UFO sighting on Carnival cruise ship?

Posted on 18 October, 2014 by Spacejunkie2

When you’re embarking on your cruise voyage, you’ll look forward to delightful meals and drinks, exceptional sightseeing opportunities and the chance to explore new cultures.

What you do not expect to see, however, is a UFO!

Onboard a Carnival cruise ship in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, passengers reported seeing an object in the sky they could not identify. The sighting immediately sparked discussion, with some claiming that it could have been a military drone, video editing technology or a wide manner of other things.

The object certainly looks unusual and does not have the traditional shape associated with UFOs through the media.

UFO seen over a Carnival Cruise Ship

YouTube user ThirdPhaseofMoon uploaded the video, which has proved to be particularly popular online, recording 85,237 views to the current day.

However, the validity of the video has been questioned by some users, with scOtte1 saying: “Sorry, but when the ‘UFO’ entered the clouds you can tell that it was poor editing using the fade out tool. Completely obvious.”

On the other hand, some people believe the flying object is instead a military carrier.

Whether people are getting carried away over nothing, or there really are aliens visiting Florida, the video has sparked a lot of discussion on YouTube and the cruise community in general.

It is not the first time UFOs have been allegedly spotted in the state, with a report from Mutual UFO Network recently reporting that another fast-moving object was seen in broad daylight on September 15th of this year.

A photo of the flying structure was taken by a witness driving on I-95 southbound near Fort Lauderdale.

Could it be that Fort Lauderdale is a preferred spot for visitors, or are all the claims false?

What do you think? Did the passengers see UFOs and have you seen any yourself?

Cruising’s advantage over theme park magic

Posted on 28 January, 2014 by Spacejunkie2

By Tom Stieghorst

I had the chance last week to spend some time at a Central Florida theme park, one of the cruise industry’s competitors for the vacation dollar.

Universal Studios Orlando offers a formidable array of attractions, including an evening entertainment complex, three luxury hotels with a budget-priced resort in the wings and a pair of theme parks chock full of roller coasters, rides and faithful backlot reproductions of New York, San Francisco and even Homer Simpson’s hometown, Springfield.

The latest project at Universal is a re-creation of London for an attraction devoted to literary wizard Harry Potter. Sometime this summer The Wizarding World of Harry Potter — Diagon Alley will open, bringing the Wyndham Theater and other landmarks of the city to more than 6 million Universal Studios visitors annually.

Cruise lines have one crucial edge in the competition. While theme parks must re-create the world in Central Florida, cruise ships can actually bring guests to all of the fascinating destinations that can only be represented at land-based parks. *TomStieghorst

It seems almost too obvious to mention, but “destination” sometimes gets lost in the cruise industry’s sales initiatives.

One of Wizarding World’s marvels will be a train, the Hogwarts Express, running between the new attraction in Universal Studios and the original Harry Potter theme area in the adjacent Islands of Adventure park.

Although Universal is withholding details, executives hint that the train will have video screens instead of windows to project images of London and the British countryside on the journey from Diagon Alley to the imaginary Hogsmeade village in Scotland. It will be exciting to see, and I’ll look forward to it as much as the next theme park fan. But on a cruise excursion one could see the real thing in all of its glory. That has to trump seeing the facsimile in Orlando, no matter how clever the reproduction.

The same applies to the themed re-creations of France, China and Morocco in Walt Disney World’s Epcot or the Bavarian beer hall at Busch Gardens in Tampa. How much better to drink some locally brewed beer in Hamburg, or see the quays of Shanghai from the deck of a cruise ship.

Orlando has its advantages, too. Plenty of people who struggle to afford going abroad can see a version of distant lands there. But cruises can take guests to the real thing, and that’s a selling point agents ought to play up.

MSC Divina welcomed to Miami by cars… driving on water?!

Posted on 23 November, 2013 by Spacejunkie2

MSC Divina welcomed to Miami by cars… driving on water?!

Walking on water is one thing, but driving on water is something else entirely. That didn’t stop FIAT from welcoming MSC Divina into the Port of Miami, Florida, with a fleet of ‘aquatic’ cars.

The PR stunt saw the impressive cruise ship flanked by Fiat 500s that had been modified to literally drive on water. It’s not the first appearance for the ‘Cinquecentos’, which the Daily Mail reports have been seen on waterways in cities across the US during recent months.

But the presence of the 4,000-passenger cruise liner certainly helped draw the eye to their sea-based shenanigans.

One of the world’s largest cruise ships, the MSC Divina will be based in Miami from this month to serve the Caribbean. Previously, she has cruised throughout the Mediterranean.

Commenting on its introduction to the Port of Miami, MSC US chief executive Richard Sasso said: “We are thrilled to welcome one of our finest and most innovative vessels to North America.”