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Cruising’s damaging year continuing
Catching up on the news… The cruise line industry has had a series of incidents in the past year not on its wanted list. The most damaging was the terrible tragedy with the Costa Concordia. Now,...
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Caribbean cruises in the months head
Below are some of the cruises that offer interesting itineraries and tie in with my Ports and Bows newspaper column this weekend in the Postmedia papers across Canada. As always, the cruises are per...
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Marseille on the road to Cassis
MARSEILLE, France — This was the first port on my 12-day Mediterranean cruise on the new Carnival Breeze…except that it should say “Marseille under construction.” Suffering from high unemployment, the...
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Dream refurbishment fait accompli
Only a short time ago — it seems — I was in New York for the christening of the Carnival Dream, a ship that led to two more in the Dream Series: the Breeze and the Magic. Well, I’m the one who must be...
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Conquest latest Carnival refurbishing
It’s better to spend $20-$30 million on a refurbishment than almost $800 million on a new ship. If you’re planning on taking the Carnival Conquest out of New Orleans this winter, the good news is that...
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Carnival Conquest — the 2.0 treatment
This weekend in my Ports and Bows newspaper column, I am going to be writing about refurbished cruise ships who have undergone the knife in 2012. My column appears in these papers: Montreal Gazette,...
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On-board credits to sail Royal European
Let’s start today’s blog with a sale. Royal Caribbean calls it a European Extravaganza and, like a lot of cruise lines, Royal would rather give you back money back in the form of an on-board credit...
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WOW! Life’s a Carnival cruise
Since I’m currently cruising on the Carnival Sunshine, I thought it appropriate this week’s WOW deals focus on Carnival Cruise Lines, all of them this year. There’s a lot of great value from this line....
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Carnival deals under $50 a day
This sale was just too good not to post as I start the week. In some cases, what we are seeing are some crazy low prices on certain departures. It’s all Carnival, all over the next seven months, and I...
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WOW! Pre-Christmas travels good way to go
December — before Christmas — is a great time to travel. Prices offer outstanding value and when you’re in the islands of the Caribbean you won’t find them as crowded. Sure, the ships are there but the...
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WOW! Overnights in the wine regions of France
This week, everything from the Caribbean to drinking wine in France and a singles deal where you only pay 25 per cent more than the doubles price with Azamara (check with the cruise line or travel...
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WOW! Carnival has a sale if you ‘book early’
Carnival is having a “book early” sale and so I researched four of those cruises from three different ports and found their best prices. Among them is a a cruise that features country entertainers Lady...
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WOW! Killer price for Christmas in Caribbean
Prices leading up to Christmas are heading downhill faster than a reindeer on roller skates. I’m consistently seeing prices below $300 for the Caribbean but now I’ve found one in Europe that blows my...
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WOW! The latest news for Christmas cruises
Ho Ho Ho… Looking or a chance to get away to sea for Christmas? Here are some choices that were still available when I picked them. All are per person, double occupancy and represent starting prices....
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Norwegian, Carnival test new charges
Last week I mentioned that Norwegian is testing reaction to a service fee for room service delivery described as a “convenience charge” The fee is $7.95 per order on the Norwegian Breakaway and $4.95...
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Room service charge a cruise-line test
If cruise-line tests are successful, you could soon be paying for room service. It might surprise non-cruisers that room service for the most part has been free on large cruise lines. Now, two of them...
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WOW! Better bang for buck pre-Christmas
One of the best times to sail the Caribbean or Mexico is before Christmas. While cruise ships are just as busy among the islands, the resorts and hotels are a bit slower and the crowds are somewhat...
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Cruise news and views you can use
Alaska Airlines will end its nonstop service between Los Angeles and Vancouver, effective June 4, according to airlineroute.net. Just one less choice when flying to Vancouver for Alaska cruises or to...
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