THE RIGHT PRICE…………………….$399
November 6, 2010: 7 days, Eastern Caribbean, Fort Lauderdale round-trip
Note: Oceanview also starts at $399, verandah at $599
Ports: Turks and Caicos; San Juan, PR; St. Thomas, VI; Half Moon Cay, Bahamas
Ship: ms Eurodam Contact: Holland America
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The political upheaval in Ecuador this week is another reason for cruise lines to bypass a South American country already wracked with poverty. There aren’t many ships that re-position down the west coast to begin with — only the Celebrity Infinity and Holland America’s Rotterdam have stops scheduled there in the next three months.
A couple of years ago we took a re-positioning cruise on the Norwegian Sun (NCL no longer does South America) and Manta, Ecuador was among the ports. There is poverty throughout Central and South America, but it seemed worse in Ecuador, where we were told the aspirations of young people were to go to the U.S. and send money back home.
If you use the rule of thumb that a cruise-ship visit is worth $1 million to places like Manta and Guayaquil, skipping Ecuadorian ports is a huge hit for a country already mired in financial and political upheaval.
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New Zealand, which some may consider Australia’s poor cousin as cruise destinations go, is getting aggressive to retain or regain visiting ships. Yesterday, the government slashed levies from $8.29 per passenger to $3.30. That’s a saving of $100,000 per ship, per visit, for cruise companies.
Cruise New Zealand chairman Craig Harris told Auckland TV station 3news that the levy is going down to what it should always have been, and that Maritime New Zealand miscalculated it. He says it has cost the industry over $4 million in the past three years.
If that’s all true, didn’t it take a long time to figure this out?
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The ever-changing Alaska market is getting a new player, or an old player returning. Crystal Cruises has nine 12-day itineraries, round-trip from San Francisco, and they’re all different. Seven of the nine feature “Emerging Artists, the brightest upcoming stars and finalists in The Los Angeles Music Center’s annual Spotlight Awards, performing in various musical realms.
The ships will make two stops in British Columbia and either four or five more in Alaska. The first one departs May 9, the last August 13, all on the Symphony (below). Crystal last sailed to Alaska in 2005.
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That’s it, we’re done.