Posts from — October 2010

Courtesy of Carnival Cruise Lines.

With less than seven months until its maiden voyage, the new Carnival Magic reached another construction milestone when it was “floated out” earlier this week from her outfitting quay at the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy.

The initial stages of a cruise ship’s construction take place in a dry dock facility. Once exterior outfitting is completed, the dry dock is flooded with water and the ship is “floated out” and moved to a wet dock facility where construction continues. [Read more →]

Courtesy of Royal Caribbean International.

While global audiences eagerly await Taylor Swift’s third album Speak Now, dedicated fans also can look forward to seeing Taylor Swift perform live onboard the world’s newest and largest ship. The four-time Grammy® award-winner Taylor Swift will perform onboard Royal Caribbean International’s highly anticipated Allure of the Seas in the ship’s signature AquaTheater, an amphitheater-style space with an ocean view, on Friday, Jan. 21, 2011. To date, the first single released from Speak Now, entitled “Mine,” has sold more than 1 million copies. [Read more →]

A compilation from The Cruise Web employees.

When on a cruise or touring a new destination, everyone loves to indulge in the local foods and treats, usually breaking away from our healthy eating! The Cruise Web staff has come together to share with you some secrets behind our favorite treats, both on and off the ship! We would love for you to share some of your favorite “treats!”

Chris R.
My favorite treat is a tough one, because there are so many and I like to take advantage of all of the treats. So here are my treats, in no particular order: A midnight slice of pepperoni pizza, soft serve ice cream by the pool, Celebrity’s Sorbet Parade, an after-dinner drink of Frangelico, NCL’s Midnight Chocolate Buffet, and waffles with whipped cream and fruit for breakfast. I’m sure I’m missing some, but that just means I have to go on another cruise so that I can refresh my memory. Happy Halloween! [Read more →]

Courtesy of Royal Caribbean International.

Royal Caribbean International is slipping-on its boogie shoes this spring and debuting Saturday Night Fever: The Musical, the third licensed main-stage musical production at sea for the cruise line. Created by Royal Caribbean Productions in association with Robert Stigwood Organisation Ltd., the acclaimed-West End show will debut aboard Liberty of the Seas in April 2011, as part of the ship’s revitalization and shipboard enhancements beginning in late January 2011 aboard the popular Freedom-class cruise ship.  Based on the hugely popular, 1970s feature film, Saturday Night Fever, the theatrical experience features a repertoire of hit songs from The Bee Gees song album sure to inspire guests to dance the night away.

“The debut of Saturday Night Fever: The Musical, created by Royal Caribbean Productions’ in-house entertainment team, continues to raise the bar for cruise vacations aboard one of our most innovative ships,” said Lisa Bauer, senior vice president, Hotel Operations, Royal Caribbean International. “Our award-winning musical productions have been so incredibly well-received by guests, first with Hairspray aboard Oasis of the Seas and then with the announcement of Chicago: the Musical aboard Allure of the Seas. It’s only fitting we broaden the selection to include a West End hit as Liberty of the Seas embarks on its maiden season in Europe for summer 2011.” [Read more →]

Courtesy of Yachts of Seabourn.

The Yachts of Seabourn has announced that multiple award-winning broadcast journalist Ted Koppel will join the exciting line-up of prominent guest speakers for its Dress Circle enrichment program on the 111-day maiden world cruise aboard the new Seabourn Sojourn. He will speak to guests on board the ultra-luxury yacht April 10 – 21, 2011, during two World Cruise segment voyages, sharing his insights about past and current world affairs and his experiences during a remarkable broadcast career.

The addition of Koppel to Seabourn’s Dress Circle embodies the line’s commitment to providing well-respected, entertaining and informative guest speakers at sea. The intimate size of Seabourn’s yachts provides its guests with exceptional opportunities to meet and learn from these distinguished luminaries while sharing the voyage with them.

[Read more →]

Courtesy of Princess Cruises.

Island Princess helped inaugurate the Port of San Francisco’s new shore power facility by “plugging in” to electric power from shore.

The new shore power technology at the Port of San Francisco cruise ship terminal enables Princess Cruises’ ships, and other equipped vessels, to use power from the city’s grid instead of the engines to power the ship’s onboard services–reducing emissions when docked in San Francisco.

The port becomes the fourth in the world where Princess Cruises’ ships can take advantage of this innovative technology. The new shore power installation in San Francisco is a cooperative effort by the Port of San Francisco, San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, the Environmental Protection Agency, Holland America Line and Princess Cruises. [Read more →]

In keeping with this month’s Trick-or-Treat theme, we’d like to hear about your all-time favorite Halloween costumes (plus, we want more costume ideas for ourselves)! Feel free to think back on childhood favorites or look ahead to future costume plans. Heck, it doesn’t even have to be a costume you wore, so long as it was a good one!

On October 13, 2010, The Cruise Web office was overcome by the excited shrills of ladies everywhere as employees celebrated the engagement announcement of Rabia Tallim, Human Resources Coordinator and Administrative Assistant.

Rabia and her fiancé Terence have been dating for quite some time and it was just a matter of waiting for the perfect moment, which turned out to be the day before her birthday! The Cruise Web had a small surprise celebration in honor of Rabia’s engagement and birthday, which we respectfully titled a “birthgagement.”

The proposal was magical and perfectly described the couple: comfortable and intimate. Terence planned out a surprise dinner which included hiding the ring with the dessert. A wedding location has not yet been set, but the couple plans on either having it in Upstate New York or Hawaii, where their families are located.

The Cruise Web is happy to hear about the engagement and wishes both Rabia and her new fiancé all the best in their new lives together.

The Cruise Web is pleased to announce that the baby stork has delivered another new member to The Cruise Web Family. On October 13, 2010, Sales Manager Mike Harris and his wife, Amy, welcomed a beautiful, healthy baby girl!

Olivia Marion Harris was born at 12pm, weighing 6 pounds 3 ounces and measuring 19 inches long.  Both Amy and Olivia are happy and healthy. Born just in time for Halloween, Olivia’s first costume will be a pumpkin!

Olivia looks forward to joining last month’s new Cruise Web family additions Jacob and Sammy on a cruise when they all reach 6 months of age (the minimum age requirement for most cruise lines!)

A compilation from The Cruise Web employees.

Halloween is the perfect time of year to let loose and step into an alter ego! The staff at The Cruise Web has taken a walk down memory lane and picked some of their own personal favorite costumes from Halloweens past and present. Do you have a favorite costume that you or someone you’ve seen has worn? We would love to hear your favorites! Plus it’s a great way to get ideas for this Halloween in case you haven’t started creating your costume yet!

Karolina S.
My 9-month-old daughter, Sophie, will be celebrating her first Halloween this year! Sophie will be an adorable little Tiger! My husband and I recently became members of FONZ (Friends of the National Zoo) and have been visiting the zoo with Sophie. When at the zoo, Sophie enjoys the colors and sounds of tigers, which helped us to decide on her first costume! We’ll be accompanying Sophie as tiger handlers! [Read more →]