Carnival Vista the product of healthy competition

Posted on 28 January, 2015 by Spacejunkie2

Business competition isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be. It led to ruinous price wars in the late 19th century in many industries.

But it’s also a great goad to improvement. That seems to be what’s happening in the cruise industry, especially in the contemporary market, where a remarkable series of interesting ships have been coming out of Europe’s shipyards.

Judging by the renderings released last week, the latest to join the fray is the Carnival Vista, coming in 2016.

While still bearing the imprint of Funship 2.0, the Vista will have a number of novel elements not shared by other Carnival Cruise Line ships.

Guests on the SkyRide cycle 150 feet above the sea.

SkyRider, a recumbent cycle that runs a circuit around and above the sports deck, may be the most noticeable of the bunch. But there’s also an IMAX theater, part of a Multiplex area; a new kaleidoscopic water slide; a casual seafood restaurant; an area of suites with hammocks; and a new approach to family staterooms. With the Vista, Carnival will become the first cruise line to brew its own beer at sea.

The cluster of new features is reminiscent of two other ships introduced in 2014: Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Getaway and Royal Caribbean International’s Quantum of the Seas. The new deck of indoor/outdoor restaurant space on the Vista’s Deck 5 looks remarkably like the Waterfront on Norwegian’s Breakaway/Getaway ships.

The Vista's resort-style pool deck.

Norwegian, Royal and Carnival have been rivals for more than 40 years, but their competition in ship design is as vital as it has ever been. Each is pushing the other to develop better and more exciting new features, and the benefits are accruing to cruise passengers who have a fantastic array of fun things to do on a ship.

And of course, there’s a lot for travel agents to talk about and sell on these new ships. So here’s a salute to healthy competition. Long may it reign.

10 cruise highlights of 2014

Posted on 6 January, 2015 by Spacejunkie2

It’s sometimes a little deflating to try a cruise or a new ship and realize that some of the great features you’d been looking forward to fall short of the hype surrounding them.

Windstar Cruises: The twilight al fresco barbecue off Portofino on Windstar’s new Star Pride was about as perfect an evening as I could imagine on a cruise.Then there are surprises the opposite way: things that work so well or are so outstanding that you can’t wait to get off the ship and tell everyone you know about them. Here are 10 such moments from my cruise travels in 2014:

Carnival Cruise Line: Carnival’s push to diversify its itineraries paid off on an eight-day cruise from Fort Lauderdale, which went all the way to Curacao. The late evening departure was an added bonus.

Celebrity Cruises: The unflagging attention and professionalism of Michael’s Club concierge Anca Cenea made me realize how much truly extraordinary service can add to a cruise.

Crystal Cruises: I’m not a big fan of small plates, but the new tapas-style street food served at the Tastes restaurant on Crystal Serenity really won me over.

Icy Strait Point: The zipline at this Alaska cruise port was as much fun as it looked on YouTube videos, but some of the other features, such as Alaska’s Wildest Kitchen, were an upside surprise.

Norwegian Cruise Line: The club performance by jazz flautist Nestor Torres in the Grammy Experience aboard Norwegian Getaway was some of the best live music I’ve heard in a long time.

Norwegian Cruise Line: The Illusionarium on Getaway exceeded the hype.

Princess Cruises: The quality of the Brazilian food served at the Horizon Court buffet on the Regal Princess during a dine-and-dash evening for me was completely unexpected. I would love to try it again.

Royal Caribbean International: The programming in the Two70 lounge on the Quantum of the Seas is mind-boggling.

UnCruise Adventures: A day on a jet boat in the Hell’s Canyon section of the Snake River between Oregon and Idaho was everything you’d want in a soft adventure excursion.

New dining program postponed for Oasis-class ships

Posted on 5 January, 2015 by Spacejunkie2

Royal Caribbean International is postponing the scheduled introduction of Dynamic Dining on its two mega-ships, Oasis and Allure of the Seas.

The alternative-dining concept had been scheduled to debut on Oasis in March, but has now been put off until “later in the year” according to the line’s web page for Oasis.

Dynamic Dining, introduced on Quantum of the Seas in November, eliminates the main dining room in favor of four themed restaurants that serve about 450 diners each. There is also a separate complimentary restaurant for suite guests.

The main dining room on Oasis had been converted into separate restaurants on each of its three decks during a drydock last fall, but the actual implementation of Dynamic Dining is not yet in place.

The three new dining concepts for Oasis were to be American Icon Grill, Silk and The Grande.

Royal Caribbean said it will continue to offer early and late seatings in the main dining room on Oasis as well as the flexible My Time Dining program as an option.

Allure of the Seas is scheduled for a drydock in 2015.