The Right Price………..$279
Ship: Celebrity Century, 4 nights, Western Caribbean Departure: March 24
Ports: Key West, Cozumel Contact: Celebrity Cruises
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Too short for the Aqua Duck?…That’s what some Disney cruisers discovered when they took their 8-year-old, 3-foot-10 sons or daughters to ride the innovative water coaster on the 
Disney Dream…Disney’s universal height policy for “certain” rides is 48 inches, although nobody seems to know where the magic number comes from, nor what it applies to…The disappointment on the faces and lips of the passengers caused Disney to tinker with the restrictions — after all, Disney is the happiest place on earth…As of this week, Aqua Duck rules are that single riders must be 54 inches tall and at least 7 years old, otherwise they go with a sidekick 14 years old or more, and if that’s what they do the smaller rider need only be 42 inches in height…And if the 53-inch high single rider is an adult?…Disney says the two-person rafts can get stuck in the Aqua Duck if there’s not enough weight…So what happens if the two people are both skinny — i.e., light?
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Perhaps Shirley Bassey will no longer be giving cruise ships the Goldfinger…The famous British recording star who sang the hit song for the James Bond movie of the same name will christen P&O’s new ship, Adonia, in May in Southampton and in the process become its godmother…According to Cruise Critic, Dame Shirley, now 74, complained four years ago that large yacht Le Grand Bleu spoiled the view of the Monaco harbor from her hilltop apartment in the Mediterranean principality…In another twist of irony, she performed her songs (Diamonds Are Forever was another James Bond hit) thousands of times on cruise ships…The Adonia, by the way, is currently sailing as the Royal Princess…No word as to whether it will be allowed in the harbor at Monaco.
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Impact of fuel prices, part MXLVII…With the increase expected to continue, it can only be a matter of time until cruise lines activate the hated “fuel surcharge” to cover their costs, so get ready for it…The instability of Libya has made fuel prices a headline again, even though many analysts say they were on the way up anyway…InsiderScore.com claims that Carnival Cruise Lines CFO David Bernstein and CEO Gerald Cahill both sold 18% of their stock in the line on Tuesday, as Carnival’s prices were beginning to fall…Last week, Carnival stock closed at $45.70 and on Tuesday, Cahill allegedly sold 25,000 shares at $43.76, and Bernstein 10,000 shares at $41.99…Lest anyone think they immediately profited by dumping a falling stock, Carnival closed yesterday at $42.78.
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The roller coaster ride in Mazatlan continues…On Thursday, Norwegian announced that its Star would not stop at the Mexican Riviera resort for the rest of the season, which ends 
April 30 “because of recent incidents of violence”…The Norwegian Star will make back-to-back stops in Cabo San Lucas instead…NCL’s Jade will skip Egypt on its March 6 sailing, a 12-day cruise that now includes two overnights and three days in Istanbul, Turkey …Another Norwegian ship, the Dawn, is going into dry dock in May and when it comes out, there will be 58 additional cabins, 30 inside staterooms and 28 suites…It’s an extensive refurbishing, lasting 27 days in Freeport, and the additional suites will be only some of the changes…Even so, some of the finishing work will continue through the summer, so the new suites aren’t available until the ship’s September 16 departure…No word on how this will impact on the Dawn’s current capacity of 2,244, nor on what space is being lost for the “additional” cabins…Two other NCL ships, the Sun and the Spirit, are also being refurbished this year.
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That’s it, we’re done.