Which Ships Are Best…And To Where?

Because they're so subjective, cruise ship awards and surveys can be construed as somewhat meaningless, not to mention redundant. Whose "best cruise ship carrying more than 3,000 passengers in the Caribbean on the third Saturdays of January" means the most. (Weak attempt at humor.) So when Cruise Critic reveals its latest Cruisers' Choice Awards, as… Continue reading Which Ships Are Best…And To Where?

Disastrous Fallout From Cruise Ship Death

And then there's the story about the cruise line that appears to know nothing about public relations, not to mention human decency… In a story that is all over TV and newspapers in Great Britain, a rogue wave smashed into a British "cruise ship" during a storm in the English Channel last week, breaking windows… Continue reading Disastrous Fallout From Cruise Ship Death

Norwegian's Morphing of Freestyle Into Paystyle

In the midst of today's christening of its new ship the Getaway, Norwegian has also launched a new way to eat on board, calling it the Ultimate Dining Package. A cynic might call it Paystyle Cruising. That's a play on Freestyle Cruising, the revolutionary concept Norwegian introduced about 15 years ago. It eventually spread to… Continue reading Norwegian's Morphing of Freestyle Into Paystyle

Are these Olympics a little Jade-d?

  The fun starts tomorrow, which on this side of the ocean may be today. The 17-day sports/political quadrennial known as the Olympic Games. People who go on cruise ships are surely among the assembled masses and there is at least one mass-market ship among the four "cruise ships" on the scene in Sochi, Russia:… Continue reading Are these Olympics a little Jade-d?

Different Kind Of Month For Carnival!

  It is now official. Carnival is no longer a four-letter word in the cruise industry. At least, not with the customers, the people who count the most. Last Friday, the sometimes-beleaguered cruise line reported record sales figures. It was the biggest month in Carnival's history for "net bookings" — new reservations minus cancellations. The… Continue reading Different Kind Of Month For Carnival!