In most of the continent, the refrain is the same these days.
Heat wave. People are collapsing, even dying, from the high temperatures and suffocating heat. Air conditioners are working overtime. Everyone is looking for a place to go to escape.
Like Hawaii.
Hawaii?
We live in a culture where a Hawaiian vacation is something you do in the winter, to escape the cold. Almost nobody thinks about being in Hawaii in the summer.
Too hot, you say?
Yesterday, it was 83 degrees in Honolulu. Yes, the humidity was 48% so it was muggy. the Weather Network said it felt like 95.
Right now, many North Americans would take that.
Maybe Norwegian Cruise Line has it right. For seven years, NCL has been operating cruises around the Hawaiian Islands on the Pride of America. No other ships are capable, allowing Norwegian to corner the market. In order to operate only in Hawaii, a ship must be registered in the U.S. and this one was the first American-flagged ship in 50 years. Non-U.S. ships have to make a port stop in another country (the Jones Act).
With Pride of America, it must be working. The 7-day cruises offer more than 100 hours in ports, more than any other cruise. It's often sold out. Last year, a company owned by Norwegian expanded its land interests by adding seven open-top, double-decker buses, creating 60 new jobs in a place that lives and dies on tourism. NCL's luau show was voted the best in Hawaii by Lonely Planet.
The cruises run 52 weeks a year, even in the heat of summer.
It is, after all, just 83 degrees.
Carnival Liberty
7 nights
September 22, 2012
Miami (return): Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Grand Cayman
Inside: $479
Cost per day: $68
www.carnival.com