Cruise review Regal Princess

Regal Princess

Cruise 184

When I was in high school, I had a teacher who would give higher grades on book reviews if you savaged the book. He equated negative comments with critical thinking.

Alas, I am about to disppoint my old school master because I do not have anything negative to say about my recent cruise on Regal Princess. Quite to the contrary, it was an extremely well done cruise.

The cruise was a seven day voyage out of Fort Lauderdale to Princess Cays, St. Thomas and St. Maarten. Thus, it included Princess Cruises’ private island and two of the most popular Caribbean cruise ports. I’ve been to these ports many times now so the itinerary did not have the virtue of novelty. But, at the same time, these places are familiar to me and so I know how to structure my days there so as to have a good time.

Therefore, the focus of this cruise was on the ship. Regal Princess is the second ship to be built in her class. Royal Princess was the first. A third one is on order for Princess. P&O Cruises’ forthcoming Britannia is being built to the same design.

Regal Princess is a large ship and I find her quite spacious. She has a better passenger space ratio than the mainstays of the Princess fleet, the Grand and Super Grand class ships. Thus, I did not find her at all crowded.

On Royal Princess, one problem with the people flow has been long waits for elevators particularly at the midship elevator bank. This is primarily due to the fact that the stairs by these elevators do not run all the way up through the ship and so more people have to use the elevators. While Regal also lacks a midship passenger staircase, adjustments have been made to the elevators programming and I did not experience much in the way of delays.

Another adjustment that has been made is in the theater. On Royal, each row of seats extends all the way to the wall so that people have to go up or down via the central aisles. On Regal, space has been allowed between the seats and the walls so that guests can go up or down that way as well. This seems to have created a better passenger flow.

The larger size of this class of ship allowed Princess to add several new venues. Of these, Princess Live is the most memorable. It is a television studio which serves as the venue for lectures, game shows, and various other activities. Such activities are common on cruise ships but having them in a studio with cameras and monitors lends them a sense of excitement. Also, the sight lines in this intimate room are quite good.

The size also allowed Princess to expand the size of some venues. This is nowhere more apparent than in the Piazza, the ship’s central atrium. It has now become a grand room. In addition, whereas some entertainment was presented in the Piazza on earlier Princess ships, this larger Piazza lets the concept blossom so that this truly can be called an entertainment venue.

As far as décor, it would be difficult to tell the Piazza on Regal Princess from the one of Royal Princess. It is Princess’ philosophy to make ships of the same class nearly identical in décor so that passengers returning to the line will have a sense of familiarity regardless of which ship they book. Whatever the merits of that philosophy, the décor of the Piazza on Royal is so spectacular, it demanded that it be used again on Regal Princess.

Of course, the hardware only contributes so much to making a great cruise. In my experience, Princess consistently provides good service. Of course, you can always run into someone who is a jerk or who is having a bad day but as a general finding the people serving on the Princess ships seem genuinely interested in ensuring that the passengers have a good time. In addition, the cruise lines usually assign their top people to bring out a ship. By the time of my cruise, the ship had also been in service long enough to have gotten any kinks out. Consequently, the service was very good with no negative incidents.

How was the food? It is of course my personal taste but I always like the food on Princess and Regal Princess did not let the side down. A favorite venue for me is Alfredo’s Pizzeria. This is a restaurant specializing in gourmet individual pizzas. They are made and cooked as ordered. At the beginning of a cruise, people walk by but do not enter. They either assume that there will be an additional charge because it looks like a specialty restaurant or that they can get pizza up by the pool. There is no additional charge and while you can get pizza by the pool, you can’t get this pizza by the pool. As word gets around the ship about what Alfredo’s is really about, it gets busier and busier. By the end of the cruise, it is tough to get a table at lunctime. So let’s keep this between ourselves.

Entertainment was very good. High points were the shows by the Beatles tribute group Beatlemaniacs and the Sixties deck party in which the production cast performed along with the fountains on the pool deck. I also enjoyed the enrichment program. This included two authors, Sarah Jio and Claire Bidwell Smith, who spoke about their work and writing. Princess executive Chis Joly packed Princess Live with a talk on how cruise ships are built. On a cruise that involved three sea days, a good enrichment program is essential.

This week on Beyondships we present part one of our profile of Regal Princess. http://beyondships.com/Princess-RE-Profile.html This includes a photo tour of the interior of the ship. http://beyondships.com/Princess-RE-Tour-1.html as well as a daily programs page with Princess Patters and other inormational leaflets distributed aboard Regal Princess. http://www.beyondships2.com/regal-princess-daily-programs.html

More and more cruise ships; Seven Seas Navigator and Voyager

Recently, Carnival Corporation issued a press release pointing out that by 2016, it will have increased the capacity of its fleet by 10 percent. Considering that there are over 100 ships sailing for the various Carnival brands, this will be a considerable achievement. Meanwhile, Royal Caribbean is building a sister to Quantum of the Seas and a third Oasis class ship. Not to be left out, Norwegian Cruise Line is building a series of ships that will be a bigger version of its revolutionary Breakaway class.

Back in the last decade, many in the cruise industry thought that the boom in cruise ship construction would eventually end and the various lines would use the ships that they had built to serve the market for 20 to 40 years. However, during the boom, the public became addicted to new ships. I have heard passengers describe five year old ships as old. Passengers want new ships. Also, as new cruising concepts are conceived, there is a need to create new platforms to implement them. Thus, the industry is forced to build more ships.

The question then becomes what are you going to do with all these ships? They are built to last 40 years or longer and so this is not a case of the new ships replacing ships that are no longer fit for service.

Traditionally in the cruise industry, when a cruise ship started to become long in the tooth and no longer capable of attracting passengers in the primary cruise market (i.e. North America), it was moved to the secondary market (i.e., Europe or Australia). When it became to old to be viable in the secondary market, it became a gambling ship in Asia.

The traditional hierarchy of markets, however, no longer exists. As the popularity of cruises has developed in Europe, Australia and Asia, those parts of the globe have become primary markets. Consequently, you see more and more first tier cruise ships deployed to those markets. The deployment of the new Quantum of the Seas to China is but one example.

Thus, the industry has to count on the continued growth of cruising to absorb all of the ships. In addition, to attract guests, the ships are going places and doing things that were never envisioned when cruising was confined to the Caribbean. And speaking of the Caribbean, the change in the quality and quantity of the attractions and things to do in the popular cruise ports over the last decade has been amazing. A Caribbean cruise is not like it used to be.

Furthermore, the cruise line’s existing ships have to be continually upgraded to remain viable. For example, after Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas entered service, Royal Caribbean undertook a fleet-wide revitalization program to bring some of the popular features of those revolutionary ships to the rest of its fleet. Along the same lines, Carnival so extensively re-did Carnival Destiny to create a platform for Fun Ship 2.0 that they re-named the ship (Carnival Sunshine).

All of this new building seems to be great for consumers. You have new ships and revitalized ships with new offerings. Ships are going to new places. There is more to do in traditional cruise ports as the desire to attract cruise dollars feeds development. Also, unless the laws of economics have been suspended, increased capacity (supply) should place downward pressure on prices.

On Beyondships this week we look at two ships of luxury cruise line Regent Seven Seas Cruises. We have a new mini-profile of Seven Seas Voyager http://www.beyondships2.com/seven-seas-voyager-mini-profile.html. And we have expanded our coverage of Seven Seas Navigator with a new photo feature http://www.beyondships2.com/seven-seas-navigator-photos.html and videos showing the ship in The Bahamas http://www.beyondships2.com/seven-seas-navigator-video.html and in Canada. http://www.beyondships2.com/seven-seas-navigator-video-2.html

Seven Seas Navigator

 

Quantum of the Seas and the revolution in cruising

Quantum of the Seas is part of a revolution in cruising. For more than a decade, the watchword in the cruise industry has been “choice.” All of the lines have wanted to give guests more options with regard to what to do while aboard their ships. But, for the most part, the new options brought forward just embroidered the traditional model of cruising. Then, about five years ago, ships started to enter service that offered a new model of cruising with real choice. Quantum carries that model to a new level.

Under the traditional model of cruising, an evening on a cruise ship revolved around the two seatings in the dining room and the two shows in the ship’s theater. There was not much choice. Each guest was assigned to one of the seatings for dinner and, as a practical matter, that dictated which of the two shows in the theater you attended. The evening was pretty well mapped out. Yes, you could sit in one of the bars and listen to the piano player instead of going to the show but the majority of the passengers went to the show in the theater after dinner.

Norwegian Cruise Line broke with the traditional model when it introduced Freestyle dining. Guests were no longer assigned a dining time or a table in the main dining room but could dine when and where they liked. Most of the other cruise lines followed suit with their own versions of flexible dining. Still, because the main entertainment offering onboard was the two shows in the ship’s theater, your dining time had to be scheduled around the show times. Thus, the choices as to when and what to do were still somewhat limited.

Then, in late 2009, Royal Caribbean introduced Oasis of the Seas and a few months later Norwegian Cruise Line introduced Norwegian Epic. These two ships broke completely with the traditional model of cruising. They offered not only choice in dining but also choice in entertainment. The shows in the theater were no longer the only high quality entertainment option. Thus, under this new model of cruising, guests had real freedom to plan their evenings aboard ship.

Royal Caribbean subsequently refined its version of the new model with Allure of the Seas while Norwegian refined its version with Norwegian Breakaway and Norwegian Getaway.

With Quantum, Royal has taken the new model even further. It has eliminated the main dining room altogether. In its place are five complimentary restaurants each with a different theme and menu. This is in addition to seven specialty restaurants where there is a cover charge. Thus, it is no longer a choice between dining in a general restaurant (i.e. a main dining room) or going to a specialty restaurant. In effect, the choice is now between an array of specialized restaurants some of which have a cover charge and some of which are complimentary. As a result, Quantum presents guests with a better set of choices.

Of course, there are practical limitations on this freedom of choice. If a couple of thousand people decide they want Asian food at 7 o’clock and descend upon a venue that has capacity for a few hundred, someone is not going to get what they wanted. To guard against such possibilities the lines that have implemented the new model of cruising encourage guests to make dining reservations just like they would on land. Some guests feel that this is an imposition on their freedom of choice but most appear to accept it.

It is disappointing that Quantum will only be based in the Port of New York – New Jersey for one brief season. Originally, Quantum was going to be Royal Caribbean’s New York ship, replacing Explorer of the Seas in that role. But then Royal decided to commit the ship to developing the Chinese market and so Quantum will be leaving in the Spring 2015.

The reason this is disappointing is that another new model cruise ship is based in New York – – Norwegian Breakaway. Thus, Quantum and Breakaway would have been competing on a long term basis. It could only have been good for cruisers to have these two innovative cruise lines go head-to-head with their first tier ships. But then Quantum’s sister, Anthem of the Seas, is scheduled to take up residence in this port in the Fall 2015 so perhaps the grand contest will take place afterall.

This week in Beyondships, we have a new profile section on Quantum of the Seas. http://beyondships.com/RCI-Quantum-Profile.html This includes a nine page photo tour and commentary, which takes you through the public rooms and open decks. http://beyondships.com/RCI-Quantum-Tour-1.html

Quantum of the Seas First Impressions

Quantum of the Seas

This week I had the opportunity to go aboard Royal Caribbean’s new ship Quantum of the Seas. My reaction was that this is a bold and complex ship.

Quantum is bold because she is such a departure from previous Royal Caribbean ships. Royal is a very popular cruise line and the safe course for a business that is on a winning streak is to just keep doing what it has been doing in the past. But Royal has never been one for playing it safe. Just consider the giant investment it made in the Oasis class ships which were a significant departure from what Royal had done with the popular Freedom and Voyage class ships.

With Quantum, Royal has gone even further, jettisoning such popular signature features as the Viking Crown Lounge, the Royal Promenade, the ice skating rink and even the main dining room. Other popular features including the rock climbing wall and Johnny Rockets are different than on earlier ships. In place of the old are new features and new concepts, which Royal is betting will interest customers even more.

A few weeks ago, I wrote about how there are at least three versions of the Royal Caribbean cruise experience, which roughly correspond to the various classes of ships in the Royal fleet. Because Quantum is so different than her predecessors, there is now a fourth version of the Royal Caribbean cruise experience. This comes in an industry, where in the name of branding, most of the cruise lines are attempting to make their fleets as homogenous as possible. As someone who believes that ships should be different from one another, I find Royal’s approach much to my liking.

Quantum is complex because she has a multi-facted personality. Features such as bumper cars and the sky diving simulator may give the impression that this is a frivolous ship, just a floating amusement park. The giant red bear on the port side of the ship also appears to convey this impression as it looks like an even bigger version of the big red dinosaur in the children’s playground on Norwegian Dawn.

However, when you go inside the ship, you find that the public areas are sleek and sophisticated. They have the atmosphere of Celebrity Cruises’ Solstice class ships (see, e.g., Celebrity Eclipse). Decidedly up-market with stores such as Cartier and Bvlgari and elegant dining rooms to host Royal’s new Dynamic Dining concept, there is nothing frivolous here.

Even the giant bear turns out not to be part of a playground but rather a work of art by British sculptor Lawrence Argent. The concept is that by making a polar bear 30 feet high and coloring it magenta, an intimidating creature is transformed into something whimsical. Apparently overlooked is the fact that a giant red bear has a rather intimidating symbolism to those who remember the not-so-good old days of the Soviet Union. In any event, the bear grows on you after awhile.

Thus, Quantum’s personality has an element of whimsy and playfulness but primarily it is an intelligent and serious ship. She can casual and she can be elegant. For example, her complimentary dining venues and her specialty restaurants offer a range of food extending from hot dogs to healthy choices to grand fine dining. The entertainment offerings are similarly broad. Throughout the ship is the quality and attention to detail that I have come to expect in ships built by Meyer Werft.

Overall, I was quite impressed by Quantum. Whether this view will be shared by long-time Royal Caribbean fans remains to be seen as the ship is so different than what has gone before. I tend to think they will like it. However, those fans in Royal’s home market will only have a short opportunity to see for themselves since when Spring comes the ship is off to blaze a new trail in China.

This week Beyondships begins its coverage of Quantum with four items: a video showing the ship sailing from the Port of New York-New Jersey http://www.beyondships2.com/quantum-of-the-seas-video.html ; a review of the North Star experience on Quantum http://www.beyondships2.com/quantum-of-the-seas-north-star.html ; a Quantum of the Seas menus page with menus from some of the dining venues on Quantum http://www.beyondships2.com/quantum-of-the-seas-menus.html ; and a Quantum of the Seas deck plans page http://www.beyondships2.com/quantum-of-the-seas-deck-plans.html. More about Quantum next week.

Portland England cruise port; Dorset attractions; Celebrity Reflection

Minterne House

Portland is a cruise port of call that has been gaining attention over the last few years. Once a Royal Navy base, there is plenty of room for large ships to maneuver and dock. It is also located in a desirable spot on the southwest coast of England in Dorset, not too far from attractions like Bath and Stonehenge. With Southampton so much in demand by ships seeking to originate and or terminate cruises, Portland is a good alternative for ships seeking to make an in-transit port call.

 

While the cruise lines place emphasis on the proximity of internationally famous sites such as Stonehenge, there are worthwhile things to see in Dorset itself. There is for example, the beautiful rural countryside that so inspired the novelist Thomas Hardy. The chalk cliffs of the Jurassic Coast have a natural splendor of a different sort. Then there is the mysterious carving of the giant of Cerne.

 

One excursion I particularly enjoyed was to Minterne House, a large Elizabethan-style manor house. The home of the Digby family, it is set on 1,300 acres of stunning parkland. The house itself is not usually open to the public but the family did open its doors for our shore excursion group. Lord Digby greeted us and told us the story of the house and his family. Then we were allowed to explore the grand rooms on the lower level of the house.

 

During the tour, it was mentioned that one of the creators of the popular television series Downton Abbey lives nearby and has been a guest at Minterne. Could he have been inspired by those visits. Certainly, the story of the Digbys has a dramatic appeal. Lord Digny’s sister was Pamela Hariman and she grew up at Minterne.

 

Accordingly, this week on Beyondships, we have a profile of the Portland cruise port http://www.beyondships3.com/portland-england-cruise-port.html ; a photo feature of some of the nearby attractions http://www.beyondships3.com/dorset-england.html and a feature on visiting Minterne complete with a slideshow http://www.beyondships3.com/minterne-house-england.html .

 

In addition, we have a feature showing Celebrity Reflection going to sea. It includes both still photos http://www.beyondships2.com/celebrity-reflection-photo.html and a video http://www.beyondships2.com/celebrity-reflection-video-2.html .

 

SS United States Profile; Adventure of the Seas interviews

Last weekend, I had the great good fortune to go aboard the SS United States. It is a ship that I have read about for years as she is indisputably one of the great ships of history. Indeed, I have a painting of her over my desk along with the great French ocean liner Normandie. Inasmuch as the ship is rarely open to the public, it was a privilege to go aboard.

The SS United States is the fastest ocean liner ever built, a title she has held since 1952. No ocean liner or cruise ship before or since has come close to her top speed of nearly 40 knots. She is widely considered the height of American shipbuilding.

During her 17 years in service, the SS United States was a popular ship, carrying royalty, statesmen and celebrities across the Atlantic along with thousands of tourists. Bill Clinton, on his way to study at Oxford University, was one of them. She was a more down-to-earth and informal ship than the Cunard Queens or the French Line ships that were her main competitors.

The SS United States was a very American ship. As her confident, flowing lines and technological prowess suggest, she personified the spirit of America in the post war era.

She was built, not just for commercial reasons, but also for national defense. In fact, the United States government contributed the bulk of the $79 million needed to construct her in the early 1950s. The idea was that the ship could be quickly converted into a troopship capable of carrying 15,000 soldiers across the Atlantic in four days. The fact that the United States could quickly reinforce the NATO troops stationed in Western Europe with large numbers of soldiers acted as a deterrent to any notion that the Soviet Union may have had to invade Western Europe with conventional forces.

The SS United States was prematurely retired in late 1969. Commercial jet travel had arrived and demand for Atlantic crossings by ship was declining. At the same time, labor costs and fuel costs were increasing. Essentially, her owners, the United States Lines, took the ship down to Virginia and gave her to the government.

Once it was decided that the SS United States was no longer of military value, the government sold her to private interests. Then began came a succession of owners who had various grand schemes to put the ship back in service. Fortunes were spent on these dreams but none ever came to fruition.

During one of these episodes the ship was moved from Virginia to Turkey, then the Ukraine, and then back to the United States. She has been in Philadelphia since 1996.

Despite all the money that has been spent on her, the ship looks quite pathetic. She has not been painted in years, her deck machinery is rusting and there is even grass growing where some of the lifeboats once stood. Her interior is empty, stripped down to the metal. Her first owners sold off all of the moveable contents. Then when she was in the Ukraine, her interior walls were removed in order to remove the asbestos that was used to fireproof everything in the 1950s.

Her blemishes, however, are only cosmetic. Surveys have shown that the ship is still structurally sound. In addition, her vast expanse of interior space appears to be full of potential for development.

Finding someone that will realize that potential is the goal of the SS United States Conservancy. It has been talking with real estate developers and government agencies in an effort to preserve the ship. While there is hope for a new future, time is fleeting. It costs some $60,000 a month just to maintain the ship where she is and the Conservancy does not have unlimited resources. Once its money runs out, the SS United States will probably go to the scrapyard.

What a shame that would be! The SS United States is not only an important part of maritime history but is a symbol of the United States. Future generations will condemn us for our stupidity if we let her go. This is especially so considering her potential for future use. The Tate Modern in London, the Musee d’Orsay in Paris and the High Line in New York City are examples of how new uses can be found for old historic structures once they are no longer needed for their original purpose.

I have added an SS United States section to Beyondships with information and photos about the ship. http://beyondships.com/SSUS-home.html It includes a feature article outlining the story of the SS United States. http://www.beyondships2.com/ss-united-states-story.html There is also a photo feature showing the interior of the ship from my visit to the SS United States. http://www.beyondships2.com/ss-united-states-visit.html Also, we have a video showing the fine proud lines of the exterior of the SS United States. http://www.beyondships2.com/ss-united-states-video.html

Also on Beyondships this week is Part Two of our update on Adventure of the Seas. It includes an interview in which the captain, the hotel director and the guest services manager discuss what the cruise experience on Adventure is like. http://www.beyondships2.com/adventure-of-the-seas-101.html In another interview, Hotel Director Gary Davies talks about the recent changes made to Adventure of the Seas and those planned for 2016. http://www.beyondships2.com/adventure-of-the-seas-evolves.html Finally, Captain Olle-Johan Gronhaug explains what is happening when you see a cruise ship’s lifeboats being launched while the ship is in port. http://www.beyondships2.com/adventure-of-the-seas-boat-drill.html

 

Adventure of the Seas review and photos

 

 

This week the focus is on Royal Caribbean’s Adventure of the Seas. In April, Adventure underwent a refit, which added several new features to the ship. Thus, it is an appropriate time to take another look at Adventure. To this end, we recently did a transatlantic crossing on her followed by a short European cruise.

 

Adventure is a Voyager class cruise ship. In fact she was the third ship built in that class, entering service just after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Accordingly, she was named in New York by Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and her god parents are six New York City firefighters and policemen.

 

Despite her New York City connection, Adventure is not Royal Caribbean’s New York ship. (Somewhat oddly, her sister ship Explorer of the Seas was given that role when RCI decided to base a ship in New York harbor year-round). Instead, she has spent most of her time in the Caribbean sailing out of San Juan, Puerto Rico.

 

The last few years, however, Adventure has been spending her summers in Southampton, England, sailing to the Mediterranean, the Canaries, the British Isles, Northern Europe and Scandinavia. She is doing that this summer but plans for 2015 call for her to revert back to year-round San Juan sailings.

 

Adventure is a very big cruise ship. At 137,000 gross tons, she is no longer the biggest cruise ship but she is still bigger than the vast majority of ships. Her size allows her to have many features including some that are not at all traditional on passenger ships. These include a pedestrian mall, lined with shops, bars and a cafe, running a considerable length down the ship’s center line and a large ice skating arena. These are both used as entertainment venues as well so that there is more to an evening on Adventure than what is going on in the theater and the casino.

 

Normally, in the Caribbean, Adventure’s passenger list is dominated by young families. However, on the two week long transatlantic crossing, there were few children. This left the ship’s facilities almost entirely to her adult passengers. As a result, the adults had lots of choices and lots of space to indulge themselves in.

 

The crossing was not a straight run from Miami to Southampton. Rather, the ship took her time going across with Caribbean stops in Nassau, San Juan and St. Maarten to start the voyage and a stops mid-way across the Atlantic in the Azores. Thus, there were elements of a Caribbean cruise and a European cruise in this crossing. But most of it was long, lazy sea days, which makes these types of voyages so popular with experienced cruisers.

 

The weather going across was fine. Adventure took the southern route across, which tends to have better weather than the more northerly, traditional ocean liner route. The only grey skies were after the ship left the Azores and was skirting the Bay of Biscay.

 

For her European cruise, Adventure had a mix of sun and rain. Sun in Zeebrugge, Belgium and rain in Le Harve. Whereas on the crossing, there had been many British passengers, many of whom were going home after wintering in Florida, the vast majority of passengers on this cruise were British. There were more children than on the crossing but still not many as the schools were still open.

 

I used to find Royal Caribbean’s success with the British public somewhat surprising. Royal provides an excellent cruise experience with nice ships, friendly service and quality choices in entertainment and dining. However, it is very much an American-style product, bold, informal and sometimes flashy. I have since come to the conclusion that this experience is successful with the British precisely because it is not British. Just going on one of the RCI ships is like going abroad, a break from the everyday routine.

 

The cruise was a different experience than the crossing. In Europe, the ports play a much more significant role as there is such a variety of things to see and do in the ports.

 

The new additions to Adventure include a giant video screen overlooking the pool, flat screen televisions in the passenger cabins, a new lounge for Diamond-level members of Royal Caribbean’s Crown and Anchor Society loyalty program and interactive electronic signage in the public rooms telling you such things as what is happening aboard and how to get from where you are to where you want to be. The Portofino specialty restaurant has become Giovanni’s Table. These additions are only some of the features that will be added to the ship in the next few years under the line’s Royal Advantage program, which is bringing features from the Oasis class ships to the rest of the Royal Caribbean fleet.

 

I was pleased to see that the ship is being well-maintained. In fact, new carpeting was being installed unobtrusively as we sailed.

 

We have updated the Adventure of the Seas section on Beyondships. http://beyondships.com/AOS-Profile.html The photo tour of the ship has been updated to include the new features and expanded with more photos of the ship’s interior and open decks. http://www.beyondships.com/AOS-tour.html There is a new menus page with menus from the main dining room and specialty restaurants. http://www.beyondships2.com/adventure-of-the-seas-menus.html We’ve added a daily programs page with examples of the Cruise Compass from past cruises and of other informational materials distributed aboard Adventure. http://www.beyondships2.com/adventure-of-the-seas-daily-programs.html There is a new deck plans page. http://www.beyondships2.com/adventure-of-the-seas-deck-plans.html Finally, we have a new photo feature with exterior photos of Adventure in eight different ports. http://www.beyondships2.com/adventure-of-the-seas-photos.html

 

Norwegian Getaway – Captain, Hotel Director, Cake Boss, Artist and Restaurant Review

Norwegian Getaway in New York

 

This week we present a series of inside views of Norwegian Getaway by people connected to the ship. While a cruise ship’s facilities are certainly an important part of the cruise experience, the people who work aboard give the ship its soul. So one of the ways Beyondships seeks to give a feel for the various cruise ships it covers is by presenting interviews with the people who run the ships.

 

Captain Tommy Stensrud is an experienced mariner who is in overall command of Norwegian Getaway. So we turned to him for an assessment of the nautical qualities of Getaway as well as the big picture view of what the ship is all about. http://www.beyondships2.com/norwegian-getaway-captain.html

 

Hotel Director Sean Wurmhoeringer is in charge of everything that directly impacts the cruise experience including the food, the beverages, the entertainment and the accommodations. He is a veteran hotelier who has brought many cruise ships into service. We spoke with him about the process of breathing life into the ship as she entered service. http://www.beyondships2.com/norwegian-getaway-hd.html

 

Artist David LEBO Le Batard painted the lively hull art that adorns Getaway. He speaks about the concepts that underlie his painting. http://www.beyondships2.com/norwegian-getaway-lebo.html

 

Viewers of the popular television show “Cake Boss” are familiar with master baker Buddy Valastro. Mr. Valastro talks about his relationship with Norwegian Cruise Line and about opening a branch of Carlo’s Bakery at sea. http://www.beyondships2.com/norwegian-getaway-valastro.html

 

Another interview that we did on Getaway was with Norwegian’s CEO Kevin Sheehan. While not specific to Getaway, Mr. Sheehan’s remarks about Norwegian Cruise Line place its latest ship in perspective. http://www.beyondships2.com/norwegian-ceo-kevin-sheehan.html

 

Finally, we have a review of Le Bistro specialty restaurant on Getaway. http://www.beyondships2.com/norwegian-getaway-le-bistro-review.html

Norwegian Getaway Profile and Photo Tour

Norwegian Getaway

 

We have added a profile of Norwegian Getaway to Beyondships.

 

Norwegian Getaway is Norwegian Cruise Line’s latest ship. Like her sister ship, Norwegian Breakaway, she is a very big ship – – 146,000 gross tons. However, more importantly, she is part of the new breed of cruise ships. Traditionally, an evening on a cruise ship revolved around dinner in the main dining room and a show in the ship’s theater. The new breed give guests several quality alternatives, not only in where and when to eat but also a variety of entertainment options. As a result, the guests have much more freedom to decide how to spend their evenings than before.

 

Physically, Getaway is very similar to Breakaway. Indeed, the only structural difference I noticed was that the courtyard in the Haven area does not have a retractable roof like it does on the Breakaway. However, there have been several changes in the line-up of public rooms. Chief among these is the Illusionarium, a dinner theater where guests are awed by a series of magicians and mentalists whose appearances are connected by a light-hearted storyline. There is also the Grammy Experience, where Grammy-nominated artists give live performances.

 

Most of the differences between Breakaway and Getaway relate to the fact that Breakaway is intended to reflect her homeport of New York City while Getaway is designed to capture the spirit of Miami. Getaway has a Latin theme that appears in menu items, drinks and in the entertainment. Indeed, Getaway’s version of the Burn the Floor dance show is set in Old San Juan.

 

This does not mean that Getaway will only appeal to people with a Latin background. For the most part, Getaway offers the Norwegian cruise experience. It has the signature dining venues, Le Bistro, Cagney’s Steakhouse, La Cucina Italian restaurant, and Ocean Blue seafood restaurant. Freestyle Cruising is still the name of the game. It just has a Latin overlay to it. Consequently, Getaway will appeal to all Norwegian fans.

 

Like Breakaway, Getaway was built by Meyer Werft. Once again, the German shipyard has delivered a quality product.

 

The profile page for Norwegian Getaway is at http://beyondships.com/NorwegianGetaway.html . Our photo tour of the interior, public areas and accommodations on Getaway starts at http://beyondships.com/NorwegianGetaway-Tour-1.html

 

In addition, the profile includes menus from Getaway’s restaurants. http://www.beyondships2.com/norwegian-getaway-menus.html There are copies of her deck plans. http://www.beyondships2.com/norwegian-getaway-deck-plans.html And a selection of Freestyle Dalies (daily programs) and other information distributed onboard Getaway. http://www.beyondships2.com/norwegian-getaway-daily-programs.html

 

Next week, we get an inside look at Getaway from her captain and other people connected with the ship.

Revolutionary dining for Quantum of the Seas; Majesty of the Seas photos

Adam Goldstein, CEO and President of Royal Caribbean International, unveils Dynamic Dining

 

Last week Royal Caribbean unveiled a revolutionary new dining system for its Quantum class ships – – the forthcoming Quantum of the Seas, Anthem of the Seas and a ship to be named later. The presentation quite impressed me because the new system, which Royal Caribbean is calling “Dynamic Dining” is so different than what anyone – – including Royal Caribbean – – are presently doing.

 

Traditionally, cruise ship passengers were assigned to a specific table in the ship’s main dining room for their meals. On larger ships where the main dining room could not accommodate all of the passengers at the same time, each passenger was assigned to either the early or the late seating.

 

In the 1990s, this began to change as ships developed buffet restaurants that became a viable alternative for breakfast and lunch. However, for dinner, passengers continued to be assigned to a specific table at one of the two seatings on most ships. Some ships began to add a specialty restaurant where you could dine for an extra charge.

 

Early this century, Norwegian Cruise Line developed Freestyle dining. Its ships have more than one main dining room plus an array of specialty restaurants. Guests could eat in any of the main dining rooms or in any of the specialty restaurants when they wanted. No assigned tables, no assigned dining times.

 

In response, almost all of the other major cruise lines have added flexible dining options. Usually, one part of the main dining room follows the traditional system while another part has a system that allows guests to come when they chose. On ships that have multiple dining rooms, typically, one dining room is devoted to the traditional system while the other(s) have flexible dining. The menus used in all the dining rooms are the same. These lines have also added more specialty restaurants as time has passed to give the guests more alternatives.

 

With Dynamic Dining, Royal Caribbean is doing away completely with the traditional dining system. Instead of one main dining room, there will be five complimentary dining rooms as well as an array of extra tariff specialty restaurants. It is up to the guest to decide where and when to dine.

 

Dynamic Dining differs from Freestyle dining chiefly in that each of the complimentary dining rooms will be different with a unique theme and a unique menu. One will be American favorites, one will be a grand formal restaurant, one will be very hip and cutting edge, one will be Asian-inspired and one will be a California-style venue.

In addition, each of the complimentary restaurants is a relatively small venue and each has its own galley. (On most ships with multiple dining rooms, all of the food is prepared in the same galley). Thus, the chefs will be able to give more time and attention to each meal. This should enable them to make more sophisticated dishes.

 

To prevent more passengers than a particular restaurant can handle all arriving at the same time, Royal Caribbean is instituting a reservations system. Making reservations for cruise ship specialty restaurants is something passengers are used to but it is a rare exception for complimentary dining rooms. In any event, Royal Caribbean has developed an app that will enable guests to make reservations before they board and while on ship. There will also be other more traditional means of making reservations.

 

Dynamic Dining is a bold move. It promises to offer more choice and variety in cruise dining. At the same time, there are risks. For example, the traditional dining system lends itself to getting to know your fellow passengers. Over the course of the cruise, you often become friends with the people that dine at your table each night. This is particularly important to solo travelers.

 

There is also the question of how passengers will react to having to make reservations for dinner. Requiring reservations could dampen the feeling of being able to decide at the spur of the moment where and when to dine. Also, will people who purchase their cruises near the sailing date be disadvantaged because people who booked the cruise earlier have taken all the choice spots.

 

I tend to think such concerns can be dealt with using a little creative thinking. Thus, I look forward to seeing this concept in action. Moreover, the food samples served at the unveiling event in New York were excellent.

 

I spoke with several Royal Caribbean executives including Adam Goldstein, Presidenmt and CEO of Royal Caribbean International, about Dynamic Dining. That article is at http://www.beyondships2.com/quantum-of-the-seas-dining.html The article also covers the new specialty restaurant offerings on Quantum including venues developed in partnership with celebrity chefs Jamie Oliver, Michael Schwartz and Devin Alexander.

 

Turning from Royal Caribbean’s newest ships to the grand dame of the fleet, we have a photo feature showing Majesty of the Seas as she traveled on one of her short Bahamas cruises. http://www.beyondships2.com/majesty-of-the-seas-in-the-bahamas.html There is also a video of Majesty at sea. http://www.beyondships2.com/majesty-at-sea.html All of this augments our profile of Majesty of the Seas. http://beyondships.com/RCI-MJOS-Profile.html