Great getaways: New York and the Caribbean; Arctic adventure; winter Sun in …

Due west

Virgin Cruises has a 10-night twin-centre that combines New York and the Caribbean. Departing on 3 February with Virgin flights from Heathrow to JFK, it starts with two nights’ room-only at the Beacon Hotel, before boarding the Carnival Splendor for eight days, stopping at Grand Turk, Half Moon Cay, and Nassau for £999pp  (virginholidayscruises.co.uk).

Arctic adventure

If you’re after something more intimate, World Expeditions offers small cruises of 20 passengers. The expert guides should come in handy when you’re hunting for the Northern Lights. The “West Spitsbergen – Aurora Borealis” trip departs from Longyearbyen, capital of Norway’s remote Svalbard archipelago, on 13 and 18 October, taking in frozen fjords and Arctic wildlife over six days, for US$1,800pp (£1,200),  flights extra (worldexpeditions.com).

Winter Sun

Trade the autumn chill for the benign climes of the Canary Islands. PO Cruiseshas a 13-night trip from Southampton aboard the Oriana on 7 October, for £799pp. Ports include Lisbon, Seville, Lanzarote, Tenerife, La Palma, and Madeira (pocruises.co.uk).

Look East

For a taste of the exotic, depart from Singapore on 9 December aboard Holland America Line’s MS Voledam for Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam before ending in Hong Kong. The price is £949pp in an ocean-view cabin, flights excluded (hollandamerica.com).