Sep 26, 2007
A top (if somewhat unusual) travel opportunity: a 14-day cruise of the Caribbean round-trip from Fort Lauderdale for only $1,098 (that's $78 a day)
Here's an odd vacation that's, arguably, cheaper than living at home. It's like one of those long re-positioning cruises except that: 1) you visit a port a day, and do not spend endless time simply at sea; and 2) you don't have to purchase an international airfare to take advantage of it. Here's the background: Because it's so difficult to fill up the tropical cruises that leave on December 14 (people want to be home doing Christmas shopping at that time), the staff promoting sailings of the giant MSC Lirica (a new and high quality cruiseship) are offering a seven-day Caribbean sailing on the Lirica round-trip from Fort Lauderdale, leaving on December 14 of this year, for as little as $299 per person (inside cabins, double occupancy). But that's only for people who are also willing to go on a second seven-day Caribbean cruise (different itinerary, this time) leaving round-trip from Fort Lauderdale on December 21 (and overlapping Christmas) for $799 per person. Put the two cruises together and you have a total price of $1,098 for 14 days at sea, which comes to an amazing $78 a day.
Added bonus: the December 14 cruise will feature the onboard presence of well-known former baseball stars: the New York Mets' Ed Kranepool, the New York Yankees' Stan Bahnsen and Tom Tresh, and former catcher/manager Jeff Torborg, who will conduct baseball discussions, a passenger pitching contest, and pitching, hitting, fielding and base-running clinics.
For more on MSC Cruises (a fast-growing European line of massive, Italian-flavored vessels with every modern amenity; I recently witnessed the launching of its giant MSC Orchestra), go to www.msccruisesusa.com.
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Fifty years ago, 
Arthur Frommer is generally acknowledged to be the nation's foremost travel authority. He is the founder of the
