Crown Princess Makes Freak List, Injures 240 Passengers
Just the fact, ma'am: On the afternoon of July 18, while sailing from Port Canaveral, Florida, north toward New York, Princess Cruises' new 3,100-passenger Crown Princess unexpectedly lurched onto her starboard side, sending passengers and furniture flying and water from the deck pools cascading down the stairs. By some reports, the ship listed so far over that water came up almost to the promenade deck.
According to an official statement from Princess, approximately 240 passengers were treated onboard for abrasions, bruises, and fractures. Once the ship arrived back in Port Canaveral for an emergency docking, 94 passengers were transferred to local hospitals for evaluation and treatment. All but one of these passengers have since been released.
Though the incident is still under investigation, but Princess has revealed that the incident was caused by human error and that "appropriate personnel changes have been made."
Crown Princess is Princess's newest vessel, having just debuted in mid-June. The ship's follow-up cruise departed July 22 after the vessel was cleared by the U.S. Coast Guard and its Bermuda flag authorities. According to a statement from Princess President Alan Buckelew, "We want to unequivocally emphasize that we would never operate an unsafe ship, nor would the U.S. Coast Guard allow a ship to sail that had any safety issues."
And Now for Some Good Princess News . . .
In January, Princess Cruises announced a new take on its old Love Boat image: An "Engagement Under the Stars" package in which potential grooms (or brides) can videotape their proposal and have it shown on the giant outdoor movie screen aboard Caribbean Princess, Grand Princess, Crown Princess, or Sea Princess, as well as the upcoming Emerald Princess.
Well, someone finally took them up on it. During Crown Princess's June 23 cruise, a Mr. Jonathan Rozenblit proposed to a Ms. Esther Urshon on the big screen, as a preview before the evening's feature film.
When asked if it was a surprise, Esther said, "I thought it would happen on this cruise but I had no idea Jonathan had something as extravagant as this planned. It was just perfect . . . and we already know that the honeymoon will be aboard Crown Princess next summer."
This, of course, was before The Big List, but whatever.
"Engagement Under the Stars" proposals cost $695 and include the creation of a personalized proposal video with the ship's videographer as well as champagne and chocolates, an engagement portrait session and engagement photo, candid photos of the proposal, an in-room breakfast, dinner for two at one of the ship's specialty restaurants, a couple's massage in the Lotus Spa, a free session at the ship's pottery studio to create their own "engagement plate," 10 percent off on jewelry in the ship's boutiques, and a $100 credit towards a wedding-at-sea package, if you choose to go that route. More information is available from The Wedding Experience at 866/444-8820.
Celebrity Orders Third New Vessel for Delivery in 2010
In July, Celebrity Cruises (tel. 800/437-3111; www.celebrity.com) ended a three-year new-building dry spell by announcing construction of a new, 118,000-ton, 2,850-passenger vessel at Germany's Meyer Werft shipyard. One month later, it announced it had exercised its option to order a second, identical vessel. The first ship, due for delivery in fall 2008, will be named Solstice. Her sister, scheduled for summer 2009, will be named Equinox.
Now it appears they've gone for the hat trick. On July 18, the high-style line announced it had ordered a third Solstice-class ship from Meyer Werft, for delivery in 2010.
"Meyer Werft is proud to partner with Celebrity in the company's very exciting period of growth and expansion," said Bernard Meyer, Meyer Werft's managing partner. "These spectacular new ships will vividly illustrate Celebrity's tradition of breakthrough design and leading innovations."
The choice of Meyer Werft marks a return for Celebrity, whose first five newbuilds -- Horizon, Zenith, Century, Galaxy, and Mercury -- were all built at the German yard. Its current newest class, encompassing the 91,000-ton, 1,950-passenger Millennium, Infinity, Summit, and Constellation, were built at the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in France.
Norwegian Coastal Voyage Builds Greenland Ship, Offers New Land Tours
Longtime readers may have noted in these columns an attraction for cruises in cold, stark places such as northern Alaska and eastern Siberia. Now, we can add Greenland to that list. While a few ships already visit the huge Arctic land as part of occasional Scandinavia/Transatlantic sailings, only Norwegian Coastal Voyage (tel. 800/323-7436; www.norwegiancoastalvoyage.us) has put a ship there for a whole season, operating the small 56-passenger ms Disko II there June-August. Now it's upped its commitment.
Over at Italy's Fincantieri shipyards, work is proceeding on the ms Fram, a12,700-ton, 328-passenger ship (similar in size to Windstar's comfortable Wind Surf) being built exclusively for Greenland sailings. The ship was named after the polar ship built and sailed by Norwegian explorer Fridtjof Nansen on a three-year expedition around Greenland in the late 1800s.
NCV incorporated aspects of Greenland arts and culture into the ship's design, as well as tailoring the ship to suit this type of voyage. Several Greenland artists, including Ane Birthe Hove of Nuuk, are represented on board, while viewing areas include a glass-enclosed observation salon and two glass-screened heated outdoor whirlpools.
The ms Fram's 2007 Greenland season will begin in May with a 12-day sailing from Reykjavik, Iceland, to the eastern and southern Greenland coasts. The bulk of the season will feature 8-day cruises in the Disko Bay region, as well as 15-day itineraries that take in both Disko Bay and Thule in the far northern area of Greenland. The season will conclude in September with another12-day sailing back to Reykjavik. Sailings combine sea and land-based excursions, presentations on Greenland life and culture, and many included and optional activities, such as dog-sledding and hiking tours, helicopter trips, and museum visits.
In other NCV news, the line has just introduced a series of extensions that can be booked as a package with their 19-day, air-inclusive Antarctica and Chilean fjords expedition voyages, between October 14 and February 17. Trips include:
- Four-day trip to Iguazu Falls, the world's widest waterfalls, with time on both the Brazilian and Argentine sides of the border ($875 per person)
- Four-day trip to Machu Picchu, the lost city of the Incas, with time in Lima, capital of Peru, and Cuzco, the Inca capital high in the Andes ($1,485 per person)
- Four-day trip to the Atacama Desert in Chile, taking in geysers, a salt mountain range, a pre-Inca fortress, and archaeological relics in the village of San Pedro de Atacama ($1,205 per person)
- Five- and six-day trips to Easter Island (2,340 miles west of Chile) to see the island's famous stone moai heads ($1,820-$1,895 per person)
NCV's Antarctic voyages, which include round-trip flights from New York, cost $5,495 to $9,800 per person.
SeaDream Plans Extraordinary Egypt/Greece Voyage for 2007
Always wanted to, say, dine at the Great Pyramids or meet Anwar Sadat's widow? If so, check out SeaDream's October 2, 2007, Ultimate Antiquities cruise and land tour, sailing from Alexandria to Athens aboard the 110-passenger megayacht SeaDream I. Planned activities on the four-day pre-cruise land tour include:
- A private reception hosted by Jehan Sadat, former first lady of Egypt
- An archeological dig escorted by Egyptologist Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities
- A dinner at the Great Pyramids with Hawaiian Fusion chef Roy Yamaguchi, founder of Roy's Restaurants
- World-class wines at the Great Pyramid dinner, presented personally by Salvatore Ferragamo from his family winery Il Borro in Tuscany
- A private tour of the internationally-acclaimed Egyptian Museum in Cairo
- Four nights at the Four Seasons Hotel, Cairo at Nile Plaza
The cruise itself calls at Paphos (Cyprus), Rhodes, Kos, Mykonos, and Santorini (Greece), and Kusadasi (Turkey).
The trip is available exclusively through Admiral Travel Gallery (tel. 888/722-3401; www.admiraltravel.com) of Sarasota, Florida, a Virtuoso agency, in conjunction with the Neiman Marcus membership custom travel organization CouTour Travel. Prices start at $6,560 per person, double occupancy, and include the cruise and the four-day pre-cruise activities above. Bookings must be made by August 20, 2006.
Crystal's 2007 World CruiseOffers Expanded Enrichment Program
If you're going all the way around the world on a ship, that means lots of days at sea and lots of hours to fill -- and thus, the onboard enrichment program was born. For Crystal Serenity's 2007 world cruise, Crystal Cruises (tel. 888/799-4625; www.crystalcruises.com) has come up with just such a program, augmenting its usual slew of classes. Passengers on the 109-day global cruise (Jan 12 to May 1, 2007) may take part in:
- Collegiate Computer Courses: In an industry first, guests can earn three transferable college credits, while those participating in one or more of the seven World Cruise segments can earn continuing education units. Taught by a college professor, classes including "Components of the System Unit," "Computer Storage Devices," "Database Management," and "Privacy and Ethics."
- Memoir Writing: Journalist Joe Kita will teach an writing course tailored to guests wishing to capture their life experiences, lessons, and advice.
- Music Master Classes: Guests with previous musical experience can take master classes in composition, arranging, improvisation, and other fields. An ongoing independent study option allows students to progress at their own pace, with personal assistance from the Yamaha "Passport to Music" instructor. Recitals allow guests to perform for their fellow passengers.
- Repertory Theatre at Sea Acting Workshops: Actors will lead progressive, interactive workshops on the basics of acting and stage movement, line memorization, and improvisation, culminating in a theatrical performance for fellow guests.
- Masterpiece Art Program: Art classes using the ports as inspiration for guests to create a different piece during each of the world cruise's segments. New in 2007 will be mosaics workshops, mask-making classes, and a jewelry-making segment using semi-precious stones and other materials indigenous to the ports. Classes in stone sculpting, painting, and scrap-booking are also part of the art curriculum.
Traveling from Miami to Southampton, UK, Crystal Serenity world cruise will visit 45 ports in 27 countries on five continents. Passengers may also book any of seven individual segments, with departures from Valparaiso, Chile; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Cape Town, South Africa; Dubai, UAE; Istanbul, Turkey; and Rome, Italy.
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