Which plug to take?

Was just packing my bag ready for my holiday and got a little worried about which plug to take!

Its OK though I do have an adapter and I will take it with me.

But on my searches on the internet I found this interesting aticle about the  Green  way to power ships when in port. It is an Italian idea and wonder if it will take off.

Gives a different depth, to have we got the right adapter!!

Somewhere different? China

In the last few weeks I have had a number of calls about more exotic places to cruise, and more people are now looking at seeing Beijing before taking a cruise in the Far East.

The opportunity to see Tiananmen Square, the Teraccota Army as well as the other sights of China is one that appeals to me and having seen the opportunities on the cruise front it is certainly high up on my wish list for next year.

There are various options, with Royal Caribbean on Legend of the Seas or Princess Cruise Lines on Diamond Princess to name just two. To the cruise you can add days for sight seeing at the start and end of the cruise and even upgarde to Business Class flights.

Give me a call on 0800 408 6105 and let me see if I can make your Chinese Dreams come true?

An Epic Blog................ part 3 (If you snooze you lose..)

To continue the Saga...................

Epic will be offering cruises from Barcelona from 2011 and the sailings will be launched at the end of March. Don't forget to PRE-REGISTER with me for this. Call me on 0800 408 6105 or send an email to stuartc@cruise.co.uk.

 Don't forget that on Epic all the outside cabins have balconies! This is inivative in the cruise market and you will get your own outside space and sunshine.

The arrow................. this where I will be in September on one of the sailings from Miami! so I will be able to give you a first hand account of the ship!

An Epic Blog .................. Part 2

At last the highly anticipated Norwegian Epic has set sail on her sea trials, late last week she left the snow covered yard in France to start her trails.

Here are a couple of photos from the yard, trying to work out which will be my cabin?

Midships Starboard side, deck 12. can you see that?

An Epic blog ............ (part 1)

When the Complete Cruise Guide was launched a couple of weeks ago the new ship that brought the most comment from my colleagues was the Epic. Everyone seemed to want to see, visit or cruise on this ship!

Well why I asked myself? Is it:-

‘her innovative design and world-class restaurants to her New Wave accommodation and the most happening and sophisticated nightlife at sea, everything about this impressive ship is done on a grand scale.’ (To quote the NCL brochure)

For me, I think it just breaks the mould, will be different and should be a great hit for those who get on board.

There are some 20 different dining options, some with an additional charge, some 18 bars and lounges and you can sip Vodka in an ice bar one of only 14 in the world! The entertainment seems also to be mind blowing – with The Blue Man Group at sea, and ‘The Epic Plunge’ which is a water park at the top of the ship!

So how do you get to see her, well she will sail from Southampton on 24th June 2010 across the Atlantic to New York before going onto Miami for weekly 7 nights Eastern and Western Caribbean trips.

However, NCL have just announced that there new flagship Epic will be based in Europe for the 2011 season. Sailing from Barcelona doing the classic stops in Monte Carlo, Italy and Majorca before returning to Barcelona.

These are not yet on sale but you can pre-register so that you can be first in line when they do go on sale.

In the meantime, if you want to know more about this cruise ship just watch and wait……………

Epic's float out from July 2009, wonder what she looks like now?

A Dubai fire sale?

With the problems in the financial markets over the last year or so, the fate of QE2 is still uncertain. The old lady is now one of a number of Dubai-owned assets which are being prepared for sale as part of there huge fund-raising exercise.

QE2 was purchased by Dubai World from Cunard three years ago for $100m, and they had plans to turn her into a luxury floating hotel, berthed at the man-made Palm Jumeirah island.

However, as property values have fallen and with the company having a significant debt burden, they have been unable to put their ambitious plans into action. To reduce the debt burden Dubai World’s advisers, led by Deloitte, are expected to present the asset sale proposal to its main creditors in the coming months.

QE2 is the world’s most loved ocean liner, many people have stories and memories of the ship. She spent 35 years as the Cunard flagship, travelled over 5.6 million nautical miles doing 25 World Cruises and cossing the Atlantic 803 times, acted as a trrop ship during the Falklands war and carried over 2.5 million guests.

What would you do with such an institution? Queen Mary is berthed in Long Beach as a tourist attraction/hotel. So I think that perhaps the QE2 should become the centrepeice of a Maritime Museum somewher in the UK.

See the link on cruises.co.uk