Viking River Increases Longship Order

ADDING 14 SHIPS IN 2014

Viking Cruises announced that they have increased their Viking Longship order from 12 to 14 vessels for delivery in 2014.  The new ships will sail the line's most popular European itineraries.  The increased order reflects the popularity of river cruising as the fastest growing-segment of the travel industry and the leadership position of Viking, the world’s leading river cruise line.

With the addition of these new Longships,Viking River Cruises will have increased its fleet by 30 ships since 2011.  This is the most rapid expansion the industry has seen.  If one were to add all the ships of their competitors together, they would still rank #1.

“We are working hard to match supply with demand, and with these new builds, we have the best designed, newest and most extensive offer of ships on the rivers – more than double all our competitors combined,” said Torstein Hagen, Chairman of Viking Cruises. “More than ever, travelers want experiences that bring them closer to the destination, which is why we continue to design ships and itineraries with destinations and enrichment as the focus.”

For those that are unfamiliar with river cruising, it brings an entirely new dimension to the cruise experience.  Due to the size of the vessels, it is possible for them to dock right in the heart of the destination's town.  There is no need for an elaborate pier infrastructure.  The ship could even tie up to a tree, as they due in some of the remote parts of the globe.

Walk off the ship and right into the center of action. In most cases, there is no need for a long bus ride to begin seeing the sites.   Due to the size of the ships, there are much fewer guests onboard as well, making for a more intimate experience as you get to know your fellow passengers during the cruise.

Since the number of cabins is limited on the ships, the only way for Viking River to satisfy demand is by adding additional ships.  If you'd like to try this method of cruising, you need to plan early.

RIVER CRUISING GUIDE - Discover the Beauty of River Cruising Watch videos about the Longships: World Record Ship Launching Viking River Cruises 2012 Fleet Upgrades Viking Longboats Christened Viking River Cruises Longships Update A Cruise Line is Born (Viking Cruises)

Introducing Fun Ship 2.0

Last October, Carnival Cruise Lines announced  $500 million dollars worth of enhancements spanning through 2015. The initiative, entitled "Fun Ship 2.0", builds on the success of Carnival Magic’s new branded experiences.

Carnival Liberty was the first ship to undergo the face-lift, adding about half of the 11 new features. As Carnival Breeze comes closer to completion, the remaining features will be coming to the forefront. The new features belong to the following four categories.

Dining 

For added dining , TV personality and Celebrity Chef Guy Fieri has joined forces with Carnival to bring Guy’s Burger Joint. Guests will have the their choice of homemade burgers made with choice ground beef and complimented with hand-cut fries. This will be a lunch or dinner option for guests, topped off with their own condiment bar. Also added will be a new Cantina with Mexican delights like to order burritos and tacos. All complimentary.

Comedy 

Comedian George Lopez has revamped the Punchliner Comedy club, adding some of his own talent and appearing on some of Carnival’s ships personally. The Punchliner Comedy Club Presented by George Lopez will have pre-recorded video and voice messages from Lopez. Carnival will launch Punchliner brunch as well offering entertainment in the main dining rooms on-board.

Bars 

Carnival is giving bars at sea a new name. Carnival partnered with sports video game company EA SPORTS to bring an interactive sports bar at sea. Not only will there be tournaments and trivia but 16 46-inch big screen TV’s and a 24/7 live sports ticker. To expand on the ever-so-popular Red Frog Pub that was introduced on Carnival Magic, Carnival will be adding Red Frog Rum Pub and BlueIguana Tequila Bar. For the folks that are cruising to heal their sorrows, Carnival is adding an Alchemy Bar where passengers will create their own drinks on a prescription pad. The Library Bar will be added also, being coined “an intimate cocktail lounge.”

Entertainment 

Carnival is taking entertainment to the next level with Playlist Productions, 30-minute shows with LEDs, special effects, and sing alongs. Teaming up with game leader Hasbro, Inc. to create interactive game shows at seas. Also Carnival is teaming up with DJ Irie and creating Spin’iversity for folks who want to learn to mix music.

Which Ship is Right for You

By the end of 2012, three ships in the fleet will host 10 of the 11 new features of Fun Ship 2.0 with three more having at least 4 of the features.  Even among those ships, there will be a variance in which features are deployed on each vessel.  We've put a chart together, based on information that has been released to date, showing the features on each ship.

We've also included the schedule so that you can plan your cruise vacation following the dry dock that will complete the transformation.

Fun Ship 2.0 Feature	Liberty	Breeze	Dream	Conquest	Glory	Splendor
Punchliners Comedy Club		x	x	x	x	x
Guy’s Burger Joint	x	x		x	x
Hasbro, The Game Show		x		x	x
EA Sports Bar	x			x	x
DJ IRIE Spin’versity	x	x	x	x	x	x
Playlist Productions		x		x	x
RedFrog Rum Bar	x	x	x	x	x	x
BlueIguana Tequila Bar	x	x	x	x	x	x
BlueIguana Cantina		x		x	x
Alchemy Bar	x	x		x	x
Library Bar		x

In future articles, we'll look closer at some of the new features.  The first of which is

Hasbro The Game Show Coming Soon to Sea

Dry Dock Schedule 2011 Carnival Liberty (Dry docks Oct. 8-22, 2011) 2012 Carnival Breeze (currently under construction, debuts June 3, 2012) Carnival Dream (Dry Dock: Sept. 8-22, 2012) Carnival Conquest (Dry Dock: Oct. 14-28, 2012) Carnival Glory (Dry Dock: Nov. 2-15, 2012) Carnival Splendor (Dry Dock:  dates TBD) 2013 Carnival Destiny Carnival Legend Carnival Pride Carnival Victory 2014 Carnival Elation Carnival Freedom Carnival Triumph Carnival Valor 2015 Carnival Magic Carnival Paradise

Qantas Resumes Flights After Court Action

Qantas Airline Grounded 

Entire Fleet

 Disrupting Air Travel 

Across the Globe 

Causing Woes 

For Cruise Passengers

A surprise grounding of all Qantas flights on Saturday caused a nearly 48 hour disruption of service in Australia, Los Angeles, and elsewhere. Flights resumed after an Australian court ruled on the bitter labor dispute which prompted the walk-out.

The Australian government called an emergency court hearing on Saturday night to end the work bans for the sake of the national economy.  There had been no advance warning of the labor action.

Qantas is the largest of Australia's four national domestic airlines, and the grounding affected 108 planes in 22 countries. About 70,000 passengers fly Qantas daily, and would-be fliers this weekend were stuck at home, hotels or airports, or even had to suddenly deplane when Qantas suspended operations. More than 60 flights were in the air at the time but continued to their destinations, and Qantas was paying for passengers to book other flights according to the airline.

Cruise Passengers Scrambling

Royal Caribbean, Princess and Holland America all have ships sailing in the region and are evaluating the situation. Royal Caribbean's Radiance of the Seas is scheduled to sail from Perth, Australia, on Monday evening, meaning that many passengers are likely scrambling to make alternate travel arrangements. 

It will be 24 to 48 hours before Qantas returns to normal.  See the following link for Latest information about resumption of scheduled Qantas services.

Top 10 Reason For Trip Insurance

This airline strike is unfortunately another example of an unexpected situation that can cause your vacation plans to go awry. We always highly recommend you purchase travel insurance for these unexpected events. We want you to have a worry free vacation, so the small cost of the insurance should be reason enough for peace of mind. The priceless component is that there is someone you can turn to should an emergency situation occur.

This weekend alone, insurance companies, like Travel Guard, were helping stranded passengers due to Tropical Storm Rina, the snowstorms on the East Coast, and this Qantas strike.   And those are only the ones that made front page news.  The most common excuse I hear for not purchasing insurance is "I don't need it, I plan to go no matter what."   As you can see from these examples, you aren't always in control.