Luxury goods have been particularly hard hit by the economic slow-down, and travel is no exception. That means there are more discounts than ever before for this category of travel for those who are able to take advantage of these unprecedented savings.

One such deal that crossed my desk this week is for one of the most awarded small luxury cruise lines—Windstar Cruises. Windstar operates just three yachts in Europe, the Caribbean and the Americas, carrying between 148 to 312 passengers, max. Its smaller ship sizes means a higher crew-to-passenger ratio, for more attentive service, as well as the ability to dock in intimate and secluded spots that are off-limits to larger vessels.

Photo: Courtesy of Windstar Cruises

Starting today, Oct. 15, 2009, Windstar is offering a “30 Sailings for 30 Days” sale on 30 select cruises set to depart in 2010. Rates start at $1,849 per person, double occupancy for 29 of Windstar’s 7-day sailings on the 312-guest Wind Surf and the 148-guest Wind Star and Wind Spirit yachts. The Wind Surf’s April 18, 2010 sailing from Rome to Athens starts at $1,649 per person, double occupancy. (The regular starting rate for this trip is $2,399.) Overall discounts add up to roughly 25 to 30 percent savings per person. That’s decent enough even for me for to consider making a booking, and I’m not even a cruise person.

Here’s a list of the itineraries on sale for each ship:

Wind Surf Sailings:
4/18/10 Rome to Athens         8/08/10 Rome to Nice
4/25/10 Athens to Rome         8/22/10 Barcelona to Nice
5/30/08 Rome to Rome           8/29/10 Nice to Rome
6/20/10 Venice to Venice        9/12/10 Venice to Venice
7/04/10 Rome to Nice             9/19/10 Venice to Rome
7/18/10 Barcelona to Rome    9/26/10 Rome to Nice

Wind Star Sailings:
3/06/10 Costa Rica Roundtrip      7/31/10 Istanbul to Athens
3/20/10 Costa Rica Roundtrip     10/23/10 Rome to Rome
7/03/10 Athens to Rome             10/30/10 Rome to Barcelona
7/10/10 Rome to Rome               11/06/10 Barcelona to Lisbon
7/17/10 Rome to Athens

Wind Spirit Sailings:
3/13/10 St. Martin Roundtrip    10/23/10 Athens to Rome
5/08/10 Nice to Rome              10/30/10 Rome to Rome
5/15/10 Rome to Rome            11/06/10 Rome to Barcelona
7/17/10 Venice to Venice          11/13/10 Barcelona to Lisbon
7/24/10 Venice to Athens

Offer cannot be combined with any other promotions or programs, except for CLIA’s “World’s Largest Cruise Night” $50 per person shipboard credit promotion. Taxes are additional. Offer is capacity controlled and may be withdrawn or modified at the discretion of Windstar. Offer valid on new bookings between Oct. 15 and Nov. 14, 2009.

For more information including rates and itineraries call Windstar at 800-258-7245 or visit www.windstarcruises.com.

The award-winning luxury adventure cruise line has announced that its 2009 World Cruise will feature an unprecedented number of adventure tours during its 109-day expedition, totaling more than 300 tours, with 125 that are brand new for ‘09. New tours include zip lining through tropical rainforests in New Caldonia; a day-long trek through Siem Reap National Park in Cambodia; swimming with dolphins in New Zealand; and wine tasting in Adelaide, in Australia’s renowned Barossa Valley.

The 2009 World Cruise leaves Los Angeles for its round-trip Pacific Circle Celebration journey on January 21 and returns May 7, 2009; fares start at $54,135. If you can’t take three-and-a-half months off, consider shorter World Voyage cruise offerings: 12-, 14-, 16-, 18- and 22-day cruises, starting at $5,895. For more information, go to www.crystalcruises.com.