Cruising news and stories

| Subcribe via RSS

Delta Queen’s future unclear

March 31st, 2008 | Comments Off | Posted in Cruise History, Cruise News, Paddlewheelers, River Cruise News, Steamboats, US River Cruisisng

Delta_queen The Delta Queen will make 18 stops in Henderson, Ky., this year, but whether this is the final goodbye for the 82-year-old vessel remains unclear.

A bill granting the Delta Queen yet another exemption from fire safety laws is before a U.S. House of Representatives rules committee. Meanwhile, supporters continue their "Save the Delta Queen" campaign of letters and e-mails.

Built in 1926, the 176-passenger craft has a steel hull but a wooden superstructure. Since 1966, the paddle-wheeler has been granted exemptions six times.

Vanessa Bloy, a spokesman for Majestic American Line, a West Coast company that owns the Delta Queen as well as the newer Mississippi Queen and American Queen, said if an exemption isn't granted, the Delta Queen will be retired Nov. 1.

How To Pick The Best Stateroom

March 31st, 2008 | Comments Off | Posted in cruise ship cabins, cruise ship staterooms
Here's how to avoid picking a stateroom next to or near a noisy area, or where the motion or vibration of the ship may affect your rest.

Looking for a smooth ride? The majority of a ship's weight is from the center to the back. At the bow, the ship has to cut through the water. So, in bad weather if you are upfront, you are going to toss and turn more than others. Having a stateroom midship, may not be the smoothest ride.

The smoothest ride is about half way back from center, which is close to the true "center" point of the ship. If you're all the way at the back you will experience some vibration from the ship's engines and propellers. Also, some will tell you "the higher you are, the better the ride." It's just the opposite... the lower you are, the smoother the ride. Swing a pencil like a pendulum and you will see what we mean.

Want an oceanview stateroom. Oceanview can mean a porthole or two, a picture window, floor-to-ceiling bay window or a private balcony with a sliding glass door. The better the view, the higher the price.

Some staterooms are not worth it, no matter what the price. Staterooms just below the disco, next to an elevator, under the jogging track, or under a lounge as examples, should be avoided.

Walking Tour of Skagway A Good Bet

March 30th, 2008 | Comments Off | Posted in Skagway, alaska cruise tours, alaska cruises
THE Goodtime Girls Walking Tour on a Princess cruise of Alaska takes you back to the Gold Rush days, when prospectors stopped off in town to get lucky with the ladies. Nowadays, the tour of Skagway promises “madams”in lavish costumes to escort you through the streets and alleys before ending up at the Red Onion Saloon, once a real-life brothel but now a thoroughly respectable pub, restaurant and museum. Other new excursions on Princess cruises this summer in Alaska include a day’s crab fishing in the Bering Sea, glass blowing in Skagway and a five-course dining day in a private club in Ketchikan, where gourmets can munch their way through a meal of locally-caught seafood.

New Things To Do On An Alaska Cruise

March 30th, 2008 | Comments Off | Posted in alaska cruise tours, alaska cruise vacations, alaska cruises

Here are excerpts from a Vancouver Sun article we thought you would find interesting.

Spring marks the approach of a new Alaska cruise season and each year brings changes -- new ships, new itineraries and an ever-growing array of activities, both on board and in port.

This year one of the most exciting new itineraries being offered is on the Tahitian Princess. This mid-sized ship carries 670 passengers and is sailing 14-day roundtrip voyages from Vancouver throughout the summer. If you make just one trip to Alaska, this is the cruise to take.

Not only does the ship pull into the popular ports of call -- such as Juneau, Ketchikan and Skagway -- it visits quieter ports such as Russian-founded Sitka and scenic Valdez, nestled at the base of the Chugach Mountains on the shores of Prince William Sound.

The ship even stops at Kodiak Island, a place better known for its large fishing fleet and even larger brown bears than as a port of call for cruise ships.

Tahitian Princess (sister ship to Pacific Princess) offers cruising at its classic best. You won't find water slides or rock-climbing walls on board this ship, but you will be able to relax in the poolside whirlpools or pamper yourself at the spa, or sink into an easy chair in the wood-panelled library, or simply enjoy the attentive service provided on this elegant ship.

With fewer onboard distractions, you can focus on the scenery, which includes a daytime visit to Glacier Bay -- a cruise highlight with its numerous tidewater glaciers and a thriving population of humpback whales. The ship even cruises down the west coast of Vancouver Island and pulls into Victoria before returning to Vancouver.

Tahitian Princess is part of the Princess Cruises fleet of ships, which has been offering cruises to Alaska since 1969 when the company first chartered the Princess Patricia, a Canadian Pacific steamship.

The timeless appeal of cruising the pristine fjords of the Inside Passage is still a major incentive to board a ship bound for Alaska, but the activities pursued by passengers have changed considerably.

With the average age of passengers steadily dropping, the list of adventurous shore excursions is increasing. Gone are the days when most passengers boarded tour buses for a passive view of the local sights.
Today a typical day in port might include ocean kayaking past a tidewater glacier, flying over an icefield in a helicopter and landing at a sled-dog camp to try your hand at mushing across a glacier with a team of dogs trained to run in the famous Iditarod Dog Sled Race.

Whale-watching is offered in several ports, most notably Juneau -- where humpbacks feed throughout the summer in nearby Stephens Passage and Lynn Canal.

While it's possible to see a humpback whale from the ship, you're much more likely to see these gentle giants up close on an excursion boat that takes you to specific spots where they are known to feed. Half-day excursions are on board specially built vessels equipped with waterjets for speed and manoeuvrability.

While an onboard naturalist provides commentary, the whales can be viewed from inside a comfortable cabin with large windows or from the boat's upper deck.

Another reason to go on a whalewatching excursion is the chance to get out on the water in a small vessel -- an experience that's especially appealing to anyone who dreams of one day cruising up the Inside Passage to Alaska in their own boat. We have been fortunate to cruise these waters in a 35-foot sailboat and one night at anchor, when the air was perfectly still, we could hear the thunderclap sound of humpbacks smacking their tails on the water. The next morning we motored up Stephens Passage, the main channel leading to Juneau, where we watched feeding humpbacks blow puffs of mist into the air and occasionally arch their backs out of the water as they prepared to do a deep dive. Huge icefields crown the mainland mountains bordering Stephens Passage, where floating ice sculptures drift seaward from tidewater glaciers.

Princess Cruises offers an extensive selection of Alaska shore excursions that can be reviewed and booked online before you board the ship. If you like the idea of taking a customized excursion with a small group of friends or family members, Princess now offers passengers the opportunity to book a private whalewatching boat in Juneau for a party of up to 10 people.

CRUISING WITH KIDS
Unlike taking your children to a theme park for your family vacation, a cruise to Alaska is treating them to a big slice of real life. Wildlife, in fact. In the course of an Alaska cruise, your children will have the opportunity to view humpback whales, rafts of sea otters, black bears feeding at salmon-spawning creeks and Pacific white-sided dolphins leaping in the bow wave of your ship. To enhance what your children are seeing, a park ranger comes aboard the ship in Glacier Bay (which is a U.S. national park and preserve) to explain the dynamics of glaciers and the species of animals that inhabit this region. Even supervised activities in the ships' playrooms focus on Alaska and its natural wonders.

Most of the major cruise lines have youth facilities on their ships and a trained staff to handle large numbers of young passengers. The minimum age for participating in youth programs is usually three years, but some ships also offer private babysitting at an hourly rate. (Be sure to check these details with your travel agent, for they vary with each cruise line.)

Holland America Line offers a wide range of onboard activities for their junior cruisers, and one of the most popular is their cooking school.

There are also shore excursions geared to kids but most excursions can be enjoyed by the whole family. These include canoeing, kayaking and rock-climbing in a mountain pass near Skagway. Forest hikes can be enjoyed with an organized group or on your own. Skagway has several excellent trails that are a short distance from the cruise docks, and at Juneau you can take the tramway to the top of Mount Roberts for spectacular views and a selection of easy hiking trails.

In Ketchikan a fun event for families is the lumberjack show, in which two teams (one representing British Columbia, the other Alaska) pit their logging skills against one another. These crowd-cheering contests include pole climbing and log rolling. A popular eco-adventure in Ketchikan is the Bear Creek Zipline Course, which accommodates kids five and up on its cable ziplines, suspension bridge, mountain slide and tarzan-style swing. And when your family returns to the ship after an active day in port, the evening promises elegant dining and live entertainment for the adults while the ship's youth counsellors keep the kids entertained in their own fun zone.


Experience Alaska and its jewel-like glaciers

March 30th, 2008 | Comments Off | Posted in Uncategorized
Here are excerpts from a San Francisco Chronicle article we thought you would find interesting.
_______________________

The first five objects to strike the hull were, in order, a case of beer, a rowboat, a TV set, a refrigerator and a 1957 Chevy (cherry red with whitewalls).

Then a condo duplex.

At least that's how it sounded inside my cabin on the Bargain Basement Deck of the Spirit of Columbia, where at 6:30 a.m. my head lay inches from a steel hull being battered mercilessly by prehistoric blue ice.

Did this captain even see "Titanic"?

Each crunching thud rang the cabin like an oversized gong. The mallets in this case, however, were pieces of what I had come to Alaska's Prince William Sound to find: massive glaciers, crenelated rivers of frozen snow that sculpted almost everything in the state. Although judging from the increasing attention to rising global temperatures -- and from what was ramming my cabin wall -- I hoped there was still some left standing.

The goal: Experience Alaska and its jewel-like glaciers up close (although in hindsight, maybe not this close), instead of just viewing them through binoculars. I booked a four-night voyage on Cruise West's 79-passenger Spirit of Columbia because, it turns out, a small ship isn't just the most reliable way to get close to the ice and the wildlife, it's just about the only way. Faced with a chance to see a dozen or so of Alaska's celebrated icons, I set out to experience them -- before they disappear like party ice in a picnic cooler.

Glaciers are like the world's slowest lemming stampede: All the pressure is from behind, and by the time the guys in front figure out where everyone is going, they're over the edge. The result is a thunderous cataclysm, starting with distant crackling and bone-jarring snaps, and ending with the kind of subatomic detonation you'd expect when a slab the size of a Hilton Garden Inn hits the peaceful fjord.

Alaska's best-known tidewater glaciers (the ones that shed icebergs in a process known as calving) are in Glacier Bay, the requisite big-ship cruise stop on the state's droopy southeastern tail. The mother lode, however, is around Prince William Sound, a wonderland of jagged peaks and snaking flows of super-compressed snow, many of which terminate violently into a sheltered, Medusa-like sea.

Just so we're clear: For whatever reason -- internal-combustion engines, Mother Nature's biorhythms or (my favorite) cattle flatulence -- the majority of Alaska's tidewater glaciers are retreating. Columbia Glacier alone has dropped back almost 10 miles since 1980, and has, at times, calved off 2 cubic miles of frozen chunks a year into the sound. That is why I came to be at College Fjord in south-central Alaska, standing on the observation deck with my 78 fellow passengers, waiting for the Harvard Glacier to lose another lemming.

Capt. Laura Tritch (informally, Capt. Laura) kept the ship within a few city blocks of the 250-foot cliff that filled 1 1/2 miles of our horizon. But not too close: Beyond the obvious dangers of falling icebergs and subsequent monster waves, there are the little-discussed underwater calvings, when pieces break off the submerged face and pop up from underneath like a champagne cork.

As we hovered near Harvard's face, I tried to gauge the crowd's interest based on shutter clicks per minute from the armory of digital cameras: general scenery (five clicks); each other (11 clicks); harbor seals eyeing us from their icy rafts (26 clicks); the crash of the glacier calving (4,876 clicks). I considered for a moment that this is one of the few places where it's socially acceptable to celebrate the collapse of historic structures, all older than any Mayan ruins.

As if on cue, a piece bigger than the ship toppled from the right side, seemingly in slow motion, prompting a collective gasp, 4,876 shutter clicks and a warning from Capt. Laura to hold on or, I assumed, some of us might do a little calving of our own.

Maybe it's the close quarters and absence of a casino -- or the zillions of trees and lumbering bears -- but our cruise didn't seem so much a luxury vacation as a summer camp.

The passengers on our voyage, a relatively diverse band of mostly 40-and-up-somethings, all seeking some cocktail of scenery, wildlife, education and relaxation, were friendly and proved hearty enough to brave steady Alaskan rains to catch a glimpse of sea otters, waterfalls, harbor seals and bald eagle chicks.

The summer camp vibe was fostered in part by a captain who was as personable and relaxed as big-ship captains typically are stodgy and removed. Capt. Laura passed out cookies during one evening's lecture, gave highly entertaining bridge tours and hung around with a small group of us late one night as we watched a bear cub taking a swim.

The exception to the summer camp vibe: a chef and kitchen staff, including a full-time baker, who might well merit a Michelin star or two on land. This was no summer camp cuisine.

The only stop on an otherwise mobile itinerary was at the tiny fishing village of Cordova, one of only three towns on Prince William Sound (along with Valdez and Whittier). Inaccessible by large cruise ship and with no connecting roads, Cordova remains a rustic working community. Shops are more likely to stock peanut butter and toilet paper than the ulus (knives), sweatshirts and "I (heart) Alaska" snow globes that fill shelves in Juneau and Skagway.

At the stop, I paddled up Orca Inlet with a small group from the boat. I shared a two-person sea kayak with Joan, a fellow passenger.

After a few moments of synching our paddle technique, we breezed along a shore that, once we left Cordova behind, looked as pristine and unexplored as anything Capt. George Vancouver encountered while searching for the Northern Passage.

At times, we would pull ahead or drop behind the pack of six other kayaks, mostly to filter out the collective splash of paddles and glide in total silence. It was during those dead-stick moments that I began to hear Alaska -- dozens of burbling waterfalls, birdsong, light breezes and the "splash-plunk" of pink salmon breaching 3 feet in the air (our guides attributed the bizarre gymnastics to fish being "really happy").

In this place, I could relate.

Three miles up the inlet, we spotted a bald eagle 20 feet up a spruce and glided toward it, lifting our paddles in time to see it take off on a course directly overhead. The clearly audible "whoomph, whoomph" of its massive wings, like the sound of a helicopter played at one-tenth the speed, stunned us both. And for a moment, I swore that I felt its breeze.

Most bodies of water age in geologic time, but our ship was bobbing in a bay that, until two decades ago, was under 1,000 feet of ice. The spot where the glacier loomed even a few years ago now is a barrier island of calved icebergs stuck on a moraine shelf, the tortured ruins of a once-mighty ice castle.

Capt. Laura eased the ship to the edge of the moraine and touched the nose to one of the stranded bergs. I inhaled the smell of ice and felt the cold radiating off its eerie, milky blue skin.

Passengers and crew on the Spirit of Columbia stood in silence for a moment, then started taking photos, at first of the field of upended blocks, then of each other, posing with the ice that had taken on a bizarre kind of celebrity status.

After most of the light leached out of the sky, we turned away and sailed out of the bay that was thick with reminders -- ice chunks the size of TVs and refrigerators and cars -- that it had recently been buried under an iceberg.

Classical Music Cruises

March 29th, 2008 | Comments Off | Posted in Music Cruises

Orchestra  The sequined performer belting out show tunes seems to be the cliché of live cruise music. But several boutique cruise lines are offering classical-music-themed trips this year.

Hapag-Lloyd (www.hl-cruises.com) will offer an Ocean Sun Festival from Sept. 14 to 28 on the Europa. Sailing from Hamburg to Barcelona, the cruise will feature the pianist Oleg Maisenberg and the soprano Patricia Petibon, among others. Rates start at $6,860 a person, double occupancy.

Peter Deilmann Cruises (www.deilmann-cruises.com) has a Music Gala at Sea aboard the Deutschland, featuring the Württemberg Chamber Orchestra, above. It travels from Hamburg to Monte Carlo, Sept. 18 to Oct. 1; double rates start at $5,610 a person. Other choices include chamber music aboard the Mozart on eight-day cruises down the Danube in April and October and Romantic-era works on an eight-day cruise down the Elbe River on the Dresden, departing June 21.   800-640-4899

River & Small Ship Cruising News 2008-03-28 18:18:47

March 28th, 2008 | Comments Off | Posted in Cruise News, Luxury Cruising, New Itineraries, Newbuilds, Technology, US River Cruisisng

Pearl Pearl Seas Cruises' new ship met water for the first time at the Irving Shipyard in Halifax, Nova Scotia. This is the first of several ships the company plans to build for world service. The ship will carry no more than 214 guests and feature 108 suites, all with private balconies. The suites will range in size from 320 to 640 square feet. The ship will be outfitted with Rolls Royce active wing stabilizers, which the company says will create the optimum ship -- small enough to sail to places inaccessible to larger cruise ships while also providing a smooth, comfortable ride in the deep ocean. The 2009-10 schedule is detailed on the company's website and showcases 29 itineraries that will visit more than 100 ports throughout Eastern Canada, New England, Canadian Maritimes, Caribbean, Central America, Panama Canal, and the Great Lakes. The ship will feature a spa, elevators to all six decks, and Internet access throughout the ship. 800-640-4899

French Country Waterways Offers 40 Percent Off Discount

March 28th, 2008 | Comments Off | Posted in River Barges

French Country Waterways is offering 40 percent off select departures of barge cruises in July and August. The 18-passenger luxury barge Esprit makes its way through Burgundy's Côte d'Or wine-growing region for $2,995 per person, double, a 43 percent savings off the normal rate of $5,295. Standard fares of $6,595 and $6,795 for the eight-passenger luxury barge Princess, formerly the private barge of shipping magnate Daniel K. Ludwig, are reduced to $4,500 and $4,700. The July 6 departure of the company's newest barge, the 12-passenger Adrienne, which sails in Champagne between Maizy and Château-Thierry, is priced at $4,495, a 30 percent discount, and also includes a night at the Hotel Raphael in Paris.

These six-night cruises combine a leisurely upscale existence, tastings of dozens of Grand and Premier Cru wines and locally produced cheeses, and meals both aboard and at a Michelin-starred restaurants. Passengers can explore the villages, century-old vineyards, historic architecture and wine tastings in private cellars. The Esprit's route follows the narrow 18th-century Canal du Centre, the River Saône and the Canal de Bourgogne between St. Léger-sur-Dheune and Dijon. The Princess plies the Canal de la Marne au Rhin between Nancy and Hochfelden in the Alsace-Lorraine region. And the Adrienne sails on the Canal de l'Aisne à la Marne and the River Marne, showcasing champagne producers including the House of Ployez-Jacquemart and the vast cellars of Moët & Chandon. Prices cover accommodations, all meals, estate-bottled wines, open bar, daily sightseeing excursions, bicycles for riding along the towpaths and the surrounding countryside, and escorted transfers between Paris and the barge. Hot-air ballooning is an option. For more information 800-640-4899

Balconies on River Cruises

March 28th, 2008 | Comments Off | Posted in Cruise News, Luxury Cruising, Newbuilds, River Cruise News, Small ships under 150 Passengers, Technology

An Australian cruise operator is making waves on the Rhine and the Danube, writes Mike Heard.

APT World Discoveries has criticised the advent of full-size balcony areas on some European river ships, saying they make cabins less comfortable and don't get much use anyway.

The criticism is seen to be aimed at fierce rival Scenic Tours, which has been heavily promoting new-design balcony cabins on the so-called spaceships it will operate on the Rhine, Danube and other European rivers next year.

The balcony areas are big enough for a table and two chairs. Vessels of most other river-cruise companies, including APT, have only french doors opening on to a railing.

Scenic's advertising invites Australians to experience Europe river cruising in a "whole new way" by seeing Europe from a private balcony. APT says other river cruise operators have rejected the private balcony concept "because of the adverse impact on the comfort inside the cabins caused by narrowing the interiors and the limited time passengers spend on balconies".

APT says balconies are fine for ocean cruising, where passengers are at sea for several days at a time. But river cruising offers sightseeing on both sides of a vessel, so passengers using private balconies are going to see only half of the action.

The company has just announced plans to build two more 150-passenger vessels in partnership with European operator Amadeus Waterways, giving it a fleet of eight by 2010.

Discounts for all river cruise lines

New Passport Requirements For Cruises

March 28th, 2008 | Comments Off | Posted in Cruise Passport Information, Passport Requirements

Passport requirements for cruises vary by destination
and your citizenship.

Please review the section below to determine your passport requirements.

U.S. and Canadian Citizens and Permanent Residents:A valid passport is required for all international itineraries including Africa, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, Europe, India, Central and South America, South Pacific and Tahiti.

Although U.S. and Canadian citizens are not currently required to travel with a passport ( required in 2009 ) on itineraries including Alaska, Bermuda, Canada, Caribbean, Hawaii and Mexico, We highly recommend a passport be carried.

For itineraries for which a passport is not required, U.S. and Canadian citizens who do not have a valid passport must provide the following proof of citizenship: Naturalization certificate or an original certified birth certificate from the state/province of their birth (a hospital certificate will not suffice) together with a current and valid government issued photo identification, such as a driver's license. U.S. citizens may also present a U.S. Passport Card. Neither oral nor written declarations of citizenship will be accepted. Although recommended, photo identification is not required for those 18 years and younger at the time of this printing. U.S. Resident Aliens are required to present, in addition to a valid passport, a current and valid Alien Resident Card. Canadian Permanent Residents are require to present a valid Permanent Resident Card in addition to a valid passport.

Note that if your cruise requires air travel between the U.S. and the Americas, Canada, the Caribbean, Bermuda or Mexico, you will be required to present a passport when departing from or returning to the U.S. by air.

Even if your cruise does not involve air travel outside the U.S., should you be required to unexpectedly depart a vessel prior to the end of the sailing, a passport would be required to re-enter the U.S. by air. As such, we continue to strongly recommend that all passengers are in possession of a passport.

IMPORTANT: The Department of Homeland Security plans to move toward Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative implementation at land and sea ports. The initiative will require all persons to present a valid passport to enter or depart the United States by land or sea. The date is yet to be determined by the Department of Homeland Security.

DO NOT RELAY ON THIS INFORMATION as it is subject to change without notice. Be sure to check up-to-date information regarding passport requirements and trusted traveler programs (such as the new U.S. passport Card, NEXUS, SENTRI and FAST) at travel.state.gov. Foreign nationals should contact their governments for further details.

Non-U.S./Non-Canadian Citizens: A valid passport is required for all non-U.S and non-Canadian citizens for all itineraries.

NOTE: Please click here to read the latest U.S. State Department announcement concerning passport use.

Visas
IMPORTANT: Visa and documentation requirements vary by destination and do change from time to time without prior notice. Be sure to check with the consulate of each country you will visit, or a visa service to verify current regulations. It is your responsibility to have proper travel documentation. Please reconfirm visa requirements 5-7 days prior to your cruise.

Documents For Passengers Under The Age Of 18
Several countries require special documentation for children traveling without both parents; these requirements are subject to change without notice. It is your responsibility to ensure that you possess the proper documents for all of the countries that you will visit. Please verify requirements with the immigration offices prior to your cruise.
« Older Entries