Linger Longer, Discover Deeper: Norwegian Cruise Line’s Immersive Voyages Redefine Travel for 2025–2026

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

In a world of fleeting vacations and surface-level sightseeing, Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) is boldly redefining what it means to explore. With its newly unveiled 2025 and 2026 itineraries, NCL is inviting travelers not just to visit destinations—but to linger longer and truly connect with the soul of a place. Through specially curated sailings with overnight port stays, guests have the rare opportunity to dive deeper into the heartbeat of cities that come alive after dark.

This is not your average cruise. This is an invitation to stay out past curfew with the world’s most magnetic cities—and fall in love with travel all over again.

"Travel Shouldn't Be Rushed—It Should Be Remembered."

That’s the core message from Ben Angell, Vice President and Managing Director of NCL APAC, who champions a more meaningful style of exploration. “The magic of many destinations doesn't end at sunset—it begins,” he says. “Our overnight sailings empower travelers to slow down, savor the moment, and experience places in their full, unfiltered beauty.”

Here are five handpicked destinations from NCL’s upcoming voyages that promise unforgettable overnight experiences—each one offering a perfect blend of adventure, culture, and late-night wonder.

Reykjavik, Iceland: Chase Midnight Light and Geothermal Dreams

The Northern sun never quite sets in Reykjavik, allowing travelers to plunge into the surreal geothermal Sky Lagoon even at midnight with daylight still dancing on the horizon. The Icelandic capital’s overnight itinerary transforms travel from sightseeing into a saga—letting guests explore the Golden Circle’s raw natural wonders by day and unwind in thermal bliss by night.

Sailing: Norwegian Prima

Date: 14 September 2025

Ports: London, Paris, Belfast, Norway’s fjords, with an overnight in Reykjavik.

Copenhagen, Denmark: Where Fairytales Meet Fine Dining

With a cityscape straight from a storybook, Copenhagen turns magical when the sun dips behind the Nyhavn waterfront. The scent of smørrebrød lingers in the air, and Tivoli Gardens lights up in a nostalgic glow. Guests get the rare privilege of wandering palace courtyards, indulging in Michelin-star dining, and spinning in antique carousels—all in one unforgettable night.

Sailing: Norwegian Prima

Date: 9 October 2025

Ports: Includes Helsinki, Amsterdam, Berlin, and an overnight in Copenhagen.

Hamburg, Germany: A Symphony of Culture and Nightlife

Dubbed Germany’s gateway to the world, Hamburg delivers an electric mix of heritage and hedonism. With an overnight stay, travelers can sway to live symphonies at the Elbphilharmonie, cruise the Aster River, and dive headfirst into the pulsing energy of the Reeperbahn—Europe’s boldest nightlife strip.

Sailing: Norwegian Dawn

Date: 9 September 2025

Ports: Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, and an overnight in Hamburg.

Istanbul, Turkey: A Tale of Two Continents

No other city straddles two worlds quite like Istanbul, where East meets West in a mosaic of minarets, spice bazaars, and ancient palaces. With overnight sailings, travelers can sip Turkish tea in Sultanahmet, lose themselves in the Grand Bazaar, and even extend their journey to Cappadocia for a sunrise balloon flight over surreal landscapes.

Sailing: Norwegian Viva

Dates: 24 August, 2 or 11 September 2025

Ports: Includes Greek Isles and an overnight in Istanbul.

Livorno, Italy: Tuscany After Twilight

While others rush through Florence or Pisa in a single afternoon, NCL lets you breathe in the Tuscan air through moonlit walks along the Terrazza Mascagni and candlelit dinners featuring the freshest catch at Livorno’s harbor. This is Italy without the crowds, where time slows and life feels fuller.

Sailing: Norwegian Breakaway

Dates: 9 September or 28 October 2025

Ports: Includes Barcelona, Cannes, Rome, and an overnight in Livorno.

What Makes NCL the Choice for the Curious Traveler?

NCL’s newest cruise offerings are not just about destinations—they’re about depth. With the innovative More At Sea™ program, guests enjoy:

Over $2,000 worth of perks including premium dining, entertainment, and spa access*

Flexible accommodation from solo traveler studios to luxury suites

Expanded port time with late departures and overnights for richer cultural immersion

World-class service and award-winning onboard experiences

With overnights in ports around the world, NCL is unlocking the after-hours magic of travel, where new cultures, flavors, and friendships await beyond the traditional tourist trail.

Book Now. Linger Longer. Live More.

Whether you dream of soaking in Icelandic hot springs at midnight, twirling under lanterns in Tivoli, or sipping raki with locals in a back-alley meyhane in Istanbul—Norwegian Cruise Line promises a voyage that doesn’t just take you places, but lets you live them.

For bookings, visit www.ncl.com or contact:

Hong Kong: +852 800 901 951

Southeast Asia: +65 3165 1680

Let the world linger with you.

Terms and conditions apply. More At Sea™ value is based on a 7-day Balcony cabin cruise. Select sailings offer overnight stays and inclusions vary. Visit www.ncl.com for complete details.

"Care, Not Cages: Akbayan Youth Condemns Padilla’s Push to Lower Criminal Liability Age"

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

In a fiery rebuke to what they describe as a “cruel and anti-poor” proposal, Akbayan Youth has sounded the alarm against Senator Robin Padilla’s controversial bill seeking to lower the age of criminal responsibility in the Philippines to a shocking 10 years old.

The youth organization minced no words, calling the bill not only a misguided attempt at justice, but a dangerous assault on children’s rights that threatens to further victimize the country’s most vulnerable—its poor and neglected youth.

“You don’t solve crime by jailing children. You solve it by fixing the homes that are broken, the schools that are failing, and a government that turns a blind eye to their suffering,”

declared Khylla Meneses, Akbayan Youth Secretary General.

With this bold statement, Meneses laid bare the deeper crisis afflicting the country: one that is rooted not in delinquency, but in systemic neglect, inequality, and poverty. To imprison a child, she suggests, is to criminalize the consequences of a society that has failed to nurture and protect them in the first place.

Children, Not Criminals

Senator Padilla’s proposal mirrors an old, repeatedly defeated initiative—one that critics argue caters to punitive populism rather than genuine justice reform. For Akbayan Youth, the move reeks of performative politics and an utter disregard for the science of child development, psychological trauma, and rehabilitation.

“Children in conflict with the law are not simply set free. The Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act already provides for mechanisms like Bahay Pag-asa, where young offenders undergo intervention and rehabilitation,” Meneses explained.

Indeed, existing laws already allow for accountability—but with discernment, and with the child’s best interest at heart. The courts can, and do, determine whether a child acted with criminal intent. Yet, instead of strengthening these systems, Padilla’s bill seeks to shortcut justice by stripping children of protection.

A System Rigged Against the Poor

The youth organization also highlighted a critical dimension often buried in political discourse: the class bias embedded in criminal justice.

Lowering the age of criminal responsibility will not target rich delinquents hiding behind lawyers and privilege. It will ensnare children from slums and squatters—those forced by circumstance into survival mode, those exploited by syndicates or abandoned by institutions meant to safeguard them.

“Only the poor will end up behind bars,” said Meneses. “And the prisons will keep growing, not because we solved crime—but because we punished poverty.”

In this grim future, juvenile detention centers could become warehouses of wasted potential, filled with children who needed guidance, not incarceration.

Call to Courage: Tackle the Root, Not the Rot

Akbayan Youth is not merely rejecting a bill. They are issuing a rallying cry to lawmakers to show courage—not by posturing tough on crime, but by confronting its root causes.

What they demand is investment in:

Strengthening families, not tearing them further apart

Improving schools, not making them pipelines to prison

Providing mental health and social services, not metal bars and isolation

Expanding community-based intervention programs, not expanding prison budgets

“We need care, not cages,” Meneses reiterated. “No one has the right to preach about justice if they can turn their backs on the youth.”

Children Are the Nation’s Future—Not Its Scapegoats

Senator Padilla may believe he’s striking a blow against lawlessness. But if this bill passes, it may well become a historical stain on the nation’s conscience—a chilling reminder that, in times of moral crisis, some leaders chose to punish children instead of saving them.

Akbayan Youth stands as a powerful reminder that the nation’s youth are not criminals-in-waiting—they are citizens in need of nurturing, equity, and hope.

Their message is clear: Treat children like children. Help them rise, don’t cast them down. Reform, don’t repress. Heal, don’t harm.

Because a country that cages its future, has no future at all.

Journey to Japan's Hidden Soul: The Kiso Valley Awakening

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

Where ancient pilgrims once sought enlightenment beneath the shadow of a sacred volcano, modern travelers now discover something equally transformative—a profound connection to Japan's most authentic self.

The Last Secret of Old Japan

In an age where bullet trains slice through landscapes at impossible speeds and neon cities pulse with relentless energy, there exists a valley that time forgot. Nestled deep in the heart of Nagano Prefecture, the Kiso Valley holds within its embrace something increasingly rare in our modern world: the soul of traditional Japan, preserved like a precious artifact in mountain mist and hot spring steam.

This is not the Japan of tourist guidebooks or Instagram feeds. This is the Japan that whispers rather than shouts, that invites contemplation rather than consumption. It's a place where the very act of walking becomes a form of meditation, where every meal tells a story that stretches back centuries, and where the simple pleasure of sinking into mineral-rich waters connects you to generations of travelers who sought the same solace beneath these ancient peaks.

Walk Japan, the pioneering tour company that has been unlocking Japan's hidden treasures since 1992, has just unveiled their most intimate revelation yet: the Onsen Gastronomy: Kiso in Nagano tour. This isn't merely a vacation—it's a pilgrimage into the heart of what makes Japan truly extraordinary.

The Theatre of Seasons

Picture this: You stand at the edge of the Kiso Valley as dawn breaks over Ontake-san, the sacred volcano that has watched over this land for millennia. In spring, the valley floor erupts in a symphony of green so vivid it seems almost unreal. Cherry blossoms drift like snow through crisp mountain air while ancient cedars stretch their arms toward heaven, their branches heavy with morning dew.

Come autumn, and the same landscape transforms into something from a painter's fevered dream. Maples burst into flames of crimson and gold, their reflections dancing in hot spring pools that steam like dragon's breath in the cooling air. The very mountains seem to glow with an inner fire, as if lit from within by some celestial forge.

Winter brings its own magic—a hush that settles over the valley like a benediction. Snow falls in fat, lazy flakes, transforming post towns into scenes from ancient woodblock prints. The only sounds are the soft whisper of snowshoes on pristine powder and the distant temple bell calling across the frozen landscape. This is when the hot springs become not just luxury, but necessity—a warm embrace that thaws both body and spirit.

Where History Lives and Breathes

The Kiso Valley isn't just beautiful—it's alive with history. This was once part of the Nakasendo, one of the five great roads that connected Edo (modern Tokyo) with Kyoto during Japan's feudal era. Samurai, merchants, pilgrims, and poets all walked these paths, their footsteps wearing smooth the stones that you'll tread today.

The post towns—Kiso-Fukushima, Narai, and Kiso-Hirasawa—aren't museum pieces frozen in time. They're living, breathing communities where tradition isn't performed for tourists but practiced as a way of life. In Kiso-Hirasawa, craftsmen still shape lacquerware using techniques passed down through thirty generations, their hands moving with the same rhythms that have echoed through these workshops for centuries.

Walk these narrow streets and you'll hear the whisper of history in every creaking floorboard, see it in every weathered beam of the machiya townhouses that line the way. This is Japan as it was meant to be experienced—not from behind the window of a tour bus, but step by step, breath by breath, with the unhurried pace that allows genuine understanding to take root.

The Sacred and the Sublime

Looming over everything is Ontake-san, the sacred mountain that has drawn pilgrims for over a thousand years. This isn't just any mountain—it's a living deity in the Shinto tradition, a place where the boundary between the physical and spiritual worlds grows thin. Ancient shrines dot its slopes like prayer beads on a cosmic rosary, each one a gateway to deeper understanding.

The pilgrimage paths that wind up its flanks have been worn smooth by countless seekers. Some came in white robes, staff in hand, seeking purification and enlightenment. Others arrived broken by loss or uncertainty, hoping to find answers in the mountain's eternal silence. All found something they didn't expect—a profound sense of connection to something larger than themselves.

Today, you don't need to be deeply religious to feel the mountain's power. There's something about standing in its shadow, breathing the thin air that has been sanctified by centuries of prayer, that awakens a sense of reverence even in the most secular hearts.

A Feast for Body and Soul

But this journey isn't just about spiritual nourishment—it's about feeding every sense with experiences that can only be found in this hidden corner of Japan. The cuisine of Kiso is mountain food at its most refined, hearty dishes born from necessity but elevated to art through generations of careful refinement.

Imagine sitting in a traditional ryokan as your host presents handmade soba noodles, each strand cut to perfect uniformity by hands that learned the technique from masters who learned it from their masters before them. The buckwheat was grown in mountain fields where the air is so pure it seems to crystallize on your tongue. This isn't fast food—it's slow food in its most profound sense, each bite a meditation on place and time and the patient hands that transformed humble ingredients into something transcendent.

The mountain vegetables—sansai—are foraged from forests that have never known the touch of cultivation. Wild ferns unfurl their flavors like secrets being whispered, while bamboo shoots offer a sweetness that speaks of soil rich with centuries of fallen leaves. Paired with sake from boutique breweries that produce their liquid poetry in small batches, each meal becomes a celebration of terroir in its most authentic form.

The Healing Waters

And then there are the onsen—the hot springs that give this tour its name and its deepest purpose. These aren't just baths; they're transformative experiences that connect you to the very heart of Japanese culture. For over a thousand years, travelers have sought out these mineral-rich waters, believing in their power to heal not just the body but the spirit itself.

Picture yourself sinking into waters heated by the same volcanic forces that shaped Ontake-san, feeling the day's tensions dissolve like mist. The minerals work their ancient magic—sulfur for the skin, calcium for the bones, magnesium for muscles worn from walking. But the real healing goes deeper. In the democratic nudity of the onsen, all pretense falls away. Rich and poor, young and old, all become simply human beings sharing a moment of perfect vulnerability and peace.

The ritual of onsen bathing is meditation in action. The careful washing before entering the communal bath, the slow immersion that allows the body to adjust, the quiet contemplation as you float in waters that connect you to the earth's molten core—every step is designed to slow you down, to bring you into the present moment with an intensity that our hurried modern lives rarely allow.

An Intimate Revolution

What makes Walk Japan's Onsen Gastronomy tour truly revolutionary is its intimacy. With groups limited to just twelve people, this isn't mass tourism—it's a carefully curated experience that allows for genuine connection, both with the landscape and with fellow travelers who've made the same commitment to experiencing Japan at its deepest level.

Your days unfold with the gentle rhythm of a haiku—awakening to mountain views, walking distances that allow for conversation and contemplation (never more than 3.3 kilometers), sharing meals that become communion, and ending each day in the healing embrace of hot springs. This is travel as it was meant to be: transformative rather than merely transactional.

The seasonal activities add layers of wonder to an already rich experience. Spring and summer bring the possibility of riding alpine cable cars high into the peaks, where the world spreads out below like a living map of serenity. Autumn offers hiking through forests painted in impossible colors. Winter transforms the experience entirely, with snowshoeing through silent woodlands where every branch carries its burden of snow like offerings to the mountain gods.

The Call of the Valley

There's something happening in our world—a hunger for authenticity, for experiences that feed the soul rather than just entertain the senses. We're tired of superficial encounters with places and cultures, tired of checking boxes on bucket lists. We want to be changed by our travels, not just photographed against their backdrops.

The Kiso Valley offers that transformation. It's a place where the pace of life still follows natural rhythms, where seasons matter not just as weather but as spiritual states. It's where you can walk in the footsteps of pilgrims and poets, where you can taste foods prepared with reverence for tradition, where you can bathe in waters that have healed travelers for over a millennium.

This isn't a tour you take—it's a journey you surrender to. It's an opportunity to step outside the relentless pace of modern life and into a rhythm as old as the mountains themselves. It's a chance to discover not just a hidden corner of Japan, but perhaps a hidden corner of yourself that you'd forgotten existed.

The Kiso Valley is calling, its voice carried on mountain winds and hot spring steam. The question isn't whether you'll answer—it's whether you're ready for what you might discover when you do.

Walk Japan's Onsen Gastronomy: Kiso in Nagano tour operates year-round, with prices starting from ¥380,000 per person. For a journey that promises to change the way you see Japan—and perhaps the way you see yourself—this may be the most important investment you'll ever make in your own transformation.