Worldwide's News & Other items

 

Meet the Cruise team in Barcelona - EIBTM - booth F605
Planning on being in Barcelona at the end of the month?  Then you must make a note to Visit the EIBTM Show. Europe's #1 Corporate Travel Show. 

 

As in years past, Worldwide will be exhibiting  along with the heads of the Incentive, Group & Charter departments of many of the major cruise lines.  This is a wonderful opportunity to meet with;

  • Tanya Barnette of the Yachts of Seabourn

  • Person Garcia of Crystal Cruises

  • Mario Villalobos of Regent Seven Seas Cruise

  • Eric Lustman of Compagnie des Isles du Ponant

  • Oscar Abello of Paul Gauguin Shipping.

  • Plus, of course the Worldwide Team - Jim Castle and Steve & Diana Bloss.

Follow this link to save 20 euros on your badge.

 

Look forward to seeing you there.

Cruising on the new Holland America Eurodam

Ft. Lauderdale, October 2008; As soon as you walk on the new Eurodam you have the feeling that Holland America wanted to make a major statement.  The statement is pure and simply in that they want this ship to appeal to a younger market than they are normally associated with.  From the lay-out in the public rooms, to your stateroom  the décor in all facets of the ship announce they have hit a big home run! 

Let’s start with dining options that are new and unique to the Eurodam.  The Tamirand Restaurant and it’s Silk Den bar offers some of the best Asian fare on land or at sea.  The group we had joining us all agreed this restaurant could have been in Vegas or New York City but you didn’t need a cab or a car.  Simply put the food and service was fantastic.  Located at the upper most deck mid ship the views from the over the top Silk are a most whether you are dining in the Tamirand or just wanting to find the “hippest” bar at sea with great views.  While there is a nominal up charge it’s a lot cheaper than the $100.00+ a head you would pay ashore for this evening. 

The Pinnacle Grill and it’s adjoining Pinnacle Bar are not new to Holland America but on the Eurodam the space has been expanded to both sides of the center Atrium.  This venue is another great change in that you can really make a nice night of it here as well.  This restaurant which is very much your typical steak and fish grill with a Northwest Twist also carries a up charge but is well worth it. 

The Rembrandt Dining Room is a two deck level affair with the typical Holland America dramatic entrance.  New to the Eurodam is that fact that the lower level dining area offers open seating dining while the upper level offers the standard first and second seating dining.  While the open seating concept has great appeal to individual travelers I personally think for groups, and for that fact myself even as an individual passenger, the first and second seating dining is the way to go.  One of the charms of a cruise is having a waiter know your preferences just like going to your favorite restaurant ashore which is lost in open seating dining. 

The Lido Restaurant which is your buffet style venue for breakfast, lunch and dinner partially converts to an elegant Italian Restaurant at night.  As this was a 3 night cruise I personally didn’t have a chance to try it but other passengers were all saying great things about this restaurant as well. 

Overall the Eurodam offers plenty of dining options and two of them are really outstanding.  Food and service have always placed Holland America in the “Premium Ship” category and the Eurodam has raised the bar for the entire fleet.   

Cabins on Holland America have always been some of the largest in the business however the décor was a bit dated.  The standard balcony cabins are a spacious 249 sq ft and the décor is good as any top branded hotel chain.  As usual all balcony cabins come with a bath and a Euro style shower.  The bedding is excellent and the balcony furniture is inviting and comfortable.  The sitting area is more open due to the advent of flat screen TVs with DVD players.  Yes you have a data port in each cabin for your lap top and your cell phone works as well at sea. 

Public rooms are numerous throughout the ship.  While the cruise we where on was 100% sold out you never had a problem find a table in any lounge.  The Ocean Bar is a great spot for a drink in small venue located on the Atrium and even better for people watching.  The Piano Bar on the Eurodam is a tucked away enclosed room that was busy every night.  The Crows Nest located high up on the ship with a panoramic view is always popular on Holland America ships.  The great news is that there are numerous venues of all sizes for private functions for your groups. 

Deck space is something I normally don’t go into detail about but on the Eurodam there are great new features worth mentioning.  First of all the bar area on the Lido Deck aft pool are has been greatly improved with more enclosed space and proper seating.  This is a great outdoor spot.  New to the Lido mid ship pool are private cabanas which can be rented on numerous basis with full service and a few neat up grades.  Last but far from least is the Retreat.  This relaxing area over looking the main mid ship pool is a great spot to enjoy the sun but be away from the crowd.  With up graded furniture and more Cabanas and attentive service this is a great get away from it place in the sun. 

Overall the Eurodam, which is the next generation of new ships for Holland America, is trendy but elegant and would rate with many 5 Star Hotels.  You’ll notice the traditional little touches of all Holland America ships such as an abundance of floral arrays, attentive service, formal high teas, canapés in lounges at cocktail hour and just a very comfortable feeling of being on a larger ship with more than ample space for everyone.
 

Hurricane Dodging to Music

“Well I just came back today…I just came back from the storm” – Jimi Hendrix,  In From the Storm

Ft. Lauderdale, October 5 -12, 2008; A review of the Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise aboard Holland America’s Ryndam.

Itinerary: San Diego – At Sea – Cabo – Mazatlan – La Paz – At Sea – At Sea – San Diego 

As many of you know, one of our special event clients is the Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise.  They are the only fully chartered blues music cruise in the industry.  We have been proudly working with them for many years.  This past October 5 – 12 marked the 3rd Pacific voyage produced by the Legendary gang and I was along for the ride. 

I arrived in San Diego on the late afternoon on October 4th.  Walking out of the airport, I was already excited to be in Southern California and San Diego in particular.  This is one of the best cities to spend some pre or post time in around a cruise program.  I checked in to the “official” hotel for the blues cruise and it had been taken over by the loyal cruisers, many of whom sail on each and every charter.  The hotel is literally located across Harbor Drive from the ship terminal.  Early on the morning of the 5th, I made my way across the street to the pier and was onboard the Ryndam by 800am with the production team.  Our early boarding is necessitated as the Blues Cruise completely transforms the ship into a floating music festival venue, complete with a full blown outdoor festival stage on the back pool deck.  In addition, all of the professional audio and lighting equipment has to be brought on and set up prior to the 500 pm sailing time.  The crane was swinging the equipment by 830 am which was right on schedule. 

I will interject that the Blues Cruise has been chartering Holland America ships exclusively since 2004.  Guests expect the quality and comfort of Holland America and the food and service as well.  However, Holland America Line’s charter and incentive department are among the best at working outside the box and their onboard staff is the best at accommodating the needs of special events.  They operate more charters yearly than their larger counterparts and there is a reason for it.  They get it.  Plain and simple.

So as all this equipment is being craned onto the vessel, our team and Holland America’s onboard staff are working together to build the stages, set the sound up in lounges, move the equipment, set up the shops, etc. etc. etc.  The event is flawless because of LRBC and HAL continuous teamwork, communication and willingness to find solutions to issues.   

All that said, of course things are running quite smoothly in the setup.  The next part of the day is working with the hotel and guest relations staff as well as preliminary meetings with all department heads etc.   We had a particular interest to speak with the Captain as we noticed that a tropical storm had formed down near Acapulco and we wanted to discuss if we might be affected.   The answer at this time was that we certainly needed to keep an eye on it but that we were good to go.    

So the stage is built, the lifeboat drill is over and the band strikes the first chord as we pull out of port and head to sea – blues cruise style.

Over the next few days we are treated to great music and all the comforts of Holland America Line.  The Ryndam is an intimate vessel at just 1252 guests based on double occupancy.  The staterooms are incredibly comfortable and well appointed.  Most bathrooms have bathtubs and showers and all staterooms feature the “Signature of Excellence” upgrades which include the upgraded bedding (i.e. heavenly bed), flat screen televisions, cd/dvd player, electronic safe, and ship to shore phones.  Also Holland America still offers fresh fruit baskets replenished daily in your stateroom at no charge. 

We visited Cabo and Mazatlan after a day at sea.  We made sure to keep a watchful eye on the storm which now had a name – Hurricane Norbert.  Norbert was headed for us and we were headed for Norbert.  So, we had to make the call.  We would not enter the Sea of Cortez and visit La Paz but rather turn back to the pacific and north towards San Diego.   

So what happens when weather changes your plans?  Well that is obviously a case by case answer but I can tell you the first thing we did was ensure that our decision would make for a safe and comfortable cruise for our guests.  We did inquire as to the availability of an alternate port – in this case Ensenada or Catalina Island.  Unfortunately neither was unavailable for us so we settled on days at sea and with that we moved safely ahead of the storm.  Lucky for us this was the Blues Cruise!  Another day of music onboard was a welcome solution for the guests.  Each guest was due back about $5 for refund on port tax that would have been paid to La Paz.  They all elected to donate that amount to the Koko Taylor Foundation which was a great thing to do.  The next morning we received word that the Port of La Paz had been locked down in preparation for the storms landfall.   

We sailed north and stayed a full day ahead of the storm.  We were able to keep very slow and comfortable speeds and enjoy the days at sea.   So for the next three days we truly enjoyed the comforts of the Ryndam and the entertainment of the Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise.   

For more information about the Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise, please visit their website at www.bluescruise.com or call me; Leon Banossian 

For more information on how to charter your very own cruise ship for a music festival, corporate event or meeting, give us a call at Worldwide Cruise Associates – the leader in outsource purchasing for the charter, incentive and meeting market!
 

Worldwide concludes marketing agreement with Crystal Cruises
During the course of the last month Worldwide concluded it's marketing agreement with Crystal Cruises.

Worldwide who are renown for their independent stance and lack of ties to the products they offer are truly excited in their decision to market Crystal's two 5-star plus cruise ships to their corporate client base.

Steve Bloss, President of Worldwide Sales noted "we are happy to work with Crystal in our market segment, Their two midsize ships are top quality and a product we at Worldwide feel very comfortable in promoting to our clients". 

For a record 15th year, and by one of its widest margins, Crystal Cruises has once again been voted the "Best Large-Ship Cruise Line" by the readers of the prestigious Condé Nast Traveler magazine (U.S.). Crystal's overall score of 93.1 topped all cruise lines in both the large and small-ship categories. The luxury line's 15 "wins" is unprecedented by any cruise line or hotel in the world.

During the coming months several joint marketing promotional events will be instigated by Worldwide to promote the Crystal ships -  Crystal Symphony and Crystal Serenity, to the corporate, incentive and meetings market.

The kick off will be in Barcelona at the EIBTM Show (December 2-4, 2009) where Crystal will share Worldwide's booth (F605).  Two of Crystal's top team members will be working the show (Mr. Person Garcia - Director of Business Development and Philip Ordever VP of International Sales). If you plan on visiting the show, take this opportunity meet with them.

In the New Year, Worldwide will be hosting several small and exclusive groups on the ships. If you have any interest and business opportunities for Crystal, email James Castle to be put on the list of invitees.  The opportunity is limited and open only to qualified buyers and their cleints.

"We have found that with a product of this quality which naturally has higher per diems than the mass market ships, it really is a huge plus when our clients actual sail on the ship and experience the difference for themselves," said James Castle Worldwide's President. "Quality will out and with this level of service and cuisine on this size of ship, well, Crystal really has no competition".