Sunday, February 23, 2014

Celebrity Eclipse - Another Great Transatlantic Repositioning Cruise Deal


Transatlantic repositioning season is coming up fast and so are the deals. With Celebrity Eclipse, the 13 night cruise leaving Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on April 19 is an especially great deal for Military, Police and Fire, as well as seniors 55 and older.

The Cruise

celebrity eclipse transatlantic repositioning cruise
 

The 13 night transatlantic repositioning cruise onboard Celebrity Eclipse embarks from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida at 4:30pm on Saturday, April 19, 2014. Eclipse arrives in Southampton in the United Kingdom at 5:30am on Friday, May 2. Along the way, she makes three port calls, one of which is an overnight stay.


On Sunday, April 20, Eclipse doesn’t go too far from her winter home port, stopping at Nassau in the Bahamas from 7am until 3pm. She follows that up by a full day at sea, moving northeast over the Atlantic Ocean.

Eclipse docks at King’s Wharf in Bermuda on Tuesday, April 22 at 1pm. She doesn’t leave port until the following day at 5pm. This allows guests plenty of time to move about on land before four full days at sea before the next port of call.

On Monday, April 28, Eclipse stops at Ponta Delgada, the largest city in the Azores Islands, belonging to Portugal. She is docked in the Azores from 7am until 5pm before heading out on the last leg of the trip before reaching Southampton.

The Price


For the regular Joe, the price for an inside stateroom starts at $689 per person, based on double occupancy. With $129 in government taxes and fees tacked on, the total price for an inside cabin for two can be had for as low as $1,636, including taxes.

Other levels of stateroom are reasonable with ocean view cabins starting at $849 per person, balcony staterooms starting at $959 per person and suites from $2,699 per person.

The discount for former and current members of the Canadian and American armed forces is deep. The same inside cabin that starts at $689 can be had for $542 per person if just one guest in the room qualifies as military. This same discount is also available for those employed as policemen or firefighters.

Seniors get not quite the same discount but it’s still pretty deep. If one guest in the stateroom is 55 or older, each guest pays $599 each. All discounted prices are still subject to the same $129 in government fees and taxes.

The Ship 

Celebrity Eclipse was built by Meyer Werft in Papenburg, Germany and made her maiden voyage for Celebrity Cruises on April 29, 2010. The Solstice Class ship is large with a gross tonnage of 121,878. The ship is 317 metres or 1,041 feet in length. There are 13 decks accessible to the capacity 2,850 passengers. Generally, there are 1,271 crew members onboard.

The Small Print


·Because of the nature of last minute deals, the pricing printed here is fleeting and could change at any time.

·Prices are in Canadian dollars.

·Most meals are included in a typical cruise price but DRINKS ARE NOT!

·Also not included are gratuities.

·Cruise pricing does not include air fare, ground transfers and hotel accommodations before and after the cruise.

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Great Deals For Brilliance of the Seas Western Caribbean Cruise - Act Fast!


This is a great deal, but you really have to act fast. Brilliance of the Seas rolls out of Tampa on Monday, February 24 and you can be on that ship for a great price. If you’re present or former military or you’re in the police or fire services, the deal is even sweeter.

The Cruise

royal caribbean brilliance of the seas western caribbean cruise
 

Brilliance of the Seas, a Radiance Class ship of Royal Caribbean, embarks from Tampa, Florida on Monday, February 24, 2014 at 4pm for a five night Western Caribbean cruise. Brilliance returns to Tampa at 7am on Saturday, March 1. Along the way, the ship makes two port calls.


After cruising down the Gulf Coast of Florida, Brilliance of the Seas stops at Key West, Florida on Tuesday, February 25. She is in port from 11:30am until 5:30pm, just enough time to live a little of that Ernest Hemingway lifestyle.

After a full day at sea, crossing above Cuba in the Gulf of Mexico, Brilliance makes her second port call at Cozumel, Mexico. The ship is docked at the Mexican tropical island paradises from 8am until 6pm on Thursday, February 27. She takes another full day at sea before arriving back home in Tampa.

The Price


Going, going but not quite gone. An inside stateroom can be had for as low as $249 per person, based on double occupancy. The government fees and taxes for this cruise are very low at just $68 per person. The total for two for an inside cabin currently costs as low as $634, including taxes. But wait, that’s not all. There is an additional $25 per cabin onboard credit. An outside stateroom with a balcony is priced as low as $749 per person.,

The discounts for former and present members of the armed forces in Canada and the United States bring the inside cabin down to $221 per person. Royal Caribbean honours those heroes in the police and fire services, as well, with the same discount as military.

The Ship 

Brilliance of the Seas was built by Meyer Werft in Papenburg, Germany and made her maiden voyage for Royal Caribbean in July, 2002. Brilliance is the second oldest of the four Radiance Class ships in the RC fleet with Radiance of the Seas as the oldest, along with younger sisters Serenade of the Seas and Jewel of the Seas.

This is a good sized ship with a gross tonnage of 90,090. Brilliance of the Seas is 292 metres or 958 feet in length and has 12 decks accessible to passengers. The capacity, based on double occupancy, is for 2,501 passengers. There are typically 859 crew members onboard.
 

The Small Print


·Because of the nature of last minute deals, the pricing printed here is fleeting and could change at any time.

·Prices are in Canadian dollars.

·Most meals are included in a typical cruise price but DRINKS ARE NOT!

·Also not included are gratuities.

·Cruise pricing does not include air fare, ground transfers and hotel accommodations before and after the cruise.

Friday, February 14, 2014

Unbelievable Price For A 11 Night Southern Caribbean Cruise On Norwegian Sun


Given the choice between a Western, Eastern or Southern Caribbean cruise out of Florida, ten times out of ten, I would choose the Southern itinerary. Why? You’re still visiting high traffic tourist traps but those destinations in the Southern Caribbean are just so much more exotic than those within swimming distance of Florida. The problem? Very rarely is there a great priced Southern Caribbean cruise out of Florida.

Well, we found one. The price is awesome and the itinerary aboard Norwegian Sun provides as much variety as possible for a cruise leaving out of Florida, as opposed to San Juan, Puerto Rico. The one issue is time. This is an eleven day cruise that may not agree with many people’s rigid vacation schedules.

The Cruise

norwegian sun southern caribbean cruise
 

Norwegian Sun embarks from Miami, Florida at 4pm on Thursday, March 6, 2014 on an eleven night Southern Caribbean cruise. Sun arrives back in Miami for 8am on Monday, March 17. Along the way, the ship makes five port calls. There are five full days at sea in which to enjoy all this modern ship has to offer.


For this itinerary, Norwegian doesn’t screw around with stops in the Bahamas. Rather, Norwegian Sun charges straight south for two full days through the Atlantic Ocean / Caribbean Sea and arrives at Oranjestad, Aruba on Sunday, March 9. The ship is docked at the ‘A’ of the ‘ABC Islands’ (Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao) from 8am until 5pm. In fact, NCL makes it very easy for passengers on this cruise with every port of call scheduled from 8am until 5pm.

Skipping Bonaire, Norwegian Sun stops at Willemstad, Curacao on Monday, March 10. After these two full days of near equatorial heat, culture, snorkeling and partying, take a day to relax on the ship before docking at Bridgetown, Barbados on Wednesday, March 12.

The fourth stop occurs on Thursday, March 13 and this is the one that should make your friends ask, “Say again? Where the hell were you?” Pointe-A-Pitre, Guadeloupe is the last true southern destination before heading northward.

The final stop occurs on Friday, March 14 at St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. St. Thomas is a pivot point in the Caribbean and is included in Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries, as well as the Southern cruises. After leaving St. Thomas, you have two more full days at sea to soak in those last rays of tropical sunshine before flying back to the cold, cold north.

The Price


Don’t expect this price to last. That’s not a car salesman tactic, it’s simply the truth. An inside stateroom for this cruise can be had for as low as $479 per person, based on double occupancy. With the additional $108.87 per person in government taxes and fees tacked on, an inside cabin for two goes from $1,175.74.

From the inside out and up, the prices go up rapidly. An Ocean View cabin is still reasonable at $599. However, adding a balcony pushes the price to $1,099 per person and a suite is nearly double that at from $2,099 per person.  Present and former military personnel from Canada and the United States should note that discounts apply and an inside stateroom is reduced to from $449 for these heroes.

The Ship 

Norwegian Sun is one of two Sun Class ships in the Norwegian Cruise Line fleet. The other is Norwegian Sky, the older sister that was put in service in 1999. Sun was put in service in 2001 and was last refurbed in 2011.

This may have been a large ship in 2001 but is now closer to a medium sized boat. Norwegian Sun has a gross tonnage of 78,309 with a length of 258 metres or 848 feet. There are 13 decks accessible to passengers. The ship has a capacity for 2,002 guests, based on double occupancy. There are typically 968 crew members on board.

The Small Print


·Because of the nature of last minute deals, the pricing printed here is fleeting and could change at any time.

·Prices are in Canadian dollars.

·Most meals are included in a typical cruise price but DRINKS ARE NOT!

·Also not included are gratuities.

·Cruise pricing does not include air fare, ground transfers and hotel accommodations before and after the cruise.