Travel + Leisure has come out with their "Best of" lists for 2009 and thought you'd be interested in their top picks for cruise lines. In the large ship category, the winners are:

1. Crystal Cruises
2. Regent Seven Seas Cruises
3. Oceania Cruises
4. Disney Cruise Line
5. Azamara Cruises
6. Celebrity Cruises
7. Holland America Line
8. Cunard
9. Princess Cruises
10. Royal Caribbean International

For smaller ship cruise lines, the winners are:

1. The Yachts of Seabourn
2. Avalon Waterways
3. Silversea Cruises
4. Tauck World Discovery
5. Lindblad Expeditions
6. Viking River Cruises
7. Windstar Cruises
8. Seadream Yacht club
9. Uniworld River Cruises
10. Grand Circle Travel

You may never have heard of some of the smaller cruise companies, but many have been around for quite some time, such as Tauck World Discovery, which has been offering escorted vacations, both over land and over water, for over 80 years.  Their small ship cruises feature a fleet of ships with just 40 to 140 guests aboard, perfect for the traveler who would love to cruise, but don't want the crowds of the bigger ships, which sail with thousands aboard. And, yes, they do offer cruises to Alaska, a favorite summer cruise destination.

For more information on some of the different cruise offerings, go to our webpage on Cruise Line Vacations.