Saturday, July 10, 2010

Royal Caribbean Enhancements to Crown and Anchor Society

Royal Caribbean International announced new enhancements to the cruise line's Crown & Anchor Society that will better recognize and reward the cruise line's loyal member guests. The new Crown & Anchor Society enhancements will begin rolling out on June 1, 2010, offering members the exclusive privilege to book their next cruise onboard and receive an onboard credit for their future sailing. Members also can apply their Crown & Anchor Society Savings Certificates and receive the onboard credit for their future booking, receive more individual attention and service from additional onboard Loyalty Staff aboard each ship, have priority notification of exclusive member specials, and exclusively receive added-value offers in the Crown & Anchor Society Ultimate Value Booklet.


"We listened to our member guests and are launching program enhancements to reflect what they told us matter most to them," said Betsy O'Rourke, senior vice president of Marketing, Royal Caribbean International. "The new exclusive benefits will add to those that members have enjoyed in the past and reflect Royal Caribbean's commitment to recognize and reward our loyal members who cruise with us again and again. There has never been a better time to be a Crown & Anchor Society member, and there is more to come."

Crown & Anchor Society members will now have the exclusive privilege to reserve their next cruise while onboard a Royal Caribbean vacation. The new and exclusive Onboard Booking Bonus offers members the exclusive privilege to book a future cruise onboard and receive an onboard credit to spend on the future sailing, which can now also be used with either a Crown & Anchor Savings Certificate or a Balcony and Suite Discount (the latter applicable for Platinum, Diamond or Diamond Plus members), offering member guests great savings for their next cruise. Travel agent partners will continue to earn commission for onboard bookings.

An additional Crown & Anchor Society Loyalty Staff member also has been appointed aboard each ship to offer more personalized service and deliver the Royal treatment to each member guest. The Loyalty Staff members can help answer member guests' questions and help them reserve future cruises to take advantage of the new and enhanced vacation offers, available only to members of the Crown & Anchor Society.

Crown & Anchor Society members also will notice the new program enhancements both at home and onboard. Members will continue to enjoy first-to-know priority notice and access to new developments, special events, and exclusive offers that reward members for their loyalty. Travel agent partners also will be notified simultaneously. Onboard, member guests will be recognized every time they advance to a new level; and enjoy new enhanced benefits in their Ultimate Value Booklet, filled with new onboard savings for beverages, internet packages, photo and logo merchandise, supplementing classic favorites such as casino and spa discounts, to name a few.

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Safe Cruising Tips

Passengers on world cruises have been told to observe blackouts to protect against pirates in African waters.

Captains on the P&O cruise ships Aurora and Arcadia asked the passengers to take the action while the vessels sailed through the Gulf of Aden.

They were told not to use the promenade deck and to keep the curtains closed between 6.30pm and 7am.

 They were, however, allowed to leave their cabins.

The Aurora takes 1,870 passengers and the Arcadia has room for 2,000.

Passengers pay around £1,100 for a three- or four-week “sector” of the trip although the price for a full round-the-world cruise is over £7,000.

As part of the world cruise, the Aurora and Arcadia sail from Southampton through the Mediterranean, onto the Suez Canal and through the pirate-infested waters of Somalia.

The area has seen so much piracy in recent years - by gangs armed with automatic rifles and even rocket-propelled grenades - that an international patrol of warships from EU countries was set up.

The International Maritime Organization, which regulates shipping, drew up a set of advice on how to deter pirates.

The code says attacks are most common at dawn and dusk and recommends ships keep their speed up, use dummies as fake lookouts and spool razor wire around the lowest parts of the vessel.

It also recommends that people should stay off the decks during the hours of darkness.

However, drawing the curtains against pirates does not seem to be an internationally recognised solution to the problem.

A spokesman for the IMO said: “I’ve never heard of it before.”

This is the first time such measures have been taken by P&O.

Both the Aurora and the Arcadia set off on world cruises, which last around 100 days from Southampton. Both head through the Suez Canal before one travels eastwards and one westwards.

The Arcadia is currently off the Italian coast and due back in Southampton in the next few days, while the Aurora is off west Africa heading home via Madeira. They passed through the Gulf of Aden in January.

A spokeswoman for P&O said: “Passengers were asked to draw the curtains in their cabins and not go onto the promenade deck. Apart from that they had the freedom of the ship, as usual.

“Cruise ship security is the industry’s highest priority, and cruising is a safe holiday.

“Security standards are strictly guided by a network of internationally approved standards, and individual cruise lines also have well established security assessment procedures and protocols.

“Our fleets are equipped with a comprehensive series of protective measures and devices which are activated in accordance with the ship’s security plan.”

British couple Paul Chandler, 60, and his wife Rachel, 56, were kidnapped by Somali pirates after their yacht was seized last October. The gunmen have demanded a ransom of £1.3m. The Foreign Office says it is doing all it can.

In November 2005, a cruise ship sailing off Somalia repelled armed pirates without returning fire by using bangs to simulate weapons.

Source: 
telegraph.co.uk/travel/cruises/cruise-news/7572614/Stay-safe-against-pirates-draw-the-curtains-cruise-passengers-told.html

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Thomson Cruises' Dream: Ship Review

Thomson Cruises has added a fourth ship, Thomson Dream, to its fleet. The vessel joins the British cruise line from Costa Cruises, where it sailed as Costa Europa; built in 1986 (when it sailed as the Homeric under Home Lines), it underwent a “chop and stretch” procedure in 1990 when it moved to Costa.

At 55,000 tons and with room for 1,506 passengers, the ship is the biggest in the Thomson fleet. It is neither glitzy nor glamorous, nor indeed luxurious as suggested in the brochure, but it has a comfortable feel and sits well in Thomson Cruises’ budget brand.

The cruise line has set aside £5 million to spend on it later this year to refresh areas looking a little tired and give it a more Thomson/British feel.

Thomson Dream is sailing seven-night cruises from Palma, Majorca, this summer. It moves to the Caribbean in winter, where it will be sailing three 14-night itineraries including one from Montego Bay in Jamaica to Bridgetown, Barbados, and spending three days in Havana, Cuba.
Facilities

One of the ship’s best features is the amount of open deck space. Another is that one of the two pools has a sliding roof that can be closed when the weather is poor, which will relieve pressure off the inside rooms on rainy days.

When this ship was built, spas and gyms were not big business, and cruising wasn’t a pastime for families, so while there are areas dedicated to health and children, they are small.

Conversely, bars and lounges tended to be big to accommodate the live bands and dance floors that were popular back then.

There are eight bars on the ship, including the Medusa Lounge, which spans the width of the ship. The Ladonte Disco is more of a large lounge than cosy nightclub. The Ocean Bar is more intimate, while the Argo Lounge is a quaintly elegant and quiet place to sit. There is a sizeable theatre and casino with gaming tables and slot machines.
Dining

There are three places to eat on Thomson Dream. Orion Restaurant has waiter service for its breakfast, lunch and dinner, with an open dining system in the evening so you can turn up and eat when you want.

The self-service restaurant is open 24 hours a day, and there’s a second buffet, Sirens, which is open for help-yourself breakfast and lunch, but which becomes an à la carte restaurant in the evening.

I dined in the à la carte restaurant when the ship was Costa Europa and was relieved to see that Thomson has changed the menu as a matter of urgency, replacing the raw egg with caviar and snails main course with a more palatable choice of pasta, beef, chicken and lobster. It costs £25 per person to dine there.
Cabins

The ship has mainly inside and ocean-view cabins and suites. Six Grand Suites have their own balconies. Cabins are equipped with the usual TVs, minibars, safes and hairdryers, and there’s a surprisingly good selection of shampoos and conditioners – better than I’ve seen on some ships that can more accurately claim luxury status.
Entertainment

As Thomson sells almost exclusively in the UK, entertainment is very British and ranges from the usual cruise ship fare of song-and-dance production shows and comedians in the theatre to games shows, quizzes and bingo in the Medusa Lounge.

“West End Whizz” featuring the songs of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Rogers and Hammerstein was on during my visit, while a Mr and Mrs search was on in Medusa for the most romantic couple on board.

There’s a DJ and karaoke in Ladonte Disco and a Hungarian piano and violin duo playing in the Ocean Bar.


Source: telegraph.co.uk/travel/cruises/7737091/Thomson-Cruises-Dream-ship-review.html

Celebrity Cruises' Eclipse: Ship Review

Celebrity Cruises is taking on the UK’s established cruise lines by basing its classy new ship Celebrity Eclipse in Southampton and tweaking its American style to appeal to the British, who are expected to make up 80 per cent of passengers on each sailing.
There are kettles in cabins, Yorkshire pud and mushy peas on the menu and one lounge will offer pub quizzes and games.
The ship, used to rescue holidaymakers stranded in Bilbao, Spain, during last month’s week-long ash crisis, was named in Southampton on April 24 by the local yachtswoman and breast cancer survivor Emma Pontin, who was chosen because breast cancer is Celebrity’s chosen charity.
Celebrity Eclipse weighs 122,000 tons and holds 2,850 passengers, based on double occupancy (3,143 when full). It is based in Southampton until October, sailing to the Mediterranean, Baltic and Canary Islands. In winter it will be sailing in the Caribbean from Miami.

Facilities

The wow factor is the half-acre real grass lawn on the top deck where you can play croquet and boules, or go putting (there are three holes) – passengers can even have a picnic on the lawn.
There are 12 bars and lounges, the most popular being the Martini Bar, which features a layer of ice on the counter. The Sky Observation Lounge has floor-to-ceiling windows and will be transformed into a pub on some nights of each cruise. At Galleria Tastings you can learn how to mix a cocktail. Cellar Masters has comfy leather sofas and dark wood, and machines which dispense wine by the glass. You just buy a card and choose your measure.
There are three pools, a theatre, a nightclub and children’s and teen areas. Other facilities include a spa, gym and casino.

Dining

The new Qsine restaurant (new because it’s not its on two sister ships) is a speciality restaurant serving quirky takes on old favourites, such as fish and chips in cardboard boxes, sushi lollipops and spring rolls served in springs. The menu is on an iPad and there are no courses – just order and dishes turn up when they’re ready. There’s a $30 (£20) per person charge.
Murano serves upmarket French cuisine at $35 (£24) per person, the Tuscan Grille ($25/£17 per person) is an Italian steak and seafood restaurant and you can have crêpes in Bistro on Five for an extra $5 (£3) per person.
There’s no charge for food from the buffet, poolside grill or dining room, which has fixed or dine-when-you like seating. To appeal to the British, there’ll be more vegetarian and Indian dishes on the menus, plus beef stew, Yorkshire pudding, mushy peas and pork pies.
Blu is an intimate dining room with a healthier menu for passengers booked in an AquaClass cabin (see below).

Cabins

There are inside, outside and balcony cabins and suites, a few with third or fourth beds or interconnecting doors for families.
There are kettles in all the cabins on sailings from Southampton (they’ll be put into storage while the ship is in the Caribbean) but only tea bags are supplied: milk and coffee needs to be ordered through room service. As a nod to its British passengers, BBC Prime and Sky News are available on in-cabin televisions.
There are 130 AquaClass cabins near the spa. These cost more but come with extras such as bath robes, free bottled water, toiletries and free access to the thermal suite (usually $20/£13.50 a day) and a table in Blu.

Entertainment

As with the food, Celebrity is tweaking entertainment to appeal to the British. Masque is a party tribute to the Beatles, Elton John and Queen. There are three shows in the theatre – I caught a glimpse of “Eclipse – The Show”, a mix of dance and aerial acrobatics, which wasn’t as spectacular as the daily newsletter suggested, but enjoyable nonetheless.
The other performances are Ovations, featuring plenty of Andrew Lloyd Webber, and Edge, a song-and-dance show.
There are live bands in venues around the ship. The string quartet in the atrium was lovely – the music flows up into Bistro on Five and the Martini Bar - but I was less keen on the jazz band, which drowned out all conversation.

Source: telegraph.co.uk/travel/cruises/7736420/Celebrity-Cruises-Eclipse-ship-review.html

Thursday, June 3, 2010

Cruise Deal Referred to Regulator

The proposed merger between the cruise operators P&O Princess and Royal Caribbean has been referred to the UK's Competition Commission by the government.

Despite the move, the head of P&O Princess said he was confident the deal would be approved.

The two firms announced their intention to create a new power in the cruise line industry last November.

Since then the US firm Carnival has launched a £3.5bn bid for P&O Princess, which the UK cruise operator has rejected.

On the London stock exchange, shares in P&O Princess fell 7p to 392p following the announcement.

New number one

The planned merger between P&O Princess and Royal Caribbean would create the world's biggest cruise ship operator, ousting Carnival from the top spot.

The new business would have a market value of about $6bn (£4.1bn), employing some 40,000 people.

It would offer cruises in the US, Australia, the Mediterranean and the Baltic Sea, with a fleet of over 40 ships.

"The Director General of Fair Trading has advised me that there remain sufficient competition concerns surrounding this merger to warrant a reference to the Competition Commission," the Trade & Industry Secretary Patricia Hewitt said in a statement.

But the head of P&O Princess remained upbeat.

"Notwithstanding this reference, we are confident that we will receive clearance once the Competition Commission has fully reviewed the substantive facts and issues surrounding our combination with Royal Caribbean," said chief executive Peter Ratcliffe.

P&O Princess shareholders are due to vote on the proposed merger with Royal Caribbean at an extraordinary general meeting on 14 February.

Source:  news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/1788783.stm

Monday, May 31, 2010

Record Breaking Year for Cruise Passenger Numbers at Southampton

MORE cruise passengers came through Southampton last year than ever before.

The city is at the forefront of the seemingly unstoppable growth of the British cruise ship industry, which took another impressive leap forward last year, while 2010 is forecast to see this increase double over the next 12 months.

In 2009, for the first time ever, the annual total of British cruise ship passengers topped 1.5m, a rise of four per cent, but this year the increase is expected to double to eight per cent, with 1.65m bookings by people heading for the high life on the high seas.

These latest figures from the Passenger shipping Association, the trade body representing the cruising industry in Britain, seem to indicate this sector has not been holed below the waterline by the downturn in the economy, unlike other areas of the holiday market.

For a video of the top stories in today's Daily Echo, click the front page.

PSA director Bill Gibbons said: “The British public went into 2009 facing the most serious economic crisis for a generation and how did they respond?

“By booking more cruises than ever before; taking more than one cruise in the year, opting for a cruise rather than a traditional package holiday, and by splashing out on more expensive and luxurious voyages.”

This surge in British passenger numbers is the direct result of world famous lines bringing three brand new vessels to Southampton, northern Europe’s number one centre for cruise ship operations.

P&O Cruises’ latest addition to its Southampton based fleet, Azura, entered service earlier last month, and was followed in April by Celebrity Eclipse, the third in a class of five ships being built for Celebrity Cruises.

In October, one of the best known names in shipping history will once again be seen in Southampton with the arrival of Queen Elizabeth, which will take Cunard’s fleet of vessels up to three.

Also making a strong contribution to Southampton’s success is Royal Caribbean International’s vast Independence of the Seas undertaking a summer long series of voyages before inaugurating her first series of winter cruises out of the port.

Next year another international name, MSC, will be concentrating all its UK operations in Southampton after turning its back on Dover.

The PSA believes the industry is on course to reach 1.75m passengers in 2010 and 2m by 2014.

Source: thisishampshire.net/news/8171429.Brits_opt_for_a_cruise___or_two_/?ref=rss

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Cruise Bookings: Face to Face Sales Rising, Says PSA

More travellers are booking cruises face to face with travel agents, new figures from the Passenger Shipping Association have revealed.

The data was published in the Annual Cruise Review, and released at a launch in London last night.

Other key facts revealed in the review include an increase of 50% in sales of ultra luxury cruises compared with last year, with the average cruise price dropping 6%, but 30,000 people still paying over £5,000 for their cruise.

Meanwhile one in every 10 package holidays booked is now a cruise, with six out of 10 passengers taking more than one cruise a year, and one in 25 passengers cruising more than six times.

Source: ttglive.com