1.
Celebrity's Celebrities!
- Bring your autograph book along with you on
these cruises!
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| If you're looking for stars, don't look up into
the night sky - at least not on Celebrity. Instead,
drop by the theater or show lounge and look up at
the stage. If you're onboard a select list of Celebrity
Cruises itineraries this summer and fall, you may
want to bring along your autograph book because
they've booked some celebrities you might want to
meet and talk with. Each celebrity guest will be
speaking, answering questions, or available for
autographs and handshakes! |
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• July 25, 2003: Infinity - 7-Night
Alaska cruise
Dick Morris, FOX News Channel commentator
and former political consultant to former
President Bill Clinton is onboard to talk
politics!
• July 25, 2003: Infinity - 7-Night
Alaska cruise (same as above).
Academy Award winner Ernest Borgnine will
be onboard to reminisce with you on his
movie and television roles.
• September 12, 2003:Galaxy - 10-Night
Western Caribbean cruise
"Eight is Enough" star Dick Van
Patten is onboard to share his long career
with you, including his close association
with Mel Brooks.
• September 22, 2003: Constellation
- 11-Night Europe cruise
He walked in space. He was an Apollo Command
Module Pilot. Today, he's a motivational
speaker. He's Dick Gordon, Jr. and he's
onboard!
• October 2, 2003: Millennium -
12-Night Europe cruise
Television and radio newsman, political
correspondent on the "Today Show,"
and host on the History Channel - the name
Sander Vanocur is familiar to us all.
• October 2, 2003: Millennium -
12-Night Europe cruise (same
as above).
He created and produced the first "Tonight
Show." He produced "The Steve
Allen Show" and Emmy-winning specials.
His name is Bill Harbach and he's got stories
to tell!
• November 8, 2003: Century - 7-Night
Western Caribbean cruise
There was Ralph, Norton, Alice and Trixie
- characters in the phenomenally successful
"Honeymooners" TV series. Meet
Jane Kean who starred as Trixie from
1966 - 1978.
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2.
Jacksonville Scores!
- Carnival and Celebrity put Jacksonville
on the cruise map!
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| There was a
time when the word "cruise" was almost synonymous
with "Miami," or "Ft. Lauderdale."
No longer.
While those South Florida cities still claim the number
one and two spots for cruise passenger boardings, the
times, they are a-changing! Less-used ports such as
New York, New Orleans, Tampa, Los Angeles and San Francisco
have seen their passenger counts double and triple and
new, "never-used" cruise ports are opening
up every year.
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| Jacksonville, Florida, is the latest on the list. Located
a half-day's drive closer to the population centers of
the Southeast than Miami or Ft. Lauderdale, it was only
a matter of time before the major cruise lines arrived.
Here's the latest news: |
• Carnival: .
The brand-new Carnival Miracle will begin
3- and 5-night Bahamas and 6-night Western
Caribbean cruises from Jacksonville in March
of 2004. The 2,124-passenger ship, fourth
edition in their popular series of "Spirit-class"
liners, will schedule its entire inaugural
season from the city.
What's more, Carnival will dock the 88,500-ton
ship in town during Super Bowl XXXIX, almost
next door to the riverside ALLTELL Stadium,
host to the game. From Wednesday, February
2, 2005, through Monday, February 7, the Carnival
Miracle will offer her 1,062 rooms as a "floating
hotel" for the city.
• Celebrity:
Beginning in October, 2003, Celebrity will
launch a series of "Exotic Caribbean"
cruises aboard the 47,000-ton Zenith. The
11-, 13- and 14-night cruises will be far-ranging,
calling at ports as far west as Cozumel, to
Aruba in the south and to Barbados in the
east. The Barbados visits include an overnight
stay aboard the ship - an industry itinerary
first for that port.
The itineraries will include Celebrity's
first calls at ports such as Roatan, Honduras
and extra time at Colon, Panama, where cruise
passengers can tour the canal operation and
facilities, as well as hop a train to see
the Pacific Ocean coast!
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3.
It's About "Time" - Princess
says, "So long Seward and Welcome to Whittier!"
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| Ten thousand - that's
how many minutes there are in a 7-night cruise.
So what's the big deal about shaving 30 minutes
off a simple ship-to-airport transfer?
Transfers aren't always so "simple."
Take Alaska, for instance. Years ago, most cruise
lines utilized passenger rail transfers between
Anchorage (where the airport is) and the seaport
of Whittier (where the cruise pier is). When Whittier
voted in a $1.00 per passenger head tax, cruise
lines balked and rerouted their ships via Seward.
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| Well, the tax has since been repealed and Princess,
at least, is back! Effective May, 2004, Princess'
"Voyage of the Glacier" cruises will once
again embark and debark in Whittier, Alaska, rather
than Seward. The Whittier facility is only 65 miles
from Anchorage (where virtually all cruise passengers
arrive or depart their flights), one hundred miles
closer than Seward. The time savings is made possible
by the two and one-half mile Anton Anderson railroad
tunnel constructed during World War II.
Transfers, however, will not me made via train.
The toll tunnel, the longest in North America,
has recently been modified to accommodate a single
lane of vehicular traffic above the rail track
bed. Transfers will now be via motorcoaches -
operationally more flexible and less expensive
for the cruise line than trains. Travel time through
the tunnel is just over six minutes.
Wait - a single lane of vehicular traffic? That's
right. Every 15 minutes the traffic direction
through the tunnel reverses (one reason the 100-mile
saving in distance translates to just an average
30-minute time saving). Of course, no vehicular
traffic in either direction is allowed while a
train is using the tunnel.
Besides time, here's what cruise passengers will
gain from the Seward-to-Whittier switch: |
• More flight choices. Thirty minutes
may not seem like much, but it open up more flight
opportunities coming or going into Anchorage International.
More flight opportunities means fewer "red-eye"
itineraries and fewer lengthy layovers on route.
• New cruise facilities. A 20,000-square-foot
terminal, a privately-financed structure near the
mouth of Whittier Creek, will ease the transfer
of passengers from ship to shore.
• Shorter, but equally scenic drive.
Apart from the tunnel (no one has attempted to call
it a "scenic tunnel ride" - yet) cruise
passengers will still see all the scenic highlights
during their shorter drive - Portage Glacier, Portage
Glacier Lake, Turnagain Arm, and the nearby Chugach
Mountains. |
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