|
Cruise Newsletter
December
2004 It seems hard to believe that yet another year has flown by. Here we are staring down another Holiday Season. Hopefully you are all prepared with gifts under the tree and a turkey to pop in the oven? So, I guess it just remains for all of us here at Worldwide to wish our many friends, clients, colleagues and business associates - A TRULY WONDERFUL HOLIDAY SEASON - hopefully spent with good friends and family or even just with the dog. Whatever you do and wherever you are, our thoughts and best wishes are with you during this festive season. |
||
|
Trade Shows: Steve & Diana Bloss from our Florida office as well as Martin Dock our UK associate recently returned from the EIBTM Show in Barcelona, Spain. Barcelona is a wonderful walking city, but unfortunately they had wintery December weather and where not able to get out an enjoy the small amount of free time available to them. Our cruise line partners turned out in force for the show, with Mike Beale of Viking River Cruises, Maggie Mantia and Blanca-Stella of RSSC as well as Tanya Barnette of Seabourn Cruises and Stuart Gardner of Gardner & Associates (your man in Florida) all making the trip to be on the booth. The final analysis was that the show was a resounding success with far more traffic than any of the US based shows attended this year. Possible because of the Euro/Dollar exchange rate, the American suppliers had a very good show.
Having said that, there is still tremendous value for US Client programs to operate in Europe - cruise lines are still selling space at a very favourable price, many not having changed their rates from a year or more ago. Based on the old Euro/Dollar rate there is still a great opportunity to operate a program on a cruise ship in Europe at a rate that won't break the bank. Even shore excursions can be pre-booked and paid for in US Dollars. Call us for a free analysis of any program you are considering.
The America's Cup The racing season is now over for this year, but preparation still go on. New sponsors are still coming on line. Look to your clients and see who might benefit from this type of top end exposure. We are working with a number of clients for hotel/entertainment and viewing ships for the event. The newest sponsor to join the event is Alcatel, these type of clients reside in many of our clients portfolio's but may not be aware of the opportunity this represent for them. 'Alcatel, the global communications solutions provider, announced that it will partner with the 32nd America’s Cup, ensuring the world’s leading sailing competition is at the forefront of communications innovation. As an Official Partner of the America’s Cup, Alcatel will provide a global content distribution solution to the event. Etienne Fouques, President of Alcatel’s mobile communications activities, declared, “The America’s Cup is the high-tech pinnacle of the sailing world. Thanks to this prestigious competition and with our leading-edge technologies, Alcatel will be able to offer unprecedented media coverage to mobile network operators and ISPs. The content that will be made available will allow mobile subscribers from anywhere in the world to enjoy this event. As a telecommunications supplier of global solutions, Alcatel was the obvious technological partner for the America’s Cup.”
New Ships
Carnival Cruise Lines' new cruise ship,
Carnival Valor, arrived in its home port of
Miami having steamed directly
Of more interest to our corporate clients is the fact that this is the first cruise ship to offer "100 percent bow to stern" wireless Internet access, providing guests unparalleled opportunities to surf the Web, check e-mail, and obtain stock quotes and news updates from anywhere aboard the massive 2,974-passenger SuperLiner. Unlike other cruise ships that have designated Wi-Fi hotspot areas, Carnival Valor will feature ship-wide wireless Internet capability, enabling guests to use laptop computers to access the Internet from every public area, including all lounges, bars and pool decks, as well as any of the ship’s 1,487 staterooms. Wi-Fi is a huge consumer trend, appearing in more places than ever and Carnival Valor’s new ship-wide wireless Internet service offers our guests unprecedented convenience and connectivity at sea. Carnival Valor’s new Wi-Fi system complements the ship’s Internet café, “The Web,” which provides guests with high-speed Internet connectivity via private flat-panel workstations. The new system works with any Wi-Fi-enabled laptop. Laptops and Wi-Fi cards are also available for rent on board for a nominal fee; charges apply for Wi-Fi connectivity. Carnival Valor’s new “bow to stern” Wi-Fi system is part of a pilot program that may be expanded to other Carnival ships, all of which currently feature Internet cafes and wireless Internet access in select areas. Carnival Valor debuts with a two-day Bahamas cruise Dec. 15-17, 2004, then begins year-round seven-day cruises from Miami, alternating weekly to the eastern and western Caribbean.
Carnival was also in the news when the Lines new 110,000gt Carnival Liberty was floated out of its outfitting dock at Fincantieri’s Monfalcone shipyard earlier this week. Interior outfitting has begun in preparation for the line’s first-ever Mediterranean cruises beginning July 20. The 2,974-passenger Carnival Liberty will be the largest ship in the contemporary market sailing in Europe. Carnival Liberty’s Mediterranean cruises will run through October, after which the vessel will sail on a 16-day Atlantic crossing. Year round six and eight day Caribbean cruises from Fort Lauderdale begin in November
Refurbished and better than new ships. RCI's Sovereign of the Seas re-enters service after a major refurbishment which included adding balconies, new dining and entertainment options. The Sovereign, constructed in 1988 will be a welcome addition to the year-round three and four night Bahamas cruises rotation, she will homeport at Port Canaveral. The work added 62 balconies on Deck 10 these being Sovereign’s first balcony accommodations. Also added were a Boleros Latin lounge, a Johnny Rockets outlet, a new casual dining alternative (Windjammer Marketplace) with self-service islands offering regional dishes, a new pizzeria and a refurbished Follies Theater. The ShipShape Fitness Center and Sovereign Day Spa were expanded to include a bigger gym with additional cardio equipment and a full-service spa with a hair and nail salon and 11 treatment rooms, including one for couples. A new multi-purpose business complex houses a conference center and business services office. Kids get more space in the expanded Adventure Ocean Youth center, and teens now have their own nightclub, lounge and sun deck with outdoor dance floor.
Ports of Call New York - homecoming...Holland America not only operated from Pier 40 in the 1960s and '70s but the company was headquartered was there from 1978 to 1983. 'Holland America's connection with New York goes back to the very early immigrant days, following the company’s founding in 1873, the original Rotterdam made the journey from Rotterdam to New York, the first of many during the great period of immigration to the United States. Holland America Line announced that it will deploy the new Noordam from New York City for its inaugural Caribbean season in 2006. The line will sail 13 Caribbean cruises beginning with the Noordam’s inaugural cruise on Feb. 22. Two transatlantic sailings also include New York as a gateway. "We have wanted to return to New York for some time now and the Noordam presents a wonderful opportunity to introduce our premium product and a new ship to another North American homeport,' said Rick Meadows, HAL's SVP of Marketing and Sales. 'As our fleet expands, we capitalize on attractive new homeports and new deployment.' With the addition of New York Holland America's completes its Caribbean homeports for 2006 with Tampa, Fort Lauderdale and Norfolk. The New York Caribbean cruises feature a 10-day Eastern Caribbean program that visits Grand Turk, Tortola, St. Maarten, St. Thomas and San Juan. An 11-day Southern Caribbean itinerary calls at Tortola, St. Thomas, Dominica, Barbados, St. Maarten and San Juan. In addition, two 16-day transatlantic cruises sail between New York and Civitavecchia. Scheduled for delivery in January 2006, the Noordam is the fourth and last in a series of 81,769-ton Vista class ships.
Port of Marseille;
Following strong passenger growth in 2003 (a 38% increase over the preceeding
year), this year can best be described as a stable year for France’s number one
cruise port, with 355,000 passengers passing through the port. The drop in
numbers can be directly attributed to the failure of two cruise lines, Festival
and Royal Olympic Cruises, both of which where well established in Marseille.
the loss of these two lines along resulted in the port losing some 160,000
passengers this year. In spite of this and thanks to a
major promotional campaign, 32 cruise operators (compared to 29 in 2003) and 52 cruiseships (instead of 51) called 273 times in Marseille
and 380,000 to 400,000 passengers are expected for 2005. The
cruise season will start as early as March, and turnarounds will take place on
Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays. MSC Cruises will double its capacity
with MSC Sinfonia (from March 12 until end of October) and MSC Lirica (from May
27 until mid-November). Same strategy for Louis Crusies (Croisifrance) with
Sapphire (from March) and Aquamarine (from June). Costa Fortuna will also depart
every Saturday starting in April and Arcalia Shipping is scheduled for group
departures on Princess Danae and Funchal in spring and autumn. Also scheduled
are eight calls by Grand Princess (Princess Cruises), several calls by Oceania’s
Regatta and Insignia and, from May 15, a visit by Splendour of the Seas every
Sunday. Windstar Shake-Up
Holland America Line named Jim McHugh to be
Vice President, Marketing and Sales for Windstar Cruises. The appointment was
made by Richard D. Meadows, CTC, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Sales,
Holland America Line and is effective December 13, 2004. Windstar the operator
of 3 luxury small sail ships has been floundering for a while
with bland itineraries. With
McHugh coming on-board we will no doubt see a
new approach to planning and implementation of marketing and sales
initiatives for the lines three luxury sailing vessels. Worldwide
has already noticed several positive changes in Windstars pricing for example
and we expect to see more of these positive moves over the coming months.
"We are pleased to have someone with Jim’s experience in luxury cruising
join the Windstar team," said Richard D. Meadows, CTC, senior vice president,
marketing and sales, Holland America Line. "The Windstar cruise experience is
truly 180° from Ordinary and we are confident that he will be successful in
broadening the appeal of this message.” McHugh brings more than ten years of
luxury cruise experience to his new position. He was a founding member of the
team that launched the ultra-luxury line, Silversea. He most recently served as
Silversea’s Vice President, National Accounts and Sales Development. Prior to
that role, McHugh served in professional and leadership roles for the company’s
Marketing Planning, Field Sales, Finance and Reservations. His role as Director
of Marketing Planning for Silversea, beginning in 1999, was an opportunity to
apply his considerable skills in strategic itinerary and revenue planning,
pricing and promotions. Windstar Cruises is a wholly owned unit of Holland
America Line.
The motor vessel
Built in Germany in 2002 and fully converted and renovated in 2004, under the supervision of Germanischer Lloyd Classification Society, the MV Constellation is the latest in a long line of luxury vessels. One significant difference: 14 suites accommodating up to 28 guests and 10 luxury cabins, for a total of 48 passengers, all of which are fully equipped with futuristic technology and every modern feature. The vessel has been designed to cater to the most discerning of corporate clients as a high-tech and exclusive conference and business venue and none of the normal comforts have been overlooked.
For more information contact: · Steve Bloss (954) 452-8800, ext. 26 - email Steve · Jim Huff (954) 452-8800, ext. 28 - email Jim · Leon Banossian (954) 452-8800, ext. 29 - email Leon · Martin Dock +44 (0)1794 514336 - email Martin · Jim Castle (954) 452 8800. ext.25 - email Jim
Please be advised that WWTCA twice filters all incoming and outgoing mail as well as attachments for virus's. Whilst every care is taken to ensure you receive sterile content from us, due to the open nature of the internet we cannot accept any responsibility should a virus arrive on your system. Due to
anti-spam laws, we are ready to unsubscribe you from our mailing
list. *Per Section 301, Paragraph (a)(2)(C) of S. 1618. |
from the constructors yard in Italy. The Valor is carnival's latest "fun-ship"
is decorated around the theme of "Hero's & Heroics". Carnival Valor is a
Conquest-class (Carnival Conquest, Carnival Glory, Carnival Liberty) ship
entering service in December 2004. A larger version of the line's Destiny-class
vessels, Valor's 13 passenger decks house 22 bars and lounges, a
15,000-square-foot health club, Internet cafe, four swimming pools and three
restaurants, including an upscale "steakhouse-style" supper club serving U.S.D.A.
prime beef and other gourmet cuisine and an expanded food service area on the
Lido deck. There are numerous "family-friendly" amenities, including an
expansive 3,300-square-foot play area and family recreation area featuring a
teen club and video game room. 
CONSTELLATION
is strictly speaking not really a
ship in the true commercial sense of the term. However, with all the new
regulations that have come into force in recent years she is classified as a
commercial cruise ship where in reality she is a luxury Mega Yacht. The creators
of this magnificent eighty-eight meter motor ship have spared no efforts in
designing the ultimate corporate mega yacht. Step aboard and enter a world of
ultimate luxury, style and state-of-the art technology.