Power Cruising
QE2 ship gets Airbus A380 escort on final port call at Dubai
Submitted by admin on Mon, 12/01/2008 - 16:49.(LOS ANGELES TIMES)--A jumbo Emirates Airlines A380 jet and scores of pleasure craft will greet Queen Elizabeth 2 today, Nov. 26, as the ocean liner sails into Dubai,
its final port of call in a four-decade-long career. The QE2, arguably
the world’s best-known passenger ship, will be refurbished as a
floating hotel and museum moored off the wealthy Mideast emirate. READ MORE
Quantum leap of Celebrity Solstice: It’s chic, hip and unlike any cruise ship sailing today
Submitted by admin on Tue, 11/25/2008 - 13:35.(MSNBC)--The dictionary description of solstice is the precise moment that the
sun is the farthest North or South of the equator. The aptly named
Celebrity Solstice is one ship that is so innovative it is truly light
years ahead of the cruise ship pack. READ MORE
Cruise Ship Company Sued Over Fuel Surcharge Fees
Submitted by admin on Thu, 11/06/2008 - 14:08.www.northcountrygazette.org -- (TALLAHASSEE, FL) Florida Attorney General’s office has filed a lawsuit against a Broward County cruise ship company for failing to adequately disclose fuel surcharge fees. According
to the lawsuit, Imperial Majesty Cruise Line LLC has collected
approximately $4 million in fuel surcharges from late 2006 to present.
The company, which offers two-day cruises to the Bahamas, is also
accused of falsely representing those fees as governmental taxes or
fees. READ MORE
Royal Caribbean: 'significant deterioration' in cruise ship bookings
Submitted by admin on Wed, 10/29/2008 - 13:29.USA Today -- You're not alone if you're holding back on booking a cruise. Industry giant Royal Caribbean says the economic turmoil of recent weeks is spooking customers and causing a major slowdown in bookings. "While the company's order book remains solid, there has been a
significant deterioration recently in new bookings due to economic and
financial turmoil," the company says today in a statement accompanying
its third quarter earnings release. READ MORE
Yeah, baby: Next Royal Caribbean cruise ship will have a nursery
Submitted by admin on Wed, 10/22/2008 - 13:28.USA Today -- Royal Caribbean's much-ballyhooed Oasis of the Seas will have a
full-blown baby nursery on board -- a first for the line as it caters
ever more to families with young children. The specially-staffed Royal Babies and Tots Nursery, as it's being
called, will welcome babies as young as six months old and is just part
of a massive children's area the line is unveiling online tonight for
the 5,400-passenger vessel -- the largest ever built. READ MORE
Hurricane Omar forces more cruise ships to change course
Submitted by admin on Wed, 10/15/2008 - 14:56.USA Today -- A rapidly strengthening Hurricane Omar is forcing more cruise ships
to switch course today as it barrels towards some of the Caribbean's
most popular ports. Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Princess and the Disney Cruise Line have all rerouted ships over the last 24 hours as the Category 1 storm bears down on Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Several vessels, including the Carnival Triumph, Crown Princess and
Mariner of the Seas, are switching to Western Caribbean itineraries for
the week in lieu of Eastern Caribbean itineraries. READ MORE
Rockin' the boat: How a musician strummed through Sydney Harbour in his floating guitar
Submitted by admin on Wed, 10/15/2008 - 13:33.www.dailymail.co.uk -- (Sydney) Singer-songwriter Josh Pyke might have considered playing an upbeat version of Handel's Water Music as he sailed across Sydney Harbour - but he was too busy keeping his floating guitar under control. Tourists stared in amazement as Josh steered the large guitar, complete with outboard motor, around the harbour, creating one of the strangest sights since the arrival of the First Fleet from England back in 1788. READ MORE
Go Boating ... and Forget the Gas
Submitted by admin on Tue, 10/14/2008 - 19:46.www.marketwatch.com -- (FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.) Oct 14, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ --
It's environmentally
friendly and no gasoline needed. The Calypso 23e, powered by the Whisper XT
electric outboard will make its debut at the world's largest boat show, the
2008 Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show from Thursday, October 30 -
Monday, November 3.
EPower Marine, an independent boat dealer based in Boynton Beach, Florida,
specializes in electric-propulsion products for the marine industry. The
Calypso 23e can cruise up to 8.5 mph, is powered by 600 pounds of military
grade Odyssey advanced AGM dry-cell batteries and can be charged overnight
from a standard 115 volt outlet. READ MORE
Classism making a comeback on cruise ships
Submitted by admin on Tue, 10/14/2008 - 14:19.The Chicago Tribune -- One-class cruising could be bound for extinction. If Adam
Goldstein, president of Royal Caribbean International, speaks for the
future of cruising, traveling aboard ship may one day be akin to flying
the unfriendly skies, meaning you'll sail by class in first, business
or coach. At a recent Seatrade industry conference in Miami
Beach, Goldstein acknowledged that on today's ships, passengers are
more or less created equal whether they book an inside cabin or suite
with veranda. But this is changing, he said. "The 21st Century
guests, who are prepared to pay top dollar to be in the better
accommodations onboard all of our ships, do not accept that once they
step outside their door, they are on the same footing as everybody
else," he explained. "They expect special treatment outside the
staterooms." READ MORE
Alaska cruise ship comes to rest on sandbar; second incident for the company in 6 months
Submitted by admin on Mon, 10/06/2008 - 16:45.Professional Mariner -- Already undergoing a U.S. Coast Guard safety review because of previous incidents, Cruise West Enterprises had another of its vessels run aground in July off Alaska.
The 178-foot cruise ship Spirit of Glacier Bay grounded on a sandbar in Tarr Inlet near Glacier Bay National Park on July 7. It was the second grounding of one the company’s ships in just over a month. The Coast Guard is reviewing Cruise West’s safety and maintenance procedures following three mechanical failures and the grounding of Spirit of Alaska on June 4.
Coast Guard Station Juneau reported that the Spirit of Glacier Bay incident occurred at 0747, with no breach of the hull. No injuries were reported among the 51 people onboard.
