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April28, 2003 - 7 Seas Cruise News >> |
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Hello again, cruise fans! Welcome to another edition of the 7 Seas Cruise News-brought to you by Pat Crane and 7 Seas Cruises, your source for really, seriously low discounted prices on every cuise you want to take and a few you've never even thought about yet. You can reach Pat virtually any time at 1-866-424-1090 toll-free or send him e-mail at cruiseplanners7seascruises@msn. com and you are always welcome to research cruises at our website, www.7seascruises.com. Just don't believe the prices you see on the website. A lot of the time, Pat can actually get you a lower price! A hearty welcome aboard to all of our new subscribers, too. You are the reason for this newsletter, so let us hear your ideas, opinions and cruise-related issues. Just write! And now, as the last of the chocolate Easter bunnies melts in its basket, here is the cruise news for this week??¦ Princess Cruises and Norwegian Cruise Lines, which, like other cruise lines, currently have a policy in place that denies boarding to passengers who have traveled through Hong Kong, China, Vietnam and Singapore -- those areas hardest hit by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome -- within the past ten days, have each implemented that policy for the first time. In Princess' case, 37 passengers bound for Regal Princess' 30 day Asia-India- Mediterranean cruise, which departed from Bangkok on April 8, had arrived to board the ship but had passed through one of the four countries under advisory. These folks had traveled to Bangkok independently (Princess had been able to re-route its air-sea folks away from SARS hotspots). The cruise line required those denied-boarding passengers to stay in Bangkok for ten days so the line could be sure they weren't showing symptoms. Princess picked up hotel stays, air fare to the next port-of-call, and offered a per diem based on passengers' cruise fares and all but a handful elected to sit out the waiting period in Bangkok. Some of these passengers' ten-day quarantines are already over and they joined the ship in Kuala Lumpur. The second group departed Bangkok Thursday to meet Regal Princess in Cochin, India. Those who elected to return home were provided with travel and expense assistance and full refunds. Over at Norwegian Cruise Line, a family of four from Hong Kong was denied boarding on the Norwegian Star in Hawaii because they admitted to having recently traveled to a country on the SARS advisory list. Because the cruise was just a seven day trip and the ten day waiting period wouldn't make sense, they were provided with travel arrangements home and reasonable expenses plus a full refund. In both cases -- Regal Princess and Norwegian Star -- cruise officials emphasize that passengers were not infected with the disease. The cruise lines were just following a prevention-minded policy implemented to reduce the chances of allowing a SARS infection onboard. Meanwhile at Carnival, the 110,000-ton Carnival Glory is set to launch year-round seven-day Caribbean service from Port Canaveral, Fla., July 19, 2003.The massive 2, 974-passenger SuperLiner is designed as the ultimate family vacation with a 4,200-square- foot play area, "kid-friendly" dining selections, fun morning-til-night activities, stroller rentals and more, all part of the line's top-rated "Camp Carnival" program. Particular emphasis has been on teens, who can enjoy a high-tech game room/dance club, exclusive just-for-teens shore excursions and various other activities. The focal point of the Carnival Glory's "Camp Carnival" program is Under the Rainbow, a 4,200-square-foot play room that is divided into four areas - an arts and crafts center with spin and sand art and candy making machines; a video room with a 16- monitor wall displaying kids' favorite movies and cartoons; a computer lab with educational computer games and the latest PlayStation 2 game consoles; and a children's library with youth-oriented books and magazines. Under the Rainbow will serve as the venue for geography and science projects, part of the line's EduCruise program offering hands-on science and geography projects designed to enrich kids' knowledge of the cultures and landmarks featured within Carnival Glory's seven-day Caribbean itineraries. The colorful playroom will also be the site for the line's popular babysitting service, which is available from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. nightly and costs $6 per hour for the first child and $4 for each additional child in same family. Want to know what the kids are up to when you drop them off? Well, in addition to EduCruise projects, kids of all ages sailing aboard Carnival Glory will enjoy a variety of fun, supervised activities morning-til-night. Sample age- appropriate activities include "Play Dough Fun, " storytelling and sing-a-longs for younger cruisers and scavenger hunts, late-night movies and pool parties for older kids. Recently added activities include snow-cone making, cake-decorating and pizza-making sessions during which children can make their own culinary creations under the watchful eye of Carnival Glory's trained youth staff. Also offered are "multi-generational" activities such as make-your-own sundae sessions, arts and crafts, family water play, which parents, children and grandparents an opportunity to participate in activities together as a family. With teenagers comprising a significant portion of Carnival's passenger base, the line has responded to this unique market by creating Ultraviolets, a combination game room/ teen dance club featuring a DJ, -of-the-art sound and lighting system, including a "video wall" with continuous music videos, a dance floor and "mocktail lounge" where teens can relax, socialize and enjoy sodas and other non- alcoholic specialty drinks. The 1,800-square- foot room will also house a library with teen- oriented books and magazines, video game units and computers loaded with popular gaming software. And with Carnival's new teen shore excursions, teens have an to partake in a variety of fun, exciting landside activities - everything from sailing and mountain biking to cave tubing and horseback riding - with kids their own age sailing on that voyage. Carnival Glory will also feature four swimming pools, including a children's wading pool on Sun Deck 12, along with a 214-foot-long twisting, water slide. Kids can also rent the latest GameBoy Advance hand-held video game units. The line's popular fleetwide stroller rental program offering single and double strollers for rent by the day or the week will be available on Carnival Glory, as well. The cost is $6 per day and $25 per week. Dining is considered a highlight of any "Fun Ship" vacation and Carnival Glory will offer a variety of kid-friendly culinary choices, everything from special menus in the main Golden and Platinum dining rooms to a two- level casual eatery, the Red Sail Restaurant, serving hamburgers hot dogs, and 24-hour pizza, ice cream and frozen yogurt. Kids can also dinner with the youth counselors each night in the poolside restaurant. A special children's turn-down service offering freshly baked chocolate chip cookies on the first and last night of the voyage is also available. Carnival Glory, like other "Fun Ships," will also offer the "Fountain Fun Card," which provides unlimited soft drinks throughout the duration of the cruise for a flat, one-time fee. The cards, which are purchased once on board, cost $22.95 per child for Carnival Glory's seven-day Caribbean cruises. The Glory's Eastern Caribbean cruises call at Nassau, St. Thomas/St. John, and St. Maarten, while western Caribbean voyages include Key West, Fla.; Belize City, Belize; and Cozumel and Progreso/Merida, Mexico. Before the start- up seven-day service, Carnival Glory will operate a special five-day Mexico cruise to Costa Maya and Cozumel July 14-19. The TALL tale of the Conquest??¦It looks pretty definite that Carnival Conquest, now in its sixth week of using Gulfport as a temporary homeport, likely has six more to go. In fact, nature's unpredictability could potentially result in Conquest keeping its Gulfport hub a few voyages beyond if the forecast for a rising river extends beyond the original 12 week period. At this point, the last planned Gulfport-based departure/arrival concerns the Conquest's May 25th sailing. Tourism honchos in Gulfport, which until Conquest's arrival had no regular cruise ship callers, have been actively courting cruise lines. Gallagher's assessment that "Gulfport getting a cruise ship -- dedicated on a seasonal basis -- is just a matter of time" has nothing, however, to do with keeping Conquest there permanently. The $40 million World Cruise Facility in San Pedro, CA handled its first embarkation from the new terminal Monday after the Ecstasy disembarked passengers for the last time at the World Cruise Center at the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro. The Elation, Carnival's other Los Angeles-based ship, also will use Long Beach starting Sunday. The new terminal is built next to the Queen Mary, a historic liner built in 1936 that is now permanently docked in Long Beach. The glamorous, Art Deco vessel built for Cunard is a hotel but also offers tours full of maritime lore and ghost stories. The 30,000-square-foot World Cruise Center terminal is located in a geodesic dome that once housed Howard Hughes' wooden Spruce Goose aircraft. Passengers can check in at 30 desks in the terminal after noon. Four plasma screens above the desks will broadcast boarding information. Even the mandatory photo session promises to be more fun. Carnival has built a pseudo rainforest area with Aztec walls and monument with two queues for the snapping session. The photos are immediately broadcast on a plasma screen hung above the escalator to the gangway. The pier is long enough to handle just about any cruise ship afloat today, save for deep-draft vessels like the Queen Elizabeth 2 and the under- construction Queen Mary 2. Sadly, the water isn't deep enough for the new QM2 to dock next to the historic Queen Mary. One-by-one, the R ships of the former Renaissance Cruises are finding new homes. The latest to reappear is P&O Cruises' Swan Hellenic with an entirely new look. That's the 30,277-ton, 694-passenger Minerva II (the former R-8). What's ironic about the new Minerva is that London-based Swan Hellenic is considered the original "floating English country house hotel" style cruise line -- a concept that Renaissance later embraced. The company has made a few changes -- primarily cosmetic -- to the former R8. Among those include transferring some classic Swan Hellenic touches from Minerva I, such as passenger artwork, the contents of its quite in-depth library, a baby grand piano and a ship model. Swan Hellenic removed the diminutive casino from the former Renaissance vessel; now it's known as the Wheeler Bar. The cruise line has, well, Swan Hellenic-ized some other public rooms -- most notably "Orpheus," the ship's top-deck bar/lounge. It's keeping the Renaissance open seating dining tradition though Swan Hellenic has changed some of the restaurant names. Renaissance aficionados won' t notice any major decor changes in staterooms. Minerva II's official naming ceremony is slated for July 4 on London's Tower Bridge. And then, there's NCL. If there is maritime heritage in the world, it's all because of Norwegian Cruise Lines! The conversion of the SS France to the SS Norway saved one of the last great ocean liners. Now, NCL has purchased the S.S. United States and intends to restore her to her former glory when the 990-foot "Big U" ruled the waves. The grand old ship set a trans-Atlantic speed record when she sailed from New York on her maiden voyage on July 3, 1952 and crossed the Atlantic in 3 days, 10 hours and 40 minutes. The ship's average speed was 35 knots or a blistering 40 miles per hour. Her top speed was a closely guarded secret since she was designed to double as a troop carrier if needed during wartime. Classic TV fans will recall the "I Love Lucy" episode when Lucy was lowered by helicopter to the deck of the United States when the Ricardos and Mertzes headed for Europe. (And impressionable little kids like me first got the urge for world travel!) Anyway, Hurray for NCL which also owns the Independence and hopes to spiff her up and get her back in service. NCL is also building two new ships in Mississippi. The idea is to register all four in the U.S. to serve U.S. ports without the necessity of visiting a foreign port. Now, that's a happy note to end on! Call Pat for bargains in Europe this summer, a good selection of Alaska cruises still available, and some terrific summer opportunities in the Caribbean! Join us next week when we'll preview the Queen Mary 2! And until next week, I'm going up on deck to look at the stars. You can come, too! Teri |
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| << April14, 2003 - 7 Seas Cruise News |
April28, 2003 - 7 Seas Cruise News >> |
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