By the Avid Cruiser
Helsingwhat? That was the response from some cruise passengers who stepped ashore in the Swedish town of Helsingborg this morning. “It’s been a long time since school geography,” said one man from the United Kingdom. “I’m afraid my knowledge isn’t sufficient enough to have known about Helsingborg.”
But he and other passengers disembarking Grand Princess said they were impressed by the city in the south of Sweden.
“I’m very impressed,” said Jim Hough, from Banks, Oregon. “I’m a city manager, so when I come, I look to see how well-kept the town is, and Helsingborg is very well kept. Everyone is obviously very proud of what they have here. I’m so glad it was put on our itinerary, because now I believe I’ve seen the real Sweden as opposed to the metropolitan Sweden.”
“We’ve been to the major cities, which is great,” added another passenger, “but this is a small city and we feel closer to the local population and not swamped by long queues of tourists.”
A couple from Detroit remarked on the cleanliness of Helsingborg. “It’s very fresh and interesting,” they added.
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NCL’s Epic: Will You Love It or Leave It?
By · CommentsBy the Avid Cruiser
It’s big and boxy on the outside, busy and noisy on the inside. With 20 dining options and 20 bars and lounges, NCL Epic features industry-first solo traveler cabins and innovative balcony staterooms, plus a lot more. Will you love it or leave it?
As our motorcoach approached the Southampton docks, I braced myself. Before me was a vessel that looked nearly as much like a container ship as it did a cruise ship. In the glow of a Southampton sunset, Norwegian Epic’s towering exterior appeared odd, with a flat aft and a Lego-like forward section, unlike any ship I had ever seen.
As a reporter, I’ve covered NCL for nearly 20 years. During that time, the company has struggled with its brand identity. As NCL’s Sheehan noted, in the past several years NCL had complicated its product offering. “Every time Carnival or Royal Caribbean or Celebrity or Princess came out with something new, we would say, ‘Well we’ve got to do that too.’ What happened was that we were doing way too many things, and it made it very complicated. We were not doing a superb job on everything.”
My question before boarding Epic was whether the ship would, in fact, redefine NCL. I harbored hopes that it would.
At first glance, however, I had my doubts about Epic. Entering the ship did little to ease my doubts. Big and boxy on the outside, Epic was busy and noisy on the inside.
Epic’s Din & Decibels
Even with half of the full passenger complement, NCL’s public areas were densely peopled, the bars and restaurants crowded. There was no place devoid of decibels.
I was ready to give up hope. But hold on, I thought to myself, I am a professional. Make an objective assessment. I had just come off of Crystal Symphony, carrying slightly more than 900 passengers. Epic could top out at more than 4,600. I had to remember that I was going from a vessel in the luxury segment, with a much higher price point, to a vessel in the contemporary or mass market segment.
Three successive thoughts help me temper my initial culture-shock about Epic: 1) British travel agents on something like a holiday, 2) only two nights to party, 3) and this one is important, open bar. Oh, and England was competing in the World Cup on a large-screen television. You get the picture.
Several hours late boarding (due to Epic’s late arrival in Southampton), I was paraded directly to my stateroom to drop my luggage then to the Argentine-inspired Moderno Churrascaria, which shares space with Cagney’s Steakhouse. The presentation of meat carved at the table was well done, and the food was good.
After a quick dinner, our group proceeded to the Manhattan Room for entertainment by Madonna, Elvis and Tina Turner look-alikes, and desserts. Again, great entertainment; tasty sweets.
Marching again, we headed to the upper decks to Spice H2O for a FABBA performance, where high-energy performers entertained us with ABBA favorites.
Around midnight, we stopped in at Headliners, where dueling piano players performed a mostly comedic act in “Howl at the Moon.”
After four hours of nonstop entertainment, my ears were buzzing when I returned to my room after midnight.
Bath & Bed
I was unable to immediately assess whether I liked my stateroom or not. As has been widely publicized, Epic’s staterooms are more curvy than boxy. The bathroom configuration turned out to be a point of controversy. Some loved it; some hated it. The toilet is in an enclosed capsule on one side as you enter the room, the shower is in an enclosed capsule on the other side, and the sink is close enough to the bed that I could have brushed my teeth with my head on my pillow.
The bed, though wide enough, missed accommodating the length of my body by about half a foot, and thus, I slept sideways. I appreciated the large, flat-screen television, the coffee-maker and the roomy balcony. Also, in a nod to environmental conservation, the stateroom keycard must be inserted into a slot to activate the light switches in the room. Kudos to NCL for that.
The next morning, NCL’s publicist told me that tonight we would experience sensory overload. “I thought that was last night,” I jokingly replied.
The on-board ambience is intended to be busy and buzzing, NCL execs say. With 20 bars and lounges and an equal number (or possibly more – it’s difficult to keep count) dining options, Epic clearly follows in the wake of Oasis as an entertainment extravaganza.
On a weeklong cruise on either ship, I think I would miss the close connection with the sea. Epic is more like Vegas than it is a cruise ship. However, that said, Epic grew on me during the 36 hours I was on board.
The Blue Man Group put on one of the best shows I’ve ever seen, at sea or otherwise. And there is nothing at sea like the Cirque Dreams & Dinner, which featured a Broadway-style show and acrobatics. Cirque’s meat and potatoes dinner was a bit heavy, so I skipped it and hit the Wasabi sushi bar after the show.
NCL says that upscale cruisers would be happy in Epic’s Courtyard villas, which were not completed during our brief inspection. Perhaps, but it wouldn’t be my first choice as a luxury cruiser. Of course, I am one who is happier looking out at the sea than I am watching high-energy performances. With my children, however, there’s no doubt that Epic would be a hit.
What is certain is that the ship certainly represents an epic moment in NCL’s 40-year history.
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Apple iPad Invades Seabourn Sojourn
By · CommentsBy the Avid Cruiser
An increasingly common trend on cruises: passengers toting iPads. No doubt that Apple’s iPad is an effective and highly transportable device for staying connected both on land and at sea.
This morning, leaving The Colonnade following breakfast, I was approached by a Seabourn Sojourn staff member who, seeing that I was clutching an iPad, remarked on the emerging prevalence of the technology on cruise ships. “I’m seeing more and more people using the iPad on board,” he said. “Probably 30 percent of the guests have them on this cruise.”
I’m not sure of the statistical accuracy of his statement, but indeed, I have seen a fair number of iPads in use during our cruise of the Norwegian fjords.
With Seabourn’s unlimited internet package, it’s easy to share access between computers, and you won’t need to count your minutes as the package covers the cost of all access while on board. I am using both a Macbook Pro and an iPad to stay on top of email and other work-related activities.
As some on this cruise have remarked, the ability to stay connected makes the cruise — and particularly returning home after the cruise — more enjoyable than not being connected. They contend that they would return home to an overwhelming workload, whereas logging on for an hour a day helps them manage their inboxes and smooths the transition of stepping off this luxury cruise and back into real life.
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By the Avid Cruiser
How do Celebrity’s Solstice-class vessels compare to luxury cruise lines where the price point is at least twice as much? Read the Avid Cruiser’s report this week during a Caribbean voyage on Celebrity Solstice.
Previously, I wrote Celebrity’s Newest Ship Breaks The Mold. Clearly, Celebrity Solstice left a good impression on me and many others.
This week, I’m back on Celebrity Solstice, taking a second look at what a friend of mine calls, “Crystal Light.” She’s referring not to the powdered sugar-free beverage but rather to Celebrity’s competitive positioning against luxury operator Crystal Cruises.
She posits that Celebrity is a formidable contender to Crystal in some areas, namely staterooms, cuisine and other ship-board offerings. That’s quite a claim, especially considering that Celebrity’s price point is about half of Crystal’s.
Are Celebrity’s Solstice-class vessels nipping at the heels of their luxury competitors? I don’t plan to a blow-by-blow comparison, but this week, I will take a look at some of the good — and not-so-good, if warranted — on Celebrity Solstice.
Bathrooms are well-designed with one small, but well-publicized feature: a shower bar to assist women in shaving their legs. Such small touches characterize the well-thought-out design on Solstice-class vessels.
First impressions are the same as last time I was on board: Solstice is an exceptionally tasteful ship in both design and on-board offerings.
Public areas are gorgeous, restaurants are both numerous (with as many as 10 dining venues, depending on how you count – five have cover charges) and impressive. Staterooms are comfortable and well-designed. Mine, 8253, has a deep balcony, thanks to its positioning in the mid-ship curve.
How will Celebrity Solstice shake out by the end of the week? Of course, purists know that Celebrity can’t compete in several areas against the luxury players:
- With a capacity of more than 2,800 guests, a single Solstice-class vessel has more capacity than the entire fleets of most, if not all, of the luxury players.
- On the smaller luxury lines, staff frequently address guests by their names. Not so on larger vessels, such as those in the Solstice class.
- With the exception of Crystal, luxury lines are all-inclusive, meaning that a check will not be shoved under your nose to sign for soft drinks, specialty coffees and alcoholic beverages. On Celebrity, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to practice your penmanship. Crystal skirts the all-inclusive issue by providing an As You Wish Credit.
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Why You Should Cruise Azamara Now
By · CommentsBy the Avid Cruiser
Given the skewed valuation between the U.S. dollar and the Euro, it’s unusual to hear the words “Europe” and “good value” mentioned in the same sentence. But those words were in frequent use on a recent 14-night Mediterranean cruise on Azamara Quest.
The reason was twofold: First, a cruise represents a bargain proposition when compared to other modes of travel and accommodations within Europe. The cruise lines’ oft-repeated mantra is that paying in U.S. dollars for goods and services onboard isolates travelers from the higher costs in Euros ashore.
Second, passengers on Azamara Quest paid considerably less than they would have paid for similar sailings on other cruise lines. The reason: As a relative newcomer in the business, Azamara Cruises faces the challenge of establishing its brand. Though under the corporate umbrella of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., Azamara does not yet have the name recognition of its sister companies, Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises. One way to build the brand: Get people on board and send them home as ambassadors who will spread the word. How to get people on board? Give them a deal.
For now at least, Azamara provides exceptional value when compared to its competitors. And Azamara compares favorably to its most formidable competitor, Oceania Cruises. The two cruise lines operate nearly identical hardware: Oceania Cruises sails five vessels, once operated by now-defunct Renaissance Cruises; Azamara sails two, Quest and Journey. Essentially, Azamara is an Oceania wannabe, and although Azamara got off to a shaky start, the newcomer is proving to be quite adept at replicating Oceania’s successful model.
Four-time Azamara cruisers Steve Henderson and his wife Kate say they’ve cruised so often on Azamara because the deals have simply been too good to pass up. The Texas couple had only disembarked Quest a month before I met them in the Mediterranean. They had returned to Europe because of “irresistible offers.”
“When comparing us to Oceania, we are way lower price-wise,” says Niyazi Korkmaz, hotel director on Azamara Quest. “What we’re charging for the ticket price, it’s fantastic. The guests notice the value.”
Quest For Perfection
All staterooms on each of the 694-passenger ships feature butler service and upgraded amenities such as European bedding with duvet and pillow-top mattress; 100 percent Egyptian-cotton bathrobes; umbrella; binoculars; bottled Evian water; welcome fruit basket; fresh-cut flowers; pillow menu and more.
The cruise line spent $40 million modernizing the fleet. As part of the upgrade, some blocks of staterooms were reconfigured to suites. Azamara’s ships feature ten Penthouse Suites, four Royal Suites and 32 Sky Suites.
At 266 square feet, Sky Suites on deck 8 occupy the equivalent of a standard stateroom and a half (three staterooms were reconfigured into two suites).
Suites come with all that standard staterooms offer and more: priority check-in and departure; priority luggage delivery; complimentary garment pressing (two items); priority tender service; fragrant drawer liners upon request; silk-wrapped hangers; Hansgrohe showerhead; welcome bottle of champagne; daily fruit basket; daily hors d’oeuvres served in-suite between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. and complimentary espresso/cappuccino, but oddly only when ordered in-suite. Soft drinks are also free of charge when taken from the suite mini-bar.
Like Oceania, Azamara features multiple dining venues: the main open-seating dining room Discoveries; the reservations-only Prime C and Aqualina; and Windows Cafe. The latter is remarkable in that during dinner, diners will often find sushi, sashimi, whole lobster and a carving station in what is essentially the lido buffet on other ships.
When in port, the aft section of Windows Cafe transforms into Brisas, an outdoor floating cafe overlooking exotic ports of call.
Breakfast in Windows Cafe features a juice bar, with complimentary fresh-squeezed juices and smoothies. For those who appreciate healthy dining options, the Pool Grill serves up turkey and veggie burgers, baked potatoes and kebabs in addition to the usual burgers and hot dogs.
Deluxe Cruise Line
Azamara defines itself as deluxe, positioned between premium cruise lines (like sister brand Celebrity) and luxury cruise lines (such as Regent Seven Seas Cruises). The smaller size of Azamara’s vessels, when compared to Celebrity, allows the two-ship fleet to visit small, unexplored ports. In 2008, Azamara charted 68 ports that were new to the Royal Caribbean family of cruise lines.
Quest and Journey sail in different directions: Journey crosses the Atlantic to operate a series of Panama Canal and Caribbean sailings through March, then returns to Europe; Quest heads east to sail a series of Asia voyages, with extended cruisetour packages available, before returning to Europe in the spring.
Few, however, expect Azamara’s competitive advantage to last for long. Fares will increase as Azamara gains name recognition. That’s only one good reason to cruise Azamara now. The other is that this is an up-and-coming cruise line that is sure to please, just as its competitor does.
Azamara’s Bumpy Journey
When launched in spring 2007, Azamara Cruises got off to a shaky start, largely because of logistical issues that delayed the refurbishment of the its first ship, Azamara Journey. The new cruise line was hammered, particularly in the online cruise chat rooms and forums. Azamara Cruises President and CEO Dan Hanrahan admitted that his company made mistakes during its inaugural period, but he says that some of the harsh criticism seemed unfair.
Four-time Azamara cruiser Steve Henderson agrees. Scanning the boards on popular web sites, he noted many remarks that he says “simply were not true.” Henderson responded with posts that essentially said, “I was on that cruise, and what you wrote did not happen.”
What’s The Beef
Still, Azamara had plenty of kinks to iron out, and when Quest was introduced in October, the company was beginning to see improved comments from both cruise passengers and travel agents. Moreover, the company committed to responding quickly to passenger complaints. A $20 charge for dining in specialty restaurants Aqualina and Prime C was replaced with a $5 suggested gratuity.
In Prime C, one menu item that featured “Kobe-style beef” was removed, because it caused confusion among guests. The restaurant featured beef raised “Kobe style” in Idaho at a cost to the company of $30 to $40 a pound, compared to more than $100 a pound for true Kobe beef.
On Journey, open-seating dining also proved challenging for staff, many who came from sister company Celebrity Cruises, where staff was accustomed to two-seating dining. Service in Journey’s main dining room was often slow and not as personal as it was on Celebrity. But those challenges too have been ironed out.
There are still minor irritations and quirks. Specialty coffees, free on Azamara’s competitors, cost nearly $5 ($4 plus 18 percent gratuity) in the Mosaic Cafe. Sure, guests in suites receive complimentary specialty coffees, but only if ordered in their suites. And a can of Coke costs $4 from the stateroom fridge, and only $2 at food and beverage outlets outside the room.
And even with the significant investment in Quest and Journey, some things are not up to the Celebrity standard. Standard stateroom bathrooms, for example, are small. With the added room to stretch out, a large balcony and bathroom, Sky Suites represent perhaps the best value.
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Check Into The Hotel That Floats
By · CommentsBy the Avid Cruiser
I checked into my hotel in Budapest, Hungary, and checked out a week later in Passau, Germany. Each evening, sometimes after I had fallen asleep, my hotel moved, from Budapest, to Bratislava, to Vienna, to Durnstein and Melk on the same day, to Linz and finally Passau. If you’re scratching your head, I’ll let you in on a secret: My hotel was a river cruiser.
River cruisers combine the best features of motorcoaches (in that they get you from one destination to the other) with the best features of a deluxe hotel (in that you are transported in comfort).
You need not sit with your nose pressed against the windows of a bus as you move from one destination to the next. Instead, you admire the scenery from the ship’s sun deck as you are transported along with your accommodations.
Nor will you have to obligingly put out your luggage by 7 a.m. (or earlier) to be loaded onto the motorcoach before it sets off to the next destination. You’ll unpack only once during the course of your cruise as you move from one city to the next.
Sitting on the top deck of a ship under brilliant blue skies, gaze on fabled landscapes dotted with castles, villages and vineyards. A flight of stairs down, and you have all the amenities of a modern hotel: a restaurant, bar, lounge, fitness facilities, spa, and a comfortable stateroom.
What’s more is that river cruisers become part of the destinations where they dock. A simple gangway from the floating hotel allows passengers to come and go just as they would at a destination-based hotel.
The only difference is that later on, the floating hotel will untie from the docks and cruise to the next destination. Make sure to keep an eye on your watch. You wouldn’t want to miss the boat – er, hotel.
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By the Avid Cruiser
The journey to Stockholm’s city center begins nearly 50 miles east, at the tip of a beautiful archipelago comprised of 30,000 islands, islets and rocks.
On Wednesday, I step aboard Silver Whisper to set sail through the archipelago that ships transit on their way to and from Stockholm.
My journey begins in Stockholm’s city center, near Gamla Stan (the old town), and travels for about 50 miles to the end of the archipelago. Along the way are some spectacular sites, and many experienced cruisers have said that the archipelago is one of the world’s most beautiful transits.
The archipelago is comprised of 30,000 islands, islets and rocks. Many of the islands are uninhabited, rocky outcrops that are homes only to birds. Others have quaint red-and-white Swedish cottages. It’s advisable to be on deck or out on your balcony to admire the passing scenery.
Silver Whisper is one of Silversea Cruises’ six luxury ships. She was recently refurbished (2010) in an Italian shipyard.
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Life Aquatic: Oasis of the Seas
By · CommentsBy the Avid Cruiser
In the battle to boast the biggest and best, Royal Caribbean International debuted Oasis of the Seas in 2009, which, along with sister ship Allure of the Seas, holds the title as the world’s largest cruise ship.
But Oasis of the Seas boasts much more than size. Making a huge media splash, the world’s largest cruise ship took the industry a step closer to fulfilling aspirations among lead designers: to incorporate theme park elements on the top decks of ships.
Clearly, the upper decks of cruise ships are getting more interesting, and while that may not please everyone, expect the innovations to continue.
“Yes,” chuckles Harri Kulovaara, Royal Caribbean’s executive vice president, maritime, “maybe we do like building big ships. The purpose, however, is not just to build the biggest ships. The purpose is to build outstanding vessels that provide great facilities for our guests. And we need a lot of real estate for that. That’s the reason we’ve constantly been growing the size of our ships. We have a lot of good ideas that we want to incorporate in the ships.”
Capable of carrying more than 6,000 passengers, Oasis of the Seas is 40 percent larger than the company’s Freedom-class vessels, which previously reigned as the world’s largest cruise ships.
A Thrill A Minute
With more than 30 ships under his belt, Carnival’s chief designer Joe Farcus has expressed interest in the past to put a steel-structure roller coaster on a ship. “It would be a very sculptural thing,” he explains, noting that the roller coaster would be designed in a way so as not to disturb sunbathers.
If a roller coaster requires a leap of imagination, consider what Designteam wants to put on a cruise ship: an 825-foot ski slope wrapping around the ship’s funnel and sloping to the back of the top deck.
An “inflatable roof” would keep the manmade snow from melting in the Caribbean,” Designteam’s Frank Symeou says with the conviction of a man who expects to be taken seriously.
The roof would be removed when cruising cold-water destinations such as Alaska. “It’s perfectly feasible,” chimes in Symeou’s partner, Eric Mouzourides, “although the weight of the snow was one concern.” Not a safety hazard, he explains: The additional weight adds to fuel costs.
Whether these designs will see the light of day — or the upper decks of ships — remains to be seen, but what is certain is that cruise lines will continue to build ever-larger ships with features previously unthinkable. “There’s no question that big ships have a great public relations value,” says Carnival’s Farcus.
And while Oasis of the Seas may be the best indication of what to expect on big ships of the future, there is still much more on the drawing boards and in the minds of designers who increasingly are looking at successful entertainment venues outside the cruise industry for inspiration.
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Constellation; Alesund, Norway
By · CommentsBy the Avid Cruiser
Alesund is on the NW coast of Norway and doesn’t sound the way it looks. Try ew-le-sund. It was good old Rollo the Viking boss that built a castle here. Around the castle came a fishing village, then a township, then, in 1904 in the middle of winter, a fire. When the fire ebbed, 10,000 were homeless and in the dark. Kaiser Wihelm was furious. He had lost his vacation spot. Well, not entirely, the spot was still there, but no house. Not to worry, he led a rebuilding, melding Nordic styles with a bit of Art Nouveau. He was, after all, the Kaiser.
As I walked the streets of Alesund, my expectations were way off base; little traffic only one bike and only one blonde. She was on the bike. Actually, my favorites were an accordion player and a guy on a cornet; both playing jazz. Alesund is pleasant enough, but except for these two, it doesn’t swing.
This is the only city in all my travels that I was unable to elicit a smile; not even a slight grin. In the midst of all the space and beauty, the expressions of the passing people reminded me of commute time subway riders in NY.
Back on board Constellation, I realized that I was walking far more on this trip than at home. Beside the port perambulations, it’s about a 20 mile hike from my cabin to the San Marco restaurant. But…….well worth it.
Bye bye Alesund, the Arctic Circle is next.
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The Dining Pleasures Of Oceania’s Toscana Restaurant
By · CommentsBy the Avid Cruiser
Welcome to Toscana, one of two specialty restaurants on Oceania’s ships. There’s no additional charge to dine here, although there is a limit to the number of times you can dine at Toscana on a single cruise, not always rigidly enforced, depending on which category cabin you booked.
The show begins with the bread basket, a work of art in itself, with, for those who like it, roasted garlic. Beautiful Versace dishes and plates adorn the tabletops (there are plenty of tables for two). A waiter pushing a cart comes tableside with a wide selection of olive oils and balsamic vinegars.
The carpaccio is a good starter. But so is the Insalata Caprese. You don’t have to choose. Have both.
The risotto comes without calories, until your fork moves it from the plate to your mouth, that is. Also in the “let’s not think about calories” category, the desserts are delicious works of art.
Toscana represents dining in the best of Italian traditions.
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