Cruise Holidays Irish Cruise Blog

What’s in your luggage?

What do you pack when you go on your cruise holiday? Clothes, toiletries, camera?

 
Well some people pack a little more than that and the picture above shows an array of items which have been seized from passengers boarding a cruise from Southampton.

Looking at this you might say that security for boarding ships does not appear as thorough as airport security. Southampton port's operations and security manager, Glen Gardner, says: "Cruise lines and the travel industry make it very clear that no knives, firearms replicas or items that could be used in a threatening situation are allowed."

Have you ever packed something unusual for your cruise holiday?

How to Cruise on a Budget

 
 
There are a lot of misconceptions about cruise holidays - number one being that it is a very expensive holiday and only accessible to those with a few quid. This is simply not true, and to help you see how you can really budget on a cruise, we’ve compiled a list of tips for you below.

1. Every cruise line offers packages and promotions so make sure you scout around for the best deal.
2. Book your cruise well in advance and avail of an early booking price.
3. Only buy gifts during a sale. Typically cruise ships have a sale day, sometimes with 50% off. So check any on board information to see if you can find out about a sale or reduction.
4. Only use the spa when you can avail of a special offer.
5. Planned excursions with the cruise lines can run costly, especially for a family, so if you are confident just take the venture on your own and save a lot of money.
6. Always change your money at home into the currency of the places you are about to visit.
7. Rent books from the library onboard rather than buying them.
8. Give yourself a break from the web and save money as internet access on board can be very expensive.
9. Be clever with dining, sometimes the lunch menu is cheaper than the dinner menu but the food is just as good. Have a big lunch rather than an early dinner and save some cash.
10. Make use of the free activities onboard.

Cruise Tourism falling in Antarctica

Cruise tourism to Antarctica fell 11.5% during the 2010-11 season to 32,438 passengers.

The International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators blames new regulations and expects next year's fall-off to be more than double this year's.

"The decline to date has largely been the result of the effects of the economic slowdown worldwide," Steve Wellmeier, executive director of IAATO, said in a statement. "While we expect this to continue playing a role, there is little question that the more significant factor in next year's lower numbers is the consequence of the [heavy fuel oil] ban. The result will be visitor numbers overall that mirror those of a decade ago."

With the International Maritime Organization's ban on the use and carriage of heavy fuel oil set to take effect this August, IAATO predicts that the cruise-only category of visitors will fall from 14,373 passengers on 12 ships to less than 5,000 on five ships in 2011-12.

That decline is expected to drag the total number of cruise visitors to 24,811, a 23.5% reduction from last season.

NCL to scale back suite area on new ships

 

 

Norwegian Cruise Line's next two ships will have somewhat smaller "ship-within-a-ship" luxury enclaves for high paying passengers than its last vessel.

The cruise holiday line recently announced the two as-yet-unnamed ships, scheduled to debut in April 2013 and April 2014, will have private luxury complexes of 42 suites, 30% fewer than on the one-year-old Norwegian Epic.

At 144,017 tons a piece, the two new vessels will be about 8% smaller than the 155,873-ton Norwegian Epic, which has a 60-suite private complex.

Each of the luxury complexes on the two new ships will include a private pool area, restaurant, cocktail bar and concierge desk. To be called The Haven, they'll be located at the top front of the vessels.

Norwegian says the 42 suites in the new complexes will be comprised of two large Deluxe Owner's Suites that feature a living room, dining area and wrap-around balcony; two smaller Owner's Suites; 21 two-bedroom, two-bathroom Family Villas; and 17 Courtyard Penthouses that contain a single king size bed, living area and dining area.

The line on Monday also announced plans for eight more aft-facing penthouses and 10 forward-facing penthouses on the new ships that are not part of the Haven.

Celebrity Silhouette Invites Guests to unwind in "The Alcoves"

 

Celebrity Cruise holiday guests can now rent a private cabana by the day, or even for the full voyage, on the luxurious Celebrity Silhouette cruise ship.

"The Alcoves" consist of eight chic, cabana-style settings comfortably accommodating two to four guests each. Within them, guests can enjoy stunning views of the lawn and sea; ambient mood lighting for cozy, romantic evenings; complimentary amenities including a fresh fruit plate, hand-held fans, chilled towels, four bottles of water, and all-day use of an iPad loaded with a variety of music, movies, games and magazines.

Additionally, fresh, themed picnic baskets with delectable selections from Celebrity's specialty restaurants, as well as a la carte beverages, are available for an additional charge, and just a phone call away, via Celebrity Silhouette's dedicated Alcove Attendant.

Wine and cheese evenings under the stars also can be arranged, along with special spa services, once onboard. Guests enjoying The Alcoves can even stay in touch with family and friends back home, if they choose, as the area is fully WIFI-equipped.

"This is yet another vivid illustration of our commitment to ensuring our guests can spend more time enjoying every moment of their vacation, versus planning what they'd like to do after they're onboard," said Celebrity's Senior Vice President of Hotel Operations Lisa Lutoff-Perlo.

The Alcoves can be booked online for full-day rentals, from 9 am to 9 pm, or even for the entire voyage. Rates are $99 per Alcove per day on days in port, and $149 per day on days at sea.

Adjacent to The Alcoves, guests will find eight inviting hammocks and two whimsical, oversized Adirondack chairs, each offering complimentary, additional opportunities to relax amidst the atmosphere of the lawn and sea.

Celebrity Silhouette enters service July 23, enhancing guests' precious vacation time with a host of industry-first venues and experiences within The Lawn Club. In addition to The Alcoves, those new experiences include the industry's first interactive, outdoor grill, "The Lawn Club Grill," where guests can select and grill their own meats side-by-side with Celebrity's expert chefs, or have them cooked to order; Celebrity's first Art Studio, with engaging courses led by professional artists; "The Porch," a breezy, casual dining spot offering sandwiches, coffees and captivating views of the sea and the lush lawn; and, at the center of the ship, with views of the sweeping, glass-encased Grand Foyer and its signature 'live' tree suspended within a commissioned work of contemporary art, yet another entirely new venue, "The Hideaway," an intimate, quiet space reminiscent of a childhood tree house.

Weezer teams up with Carnival for unique cruise holiday

 

American rock band Weezer has teamed up with Carnival Cruises to offer fans a unique cruise holiday opportunity.

For four nights in January 2012 the band – joined by a stellar cast of international rock talent – will sail from Miami to the island of Cozumel off of the Gulf Coast of Mexico aboard the Carnival Destiny.

Guests will be treated to all-inclusive 24-hour room service, in-door and out-door Weezer shows and a Q&A with the band.

“That’s right – Weezer is hitting the open seas,” read a statement from the band.

“It’s going to be our own floating music festival on a cruise ship.

“Bands will perform on the outdoor Lido deck and in the inside theatre.

“All of the bands will be performing in stages around the ship, festival style, so you can catch any or all of them during the entire trip to Cozumel and back.”

Sebadoh, Yuck, Wavves and the Antlers will also perform on this exciting cruise holiday.

Prices start at $799 per person for double cabins, or pile in four people for just $599 per person plus $179 for taxes and port fees.

Departure is on January 19^th.

 

Celebrity Cruises Dinner Packages

Celebrity Cruises has launched a new range of specialty dinner packages.

There are two types of packages available - one for food only and the others with wine.

Here are the options on Celebrity Eclipse to give you an idea.

Individual 3-dinner Package: $89pp. For this you get 1 meal at Tuscan Girlle, 1 meal at Qsine and 1 meal at Murano. This works out to about $30 per dinner. Without the package you’d pay at least $100.

The 5-dinner Package: $129pp For this you get 1 meal at Murano, 2 meals at Tuscan Grille, 2 meals at Qsine. Without the package deal you’d pay $165.

"Wine and Dine Packages": Designed for couples, broken down as follows.

Savor Package: Includes three dining reservations per couple and three bottles of wine.

The Gourmand Package: Includes five dining reservations per couple and three bottles of wine.

The Bacchus Package: offers five dining reservations per couple and five bottles of wine.

The couple’s wine-and-dine packages give you the best savings...
On Eclipse, 'Savor' is $279 per couple and 'Gourmand' is $349. However, it is 'Bacchus', that provides the biggest savings -- up to 26 percent or $144 per couple, according to Celebrity. The wine list includes more than 20 choices, with selections such as Chateau Grand Bireau's Cabernet Sauvignon, a Freemark Abbey Chardonnay and a Sancerre from Michel Redde. With Bacchus, each bottle of wine costs about $28, when compared to the individual food-only packages. Based on a quick scan of onshore wine prices, Celebrity's per-bottle price is slightly more than retail, although less than average ship pricing.

Celebrity say the new packages are a result of guest feedback...“Our guests tell us that packages offer not only convenience, but also added value,” said Scott Steenrod, Associate Vice President, Food and Beverage Operations. “We realise our guests’ vacation time is precious, and we want nothing more than to make it easy for them to enjoy their vacation. Our specialty dining packages are one more way that we make their planning effortless.”

 

Princess Cruises welcomes Guide Dogs for the Blind onboard

By Susan O’Driscoll

Princess Cruises recently hosted a group of 25 new graduates from Guide Dogs for the Blind and their owners for the day in San Francisco, to familiarise them with how the line can accommodate visually impaired travellers and their canine companions on a cruise holiday.

The group enjoyed a lunch and tour aboard Sea Princess which included opportunities to test out many of the special features offered for the visually impaired. For the dogs, the ships provide special life jackets, bowls of water in the dining room, and relieving boxes with favored cedar chips. Passengers also have specially translated menus and can enjoy reserved seating in the Princess Theatre with room for their dogs. During a cruise, passengers and crew are also invited to meet the dogs during a designated play time.

"These dogs are canine heroes," said Brian Rademacher, Princess Cruises district sales manager. "It's truly a labour of love for us to work with this wonderful organisation."

 

Hurtigruten documents epic voyage

Posted by Susan O’Driscoll

The longest live TV documentary in history was broadcasted across the world recently.

"HURTIGRUTEN - MINUTT FOR MINUTT" is 134 hours coverage of a voyage by Hurtigruten from Bergen to Kirkenes and has been viewed in no less than 148 countries.

The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation’s show, which was streamed online and shown on TV, is also entering a claim to the Guinness World Record for the longest live TV documentary.

Three million Norwegians tuned in producing the record-breaking ratings with an additional 2.9 million watching it online.

Half of the online viewers were based outside Norway and the UK was the fifth most popular country in terms of viewing figures. During the screening, Hurtigruten was the trending topic on Twitter, at one time with one tweet every six seconds.

The show’s Facebook site ‘Hurtigruten minute by minute’ received 65,000 ‘likes’ during the five-and-a-half day voyage.

Live coverage included Geirangerfjord and the western fjords of Norway, the crossing of the Arctic Circle, the Lofoten Islands, North Cape and the midnight sun.

Hurtigruten UK managing director Kathryn Beadle said: “Nobody could have imagined just how popular this show proved to be.

“Along the coast, crowds turned up in every port to welcome the ship and boats joined in to escort her along the way. The impressive figures demonstrate clearly show the incredible interest there is in Hurtigruten’s voyages along the Norwegian coastline and the global fascination there is for NRK’s innovative concept – Slow-TV.”

If you haven't got a spare 134 hours take a look at this sampler for just one minute.

 

P&O Launch Competition to Dispel Cruise Myths

Posted by Susan O’Driscoll

P&O Cruises have launched a controversial competition for anti-cruisers and the top 6 winner’s will be sent on a nine-day Pacific Islands cruise with their experience’s on board to be filmed. To enter all they have to do is upload a video explaining why they are anti-cruise.

P&O Cruises said the competition is designed to overcome the believed misconceptions people have about cruising holidays.

P&O Cruises is the oldest cruise line in the world starting back in 1837 and consists of a fleet of seven the newest being Adonia launched in May 2011:

These are the ships that make up the P&O fleet: Adonia -Acadia -Aurora -Azura -Oceana -Ventura -Oriana.

“We know from our research that some people hesitate to take a cruise because they are concerned about getting sea sick,” said Jenny Lourey, senior vice president of Carnival Australia. “Others think they’ll be bored and there are some who don’t want to spend days getting to a destination. They are exactly the kind of people we want to enter this competition.”

”The campaign will change people’s perception of cruising by dispelling common myths. We are confident that once we put people with such doubts on a cruise they’ll change their perception of cruising,” she added.

Is this competition a good idea?