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Celebrity Solstice Makes US Debut Today in Ft. Lauderdale
The new Celebrity Solstice is scheduled to sail into Port Everglades
in Ft. Lauderdale today.
Ideal viewing platforms include Fort Lauderdale Beach and
surroundings, while residents with waterfront condominiums can enjoy
a bird's-eye view.
Celebrity Solstice upon arrival will be fully "dressed"
with vibrant flags flying above its industry-first half-acre Lawn
Club, Hot Glass Show, and one of the highest percentages of verandas
in the business, not to mention the wealth of attributes found inside
the sleek, 122,000-ton ship.
Celebrity Has Post-Election Promotion
Celebrity Cruises' Post-Election Sale-a-Bration offers clients the
opportunity to save on winter vacations. Most Celebrity Cruises
voyages sailing in January and February 2009 will be offered at a
discounted rate of 50% off the cruise fare for the second guest in a
stateroom, when booked on Nov 5, 6 and 7. The promotion is valid for
new, individual FIT bookings only. Call our office for details.
Royal Caribbean Cruises to End Fuel Supplement
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. today announced that the company's fuel
supplement will no longer apply to new Royal Caribbean International,
Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Cruises bookings made on or after Nov.
10, 2008, anywhere in the world, for sailings that depart on or after
Jan. 1, 2010.
Royal said that its decision takes into consideration the recent
reductions in global fuel prices. The company has also established
specific guidelines that will determine whether fuel supplement
refunds will be provided for sailings that begin in 2009 and later,
which were booked prior to Nov. 10, if fuel prices remain below a
specific price threshold.
For full Fuel Supplement Statements from three cruise lines CLICK
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More cruise ships will visit Panama
The cruise ships visiting the country have steadily increased and the
new home port will make Panama an attractive destination
Panama Star Since Panama signed an agreement with cruise ships
companies, which are members of the Florida Caribbean Cruise
Association in October 2000, the arrival of passengers to the
Panamanian ports of Gatun, Colon 2000, Cristobal, Balboa, Fuerte
Amador and Kuna Yala has increased, which confirm the status of the
country as an established tourist destination.
Carnival Has New Branding
Carnival Cruise Lines announced that a new branding campaign will
debut this month under the tagline "Fun For All. All For Fun."
The new campaign will kick off with special events featuring
Guinness World Record attempts in Dallas and Philadelphia.
The first event, in Dallas yesterday, involved setting a Guinness
record for the world's largest beach ball. The second event, to take
place in Philadelphia on Nov. 2, will feature a Guinness attempt for
the world's largest piñata. Footage from the events will be
used to create two TV spots, which will soon begin airing nationally,
and eventually in select local markets as well.
The new campaign also includes both a consumer and trade magazine
component with new travel trade ads beginning Nov. 10 and a series of
four consumer ads scheduled to run in People the weeks of Nov. 17
through Dec. 8.
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RCI Unveils Youth Zone on Oasis of Seas
Royal Caribbean International unveiled the Youth Zone
"neighborhood" for children and teens, joining the six
other previously announced diverse neighborhoods aboard Royal
Caribbean International's 5,400-passenger Oasis of Seas due to launch
in November 2009.
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The Youth Zone - covering a total area of more than 28,700 square
feet - will include Kids Avenue, a central boulevard connecting
dedicated Adventure Ocean spaces and themed play areas; the cruise
line's first nursery for infants and toddlers (six months or older);
and state-of-the-art teen areas.
The Adventure Ocean youth program aboard Oasis of the Seas will
feature the curriculum currently offered to young guests fleetwide,
but with a new and enhanced approach, including spaces created and
equipped specifically for designated activities.
For more on the Oasis of the Seas -- CLICK
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Celebrity Takes Key to Solstice
Oct. 24th -- Celebrity Cruises' new ship, the Celebrity Solstice was
delivered today at a ceremony in Emshaven, Netherlands, marking the
formal transfer of the ship -- the first in a class of five -- from
shipbuilder Meyer Werft to Celebrity Cruises.
The ship will being its trans-Atlantic voyage Oct. 25 and is expected
to arrive in Ft. Lauderdale, FL on Nov. 3.
"With its innovative, half-acre Lawn Club with real, growing
glass; the Hot Glass Show offered through our alliance with The
Corning Museum of Glass; 10 widely varied restaurants, including four
in the specialty category, stylish, spacious staterooms whose design
was influenced by a panel of five women with unique travel and
hospitality insights; and, of course, the intangible attribute found
on every Celebrity ship -- extraordinary service -- Celebrity
Solstice is the perfect manifestation of what the Celebrity brand is
all about," said Dan Hanrahan, Celebrity president and CEO.
The ship will be named in formal ceremonies on Nov. 14 and will
embark on its inaugural season Nov. 23 on a series of seven-night
Eastern Caribbean cruises roundtrip from Lt. Lauderdale. In spring
2009, the Solstice will introduce a series of 10- and 11-night
Mediterranean sailings roundtrip from Rome.
Paul Gauguin to leave RSSC fleet in January 2010
Regent Seven Seas Cruises has announced that the 332-guest Paul
Gauguin will depart the RSSC fleet in January 2010 upon completion of
their management agreement with Paul Gauguin Shipping Limited (PGSL),
the owners of the vessel. The last sailing will be the December 28,
2009 - January 6, 2010 cruise.
RSSC is looking forward to celebrating one last year on the
Paul Gauguin in 2009, bringing more than 10,000 guests to Tahiti and
providing them with the same luxury experience and six-star service
levels that have won RSSC countless awards. This is the perfect time
for you to experience Tahiti with RSSC. For the final year under the
Regent flag, guests will benefit from a scheduled 12-day
dry-dock in January 2009, when the ship will receive technical and
cosmetic upgrades and the addition of 26 private balconies to
existing staterooms. In addition, they have protected any guests that
are currently booked in these Category D staterooms, ensuring they
will not pay any additional money for their new balcony.
Carnival Offers Military Personnel Discounted Rates
Carnival Cruise Lines is introducing a promotion throughout November
that allows active and retired military personnel to book up to three
"Fun Ship" staterooms at discounted rates for themselves
and their friends and family members.
Reservations must be made between Nov. 1-30, to qualify for this
special offer, which is available in conjunction with a wide range of
three- to 12-day "Fun Ship" departures through Dec. 31,
2009, including voyages to the Bahamas, Caribbean, Mexico, Alaska and Hawaii.
Rates start at $159 per person for three-day cruises from Miami and
Port Canaveral, Fla., and five-day cruises from New Orleans and
Jacksonville, Fla.; from $189 for four-day cruises from Mobile, Ala.,
and Jacksonville; from $309 per person for seven-day cruises from
Miami, Galveston, Texas, and Port Canaveral; and from $359 per person
for six-day voyages from Fort Lauderdale.
The promotion is valid for individual bookings only, availability is
capacity controlled and this promotion cannot be combined with any
other discount offer. Military personnel must provide proof of
service. Certain other restrictions apply.
Royal Caribbean pulls cruise ship from South America; expands
in San Diego
Add Royal Caribbean to the list of cruise lines moving ships closer
to home. The line says it is canceling cruises in South America
planned for the 2,501-passenger Radiance of the Seas in 2009 and 2010
and instead keeping the ship in San Diego.
The line says the 90,000-ton vessel will sail 24 additional Mexican
Riviera sailings between September 2009 and May 2010 ranging in
length from four- to 12-night.
Ports of call on the voyages include Acapulco, Cabo San Lucas,
Ensenada, Huatulco, Ixtapa (Zihuatanejo), Manzanillo, Mazatlan, and
Puerto Vallarta.
River cruise operator Majestic America Line to shut down
The parent company of Majestic America Line will "wind down the
business" over the next few weeks as its seven river boats
finish their 2008 seasons.
Ambassadors International has been trying to sell the money-losing
operator of the famed Delta Queen steamboat for several months but
has been unsuccessful and has decided to pull the plug, executives said.
One of Majestic's boats, the Empress of the North, already has been
taken over by the U.S. Maritime Administration due to unpaid debt.
Another indebted vessel, the 436-passenger American Queen also is
likely to end up in the hands of the government soon, Ambassadors CEO
Joe Ueberroth said during the conference call.
The company's five other boats, which Ambassadors owns debt free,
will be pulled out of the water and put in long-term storage.
"In hindsight . . . I acknowledge that no matter how well
structured or how little capital was required, our investment in the
domestic river boat business was a very bad investment,"
Ueberroth said.
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