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Cruise News 1/31/00

In yet another twist of the NCL takeover saga, Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL) last week announced that they were making another run at NCL. On Friday Carnival confirmed that it had indicated to Kristian Siem, chairman of NCL Holding ASA, that if the board can deliver a controlling interest in NCL, Carnival is willing to pay NOK 40 per share subject to customary terms and closing conditions including clearance of Hart-Scott-Rodino.

According to Howard Frank, vice chairman and chief operating officer of Carnival Corporation, Siem has indicated that, based on the facts as they exist today, he would recommend acceptance of the Carnival offer to the NCL board. "If we are successful, we believe that the transaction, which represents a 19% increase to the enterprise value of our previous bid, is still attractive and in Carnival's and NCL's best interest," Frank said.

Stay tuned...

Opera hits the high seas this summer when renowned Opera star Martina Arroyo performs aboard Golden Sun's AEGEAN 1's 7 day June 2nd cruise. Ms. Arroyo has performed with the New York Metropolitan Opera, the Paris Opera, London's Covent Garden and Milan's La Scala.

Commodore Holdings Limited (Nasdaq:CCLN) announced last Thursday its purchase of the 820-passenger cruise ship, the Crown Dynasty. The papers were signed on Monday, January 24, 2000 in London to complete Commodore's purchase from current owner Helsinki-based Neptun Maritime.

The Crown Dynasty has recently undergone a $5 million upgrade program and has begun its Aruba schedule sailing under the Crown Cruise Line brand, a newly formed brand of Commodore Holdings Limited. Crown Cruise Line is marketing the ship as an upscale experience for something less than an upscale price. In May of this year the ship will reposition to begin a 26-week Bermuda season with departures from Philadelphia and Baltimore.

Beginning next year, Princess Cruises will expand its Caribbean program in 2001 with a year-round cruise schedule. New summer sailings aboard Grand Princess will boost Princess’ Caribbean presence by 35 percent.

For 2001, Grand Princess will move from its summer Mediterranean home to an alternating Eastern and Western Caribbean schedule from April 29 through September 23. The ship’s traditional seven-day Eastern Caribbean itinerary, which features calls at St. Thomas, St. Maarten and Princess Cays, will alternate with a new seven-day Western Caribbean route including calls at Cozumel, Grand Cayman and Princess Cays. Both itineraries sail round-trip from Ft. Lauderdale.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL; OSE) announced earnings last week. Highlights included a 16% increase in net income to $383.9 million in 1999, up from $330.8 million in 1998. Earnings per share was $2.06, or 13% higher than the previous year.

Revenues were $2.5 billion, as compared to $2.6 billion in 1998. The slight decline in revenues was due primarily to a 3% decrease in capacity in 1999. This decrease was the result of the sale of Song of America and service outages in the first half of the year.

Royal Caribbean International announced this week that it was adding "Internet Cafes" to its fleet. Working with Xcelerate Technologies and CAIS Software Solutions, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd, has implemented technology that allows passengers to access the Web from the middle of the ocean or any port of call around the world.

Computers on board the RCI fleet are linked to a land-based Internet gateway via broadcast C-band satellite pipeline, provided by Maritime Telecommunications Network (MTN). Beyond the cafes, Royal Caribbean is planning in-cabin Internet access for laptops.

Cruise News Trivia Question:
Here's another Photo Cruise Trivia - I found this picture recently when I was going through some old slides (...it was taken in September of 1963 when I was just a wee tyke). The ship passing behind our ship is pretty easy to recognize, but can you name the ship from which the photo was taken? Look closely, there are clues...

Click Here for a larger version of the picture.

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question -Today's P&O fleet includes a ship named Oriana, but she is not the first ship to have that name. The previous Oriana was was built in 1960 for P&O-Orient Lines. Whatever became of that ship?

Answer - The previous 'Oriana' was sold to a Japanese consortium who had her moored at Beppu Bay in Japan as a hotel and tourist attraction. After some years she was sold to Chinese interests, who currently have her berthed in Shanghai, fulfilling a similar role. courtesy of Tony Davis .

Cruise News 1/24/00

Norwegian Cruise Lines announced a contest this week to name their newest ship. To enter the contest go to http://www.ncl.com/contest/default and fill out the entry form including an original essay of 50 words or less of why you chose your particular name. Make sure you tell them you learned about the contest at TravelPage.com

Two Grand Prizes will be awarded. The Grand Prize is an oceanview stateroom (two guests) on the inaugural voyage of the newest addition to the NCL fleet, including air transportation from selected US airports, ground transfers and a $400 On-board Credit per stateroom. Three First Honorable Mentions will each be awarded one 7-day Caribbean cruise-only cruise for two on an NCL ship. 100 Second Honorable Mentions will each receive an NCL polo shirt. You must be 18 years or older to participate and for some reason the contest is limited to residents of the USA.

Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL) announced today that its Board of Directors declared a regular quarterly dividend of 10.5 cents per share for the first quarter ending February 29, 2000. The dividend is payable on March 14, 2000, to shareholders of record on February 28, 2000.

Norwegian Cruise Line announced today that the M/S Norwegian Sea is undergoing a multi-million dollar refurbishment project this month. Enhancements range from the addition of an Internet Cafe to new carpet and upholstery throughout the ship.

Built in 1988, the 1,518-guest Norwegian Sea is the only cruise ship sailing from the Port of Houston and offers weekly "Texaribbean" cruises to Mexico and Honduras. The ship has gone into dry dock in Tampa and will resume service January 30.

Have you booked a cruise online yet? Forrester Research estimates that online cruise sales will almost triple by 2000 to US$405 million, and by 2003 it estimates that online cruise sales will total US$2.5 billion.

Holland America Line announced that their bookings had jumped by 40 percent over last year for the second week of this year's WAVE period - a period of intense booking activity that usually takes during the first month of the year. With a 40 percent increase in bookings over the same period last year, Holland America said that they are optimistic about the upcoming year which includes 22 percent capacity growth. Recently, Holland America introduced the ms Volendam and will launch the ms Zaandam and ms Amsterdam later this year.

Carnival Corporation, and Fairfield Communities, Inc., one of America's largest vacation ownership companies, today announced they have entered into a letter of intent whereby Carnival will acquire Fairfield in a strategic merger. Under the proposed transaction, Fairfield would become a wholly owned subsidiary of Carnival.

According to Micky Arison, Carnival's chairman and CEO, the transaction would give Carnival access to a large pool of seasoned travelers, many of whom are experienced cruisers. Approximately 72% of Fairfield's customers have expressed an interest in cruising and 52% of Fairfield's customers have taken a cruise.

Holland America Line's has announced details of the ms Rotterdam's 2001 world cruise. The Rotterdam will leave Jan. 18, 2001 from Los Angeles on a voyage of 97 days to Ft. Lauderdale and 99 days to New York. Fourteen (14) World Cruise Segments are offered, ranging in length from 15 to 36 days.

During the trip the Rotterdam will call on the following ports: San Juan del Sur-Nicaragua, Puntarenas-Costa Rica, Guayaquil-Ecuador, Callao-Peru (1 1/2 days), Easter Island, Pitcairn Island, Papeete-Tahiti, Society Islands, Bora Bora, Bay of Islands-New Zealand, Auckland-New, Zealand, Wellington-New, Zealand, Sydney-Australia (2 days), Cairns-Australia (2 days), Darwin-Australia, Lombok-Indonesia, Manila-Philippines, Hong Kong(3 days), Singapore (1 1/2 days), Mumbai (Bombay)-India (1 1/2 days), Aqaba-Jordan, Sharm el Sheikh-Egypt, Port Said-Egypt (1 1/2 days), Haifa-Israel, Kusadasi-Turkey, Istanbul-Turkey (1 1/2 days), Piraeus-Greece, Dubrovnik-Croatia, Venice-Italy, Palermo Sicily-Italy, Motril/Malaga-Spain, Lisbon-Portugal, Ponta Delgada-Azores, Horta-Azores, Ft. Lauderdale-Fla.

Cruise News Trivia Question:
Today's P&O fleet includes a ship named Oriana, but she is not the first ship to have that name. The previous Oriana was was built in 1960 for P&O-Orient Lines. Whatever became of that ship?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - What was the name of the first passenger ship to resume commercial sailings on the North Atlantic after World War II? Hint: she returned to service in August of 1945.

Answer - Norwegian America Line's Stavangerfjord, 13,156 tons 679 passengers. courtesy of Jack Lewis .

Cruise News 1/17/00

Carnival's problems with fires aboard its cruise ships continued this week when the Celebration experienced a fire in an auxiliary generator at approximately midnight on Wednesday, January 12. The fire was quickly extinguished by the vessel's automated Halon system and initial damage assessments and repairs are underway. There are no reported injuries to passengers or crew.

At the time of the fire, the ship was approximately 100 miles northwest of Montego Bay, Jamaica. Electrical and propulsion power has been restored and the Celebration is proceeding to Montego Bay under its own power with arrival scheduled for Wednesday afternoon. From there, guests will disembark the ship and arrangements are being made to provide them with hotel accommodations and/or flight arrangements back to New Orleans, the ship's port of embarkation.

The Celebration left New Orleans Sunday, January 9, 2000, carrying 1,586 guests and 667 crew on a seven-day western Caribbean voyage to Montego Bay, Grand Cayman and Playa del Carmen/Cozumel. Guests aboard the Celebration will receive a full refund, as well as a free seven-day Carnival cruise.

Star Cruises takeover bid for NCL is becoming more complicated every day. Just as Star Cruises commenced their offers to purchase all outstanding ordinary shares of NCL Holding ASA and NCL Holding American Depositary Shares for 35 Norwegian kronor, NCL's shares rose above 37 Kroner on the Oslo Bourse. According to Norwegian law, this increase increase in share price above the offer price will force Star to increase the terms of their offer if they want to assume control of the company.

NCL's Board of Directors is considering exercising stock options and converting outstanding debt to equity in an effort to keep Star's holdings below 50% (as of 1/13/00 they owned 49.9% of the outstanding stock). The Board is also looking to investor and board member Christen Sveaas to purchase enough shares to raise the Board's holding to greater than 33% which would effectively block Star from taking control of the Board since the company's by-laws require a two thirds majority vote on all major corporate issues. Stay tuned...

The New Zealand National Maritime Museum in Auckland, New Zealand is off erring a 20% discount on Museum Admission or Harbour Heritage Cruises to the passengers and crews of cruise ships coming into Auckland this summer. The Museum is sited at the entrance to the America's Cup Village and is open from 9am to 6pm during the Summer (...that's the New Zealand summer).

January is the most active month for cruise bookings each year and Celebrity Cruises is benefiting from the annual increase in activity. Earlier this week the cruise line announced the highest booking day in its 10-year history. On Tuesday, the premium cruise line booked nearly 10 percent more guests than on January 25, 1999, when it set its previous single-day booking record.

Steiner Leisure Limited (Nasdaq:STNR) announced this week that it has entered into concession agreements with four of its principal cruise line customers, which permit the company to offer its spa services and skin and hair care products on existing and newly-introduced ships of those cruise lines through 2005. The new agreements with Royal Caribbean Cruises and Celebrity Cruise Lines run through January 2005, the new agreement with Carnival Cruise Line runs through December 2005 and the new agreement with Holland America Line runs through November 2005.

San Francisco Cruise Terminal, LLC (SFCT) today was selected by the San Francisco Port Commission to enter into exclusive negotiations for the development of the Bryant Street Pier and the James R. Herman International Cruise Terminal at Piers 30-32. The Bryant Street Pier project is the equivalent of four downtown city blocks and will be situated on the waterfront along San Francisco's famed Embarcadero. The focal point of the project is the James R. Herman International Cruise Terminal, a state-of-the-art complex that will position San Francisco as a leader in the cruise industry. In addition to serving seasonal visitors, the terminal is designed to serve a variety of year-round uses, including conventions as well as community and civic events.

Cruise News Trivia Question:
What was the name of the first passenger ship to resume commercial sailings on the North Atlantic after World War II? Hint: she returned to service in August of 1945.

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - We all know that Titanic's sister ship Olympic was broken up in 1937. What is amazing is that part of Olympic survived and will sail again later this year. How will this happen?

Answer - Part of the wood panelling from the 'Olympic's dining room was bought at auction in the UK by Celebrity Cruises and will be incorporated into the speciality restaurant aboard their new 'Millenium' which debuts later this year. courtesy of Tony Davis .

Cruise News 1/3 & 10/00

Happy Holidays from all of us at TravelPage.com

Cunard Line President Larry Pimentel suggested this week that a letter intent for the new Queen Mary 2 will be signed within the next few weeks. During a press conference aboard the newly renovated Queen Elizabeth, Pimentel declined to identify the shipyards but did acknowledge that all were based in Europe.

Cunard Line announced that Queen Elizabeth 2 has completed an $18 million refurbishment program. The refit took place at Lloyd Werft Shipyard in Bremerhaven, Germany from Nov. 12 to Dec. 11, 1999. From the Grand Lounge and the Queens Room to the restaurants and the Golden Lion Pub, there are new furnishings, draperies, carpeting and woodworking throughout the famous liner. In addition, QE2 added Harrods, the London-based luxury department store, to the shops of its Royal Promenade.

1999 Enhancements include the following:

Dining Areas - the Queens Grill received new furniture and new carpeting, upholstery and lighting, as well as etched glass doors and a completely new galley. In addition to the refurbished Queens Grill, all QE2 restaurants were renovated. Changes to the Britannia Grill include new carpeting, curtains, blinds, and newly upholstered chairs. In addition, the layount of the the dining room was changed. The Princess Grill received new carpeting, curtains and upholstered banquette seating, as well as a leather finish on the bulkheads. The Caronia Restaurant now sports mahogany paneling, new table lighting, crystal chandeliers, carpeting, curtains and chairs, as well as a new stereo system. New etched-glass doors and a "rainfall" pattern air-conditioning system eliminating drafts are welcome additions to this grand room. Glass doors mark the forward entry to the Mauretania Restaurant, which also boasts new carpeting, chandeliers and furniture. New automatic glass doors provide easy access from the pool deck to the Lido Restaurant, which also reveals a new buffet facility and re- upholstered seating, and the Pavilion Cafe was refit with new upholstered seating.

Public Areas - fresh carpeting and upholstery were added to many public areas including: the Chart Room, which also received a remodeled bar and new shutters; the Crystal Bar, which added a new canopy entrance to the Mauretania Restaurant; and the Quarter Deck and Upper Deck Promenades, which added intricately- detailed archways made of rich woods. The Queens Room received major treatment, including all new furniture and new royal blue carpeting interwoven with gold Tudor roses. The walls were re- paneled in mahogany, and the bust of HM the Queen will be relocated to the most prominent position within the room.

The walls of the Golden Lion Pub received a new coat of paint, improved lighting, curtains, blinds and new upholstery. New hardwood flooring has also been incorporated into the area. The Grand Lounge displays new carpets, chairs, stage curtains and a theatre-style balustrade, as well as a new audio system to enhance the enjoyment of performances. The Board Room was completely refurbished, including new cabinets, lighting, furnishings, carpet, ceiling panels, and new bulkheads.

The Purser's Office was completely rebuilt and re-configured to relocate all communication facilities here. This area now incorporates a new guest Business Centre, Cashier's Desk, Communications Centre, Bank, Mail Room, the Baggage Master's Office and the Security Deposit Facility. The Promenades on the Quarter and Upper Decks have new blue carpets, paneling and chairs. The Casino features new gaming tables, leather stools, carpets and new granite entrance way. Four Deck and Five Deck corridors and stairwells were re-carpeted and decorated with wall-coverings.

Other enhancements around the ship include refurbished public bathrooms; new classic, teak steamer chairs; a re-designed photo gallery; re-carpeted gymnasium, and new directional signage.

Suites and Cabins - two new Grand Suites, category QS, were added. The Caledonia Suite (number 8200) is located on the port side of Boat Deck directly adjacent to and forward of the Queens Grill. This 575-square-foot suite features marble master and guest bathrooms, separate dining area and large picture windows. This suite is wheelchair accessible and offers ramped access to the Queens Grill. The Aquitania Suite (number 2149) is an expansive 777-square-foot suite located forward of the Midships Lobby on the starboard side of Two Deck. This suite offers marble master and guest bathrooms, a separate dining area and large feature windows.

After a $15 million refurbishment program, Cunard Line's 758-guest Royal Viking Sun re-entered service this week as Seabourn Sun under the Seabourn Cruise Line banner. She was taken out of service after her call at Genoa on October 29 and has undergone a complete refit at the Lloyd Werft GmbH Shipyard in Bremerhaven, Germany. The architectural firm of Tillberg Design designed the plan that refurbished 14 public areas, including a new Roman-style health spa (including a lap pool) and expanded golf facilities.

Other changes include an increase in the seating of the Garden Cafe from 116 to 224 and renovations to the main dining room now called appropriately the "Dining Room". The Midnight Sun Lounge has been completely redecorated with new banquette seating and tables. The Compass Rose Room has been modified by removing the former Shore Excursions Office and a new Photo Gallery has been built adjacent to the Boutique. The Shore Excursion Office was built in the location which was previously occupied by the Photo Shop The Dickens Library has been renamed the Ibsen Library and the Norway Lounge has been completely refurbished. A new Computer Learning Center has been built at the aft end of the Card Room, outfitted with 10 computer terminals. Finally, all guest staterooms, on Scandinavian Deck, Promenade Deck, Atlantic Deck and Pacific Deck, have been refurbished.

The Vancouver Port Authority (VPA) announced today it is proceeding with plans to build a new cruise berth at Canada Place in time for the 2003 cruise season. The VPA will provide the $79 million in funding required for the project with support from the cruise industry.

Cunard Line announced an interesting concept in shipboard entertainment this week. The line will bring fledgling Broadway and West End stage productions aboard its flagship Queen Elizabeth 2 for development during her grand voyages throughout the year. Cruise guests will be able to enjoy performances of segments from the shows and sit in on open rehearsals, workshops, acting exercises, improvisation sessions and other backstage developments as productions are readied for Broadway or West End debuts.

Royal Olympic Cruise Lines Inc. (Nasdaq: ROCLF) announced the appointment of a new Board of Directors effective December 22, 1999, following the completed sale of a 70% equity interest in ROC Holdings Inc. to Louis Cruise Lines Company. ROC Holdings Inc. is the owner of 51.42% of ROCLF. The new Chairman of Royal Olympic's Board of Directors is Harry Haralambopoulos, previously Deputy Chairman of the Board since September 1998. Prior to joining Royal Olympic, Mr. Haralambopoulos was President, CEO, and a Director of Celebrity Cruises.

Carnival Cruise Lines, a unit of Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL), announced this week that it has exercised an option with Kvaerner MasaYards of Helsinki, Finland, for the construction of a new 84,000- ton ship expected to be delivered in 2002. The 2,112-passenger vessel, to be named Carnival Legend, will cost approximately $375 million. It will be a sister ship to the Carnival Spirit and Carnival Pride, both currently under construction at Kvaerner Masa and expected to enter service in early and late 2001, respectively.

The 960-foot-long Carnival Legend will feature 12 passenger decks housing a wedding chapel, conference center, two-level fitness facility, expansive children's center and a multitude of bars, lounges and public areas for dining, activities and entertainment.

A number of cruise lines this week began offering financial incentives to travel agencies that book cruises via the existing online booking systems. Expect this trend to continue as an increasing number of cruise lines join the other travel suppliers in encouraging the increased use of online systems for booking vacations. While only a small percentage of cruises are booked online today, an increasing number of cruise passengers are using the Internet to research their next cruise and over the next year a significant number are expected to book either directly with the cruise lines or via travel agency and travel portal web sites

Premier Cruises has canceled its sailing's from the Yucatan effective January 2000. The chartered Royal Olympic ship Triton will be returned to the company. Premier is offering the 3- and 4-night Puerto Vallarta sailing on the Seawind Crown for those already booked on the Triton.

Cruise News Trivia Question:
We all know that Titanic's sister ship Olympic was broken up in 1937. What is amazing is that part of Olympic survived and will sail again later this year. How will this happen?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - Which cruise ship was the first to provide passengers Internet access?

Answer - The answer to the first ship with Internet access would be the new Norwegian Sky courtesy of Robert Hummel .

Cruise News 12/27/99

Happy Holidays from all of us at TravelPage.com

Just a reminder that your intrepid reporter has embarked on a voyage to welcome the new millennium at sea. I am Florida as I type this and I will attempt to post daily updates from m/s Volendam via the Internet. Click here to join me on the adventure.

Louis Cruise Lines announced last week that it had completed a purchase of a 70% stake in Royal Olympic Holdings, which holds a controlling interest in Royal Olympic Cruise Lines.

Commodore Holdings Limited (Nasdaq:CCLN) announced that they plan to purchase the 820-passenger cruise ship Crown Dynasty. Commodore currently charters the ship. They will pay $86.2 million to the ship's owner Helsinki-based Neptun Maritime and the transfer is expected to take place in January, 2000.

Carnival Cruise Lines, Carnival Victory was floated out (launched) at the Fincantieri shipyard last week. The ship 101,353 ton, 893 foot ship will carry over 2,500 passengers in 1,379 cabins and is expected to begin service in the summer of 2000.

Norwegian Cruise Line announced that the Norwegian Sea will end it "Texcaribbean" itinerary and repositioned the ship to Miami. Starting January 15, 2001. The Norwegian Sea will sail on 3- and 4-night cruises calling at Nassau and Stirrup Cay (private island) with Key west added on the 4-night sailing's.

Premier Cruises has canceled its sailing's from the Yucatan effective January 2000. The chartered Royal Olympic ship Triton will be returned to the company. Premier is offering the 3- and 4-night Puerto Vallarta sailing on the Seawind Crown for those already booked on the Triton.

Seabourn Cruise Line's newly named, refurbished Seabourn Sun will sail its first World Cruise in the winter 2001. The cruise can be booked in its entirety or in 10-day segments.

Delta Queen Steamboat Co. will start its annual "Great Steamboat Race" June 24, 2000. The Delta Queen and the Mississippi will compete with each other in three races.

There are reports that Sandals owner Butch Steward is looking to charter a ship to develop a Sandals cruise line. At one point he was talking with Royal Olympic Cruise line.

Cruise News Trivia Question:
Which cruise ship was the first to provide passengers Internet access?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - Which current cruise ship began life as the container cargo ship Axel Johnson in 1969?

Answer - The answer is "COSTA MARINA" courtesy of Michael Storari .

Cruise News 12/20/99

Happy Holidays from all of us at TravelPage.com

Join us next week as our intrepid reporter embarks on a voyage to welcome the new millennium at sea. Beginning on Monday, we will begin posting daily updates via the Internet from Holland America's newest cruise ship, the m/s Volendam. This will be a chance for those of you celebrating the new year ashore to experience all the hype of a millennium cruise from the comfort of your computer monitor. It will also be a chance for us to see how easy it really is to connect to the Internet from a cruise ship. Check back here next Monday for updates.

The big news this week was Star Cruises $1.1 billion dollar takeover of Norwegian Cruise Lines. In the first of a flurry of announcements, the Malaysia-based cruise line announced on Thursday that they had purchased 97.9 million Norwegian Cruise Lines shares representing 39.3% of the company. At the time, Star Cruises' management publicly stated that they would not increase their stake above 40%. That promise didn't last long. On Friday, they day after Carnival announced that they were dropping their own bid for NCL, Star made the surprise announcement that they had increased their stake to 50.2% of NCL, offering 35 kroner ($4.37) per share for the remaining stock.

NCL's management expressed concern about the timing and nature of the announcements and advised shareholders to wait for more information and consider the board's recommendation before accepting Star's offer.

In a related story, Premier Cruise Lines announced that they had approached NCL about a possible merger. The announcement was a bit of a surprise considering Premier's small size ($250 million in revenues) and recent financial difficulties. NCL's chief executive was quoted as saying that while they had been approached by Premier, "We're not in discussions. We don't believe it is the right combination".

The former Royal Viking Sun returned to service as the Seabourn Sun earlier this week. Seabourn Sun's godmother, Norwegian actress Linn Stokke Brynestad, joined Larry Pimentel, Seabourn Cruise Line president and CEO, in Port Everglades to preside over the official ceremony renaming Royal Viking Sun to Seabourn Sun. Seabourn Sun was taken out of service after her call at Genoa on October 29 and underwent a refit at the Lloyd Werft GmbH Shipyard in Bremerhaven, Germany. The architectural firm of Tillberg Design designed the plan that refurbished 14 public areas, including a new Roman-style health spa and expanded golf facilities.

Carnival Cruise lines has decided to keep the Sensation in port at Gulfport, Miss. 7:00am December 31, 1999 to 7:00pm on January 1, 2000. Carnival has some concerns about all the other ships that will be on the Mississippi River during the millennium rollover.

Princess Cruise Lines received the Valued Customer Silver Award from the National Business & Disability Council. Princess is the only cruise line to have received this recognition which is given to companies that have improved handicapped accessibility to products and services.

Crystal Cruise Lines announced that starting in January 2000 the dining rooms on both the Crystal Symphony and Crystal Harmony will become smoke free.

Windjammer Barefoot Cruises ship Amazing Grace was instrumental in rescuing two people from a burning boat off the Florida coast. The 7th district Coast Guard gave the captain and crew a certificate of merit for their efforts.

Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL) reported net income of $251.0 million on revenues of $791.2 million for its fourth quarter ended November 30, 1999, compared to net income of $220.6 million on revenues of $728.6 million for the same quarter in 1998. For the fourth quarter of 1999, revenues increased 8.6 percent, and earnings per share increased 8.1 percent over the comparable quarter in 1998.

Net income for the year ended November 30, 1999, was $1.03 billion on revenues of $3.50 billion, compared to net income of $835.9 million on revenues of $3.01 billion for the same period in 1998. For fiscal 1999, revenues increased 16.2 percent, and earnings per share increased 18.6 percent over fiscal 1998.

Cruise News Trivia Question:
Which current cruise ship began life as the container cargo ship Axel Johnson in 1969?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - In May of 1972, on voyage number 84, Cunard's QE2 picked up four unexpected passengers during a trans-Atlantic crossing. Who were they, and how did they end up onboard QE2?

Answer - Captain Robert Williams, Sergeant Clifford Oliver, Lietenant Richard Clifford and Corporal Thomas Jones from the Special Air Service and the Royal Marines - They were parachuted down to the QE-2 because of a bomb hoax . Joseph Lindisi, of New York, was arrested for making the call and sentenced to 20 years in prison. courtesy of Barry Vaudrin, Minnepaolis, Minnesota .

Cruise News 12/13/99

Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL) announced this week that it has entered into a preliminary agreement with Queen's Seaport Development, Inc., to construct and operate a new cruise ship terminal in the city of Long Beach, Calif. The planned terminal, which will be built adjacent to the Queen Mary attraction and hotel, is expected to take 12 to 18 months to construct and is slated for completion in early 2001. The facility will include a single cruise berth large enough to accommodate vessels the size of Carnival Cruise Lines' 102,000-ton "Destiny-class" series.

Embarking and debarking passengers will be encouraged to explore the half-a-million square feet of the Queen Mary attraction and sample the variety of dining and shopping venues as well as stay in one of the 365 restored staterooms on the Queen Mary hotel.

In a move that had been expected for some time, Disney Cruise Line announced that beginning Aug. 12, 2000, the Disney Magic will begin sailing a new, seven-day eastern Caribbean cruise itinerary. The new, longer itinerary includes stops at St. Maarten and St. Thomas, with excursions to St. John as well as Castaway Cay, Disney's private Bahamian island.

The Disney Magic will depart on its new seven-day itinerary each Saturday from Port Canaveral, Fla. The itinerary is as follows:

Saturday..........Depart from Port Canaveral
Sunday............At Sea
Monday............At Sea
Tuesday...........St. Maarten
Wednesday.........St. Thomas, with excursions to St. John
Thursday..........At Sea
Friday............Castaway Cay
Saturday..........Return to Port Canaveral
	

NCL announced strong bookings and estimated 2000 earnings ahead of analysts' expectations during a meeting with analysts in Oslo, Norway this week. The primary purpose of the meeting was to discuss the unsolicited offer from Carnival Cruise Line and other contacts with parties interested in a transaction involving NCL, and NCL's future prospects. NCL had previously announced last week that it was talking to Singapore-based Star Cruises about potential strategic partnerships.

NCL's moves seem to be working as Carnival appeared to back away from it's offer by announcing that it was ready to sell its 4.3 million shares of NCL to a buyer who is willing to pay more than the 30 crowns a share that Carnival offered NCL last month.

P&O Cruise Lines announced last week that it expects to be listed on the U.S. stock market by late summer of next year. The company announced in March that it would begin spinning off certain assets including construction, property and exhibitions divisions and focus its efforts on its traditional maritime roots.

Thirty years after "Love Story" sent millions of women reaching for the tissue box, stars Ali MacGraw and Ryan O'Neal will mark this milestone anniversary of the ultimate date movie by christening another symbol of romance, a Princess Cruises' Love Boat. The couple's reunion on February 16, 2000 in Ft. Lauderdale, to christen Princess' new Ocean Princess, will be the first time since the film's debut in March 1970 that the two have appeared together.

Interactive Pictures Corporation (Nasdaq: IPIX), a world leader in immersive imaging for the Internet, announced today that Renaissance Cruises has selected its IPIX(TM) virtual tour technology to create virtual tours of its cruise ships, in conjunction with the launch of a new multimedia Web site.

Cruise News Trivia Question:
In May of 1972, on voyage number 84, Cunard's QE2 picked up four unexpected passengers during a trans-Atlantic crossing. Who were they, and how did they end up onboard QE2?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - It's been a long time since a cruise ship or ocean liner was built in a United States ship yard. The last pair was built in the 1950's and both are still sailing today. What were their names when they entered service and what are their names today?

Answer - Then last two US built liners were the SS Brasil and the SS Argentina which were built for Moore McCormack Lines by Ingalls Shipyard in 1958. These vessels are currently named SS Universe Explorer (World Explorer Cruises) and SS Enchanted Isle (Commadore Cruise Lines) respectively. courtesy of Karl Bollmann .

Cruise News 12/6/99

Norwegian Cruise Line - Big news of the week is Carnival's hostile takeover bid for NCL Holdings ASA, parent company of Norwegian cruise line. Carnival's bid was announced last week and involves a cash tender offer of 30 crowns per share for NCL which is traded on the Oslo stock exchange and in the U.S in the form of depository receipts. The offer price is approximately 30% higher than the recent price of NCL stock and is set to expire on December 22. NCL official have so far rejected the bid saying that the offer is "inadequate".

Carnival also announced last week that it had acquired 4.3 million shares (1.8%) of NCL during stock purchases in October and November of this year. Carnival officials headed to Oslo hoping to meet with NCL chairman Kristian Siem who owns approximately 13 percent of the NCL's stock. They have already met with several major NCL institutional investors but were hoping to make their case directly with Siem.

In a related announcement, NCL said that 2 other interested parties have contacted them about possible acquisition but that they have not yet spoken to either of the interested parties.

A former Carnival Cruise Lines employee who alleged that she was sexually assaulted by a co-worker while at sea has settled with the company. The nurse was offered what her attorney described as an "...offer we couldn't refuse". The women claimed that she had been raped by a fellow officer in August 1998 in her cabin aboard Carnival's Imagination. The accused officer fled to his native Italy before charges could be pressed. It was during preparation for this trial that Carnival revealed that 108 sexual assaults had been reported on board its ships between 1993 and 1998.

Norwegian Cruise Line announced a revision in the new Norwegian Sky's itinerary. Effective immediately, she will discontinue calls at Eleuthera and substitute Nassau on both eastern and western Caribbean sailings. The Norwegian Sky sails round-trip every Sunday from Miami. Her eastern ports of call are Nassau, San Juan, St. Thomas and Great Stirrup Cay (Norwegian Cruise Line's private island). The western Caribbean itinerary includes Grand Cayman, Ocho Rios, Nassau and Great Stirrup Cay.

The Internet Cafe introduced aboard NCL's M/S Norwegian Sky in August has proved so popular that the cruise line is planning to install Internet Cafes fleet wide by February 2000. In addition, five computer terminals will be added to the existing nine aboard the Norwegian Sky on January 16. Internet Cafes will be fully operational fleet wide as per the following schedule:

	S/S Norway            December 4, 1999
	Norwegian Wind        December 11, 1999
	Norwegian Majesty     January 7, 2000
	Norwegian Sea         February 6, 2000
	Norwegian Dream       February 27, 2000
	

Holiday Cruising - Millennium cruises are still high with no discounting insight. But if you are willing to take the sailing before or after the millennium, there is plenty of room and lots of specials.

From our...Where is Charo when you need her file...Celebrity Cruises has announced its line-up for the fleet's Millennium cruises! Broadway superstar and television legend John Davidson will join headline singing group, The Tokens, during Horizon's 11-night December 23rd cruise. Comic visionary and ever popular actor Alan King and concert pianist Naki Ataman will entertain guests on board Zenith, along with The Diamonds, whose rock and roll hits include "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" and " Little Darlin'." Zenith will sail trans-canal cruise from San Juan on December 26.

Guests on the Century's December 30 cruise, will be entertained by television superstar Regis Philbin, along with one of America's most popular ventriloquists, the amazing Jay Johnson. Superstar amazon actress and entertainer Susan Anton and comic genius Rondell Sheridan are slated as entertainment onboard Galaxy's 11-night Southern Caribbean cruise, departing round-trip from San Juan on December 28. Guests onboard Mercury's seven-night Western Caribbean cruise will enjoy the mind-numbing mind-reading skills of mentalist Max Maven, as well as the comic talent of ventriloquist Jeff Dunham.

Cruise News Trivia Question:
It's been a long time since a cruise ship or ocean liner was built in a United States ship yard. The last pair was built in the 1950's and both are still sailing today. What were their names when they entered service and what are their names today?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - Which Atlantic liner was known by the following nickname: The Ship Beautiful?

Answer - It was Cunard's Aquitania, the last four-stacker. courtesy of heiningn@sunlink.net.

Cruise News 11/29/99

Cunard Line has announced its 2000 itineraries for the 'new' Cunard fleet: Queen Elizabeth 2 and Caronia (formerly Vistafjord). The itineraries include a new series of QE2 Cape Town Line Voyages. For these voyages, QE2 will depart from Southampton on 15 November and sail for two weeks to Cape Town, South Africa calling at Funchal, Madeira, Porto Grande, Cape Verde Islands and St Helena en route. On 30 November, the QE2 will return to Southampton by way of St. Helena, Dakar, Tenerife and Lisbon. QE2 will also offer 19 Transatlantic voyages including a series of 7 day crossings with stops in Boston eastbound and Amsterdam or Cherbourg on westbound crossings.

Crown Cruise Line will be christening the Crown Dynasty on Thursday, December 2nd at the Port of New Orleans, Julia Street Pier. The ceremony will include the traditional breaking of a champagne bottle over the ship's bow by Crown Dynasty godmother Lee Binder. The Crown Dynasty will be making two special 7-night sailings between New Orleans and tropical destinations this winter before the ship begins its regular itinerary from Aruba.

Disney's Toy Story 2, opened in theatres at sea as well as the traditional land-based variety. The movie was the star attraction during a Hollywood-style gala premiere aboard the Disney Magic and Disney Wonder cruise ships on November 24 , the date of its theatrical release nationwide. Life-size characters Buzz Lightyear, Woody and green army men guided guests through orange traffic cones to the event. The movie will run through the holiday season in The Buena Vista Theatre aboard both Disney ships.

The chief engineer of Royal Caribbean's Voyager of the Seas pleaded innocent this week to charges that he had altered log books to cover up illegal oil dumping while he was chief engineer on board RCL's Nordic Prince in 1994. Oystein Larsen, of Lillehammer, Norway, was released on $250,000 bond after being arrested on July 11th after his new ship arrived in Miami. He had been indicted by a federal grand jury in Los Angeles on three counts of conspiracy to violate federal oil pollution laws. Conviction on the charges could result in 15 years in prison and a $750,000 fine.

Royal Caribbean's Voyager of the Seas' was officially named by "godmother" and Olympic Gold medalist Katarina Witt, on Saturday, November 20 in Miami. The ceremony was followed by a fireworks display as the ship sailed away from port. While at sea, guests enjoyed a black-tie gala dinner, Broadway-style entertainment, live music, dancing and gaming. All proceeds from the cruise, which is expected to reach $1.2 million, will benefit the United Way Success by Six program.

United States Lines is now accepting reservations for Hawaii cruises aboard the ms Patriot (HAL's current Nieuw Amsterdam). Beginning Dec. 9, 2000, the 1,214-passenger ship will sail year-round on seven-night cruises to four islands. Cruises will depart every Saturday from Honolulu, Oahu, and visit Nawiliwili, Kauai; Kahului, Maui; Hilo, Hawaii; and Kona, Hawaii.

With over 60 new ships scheduled to be built over the next four years, Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) asked a number of ship designers what types of features we might expect to see onboard the new vessels.

Will the trend toward ever-larger ships continue? Probably not, says Tomas Tillberg, the junior member of a father-son ship design concern based in Sweden and Florida, which has created vessels for Costa Cruises, Crystal Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean International. Tillberg, believes that the largest ships currently on order -- Royal Caribbean's Viking series at 142,000 tons apiece and spacious enough for 3,114 passengers -- are the biggest the industry will see: "In a general sense, ships won't get bigger and bigger, but they will get better and better."

Joe Farcus, designer for Carnival Cruise Lines, prefers to take something of a wait-and-see approach regarding the size of future ships. He believes that cruise lines will continue to favor bigger and better ships until bigger ceases to be better. One way they'll get better, say Tillberg and Farcus, is by appealing to passengers who've cruised many times before and want a very specialized, niche experience. Both see the need for vessels designed solely around special interests.

One example, says Farcus, is a ship designed as an art museum, containing rotating and borrowed collections to rival the world's most famous land museums. A vessel of this sort would also provide an activities schedule brimming with art lectures and lessons, and itineraries featuring visits to the world's best museums. Another example would be a ship built around the sports theme, with sports bars, coaching clinics, guest lecturers, and sports memorabilia and decor throughout the vessel's public rooms and cabins.

Tillberg's "better and better" forecast applies to onboard amenities as well, especially in the areas of food, activities and technology. RCL's Voyager of the Seas already features a rock climbing wall and an ice skating rink. And, we can expect more computers and connectedness on ships. "I think everyone will offer Internet connections from cabins, as well as Internet cafes as seen on Norwegian Sky," says freelance journalist Anne Kalosh. "Maybe someday cabins will come with PCs."

All of these developments are what Farcus would describe as "evolutionary, rather than revolutionary. The cruise industry, like other successful, long-running businesses, has mastered the art of changing with the times. That's a trend that will continue," Farcus says. While the industry strives to create better, more unusual experiences for new and returning passengers, things like spas and yoga classes are "icing on the cake, diversions from the main purpose of a cruise," Farcus says. The core elements of a cruise will never lose their appeal, says Farcus. " What people want to do on a cruise ship hasn't changed much ... the romance of being at sea, the ease of a cruise, the pleasure of being treated well and in a manner they're not accustomed to. These things will not change."

Cruise News Trivia Question:
Which Atlantic liner was known by the following nickname: The Ship Beautiful?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - When Cunard's Queen Mary departed New York for Europe in July of 1943 she carried a record number of passengers and crew - the most of any passenger vessel in war or peace. How many people did she carry on that historic voyage? (note: the closest answer wins this week's contest)

Answer - the Queen Mary set a record on July 25th 1943 sailing from New York to Gourock with 15.740 passengers and a crew of 943 totalling 16.683 courtesy of liberte50@wtal.de.

Cruise News 11/21/99

Holland America Line, a unit of Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL), has signed an agreement with Italian shipyard Fincantieri Cantieri Navali S.p.A. for the construction of two new 84,000-ton vessels expected to enter service in the fall of 2002 and summer of 2003. The agreement also includes options for Holland America Line to order up to three sister ships to be delivered between 2003 and 2005.

The 1,800-passenger vessels will be built at a cost of approximately US$400 million each at Fincantieri's Marghera shipyard. The new ships will be the first of a new class of vessels for Holland America and will introduce a number of new features, including the first "exterior elevators," located on both the port and starboard side of the vessel which will vertically transverse 10 decks, providing guests with panoramic sea views. The new vessels will sport larger cabins than the current fleet, extensive multi-million-dollar art collections and expanded entertainment venues. In addition, the ships will offer expanded spa facilities and the line's first "cabaret-style" show lounge complementing a multi-level main show lounge.

At 951 feet, the new ships will be among the longest passenger vessels in the world, but will still be able to transit the Panama Canal. The ships will feature a variety of accommodation categories and approximately 80 percent of the cabins will offer private verandahs.

Aker shipyards announced this week that the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany had won a $377.9 million deal to build two new cruise liners. The liners, ordered by Aida cruises Ltd., will be 656 feet long and have a capacity for 1,600 passengers. Delivery is scheduled for the first quarter 2002 and the first quarter 2003.

Royal Caribbean also announced a deal with the Meyer Werft shipyard. They announced that the shipyard will be building the third and fourth of the line's Vantage class vessels. Estimated cost for the two ships is $800 million. The ships are scheduled for delivery in June 2003 and June 2004 respectively.

In yet another change in strategies Premier Cruise Lines announced that they will be will be expanding their Big Red Boat brand in the year 2000. The cruise line that most recently brought you self-proclaimed "7-Star" service will convert most of their fleet to Big Red Boats by mid-2000. As part of this transition, Premier will be renaming four of its vessels.

The Big Red Boat I, formerly the S.S. Oceanic, will continue her 3- and 4-night Bahamas itineraries from her home in Port Canaveral, featuring family cruise and land packages with Universal Studios Escape and the Walt Disney World Resort Theme Parks.

New York City will be the home port for Premier’s newly-acquired Edinburgh Castle (former Eugenio Costa) which will become The Big Red Boat II. She will begin 7-night sailings to New England/Canada from New York effective early May, 2000. This will be the only dedicated family product sailing from New York and will continue throughout the summer. The Big Red Boat II will then be repositioned to Port Canaveral in mid-Fall with special 7-night cruises to the Eastern and Western Caribbean. This dual market positioning for The Big Red Boat II in New York and Canaveral will be the permanent positioning for the ship.

Premier's S.S. IslandBreeze will become The Big Red Boat III and will be based in Houston beginning in June, 2000. She will offer 7-night cruises to Mexico with stops in Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, and Veracruz.

Finally, in a move that is sure to disappoint ocean liner aficionados, Premier will transform the S.S. Rembrandt (formerly HAL's Rotterdam V) into The Big Red Boat IV. In her new role she will offer 3 and 4-night cruises from Los Angeles to Catalina, San Diego and Ensenada during the winter months. In July 2001, Premier will make its maiden journey to the Great Northwest when The Big Red Boat IV begins 7-night Alaskan adventures.

Premier Cruise Lines has announced the itineraries of two of their newly acquired ships, the former Royal Olympic ships Triton and Odysseus. The Triton will sail from Cancun on 3 & 4-night cruises. The Odysseus will sail from Puerto Vallarta on 3 & 4-night cruises. Both ships have different itineraries for the 3 & 4 sailing allowing for back-to-back 7-night itineraries. Premier will offer post and pre hotel accommodations on both itineraries, allowing for a 7-night vacation package.

Commodore Cruise lines has added two ports of call in Honduras and Belize on the May 6th and October 21st sailing.

Effective December 1, 1999 Holland America will offer Turner Network (TNT) and CNN in the cabins on all of their ships. The TV's in the sports bar will offer ESPN - which is great news for those of us on a millennium cruise as it will allow us to keep up with the college football bowl picture, the latest NASCAR standings and the International Curling Championships.

"PORTS OF CALL" - Barbados, Bonaire, Cartegena, Curacao, Margarita Island, and Trinidad & Tobago have formed an alliance to get more cruise ships to call at their ports.

Cruise News Trivia Question:
When Cunard's Queen Mary departed New York for Europe in July of 1943 she carried a record number of passengers and crew - the most of any passenger vessel in war or peace. How many people did she carry on that historic voyage? (note: the closest answer wins this week's contest)

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - Since 1838, thirty-two ships have captured the Blue Ribband representing the fastest Atlantic crossing by a passenger vessel. Name the three Blue Ribband holders that sported three funnels. Hint: a total of 47 years passed between the time the first three funnel vessel captured the prize and the final three funnel liner won the award.

Answer - Note: one of our eagle-eyed readers pointed out that there were actually four 3-stackers involved.

The first was the City of Paris, with both westbound and eastbound titles in 1889, followed by its sister ship, the City of New York, with a westbound title in 1892. Then of course, there were the Normandie, with both westbound and eastbound titles in 1935, and the Queen Mary, which had both eastbound and westbound titles in 1936. These latter two had quite a rivalry going for a number of years before conversion to a troop ship claimed the life of the Normandie in 1942. courtesy of joseph.mizii@us.pwcglobal.com.

Cruise News 11/15/99

Celebrity Cruises announced this week that the Bermuda government has offered the cruise line the opportunity to continue to sail two ships to Bermuda during the island's 2000 cruising season and beyond. Celebrity's Zenith was already scheduled to sail to the island in 2000, while Horizon was slated for deployment in Europe, offering cruises catering to a European audience. But when the Bermuda government and Department of Tourism recently extended an invitation to Celebrity to again deploy Horizon to Bermuda, Celebrity officials decided to take advantage of the offer.

Norwegian Cruise Line finally christened the trouble-plagued Norwegian Sky in Miami this week. Unable to select a single traditional godmother to christen the ship, the company named all 1200 of it's employees as "godparents" of the ship. The ship was originally scheduled to be christened in October but the ceremony had to be delayed after the ship was damaged on September 24 after running aground in the St. Lawrence river. The damage forced the vessel into a shipyard for repairs and a number of cruises had to be cancelled.

Crystal Cruises announced this week that effective with the ships' first cruises in January 2000, the Crystal Dining Room on Crystal Harmony and Crystal Symphony will be completely non-smoking. The move not only reflects the prevailing trend in restaurants and public spaces, but also responds to the overwhelming number of requests the line has received from both smoking and non-smoking guests who prefer non-smoking dining venues.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL; OSE) has signed a letter of intent with Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany, to build the third and fourth Vantage-class vessels for Royal Caribbean International, with options for two more ships. The total contract price for the two ships is approximately $800 million.

Already under construction at Meyer Werft are the first two 88,000-ton Vantage-class ships, Radiance of the Seas and Brilliance of the Seas, scheduled for delivery in June 2001 and April 2002, respectively. With the newest order and options, by 2006, Royal Caribbean International could have up to six 2,100-passenger ships in the Vantage-class design.

The world's largest cruise passenger terminal was officially opened last Wednesday in preparation for the arrival of Royal Caribbean's 142,000-ton Voyager of the Seas, the world's largest cruise ship. Port, cruise and government officials celebrated the occasion at the Dante B. Fascell Port of Miami-Dade, the cruise capital of the world. Built along a 2,000-foot stretch of pier, the new multi-million dollar, 250,000-square-foot terminal was constructed specially to accommodate Voyager of the Seas, which arrived in Miami on Thursday.

Designed by Bruno-Elias & Associates and built by C.G. Chase Construction Company, the terminal features a series of sail-like structures that rise above the roof line of the giant structure to create a stylish and distinct addition to the Miami skyline. A replica of Royal Caribbean's Viking Crown Lounge will serve as an observation point and function space on top of the terminal. Below the sails, inside the structure, several sub-sections support the boarding and disembarking process for up to 8,400 guests.

American Hawaii Hawaii Cruise line announced that it will shift the home port for the Independence from Honolulu to the island of Maui. This shift will take affect when the Patriot arrives in Hawaii. American Hawaii Cruises expects delivery of it two new US Flagged ships in the years 2003, and 2004. The new two new ships will replace the S.S. Independence and the M.S. Patriot (currently HAL's Nieuw Amsterdam) as they are retired.

Cunard Line is offering special savings of up to 75 percent off brochure rates for companions on select sailings. Discount fares for second guests start as low as $975 on the Caronia (formerly the Vistafjord) and $695 on the Queen Elizabeth 2. With the special offer, the first guest pays the 2000 brochure rate and the second guest pays up to 75 percent off the first guest fare, which begins at only $3,510 on the Caronia and $2,790 on the QE2.

As part of its inaugural season, Carnival Cruise Lines' 102,000-ton Carnival Victory will operate a series of one- to five-night voyages from Newport News, Va., and Charleston, S.C., in late summer 2000. From Newport News, the Carnival Victory will offer a one-night cruise on Sept. 29 and a five-day Bahamas cruise departing Sept. 30, 2000. Then, from Charleston, the ship will operate a one-night cruise Oct. 6 and a four-day Bahamas voyage departing Oct. 7, 2000.

Celebrity Cruises has awarded Rochem Environmental, Inc. of Houston a contract for about $2 million to install a Rochem FM-Module gray water membrane system on two of its ships, Galaxy and Mercury.

Premier Cruise lines is planning to make itinerary changes on most of its vessels. The original Big Red Boat (Oceanic) will stay its original itinerary. Starting in June 2000 the IslandBreeze will become the third Big Red Boat and cruise out of Houston, TX. SeaBreeze will do a 7-night Mexican itinerary from Fort Lauderdale. The Rembrandt 7-nights from Port Canaveral sailing the winter and then New York to Montreal in the summer. The Seawind will be position to sail 3- and 4-night cruises out of Puerto Vallarta combined with a 3- and 4- night hotel stay in Puerto Vallarta.

Cruise News Trivia Question:
Since 1838, thirty-two ships have captured the Blue Ribband representing the fastest Atlantic crossing by a passenger vessel. Name the three Blue Ribband holders that sported three funnels. Hint: a total of 47 years passed between the time the first three funnel vessel captured the prize and the final three funnel liner won the award.

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - In May of 1942 the former French liner Normandie was seized by the United States government and work began to convert her into a troop transport. We all know what happened during the conversion (...she caught fire and capsized) but how many of you know her new name at the time of the fire? Bonus question: what ever became of her?

As a Normandiemaniac, I can correctly answer both questions about my favorite ship.

1 Her name at the time of the tragic fire on February 9, 1942 was the U.S.S. Lafayette. She was being converted into an American troopship to serve the Allied war effort when the blaze happened. Due to the fireboats' pumping too much water into her to extinguish the fire, she capsized and sank.

2 In an 18 month salvage operation, the ship was righted for possible rebuilding. But by this time the Allies were winning the war and America's shipyards were turning out lots of brand new troopships. Therefore, the hulk of the U.S.S. Lafayette was no longer needed for te war effort. She sat out the remainder of the war in a New Jersey pier. After the war she was found to be too badly damaged for rebuilding into a passenger ship. For example, her mighty and innovative turbo-electric propulsion system was totally ruined by her 18 month submersion. Therefore, she was sold to the New Jersey junk firm Lippsett, Inc. and scrapped.

All in all, a sad story that could have been prevented by a little care during conversion. courtesy of cruisehand@top.monad.net.

Cruise News 11/8/99

Cunard has announced more details about the Queen Mary project and expects to announce the official name of the vessel and the ship's builder by year's end. At 1,100 feet in length she is expected to be the largest passenger vessel ever built.

Preliminary artist's sketch of the Project Queen Mary - click here for larger version

According to by Larry Pimentel, President & CEO of Cunard Line Limited, "Among the many ships being built, this Cunard ocean liner is perhaps the most intriguing of any passenger vessel under consideration. She will become famous before she even takes to the seas. The level of interest is beyond our wildest imagination." He added that he expects the vessel to enter service in 2003.

According to Cunard the hull will be painted black continuing a Cunard tradition dating back nearly 160 years. She will have a giant single stack, painted historic "Cunard Red" with black bands. The funnel will tower over 20 stories above her keel. Her white superstructure will be stepped far back from her raked prow, and stepped aft as well, in the classic liner profile. Her power plant will produce sufficient electricity to light a city the size of Southampton, England. And her engines will produce 140,000 horsepower. Her whistle will be audible from a distance of ten miles.

Cunard plans call for the new ship to carry 2500 guests in spacious interior spaces, reminiscent of the White Star liner Titanic as depicted in the recent film. Considering that smaller ships sailing today carry many more guests, the 2500 passengers on board the new ship will enjoy an significantly more space per guest, and service is expected to be superior with an average of one staff member per couple of guests on board.

The ship's ambience will attempt to re-create the high style and grace of years gone by with classic touches such as grand staircases, expansive promenades, elegant grand restaurants and gracious public rooms of an imposing scale. Some of the features already revealed include a Heritage Trail highlighted by mementos and artifacts from Cunard's 160-year history and an onboard Maritime Museum of liner history; a pub with its own onboard microbrewery; an advanced Computer Learning Centre and an expansive spa and health centre. Other design concepts will be revealed as the final yard selection is made. While Project Queen Mary is expected to be the largest passenger vessel ever built, Cunard's Pimentel said she will nevertheless maintain a feeling of intimacy with smaller, comfortable spaces ideal for contemplation and privacy. Three-quarters of all suites, staterooms and apartments will have large private balconies.

While the new ship's speed is unlikely to exceed that of the present Queen Elizabeth 2, she will be built to operate at speeds in the vicinity of 30 knots. Unlike many of the mega-cruise ships in service today, she will be designed for high-speed passage through open ocean conditions.

In other news, Holland America has announced that Tennis star Chris Evert will be the official "godmother" for the line's newest cruise ship, the ms Volendam, at a dedication ceremony Nov. 12 at Pier 26, Port Everglades. During inaugural events Nov. 8-12, the 1,440-passenger Volendam will host several thousand travel agents, past passengers and other invited guests. On Nov. 12, the ship will sail on a gala maiden cruise -- a 10-day Western Caribbean cruise featuring St. John's, Antiqua (Nelson's Dockyard tour option); Castries and Soufriere (service call), St. Lucia; Bridgetown, Barbados; Pointe-a-Pitre and Basse-Terre (service call), Guadeloupe; St. John (service call) and St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands; and Nassau, Bahamas. In conjunction with the ship dedication, Holland America Line is presenting Chris Evert Charities Inc. with a donation of $25,000.

Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines' Legend of the Seas left Piraeus, Greece last Monday on what the cruise line calls the world's longest cruise. Over the next 175 days, the ship will stop at more than 50 cities in 18 countries. The ship is headed for the International Date Line where it is scheduled to hug the western side of the dateline for most of the day on December 31st. When the first clocks strike midnight to usher in the new year, the ship will display a surprising degree of dexterity by jumping east of the line - heading back to 1999 to wait for the party all over again.

Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines was fined $3 million this week by a Florida court as part of a series of ocean dumping cases that cost the cruise line a total of $27 million over the past year. The latest action covered a series of illegal dumping actions in the waters off South Florida and was part of a plea agreement reached on July 21st of this year.

Commodore Cruise Lines announced that the Enchanted Isle will be embarking on a series of longer, 10 to 14 day cruises in 2000. Scheduled cruises include a 14-day from New Orleans to the Panama Canal, a 10-day from New Orleans to the Eastern Caribbean, ending up in San Juan and an 11-day from San Juan visiting unduplicated Eastern Caribbean countries and finishing in New Orleans.

Crystal Cruises announced their year 2000 European schedule which will offer a comprehensive mix of ports of call. The Crystal Symphony will make a total of 17 departures on 16 different itineraries -- ranging in length from 10 to 13 days -- from May through October. Most of the cruises will feature an overnight shipboard stay in one or more of the following cities: Monte Carlo, Venice, Istanbul, Athens, Cannes, Villefranche, Bordeaux, Stockholm, and St. Petersburg, Russia.

Cruise News Trivia Question:
In May of 1942 the former French liner Normandie was siezed by the United States government and work began to convert her into a troop transport. We all know what happened during the conversion (...she caught fire and capsized) but how many of you know her new name at the time of the fire? Bonus question: what ever became of her?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - Which ocean liner and cruise ship has the distinction of having sailed with one, two and three funnels over her long career?

That was Furness Withy's Queen of Bermuda. She was built in 1933 with three funnels. During WWII she had two funnels and afterwards three again. Finally, she was rebuilt in '61 with only one funnel. Srapped in 1966. courtesy of Ralph Dazert.

Cruise News 11/1/99

American Classic Voyages Co. (Nasdaq: AMCV) has acquired one of the most storied names in the history of ocean-going passenger transportation, United States Lines®, to be used for its fleet of cruise ships now being developed under the company's Project America initiative.

This announcement was immediately followed by the news that the ms Nieuw Amsterdam which the cruise line is acquiring from Holland America Line will be re-named ms Patriot. The line also announced that the ms Patriot will offer 7-night cruises year-round from Honolulu, Hawaii, and that the inaugural voyage is now scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 9, 2000. The company will accept individual and group reservations for the ms Patriot beginning Monday, Nov. 22, 1999.

Roderick K. McLeod, president and COO of American Classic Voyages, said, ``Like many American patriots who helped build our nation the ms Patriot comes to us from a foreign land. This ship is a first step in building United States Lines into one of the cruise vacation industry's best-regarded companies.'' The ms Patriot will offer 7-night cruise vacations throughout the Hawaiian Islands sailing every Saturday year-round from Honolulu, Oahu to Nawiliwili, Kauai; Kahului, Maui; Kona, Hawaii; and Hilo, Hawaii.

Royal Caribbean Cruise Line's Voyager of the Seas left the builder's shipyard in Turku, Finland and began its transatlantic crossing to Miami where she will enter service on November 21st as the largest cruise ship afloat. The 142,000 ton ship is 1,019 feet long and will carry over 3,500 passengers on year-round cruises from Miami to Labadee, Ocho Rios and Cozumel.

Cyprus based cruise operator Louis Cruise Lines announced Friday that they have signed a deal to acquire a controlling interest in beleaguered Royal Olympic cruise Lines. Louis has reportedly agreed to purchase 51.4% of Royal Olympic although the value of the investment has not yet been disclosed. With the acquisition of Royal Olympic's eight ships, Louis Cruise Lines will manage a total of 16 vessels. The agreement is subject to the approval of both company's boards of directors.

Holland America Line's new ms Volendam will be the first HAL ship to feature an Internet center at which guests will be able to go on-line on a real-time basis, check their own e-mail accounts and surf the World Wide Web. The new Internet center, equipped with eight computer terminals and a printer, will be located on Upper Promenade Deck between the Erasmus Library and the Hudson/Half Moon meeting rooms. The space formerly was occupied by the Puzzle Corner; the puzzle table will be relocated to another readily accessible area for the enjoyment of guests. Prices for Internet access have not yet been determined.

Royal Caribbean International announced this week that it has assigned the brand's advertising and marketing portfolio to Arnold Communications Inc. The Boston-based marketing communications agency will manage the brand's advertising, direct marketing, database management, loyalty programs, brand promotions and partnership marketing, collateral design and e-commerce strategies.

First European Cruises parent company of Festival Cruises announced that the two 1250-passenger (625 cabins) ships that are on order will be expanded 1500-passengers (750 cabins). The delivery for the ships is expected to be second quarter of 2001 and first quarter of 2002. Festival also signed a memorandum of understanding for two more larger vessels to be delivered in 2003 and 2004.

Princess Cruise lines positioning of the Ocean Princess in Alaska next year will make it the fourth Princess ship in Alaska. The total number of Princess berths in Alaska will be 7,800.

Crystal Cruise Lines Crystal Harmony will sail Alaskan water next year with three itineraries and six sailings.

Cruise News Trivia Question:
Which ocean liner and cruise ship has the distinction of having sailed with one, two and three funnels over her long career?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - Following the Second World War, American Export Lines operated a quartet of popular combination cargo/passenger ships. Name the "Four Aces"?

Answer:
1. Excalibur
2. Excambion
3. Exochorda
4. Exeter
courtesy of Brandan Thomas.

Cruise News 10/25/99

Norwegian Cruise Line announced today that Norwegian Sky's 15-day repositioning cruise from Boston to Miami on October 28, has been canceled. The vessel has been in dry dock at the Davie Industries Shipyard in Quebec to repair damage sustained on September 24 when the ship was grounded for a four-hour period at the juncture of the St. Lawrence and Saguenay Rivers. The shipyard has determined that additional time is needed to complete the work in progress.

The Norwegian Sky is now scheduled to arrive in Miami on November 12. Following two days of inaugural activities, the ship will depart on her first seven-day Caribbean cruise on Sunday, November 14. Guests on the canceled cruise of October 28 will receive a full refund plus a certificate for 25 percent off a future NCL sailing. Guests with questions concerning the Norwegian Sky may call 1-800-327-7030.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., was fined $6.5 million on Thursday in an Alaska courtroom for illegally dumping oily water and other chemicals into Alaskan waters. U.S. District Judge John Sedwick suspended $3 million of the fine in return for prompt payment of $2 million to the National Parks Foundation and $1 million to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, for use on environmental projects and initiatives stated in a plea agreement. An additional $500,000 was to go to the U.S. Treasury. Royal Caribbean paid the fines on Thursday. Royal Caribbean's president, Jack Williams appeared in court and said that he agreed with the court's decision. In July of this year, Royal Caribbean was fined $18 million as a result of Federal charges stemming from illegal dumping in a variety of areas including Alaska, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

Carnival Cruise Lines Tropicale returned to service last week following repairs due to an engine room fire last month. Unfortunately, problems with the ship's vacuum toilets caused sewage backups and the cruise line ended up flying dozens of passenger home early from a stop in Cozumel, Mexico. Passengers leaving the ship early were promised a full refund. The ship left Tampa on Monday and passengers who stayed on board for the entire cruise were offered a 75% refund.

Port Everglades signed a deal this week with Royal Caribbean International that will pay the Broward County port a minimum of $80.2 million dollars over the next 10 years in exchange for docking space and privileges.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL; Oslo) announced record third-quarter results today. Net income increased 13.3% to $170.0 million, or $0.92 per share, in the third quarter of 1999, compared to $150.0 million, or $0.82 per share, in the same quarter of 1998. Revenues were $734.5 million for the third quarter of 1999, as compared with $744.9 million for the same quarter in 1998. The change was attributable to a 2.8% drop in capacity primarily as a result of Song of America leaving the fleet earlier this year.

Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL), the world's largest cruise operator, announced today that it has exercised its option to purchase the 32 percent minority interest in Cunard Line Limited. Carnival acquired a 68 percent interest in Cunard Line Limited in May 1998. With the purchase of the 32 percent minority interest, Carnival will own 100 percent of Cunard.

Radisson's Seven Seas Navigator was christened in Ft. Lauderdale last week by Marilyn Carlson Nelson, chair and CEO of the multi-billion dollar Carlson Companies of Minneapolis. The Seven Seas Navigator's inaugural season will include a 50-night circumnavigation of South America on October 28 from Ft. Lauderdale; an 18-night "Millennium Celebration Cruise" on December 19 from Ft. Lauderdale to Los Angeles; a series of 12 Panama Canal & Costa Rica voyages featuring extensive land options in Costa Rica; and nine Alaska voyages starting in May 2000, exploring the Pacific Northwest. The ship carries 490 passengers.

Celebrity Cruises has announced that it has selected Saatchi & Saatchi as its marketing communications agency of record. Saatchi & Saatchi will handle planning and implementation of all general advertising for Celebrity Cruises in the United States and Canada.

Cruise News Trivia Question:
Following the Second World War, American Export Lines operated a quartet of popular combination cargo/passenger ships. Name the "Four Aces"?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - Which former Swedish American Liner is still sailing today? Bonus Question: How will she be celebrating the new Millennium?

Answer: Actually there are TWO former Swedish America liners still sailing (...Note: a number of readers caught this error) The present Victoria of P&O was the former Kungsholm of 1966, the final ship built for that venerable line. She will be celebrating the millennium by re-opening the Union Castle mail route from Southampton to Cape Town. The other one is the present Italia Prima, massively rebuilt from the 1948 Stockholm, of Andrea Doria fame. I'm not sure what she is doing in the millennium. courtesy of Armand Mantia.

Cruise News 10/18/99

Star Cruises, announced the signing of a 3-year charter agreement of the former MS Leeward from Neptune Maritime Oyj, in Finland. The MS Leeward most recently sailed under charter for Norwegian Cruise Lines and will be renamed SuperStar Taurus when she begins cruising between Japan and Korea in March 2000.

The 25,000 gross-tonne SuperStar Taurus entered service in 1992 and was rebuilt in 1995. She will undergo a multi-million dollar refit in December of this year to restore her to an "as-new" basis prior to her start of service with Star Cruises. The former Leeward measures 525 feet and has room for 950 passengers. She has 10 decks, 475 cabins, and will emerge with three restaurants featuring Japanese, Chinese and western cuisines. As the SuperStar Taurus she will offer passengers a 500-seat showroom/discotheque, swimming pools (indoor and outdoor), whirlpools, a fitness centre, basketball court, sauna/steam rooms, massage and children's facilities.

1999 marked the 18th consecutive year of growth for the Vancouver-Alaska cruise season. According to David Stowe, or the Vancouver Port Authority, "Port Vancouver welcomed 947,659 revenue passengers, an increase of 8.5% over 1998's numbers. The numbers reflect healthy growth for the Vancouver-Alaska cruise industry". There were 309 sailings in 1999 compared to 294 in 1998. The number of ships dedicated to this itinerary has remained steady over the last couple of seasons, with 24 vessels representing 10 cruise companies calling on Vancouver. The average number of passengers per voyage climbed 3% over last year's numbers. In 2000, a new market offering will begin with the addition of the pocket cruise option (3-4 days), which should provide further growth to the industry.

The U.S. Virgin Islands have introduced a new law that allows cruise ships to keep their casinos open while in port. The new law is designed to generate additional revenue for the islands by requiring cruise ships offering the extended hours to remain in port past 6:00 PM. That's about an hour later than the time most vessels start heading off to their next port of call.

Carnival Cruise Lines has signed an agreement with Security Identification Systems Corporation (SISCO) for the installation of the A-PASS security system on its fleet of 14 cruise ships. A-PASS (Automated Personnel Assisted Security Screening) is a sophisticated electronic vessel access security system that provides high speed, interactive photo identification and access control screening of guests and employees as they enter and exit a ship.

Prior to entering a ship, guests will stop at a kiosk and insert their combination room key, shipboard credit card and identification card. A camera within the kiosk will take guests' photos within a matter of seconds and the process is complete. Then, each time guests exit or enter the vessel, they insert the card into a kiosk located near the ship's gangway. Computer terminals monitored by ship's security personnel display the photo and other identifying information as well as track the exact time of exit and entry.

Passengers on Princess Cruises’ Caribbean and Panama Canal itineraries can now reserve their in-port excursions in advance, with a new pre-cruise reservation option for local shore tours. Princess is the first cruise line to offer this service on regular sailings to these regions. Passengers may book all or some of their tour selections by advance reservation. Shore excursions will continue to be available for booking throughout each sailing. The new system will also allow Princess to gauge interest in specific tours and even request extra capacity on particularly popular excursions.

Royal Caribbean Caribbean International announced that Olympic ice skating champion, Katarina Witt, will be the godmother of Voyager of the seas.

Royal Caribbean International has reopened its private island, Coco Cay. The island was closed for repairs and cleanup after hurricane Floyd hit it with 100 mile per hour winds.

Norwegian Cruise Line resumed calls to its private island in the Bahamas, Great Stirrup Cay, during the October 9 sailing of the S/S Norway. Calls at the island had been temporarily suspended last month in the aftermath of Hurricane Floyd. NCL re-nourished the island’s beach and made repairs to the structures on the island during the four-week period following the hurricane.

Silversea says that its two new ship, Silver Shadow and Silver Mirage are on schedule for a September 2000, and June 2001 delivery.

From our...This is What They had in Mind when They Invented the Internet file...Princess Cruise Lines will celebrate Valentine's Day 2000 by offering couples a chance to win one of 50 all-expenses-paid trips to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to attend a Valentine's Day gala aboard the new Ocean Princess. To win the trips the couples must enter an online contest - the World's Largest Floating First Date - at www.match.com/oceanprincess . Entries must be received by Nov. 30, 1999. If you are one of the lucky winners you will get the chance to rub shoulders with such romantic celebrities as legendary "Dating Game" host Jim Lange; and everybody's favorite Love Boat captain, Gavin MacLeod.

Cruise News Trivia Question:
Which former Swedish American Liner is still sailing today? Bonus Question: How will she be celebrating the new Millennium?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - When Cunard's Vistafjord emerges from this November's re-fit she will sport a new name - Caronia - and new color scheme. What was the nickname of the previous Caronia and how did she earn it?

Answer: The previous 'Caronia' was nicknamed 'The Green Goddess', because she was painted in four shades of green. courtesy of tdavis@gibnet.gi.

Cruise News 10/11/99

A number of rumors surfaced this week related to Cunard's Queen Mary project. One report said that Cunard had already placed an order for the new ship with the Lloyd Werft shipyard in Germany. This is not true. While the shipyard will be re-furbishing three of Cunard's current fleet this fall, it has not been selected to build the new vessel. Additionally, the British newspaper The Mail on Sunday incorrectly reported that the new ship's name would be Queen Mary II. Industry sources tell us the ship's name will actually be Queen Mary 2, (i.e. the second ship to bear that name) just as Cunard's other liner is Queen Elizabeth 2 rather than Queen Elizabeth II.

In a sign of things to come, passengers on Princess Cruises’ Caribbean and Panama Canal itineraries can now reserve their in-port excursions in advance. Princess is the first cruise line to offer this service on regular sailings to these regions. The new program provides vacationers with the option to book more than 280 shore options, including snorkeling, sailing, sightseeing or golfing, before they sail. Passengers may book all or some of their tour selections by advance reservation. Shore excursions will continue to be available for booking throughout each sailing.

Carnival Corp. is expected to buy the remaining part of Cunard line that it does not already own. Last year Carnival bought 68% of Cunard cruise line from Kvaerner ASA with an option to buy the remaining portion from a Norwegian investment group for more then 5 million Carnival shares, worth about $220 million.

Investigators looking into the fire aboard Carnival's Tropical believe that a faulty fuel valve may have contributed to the escalation of the fire. In hearings with the Coast Guard this week, a Carnival engineer admitted that the fuel tank shut off valve may not have worked properly and as a result fuel spilled directly into the area of the blaze. The blaze was eventually contained by crew members with a combination of water, foam and fire suppressing halon gas. It is estimated that the fire on the Tropical may reduce Carnival's earnings by a penny per share.

Crown Cruise lines parent Company Commodore Cruise lines is planning to add several more ship in the near future. The premium cruise line currently has one ship, the Crown Dynasty which has been chartered by Apple Vacations

Royal Olympic cruises has filed suit with the European Community asking for compensation for losses incurred by the war in Yugoslavia.

Norwegian Cruise line announced cancellation of the October 8th and 18th sailing of the Norwegian Sky. The sky went aground on September 24th in the St. Lawrence Seaway.

Princess Cruises Lines' Grand Princess was the only cruise ship to be named in the list of top 10 casinos. The Atlantis Casino on the ship was listed along with the Monte Carlo Casino.

Carnival Cruise lines has improved its Web site to include 360-degree images of its ships. The first image will be of the Carnival Victory.

Cruise News Trivia Question:
When Cunard's Vistafjord emerges from this November's re-fit she will sport a new name - Caronia - and new color scheme. What was the nickname of the previous Caronia and how did she earn it?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - Most Cruise News Trivia fans know that Grace Kelly crossed on American Export Line's Constitution for her 1956 wedding to Prince Rainier of Monaco. What you might not know is that she was also on board the Constitution six years earlier in a much less visible role - what was Grace Kelly doing on board the Constitution in 1950?

Answer: The as yet unknown Grace Kelly was a model doing promotional photos for the just finished Constitution in 1950. courtesy of Armand Mantia.

Cruise News 10/4/99

Carnival Cruise Line founder Ted Arison passed away on last Friday at the age of 75 in Tel Aviv, Israel. He will be remembered for his tremendous contributions to the development of the cruise business. Arison co-founded Norwegian Caribbean Lines in Miami in 1966. In 1972 he started Carnival Cruise Lines utilizing a refurbished former transatlantic liner. By the time he retired as chairman of Carnival in late 1990, the company had become a three-brand line, Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America Line, and Windstar Cruises operating 15 ships. As the organization continued to grow, a corporate holding company, Carnival Corporation, was created in 1993. Today Carnival Corporation operates six brands, wholly owning Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America Line and Windstar Cruises, with majority interests in Cunard Line, Seabourn Cruise Line and Costa Cruises. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that donations be made to the First Aliya Museum in Zichron Yaacov. Checks should be made payable to the First Aliya Museum and can be mailed to the Arison Foundation at 23 Shaul Hamelech Blvd., Tel-Aviv, Israel.

Repairs are taking longer than expected for Norwegian Cruise Line's Norwegian Sky and as a result the ship's October 8 and 18 Canada/New England voyages have been canceled. Guests on the October 8 and 18 canceled cruises will receive a full refund plus a certificate for 25 percent off a future NCL sailing. The cruise credit certificate will apply to cruise-only bookings made at Leadership fares, for sailings before September 30, 2000, including Millennium cruises. Guests who re-book their cruise on select dates in 1999 will receive a $100 per stateroom on board spending credit. Passengers with questions concerning the status of the M/S Norwegian Sky may call 800-327-7030.

London-based P&O, parent company of Princess Cruises, announced last week that it has acquired a majority stake in Germany's leading cruise company Arkona Touristik. P&O will create a new company which will focus on developing Germany's fastest-growing cruise operation, Aida cruises. The new company will pick up ship orders for two new 1,270 passengers ship scheduled for delivery in 2002 and 2003. P&O will also acquire the cruise business associated with Seetours International, Germany's leading cruise and ferry tour operator, including ARKONA. The Aida and Seetours businesses account for approximately 25% of the German cruise market. The transaction is valued in excess of $550 million over the next five years.

Royal Caribbean International has named Olympic champion ice skater Katarina Witt godmother of Voyager of the Seas. The Voyager of the Seas is the first vessel to have a permanent ice rink. Voyager's Center Ice will debut this November during a star-studded ice special featuring Witt and other skating champions. The program, StarSkates On Broadway, will air on November 28, 1999 on NBC TV, 4-6 p.m. EST.

Disney Cruise Line christened its second ship, the Disney Wonder, last Friday during a rare nighttime celebration. Disney's private terminal in Port Canaveral, Fla., played host to an estimated 2,500 guests and celebrities. Celebrities attending included Peabo Bryson (recorded pop song from "Aladdin"), Jodi Benson (voice of Ariel in "The Little Mermaid") and Paige O'Hara (voice of Belle in "Beauty and the Beast ").

Private Islands - With the passing of hurricane Floyd several private Islands have been closed. Royal Caribbean's Coco Cay, Disney's Castaway Cay, Princess Cruise's Princess Cay, and Norwegian Cruise's Great Stirrup Cay have all been damaged to a point where they were closed. Holland America's Half Moon Cay had minor damage and will be reopened by October 17th.

ResidenSea Ltd. and the Norwegian Yard Fosen Mek. Verksteder A/S (Rissa - Norway) have signed a $262.5 million contract for the construction of the world’s first ocean-going luxury resort, The World of ResidenSea. The ship is scheduled for delivery in December 2001. Conceived by cruise industry veteran Knut Kloster Jr., member of the Kloster family that pioneered the modern cruise industry in the early 1960’s, The World of ResidenSea combines the privacy and service of traditional luxury resorts with the experience of travelling by sea. The ship has been scaled back considerably from the initial plan which called for an 85,000 ton vessel, a crew of 950, and a passenger capacity of 1,700. The ship will instead weigh in at 40,000 tons and carry a maximum of 1090 persons. Passengers will be serviced by a crew of 252 and will occupy either one of the 110 Private Apartments (which are for sale) or one of the 88 Guest Suites (which are for rent). At press time, 43 of the Private Apartments have been sold. They range in price from $2,000,000 to $6,840,000.

In a related announcement, Silversea announced that they have signed a contract with ResidenSea Ltd. to manage the The World of ResidenSea. Silversea will have full responsibility for the maritime and hotel management of The World, a $262 million, 40,000 grt vessel. Silversea will be completely responsible for the sales and marketing of the guest suites. The line will also serve as a consultant during the ship's construction at Norway's Fosen Mek Verksteder A/S shipyard in Rissa, near Trondheim.

Millennium Cruises. Now that we are less then 3 months away from the turn of the century, millennium, New Years celebration, whatever you want to call it we have been getting more calls then ever for availability.

The bad news is that the cruise lines for the most part are not offering discounts, in fact one major cruise line said that its likely that rates will increase by the end of October. If you are one of those waiting for the price to drop, you might have to wait until the next millennium. Suites and outside cabins for the most part are sold out.

The good news is that there is limited availability on some ships, the bad news is that other ships are completely sold out. For example, Crystal Cruises has a record wait list for its two ships. In general, the longer 10-day plus cruises still have space with the shorter 7-day cruises posting no vacancy signs - especially those leaving from Florida.

The major negative about a millennium cruise is the price. The prices are running about 100% above normal holiday sailing prices. The common question is will they reduce the price to fill the ships? In our humble opinion NO.

At 100% above normal prices all they need is more than 50% capacity and they are ahead of the game. Currently they are running at about 80% sold which puts them well ahead of the normal holiday gross profit. If they discount the price in order to fill the remaining 20%, they would have to refund the difference to all of the 80% that already booked. This would defeat the main purpose of filling cabins, more income.

Based on our analysis, we don't see them discounting millennium cruises.

Cruise News Trivia Question:

Most Cruise News Trivia fans know that Grace Kelly crossed on American Export Line's Constitution for her 1956 wedding to Prince Rainier of Monaco. What you might not know is that she was also on board the Constitution six years earlier in a much less visible role - what was Grace Kelly doing on board the Constitution in 1950?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - Which former White Star liner retained her original White Star name (ending in -ic) and funnel colors well after the two lines merged in 1934 until she was retired in late 1960?

Answer: The White Star liner was the Britannic.....it was a motor liner as well. courtesy of heiningn@sunlink.net

Cruise News 9/27/99

Last week was not a good week for cruise ships. First, a small fire broke out on Carnival's Tropicale and then Norwegian Cruise Line's brand new Norwegian Sky ran aground in St. Lawrence Seaway.

The Norwegian Sky was grounded for about 4 hours on Friday after she strayed off course near where the Saguenay River and the St. Lawrence Seaway come together. A total of 1,924 passenger and 787 crew were aboard the ship at the time of the incident. Local pilots were aboard at the time but the cause of the accident is still under investigation. A number of local boats and ferries were summoned to the area in case evacuation was necessary but the ship was able to float off the sandbar with the rising tide and proceeded to Quebec City for inspection and repairs. It is believed that the propellers and bow thrusters were slightly damaged as a result of the grounding.

No injuries were reported and guests on the September 18th interrupted voyage, will receive a credit towards a free, future NCL cruise, up to the value of their current cruise fare. NCL has cancelled the Norwegian Sky's September 28th "Canada/New England " cruise. Guests booked on this cancelled sailing will receive a full refund plus a certificate for 50 percent off a future NCL cruise.

Carnival's Tropicale never made it back to her home port of Tampa last week, returning to Port Manatee, Florida instead. Passengers were bused the 30 miles from Port Manatee to Tampa International Airport to catch flights home. A number of passengers complained of malfunctioning toilets and air conditioning while the ship was adrift or moving slowly as a result of last week's engine room fire.

The Tropicale will be out of service until October 18th and the Imagination will be filling in during that time. She was built in 1995 and is twice as large as the Tropicale. The September 20, 25 and 30 Tropicale cruises were cancelled.

Guests originally booked on the Tropicale will receive a $200 per cabin shipboard credit. Since the Tropicale voyages were scheduled to depart from Tampa and the Imagination will sail from Miami, Carnival will offer complimentary bus service between the two ports for those who require it. The cruise line will also re-route flights for those who purchased air/sea packages and provide assistance in re-routing for cruise- only guests who booked air on their own.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., (NYSE and Oslo: RCL) announced this week that it has priced the public offering of 10,800,000 shares of its common stock at a price of $46 11/16 per share. As previously announced, the company intends to use the net proceeds of the offering for general corporate purposes, including capital expenditures.

Orient Cruise lines announced final plans for the inaugural cruise of its recently acquired Crown Odyssey. The ship will sail from Istanbul through the creek island to Barcelona.

Norwegian Cruise Lines teamed up with Cooking Light magazine to add more then 100 Cooking Light recipes on all of their ships. The lighter offering will be part of the breakfast, lunch, and dinner menu.

NCL Holdings, parent company for Norwegian Cruise Line and Orient cruise line sold the Aida back to the German Travel Company Arkona Tourstik. The Aida was purchased two years ago from Arkona with the intent of marketing it in the U.S, but NCL instead opted to build a new ship, the Norwegian Sky instead.

Cruise News Trivia Question:

Which former White Star liner retained her original White Star name (ending in -ic) and funnel colors well after the two lines merged in 1934 until she was retired in late 1960?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - When the Duke and Duchess of Windsor were evacuated from Europe in 1940, which American ship did they travel on and where did the go?

Answer: the Duke and Duchess of Windsor did go from Lisbon to Nassau/Bahamas with the Excalibur of American-Export. The Duke was appointed Governor of the Bahamas. courtesy of liberte50@wtal.de

Cruise News 9/20/99

A fire broke out on board Carnival's Tropicale Sunday evening leaving the 36,674 ton cruise ship and 1,096 passengers adrift in the Gulf of Mexico. The fire was first reported at 6:15 PM and was confined to the engine-room area. While the blaze was extinguished quickly, it did enough damage to force the shut down of the ship's engines. Early today, the crew was able to re-start the starboard engine for a while and began heading slowly towards Tampa.

After consulting with the National Hurricane Center about the track of hurricane Harvey, a decision was made to change direction and actually head away from Tampa in a big loop towards the Southwest until the ship could rendezvous with an ocean-going tug boat. According to Tim Gallagher a spokesman for carnival, "Basically we are going to do a big loop in the Gulf and turn around, with a very safe distance between us and Harvey, and follow the storm back in to Tampa". The ship is currently awaiting the arrival of the Beverly Anderson, an ocean-going tug boat which was expected to stand by and help tow the ship the remaining 100 miles to Tampa if necessary. The Tropicale is expected to reach Tampa late Tuesday afternoon.

Residensea is ready to place an order for its 35,000- to 40,000-ton ship. ResidenSea is the company planning to build a 110 apartment condo at sea. The company is run by ex-Norwegian Cruise line chairman Knut Kloster Jr.

Princess Cruises sent 4,000 pounds of supplies to the hurricane affected residents of Bannermantown, Eleuthera, near the site of its private beach call in the Bahamas, Princess Cays. Princess Cays sustained significant damage during Hurricane Floyd, mostly in the form of beach erosion and vegetation damage. All visits through October have been cancelled and the Sea Princess will call at Nassau instead.

Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises also sent relief supplies to the Bahamas beginning with a shipment of $50,000 worth of emergency relief supplies aboard Sovereign of the Seas last Friday.

In other hurricane related news, Royal Caribbean's Nordic Empress' left New York as scheduled yesterday headed for Bermuda but was kept at sea for an extra day due to the presence of the hurricane Gert in the area. At this time it is not clear when the ship will be allowed to proceed to Bermuda.

Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL) reported net income of $415.1 million on revenues of $1.169 billion for its third quarter ended August 31, 1999, compared to net income of $344.8 million on revenues of $1.062 billion for the same quarter in 1998. For the third quarter of 1999, revenues increased 10 percent and earnings per share increased 16 percent over the comparable quarter in 1998. This was the 33rd consecutive quarter in which Carnival reported year-over-year earnings improvement.

SeaAmerica Cruise Lines has made a final agreement with Kvaerner Yards for engineering and design of three ship to be built and flagged in the U.S. The ships will be used for meeting and convention sailing the East and West coasts of the U.S. for two ships. The sailing market of the third ship has not yet been announced. Companies using the ships for meeting and/or conventions will qualify for federal tax deductions.

Norwegian Cruise Line announced this week that it has finalized a contract with the Lloyd Werft shipyard in Bremerhaven, Germany, to build a 2,000-guest, 80,000-ton ship to be delivered September 1, 2001. The new, yet unnamed vessel will be of similar design to NCL's brand new M/S Norwegian Sky, which is made its maiden arrival to the United States last week in New York.

Royal Caribbean International will offer internet access and e-mail from its ships. The first ship to have this feature will be the Sovereign of the Seas.

COMSAT announced this week that it has signed a three-year agreement with Cunard Line Limited to provide worldwide data and voice satellite communications to Cunard's fleet of eight cruise ships, including its flagship the Queen Elizabeth 2 (QE 2). COMSAT's service offerings will allow both passengers and crew greater access to e-mail, online services, and telephone service. In addition to services being provided via the Inmarsat satellite system, COMSAT is also supplying a new 128 kbps C-Band service for the QE 2.

American Hawaii Cruises will have 5 Pearl Harbor cruises to coincide with patriotic holidays in the year 2000. Each cruise will include a wreath-laying ceremony near the memorial for the Arizona.

Orient Cruise lines along with Knopf Publishing is sponsoring a nationwide sweepstake with the winner receiving an 8-day Antarctic cruise on January 5, 2000. Entries can be gotten at all bookstores as well as on the web at http://www.endurancesweepstakes.com .

Cruise News Trivia Question:

When the Duke and Duchess of Windsor were evacuated from Europe in 1940, which American ship did they travel on and where did the go?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - Which former German ship starred as the fictional liner Britannic in the movie Juggernaut? Bonus question: This vessel had another brush with fame - describe what happened.

Answer: the liner was original the Hamburg of Deutsche Atlantic Line. Became than the Hanseatic and is now the Maxim Gorky. While still owned by BLASCO she speeded in the Arctic through an ice field, ruptured her hull and nearly sunk. She also hosted a meeting in Malta between Mr. Gorbachev and President Bush. courtesy of Christhard Wilkens

Cruise News 9/13/99

Royal Caribbean has announced today that due to Hurricane Floyd it was changing the itinerary for the Sovereign of the Seas to avoid the Bahamas which are currently under a a hurricane warning by the National Hurricane Center. Instead of visiting Nassau and CocoCay on Tuesday, September 14th the Sovereign of the Seas will spend the day at sea. On Wednesday the ship will visit Playa del Carmen and Cozumel, Mexico. On Thursday the ship will visit Key West, and then return to Miami on Friday.

Five passengers from the Crown Princess and their helicopter pilot were rescued from a glacier near Juneau on Saturday after their helicopter crashed on Friday. None of the passengers or the pilot were seriously injured. Rescue teams reached the group Friday evening with tents and supplies but the downed tourists were forced to spend a snowy night on the glacier before being air lifted out on Saturday. A second helicopter participating in the rescue also crashed but once again no one was injured.

The P&O Group, parent of Princess and P&O cruises, announced strong earnings this week with first half profits for 1999 up 23%. Profits for the first half of the year are expected to reach 175 million pounds, up from 142 million for the same period a year ago. The company announced in March that it would begin spinning off certain assets including construction, property and exhibitions divisions and focus its efforts on its traditional maritime roots.

Cunard Line has announced the itinerary for QE2's 104-Day Millennium World Cruise. QE2 will depart New York January 6, 2000 on a 104-day voyage with calls at 37 ports, including Honolulu, Hawaii; Lautoka, Fiji; Auckland and Wellington, New Zealand; Sydney, Australia; Hong Kong, China; Laem Chabang (Bangkok), Thailand; Singapore; Penang, Malaysia; Mumbai (Bombay), India; Cape Town, South Africa; Agadir, Morocco: Lisbon, Portugal: and Southampton, England. Fares for QE2’s 104-day Millennium World Cruise begin at a bargain price of $27,020 per person, double occupancy, round-trip from New York or Miami, and include round-trip first class air transportation from any of 117 North American cities.

Hawaiian Airlines has entered into a two-year agreement worth $70-million with Renaissance Cruises to operate exclusive air service between Los Angeles and Tahiti. The agreement calls for Hawaiian Airlines to operate 18 - 20 round trips a month between Los Angeles and Tahiti. The inaugural flight arrived in Papeete earlier this week.

A treasure hunter has announced that he has found the wreck of the Carpathia, the Cunard steamer that rescued over 700 survivors after the Titanic sank in 1912. The Carpathia herself sank on 17 July 1918 after being torpedoed by a German submarine en-route to Boston. The president of Argosy International, Graham Jessop, said he found the wreck about 185 miles off the southern coast of England. It is reported to be in 600 feet of water and resting upright on the bottom.

Cruise News Trivia Question:

Which former German ship starred as the fictional liner Britannic in the movie Juggernaut? Bonus question: This vessel had another brush with fame - describe what happened.

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - Whatever happened to Holland America's Ryndam of 1951? (Hint: she's still afloat today)

Answer: The Ryndam is now the Copa Casino, a gambling ship at Gulf Port. She became the Waterman for a while, then Epirotiki's Atlas and subsequently, Pride of Mississippi and Pride of Galveston before taking her present name. courtesy of kevmar@gibnynex.gi

Click on the following link to visit the Copa Casino web site: http://thecopacasino.com/

Cruise News 9/06/99

Hurricane Dennis disrupted itineraries for several cruises. Unlike a resort or hotel, a cruise ship can make course and itinerary changes to avoid a hurricane and/or its affects. For example, Carnival's Fantasy and Ecstasy called at Key west instead of Nassau. The Fantasy, which departs from Port Canaveral, returned to Fort Lauderdale where passengers were bussed back to Cape Canaveral. Both of Disney's ships also skipped Nassau and their private island and stopped at Key West plus an extra day at sea. The Disney ships returned to Ft Lauderdale instead of Cape Canaveral.

In a rare cancellation due to weather, Carnival Cruise Line's first delayed the Inspiration's Tuesday night departure from Newport News to the Bahamas and then canceled the entire voyage on Wednesday after Hurricane Dennis failed to move out of the way. The ship encountered 15 to 20 foot seas returning from a Bermuda cruise Monday night and disembarking passengers reported dropped trays in the dining room and many seasick passengers. Carnival offered passengers on the canceled trip full refunds and picked up any charges they incurred while on board waiting for the departure. Carnival also offered a 50% discount off a future cruise. The Inspiration finally left Newport News on Sunday.

A 24-year-old waiter serving on board Celebrity's Galaxy was arrested by Alaska State Troopers last Wednesday and charged with sexually abusing a minor. According to authorities in Alaska, the waiter was being held in the Ketchikan Correctional Center pending charges of third-degree sexual assault and kidnapping. The alleged victim was 13-year-old girl passenger. The arrest follows the adoption of a new policy by the 16 members of the International Council of Cruise Lines that requires all ships sailing out of U.S. ports to report all crimes to the FBI. The change in policy was in response to recent disclosures of sexual assaults on board cruise ships. Previously, it was the victims responsibility to report a crime after the ship had returned to port.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL; Oslo) announced that it will offer 10,000,000 shares of its Common Stock to the public. The lead underwriters for the offering will be Goldman, Sachs & Co. and Merrill Lynch & Co. According to the prospectus, the company intends to use the net proceeds of the offering for general corporate purposes, including capital expenditures.

Royal Caribbean's Voyager of the Seas will host an all-star ice skating special during the vessel's maiden voyage in November. Skating stars Katarina Witt, Robin Cousins, Brian Orser, and Todd Eldredge will perform in a televised special from the ship's permanent ice rink - a first aboard a cruise ship. The show, Voyager's Center Ice, will debut this November on NBC-TV with a StarSkates On Broadway on Sunday, November 28, at 4-6 p.m. EST.

From our...Questionable Grammar File...

Photo's of Royal Caribbean's Voyager of the Seas show the soon-to-be world's largest cruise ship sporting the slogan "Like No Vacation on Earth" along her hull. Shouldn't that be "Like No Other Vacation on Earth", - or are they comparing a vacation on board the Voyager to a vacation in space?

When Princess Cruise Lines, Grand Princess arrived in Istanbul last week it carried a check for $83,629 to help earthquake relief efforts in Turkey. The total included $50,000 from Princess and $33,629 from the passengers and crew of the August 18th sailing. The ship uses Istanbul as home port for it's summer itineraries.

Norwegian Cruise Line - Two passengers on the Norwegian Dream when it collided with a cargo ship have filed a class action suit against NCL. The law firm representing them charged NCL with "negligence, recklessness and/or carelessness" The cause of the accident is still under investigation.

NCL Holding, parent company of Norwegian Cruise lines estimates that the accident will cost them between $5.2 million and $11.9 million. NCL had to cancel four 12-day cruises plus the cost of repairs. The total loss could be reduced to as little as $1.2 million after insurance payments are made.

American Classic Voyages Co. (Nasdaq: AMCV), announced that it has awarded a $6.4 million contract for the construction and outfitting on The Columbia Queen to Nichols Brothers Boat Builders, Inc., of Whidbey Island, Wash. The 161 passenger river boat will be operated under The Delta Queen Steamboat Co. brand, and will home port in Portland, Ore., and offer Pacific Northwest cruises starting in April 2000. For more information about the Columbia Queen, visit http://www.columbiaqueen.com/.

Star Cruises SuperStar Leo has left her former home in Singapore and will begin service from Hong Kong following a September 3rd -10th relocation cruise.

Crystal Cruises is adding an optional two-night pre-cruise Taj Mahal land package on it fall sailing from Bombay, India. The pre-cruise excursion will include tours of the Taj Mahal, Agra, Delhi and New Delhi

Costa Cruise lines will have two repositioning cruises at the end of November. The CostaVictoria will depart Genoa, Italy on Nov. 26 arriving in Ft Lauderdale, FL 17 days later. The CostaRomantica is scheduled to leave Genoa on Nov. 27 for a 16-day sailing on it's way to Ft Lauderdale.

Cruise News Trivia Question:

Whatever happened to Holland America's Ryndam of 1951? (Hint: she's still afloat today)

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - Only two four-stack ships were built for service on a route other than the North Atlantic. Name either of these ships and the route they were built for?

Answer: These two ships were the Arundel Castle and Windsor Castle, both built for the Southampton-South Africa service of the Union Castle Line. Later in their careers, they were both converted to two stackers, which greatly improved their profile. courtesy of Armand Mantia

Cruise News 8/30/99

As we reported last Tuesday, Norwegian Cruise Line's Norwegian Dream collided with a cargo ship in the English Channel. Over 1,700 passengers were on board the cruise ship at the time of the collision and twenty eight (28) were slightly injured. The crash happened at 1:15 am local time and early reports suggested that the crew of the 52,760 ton cargo ship Ever Decent was fighting a fire on board their vessel at the time of the collision. It now appears that the fire started as a result of the collision. The bow of the Norwegian Dream suffered extensive damage and a number of containers from the cargo ship could be seen balanced on the damaged bow. After the collision the ship proceed to the port of Dover where an investigation into the cause of the accident was under way.

Early reports suggest that the collision may have been the result of the Norwegian Dream failing to yield to the Ever Decent as she crossed the southern channel traffic lane. The Norwegian Dream is headed to the Lloyd Werft shipyard in Bremerhaven, Germany for repairs and is scheduled to return to service on October 11th from Rome.

In an effort to quell rumors about the possible acquisition of some or all of P & O by Carnival Corporation, a spokesperson for Carnival announced this week that "There are no negotiations going on currently". Rumors had been rampant since an article in last week's Sunday Mail newspaper reported that that P & O had turned down an $11 billion takeover offer from Carnival.

Royal Caribbean International has appointed Michael Bayley to the position of vice president, Total Guest Satisfaction (TGS) Fleet Operations. Bayley will have day-to-day responsibility for TGS Fleet Operations, overseeing the fleet's quality assurance program, and providing leadership and support for the hotel directors on all Royal Caribbean International ships. Bayley has been with the line for 17 years.

Less than a month after entering service, Carnival Cruise Lines' new 102,000-ton Carnival Triumph made history by carrying a record 3,413 passengers on its Aug. 22 cruise from New York to eastern Canada -- the most ever on a single voyage. Can you say buffet lines?

In an action related to the appeal of a case by a former Premier Cruise Line passenger who sued the line for failing to provide wheelchair accessible facilities, the U.S. Justice Department filed a friend-of-the-court brief stating that the American Disabilities Act (ADA) does apply to foreign flag ships visiting U.S. ports. The original law suit was thrown out by a federal judge in Miami but is currently on appeal before the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta. In Atlanta, a panel of three judges will have the option of looking beyond the details of this particular case and addressing the broader issue of cruise ship access for passengers with disabilities.

IDENTIFICATION - For many travelers there seems to be a great deal of confusion about what type of identification is needed for what type of travel. Hopefully, the following information will help clear up some of the confusion.

First of all you need to understand that you will not be able to leave your home country without proper identification. Your identification will will be checked at the airport prior to boarding any aircraft that is leaving the US and again at the cruise ship pier when checking in. Many a passenger lacking proper ID has tried crying, screaming, threatening, and a variety of other tricks to get past the airline/cruise official only to be left behind at the terminal.

Do NOT wait until the last week before the start of your vacation to check if you have proper identification. Depending on circumstances and where you were born, it will take some time to get a copy of your birth certificate.

Another common occurrence is waiting until the night before and finding that your passport and/or birth certificate is not where you thought, and you cannot find it, or its in the bank vault and the bank is closed.

If you are NOT a US citizen it is imperative that you check with your travel agent or officials of the countries you will be visiting well in advance of the departure date. Most countries have different requirement for different nationalities, and you may find out your need a visa or two.

If you are a US citizen and are traveling to the Caribbean, most, but not all (Margarita island comes to mind) Caribbean islands will accept a certified copy of your birth certificate along with a government ID that contains your picture. A voter registration is NOT accepted as proof of citizenship by any island or country.

When referring to a government issued ID, it need not be federal but any governing body, federal, state, or city. The most common is a state issued drivers license that contains your picture. If you live in state that does not have pictures on driver license, check with you travel agent for other options.

A certified birth certificate is one issued by the state and has a raised seal (embossed seal). Photo copies without the original embossed seal are not valid. Depending on when you were born, you may have a hospital issued certificate of birth which sometimes contained a gold seal. This is NOT a valid birth certificate and will not be accepted.

We highly recommend a passport, which is accepted by all islands and countries. Getting a passport is simple and painless. You will need proof of citizenship, two passport type pictures, and $60.00. It usually takes 4 to 6 week but for an additional $35.00 it can be expedited to a few days. Proof of citizenship for a passport can be in the form of a certified birth certificate, naturalization papers, or baptism papers. Passport type picture are two identical pictures of your head. The picture must have a white background and measure 2 inches by 2 inches and cannot be more then 6 months old . The head portion is about 1 1/4 inches by 1 1/2 inches. The $35.00 to expatiate may require proof of traveling within the next days or weeks.

Keep in mind that when going to some countries you may need a visa along with your passport. An interesting example of this is taking a cruise of the Black Sea stopping at St. Petersburg, Russia. US Citizens going to St. Petersburg or any city within Russia will require a visa to disembark. If taking a ship tour, the cruise line will have gotten a group visa that covers all those on the tour excursion. But if you wish to go on your own you will need your own visa. It is best to get a visa before leaving on your trip.

For additional information about Passports and entry requirements, you can visit the U.S. State Department, Passport Office for passport information or entry visa requirements.

Cruise News Trivia Question:

Only two four-stack ships were built for service on a route other than the North Atlantic. Name either of these ships and the route they were built for?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - Today it's common place (...see CostaClassica above), but which was the first cruise ship to be enlarged by having an 85 foot mid-section inserted? As a result of this surgery, her capacity increased from 876 to over 1,200.

Answer: The Song of Norway of RCCL built in 1970 was stretched in 1977. courtesy of liberte50@wtal.de

Cruise News 8/23/99

A huge ice flow is drifting towards popular South Atlantic shipping lanes. The flow, identified as B-10A by the National Ice Center, is more than 24 miles wide and 48 miles long and has been drifting north at a rate of 10 miles per day. At that speed it will take approximately 90 days for the ice to reach the popular shipping lanes around South America. Officials are less concerned about ships colliding with the flow itself than possible collisions with smaller "house sized" ice bergs that separate from the flow as it reaches warmer weather.

Costa Cruises has confirmed that the CostaClassica will be stretched by 147 feet. The ship will increase from 54,000-tons to 77,000-tone and 350 new cabins will be added. An additional deck that will run the full length of the ship is to be added. This will be the largest such project for a cruise ship. Work will take place during the end of the year 2000 into the beginning of 2001.

Peter Deilmann's m/s Deutschland will be visiting Washington D.C on September 7th of this year. While in town the ship will host a luncheon for the press.

Norwegian Cruise lines has hired former executive chef, Henry Haller who prepared meals for U.S. presidents from Lyndon Johnson to Ronald Reagan when they occupied the White House. He will create a special presidential menu for its Millennium Menu starting in November.

P & O Cruise Line denied reports in this weekend's Sunday Mail newspaper that they had received a takeover offer from Carnival Corporation. The newspaper reported that P & O had turned down a $11 billion offer from Carnival but a P & O spokesperson denied that they had received such an offer. Analysts agree that such a move by Carnival is unlikely, especially in light of the recent changes in British tax laws that strengthen P & O's position and should help future growth.

Princess Cruise Lines has introduced sushi bars in the buffet restaurants on board their entire fleet. Available on sea days during lunch hours, the sushi bar concept was first tested on board the Sea Princess before being expanded to the entire fleet. Passengers can choose from rolls stuffed with shrimp, crab, avocado and vegetables.

Not to be outdone, Star Cruise's SuperStar Virgo is the first cruise ship in the world to feature an Indian alternative restaurant. Called "The Taj", the restaurant seats 60 people who are served by Indian chefs from Mumbai. The restaurant caters to the dining requirements of Indian passengers who are booked on the Balcony Class category of cabins as well as other passengers who appreciate fine a la carte Indian

Cruise News Trivia Question:

Today it's common place (...see CostaClassica above), but which was the first cruise ship to be enlarged by having an 85 foot mid-section inserted? As a result of this surgery, her capacity increased from 876 to over 1,200.

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question -Which French Line ship struck a reef and caught fire off the coast of Mustique in the Caribbean? As recently as the early 1990's her broken hull was still visible on the reef.

Answer: The liner was the Antilles, a sister ship to the Flandre, which had her own share of problems. Interestingly, the hulk of the Antilles featured prominently in a Michael Caine film of the mid-70's concerning a father and son being captured by modern day Caribbean pirates. courtesy of Armand Mantia

Cruise News 8/16/99

Holland America Line, a unit of Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL), announced this week that it has signed a tentative agreement to sell the 1214-passenger Nieuw Amsterdam to American Classic Voyages for $114.5 million. The agreement is contingent on a number of conditions expected to be resolved by the fall of 1999. Holland America will transfer the ship to American Classic Voyages in fall 2000, coinciding with the delivery to Holland America of the new 1380-passenger Amsterdam. The 704-foot, 33,930-gross-ton Nieuw Amsterdam has sailed more than 600 voyages for Holland America Line.

American Classic Voyages Co. (Nasdaq: AMCV) intends to re-document the Nieuw Amsterdam as a U.S.-flag vessel, with a U.S.-crew, to sail the Hawaiian Islands as part of AMCV's Project America.

Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines' illegal dumping problems continued this week when the state of Alaska filed a civil suit against the cruise line. The state filed the civil charges because Royal Caribbean's earlier guilty plea to federal charges prevented the state from pursuing its own criminal charges. The charges claim that Royal Caribbean dumped a combination of oil and chemicals used to develop photographs into Juneau harbor and other state waters.

Norwegian Cruise Line will inaugurate the cruise industry's first Internet Cafe on board the M/S Norwegian Sky when she enters service on September 18th. Located within the ship's Coffee Bar, the Internet Cafe is equipped with nine computer terminals, available for use on a 24 hour-a-day basis. For $19.95 per hour (33 cents a minute) guests can send and receive e-mail messages, check the stock market, get news updates, play computer games, and more. Additionally, Norwegian Sky becomes the first NCL ship to offer in-stateroom connections to the Internet. NCL is also planning to install an Internet Cafe on board the S/S Norway.

Commodore Holdings Limited (Nasdaq:CCLN) has reported the unaudited results of its third quarter in FY 99, ended June 30, 1999. Net income for the nine months, ended June 30, 1999 was $3.04 million compared to $3.08 million for the same nine months in 1998. Revenues for the nine months, ended June 30, 1999 were $41.0 million, compared to $43.8 million in the same time period in 1998.

Commodore Holdings' new Crown Cruise Line division announced that the Crown Dynasty will be making two special 7-night sailings between New Orleans and tropical destinations this winter before the ship begins its regular itinerary from Aruba.

Royal Olympic has brought back Panayiotis Papastavrou as president and chief executive. Mr. Papastavrou previously held that role with Royal Olympic Cruises from 1996 to 1998. The move was made to help the cruise line recover from the slowdown in bookings that started during the Kosovo crisis. He replaces Vasilios Kapetanakos who joined the company in September 1998.

Next stop McDonalds....Royal Caribbean International announced a partnership with Johnny Rockets to offer its popular 40s - 50s style hamburger-malt shop on board the first Eagle-class vessel, Voyager of the Seas. It is believed to be the first and only branded restaurant concept on board a major cruise line. The first restaurant will debut on Nov. 21.

Royal Caribbean is taking the Voyager of the Seas on the road - literally. The cruise line will use a specially modified 53 foot tractor-trailer truck to bring a multi media show about the new ship to land-locked destinations across the United States. The Virtual Voyager features a 30-seat, 3-D surround theater with a 22-foot-wide and six-foot-tall screen that provides a virtual tour of the ship, prior to its maiden voyage on November 21, 1999 from Miami. The 18-city tour includes stops in Chicago, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Detroit, Boston, Dallas, Cincinnati, Minneapolis and Orlando, among others.

Tax law changes in the UK have prompted P & O Steam Navigation Company to move at least 50 vessels, including the Grand Princess, onto the UK register. In addition to a number of cruise ships, P & O will also transfer container ships, ferries, and bulk cargo carriers. The move will also help P & O increase the number of UK cadets it trains to over 300.

Cruise Ship Safety - Safety Of Life At Sea (SOLAS) regulations state that life boats must be launched within 30 minutes after the first abandon ship alarm. As larger and larger ships enter service - some with close to 4,000 passengers - this time window for evacuation presents more of a challenge to cruise ship operators. Once off the ship a further challenge is how to ensure that all passengers and crew are rescued.

To deal with these issues cruise lines continue to invest in improved safety facilities and procedures. Starting with the sinking of the Titanic in 1912, all ships, especially those carrying large numbers of passengers have made tremendous improvements in safety. Lifeboats have been redesigned to accommodate 150 passengers per boat. The lifeboats have been made wider and their lengths reduced so that ships can accommodate an increased number of higher capacity boats. Royal Caribbean's Voyager of the Seas as an example has 26 lifeboats and inflatable rafts capable of carrying 25% more passengers then the ship can carry. The 25% extra is another of SOLAS requirements.

All major cruise lines belong to the Atlantic Merchant Vessel Emergency Reporting system. The system identifies other ship in the vicinity of the ship in distress so they can be rapidly sent to assist in a rescue. Companies have developed computer simulation software that is used as a preventive measure. The models takes into account such items as a child going back to the cabin for a favorite toy, a mother or father fighting the crowd trying to go back and find her children, disabled people that might need more time, and crew error that can sometime occur in emergency situations. Improvements are constantly being made as a results of the computer simulation.

If you have seen the movie Titanic and are concerned about safety at sea, you can be sure that the safety of every passenger is foremost with every cruise line. Your cruise will be a carefree safe vacation.

Cruise News Trivia Question:

Which French Line ship struck a reef and caught fire off the coast of Mustique in the Caribbean? As recently as the early 1990's her broken hull was still visible on the reef.

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - Which famous former liner served as James Bond's headquarters in the film "The Man with the Golden Gun"?

Answer: I believe the liner in question was the "Queen Elizabeth". courtesy of Tim Beddoes, Milton, Ontario.

Cruise News 8/9/99

Thousands celebrated the arrival of Disney Cruise Line's second ship, the Disney Wonder, last week as she arrived at Port Canaveral, Fla. The Wonder was escorted into port by her older "sister," the Disney Magic, marking the first time both ships have sailed together. The two 83,000-ton ships were surrounded by a flotilla of 80 boats and welcomed by thousands of well-wishers waving enlarged Mickey gloves.

The Disney Wonder will sail on her maiden voyage on August 15, with departures every Sunday and Thursday. Like her sister, the ship will sail round-trip from Port Canaveral to the Port of Nassau and to Disney's private Bahamian island, Castaway Cay.

Carnival Cruise line is offering golf packages aboard the Carnival Triumph this summer. Besides having golf pros aboard the ship, golfers will be able to play at Glen Arbour Country club in Halifax and Riverside Country Club in St. John.

Carnival has been so successful with its smoke-free Paradise that it is considering building another smoke-free ship.

Royal Olympic Cruises announced that their newest ship, Olympic Voyager will be based out of Athens when she enters service next June. She will offer 7 day cruises from Greece to Egypt, Israel and Turkey.

Delivery of Star Cruises planned 112,000 ton sisters will depend on the timely completion of a river project designed to raise the water level of the river linking the German shipyard to the open sea. The current depth of the river is not sufficient to support the planned 25 foot draft of the new ships. The river project, which is scheduled to be completed well in advance of the 2003 delivery date of the first ship has been delayed recently due to environmental concerns.

Celebrity Cruises' Horizon will be transferred to a Mediterranean itinerary next summer in an effort to capitalize on the strong demand for European based cruises. Specific itineraries will be announced soon.

Kouni Travel Holding of Switzerland is rumored to be looking into purchasing Intrav which is the parent company of Clipper Cruise Line. This move would give Kuoni a foothold into the U.S. market

Renaissance Cruises took delivery of the R Three this week from French shipyard Chantiers de l'Atlantique. The vessel, which is the third in a series of six 690 passenger sisters delivered between 1998 and 2000.

Evergreen Marine Corporation is considering getting into the cruise business. The Taiwan company current has the worlds largest fleet of container ships as well as an interest in Eva airways. If the company approves the $3 billion investment, it will start sailing between Asia and Europe before attempting getting into the American market.

From our...Where is Charo when you need her file...Andrew Morton, author of "Monica's Story," and "Diana: Her True Story" will be a guest lecturer aboard Silversea's Millennium 2000 cruises.

Cruise News Trivia Question:

Which famous former liner served as James Bond's headquarters in the film "The Man with the Golden Gun"?

Answer - Will be published in next week's column along with the name of the first person to submit the correct answer. Send your answer to cruise@travelpage.com.

Last Week's Question - What was the first passenger motor liner on the North Atlantic?

Answer: The motorvessel Gripsholm of the Swedish American Line built in 1925 by Armstrong, Whitworth & Co, Newcastle. The liner sailed from 1955 till 1966 as Berlin for the North German LLoyd.. courtesy of liberte50@wtal.de