greece; Heraklion, Crete and returns to Barcelona.

Currently, the cruise starts at around $1,500 pp. Although the temperatures will not be warm enough to swim in the Mediterranean Sea in December, there is still plenty to see and do. Consider adding a day or two pre-cruise or post-cruise to see the sights in Barcelona.

Those looking for sun and sand over the holidays will have no problem finding a cruise. Almost all of the major cruise lines offer multiple itineraries over Christmas and New Years. You can choose from many different departure dates and wonderful itineraries on the following cruise lines:

• Princess Cruise Lines
• Carnival Cruise Lines
  
• Norwegian Cruise Lines
• Holland America Cruise Lines
• Disney Cruise Lines
• Celebrity Cruise Lines
• Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines

One of the benefits of taking a holiday cruise to the Caribbean is that you can find cruises to suit all budgets. Because there are so many different cruises, consumers reap the rewards of the major lines all competing for the same passengers. This works to the traveler's advantage, particularly because Christmas and New Years are the high season in the Caribbean.

Cruises are availabe for super short 2 day jaunts, all the way up to 14 night deep Caribbean itineraries, with many cruises falling in the 7 day timeframe. Prices are dependent on cruise length and cabin selection.

Mexico also offers warm temps and white sand for those seeking a tropical cruise over the holidays. Cruising in Mexico this time of year offers many of the same advantages listed above for the Caribbean. There are obviously fewer itinerary choices but don't let that stop you. Cruising to Mexico is easy and affordable.

There are several cruises through the Panama Canal over the holidays. Some of these cruises also visit other Central American countries, making these cruises ideal for those who might not want to limit their cruise to just Mexico.

Most of the major cruise lines offer cruises this time of year and prices vary according to date and cabin choice. Most of the cruises are from 3, 7 and 10+ nights.

Norwegian Cruise Lines has a spectacular South America cruise available over Christmas. The cruise departs on Sunday, 20 December from Valparaiso (Santiago, Chile), sails around Cape Horn and ends 14 nights later in Buenos Aires, Argentina. This cruise is affordable for the Christmas season starting at around $1,400 pp. which works out to just $100 per day for all your food and lodging. Of course the prices vary according to cabin selection.

The Sun will be visiting the following ports on this cruise:

Valparaiso (Santiago), Chile; Puerto Montt, Chile; Puerto Chacabuco, Chile; Punta Arenas, Chile; Ushuaia (Tierra del Fuego), Argentina; Port Stanley, Falkland Islands; Puerto Madryn, Argentina; Montevideo, Uruguay; Buenos Aires, Argentina

There are many terrific shore excursions to check out that will enhance this unique cruise.

Royal Caribbean has a spectacular itinerary this year. The "Rhapsody of the Seas" has a 17 night holiday cruise round trip from Sydney.

This cruise will be visiting Sydney, Australia; Melbourne, Australia; Milford Sound; Doubtful Sound, New Zealand; Dusky Sound, New Zealand; Port Chalmers (Dunedin), New Zealand; Lyttelton (Christchurch), New Zealand; Picton, New Zealand; Wellington, New Zealand; Napier, New Zealand; White Island, New Zealand; Tauranga, New Zealand; Auckland, New Zealand; Bay of Islands, New Zealand; and back to Sydney, Australia.

The cruise is currently pricing at around $2,100 pp. and you can count on seeing some outstanding scenery on this cruise.

Azamara Cruise Lines is offering an 18 night cruise from Singapore to Hong Kong.

This cruise will visit Singapore; Bangkok (Klong Toey), Thailand; Phu My (Ho Chi Minh City), Vietnam; Hue, Vietnam; Hanoi (Halong Bay), Vietnam; Canton (Guangzhou), China; and an overnight in Hong Kong.

This cruise is currently starting at around $2,800 pp. Azamara Cruise LInes is considered by many to be a step above the mass market cruise lines. This cruise departs from Singapore on Tuesday, 22 December.

Although this is just a small sampling, you can see there are many other cruises available over the holidays this year. The hardest part will be narrowing it down to just two or three itineraries to research and decide which cruise to take.

Keep in mind these prices are current as of this writing, but are subject to, and will change, at any time. If you're on a budget, the least expensive Christmas cruises will likely be to the Caribbean and Mexico. You can save money by choosing an inside cabin and watching what you spend on board. Be sure to get a quote from the cruise line with and without airfare and then check all flight possibilities yourself. Sometimes you can book cheaper airfare on your own as well as have the advantage of choosing your own flights. Also, be sure to ask the cruise lines what is, and is not, included in the final price of the cruise.

Should you decide to take a Christmas cruise this year, you are sure to have a great time!