05-Oct-2006  (yacht cruise)

• 'THE CAPTAIN FINDS HIS MATE (Pioneer Press)
When he set out from St. Petersburg, Fla., two months ago to cruise his slow-moving boat through a maze of canals and rivers to St. Paul, Brion Kerlin had one goal in mind ? to attend a performance of Garrison Keillor's "A Prairie Home Companion" radio show.
• 'Keelboats get perfect kickoff (St. Petersburg Times)
The traditional start of the keelboat racing season is the Bradenton yacht Club Kickoff regatta. Sailors from around Tampa Bay meet southwest of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge outside the Manatee River for sailing on the wide expanse of the lower bay.
• 'Rise of the £1,000 hotel room (Financial Times)
The Mandarin Oriental hotel group recently announced a new package featuring three-night stays at each of its properties in Miami, New York and Washington, DC. The deal includes staying in the presidential suites, transfers by private jet between the hotels, shopping in Miami with a stylist and personal assistant, theatre, jazz and opera tickets in New York, a three-hour yacht cruise, spa
• 'Lair of dragons (Escape.com.au)
CRAIG Tansley's cruise across Indonesia, from Bali to Rinca and Komodo to the east, takes him to remote islands lost in time, to places where ancient curses still apply.
• 'For the Biggest Yachts, More Than a Dock (New York Times)
An extensive boating development in St. Thomas with residential, commercial and entertainment components is the prototype for a new breed of marina.
• 'A Cruise From New Zealand to Australia: Tasmanian Devils, Kiwis (RedNova)
HOBART, TASMANIA _ Rudy, the Tasmanian devil, huffed and puffed and growled and screeched. But that was about it. He couldn't even stand up and spin like a top. The dark, furry little guy just ran around having a hissy fit while a trainer in his outdoor pen teased him with a bone.
• 'The top small-ship cruise lines (and scores), from Travel + Leisure... (The Wichita Eagle)
The top small-ship cruise lines (and scores), from Travel + Leisure's World's Best Awards 2006: 1. yachts of Seabourn (89.13) 2. Silversea Cruises (86.85)